Darren McLeod
11/08/06, 09:46 AM
Another year, another set of lists for you to scrutinize. Please, go easy on me, kids.
Top Albums of 2006
30) The Aggrolites - The Aggrolites
29) Dead To Me - Cuban Ballerina
28) The Bouncing Souls - The Gold Album
27) No Trigger - Canyoneer
26) Copeland - Eat, Sleep, Repeat
25) Rocky Votolato - Makers
24) Latterman - We Are Still Alive
23) mewithoutYou - Brother, Sister
22) Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope
21) Lucero - Rebels, Rogues, and Sworn Brothers
20) Owen - At Home With Owen
19) Bomb The Music Industry! - Goodbye Cool World (Free Download Here) (http://www.quoteunquoterecords.com/qur002/qur002.zip)
18) Set Your Goals - Mutiny!
17) The Bronx - The Bronx
16) Saves The Day - Sound The Alarm
15) Moneen - The Red Tree
14) Guillemots - Through The Windowpane
13) Damien Rice - 9
12) The Format - Dog Problems
11) Josh Ritter - The Animal Years
10) The Falcon - Unicornography After their debut EP, I had high hopes for this Chicago supergroup's full-length. It finally arrived, and it didn't disappoint. They manage to not just be "that sideproject with those dudes from the Larry Arms and Alkaline Trio," but carve an identity of their own.
9) Fifth Hour Hero - Not Revenge, Just a Vicious Crush One of the catchiest punk albums of the year came from these Quebecois, who swap between male and female vocals to provide an extremely accessible punk disc that deserves more notice than it received.
8) RX Bandits - ...And The Battle Begun - Although I don't enjoy the lyrics as much as the great political writings of The Resignation, I enjoy the music even more. The Bandits never seem to disappoint.
7) The Steal - The Steal Where did these guys come from? A UK melodic hardcore band that rocks harder than just about anything released in 2006, and criminially underrated. Fans of Kid Dynamite and Lifetime really should give this a spin.
6) Defiance, Ohio - The Great Depression (Free Download Here) (http://www.archive.org/details/DefianceOhioTheGreatDepression) The second album I've posted that can be legally downloaded for free, The Great Depression is one of the finest examples of folk-punk you could find. The group stays true to the punk ethos in both lyrics and actions; it's amazing what you can get for free these days.
5) Crime In Stereo - The Troubled Stateside This album has so much going for it. More variety than past releases from CIS yet maintaining intensity (just listen to the opening track), and some of the most intelligent lyrics of 2006.
4) Murder By Death - In Bocca Al Lupo The macabre western stylings of Murder By Death keep growing on me with each release. The beautiful melodies of Sarah Balliet's cello dance throughout the album, and they do Dante's Inferno justice in their execution of this concept album.
3) The World/Inferno Friendship Society - Red-Eyed Soul Time for a shoutout to forum user Carlo Marx who enlightened me and pointed me in the direction of W/IFS. A punk-rock orchestra that provides the soundtrack for a musical that doesn't exist, but oh how I wish it did.
2) The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America This album hit me instantly and threatened to steal the number one spot. More melodic than last year's Separation Sunday but still contains the great storytelling and unique vocal delivery. Springsteen-influenced bar rock has never sounded this good.
1) The Lawrence Arms - Oh! Calcutta! Okay, so it isn't a big secret that I'm a big fan of the Larry Arms or that I loved this album, but come on. A harder and faster album than The Greatest Story Ever Told, this album rarely left my CD player for an extended period this year.
Honourable Mention
Shook Ones - Facetious Folly Feat
Joanna Newsom - Ys
Good Clean Fun - Between Christian Rock and a Hard Place
Strike Anywhere - Dead FM
The Annuals - Be He Me
Another Breath - Mill City
Jon Rae & The River - Knows What You Need
Brand New - The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me
Randy - Randy The Band
Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins - Rabbit Fur Coat
The Loved Ones - Keep Your Heart
Ryan's Hope - Apocalypse in Increments
None More Black - This Is Satire
The Lillingtons - The Too Late Show
Bigwig - Reclamation
These albums just barely missed the cut to be in the top 30. A week before finalizing my list, some of them were on the list. I recommend you still check out these albums, as these are all gems.
