Nirvana, my history.

Anyone who knows me knows how heavily Kurt Cobain has factored in my life. But maybe you don't know how that came to be. Today, on Kurt's 45th birthday, I thought I might try to figure out, for myself, how and when and why he made such an impact....

It all started in sixth grade. Prior to this, I was more of a pop girl, like most kids. In early elementary school, I was obsessed with Madonna and Michael Jackson, since I grew up listening to them in the mid-to-late '80s and early '90s (I do still stand by how great those songs are). Even though my dad was a jazz keyboardist and my mom was a huge Beatles fan, I wasn't exposed to much of that music. Instead, I listened to the car radio and thus heard music that was popular at the time. I also really liked The Cars (and, um, Ace of Base!).

Enter sixth grade: 1995. Alanis Morissette released Jagged Little Pill, which was essentially the beginning of my 'alternative' fixation. I didn't understand the depth of emotion in some of her songs, but I had inklings. One girl in my class, Christina, was a little more "advanced" than the rest of us. Our teacher let us play songs in class and share the lyrics, and Christina shared Nirvana's "Smells like Teen Spirit" and Hole's "Miss World." In our Catholic school classroom, I followed along with the lyrics. Holy fucking shit, I thought. This is awesome. I didn't know what "libido" or "mulatto" meant; not that it mattered. I knew that Kurt Cobain had killed himself, but it hadn't meant anything to me before...what 10-year-old would have gotten that, anyway? 

So those two songs, perfectly coupled, etched themselves in my brain, though I didn't understand why. There was just something about them... something raw and broken and perfect, something that spoke to my future self, the self I wanted to be, or the self that was already taking shape. I saved those lyrics and, the next year, they wound up in a binder I kept under my bed: a binder I filled with poems and lyrics and other things I liked. Not long after, I bought Nevermind on cassette and listened to it on my Walkman. Live Through This would follow.

When you're a girl in junior high --- at least in my case --- you need something that represents you as an individual and also as a member of your particular social group. Nirvana would become that something. Christina was so "cool" that she kind of stole the show, but her something was Pearl Jam, while my best friend Rachel's something was The Smashing Pumpkins. By eighth grade, my friends and I were fairly well versed in '90s alternative culture, even though we were all born too late to appreciate grunge in its prime. We got the leftovers of that era...but those leftovers were good enough. We were also getting into classic rock, each in our own ways. You could find us eighth grade girls sitting in a circle on the grass, Christina and Rachel playing "Stairway to Heaven" on their electric guitars. While my sister + friends danced around to The Spice Girls, we were the hippie class...and we would be remembered as such. 

Getting back on track, it was really ninth grade that amplified my love of Nirvana/Kurt and turned it into a bona fide obsession. By then, I owned all of their albums on cassette. I started "decorating" my bedroom with Kurt's face, turning it into some kind of shrine. I wrote Nirvana lyrics on everything --- "Let down your umbilical noose so I can climb right back" --- and I read books and watched videos about Kurt's life, buying pretty much anything I could learn from.

Tenth grade was another turning point, since it was depressing as hell. The songs with which I was already so familiar took on new meanings and burrowed deeper in my heart. Kurt's symbolism sank into my poetry, and I took an interest in the things that had interested and inspired him...I read William S. Burroughs because he was Kurt's favorite author; I read Perfume because the song "Scentless Apprentice" was based on it; I bought little turtle and seahorse objects because Kurt liked and related to those creatures; I listened to The Vaselines and The Meat Puppets and The Melvins and other bands Kurt liked, covered, or performed with; I tried to learn Nirvana songs on the guitar; and I named things after his songs: "Polly," "Marigold," etc.

In other words, you couldn't get much more obsessed with Nirvana than I was, from tenth grade until sophomore year in college. Kurt Cobain helped me define myself; he served as a comfort and an inspiration. His voice (among others) was my personal soundtrack for many years.

