*Inside joke alert! My guess is that precisely zero people reading this will get this, but, hey, what's a blog for if you can't make inside jokes that no one on the Internet will get?
40. Alopecia - Why? (2008).I never knew I had a itch that only a weird blend of indie rock and hip hop with an unorthodox flow and ultra confessional lyrics could scratch. It turns out I do. And I am serious about ultra confessional lyrics. On the album, Yoni calls it "stuff I can't admit to my head shrinker", but he seems to have no problems putting it on tape for random strangers to listen to. Since this is a family blog, I'll spare the details - pick up the album if you're curious.
39. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot -Wilco (2002).Odds are, if you have made it 60 albums into this, you know about Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (or as I like to call it, "suck it, major labels!"), so I won't waste more words on the album. However, I do think more people should use the NATO Phonetic Alphabet in their daily conversations*. This would give even the most boring conversations a much more interesting and confusing bent.
[Friend enters, stage left]
Friend: What are you watching?
Me: I'm watching some old November Bravo Alpha games on Echo Sierra Papa November Classic. Alpha Charlie Green had an awesome perm/jheri curl!
Friend: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?
Me: (Romeo Oscar Foxtrot Lima Mike Alpha Oscar)
[End Scene]
* One of my friends in grad school was in the National Guard. He had all sorts of problems when we'd use Greek letters. We'd be talking about alpha, beta, gamma.... and he'd always say "alpha, bravo, charlie". Hilarious (Math jokes!).
38. Receivers - Parts and Labor (2008).When humans and robots can stand this ridiculous sexual tension no longer and one brave human and one rogue robot give in to forbidden, forbidden love, this is the album that their great grandkids (grandroids?) would make if they listened to a lot of Queens of the Stone Age and TV on the Radio*.
* I could totally write for Pitchfork.
37. Oh, Inverted World - The Shins (2001).For both this album and the next album on the countdown, I think the title of the album sums up the artist quite capably. When I read "Oh, Inverted World" in my mind, the combination of surprise and melancholy in the phrase fits very well with how I think of the Shins. So, good job Shins!*
*I made it the whole blurb without referencing "changing your life"! I win!
36. Castaways and Cutouts - The Decemberists (2002).This album inspired one of my favorite things to do when I visit other places. What I like to do is visit specific landmarks or places referenced in songs that I like. For example, the song "Grace Cathedral Hill" references both the titular Grace Cathedral Hill and Hyde Street Pier, both of which I noticed while wandering around San Francisco on vacation. Fun times.
35. Hospice - The Antlers (2009).While I don't often pay attention to the lyrics - so by extension, I don't get much of the emotion in lyrics - I do throughly enjoy hearing the emotion in the singer's voice. This album's vocals are some of the most beautifully emotional vocals I've heard. The guy's voice just gets me.
34. The Stand Ins - Okkervil River (2008).
Really, all I need to say here is "Lost Coastlines", but the rest of the album brings it as well. Hooray, Will Sheff!
33. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes (2008).Sons of Guns! The harmonies on this album slay me. Even better, they sound just as tight live. If I had my druthers, I would have swapped this album with #32 and put Z by My Morning Jacket before that, so I could have a had a killer trifecta* of vocalists that always get compared to each other.
*Okay Blogger spellcheck, how to you not recognize "trifecta", but you will suggest "perfecta" to replace it? Has anyone in the recorded history of the world uttered the word "perfecta"?
32. Everything All the Time - Band of Horses (2006).
A stunning debut. Shortly after they released this album, I saw Band of Horses at the Paradise Lounge in Boston. Because of the hype around their debut, they were headlining this set. However, Everything All the Time is only 10 songs and a hair over 30 minutes long. This makes for a short headlining set. They played the entire album, except for St. Augustine, and two covers, and they were done in like 40 minutes. I'm pretty sure the opener actually played longer than Band of Horses. So, up and coming bands, take note: Do not gather too much hype too early, or you won't have enough songs to play when you tour.
31. Mass Romantic - The New Pornographers (2000).
Aaah, The New Pornographers. Causing awkward conversations between parents and children since 2000. I like to think of the New Pornographers as the indie-rock Planeteers. The individual members are pretty good - they possess certain powers, do good things, etc... - but when their powers combine, they are........Captain Planet! Here's the breakdown:
- AC Newman -------->Ma-Ti (Heart)
- Neko Case ---------->Linka (Wind)
- Dan Bejar ----------->Wheeler (Fire)
- Kathryn Calder ----->Gi (Water)
- Kurt Dahle ---------->Kwame (Earth)
Perhaps at some point I'll extend this comparison to the Captain Planet villains. Maybe using Chickenfoot? Damn Yankees? Velvet Revolver?
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