Top EPs of 2006
3. Fake Problems - Spurs & Spokes/Bull > Matador
2. Polar Bear Club - The Redder, The Better
1. Moneybrother - They're Building Walls Around Us Now
Unsigned Albums of the Year
Oh No! Oh My! - Oh No! Oh My!
Suburbanite - Suburbanite
The Ramblin' Boys of Pleasure - Pillow Talk at Mattress World - (Free Download Here) (https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/trott/www/Pillow_Talk_at_Mattress_World.zip)
Album I Missed in 2005
Marathon - Marathon
Best Lyrics of 2006
3. Kristian Hallbert (Crime In Stereo)
2. Craig Finn (The Hold Steady)
1. Aaron Weiss (mewithoutYou)
Best Record Label of 2006
3. Nitro Records
2. Vagrant Records
1. Fat Wreck Chords
Best Songs of 2006
15. The Bronx - White Guilt
14. The Format - Dog Problems
13. Regina Spektor - Fidelity
12. Defiance, Ohio - New World Order
11. The Steal - Waiting For The Simple Life
10. Bomb The Music Industry! - Side Projects Are Never Successful
9. The Falcon - Unicorn Odyssey
8. Damien Rice - Elephant
7. Set Your Goals - Mutiny!
6. Moneen - The Day No One Ever Needed To Know
5. The World/Inferno Friendship Society - Only Anarchists Are Pretty
4. Crime In Stereo - Abre Los Ojos
3. Brand New - Jesus
2. The Lawrence Arms - Recovering the Opposable Thumb
1. The Hold Steady - First Night
Most Anticipated of 2007
5. Bright Eyes
4. Every Time I Die
3. Against Me!
2. Dillinger 4
1. The Weakerthans (Hey, a guy can dream, can't he?)
That's my opinion on 2006, but don't take my word for it. Go check out some of those albums for yourself and see if you can discover any new music. Have a happy new year, and don't forget to make some good resolutions for 2007. As for me, I've got 100 resolutions (but I've got no solutions). This year I'll try not to think too much. This year I'll try to stand up for myself. This year I'll live like I've never lived before. This is my year for sure.
Top Albums of 2006
30) The Aggrolites - The Aggrolites
29) Dead To Me - Cuban Ballerina
28) The Bouncing Souls - The Gold Album
27) No Trigger - Canyoneer
26) Copeland - Eat, Sleep, Repeat
25) Rocky Votolato - Makers
24) Latterman - We Are Still Alive
23) mewithoutYou - Brother, Sister
22) Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope
21) Lucero - Rebels, Rogues, and Sworn Brothers
20) Owen - At Home With Owen
19) Bomb The Music Industry! - Goodbye Cool World (Free Download Here) (http://www.quoteunquoterecords.com/qur002/qur002.zip)
18) Set Your Goals - Mutiny!
17) The Bronx - The Bronx
16) Saves The Day - Sound The Alarm
15) Moneen - The Red Tree
14) Guillemots - Through The Windowpane
13) Damien Rice - 9
12) The Format - Dog Problems
11) Josh Ritter - The Animal Years
10) The Falcon - Unicornography After their debut EP, I had high hopes for this Chicago supergroup's full-length. It finally arrived, and it didn't disappoint. They manage to not just be "that sideproject with those dudes from the Larry Arms and Alkaline Trio," but carve an identity of their own.
9) Fifth Hour Hero - Not Revenge, Just a Vicious Crush One of the catchiest punk albums of the year came from these Quebecois, who swap between male and female vocals to provide an extremely accessible punk disc that deserves more notice than it received.
8) RX Bandits - ...And The Battle Begun - Although I don't enjoy the lyrics as much as the great political writings of The Resignation, I enjoy the music even more. The Bandits never seem to disappoint.
7) The Steal - The Steal Where did these guys come from? A UK melodic hardcore band that rocks harder than just about anything released in 2006, and criminially underrated. Fans of Kid Dynamite and Lifetime really should give this a spin.
6) Defiance, Ohio - The Great Depression (Free Download Here) (http://www.archive.org/details/DefianceOhioTheGreatDepression) The second album I've posted that can be legally downloaded for free, The Great Depression is one of the finest examples of folk-punk you could find. The group stays true to the punk ethos in both lyrics and actions; it's amazing what you can get for free these days.
