Favorite Albums of 2009

15. Ramona Falls - Intuit

Going Once, Going Twice (mp3)

14. Anni Rossi - Rockwell

Las Vegas (mp3)

13. Bowerbirds - Upper Air

Northern Lights (mp3)

12. Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career

Careless Love (mp3)

11. Atlas Sound - Logos

Sheila (mp3)

10. Beirut: March of the Zapotec & Realpeople: Holland

La Llorona (mp3)

9. Dirty Projectors: Bitte Orca

Two Doves (mp3)

8. Grizzly Bear: Veckatimest

While You Wait For The Others (mp3)

7. Throw Me The Statue: Creaturesque

Ancestors (mp3)

6. Bill Callahan: Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle

Eid Ma Clack Shaw (mp3)

5. The Mountain Goats: The Life of the World To Come

1 John 4:16 (mp3)

4. Cass McCombs: Catacombs

Harmonia (mp3)

3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It's Blitz!

Skeletons (mp3)

2. Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

Lisztomania (mp3)

1. Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavillion

Summertime Clothes (mp3)

Lyricist #1 - Will Sheff

I follow the blog of the poet Ada Limón, and she posted recently about an assignment given to her by Indigest Magazine to interview an artist who works in a different genre. She chose Will Sheff of Okkervil River. And I'm so glad she did. He is a truly brilliant lyricist. He rhymes without sounding compromised or cheesy, he uses repetition without it turning to filler, he can use tricks without sounding forced or contrived. He chooses his words so carefully. The lyrics read brilliantly on their own, but are understood more deeply when coupled with the music (not always the case with good lyrics). There might be a danger to approaching songwriting in too literary a manner, lest the words overshadow the song and melody itself. But whether his songs are whispy or loud he always maintains a balance. Will Sheff, a lyricist himself adored by poets.

Here are two examples:

"A Stone" is sad & superb. The narrator doesn't give any reasons why this girl should love him instead of this stone. He doesn't vow to lay her down in a bed of roses, so to speak, or raise her up so she can stand on mountains, as it were. He just flays her with this indictment of misdirected love. The end just kills.

"Unless it Kicks" is a tour de force. How many songs have we heard over the years about the trappings of rock and roll, and life on the road, etc.? None is more forthright about "living the lie" as Sheff is here, but through shared experience Sheff is able to find some jubliance, some wonder, some meaning despite the doomed nature of the whole affair.

A Stone (mp3)
Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy (2005)

Hot breath, rough skin, warm laughs and smiling, the loveliest words whispered and meant - you like all these things. But, though you like all these things, you love a stone. You love a stone, because it's smooth and it's cold. And you'd love most to be told that it's all your own. You love white veins, you love hard grey, the heaviest weight, the clumsiest shape, the earthiest smell, the hollowest tone - you love a stone. And I'm found too fast, called too fond of flames, and then I'm phoning my friends, and then I'm shouldering the blame, while you're picking pebbles out of the drain, miles ago. You're out singing songs, and I'm down shouting names at the flickerless screen, going f*&%ing insane. Am I losing my cool, overstating my case? Well, baby, what can I say? You know I never claimed that I was a stone. And you love a stone. You love white veins, you love hard grey, the heaviest weight, the clumsiest shape, the earthiest smell, the hollowest tone - you love a stone. You love a stone, because it's dark, and it's old, and if it could start being alive you'd stop living alone.

And I think I believe that if stones could dream, they'd dream of being laid side-by-side, piece-by-piece, and turned into a castle for some towering queen they're unable to know. And when that queen's daughter came of age, I think she'd be lovely and stubborn and brave, and suitors would journey from kingdoms away to make themselves known. And I think that I know the bitter dismay of a lover who brought fresh bouquets every day when she turned him away to remember some knave who once gave just one rose, one day, years ago

Unless It Kicks (mp3)
Okkervil River - The Stage Names (2007)

What gives this mess some grace unless it's kicks, man - unless it is fictions, unless it's sweat or it's songs? What hits against this chest unless it's a sick man's hand, from some midlevel band? He's been driving too long on a dark windless night, with the stereo on, with the towns flying by and the ground getting soft.

And a sound in the sky, coming down from above, it surrounds you and sighs and is whispering of what pulls your body down, and that is quicksand. So climb out quick, hand over hand, before your mouth's all filled up. What picks you up from down unless it's tricks, man? When I've been fixed I am convinced that I will not get so broke up again.

And on a seven day high, that heavenly song punches right through my mind and just hums through my blood. And I know it's a lie, but I'll still give my love. Hey, my heart's on the line for your hands to pluck off.

What gives this mess some grace unless it's fiction - unless it's licks, man, unless it's lies or it's love? What breaks this heart the most is the ghost of some rock and roll fan, floating up from the stands with her heart opened up. And I want to tell her, "Your love isn't lost," and say "my heart is still crossed!" I want to scream, "hey, you're so wonderful! What a dream in the dark - about working so hard, about glowing, so stoned, trying not to turn off, trying not to believe in that lie all on your own."

Lyricist #2 - John Darnielle

For almost 20 years John Darnielle has crafted intense, uncompromising, original music. Whenever you hear the Mountain Goats you know it is them and not another. As far as vocals go I've never been his greatest fan, but I've come around the long way to that nasal deadpan delivery. And when it comes to lyrics there aren't many musicians out there that can even come close to John Darnielle. He is also staggeringly prolific. The first thing I ever heard from the Mountain Goats was "The Sunset Tree" in 2005, which by that time was already pretty far along in the discography. It marked a departure from his earlier material in that it was the most confessional collection of songs he'd ever released (and I am a true sucker for the honesty that accompanies that sort of thing). A large part of the album's subject matter deals autobiographically with Darnielle's relationship with his abusive stepfather. At one point he sings about a fantasized confrontation with the man, "I'm going to get myself in fighting trim, scope out every angle of unfair advantage. I'm going to bribe the officials. I'm going to kill all the judges. It's going to take you people years to recover from all of the damage." (!). By the album's end, however he seems to be coming to a sort of reconcilliation with the stepfather, and closes it out with this little beauty:

Pale Green Things (mp3)
The Mountain Goats - The Sunset Tree (2005)

Got up before dawn. Went down to the racetrack, riding with the windows down, shortly after your first heart attack. You parked behind the paddock. Cracking asphalt underfoot. Coming up through the cracks. Pale green things. Pale green things.

You watched the horses run their workouts. You held your stopwatch in your left hand, and a racing form beneath your arm. Casting your gaze way out to no man's land. Sometimes I'll meet you out there, lonely and frightened. Flicking my tongue out at the wet leaves. Pale green things. Pale green things.

My sister called at 3 AM, just last December. She told you how you'd died at last. At last, that morning at the racetrack was one thing that I remembered. I turned it over in my mind like a living Chinese finger trap. Seaweed in Indiana sawgrass. Pale green things. Pale green things.

Lyricist #3 - James Mercer

A friend of mine once commented on how unfortunate it was that The Shins came about at a time when "The" bands were so ubiquitous. It would have been easy to lump them into the mix of wannabe throwback hipsters. For every gift like The Walkmen or The Decemberists there were outfits like The Vines, The Killers, The Ravonettes, or The Strokes (not a fan). And although the exposure they got from Garden State almost became a cruel joke ("You gotta hear this one song. It'll change your life, I swear." ::vomit::), James Mercer's endlessly creative melodies and equally creative lyrics speak for themselves. The Shins have something to say, and say it poetically.

