Unfortunately, I can't relase my "Tracks of 2007" mixtape now... I had it down to 20 songs, it was ordered, and I was putting it up today. But Pitchfork beat me to it.

Of the top 20 songs on Pitchfork's list, the following were on my "Best Of" Playlist

LCD Soundsystem- All My Friends
Battles- Atlast
Panda Bear- Bros
Animal Collective- Fireworks
Grinderman- No Pussy Blues
Spoon- You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb
Caribou- Melody Day
Burial- Archangel
The Field- A Paw in My Face


It basically looks like I just ripped off half of MY best of from Pitchfork's. I think it was a good CD, too.

Here's my CD's tracklisting, since I did all this work:

Remember, this is a NO RAP cd. I couldn't deal with the pressure of having rap on the mix, so I just took it off completely. Somebody else can make that CD.

1) The Twilight Sad- Walking for Two Hours

This album doesn't get NEARLY enough credit. It's probably my favorite shoegaze-sounding album apart from Loveless. It's got an accordion and Scottish people and might not even really be Shoegaze, but there's enough droney guitar to convince me. I picked this song as an CD opener because I think the guitar REALLY sounds like the MBV sound at the beginning here, and it's a fun way to rock in.

2) Radiohead- Weird Fishes/Arpeggi

Either this or Reckoner. When in doubt, I chose songs I thought were more listenable. Reckoner is my favorite song from In Rainbows, but this song is a close second, and I think it's easier on the ears, so it got the nod.

3) Burial- Archangel

I don't even know what dubstep is or anything, and wikipedia was unsurprisingly unhelpful on the matter, but that didn't stop me from falling in love with this song and enjoying the rest of the album.

4) Caribou- Melody Day

Lead track from a very good album.

5) LCD Soundsystem- All My Friends

I'm pretty sure this song is just about the inevitability of aging -- if a punk-rocking guy like James Murphy finds himself stereotypically older, how can any of us avoid it? -- and also about how awesome James Murphy is (very).

6) Justice- DVNO

You want a good pimp stroll? Listen to this song and practice.

7) Battles- Atlas

I don't really know much about Math Rock or any of that nonsense, but this song is catchy and powerful.

8) The Clientele- Bookshop Cassanova

Somehow, The Clientele manage to sound totally unironic when they sing the lyrics on this song, and that fucking amazes me, considering how corny they are.

9) Panda Bear- Bros

Song of the Year. And I hear no arguments on this.

10) Grinderman- No Pussy Blues

I don't know how many people listened to this album, but I did for short jags, and didn't love it. I liked some of the tracks (this one and "Grinderman" to be specific), but felt pretty ambivalent towards most of the rest. I really REALLY liked this song, though.

11) The National- Fake Empire

The piano intro, the spooky earnest baritone, the scattered drum fill...

12) White Rabbits- Kid on My Shoulders

Most of this album felt stale to me after a few listens, but this song retained its appeal.

13) Menomena- Evil Bee

"Oh to be a machine/Oh to be wanted, to be useful." EXACTLY how I feel. You fucking faggots.

14) Animal Collective- For Reverend Green (changed from Fireworks)

I had no idea which Animal Collective song to include, but I finally decided For Reverend Green was the right choice. Avey Tare's vocals are so... weird and cool on this song, and I just thought that was kind of the overriding highlight of the album, Avey's vocals, so I decided this song should be the A.C. delegate

15) Spoon- You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb

I love Spoon more than most, and I was really happy this disc did as well as it did. "You Got Yr.Cherry Bomb" is probably my favorite track from the album.

16) Of Montreal- Gronlandic Edit

This whole album is so incredible that I just picked a song at random. This was my favorite album of the year until like May. I don't like any of Kevin Barnes' stuff before this, and I might not like anything after, but this album is genius.

17) Phosphorescent- At Death, A Proclamation

I like this high-school marching band drums. And the yips at the end.

18) The Twilight Sad- I'm Taking the Train Home

More from my Favorite New Band of the Year. They were the only band that I gave two tracks. I've been pimping these guys all year, and I figured the more chances I gave you all to hear them, the more likely it would be that you'd download the album and listen a few times. His Scots Brogue on this song is particularly great.

