so yeah, i know it's april. but we can't really have a year-end roundup until we're all able to spend the day together playing those records and talking about them. that's just how me and the boys are.
this didn't get to happen this year until now. maybe we're all getting old and busy. but we still listen to a ton of music and care about it more than most. we finally got to have that day today, so i can, in turn, finally share my year-end picks with any of you that care... you should at least appreciate the effort that went into putting this together with my drunk double-vision.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
t-roccs 2005 foundation...
1 (tie). Opeth Ghost Reveries / Enslaved Isa
it was so hard to put one of these records over the other for me, because they are so much alike in many ways lengthy songs full of twists and turns, riffs that lodge in your head and elegaic soloing, swings between gruff screams and clean soaring voices... but they are different, too. Isa feels like a rocket ship traveling through a barren landscape of rock and ice, with little separating you from the vast starry heavens above. it has an old-god spirit to it - the choirs of pagan deities welcoming the death and rebirth of the world. Ghost Reveries evokes images of drearily lit, foggy english marshland, sepulchral beings in lacey burial vestments among the moss, a romantic and paranoid pursuit through the countryside, a willingness to give yourself over to the organic destruction and rebuilding of the dark forest. amazing journeys to take, both. Enslaved ruled the first half of the year, while Opeth dominated the second. there was no way i could do anything else but give them both my number one slot.
3. Quasimoto the Further Adventures of Lord Quas
it is impossible to overstate the effect that the Unseen had on me when it came out; that album not only got me listening to hip-hop again, it taught me how to listen to it, and all music, in a whole new way. to say i was excited for a new Quasimoto project from Madlib would in turn be a gross understating of the situation. when i first got the record, i was actually a little disappointed nothing seemed to be grabbing me. what i was forgetting was that i digested the Unseen on a tape dubbed for me by a friend that remained in my car stereo almost exclusively for an entire summer. over and over. and over again. it takes time to unearth the incredible things that Madlib does, and they just keep fucking coming when you give this record that time. keep listening, keep listening, keep listening. the man bends reality with this record.
4. Ryan Adams & the Cardinals Cold Roses
i thought id had enough of Ryan Adams after an angst-filled 2004 listening to way too much of him so when this double-album dropped early in the year, i approached it with trepidation. what i found was actually, exactly what i needed. again. the fucker has my number, and this time he did it with a lazily expansive sound framed in his usual songs of love and loss and learning but his new backing band the Cardinals evoke feelings of Wake of the Flood-era Grateful Dead with the spidery little guitar leads and beautiful backing vocals. this record became a salve for me, giving me meditation and peace. whod have thunk id have found it with this guy? i should also mention that he released two more albums this year, both of which i also enjoy, but neither got spun nearly as much as Cold Roses.
5. Jesu
Godflesh had become rote and boring, and it was kind of sad. this re-invention of Justin Broadricks vision is thrilling, hypnotic and heart-stirring. majestic. and, really goddamned sad. lush, gauzy walls of noise that are equally happy to be the soundtrack to nodding out on the couch at 3am or watching dust mites in the sunlight from the couch at 3pm. as long as you can switch off yr head and zone for a bit. let yr eyes unfocus.
6. Meshuggah Catch 33
this monolith of otherworldly metal is very difficult to describe. the riffs and rhythmic patterns are complex as calculus, the brutal vocals and pummeling eight-string (!!!) guitars are bruising but all of a sudden, just when you think you can start to feel your brain coming apart in puzzle-like slices, the damn thing warps into negative space, and youre left floating in the blackness, thrust onto the other side of the black hole by some demented robotic pilot. and you fucking love it. and you take the ride again.
7. Brian Eno Another Day on Earth
who would have guessed that a new Eno record would be as exciting as this record is? well, i guess i hoped it would be when i heard it was coming and i was not disappointed. what can i say, except that it sounds pretty much exactly like i wanted it to. the man plays the role of observer so well with his songs, filling them with rich soundscapes and those crazy air-hockey noises and shit. front-porch music and headphone music alike. the initial impression is peaceful and airy, but dig in and its tangled and dense. hard to call it an important record, but if you enjoy sound at all, you should give it a listen.
8. Kings of Leon Aha Shake Heartbreak
not having ever really been taken by the previous record, this album surprised me with the tenacity it showed. i checked it out almost on a lark, and the fucking thing dug its teeth into my neck and wouldnt let go. quick, catchy, whip-smart songs paired with elliptical and exuberant lyrics left me with songs rattling in my head all year long. good time to roll on, indeed.