One of the greatest break-up songs of all time, in my opinion, is Past and Pending. The song opens up in the Fall, the year is dying along with the relationship. Betrayal and infidelity burn in one set of eyes, and the narrator is caught in that painful moment between an idyllic past and lonely future. Anyone suffering from a broken heart knows what its like to "loiter the whole day through and lose yourself in lines disecting love." The risk the lyrics run throughout is in the complexity of metaphor. Mercer takes the figurative "lines" disecting his relationship and doubles their meaning, sadness, beauty through the lyrical lines he's writing, disecting his love in song.

Past and Pending (mp3)
The Shins - Oh, Inverted World (2001)

As someone sets light to the first fire of autumn, we settle down to cut ourselves apart. Cough and twitch from the news on your face and some foreign candle burning in your eyes. Held to the past too aware of the pending, chill as the dawn breaks and finds us up for sale. Enter the fog another low road descending away from the cold lust, your house and summertime. Blind to the last cursed affair, pistols and countless eyes, a trail of white blood betrays the reckless route your craft is running. Feed till the sun turns into wood dousing an ancient torch. Loiter the whole day through and lose yourself in lines dissecting love. Your name on my cast and my notes on your stay offer me little but doting on a crime. We've turned every stone and for all our inventions in matters of love loss, we've no recourse at all. Blind to the last cursed affair, pistols and countless eyes, a trail of white blood betrays the reckless route your craft is running feed till the sun turns into wood dousing an ancient torch. Loiter the whole day through and lose yourself in lines dissecting love.

Lyricist #4 - Sufjan Stevens

I've never regretted the day I went to the record store and slapped down $14.99 (plus tax) for a brand new album called "Greetings From Michigan: The Great Lakes State." (Record stores? What are those?) I'd been perusing various internet music sites and found the song "Romulus", which blew me away. Sufjan Stevens has been one of my favorite musical artists ever since. He graduated from The New School with an MFA in creative writing, where he also won the Chapbook award for fiction. (You can read some of his peices online. I recommend "All The Nonsense of Suffering" and "We Are Sheilded By the Holy Ghost".) Though it may not seem like it, based on the quantity of output, he is a feirce self-editor, which is essential in any writing (lyrical or otherwise).

One of my favorite Sufjan tracks is Vito's Ordination Song. Christy and I have two sons. When I hear this song, I can't help but think of taking each one into my arms, annointing their heads, and wanting for them every good thing, no matter what.

Vito's Ordination Song (mp3)
Sufjan Stevens - Greetings From Michigan - The Great Lake State (2003)

I always knew you in your mother’s arms. I have called your name. I have an idea placed in your mind: to be a better man. I've made a crown for you. Put it in your room. And when the bridegroom comes there will be noise. There will be glad. And a perfect bed. And when you write a poem I know the words. I know the sounds before you write it down. When you wear your clothes, I wear them too. I wear your shoes and your jacket too. I always knew you in your mother’s arms. I have called you son. I've made amends between father and son. Or, if you haven't one, rest in my arms. Sleep in my bed. There is a design to what I did and said.

linked images = paintings by Brian Kershisnik

Lyricist #5 - Collin Melloy

Storytelling is one of the most time-honored branches of songwriting. And while still pretty central to most genres of popular music, especially pop country music, the form has devolved, in many respects, into a paint-by-numbers routine. Then there's Collin Melloy. Whether its a concept album based on a Japanese folktale or theatrical tracks about seafarers or gymnasts (and regardless of how such stories strike your fancy), you must admit he is a true storyteller. I recognize the trust he has in his listeners. He tells stories full of metaphor and symbolism and action without talking down or oversimplifying.

One of the key tenets of writing is "show, don't tell." In his song "Red Right Ankle" he shows three stories, each one speaking to a different aspect of the same relationship. He doesn't hand it to you in a to-go bag, but instead relies confidently on the interpretation of the listener. That's hard to do without being overly cryptic and vague.

Red Right Ankle (mp3)

The Decemberists - Her Majesty The Decemberists (2003)

This is the story of your red right ankle and how it came to meet your leg. And how the muscle, bone, and sinews tangled and how the skin was softly shed. And how it whispered, "Oh, adhere to me, for we are bound by symmetry. And whatever differences our lives have been we together make a limb." This is the story of your red right ankle.

This is the story of your gypsy uncle you never knew because he was dead. And how his face was carved and ripped with wrinkles in the picture in your head. And remember how you found the key to his hideout in the Pyrenees? But you wanted to keep his secret safe, so you threw the key away. This is the story of your gypsy uncle.

This is the story of the boys who loved you, who love you now and loved you then. And some were sweet and some were cold and snuffed you, and some just layed around in bed. And some, they crumbled you straight to your knees-- did it cruel, did it tenderly. Some, they crawled their way into your heart to rend your ventricles apart. This is the story of the boys who loved you.

This is the story of your red right ankle.

Nerd is such a limiting label...

...for Ken Jennings. And I suppose, by virtue of this post, I'm outing myself as a nerd as well. But one of my favorite blogs to read is Ken's. We have similar tastes in music and film, and he is always witty. We've all seen "Thankful Thursday" posts, right? How about trying one of Ken's "Wordplay Wednesdays" or other random mind games! His (probably oversized) brain is constantly turning over trivia, categorizing things in bizzare ways. For example, I'm linking you to two sets of lists. If you are neither bookish, nor a music enthusiast, these probably won't be very interesting. But I really enjoyed both.

The best American novels set in each of the fifty states:
Part One
Part Two

The best musical artist/group formed in each of the fifty states:
Part One
Part Two

Best Albums of 2007

I should just call it what it is -- a list of my favorite albums that I actually made time to listen to in their entirety. I wish I had the time and energy to listen to all of the great music that is released each year, but it seems I am limited to truly digest about 50 to 60 albums each year, so I'm listing my favorite 20. If there is an album about which you would like to talk that isn't listed here please mention it. Though there are many critically well-received records that I really didn't like (Of Montreal, Panda Bear, the National), and there are many I simply didn't get to. I would love to get your recommendations.
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20. Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
This one was a slow grower on me this year, along with several other albums that didn't quite make this list. It is a multi-personality album - somehow managing to seem Greek, Balkan, Southwest, French, and Broadway. Headed by the young and talented Zach Condon, who has a Morrissey-esque crooner vibe, breathes life into instruments that don't spend nearly enough time in the studio (accordion & glockenspiel).



19. Patty Griffin - Children Running Through
Christy & I love, love, love Patty Griffin. She was born to bless us with her voice. Several of her records are absolute gold from start to finish. The problem as a listener lies when you expect to be emotionally taken to those same places by each succeeding record. While this was a fine record, it really didn't touch me like those first ones did. But Patty is still the singer and songwriter doing things that most of us only wish we could do.



18. The Tough Alliance - A New Chance
There is something in the water up in Sweden. Consistently great music just keeps coming from our Scandinavian friends. In my secluded corner of Idaho I grew up listening to 80's hair bands, which is what my environment seemed to require. It wasn't until much later in life that I realized there was a lot of electronic/pop music produced in that decade. I missed out on a lot. The Tough Alliance is giving me a new chance though, by taking up building blocks left behind in those, let's face it, strange years and molding them into something fresh. Try out "Something Special."