19) The Arcade Fire- Keep the Car Running

I almost picked "No Cars Go," or "The Well and The Lighthouse," but decided on this song for no reason I can think of. The whole album is very good (though I still think the first half of Funeral blows it away).

20) The Field- A Paw in My Face

Okay, first, I love the title. "A Paw in My Face." Also, this album just fucking slays me. I kinda feel like a faggot when I listen to it, but I don't care, so I keep listening. I've been listening all year. I listen when I play cards. I listen while I read ESPN.com. I listen ALL THE TIME. And this was the first song that really caught my ear, so it also holds a special place in my heart.

Also, it is Microhouse.

Any guesses as to album of the year? It's gotta' be between Sound of Silver and Personal Pitch, right? Dare they give it to Radiohead? Prolly not.

Yeah, Person Pitch and Sound of Silver seem like the only two possible choices. I think they'll go with Sound of Silver and have Person Pitch second. They could throw a curveball and put Strawberry Jam or From Here We Go Sublime in there somewhere.

I think their top twenty will include, off the top of my head:

Person Pitch
Strawberry Jam
In Rainbows
Sound of Silver
From Here We Go Sublime
Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
(Cross)
Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters (It had better, because this album clocks in at #2 for me, behind Person Pitch and ahead of In Rainbows, I think)
Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
Kala
Graduation
Boxer


I'm sure a few of those will randomly be left out of the top 20 (Graduation? Boxer? Gagagaga?). I'm going to make my own top 10 tonight, before Pitchfork does theirs.

you realize that you essentially posted a mix without a link to download the mix

=hopesyouwillpostupamixwiththesesongsonitface=

My top album is Neon Bible. Another quality release or two and Arcade Fire will reach Favorite Band status.

Other top albums of mine that won't seem too redundant include Fort Nightly, Reunion Tour (on paper it's not great: the songs are a bit flat and their sound is not a sound I generally like. But something about it and its lyrics and vocal delivery really effect me) and Desire.

Some quick thoughts on Of Montreal:

I love those guys. They seem funny and smart, and their answers to questions and taste are always spot-on to me, as are their album titles. I dig that sound a lot, not that a million bands don't share it, and their songs are very strong. But something about it all seems a little contrived, and it puts me off. Anyone have any clue what I'm talking about?

ShimmeringWang's Top 10 Albums of 2007.

10) The Arcade Fire- Neon Bible
9) Ricardo Villalobos- Fabric 36
8) Animal Collective- Strawberry Jam
7) Spoon- Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
6) The Field- From Here We Go Sublime
5) LCD Soundsystem- Sound of Silver
4) Of Montreal- Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
3) Radiohead- In Rainbows
2) The Twilight Sad- Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winders
1) Panda Bear- Person Pitch


I dunno, the only ones I'm really certain of are 1, 2, 3, 4. Those are locked in, after that, it's so close that it probably doesn't matter.

Yes. That's why I don't like most of their stuff. Like, at all. It sounds like Kevin Barnes is just trying too hard to be goofy and literary and shit like that, but I absolutely didn't feel that way about Hissing Fauna. I mean, he was definitely doing his David Bowie thing, creating a little character to use, but I thought he was just... a little more relaxed about it? Something like that?

Classical.

Uploading part one of 2k7 mix now. No mocking me because my list basically looks like I cribbed PFork's list. I didn't. I am just inundated with Pitchfork's taste year-round, so there's no question our independently compiled year-end lists are going to be remarkably similar...

You'll get no flack from me. If anything my list will draw the ridicule for PF-droning away from you. I'm actually retooling as we speak, trying to make it less of a CC of the PF list.

My biggest problem is remember what came out this year, since 99% of my music, I first heard this year.

Who's you favorite composer?

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss - Raising Sand

I'd say the most likely candidates are probably MIA, LCD, Radiohead, Panda Bear, and Animal Collective.

I'd love to see them give it to Radiohead, though I doubt it'll happen. I don't think it'll really be MIA or LCD either. Person Pitch maybe? Strawberry Jam? Who knows? I don't think it'll be Boxer, though I see that being high, prob in the top ten. I've started my list of the top albums of the year, though it's not finished. I'll try to maybe get a top 10 soon (probably after this week, which is sort of hellish for me).