When I started dating a boy named Jason in eleventh grade, I ended up getting him back into Nirvana too. He was the one who bought me the acoustic guitar on which I learned those few Nirvana songs. Jason and I loved to wander around flea markets and conventions and stores where we could find rare items for our personal collections --- for him, it was horror films; for me, it was Nirvana bootlegs. So in Generation Records and Stormville and a bunch of other places, I pieced together all 6 Outcesticide CDs, plus recorded live shows, interviews, singles, b-sides, imports, and I also re-bought their albums on CD. I got the import In Utero CD with "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip" listed on the back. I bought No Alternative (so now you know!), on which a secret Nirvana track exists, and the DGC Rarities compilation album on which "Pay to Play" (an early version of "Stay Away") exists. I knew all of the tracks that had multiple names, and I knew all of the names Nirvana had once used, and well, I knew a lot! By the time the Nirvana box-set, With the Lights Out, was released, I already owned many of those songs.

19-yr-old Amy at the muddy banks of the Wishkah.

My knowledge grew when Jason surprised me with tickets to Seattle! As an East Coast grrrl, I had never been that far west. I started preparing what I would deem my "pilgrimage." I planned our entire trip and managed to find addresses to some important locations, mostly thanks to Heavier Than Heaven. So in June of 2003, we squeezed an incredible journey into six days, visiting Aberdeen, where Kurt grew up. We went "underneath the bridge, where the tarp has sprung a leak." We visited houses where Kurt lived or just crashed. We even visited his schools and walked through the halls (though his high school had burned down). Of course, we visited the house where he killed himself, and wrote on the bench where people had left flowers. In Aberdeen, we found an unsuspecting muffler shop that housed an elaborate Kurt statue that the town refused to erect in the park. The trip was highly emotional for me, more so than I even expected. All of these names and places I had read about for years were suddenly in front of me. I took nineteen rolls of film, enough for two albums. It was...intense. 

You could say this was the peak of my obsession, though sophomore year of college continued the trend. On the tenth anniversary of his death, I listened to KRock all night long as they played the entire Roma (live) album and other songs. One of my teachers, who was from Seattle, gifted me with a Seattle newspaper about the anniversary. Another one of my teachers (for a sociomusicology class), allowed me (with some hesitation) to write my conference paper about grunge culture, generation X, and how Kurt Cobain became an inadvertant icon. The paper ended up being 40 pages long, with about 40 sources. It consumed me, but I loved working on it. If there was one thing I had become an "expert" in, this was it. Between that paper and one for the Seattle-teacher about "the concepts of zero and infinity in medieval science and religion," it was a brutal semester!

I wasn't supposed to take this picture at the Museum!

Eventually, my Nirvana obsession slowed down. Naturally, I wasn't only listening to Nirvana this whole time, and other bands and artists who were both similar to and completely unlike Nirvana swirled around in my ears. After my friend Spencer Bell died in 2006 and his music gained followers who had not known him personally, I had to sit myself down and question my Kurt fandom. No, I did not actually know him. What I do know about him comes from what he wrote and sang and painted and said and did, and from what others said about him. No, I am not actually an expert on who Kurt was as a person. 

But, getting to "know" Kurt, along with other artists/poets/musicians, taught me more about me. He allowed me to bond with others, to express myself, and to explore my own creativity. The biggest thing Kurt taught me -- and something I continue to value --- is authenticity. His music, if nothing else, is authentic in its origins, its delivery, and its power. I will always be the kind of grrrl who values the authenticity that grunge culture, and Kurt himself, inherently represents. And I will forever remember, from a sheet of lyrics in sixth grade, that "Smells like Teen Spirit" contains nine "a denial's." 

o well, whatever, nevermind.

amy.

Concert Etiquette.

I wrote this years ago, but since some old links and pages are currently deceased, I thought it needed a new location...