17. Bright Eyes - Cassadaga
Perhaps not the best reviewed album this year and its easy to see why, because clearly Connor Oberst has all of the potential to create absolute masterpieces. He is polarizing for me. Half of this album I listened to a lot this year, and the other half I skipped the track almost every time. "Lime Tree", "Classic Cars," and "Four Winds" are all amazing songs.



16. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
You've gotta love "Underdog," the first single and poppiest, juciest track from the album. If you bought the record wanting ten songs like that you would have been disappointed. But Spoon is consistent in its instantly recognizable brand of indie rock. "Don't Make Me a Target" and "Finer Feelings" are great tunes, and although for me they have still yet to rise to the level of amazingness that they had on "Kill the Moonlight," I enjoyed this release.


15. Low - Drums and Guns
I wouldn't consider myself a huge Low fan, but almost everything I've heard or read from Alan Sparhawk has really impressed me. While I don't think his Mormon faith defines his music, it is wonderful to see members of the LDS faith approach the art that lives within them with the unapologetic commitment that he has. Drums & Guns is both light & heavy hearted. One song is a smiling head bopper, referencing the Stones & the Beatles burying the hatchet. The next he's singing about how willing Christians tend to be in offering themselves as murderers for the cause.



14. Band of Horses - Cease to Begin
Not nearly as rocking as last year's "Everything All The Time", which I loved too, but still nice in its own way. This is a band that makes good use of repetition, classic song structure, and rock hooks. Ben Bridwell's voice carries it all beautifully. I can understand how this might be a little too flannel shirt and belt buckle for some, but I've worn too many flannel shirts and belt buckles in my day to not like this album.



13. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
The thing that I had to overcome in my initial encounter with Okkervil River was Will Sheff's voice (which is beautiful to me now). It may have been something about his pronunciation or intonation or some other -ation, but I thought he was a punk rocker trying to sing nice acoustic songs. I realized my mistake before long. Despite the simple sounding chord progressions and simple sounding melodies, there is actually quite brainy, complicated stuff going on here. He is a spinner of lyrics that constantly make me smile.



12. Luke Temple - Snowbeast
How strange do you like your music? You Bjork and Deerhoof lovers are raising your hands, the rest of you are still thinking. I grow so tired of indie weirdness sometimes that I just have to crank some Kenny Chesney to clear my head. But Luke Temple, strange as he is, balances that line between odd and delightful in a way that suits me just right. His voice was a little too androgynous for me at first, but it has grown on me. I really think this album is fantastic and he is an artist you'll be hearing great things from in years to come.




11. Elliott Smith - New Moon
Enough will never be said about the late great Elliott Smith. For me he is a touchstone and clearly one of the greatest songwriters of the last quarter century. New Moon contains two CDs of what was essentially B-side material that never made it off the cutting room floor as well as a few covers and alternate versions. But the truth is Elliott's B-material is better than most people's best. In "New Disaster" he sings, "Ghost of your smile is always looking for new bodies to haunt and it's been here, it is up here...gradually gone it's pleasing and freezing." We wish for Elliott's smile back, if for nothing else because we want to believe he's wearing one, to believe he's found peace.



10. Menomena - Friend and Foe
This album provided one of my most listened to tracks this year. I've consistently thrown on "Muscle'n Flo" whenever I wanted to get pumped on my way into the office for a grueling day at the keyboard. "Oh in the evening I stumble my way towards another daily struggle. It's dark out. Its time that I pick up my hustle." Truthfully there are several parts of this album that are take it or leave it for me, but the highs are so high ("Wet and Rusting", "Rotten Hell" etc.) that they will carry the weight of the album through the end of the year and beyond.



9. The New Pornographers - Challengers
The ones who really shine on this album are Dan Bejar and Neko Case. A.C.'s the leader, and his tracks are pretty good, but his stuff doesn't seem to have the punch that TNP's previous releases have had. I listen to this and partly long for the guitar crunch of Twin Cinema, but "The Spirit of Giving" and "Myriad Harbor" are terrific, as are "Go Places" and "Challengers". Ultimately it was refreshing to hear a slightly softer album from the group.



8. Colby Stead - No
Colby's music has always been a brutally honest rendering of emotional realism. He is unapologetically confrontational in that he is always willing to address any aspect of the human condition, whether it be a car crash deterioration of a family ("Malice & Mud"), or the mental/physical gaps that we perpetuate within our culture ("Segregation"). His voice continues to grow. Among the record's strongest moments are "Invisible" "Malice & Mud" and "Motherly Love."



7. Essie Jain - We Made This Ourselves
Essie has a voice that belongs to a different era, and thus doesn't seem a natural denizen of the current pop landscape. It is confessional and raw and beautiful. It's like listening to some incarnation of Joni Mitchell singing the poetry of Sylvia Plath. On the very first line on the record she sings, "I'll rise up from the waters where I've drowned. You will know me, you will see. Your face will light up from the glory that is found. I am listening. You are hearing me." It isn't a petition, it is a statement. And if you listen you can hear a slow moving art full of heartache and misery weaved gracefully alongside hope and resolution.


6. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Winn Butler has an awesome voice that is perfect for their bombastic songs. "Keep the Car Running" channels Bruce Springsteen, which seems to be the popular thing nowadays, except they seem to be the only ones who are good enough to actually perform their song with the Boss himself. There are some fantastic tracks on this album. Funeral was still better by a good ways in my opinion, but that doesn't discount great songs like "The Well and the Lighthouse", "No Cars Go", "Intervention", and the title track. My only problem with Arcade Fire is that I would like them to be epic without trying so hard to be epic.

5. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
Nothing really surprising on this Andrew Bird release. It is a pretty natural evolution from 2005's The Mysterious Production of Eggs (which was a better album). Andrew Bird is amazing at crafting beautiful an unique pop songs. He looks a bit like a bird, actually, and when you combine that with the gorgeous whistle and the pluckety-pluck of his violin it is clear he is functioning on some aviary wavelength unknown to the rest of us ground-dwellers.

4. The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
"Sleeping Lessons" is one of my favorite songs of the year. I'm a sucker for the old slow-start-building-into-fist-pumping-chorus formula. Most of this album is great, and a few songs are not, otherwise this would have been higher. There seems to be a bit less innovation in their songwriting and delivery than we saw in their previous two releases, but the fact remains: this is a stellar album.



3. John Vanderslice -- Emerald City
I really liked 2005's Pixel Revolt, but Emerald City surpasses it by a good stretch. The album seems to be the post 9/11 experience of the individual, rather than an overarching commentary on the politics of the Bush administration. The narrator in "The Parade" is carrying around in a vial steel dust from Tower Two. He proclaims over and over, "Not sure what really happened on that day." Most of us aren't either, and it's easy to empathize with the music here. Vanderslice's solid, pared down songwriting is almost perfect.



2. Radiohead -- In Rainbows
If you would have told me at the beginning of the year that I would have a Radiohead album towards the top of my year end list I would have said you were dreaming. That is how much of a surprise this release was to me. I love it. From track two through the end of the album it is glorious. For me it is a return to melody and structure. It isn't afraid to be a pop album. I don't know how the financial experiment coupled with the album's release fared, but the music itself fulfilled all its promises.

