| THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2004 |
| It's that time of year again.... I can't think of anything else major that came out this year that I haven't heard, although I'm sure there probably is good stuff that deserves to be on this list but isn't... lots of stuff that got lots of hipster/critical/blogosphere acclaim didn't hit much of a chord with me, i think indie/alternative rock is generally pretty boring right now and a lot of the other things that various circles of hipsters have been latching onto lately haven't really done it for me either. Sorry, I'm not cool enough to like commercial hip-hop (or most underground hip-hop either, as of late), crunk, grime, euro-pop, and lots of middling indie rock bands. I do appreciate the free-folk, New Weird America and noise-rock scenes that have been getting a fair amount of hype lately, however. I'm still overwhelmed by a lot of the breakcore stuff that I've gotten into the past few years, however. I'm hoping that'll catch on someday, but it probably won't. Anyway, here's a bunch of stuff I liked this year. This list may change by the end of the year (or maybe even in the next few months, who knows) so I might update it a bit. We'll see. If the new Duran Duran Duran album actually comes out by the end of the year I might just rank that #1, but it'll probably count as 2005, in which case it'll be the #1 album of next year. I'm guessing that the Drop The Lime album, the Dev/Null album and the new Jason Forrest album will be way high up in next year's list too... but that could also totally not turn out to be true, as well... #1. Fennesz: Venice (Touch): At this point, I have decided that Endless Summer is one of the best albums of the decade so far, and will probably be remembered as such in the future, by myself anyway. This is the long awaited followup, and while it's not as diverse or groundbreaking as its predecessor, it's still completely amazing and I absolutely adore it. #2. Brian Wilson: SMiLE (Nonesuch): I wasn't expecting this to be remarkable at all. I was expecting a pointless rehash by a washed-up has been. I was wrong, and I couldn't be happier. #3. Enduser: From Zero (Mirex)/Bollywood Breaks 12" (Ad Noiseam)/lots of other various 12"s and remixes and mp3s: The kids didn't latch on to this even after all the Pitchfork hype last year... so they missed out on this amazing fucking album. Fuck the kids. #4. Jason Forrest: The Unrelenting Songs Of The 1979 Post Disco Crash/Irregular 12" (Sonig): As far as Pitchfork hype goes, this is basically this year's Enduser. What a shame. This man is practically the American John Peel, and he's a fantastic producer and live artist as well. #5. Saturday Looks Good To Me: Every Night (Polyvinyl): In retrospect, All Your Summer Songs should've been top 5 (maybe top 3?) of last year. This one's a tiny bit less awesome, but it's still incredibly catchy, not to mention addictive, and has lots of sentimental value for me as well. Such an awesome band, go see them! #6. Dev/Null: E-Boyz Revenge: 230 BPM Eternal 12" (Violent Turd): The full length is still in the works, but in the meantime, all those ridiculously great rave tracks he's been playing in his live sets have been released on a 12", and I couldn't be more excited. The last track is basically the best thing ever. #7. Drop The Lime: 1 For The Team 12" (Broklyn Beats)/Killy 123 12" (Tigerbeat6)/Surrender To The Sound 12" (Mutant Sniper): Another artist set to blow up when the full length drops in a few months. Each 12" has been better than the last, and it's only a matter of time before this guy's all on MTV and shit. Really. #8. People Like Us: Abridged Too Far (ubu.com): Vicki Bennett releases probably her best album yet, but it's only available as a download and not as an actual CD. Seriously, I don't get it! This is insanely great!!! #9. Shitmat: Full English Breakfest (Planet Mu): Easily the most ridiculous plunderphonic ragga-breakcore album ever made... so far, anyway. Utterly disgusting, and awesome. #10. Junior Boys: Last Exit (Kin/Domino): One of the very few hipster-approved albums that I really thought lived up to the hype. "Birthday" is a pop song to die