Going absolutely bat-shit-crazy for a band/music is all well and good (actually, this is what you're supposed to be doing), but some people nowadays are ignorant in terms of their own behavior. The point of seeing a band is to have yourself a little moment, whether it's personal and emotional, or raucous and high-energy, and it's also to enjoy the communal experience of sharing this music with others who love it. In the past few years, I've been all-too-often surrounded by jerks who fail to obey simple rules of etiquette that I assumed were common concert-goer knowledge. 

Maybe people just don't attend many shows, and they're only interested in listening to the latest iTunes downloads on their pods. Maybe the loss of smaller venues and the popularity of big-budget stadium shows have caused fans to treat concerts like football games. Maybe people use concerts now as excuses to get drunk and let out what I like to call "male aggression." Maybe people feel too distanced from the music, or from the scene in which it exists, and since they don't seek out smaller shows, or feel connected to other fans, concerts become few and far between. Whatever the reason, everyone knows the notorious "Don't be that guy!" rule, as in, "don't wear the band's T-shirt," but there are plenty of more important, unwritten rules that ought to be followed:

   1. Don't stand directly in front of the shorties. Honestly, there ought to be a section specifically reserved for us 5-foot crowd, but, since there isn't, consider who's behind you. There's nothing worse than your face being pressed against a big huge sweaty guy who doesn't give a shit but could easily see from another "row" back.

   2. Respect the ladies, respect the ladies, respect the ladies. Especially if the crowd gets rough.

   3. No elbows, unless they really deserve it (though, I've been known to pull an elbow move or two).

   4. No kicking, biting, scratching, hair pulling, or anything they don't allow in boxing.

   5. Girls, put up your hair. We don't need a face-full of it every time you bounce around, and I'm sure you don't want it ripped out either.

   6. Guys, keep the shirts on. This isn't a sports game, so try not to behave like drunken idiots.

   7. Shower. You'll only get sweatier and stinkier. And please deodorize. Again, rock shows are not jock shows.

   8. Do not make out with your significant other (unless you're both super hot) for the entirety of the show. It's nauseating to us all.

   9. Either you're in the mosh pit, or you're out. None of this in-between crap. And don't force a mosh pit to happen by slamming yourself into someone out of nowhere.

   10. Do not, under any circumstances, raise your cell phones in the air to take pictures, or to let your friends hear the show, or to god forbid use them as lighters. It makes you look lame, very lame, and stands as a general reminder of the lameness of our times, as well as everything that is wrong within the world of commercialized rock n' roll. Don't talk or text on the phone either.

   11. Help the crowd-surfers/stage-divers, don't hurt them. And do not crowd-surf if you are vastly overweight or abnormally tall.

   12. Spiky anything is a serious no-no. It may look cool, but don't mosh with 8-inch spikes, man.

   13. Refrain from obnoxiously belting the sad songs.

   14. Throwing water/beer is fine, but be careful with actual bottles. And if you accidentally plow into someone and spill their drink all over them, do apologize.

   15. Do not consistently yell out a request your favorite song, or some phrase you think is funny, or a barrage of curses between every single song. The band is not going to care.

   16. Do not become a barricade hog, and by this I mean that there's usually more room than you think there is, so no need to squeeze others out.

   17. And, finally, stop knocking my glasses off! (I know, I know, I should wear my contacts).

Okay kids, go nuts, get dirty, keep it real, and always wear protection! 

(a)amy.

Best Albums of 2011

Here it is, after lots of listening, writing, and thinking --- the best albums of 2011 in my humble opinion, based on my own preferences of course, but also with a music journalist's ear (ha). Feel free to drop me a comment!

1.     Bon Iver – Bon Iver

Very few albums can make me instantly want to weep…and while such an experience may not seem enjoyable, Justin Vernon’s (aka Bon Iver) ability to provoke perhaps unwanted emotion is a sure sign of his undeniable talent as a songwriter and singer. A profound follow-up to an already incredible album (For Emma, Forever Ago), here he offers a fuller, more multifaceted sound with much less outright-folk involved. And while For Emma requires lying in a field, Bon Iver will turn your blood to ice. Even if the final track is a little too Peter Gabriel for my tastes, the rest of the album is more than beautiful.