1. Feist - The Reminder

Leslie Feist was everywhere this year. The iPod Nano commercial seemed to propel her from “emerging artist” in the eyes of the general populace to ubiquitous blue sequined beauty. I think it is precisely her ever presence that merits her this spot on the list. The Reminder may go a long way in burying so many of the worthless radio darlings and manufactured hits, and in turn elevating the public conscious back to the songwriter (they should be in the public conscious, shouldn't they?). She is so talented and a born performer. Fellas, that makes two years in a row that a beautiful estrogen filled female has topped my list. What do you say for yourselves?


click the links below for:
Best Albums of 2006
Best Albums of 2005

Les's 100

1. I used to hate the thought of eating a spoonful of peanut butter, but now I love the thought of it.

2. Blue ink rules and black ink drools.

3. I hate bananas with a passion, but I can eat approximately twelve pounds of banana chips.

4. More or less here is the evolutionary train of my favorite musical artists beginning from my earliest recollection of pop music (which was Kindergarten). Some lasted months, some lasted years. Michael Jackson → Bon Jovi→ Poison→ Garth Brooks→ AC/DC→ Pearl Jam→ The Doors→ The Beatles→ Phish→ Built To Spill→ Mason Jennings→ Elliott Smith→ Wilco→ Sufjan Stevens.

5. The first time I kissed a girl was in an alley behind a Chinese restaurant in seventh grade. I went in for the kill and was off target by about an inch and a half. I got a little lip and the rest cheek.

6. In about fourth or fifth grade while exploring the vast amounts of farm ground behind my house my good friend Brett and I came across an old car that my family used to drive a few years before. We went back to the house and got the tools we needed: crow bar, knives, baseball bat, etc. It took us a steady week of demolition to really get the job done.

7. If I could go back and re-live high school I would be nicer to everyone.

8. One thing I’m ashamed about is that I’m really not that good at small talk. It’s not that I don’t like it, but mainly I’d rather listen to it than make it.

9. I ran away once when I was little. It’s tough to do when you live in the country. The thing that took me the longest was getting my hobo stick ready (the one with the little bandana satchel tied on the end full of various goods). I made it about a mile away before I got hungry and had to come home.

10. My high school chemistry teacher told me that I wouldn’t amount to anything in life.

11. One of the funniest things I’ve ever seen was when Sam, Faren and I were playing with an Aerobie in the Ricks College gymnasium. Faren, who is blind in one eye, was on the stage and went to catch the disc on his blind side when he stepped quite suddenly off the stage and landed on a piano. I can still hear the delicious echo of the keys today.

12. I love board games. Especially ones that I’m pretty good at, and I win most of the time. I’ve never beat my wife at California Speed though. That game’s dumb.

13. When I got baptized I was a little concerned that there might be some sins floating in the water from the kid who got baptized before me. He was mentally retarded though, so I knew there couldn’t be too many. I still remember feeling the Spirit on the way home, and that’s why I know eight years old isn’t too young.

14. It would take my Grandpa Blake about 35 minutes to drive the five miles from his house to my house. Sometimes I would hate it when he had to drive me home from school. He said he didn’t want to miss anything by going too fast. I wish I could go back and not miss anything with him again.

15. I wrote a screenplay that I’m not sure will ever get made into a movie.

16. I think Beyonce Knowles is hotter than a stack of pancakes.

17. If I grow up to have a character just like my Dad I will have lived a very successful life.

18. When I think about the stars and the vastness of space I become very overwhelmed by how small we are and how much more there is out there. I really love that feeling.

19. I used to have extreme nightmares growing up, that would make me cry a lot. I would also get Charlie horses in the middle of the night from time to time, and my Mom would make me drink milk and walk it off. Man, I hate the taste of milk.

20. I loved He-man when I was little. When Santa Clause brought my older brother “Fistor” complete with horse for Christmas I was convinced that Santa had made a mistake and I repossessed Fistor and the horse for myself. When my parents sided with my brother I think that is when I knew Santa was a sham.

21. I don’t really like getting back rubs or shoulder rubs.

22. Christy is my most favorite person to be around. She excels at silliness (not to be confused with light-mindedness), which is partly a divine gift I think.

23. I have a special sister, Lisa, who really has things figured out. She seems to only worry about the important things.

24. If you ever watch the documentary “Stevie” it will knock your socks off. There is a part where Stevie and his girlfriend visit a friend Tricia in Chicago. It is ridiculously amazing.

25. I am a shrewd business man. I once sold my little sister Addie a used New Kids on the Block tape for seven or eight bucks…nearly full price.

26. I’m 2 and 0 in fist fights.

27. I’ve been beat up multiple times with boxing gloves though. Fun Christmas present, but maybe not such a good idea.

28. One game that Christy and I break into is where one has to dance in front of the other one. The dancer has to dance a dance move that has never been done before in the history of earth and the other one nods when the dancer is doing it and shakes their head when not.

29. I’m gonna be honest. I really hate the Olive Garden.

30. I won about five bucks on the first lottery ticket I ever bought. That ruined me for a good year.

31. Some catchphrases that you’ll hear around my house are the following: “I just love him so much” – Raising Arizona, “Mom, can I ask you a favor?” – South Park, “The doctor would like to see you with no pants.” –Seinfeld.

32. I almost fell out of the bed one night from laughing so hard while watching Conan O’Brien’s “If They Mated.” The new Pale Force stuff is hilarious too.

33. I used to have “Blonde” as part of my spousal criteria. Christy knows this. It’s because I was never attracted to brunettes, but she kind of pioneered my way through that foreign country.

34. Some things Democrats really have figured out, and some things Republicans. No political parties have it all figured out. That is important to remember.

35. My brother Frank is one of my heroes. I really miss him since he and his family moved away. We named our son Gus after him. His middle name anyways. Gus means “exalted one.”

36. One of the best concerts I’ve ever been to was when Colby Stead played a living room show in Provo to a crowd who had never heard him before. He ended the show with a loud acapella rendition of “Song For Me.” He got a standing ovation that went on and on and on. It was electric.

37. I have a very long tongue. Gus does too. That’s a strong gene.

38. I’ve liked every person I’ve ever met who has the same birthday as I. It’s August 6th.

39. I’ve tried to like Jazz lots of times but it never resonates with me.

40. I have insanely sweaty hands. When I would hold hands with girls in Jr. High and High School we would have to unclasp every few minutes and wipe them clean, then reclasp. It’s really been an Achilles Heel of mine. It is also the reason why I’m not a star rock climber. What can you do?

41. I have a weakness for Chocolate Cream Pies. Man, that stuff is like kryptonite.

42. There are a few things I am somewhat obsessed with. Wrestling is one of them. Is it weird to say you are obsessed with a sport where two guys are wearing unitards and are trying to pin each other? I don't think so either. What a great sport though. Most people just don’t understand it.

43. One time while I was playing Call of Duty at my brother-in-law’s house Christy walked in as I yelled, “Die World!” I was really letting the bullets flow. She didn’t think kill-people-games were a good idea then and doesn’t now. She’s probably right. I’m not a video game guy anyways. I do like the Legend of Zelda though.