9. Ladytron Witching Hour
a slow burn, this one had. always a fan of their mechanical sexiness in the past, i let this one slip by untouched for a few months. then songs started to rise out of the murk of my daily listening, and i found them leaving poignant and lasting images in my head, as well as stirring me below the belt. a strange band that i still cant say i understand, they seem to view the world as a cold construct that we simply have to live with feelings of satisfaction and happiness are fleeting, and they encourage you to grab for them, but not to expect them to stay. a surprisingly intriguing record, and still very, very sexy.
10. Raveonettes Pretty in Black
so the word was the big fuzz guitar sound was gone, and this was the quiet record. well, that is true for the most part, but the crystal clear production, filled to the fucking brim Phil Spector-style, sure doesnt feel shy. these songs are chiming echoes of a lost innocence for music and for mankind. i was never quite sure what percentage was true and what was gimmick with this two-piece before, and maybe i still dont, but this record feels real. opening up moonlit deserts and motorcyle rides in my mind, battling the surrounding concrete reality with force and effectiveness.
11. Little Brother the Minstrel Show
12. Kelli Ali Psychic Cat
13. New Order Waiting For the Sirens Call
14. Gorillaz Demon Days
15. Cave In Perfect Pitch Black
16. Team Sleep
17. Harold Budd Avalon Sutra / as long as i can hold my breath
18. Mark Eitzel - Candy Ass
19. Lady Sovereign Vertically Challenged ep
20. High On Fire Blessed Black Wings
21. System of a Down Mezmerize/Hypnotize
22. Cass McCombs Prefection
23. Lurker of Chalice
24. Sybris
25. Common Be
26. Witchcraft Firewood
27. Twilight
28. Electrelane Axes
29. DJ Muggs vs GZA Grandmasters
30. Ulver Blood Inside
absolute best fucking crack-rock songs 2005:
1. bartender say quasimoto
2. in amber love as laughter
3. cant hold on med
4. sleepwalkin raveonettes
5. DARE gorillaz
6. psychic cat kelli ali
7. feel good inc. gorillaz
8. rickety rackety aesop rock w/ el-p y camu tao
9. ideal kelli ali
10. medication queens of the stone age
shows of the year:
yakuza, indian w/ MFN @ bottle 12/23 show of the year. took the top of my skull off.
electrelane at the bottle w/ littlebandit y girl303 on a fucking hot summer night. love jams eternal.
pinback at metro w/ girl303 y spiked 5/31 drunk and dancing with new friends
queens of the stone age at vic w/ MFN 04/05 spur of the moment with an old friend
jackie-o motherfucker, hippie and the hesher, jack rose, randy w/ FritzKD @ bottle 11/4. "i hope the kids are still taking acid".
some assorted detritus that kicked ass in 2005:
$ - Wrest, Malefic, Hildolf and their alter egos Leviathan, Xasthur and Draugar these dudes pummeled FritzKD and i with unending waves of split eps and ultra-limited vinyl fetish items full of their wacked-out, fucked up and twisted guitar-drone angry mournful hypnotic druggy and balance-shifting strains of West Coast Isolationist Black Metal. although Wrests weird Bauhaus-esque project Lurker of Chalice and the snarling undead sprawl of the WCIBM summit meeting, Twilight, made it onto the year-end list, the other releases were almost too much to distinguish one from another. but do not let that fool you into thinking i did not listen to a shit-ton of this ear-damaging stuff all year long. and really, i thought i did kill one of my ears once listening to Draugar turns out it was just the fuzz in the mix. sick, sick, sick stuff. its been a blast ingesting it.
$ - Joe Strummer. no secret that i like this dude. but this year we got a shiny new reissue of his pre-Clash outfit the 101ers, plus a rather non-essential reissue of the Walker soundtrack. and littlebandit decided she loved him this year as well, which made it an especially fun musical road to take quite often. and anyone that was at our wedding should remember the little Joe Strummer history lesson/interlude in the midst of the reception, after FritzKD even quoted the Clash in his toast. i felt like he was looking over me this year, and it felt good. lots of your music was listened to down here, sir, and i thank you. i hope heaven is treating you well.
this didn't get to happen this year until now. maybe we're all getting old and busy. but we still listen to a ton of music and care about it more than most. we finally got to have that day today, so i can, in turn, finally share my year-end picks with any of you that care... you should at least appreciate the effort that went into putting this together with my drunk double-vision.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
t-roccs 2005 foundation...