      Tracks: “Wash.” & “Holocene”

2.     O’Death – Outside

A Brooklyn-based band combining folk, bluegrass, metal and punk to form mosh-happy songs, O’Death has topped an already stellar album (Head Home). Each song on Outside speaks to their influences in a new way, as genres mix and meld and cease to mean anything. These guys are like musical gypsies roving ancient lands in caravans. While some tunes (“Bugs”) are folksy and melodic, others (“Howling Through”) set the scene for something macabre and altogether wicked.    

            Tracks: “Alamar” & “Ourselves”

3.     Active Child – You Are All I See

LA-native Pat Grossi is a classical harpist and ex-choirboy with a ghostly falsetto that moves through you like wind. On this first LP, he creates a richly textured experience that combines the musically technical with the abstract. An emotional and possibly spiritual wake-up call, this album is a modern-day masterpiece.

            Tracks: “Hanging On” & “Shield & Sword”

4.     M83 – Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming

A double-album is no easy feat for any band, yet somehow M83 leaves me wanting even more. Epic without a shred of pretension, these 22 tracks harken back to ’80s beats and vocals à la Tears for Fears, though all the choral-style harmonizing feels like ambient Arcade Fire. With an array of voices, trickles of piano, one-minute instrumental tracks, and almost classical compositions, you can slide through this album while lucid dreaming.

            Tracks: “Midnight City” & “Echoes of Mine”

5.     Bjork – Biophilia

Bjork is one of the most ambitious artists of our time and Biophilia is her most ambitious project. I haven’t delved into the album’s multimedia aspects, but Bjork described it as a collection “encompassing music, apps, internet, installations, and live shows.” And though I don’t own an iPad, Biophilia includes ten separate apps all housed within one “mother” app…not only that, but the music was partially created and recorded using an iPad. Bjork has never been a stranger to collaboration nor to technology—in fact, she embraces the unexpected unity of nature and technology. But games, apps, images, and invented “instruments” aside, the ten tracks on Bio roll off the tongue, once again demonstrating Bjork’s vibrant voice, poetic lyrics, and imagination.  

            Tracks: “Crystalline” & “Hollow”

6.     Zola Jesus – Conatus

Young, talented, and musically interesting female performers are not as plentiful as one might hope, and while Ms. Jesus isn’t swimming in completely uncharted seas, her talent continues to blow me away. The songs on Conatus are blissfully soulful, as her resonant voice slips under and climbs over beat-laden crescendos. It’s this voice that acts as the main instrument of every track, as Zola exhibits avant-garde pop like some kind of mystical warrioress.   

Tracks: “Vessel” & “Hikikomori”

7.     The Soft Moon – The Soft Moon

So I caught these guys (well really it’s one guy) against flickering images in Brooklyn’s Monster Island Basement, where the jam-packed, spontaneous mosh pit left me scratching my head (and nearly getting killed). See, The Soft Moon’s orbiting post-punk doesn't exactly lend itself to basement-moshing. It is, however, ideal for driving at midnight with the windows down. Surf across these waves of reverb and echoed howls!

            Tracks: “When It’s Over” & “Tiny Spiders”

8.     Cut Copy – Zonoscope

Cut Copy’s sense of rhythm and melody make Zonoscope sound like something a modern-day, electronica-minded Beatles might create, even if New Order is a more obvious influence. And while disco synths are the icing on the cake, the heart of each track lies in Cut Copy’s actual songwriting, which has the potential to outlast any particular era.

Tracks: “Pharaohs and Pyramids” & “Sun God”

9.     Radiohead – The King of Limbs

As the years go by, the ever-innovative Radiohead has been getting progressively atmospheric and ambient; King of Limbs reflects this musical wisdom and penchant for experimentation. On the band’s eighth studio effort, all eight tracks seethe emotion via complex musical landscapes and Thom Yorke’s otherworldly voice.