44. I’ve surprised a few people with what I’ve been capable of while working on remodeling our house. Me included.

45. I choke on my food a lot, which makes for somewhat awkward dinner experiences in public. A couple of times it’s been pretty serious.

46. One of my favorite games to play with a basketball isn’t basketball. It’s Lightning. Some people call it Hot Shot.

47. I graduated from BYU in English. I like to read, but the most important reading I’ve done has been outside of school. College just taught me how to read.

48. Christy says “pantsed” and I say “de-pantsed” and I think I make more sense.

49. Some more catchphrases you’d hear around the Blake household: “Whooo Whoo, Nyuk, Nyuik, (pant, pant), Ee-rrr, Ee-rrr, Hubba Hubba” – (adapted) The Simpsons, “I said, this is nice and cozy Joseph" – Millions, “Are ya real? Are ya really real?” - adapted from It’s a Wonderful Life, “Very angry” – Chris Farley/SNL.

50. I’m a morning person and a night person. I guess I’m kind of a day person as well. 6 hours of sleep will just about do it for me. No naps needed.

51. I am pretty good at keeping a journal. I have been ever since I was about eight years old. I want to burn the teenage years.

52. When we were little my sister Addie and I would slide down the stairs together in a sleeping bag for fun. One time we got to the bottom and she landed on my face in a sitting position and laughed so hard that she peed. In my mouth.

53. While in high school I would pray very sincerely in behalf of Eddie Vedder.

54. Last year I made a New Year’s resolution to read the entire standard works by the end of the year. I did it, but was about two weeks late getting done. It’s only seven pages a day, believe it or not. But if you miss a week you’re fifty pages behind and that adds up. It was a magnificent experience.

55. Christy has a very contagious laugh. I imagine that when she passes people walking down the street they look at her and wonder why she is so happy. The reason is because she has a secret she wants to tell.

56. My favorite poet is Larry Levis. I studied him in college and can’t stop reading his poetry. I wish I was better at seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary.

57. I can see why a person could glance at the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and be skeptical, but I do believe that if they studied it and the doctrines of the gospel with an open heart they would see and feel beauty beyond all expectation.

58. If I had the guts to try and learn more languages I would most like to learn Russian and Hebrew. I would least like to learn that language that Nell spoke.

59. My Grandpa Mecham played basketball for the Univeristy of Utah and he was invited to be an Olympian but couldn’t because you had to pay your own way in those days. I, on the other hand, am pretty short and 5 times out of 10 I’ll miss a layup in the open court.

60. I grew up deathly afraid of a fictitious monster called “The Sidehill Gouger.” He had one eye, was very tall, and had one leg that was shorter than the other (which made him a whiz on the sidehills). He lived in the mountains and in our potato cellar.

61. The longest I’ve ever held my breath is two minutes and twenty seconds. I practice this from time to time.

62. Some of the greatest summers of my life consisted of spending endless days swimming in the rivers at Twin Bridges and Fun Farm. I get really nostalgic thinking about it.

63. The one time I got to meet Sufjan Stevens I tried to impress him with my knowledge of the works of Saul Bellow (this was before the Avalanche was ever a concept in his head). I get star struck really easy when I’m with artists I admire.

64. I’ve seen basically every Coen Brothers Movie. Here they are ranked from my most favorite to least favorite: 1. O Brother, Where Art Thou? 2. Raising Arizona 3. Fargo 4. Miller’s Crossing 5. Blood Simple 6. The Big Lebowski 7. The Man Who Wasn’t There 8. The Hudsucker Proxy 9. Barton Fink 10. Intolerable Cruelty 11. The Ladykillers. (the last two aren’t complete originals).

65. When I was younger I was really into ninja stars and survival knives.

66. Every year I look forward to highpower rifle shooting matches with my Dad, brother, brother-in-law, and cousin.

67. In the not quite six years we’ve been married Christy and I have lived in six different homes. We’ve owned the last two (or rather in the process of owning).

68. I feel like had my cards played out just a tiny bit differently I could have been a three time state wrestling champion. I don’t blame anyone but myself though. Sports are good because losing allows you to confront things within yourself you otherwise would avoid.

69. Speaking of sixty-nine. I won a school wide art contest in the seventh grade that was voted on by the student body American Idol style. Each piece was assigned a number, drawn out of a hat by the artist, and guess what number was mine? I drew a really terrific deer and won by a landslide. They disqualified me later after suspicions arose about my number. I confess that I drew the number on purpose, not because I’m sick or anything, it’s just that I’m smart that way.

70. I used to get migraines when I was in grade school and Jr. High. I had one during track practice and asked if I could go home, but my coach said the best way to get rid of it was to run it off. I puked on the track and then went home.

71. I love my family very much, and I think about my brothers and sisters often. I’m just not very good at calling them up to talk.

72. Christy hates it when I do my country music voice. That is when I purse my lips really tight, so only my front teeth are showing and I sing lyrics or say words like "trucks," "Justin," and "black tornado."

73. When I think about how much I’ve been blessed in life, there is a part of me that wonders what dark thing must be coming down the pike to throw it all back into balance.

74. I write music that I think has a lot of unrealized potential. I have a pretty good critical ear, but it’s hard to turn it on myself.

75. Gus is a really incredible boy. Already his personality is starting to blossom into something fun and original. His giggle kills me.

76. iPods are amazing. This is no news to anyone. I just think it is terrific that what I used to haul around in three massive Case Logic CD books I can now fit into my back pocket (with enough room for a melty candy bar and some keys).

77. Christy makes fun of me because I wear a backpack or carry a man-bag most everywhere I go. It’s because I always have to have a good book on me and something on which to write ideas. I’ll tell you the contents of my bag right now: a notebook, a journal, Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, a pamphlet on emergency preparedness, a yellow legal pad, and scriptures. I should really think about fitting some victuals and a bottle of water in there somewhere.

78. I’ve told people before that if I had to choose between death by drowning or death by fire I’d choose death by fire.

79. When Gus was born that was one of the greatest moments of my life.

80. Sometimes I think it might be a little unfair how happy Christy and I are together. We get in disagreements just like everyone else, but we don’t fight and we certainly don't yell.

81. When I was little I wanted to grow a mullet in the worst way. I would get so mad when Dad would bust out the clippers on Sunday morning. He is no hairdresser, let me tell you, but he cut my hair almost until I was in Jr. High. That is penny pinching for ya.

82. My first rock concert was Pearl Jam on November 2, 1995 at the Delta Center. My ears rang for two days.

83. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. The pig is the tastiest animal.

84. For the last year or so I’ve been trying to figure out how to make a genuinely delicious chocolate truffle. About four different recipes have failed me. I’m starting to wonder if it isn’t the confectioner’s fault.

85. Probably the greatest and most haunting read of my life was Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy, and it is the greatest ending to any novel I’ve read, bar none. (warning: this book is crazy violent)

86. I’ve done a number two in catholes I dug myself in five different states. That is just a really gross way of saying I fought wildland forest fire the summer before I got married. Here is a photo, I’m third from the right.

87. One movie that makes me cry every time is "My Life" starring Michael Keaton. Great flick. "Lonesome Dove" will do it for me too. I love the way Captain Call just says “Augustus” when it happens. Nothing more, nothing less.