5) Crime In Stereo - The Troubled Stateside This album has so much going for it. More variety than past releases from CIS yet maintaining intensity (just listen to the opening track), and some of the most intelligent lyrics of 2006.
4) Murder By Death - In Bocca Al Lupo The macabre western stylings of Murder By Death keep growing on me with each release. The beautiful melodies of Sarah Balliet's cello dance throughout the album, and they do Dante's Inferno justice in their execution of this concept album.
3) The World/Inferno Friendship Society - Red-Eyed Soul Time for a shoutout to forum user Carlo Marx who enlightened me and pointed me in the direction of W/IFS. A punk-rock orchestra that provides the soundtrack for a musical that doesn't exist, but oh how I wish it did.
2) The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America This album hit me instantly and threatened to steal the number one spot. More melodic than last year's Separation Sunday but still contains the great storytelling and unique vocal delivery. Springsteen-influenced bar rock has never sounded this good.
1) The Lawrence Arms - Oh! Calcutta! Okay, so it isn't a big secret that I'm a big fan of the Larry Arms or that I loved this album, but come on. A harder and faster album than The Greatest Story Ever Told, this album rarely left my CD player for an extended period this year.
Honourable Mention
Shook Ones - Facetious Folly Feat
Joanna Newsom - Ys
Good Clean Fun - Between Christian Rock and a Hard Place
Strike Anywhere - Dead FM
The Annuals - Be He Me
Another Breath - Mill City
Jon Rae & The River - Knows What You Need
Brand New - The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me
Randy - Randy The Band
Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins - Rabbit Fur Coat
The Loved Ones - Keep Your Heart
Ryan's Hope - Apocalypse in Increments
None More Black - This Is Satire
The Lillingtons - The Too Late Show
Bigwig - Reclamation
These albums just barely missed the cut to be in the top 30. A week before finalizing my list, some of them were on the list. I recommend you still check out these albums, as these are all gems.
Top EPs of 2006
3. Fake Problems - Spurs & Spokes/Bull > Matador
2. Polar Bear Club - The Redder, The Better
1. Moneybrother - They're Building Walls Around Us Now
Unsigned Albums of the Year
Oh No! Oh My! - Oh No! Oh My!
Suburbanite - Suburbanite
The Ramblin' Boys of Pleasure - Pillow Talk at Mattress World - (Free Download Here) (https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/trott/www/Pillow_Talk_at_Mattress_World.zip)
Album I Missed in 2005
Marathon - Marathon
Best Lyrics of 2006
3. Kristian Hallbert (Crime In Stereo)
2. Craig Finn (The Hold Steady)
1. Aaron Weiss (mewithoutYou)
Best Record Label of 2006
3. Nitro Records
2. Vagrant Records
1. Fat Wreck Chords
Best Songs of 2006
15. The Bronx - White Guilt
14. The Format - Dog Problems
13. Regina Spektor - Fidelity
12. Defiance, Ohio - New World Order
11. The Steal - Waiting For The Simple Life
10. Bomb The Music Industry! - Side Projects Are Never Successful
9. The Falcon - Unicorn Odyssey
8. Damien Rice - Elephant
7. Set Your Goals - Mutiny!
6. Moneen - The Day No One Ever Needed To Know
5. The World/Inferno Friendship Society - Only Anarchists Are Pretty
4. Crime In Stereo - Abre Los Ojos
3. Brand New - Jesus
2. The Lawrence Arms - Recovering the Opposable Thumb
1. The Hold Steady - First Night
Most Anticipated of 2007
5. Bright Eyes
4. Every Time I Die
3. Against Me!
2. Dillinger 4
1. The Weakerthans (Hey, a guy can dream, can't he?)
That's my opinion on 2006, but don't take my word for it. Go check out some of those albums for yourself and see if you can discover any new music. Have a happy new year, and don't forget to make some good resolutions for 2007. As for me, I've got 100 resolutions (but I've got no solutions). This year I'll try not to think too much. This year I'll try to stand up for myself. This year I'll live like I've never lived before. This is my year for sure.