            Tracks: “Codex” & “Feral”

10.  Yet Cut Breath – Hinges

A seven-track debut, Hinges showcases Anna Morsett’s vocal and emotional range, with songs that soothe and sadden amidst those that pack a glistening punch. Powerful songwriting drives the organic instrumentation, and a violin and cello add a gorgeous neo-classical touch.

            Tracks: “Kindness” & “Tied”

11.  TV on the Radio – Nine Types of Light

While there’s no track that matches the immediate potency of “Wolf Like Me” and “I Was a Lover” (from 2006′s Return to Cookie Mountain), the ten tracks on Nine Types are full of hooks, horns, and vocal rambunctiousness. Aside from the five band members who all play multiple instruments, Nine Types also features ten other musicians, which only adds to the funky eclecticism.

            Tracks: “No Future Shock” & “Repetition”

12.  Mogwai – Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will & Earth Division EP

Every time Mogwai puts out a record (be it LP or EP), they manage to offer something new while sticking to the brand of post-rock that made them famous in the first place. Both Hardcore and Earth Division are full of epic builds (though these songs are slightly shorter than on previous albums) as well as slightly more "standard" heavy rock tracks. For me, Mogwai is always most poignant when they bring out the piano, like on the somewhat unnerving “Get to France.” 

Tracks: “Letters to the Metro” & “Does This Always Happen?”

13.  Caveman – Coco Beware

This quartet’s Local Natives' vibe gives them a major thumbs up in my book. But though the two bands (from opposite corners of the country) may share an indie-rock sensibility I can’t completely put a finger on, Caveman steers us on a new path, one lined with whimsical (but never quaint) melodies that will surely stick with you.

Tracks: “Old Friend” & “Vampire”

14.  Phantogram – Nightlife (EP)

Last year, Phantogram’s debut album, Eyelid Movies, clocked in at #2 on my best-of-list. Luckily, the duo once again graces us with their gritty-and-pretty approach to indie-electronica. This year’s little EP is perfectly suited to a night of city-set mischief.

            Tracks: “Turning into Stone” & “Don’t Move”

15.  13 & God – Own Your Ghost

An interesting collaborative group (The Notwist plus Themselves), 13 & God released their first (and only) record back in 2005; thus, Own Your Ghost was highly anticipated. Like the first album, the tracks here shimmer with crystalline sounds and oddly delivered lyrics. Mood, genre, and composition shift unexpectedly from song to song. By taking both hip-hop and electronica in these atypical directions, 13 & God assure that their listeners never get bored.

            Tracks:  “Et Tu” & “Beat On Us”

16.  Future Islands – On The Water

Though it comes in second place compared to their first album, In Evening Air, Future Islands have offered another slick record of brooding indie-electro. Oscillating and a bit dark, put this one on repeat and let it steep. 

Tracks: “Balance” & “The Great Fire”

17.  The Black Keys – El Camino

These guys will always claim a spot somewhere on my list. The Keys sustain their dirty rock n’ roll, with healthy doses of guitar solos, catchy drumbeats, and classic-rock vocals. El Camino sounds like it was conceived and recorded a couple decades back, yet there’s nothing imitation about it. Makes me want to jump in a truck and drive across the desert (perhaps the album cover has something to do with that!).

            Tracks: “Dead and Gone” & “Hell of a Season”

18.  The Raveonettes – Raven in the Grave

Even though The Raveonettes have nailed an early ’80s-goth vibe, some of the songs on Raven are actually sunshiny. And whenever the dense and sometimes eerie guitar-fuzz feels overblown, we still maintain our grip on the gorgeous two-part vocal harmonies for which the duo is known.

            Tracks: “Apparitions” & “Evil Seeds”

19.  Julianna Barwick – The Magic Place

I am well acquainted with Julianna’s ethereal, silky, multi-layered songs, having interviewed her, caught her live, and listened to both Sanguine and Florine. Now on Asthmatic Kitty, Julianna’s songs shine even brighter. But true to her Brooklyn-bedroom musical process, she didn’t plan her record before stepping into the studio, which certainly became a magic place.