88. It’s always amusing to me when I’m meeting someone for the first time and they finally drop the old joke, “More or Less!” They always get this look in their eyes like they are the cleverest souls.

89. Christy used to punish herself when she was feeling bad or whatever by not turning on the AC in her car if it was hot.

90. I used to hold (I haven’t checked to see if I still do) the eighth grade record for most situps done in a minute. 84. My brother Frank held the seventh grade record with 86.

91. I’ve always been somewhat shy and I’m worried that it sometimes comes across as arrogant or rude or standoffish. Partly an extension of #8.

92. If I ever had to go to war and kill someone I would think that would jack me up for a really long time. I pray that my son(s) will never have to go to war. I suppose I’m a pacifist that way.

93. I haven’t seen very many movies since Gus was born, which is kind of unfortunate, but probably my favorite moment in film this last year was in "Stranger than Fiction" when Will Farrell’s character performs “Whole Wide World” for Maggie Gyllenhaal’s character.

94. Christy didn’t “have me at hello” but she certainly did get my attention. By the time she sang me “Little Bird” I was well on my way to gone.

95. One reason I consider myself lucky is because Christy is a really good cook and I'm still skinny.

96. The first poem I ever wrote was called “The Sun.” It rhymed, of course, and it was an allegory about how the sun sets and rises. I was about twelve or so and it was about my cousin Steve who died a few years earlier. No one but me ever read it.

97. Whenever I get to choose what my birthday cake will be I choose cheesecake.

98. Pull-ups are probably my favorite exercise, even though I’m not that good at them. I have an unrealized goal of being able to do a one armed pull up. I've seen it done.

99. I used to think I could be a foot model, until Christy crushed that thought. She thinks they are too pale, nails too long, too boney, and too hairy. What can I say, I like to wear shoes. I believe that if you keep any body part covered long enough it will start to grow hair. When I was a kid I saw a foot expert lady on Johnny Carson who said that hair on feet is a sign that the person is quite sexy. Cheers to that lucid woman.

100. I tried my hand at cussing on and off throughout my youth, but could never make it sound convincing. I don't cuss at all now. Not even when I hit my thumb with a hammer or pinch my finger in a chuck and get a blood blister. It would just sound phoney.

Christy's 100

Inspired by the very funny lists of our friends James and Dede, Christy and I have decided to make lists of our own. Since she has no forum on which to post them (at least that she's willing to share) I asked her if I could post them on my blog! Mine will follow in a day or two. So here you go, as written by my better half...

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Apparently there is a trend going around - to blog 100 things. I'm not exactly sure what 100 things they are - things you don't know about me? my favorite things? interesting and semi-embarrassing things about my past? Confessions? But, whatever it is, I can't not give it a try. I just seems so fun. So, here is mine.

100. If I eat something sugary in the morning, I want to eat sugar all day long.
99. My current job scares me a lot, but gives me satisfaction in facing what is hard.
98. Even though I feel like I'm supposed to, I don't really like peanut butter
97. and I don't really like shrimp.
96. When I am dressed nice I feel really cool.
95. I only shave my legs about once every two weeks and that seems to be enough
94. Whenever I hear that 'In the middle of the night, I go walking in my sleep' song I do the dance that accompanies it from 9th grade dance company.
93. Deep down in me there is a greener, more health conscience, book loving, exercise machine waiting to come out.
92. Because I am genetically engineered to be cheap and thrifty I sometimes have an urge to cheat or lie to save 30 cents here or there - I really try to supress the urge.
91. I always wished I knew all of the words to Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls -specifically that fast rapping part.
90. I do, or did at one time, know all of the words to Young MC's Busta Move
89. I memorize song lyrics extremely quickly - usually after only hearing the song once.
88. I really like to cook
87. I love watching Iron Chef America, Les and I both enjoy watching it together
86. I would love to be able to cook like a gourmet and very nutrisiously -the way they do at that pay-what-you-want-cafe (One World Cafe?).
85. I really think Gus is going to have a great personality
84. In so many ways I hope Gus turns out like his dad.
83. I love playing board games
82. I love winning board games
81. When I was young I copied everything my older siblings did, and now that I'm older, on a subconscious level, I still do
80. Like Dede, I still feel like I'm 18
79. I really miss hanging out with the boys the way we used to
78. One of the greatest sounds in the world is Gus laughing
77. I think I'm pretty good at making people laugh, especially my mom and Les
76. My feet stink a lot of the time
75. I've been wearing red polish on my toes for the last 11 years (this can be attributed to #81)
74. When I was in 6th grade a girl from another school labled me as 'big boobs, tiny waist, big bum'
73. I think I'm a pretty okay singer but I have vowed to never try out for American Idol, as I'm sure to make a fool of myself
72. I took tennis lessons every Summer for 5 years and I still can't play
71. I took piano lessons for 7 years, never practiced, can't play
70. I used to be a pretty good dancer, but considering the freestyle way I dance now Les doesn't believe I was ever good.
69. I don't wear makeup 5 out of the 7 day of the week.
68. I've been to most all of the classic vacation destinations: Hawaii, Mexico, Europe, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Southern California, New York City.
67. Ever since I was 14 I thought Seatle could be a good place to live, and I still think so
66. If I ever have a lot of money I would do my grocery shopping at Wild Oats and my clothes shopping at Anthropology.
65. I think I'm pretty good at convincing people....maybe I should go to law school
64. I don't really care what kind of car I drive, but I do like a car that can go fast.
63. Luckily, I never went through that awkward phase that middle schoolers usually do.
62. Being a mom is hard and I'm nervous to eventually have 2 babies to take care of
61. I know from many past experiences that my mom would do anything for me
60. I don't know how my mom raised the 4 kids in my family without going totally crazy considering all of the crap that we put her through
59. I am the baby in my family and because of that I felt an obligation to talk in a baby voice until I was almost a teenager. Les says that sometimes I still talk in a baby voice when I want a back tickle or when I want to buy a piece of furniture
58. I feel bad that I never did chores
57. I never realized until I got older that I am so similar to my dad
56. I know that in not so long from now I will become my mom and I'm okay with that
55. I did, do, and always will love candy
54. One year on Halloween I ate my whole bag of candy the night of. My mom said I would get a stomach ache, etc. but I didn't.
53. I double hate having big boobs.
52. When I'm not chubby I like my face shape.
51. I really love to sleep. That is one thing that is hard about being a mom - you can't sleep whenever you want to.
50. I can fall asleep just about anywhere at any time.
49. I didn't graduate with my bachelors degree. Some days I regret it and some days I don't. But, I really don't want to be one of those moms that goes back at 45 or 50.
48. I really really like decorating although I know there are a lot of people much better at it than I am
47. I am very good at being silly.
46. I ask my husband the same questions all the time: do you think I'm smart? do you think I'm nice? did I say anything stupid?
45. I try too hard to please people.
44. I often fall into the trap of trying to be 'the perfect everything' instead of just being myelf.
43. I think my siblings and my cousins are all very attractive.
42. I love going to Lagoon although I didn't dare ride a roller coaster until I was older.
41. Although my Dad worked with me often, I didn't learn to ride a bike until quite old as well
40. The first time I rode a bike on my own I almost rode off a cliff.
39. Ever since I've had a baby I feel weird:
38. I have a hard time concentrating on the road.
37. I can't remember simple words or names for things - thank goodness for Les being able to read my mind.
36. I am continutally surprised by the reality of a Mother's intuition.
35. I have an amazing marriage.
34. My dream car is a Subaru Forrester.
33. I don't pass on forwards.
32. I will never again ride on a Greyhound Bus.
31. I had a rough relationship with my mother-in-law at first but now I really like her
30. I have lots of ideas for books I want to write. I want to write a book about mother-in-law, daughter-in-law relationships
29. I want to write a book called 'According to my Grandma Toni' with all of the old dutch sayings that she uses.
28. When my grandma dies I'll cry for at least a week straight
27. I went to EFY for 4 years and I loved it - especially the dancing
26. I kissed about 20 boys before I met Les, which he thinks is a lot, but that is not very many compared to my cousin Heather.
25. When Les and I first kissed there were serious fireworks going off.
24. My mom, although she won't admit it, has an obsessive shopping problem.
23. I also have a shopping problem that I am working on.
22. Before my CD collection was stolen I owned 5 Celine Dion CDs - I can't help but think of that thief going through my CDs totally disappointed in the selection
21. I think sometimes about how our grandparents must perceive the trends of today (peircings, tatooes, immodesty, vulgarity) and I like to think that my Grandma is proud at the way I turned out.
20. I've always had a strong sense of self, and strong self-confidence.
19. I've lost 50 pounds since I was pregnant.
18. Although I tried several others here and there, I have been using the same Pantene Pro-V shampoo since I was in 7th grade.
17. I have a really amazing extended family - I often want to brag about them, but restrain myself.
16. Lately I have seen so many women with facial hair. It is kindof freaky.
15. Once in a while when I'm driving around listening to country music radio I'll encounter an especially cheesy yet touching song and I'll have to quickly wipe away a tear.
14. I usually listen to talk radio in the car.
13. I am my kid's mom. (I love you, Dr. Laura)
12. I've noticed that Gus loves when I sing along out loud to the radio. He also likes to sing, he joins in during church hymns.
11. One time in high school I called a radio station who was trying to drive up rivalry between 2 schools the night before a big football game. I actually got through but I froze up and had nothing intelligent to say so I just said something like, "we're going to win... because... I don't know." It was stupid.
10. There used to be a show on MTV called 'Motor Mouth' where they would secretly pose a camera inside of a car and catch the driver singing loudly and passionately the songs on the radio, also with a little car dancing if you're lucky. I'll just say I would be a perfect candidate for that show.
9. I have a staring problem. It has come to the point that when I'm caught staring I don't even look away - I just smile at them as if to say, "Yeah, I was staring at you. It's okay though".
8. I'm not a big reader, which is maybe Les's thing he'd like to change about me; but recently, I've been infected with the bug just a little bit. I even joined a book club.
7. Les and I often throw around quotes from Jerry Seinfeld's stand up routines, Raising Arizona, The Incredibles, Conan, and The Simpson's, etc. And we've recently added Jim Gaffigan quotes to the repretiore. He's funny, man.
6. Les and I like to sing duets together while he plays on the guitar. Although it's not really in my character, sometimes I get into it and sing with my eyes closed because Les loves that.
5. My sister loves watching court TV. She has it on all day sometimes. I prefer decorating shows.
4. My sister's husband is going to Iraq in April and I try not to think about it because it makes me want to cry.
3. I think my biggest motivator to do what is right are my family's loving examples.
2. Writing these 100 things has taken me several weeks.
1. I like stuff.