for, and the Fennesz remix on the bonus disc on the domestic version only makes things even better. #11. Knifehandchop: How I Left You/Techno Gaiden 12" (Tigerbeat6): Billy Pollard actually writes a proper album instead of cobbling singles together... and whaddyaknow, it's his best one yet! #12. End: Sounds Of Disaster (Ipecac)/Percussions (Tigerbeat6): Killer apocalyptic electro-spycore, plus an EP of glitchy lounge-jazz exotica. Guaranteed to make you cool!!! #13. Of Montreal: Satanic Panic In The Attic (Polyvinyl): "Hey, these guys are great live, and this album isn't as annoying as their other stuff! Maybe they are actually as good as Paul's been saying they are since he was in high school!" #14. Streets: A Grand Don't Come For Free (Vice): After losing a grand myself, track 1 is my anthem. Insufficient funds! #15. Hella: The Devil Isn't Red (5RC): Long awaited second full length by one of the best noise-rock duos. #16. Machine Drum: Bidnezz (Merck): Prefuse 73 has officially been PWN3D. #17. Venetian Snares: Huge Chrome Cylinder Box Unfolding (Planet Mu): Jagged metal beats meets Speak-N- Spell. Not very diverse, but one of his most solid efforts overall. #18. The Bug featuring Warrior Queen: Aktion Pak (Rephlex): Incredibly hottttt digital dancehall. #19. Dosh: Naoise EP/Pure Trash (Anticon): The full length is OK, but the EP is truly great, and fun. #20. His Name Is Alive: Leaf Club/Detroit River/Cloud Box (Time Stereo): Michigan's finest is still unsigned as of now, but Warn continues to keep hardcore devotees like myself happy with these insanely limited edition CD-Rs. Leaf Club is especially great, but dammit... put out a proper album already!!! #21. Gunslinger-R: Girls In The Guns EP (Biollante): CDR aka RDC is always releasing amazing very-limited- edition CD-Rs, and this one is one of my favorites. Anime gets brutally slaughtered by breakcore. #22. H I V P L U S: Tonight Everyone Breaks Edge!: Live At The Clinic Vol. 2/In Praise Of Eternal Pestilence And Satanic Agony/Nuklear Titz (self-released): New Brunswick's best and most offensive band continue their aural assault on the world with 3 more CD-Rs that basically nobody outside of town has heard. #23. Girl Talk: Unstoppable (Illegal Art): Despite some filler, this is still one of the best mashup albums ever... not that mashup is an album genre, of course. #24. Boredoms: Seadrum/House Of Sun (Warner Japan): After waiting 5 years, all they give us is 2 20-minute songs?!?!? So what, it's still pretty incredible. #25. Collections Of Colonies Of Bees: Customer (Polyvinyl): The weirdest Polyvinyl release ever, and absolutely amazing. #26. Dan Deacon: Twacky Cats (Comfort Stand): There is a lion with a shark's head and he's running through the jungle. #27. Mirah: C'mon Miracle (K): Not quite Advisory Committee, but still pretty awesome. #28. Hott Beat: A Hott Mess (Paraxysm): Super-hyper synthpunk that kicks the living shit out of Le Tigre's new one. #29. Bit Shifter: Life's A Bit Shifter (555): 8-bit Nintendo music lives!!!!!! #30. The Advantage: The Advantage (5RC): 8-bit Nintendo music lives... but with real instruments!!!!!! #31. FRX: FRX (Accelmuzhik): This would rank way higher if the rest of the album was as good as the first 4 tracks... but those are some of the awesomest breakcore tracks of the year. #32. Somatic Responses: Adverts (Component)/ADCSomatic: Teatrodellopera (Praxis): The Healy brothers continue to release some of the best industrial-ish IDM around, and keep getting better at it. #33. Nomo: Nomo (Ypsilanti): Michigan's finest Afrobeat orchestra?!?! #34. Yowie: Cryptooology (Skingraft): Spazz-core with incredible artwork that nobody but me seems to like. #35. Pan Sonic: Kesto (Mute): 4 CDs of noisy techno and near-silent ambience from the Finnish minimalists. #36. Tortoise: It's All Around You (Thrill Jockey): Nothing groundbreaking, but still pretty lovely. #37. Stereolab: Margerine Eclipse (Elektra): Another gem, and way better than their last album. #38. Lali Puna: Faking The Books (Morr): Occasionally brilliant electro-pop from Germany. #39. Devendra Banhart: Rejoicing In The Hands/Nino Rojo (Young God): 2 full lengths by one of the better artists