1 (tie). Opeth Ghost Reveries / Enslaved Isa
it was so hard to put one of these records over the other for me, because they are so much alike in many ways lengthy songs full of twists and turns, riffs that lodge in your head and elegaic soloing, swings between gruff screams and clean soaring voices... but they are different, too. Isa feels like a rocket ship traveling through a barren landscape of rock and ice, with little separating you from the vast starry heavens above. it has an old-god spirit to it - the choirs of pagan deities welcoming the death and rebirth of the world. Ghost Reveries evokes images of drearily lit, foggy english marshland, sepulchral beings in lacey burial vestments among the moss, a romantic and paranoid pursuit through the countryside, a willingness to give yourself over to the organic destruction and rebuilding of the dark forest. amazing journeys to take, both. Enslaved ruled the first half of the year, while Opeth dominated the second. there was no way i could do anything else but give them both my number one slot.
3. Quasimoto the Further Adventures of Lord Quas
it is impossible to overstate the effect that the Unseen had on me when it came out; that album not only got me listening to hip-hop again, it taught me how to listen to it, and all music, in a whole new way. to say i was excited for a new Quasimoto project from Madlib would in turn be a gross understating of the situation. when i first got the record, i was actually a little disappointed nothing seemed to be grabbing me. what i was forgetting was that i digested the Unseen on a tape dubbed for me by a friend that remained in my car stereo almost exclusively for an entire summer. over and over. and over again. it takes time to unearth the incredible things that Madlib does, and they just keep fucking coming when you give this record that time. keep listening, keep listening, keep listening. the man bends reality with this record.
4. Ryan Adams & the Cardinals Cold Roses
i thought id had enough of Ryan Adams after an angst-filled 2004 listening to way too much of him so when this double-album dropped early in the year, i approached it with trepidation. what i found was actually, exactly what i needed. again. the fucker has my number, and this time he did it with a lazily expansive sound framed in his usual songs of love and loss and learning but his new backing band the Cardinals evoke feelings of Wake of the Flood-era Grateful Dead with the spidery little guitar leads and beautiful backing vocals. this record became a salve for me, giving me meditation and peace. whod have thunk id have found it with this guy? i should also mention that he released two more albums this year, both of which i also enjoy, but neither got spun nearly as much as Cold Roses.
5. Jesu
Godflesh had become rote and boring, and it was kind of sad. this re-invention of Justin Broadricks vision is thrilling, hypnotic and heart-stirring. majestic. and, really goddamned sad. lush, gauzy walls of noise that are equally happy to be the soundtrack to nodding out on the couch at 3am or watching dust mites in the sunlight from the couch at 3pm. as long as you can switch off yr head and zone for a bit. let yr eyes unfocus.
6. Meshuggah Catch 33
this monolith of otherworldly metal is very difficult to describe. the riffs and rhythmic patterns are complex as calculus, the brutal vocals and pummeling eight-string (!!!) guitars are bruising but all of a sudden, just when you think you can start to feel your brain coming apart in puzzle-like slices, the damn thing warps into negative space, and youre left floating in the blackness, thrust onto the other side of the black hole by some demented robotic pilot. and you fucking love it. and you take the ride again.
7. Brian Eno Another Day on Earth
who would have guessed that a new Eno record would be as exciting as this record is? well, i guess i hoped it would be when i heard it was coming and i was not disappointed. what can i say, except that it sounds pretty much exactly like i wanted it to. the man plays the role of observer so well with his songs, filling them with rich soundscapes and those crazy air-hockey noises and shit. front-porch music and headphone music alike. the initial impression is peaceful and airy, but dig in and its tangled and dense. hard to call it an important record, but if you enjoy sound at all, you should give it a listen.
8. Kings of Leon Aha Shake Heartbreak
not having ever really been taken by the previous record, this album surprised me with the tenacity it showed. i checked it out almost on a lark, and the fucking thing dug its teeth into my neck and wouldnt let go. quick, catchy, whip-smart songs paired with elliptical and exuberant lyrics left me with songs rattling in my head all year long. good time to roll on, indeed.