Best Albums of 2006

That familiar December chill is in the air, and as you shudder from the cold biting at your neck you might turn around to see that it isn't the windchill factor cutting you after all...but rather a thousand year end lists telling you what was "good" and "bad" from the year in music.

Knowing that I'd like to try a more comprehensive list this year than I did last year (and because I wasn't altogether satisfied by my year end list last year) I kept track of essentially every album I heard in its entirety this year. There were about sixty albums in all, and here are my top twenty. I have attached a somewhat arbitrary number to each of them called "iRanking." I made that up, and it is really just poppycock. The number is derived from taking each indvidual song ranking from my iPod (a five-star system) and averaging them to reveal the album's iRanking. Sometimes it reflected my love for the album accurately, and sometimes it did not. All this list business, its just a bunch of hooey anyway.

By the way, this is my 100th post. I feel good about that.

So without further ado, here is my Best Albums of 2006 list:

20. Richard Buckner: Meadow
iRanking: 3.40

Colby introduced me to Richard Buckner years ago and I didn’t give him the attention he deserved then. I’ve listened to and bought several of his albums since then and have come to appreciate the great music he makes. Meadow is a little coarser than its predecessors, in production, but his writing remains beautifully linear.

19. Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton: Knives Don’t Have Your Back
iRanking: 3.40
I know very little about Emily Haines. This record is apparently a solo project aside from her band Metric (who I’ve never listened to). She is armed with little more than a piano on most of the record. The songs that shine the most are the ones that have the most production. There are too many songs that share the same plinking piano, else this could have been a "great" record, but as it stands now it remains a satisfyingly "good" record.

18. Regina Spektor: Begin to Hope
iRanking: 3.41
Regina Spektor is an eclectic artist who has a great touch on the piano. Begin to Hope is accessible and poppy, but doesn’t stoop to industry conventions. Many of the songs are narrative based and enjoyable to listen to, but this isn’t life changing stuff, nor ever will be. She is entertaining and whimsical and on those levels this album best succeeds.

17. Page France: Hello, Dear Wind
iRanking: 3.42
The toughest thing when singing about Jesus, is doing the subject matter justice while maintaining a sense of musical artisty/integrity. Most efforts turn out cheesy and oversentimental. This is why I have a general aversion to most Christian music, and even though Hello, Dear Wind may not fit neatly into that category, I think it does a pretty honest job of keeping it real without slipping into the common faux pas of the genre. This is definitely one of the more listened to records on my list this year.

16. Gnarls Barkley: St. Elsewhere
iRanking: 3.42
This is one of those groups that blew up commercially this year. It was fantastic to see Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo Green working their gig via outlets like the Tonight Show and Late Night. "Crazy" is just one of those infectious songs you can’t not like. Forget the Taylor Hicks soul patrol, Cee-Lo has arrived. I’m familiar with some of the work he did with Goodie Mob, but he really gets to let his voice shine on this album. Not all of the songs are good, but the ones that are, are really good.

15. Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat
iRanking: 3.46
R.I.P. Grandaddy. They are no more, and this is their last record. I still think Sumday is one of the best pop records released in the last few years, and though Just Like the Fambly Cat doesn’t hit on all of the cylinders Sumday did, it gets close in several moments. Jason Lytle is a craftsman and I love his whispy voice. I’ll be looking forward to hearing his solo material in the future.

14. Damien Jurado: And Now That I’m In Your Shadow
iRanking: 3.46
This album sees the minimalist Jurado hearkening back to the Ghost of David era. He tells his stories in a simple vernacular, stories of forbidden love and one-way leavings. This is not a cheer-you-up record, but the welcome dose of empathy you are looking for on the cold, lonely nights. The record suffers a bit from lack of variation in tempo and feel, so by the end you are pretty beat, but the songs all well-written.