in this whole free-folk/new folk revival thing that's been going on. #40. The Philosophizing Robot: Language (Broken Keyboard Hymns): Splendid doesn't know what they're talking about! This would be #1 if his Ashlee Simpson remix was on it. Really! Honorable mention (in no order): FFF: "Murder"/"Junglist" 7" (Clash) [this would surely be in the top 5 if i was counting singles in my list] Sean Chambers: Unevensongs (self-released) [this would surely be in the top 10 if more than like 4 copies were released and i had a chance to buy it] Duran Duran Duran: Hard Leather 3" CD-R (RDC) [this would also probably chart if it wasn't just a CD-R of a bunch of songs i downloaded already] Claudia Quintet: I Claudia (Cuneiform) Richard Pinhas: Tranzition (Cuneiform) Ghost: Hypnotic Underworld (Drag City) Mice Parade: Obrigado Saudade (Bubblecore) Ensemble Modern plays the music of Frank Zappa: Greggery Peccary & Other Persuasions: RCA OOIOO: Kila Kila Kila (Thrill Jockey) Assacre: Impossibly Silent (Totally Wreck) cLOUDDEAD: Ten (Mush) Jonny Greenwood: Bodysong (EMI) Electrelane: The Power Out (Beggars) Quantic: Mishaps Happening (Ubiquity) Mass. Hysteria: Mistress & Men (Primary Voltage) Antibalas: Who Is This America? (Rope A Dope) The Fall: The Real New Fall LP (American version) (Narnack) Boom Bip: Corymb (Lex) Murcof: Utopia (Leaf) Kid606: Who Sill Kill Sound? (Tigerbeat6) Mochipet: Uzumaki (Component) Comets On Fire: Blue Cathedral (Sub Pop) RJD2: Since We Last Spoke (Definitive Jux) Flossin: Lead Singer (Ache) High Water Marks: Songs About The Ocean (Eenie Meenie) Legends: Up Against The Legends (Lakeshore) Squarepusher: Venus No. 17 12"/Ultravisitor (Warp) Quintron: The Frog Tape (Skingraft) Wolf Eyes: Burned Mind (Sub Pop) The Orb: Komplott 12" (Kompakt)/Bicycles & Tricycles (Sanctuary) Yellow Swans: Bring The Neon War Home (Narnack) Yasunao Tone/Hecker: Palimpsest (Mego) Merzbow: Merzbird (Important) Efterklang: Tripper (Leaf) Triosk: Moment Returns (Leaf) Psapp: Tiger My Friend (Leaf) Subtle: A New White (Lex) Frank Black: Frank Black Francis (spinART) Ahleuchatistas: The Same And The Other (NRI) Magnetic Fields: i (Nonesuch) Alice Coltrane: Translinear Light (Impulse) Kid606/Cex: Shotgun Wedding 3: Oh So Now You Fuckers Wanna Dance? (Violent Turd) Swayzak: Loops From The Bergerie (!K7) Sickboy: Shake Hands With A Clenched Fist (Tigerbeat6) DJ/Rupture: Special Gunpowder (Tigerbeat6) Shitmat: Killababylonkutz (Planet Mu) Alexander Rishaug: Possible Landscapes (Asphodel) Flashpapr: Flashpapr (Ypsilanti) Madvillain: Madvillainy (Stones Throw) This Song Is A Mess But So Am I: Church Point, LA (Mattress) Daddy G: DJ Kicks (!K7) They Might Be Giants: The Spine (Idlewild) Mothboy: The Fears (Ad Noiseam) Mouse On Mars/Mark E Smith: "Wipe That Sound" remix 12" (Sonig/Thrill Jockey) Sun City Girls: Carnival Folklore Resurrection 11/12 and 13 (Abduction) Neung Phak: Neung Phak (Abduction) The Flashbulb: Red Extensions Of Me (Sublight) There has been a ridiculous amount of compilations and reissues this year. Here are some great ones: v/a: Carbon (Mirex) v/a: Shockout (Shockout) v/a: Kompakt 100 (Kompakt) 808 State: Prebuild (Rephlex) Brian Eno: a shitload of reissues (Astralwerks) Boyd Rice/Non: Terra Incognita: Ambient Works (Mute) The Fall: 50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong (Beggars) v/a: Rough Trade Shops Indie Pop 1 (Mute/Rough Trade) Talking Heads: The Name Of This Band Is The Talking Heads (Sire) Red Krayola: Singles (Drag City) v/a: Archiv 1.1 (Raster-Noton/Asphodel) M83: Dead Cities, Red Seas And Lost Ghosts (American issue) (Mute) Lee Perry: Dub Triptych (Trojan) v/a: Children Of Mu (Planet Mu) v/a: Ammunition (Planet Mu) v/a: Third Unheard: Connecticut Hiphop 1979-1983 (Stones Throw) Throbbing Gristle: Mutant TG (Mute) Olivia Tremor Control: all of their albums reissued (Cloud) Bjork: Gling Glo (One Little Indian) Sigur Ros: Von (One Little Indian) v/a: Crooklyn Dub Outernational: Certified Dope Vol. 4 (Wordsound) Remarc: Unreleased Dubs 94-96 (Planet Mu) Low: A Lifetime Of Temporary Relief (Chairkickers' Music) Most disappointing album of the year: Orbital: The Blue Album (the label owned by Dave Matthews) |