9. Ladytron Witching Hour
a slow burn, this one had. always a fan of their mechanical sexiness in the past, i let this one slip by untouched for a few months. then songs started to rise out of the murk of my daily listening, and i found them leaving poignant and lasting images in my head, as well as stirring me below the belt. a strange band that i still cant say i understand, they seem to view the world as a cold construct that we simply have to live with feelings of satisfaction and happiness are fleeting, and they encourage you to grab for them, but not to expect them to stay. a surprisingly intriguing record, and still very, very sexy.
10. Raveonettes Pretty in Black
so the word was the big fuzz guitar sound was gone, and this was the quiet record. well, that is true for the most part, but the crystal clear production, filled to the fucking brim Phil Spector-style, sure doesnt feel shy. these songs are chiming echoes of a lost innocence for music and for mankind. i was never quite sure what percentage was true and what was gimmick with this two-piece before, and maybe i still dont, but this record feels real. opening up moonlit deserts and motorcyle rides in my mind, battling the surrounding concrete reality with force and effectiveness.
11. Little Brother the Minstrel Show
12. Kelli Ali Psychic Cat
13. New Order Waiting For the Sirens Call
14. Gorillaz Demon Days
15. Cave In Perfect Pitch Black
16. Team Sleep
17. Harold Budd Avalon Sutra / as long as i can hold my breath
18. Mark Eitzel - Candy Ass
19. Lady Sovereign Vertically Challenged ep
20. High On Fire Blessed Black Wings
21. System of a Down Mezmerize/Hypnotize
22. Cass McCombs Prefection
23. Lurker of Chalice
24. Sybris
25. Common Be
26. Witchcraft Firewood
27. Twilight
28. Electrelane Axes
29. DJ Muggs vs GZA Grandmasters
30. Ulver Blood Inside
absolute best fucking crack-rock songs 2005:
1. bartender say quasimoto
2. in amber love as laughter
3. cant hold on med
4. sleepwalkin raveonettes
5. DARE gorillaz
6. psychic cat kelli ali
7. feel good inc. gorillaz
8. rickety rackety aesop rock w/ el-p y camu tao
9. ideal kelli ali
10. medication queens of the stone age
shows of the year:
yakuza, indian w/ MFN @ bottle 12/23 show of the year. took the top of my skull off.
electrelane at the bottle w/ littlebandit y girl303 on a fucking hot summer night. love jams eternal.
pinback at metro w/ girl303 y spiked 5/31 drunk and dancing with new friends
queens of the stone age at vic w/ MFN 04/05 spur of the moment with an old friend
jackie-o motherfucker, hippie and the hesher, jack rose, randy w/ FritzKD @ bottle 11/4. "i hope the kids are still taking acid".
some assorted detritus that kicked ass in 2005:
$ - Wrest, Malefic, Hildolf and their alter egos Leviathan, Xasthur and Draugar these dudes pummeled FritzKD and i with unending waves of split eps and ultra-limited vinyl fetish items full of their wacked-out, fucked up and twisted guitar-drone angry mournful hypnotic druggy and balance-shifting strains of West Coast Isolationist Black Metal. although Wrests weird Bauhaus-esque project Lurker of Chalice and the snarling undead sprawl of the WCIBM summit meeting, Twilight, made it onto the year-end list, the other releases were almost too much to distinguish one from another. but do not let that fool you into thinking i did not listen to a shit-ton of this ear-damaging stuff all year long. and really, i thought i did kill one of my ears once listening to Draugar turns out it was just the fuzz in the mix. sick, sick, sick stuff. its been a blast ingesting it.
$ - Joe Strummer. no secret that i like this dude. but this year we got a shiny new reissue of his pre-Clash outfit the 101ers, plus a rather non-essential reissue of the Walker soundtrack. and littlebandit decided she loved him this year as well, which made it an especially fun musical road to take quite often. and anyone that was at our wedding should remember the little Joe Strummer history lesson/interlude in the midst of the reception, after FritzKD even quoted the Clash in his toast. i felt like he was looking over me this year, and it felt good. lots of your music was listened to down here, sir, and i thank you. i hope heaven is treating you well.
VIEW 5 of 5 COMMENTS
As for the albums: 4,7,8, 10, 14 and most especially 13 are on my list. Give Me One More Day and I'll post mine.
Screw Clapton, Strummer is God.