The Top Five Albums of 2007

Note: Please list your top five in the comments section. Listing 1-5 without any commentary is just fine. There are about 20 different songs you can download within this list and a few other songs you can stream. Enjoy!

Update: Stereogum has published their Top 50.

The Year in Music 2007

2007 is just about over and I am still trying to catch up with all the music my ears have been exposed to over the past 11+ months. KEXP continues to be a source of music for me, but less so than in years past. Sirius Radio’s Left of Center and Underground Garage have probably introduced me to more good records than any other source. There were some very informative blogs that also kept me up to date including Stereogum, I Am Fuel You Are Friends, Paste Magazine Blog, The Hype Machine, and Pop Candy.

I took my daughter to Bumbershoot this year to rock out to Kings of Leon and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, both of who had stellar albums come out this year. Kylee says BRMC is her favorite band.

Band of Horses released another good record, Cease To Begin, but I am still waiting for the moment they allow me to forget about My Morning Jacket and The Shins. Marry Song is the best Shins song the Shins didn’t release this year. I know the BOH will eventually make a masterpiece of a record that doesn’t necessarily flaunt their indie influence (click here to download some tracks).

Speaking of the Shins, Wincing the Nigh Away was their third straight solid record. They even waded into Beta Band territory on Sea Legs (free download here).

I enjoyed some great folk records this year from Devandra Barnhardt (download the sprawling Seahorse here), Iron and Wine, Jose Gonzales (download Down the Line here), and (surprisingly) Eddie Vedder. I am a huge PJ fan obviously, but I have always preferred the harder stuff as opposed to the crooning from Eddie. From what I am told the music fits nice in the Sean Penn movie Into the Wild.

Bright Eyes and Ryan Adams both released records that showcased some old-school country/western boogie. I seriously think Ryan Adams should just do a Grateful Dead covers tour because the Cardinals do the best Dead homage that I have heard in a while. Oh yeah, if you are a Deadhead tune into Channel 32 on Sirius Radio. You will spin and smile for hours and hours.

I loved the fact that the Boss and John Fogerty both released records within days of each other that felt “classic”. Fogerty finally released an album that embraced his Credence roots (listen to I can’t Take it No More) and Bruce Springsteen revved up the tempo for the first time in a while (download Radio Nowhere for free, it’s a three-minute rock blast).

Admittedly I am biased here, but the new Half Acre Day album stayed in my iPod for many months. 14 Trips Around the Sun is a big improvement from the band’s last release because although you still get the idea there are multiple song writers, all the songs are about the end of the world. Yes, it's a concept album, remember those? Coincidentally they are streaming what I consider to be the best four songs on the album (BIOTA, Brown, Anemones, and Turning Into Stars) on MySpace right now.

Other highlights from 2007:

Best garage rock record? The Black Lips. Easily. What other band could make a sing along about a hurricane (O Katrina)? Need an acoustic Sonic Youth record? Thurston Moore provided that too. Like whistling? Peter, Bjorn, and John made a record you could whistle along to with ease (download Young Folks).

The Beastie Boys released a decent 70’s wah-wah funky instrumental record. Rogue Wave made a record that reminded me of early Death Cab for Cutie (download Lake Michigan).

The 1990’s made a really good disco-rock album, not shockingly since they were “discovered” by Franz Ferdinand. You Made Me Like It, the album’s opening track with an uber-catchy disco riff could make even the most stubborn man put one some dancing shoes.

How can I forget Spoon? Oh how I love these guys. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga was the sixth best record of the year, just missing out on the top five. Has a band ever sounded so big by sounding so small? The Underdog was one of the best songs of the year. The horns rule. Watch them play it on Letterman.

The Top Albums of 2007

5. Arcade Fire Neon Bible

I have to be honest and say I didn’t even think this would be in my top 20 until about three weeks ago. I threw it on my iPod again and have since discovered many new layers I didn’t even know were there. Keep The Car Running is my favorite track, but Intervention also makes me want to sing along. Is it kosher to claim a band as an inspiration, almost as if listening to their music is sermon-like? The lyrics are occasionally dark, but there always seems to be an out clause or a way to escape bad times. Hope.

4. White Stripes Icky Thump

I think I will pretty much reserve a space in my Top Five every time Jack and Meg White release an album. As I wrote earlier this year on the blog, I am pretty much convinced The White Stripes are the best thing to happen to rock since Led Zeppelin. They can do blues, country, bluegrass, lounge, pop, punk, hard rock, and heavy metal as good as anyone while at the same making it all their own. They don’t imitate, they borrow and steal ingredients and always end up sounding like the White Stripes. The best songs on Icky Thump are the boogey-woogie Rag and Bone and the steel guitar filled Catch Hell Blues.

3. Radiohead In Rainbows

Did you download this already? If not, you have two more days at Radiohead’s home page. Did I mention you could pay whatever price you want? Seriously. I paid four lbs and it’s easily worth it. While better musically than Hail to the Thief, In Rainbows does not, as some have suggested, return Radiohead to their Bends or OK Computer days. The songs are still filled with enough sound effects and loops to make any Kid A fan turn their headphones up to 11. In Rainbows does shift gears radically from one song to the next, but at the same time listened to as a whole still feels like one product. Or, as we used to call them, one thematically planned album. Bodysnatchers is the most rockin number and All I Need is, unusual for Radiohead, a straightforward love song. If you like Radiohead you will love this album.

2. The National Boxer

I did not discover The National until this year so to me Boxer is like their debut album. They combine the simplicity of a quiet Interpol with the importance of Bruce Springsteen to create a folk/rock sound that is undeniably unique. The slower Fake Empire and Start a War prove the band has something to say, while Apartment Story proves they can rock out. You can download an entire concert here (thanks to I Am Fuel You Are Friends) and listen for yourself. Such a pleasant surprise!

1. LCD Soundsystem Sound of Silver

I listened to Sound of Silver probably more than twice as much as any record this year, partly because the free remix album is almost as good as the original. All of My Friends was my favorite song of the year. (The Franz Ferdinand cover is pretty damn good too). North American Scum is another one you should download if you don’t have the album already.

It’s not often an artist can combine punk, funk, disco, and rock (sometimes within the same song) and still create something both listenable and danceable. But that’s exactly what James Murphey has done on his second full length record. This album sounds great in the car, great in a club, great in the gym, and it’s especially good for running Greenlake in Seattle. Best. Album. Of. 2007. Ever.