Here's what I have so far that's locked in:

1. In Rainbows
2.?
3.?
4.?
5.?
6.?
7.?
8.?
9.?
10.?

Surprising.

Yeah, that's pretty much it. It's defiantly their best, and a few tracks are really cool (first track, especially), but it still feels a bit affected, to me. I don't know, I give it maybe a 7.9-8.3, tops.

Yeah, right, I know.

But I can actually be honest with myself and say that it's my favorite album of the year. It's not only because it's Radiohead; I really do think it's my favorite. I mean, that could also be because I've listened to it so much that it's nearly unphysical. But I've also listened to others a ton, especially Strawberry Jam. So I don't feel bad.

I can see myself following it up with probably Strawberry Jam, Person Pitch, and Sound of Silver, and Boxer (all the usual suspects).

An early draft looks like this:

25. Emerald City

24. Perseverance

23. Mirrored

22. Panic Prevention

21. Reunion Tour

20. [Cross]

19. Da Drought 3

18. Random Spirit Lover

17. Roadkillovercoat

16. None Shall Pass

15. Strawberry Jam

14. Fort Nightly

13. Underground Kingz

12. Ear Drum

11. The Stage Names

10. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

9. Some Loud Thunder

8. Fabric 36

7. Graduation

6. Sound of Silver

5. In Rainbows

4. Boxer

3. Desire

2. Untrue

1. Neon Bible

I thought the whole thing worked really REALLY well together. As a "Man, my woman and I split, and now I think I have lost my mind" album, I think it's awesome. I give it like a 9.0. I don't think I'll ever listen to any of the other Of Montreal albums again, but this one I really, really liked. At first I only liked a few of the tracks, but after listening to it on repeat a few times, I realized I actually like every single track quite a bit. All of them. Just a really, really good album, I think. I see what you're saying about it being "affected," and I think I might even agree, but I also think that might be the point, and would argue furthermore that it WORKS in this instance. He basically invented an over-the-top caricature to use as his mouthpiece for the album.

I think the album is an indispensable piece from the year. I have a feel that Pitchfork won't look TOO kindly on it, after all the time that's passed, but I still think it's pretty sweet.





I don't know if it's my favorite album or not. I definitely got the most enjoyment out of it, because it's Radiohead, but I've always had a very difficult time putting their albums in context. I put them 3rd in part because I KNOW I'm a Radiohead fanboy, and any album I put ahead of them will carry extra weight BECAUSE EVERYBODY KNOWS that I'm a Radiohead fanboy. Maybe that's just my way of saying, "Check out how much I like Twilight Sad and Panda Bear."

I really, really think everybody needs to listen to that Twilight Sad album.

I'll give it another listen, as I will with Twilight Sad.

The context issue is exactly why RH landed at #5 on my list; I couldn't figure out how much is cultishness and how much is awesomeness, so I took the mean.

I can't emphasize enough how great that Twilight Sad album is... It took me a while to figure it out, but I think the droney guitar is as good a shoegaze sound as I've heard since MBV broke up.

Also, MBV are back together, and it could lead to the biggest dissapointment of my life as a music fan if they put out some kind of shitty album

MVB? Who?

My Bloody Valentine. I'm going to respond as if you were serious even though there's a 90% chance you're joking.

I love the band, but I somehow missed the acronym.

Part One of Wang's Year/End Mix:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=4LFCD5JA

Part Two:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YAXJZAC0

I'll just put it together myself; oddly, I have everyone of those discs.

What a shock. Considering we take orders from the same overlords.

We really are a couple of proud posers. It would be sad if it weren't funny.

I have no illusions about who/what I am.

I'm glad you put it that way. I think I would have erroneously decided "it would be funny if it weren't so sad." I like your way better, though, because it's true.

I got my older brother into the same music as me, now, so when we're together we're pretty much nonstop doing a hipster bit. Generally we're squinting our eyes while we condescendingly belittle the each other's taste, based on random arguments. I also make him mixtapes with songs of bizarre noise albums and pop-country albums I've admittedly never ever listened to.

Dutch: "You check the new tape, brah?"

Brother: "It's OK. Not really as progressive as I tend to like -- you know, I tend to like to grow, musically."