13. Kris Kristofferson: This Old Road
iRanking: 3.50
I love Kris Kristofferson. I didn’t read many reviews of this album this year, but it is a great one. It is timely and delivered with force, passion, and grace. This is the type of album that Willie Nelson and other contemporaries who are still treading water only wish they could release. What Neil Young was trying to do with Living With War (parts were terrific), was done here with more effectiveness and refinement.

12. Islands: Return to the Sea
iRating: 3.79
In April of this year I heard "Rough Gem" and became infected with the pop bliss of Islands. It is the best song on a record that has some weak moments, but is by and large a great first effort for ex-Unicorn Nick Diamond and company. Lyrically I’m not blown away by this record, but it inventively balances twinges of country, rock, and pop. They seem to be a band in flux, already losing founding member/drummer J’aime Tambeur, and their future may be cloudy, so take advantage in the meantime.

11. Half-Handed Cloud: Halos and Lassos
iRating: 4.00
John Ringhofer, whose moniker is Half-Handed Cloud, has a unique voice that can turn someone off immediately. But I find it endearing. He brings a new definition to the idea of musical economy. Even Jerry Lee Lewis wrote longer songs than this guy, and there aren’t many people you can say that about. Here we have 19 songs that clock in at just under thirty minutes. You do the math. Halos and Lassos is loaded with Biblical allusion, but not in some primary Sunday School way. He deals with his subject matter with respect, awe, irony, wonder, and all out pop prowess. After one listen you’ll be "do do do do"-ing just fine.

10. Destroyer: Destroyer’s Rubies
iRanking: 3.60
I know very little about the ubiquitous Dan Bejar, aside from his work with TNP. What I do know is that it takes talent to hold my attention for an entire ten minute song and "Rubies" does that. Dan’s voice will grate on some—its not always on tune, and his style often relies on talk-singing and "da da da" choruses. His lyrics are an extremely elusive conversational poetry, open to interpretation. I’m afraid even Dan Brown in all his code-unraveling trickery couldn’t dismantle a Destroyer record, much less me. So if you enjoy a lyric solely because of its flow and sound and imagery, this tea cup is yours.

9. TV On The Radio: Return to Cookie Mountain
iRanking: 3.65
This one must be a creative tour de force beyond my understanding based on all the critical praise it’s been given this year. I’ve listened to it quite a few times, and it still has yet to resonate with me on a genuine personal level, but I can’t deny that they’ve tapped into something intense and enormous. I don’t love everything here, indeed I dislike some of it, but there are parts that are amazing (Wolf Like Me). Some are comparing this album to OK Computer, the standard by which all things are apparently judged by indie bloggerdom. There were enough highlights on this album to keep me returning to it for relistens, but a front to back journey does requires a portion of patience.

8. Figurines: Skeleton
iRating: 3.75
I was tipped off to Denmark’s Figurines by 3hive, and have been excited about them all year long. I had to special order the album because stores just don’t seem to carry it. Figurines will inevitably draw comparisons to Modest Mouse, but they aren’t trying to tread the same ground. These songs are catchy, melodic rockers. Structurally they are doing nothing new, but the hooks are so chiseled they make me want to hop around my living room.

7. Peter and the Wolf: Lightness
iRanking: 3.75
Red Hunter has that incredible baritone that I kind of wish I had. Not as deep and mysterious as Richard Hawley, but with enough gravitas to give his contributions a special room in the mansions of indie rock. He sings on the title track, "Every morning’s another chance, to see a different meaning. Carry on the memory, maybe then the lightness will come to me." I love the idea of how time can bring clarity to experiences and situations that never quite reveal their full meaning until proper reflection is given. This is a great album that never quite commits itself to any particular genre.

6. The Decemberists: The Crane Wife
iRating: 4.00
There was no dialing back on the oddities from this major label debut. Colin Meloy and company moved forward with a musical spectacular based on a tragic Japanese folktale. Not exactly the money-making formula typically employed by corporate big whigs. But that is because the Decemberists are not a money-making formula, just artists delving joyously deeper into their craft of storytelling songsmanship. For me there were a few musical hiccups on the record, but overall (and including the iTunes extras) it is another fantastic release from these Oregonians.

5. Sufjan Stevens: The Avalanche
iRating: 4.12
The first thing that must be noted about The Avalanche is that it is a compilation of outtakes and extras from last year’s monumental Illinois. These songs did not make the cut for various reasons, and were doomed to perhaps never be released. Thankfully Sufjan reconsidered this year and we were graced with an album of extraordinary songs peppered from time to time with some mediocre ones. But the great ones are outstanding. "Springfield" is a channeling of CSNY, and "No Man’s Land" is a parade of new patriotism, answering as the foil to Woody Guthrie’s "This Land is Your Land." You can easily pick out the dross from Illinois, but at least half of this record is as good as its predecessor.

4. Cat Power: The Greatest
iRating: 4.15
Believe it or not, the title of this album is not pretentious in the least. Chan Marshall has unleashed her most commercially viable record yet, and done so without compromising her artistry. The music unfolds like dark tapestry on winter windows, full of slow tempo longings. Her voice carries the beautiful gravity of the lyrics, putting bite on the wit, sadness to the resignation, and humor to the irony. Oh, and she’s absolutely beautiful.

3. Band of Horses: Everything All the Time
iRating: 4.15
I first heard "Funeral" on the blogs right around the new year and knew that I was listening to something anthemic. "At every occasion I’ll be ready for a funeral." When I got the whole album I was pleased to find it was a stinging, head-bobbing, spine-swaying, straightforward pop rock record. But pop records are released by the dozens each week, why should this one be so good? Solid song craftsmanship, great melodies, and the terrific tenor of Ben Bridwell that is reminiscent of Jim James, only better.

2. Joanna Newsom: Ys
iRating: 4.20
There is certainly a level of novelty here. Ys has but five songs—each of them expansive, reaching 8 minutes on the short end, and on the long end 16. There are orchestral arrangements that include, from time to time, the hard-to-incorporate mouth bow. The harpist appears on the album cover in a Renaissance-style painting. Given her childlike voice, and quirky annunciation, all these elements combine to make a bizarre combination that will estrange some, but will be magnificent to others. As cryptic and idiosyncratic as she might be, there is not another album released this year that has the lyrical poeticism that this album has. These are sprawling narratives filled with gorgeous, specific imagery: "I dreamed you were skipping little stones across the surface of the water / frowning at the angle where they were lost, and slipped under forever / in a mud cloud, mica-spangled, like the sky’d been breathing on a mirror." The music itself isn’t as enjoyable for me as it was on Milk-Eyed Mender, but Newsom is in top form on "Emily" and "Cosmia."

1. Neko Case: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
iRating: 4.25
Ever since I began writing music myself, I’ve always been dazzled by what some artists can do with two chords and a voice. Quality isn’t necessarily a derivative of complexity, and what Neko Case does so magnificently on this album is pound you into glorious oblivion with her simple musical bars. Her voice soars in absolute brilliance. She plays such a seemingly backseat role with TNP that I didn’t expect to be swept off my feet in this way. There is really no wrong turn on Fox Confessor Brings the Flood. Each song fulfills the very measure of its birth.