            Tracks: “Vow” & “Bob In Your Gait”

20.  Braids – Native Speaker

Native Speaker is musical rock candy: shiny and sweet, with a few sharp edges. Combining the slow-paced glaze of Slowdive with the vocal meanderings of Bjork, these seven songs truly sparkle. 

Tracks: “Lammicken” & “Native Speaker”

21.  Explosions in the Sky – Take Care, Take Care, Take Care

It may only be six tracks long, but Take Care is sprawling. This Texan quartet knows how to create emotionally present musical terrains, with driving drumbeats and long-winded guitars that race around a central melody.

            Tracks: “Last Known Surroundings” & “Trembling Hands”

22.  Yuck – Yuck

With a delightfully ’90s indie vibe, or that of a slightly poppier Sonic Youth, Yuck’s self-titled debut is fun and familiar. Break out your Walkman and tie the laces of those Chucks!

            Tracks: “Holing Out” & “The Wall”

23.  Boris – Attention Please & Heavy Rocks

The Japanese trio that is Boris may owe their name and some musical inheritance to the Melvins, but these simultaneously released albums comb through genre conventions. While Attention is poppier and exhibits some rather sexy experimentation, Heavy is an absolute gem for any post-rock fan.

Tracks: “Aileron” (two different tracks with this name appear on both albums) & “Party Boy”

24.  Thurston Moore – Demolished Thoughts

This album is musical poetry that carries an emotional but not melancholic weight. Even the song titles are lyrical, like “Blood Never Lies” and “In Silver Rain with Paper Key.” Most of the album feels hushed, accompanied by Samara Lubelski's familiar violin, but I particularly love those moments when Thurston’s thoughts become “demolished.”  

            Tracks: “Mina Loy” & “Circulation”

25.  The Kissing Club – Little Acorn (EP)

This little four-track EP is like a handcrafted invitation to a divorce, or perhaps a peace offering of love gone awry. While the very slow songs scratch at the bones, a classic-rock-style guitar solo on “Someone Else” breaks the supposed tranquility and reminds us just how purposefully restrained these "sweet" songs really are.

            Tracks: “Honeymoon” & “Someone Else”

26.  Atlas Sound – Parallax

Deerhunter frontman Brandon Cox continues his dreamy, woozy art-rock that can lift you to the stars even though it doesn't feel ethereal. Cox’s subdued take on experimental indie is refreshing when set against some dancey post-millennial bands; therefore, the minimalism of Parallax (a very apt title considering those prior-mentioned stars) can be as comforting as tea.

            Tracks: “Doldrums” & “Te Amo”

27.  Weekend ­– Red (EP)

Droning and churning, this trio takes from post-rock, stoner-rock, post-punk, and shoegaze to create something uniquely theirs (even if a million other bands have some form of ‘Weekend’ in their name). Echoed vocals and swirling guitars will mildly assault your eardrums.

            Tracks: “Hazel” & “Goifers”

28.  JEFF The Brotherhood – We Are Champions

These brothers are the lovechildren of Fugazi and The Ramones, though let’s throw in some White Stripes and Black Keys for good measure. Evoking images of hair-in-your-face parties in somebody’s basement or garage, JEFF goes at it with a stripped-down guitar-drum combo, perfect for soaring riffs that literally shred.

Tracks: “Ripper” & “Health and Strength”

29.   Paleo – Fruit of the Spirit

David Strackany wrote a song every day for one year using a “half-size children's guitar” while playing shows and being homeless. Some of these songs appear on Fruit, which maintains the sweet simplicity of life on the road. With tracks that are loosely constructed yet tightly melodic, Paleo is a descendent of the likes of Daniel Johnston and Darcy Clay.

         Tracks: “Over The Hill and Back Again” & “Lighthouse”

30.  Beach Fossils – What A Pleasure

These “reverb-slicked indie pop” songs sound like they need a little dusting. For a band that loves when shows get rowdy (at least according to the interview I conducted with frontman Dustin Payseur), this album certainly feels languid. But don’t get me wrong: the band’s lazy delivery is ideal for equally lazy days and lovers of dream-pop.