Dutch: "Yeah, you know, growth is cool an' all, but I'm so over it. Like, everyone is trying that, ya' know? That's what I like about Toby Keith; he's like the only guy right now whose not conforming to this whole "I have to made cool music" mold, ya'know?"

Brother: "I feel ya'. But now it's like, every indie kid has to not conform by not conforming. I don't know."

As you can guess, no one can stand to spend time around us.

http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feat...-albums-of-2007

well I guess I need to come into this thread a little more as I know about 5 of the bands on that list. I would like to come up with some new music, but it seems like this indie stuff is pretty hit or miss with me. its hard to tell what I'll like. maybe I'll just go out and buy the top ten (nine, obv) and just hope I like it all.

We not steal it?

who, me? I would never do such a thing. never.

probably would but I don't really know how to use torrents, or mainly how to find them

shocker: the 20 track 'best of 2007' by Wang was an enjoyable listen (at least the first 12 tracks were. time for sleep).

Good, because Wang is actually a super cop, posing as a semi-ironic, self-aware hipster/cardplayer. He's building a case against the rest of you, with my help, in exchange for a reduced sentence, after having caught me downloading Journey's Greatest Hits.

Bad boys, bad boy. Whatch'ya gonna' do. Whatch'ya gonna' do when they come for you, bad boy, bad boy...

I always suspected as much.


I think what I'll do is get wang's mixtape once my computer is fixed and see what I like from it and go from there.

If you want, PM me your home address and I'll send you a 2-CD compilation.

Yay.

It appears I was pretty right-on in my appraisal of the Pitchfork top 10/20, except for a few albums I forgot (Feist? Come on, Wang, if she had a dick they'd suck it) and my hopeful optimism regarding Twilight Sad's Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters. I took the Pitchfork readers' survey just so I could give FAaFW the "props" it is "due."


Wang

well hopefully my computer will be up and running in the next couple of days. will the upload still be there on friday?

My top 10

10. Okkervil River- The Stage Names
9. The National- Boxer
8. Of Montreal- Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
7. Battles- Mirrored
6. LCD Soundsystem- Sound of Silver
5. Burial- Untrue
4. Animal Collective- Strawberry Jam
3. The Field- From Here We Go Sublime
2. Radiohead- In Rainbows
1. Panda Bear- Person Pitch

http://blog.allmusic.com/2007/12/20/new-m8...m-anticipation/

So every year, I go through Pitchfork's year end lists and try to find things that I missed the first time around, or that I planned on downloading but just NEVER got around to.

Well, one of the first albums I downloaded during that process this year was Dan Deacon's Spiderman of the Rings. The first song, "Wood Woodpecker," is just Woody's laugh looped at different speeds over some keyboardz and beatz, and holy crapy, and it's awesome.

I don't think I ever heard anybody mention it in here, but I highly, highly recommend it. I wonder if mk has listened to it.

im going to dan deacon january 6th back at school, should be sick. search him on youtube, some wild videos too.

oh yeah, i found "paper planes" remix on the tracks list. usually dont like m.i.a. but i really like the song, even rich boy's verse is kinda ill.

been listening to 36 chambers a lot. wow this album has been copied a lot by other artists in the last 15 years.

Yeah, I too only now heard ol' Dan, and am highly enjoying him.

Some others I've just now caught, mostly because I really, really wanted them when I first read the review, but couldn't find, that I've liked, are:

For Emma, Forever Ago

The Cloud of Unknowing

And Weirdo Rippers

I especially loved For Emma, Forever Ago. If anyone wants it but can't find it, and isn't a cop, the Dutch one can deliver.

.

Wang, I'm really, really loving Hissing Fauna, right now.

just started listening to disc 2. man, I'm pretty sure radiohead would actually have to sit down, concentrate, and specifically TRY to make a bad album. I'm very happy with it, I just wish there were about 30 more songs on it. is that so much to ask?


on to some other thoughts and a question:

anybody ever heard that song from Snatch, the one towards the end in Mickey's last fight? thats freaking Oasis. I had no idea. I now officially like an Oasis song. not sure how I feel about that.


I'm really liking broke social scene, and I think anthems for a 17 year old girl could be the bestest song ever.


also, I've got mk's and wangs 80's mixes, but I don't have winzip, and I don't particularly want to pay $30 for a program I'll use about 20 times throughout my life. is there any way around this?