Top Ten Albums of 2007

Happy Holidays.
Another year in the books, and another year end list.
Here it goes:


1) Spoon-Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga-Spoon seems to be able to make fantastic pop albums almost effortlessly. Despite an incredibly stupid album title, this collection of gems rolls along smoothly and made for the most consistent listen of the year.



2) Wilco-Sky Blue Sky-Few bands outside of Radiohead have more anticipation thrust upon them upon the release of an album than Wilco. Sky Blue Sky is yet another departure for Jeff tweedy & Co. A sometimes fundamental sounding disc, on repeated listens, Sky Blue Sky reveals a complicated but gentle interplay between instruments and finds Tweedy sounding satisfied and (almost) happy. A great campfire record.



3) Radiohead-In Rainbows-Does any major band carry more expectations with a new album than Radiohead? In Rainbows, released as a a pay what you want online format, is easily the most accessible Radiohead album since 1995's "The Bends". Thom Yorke's vocals have never been better and are showcased on such standouts as "Bodysnatchers", "Nude", "All I Need" and "Videotape"



4) Band Of Horses-Cease To Begin A haunting follow up to BOH's debut album. Picks up where "Everything All The Time" left off.



5) LCD Soundsystem-Sound Of Silver- James Murphy made what could arguably be the soundtrack to the summer of '07'. Dance, punk, and disco all meet on such cuts as "Time To Get Away", "North American Scum" & "All My Friends".



6) Kings Of Leon-Because Of The Times-KOL stays on a roll on their third disc. More mature sounding, this is possibly the weakest of the three existing KOL discs, having said that, there is enough great tunes, "On Call", "Knocked Up", "Mcfearless" & "Black Thumbnail" to warrant inclusion.



7) Eddie Vedder-"Into The Wild" Soundtrack- A perfect companion to the movie, Vedder's first "Solo" disc is a sparse and beautiful narrative of exploration and discovery.



8) The White Stripes-Icky Thump- Everything Jack White touches turns to gold?, perhaps, after last years successful run with the Racontuers, Jack & Meg return to form with a strong, funny and ferocious disc. Highlights include "Rag & Bone", "Little Cream Soda" and "I'm Slowly Turning Into You".



9) The Shins-Wincing The Night Away- I am late to The Shins boat, not really sure about them before this album. To each their own, I like this one. Standout tracks: "Sleeping Lessons", "Australia", & "Phantom Limb".



10) The Black Lips-Good Bad Not Evil-The Black Lips always sound like they are having fun. A reputation for crazy live shows that have included vomiting, urinating, nudity, band members kissing, fireworks, and a chicken. After last years great live disc, "Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo", the Lips resume the raucous garage rock they do so well.



Honorable mentions:

Queens Of The Stone Age-Era Vulgaris
Dinosaur Jr.-Beyond
I'm Not There-Soundtrack
Lupe Fiasco-The Cool
Explosions In The Sky-All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone
Nine Inch Nails-Year Zero
Arcade Fire-Neon Bible
Skygreen Leopards-Disciples Of California
Silverchair-Young Modern
Daft Punk-Alive 2007
The Ponys-Turn The Lights Out
Bruce Springsteen-Magic
Pearl Jam-Live At The Gorge 05/06
The Hives-The Black And White Album
Amy Winehouse-Back to Black
Interpol-Our Love To Admire


Off to Arizona for NYE
More Later,
Helpermonkey