        Tracks: “What A Pleasure” & “Out in the Way (feat. Wild Nothing)”

31.  Foster the People – Torches

Fun and friendly, Foster the People’s cute vocals and poppy beats make Torches sound like children’s music. In fact, it reminds me of those pink cassettes that used to come with certain Barbie dolls. But such playfulness assures that Torches is properly riding the recent wave of dancey albums à la Passion Pit and CSS. And who doesn’t love when “Pumped Up Kicks” comes on in a bar?

            Tracks: “Pumped Up Kicks” & “Miss You”

32.  Robin Bacior – Rest Our Wings

The songs on this debut LP bloom as soon as Robin sets her stunning voice adrift across handfuls of organic instruments. Sometimes sun-soaked and other times ideal for a reflective rainy day, Robin sings with a musical wisdom far beyond her age: one that reverberates from the late '60s to present day. 

            Tracks: “Pair Migration” & “Ohio”

33.  Gauntlet Hair – Gauntlet Hair

As shrouded, foggy and murky as these tracks may be, they’re still able to lure you in deep. There’s something enchanting about Gauntlet Hair’s debut LP…even if it sounds like they recorded this in the bathroom down the hall!

            Tracks: “Top Bunk” & “Showing”

34.  Elite Gymnastics – Ruin

It’s not like this duo is doing anything particularly groundbreaking, but I’m a sucker for their metronomic beats, samples, hazy vocals, and “electro-hip-hop-chillwave” (according to Oh My Rockness, anyway). Then there’s that Atari Teenage Riot flourish on “Here in Heaven,” plus the parallelism of the entire album: the second half is comprised of softer and subdued echoes of all the tracks that came before. Perhaps the band is referencing the uneven bars!

            Tracks: “Here in Heaven” & “Omamori”

35.  PJ Harvey – Let England Shake

Quite the departure from the punkish PJ who sang, “That blue eyed girl became blue eyed whore,” Let England Shake’s PJ is theatrical in a different way. Recorded in St. Peter’s Church in Dorset, the concept here is “the anthem -- a love song to one’s country,” an idea for which PJ conducted historical research. With a Patti Smith edge to her voice and dramatic songs that remind me of Coldplay’s Viva La Vida (conceptually, not musically), this album proves that PJ is not done trying out new sounds, ideas, and even vocals.

            Tracks: “Let England Shake” & “The Words that Maketh Murder”

BEST SONGS OF THE YEAR:

[those not included on any of my top albums]

1.     The Joy Formidable – “Whirring”

2.     Grouplove – “Colours”

3.     Sleep ∞ Over – “Romantic Streams

4.     Gotye – "Somebody That I Used to Know"

5.     100 Monkeys – “Wandering Mind”

6.     J. Mascis – “Not Enough”

7.     The Kills – “Satellite”

8.     This Will Destroy You – “Communal Blood”

9.     Dom – “Jesus”

10.  Mechanical People – “Magnolia”

11.  Girls – “Vomit”

12.  Cults – “Most Wanted”

13.  Grinderman – “When My Baby Comes”

14.  Lemonade – “The Place Where you Belong” (Shai cover)

15.  Esben and the Witch – “Warpath”

16.  Kurt Vile – “Baby’s Arms”

17.  Gang Gang Dance – “Glass Jar”

18.  Woodsman – “In Circles”

19.  Cass McCombs – “The Same Thing”

20.  Wooden Shjips – “Lazy Bones”

21.  The Chain Gang of 1974 – “Hold On”

22.  Minks – “Cemetery Rain”

23.  Florence and the Machine – “Only If For a Night” 

24.  Davila 666 – “Obsesionao”

25.  Slowdance – "Sweetness" 

And a special shout-out to The XX, whose album I didn’t include in my best-of list of 2010, which you can check out here!

-alt.amy.