2005: Top Ten

It was an atypical year in many ways. I bought a lot of CDs in the middle of the year but almost none at the beginning or end. I got an iPod, and that has brought me closer to my music than ever before. I wrote very few reviews, and I don't really know why. And there was very little agonizing about this top ten list. In fact, I could have given you this exact same list about a month and a half ago. Believe me, that's strange.

Before we dive in, I'd like to give props to those albums that fell just a bit short, works by Fiona Apple, Spoon, Kathleen Edwards, Aimee Mann, The Hold Steady, and Common.

Ben Folds - Songs For Silverman
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If you like Ben Folds in ballad mode, then this is the album for you. I do, and it is.



The Perceptionists - Black Dialogue

DJ Fakts One, Mr.Lif, and Akrobatic team up to make the year's most fun rap album. Mixing bravado (Blo!), social commentary (Memorial Day), romance (Love Letters) and humor (Career Finders) the CD is tight and enjoyable throughout.


The Wallflowers - Rebel, Sweetheart
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CD #: 36
Another solid effort filled with memorable melodies and lyrics. The hipsters aren't likely to catch on, nor is the mainstream public. But rest easy Jakob, I'm listening.


Erasure - Nightbird

An unlikely story. Who would have guessed that in a year where synth bands like New Order and Depeche Mode put out new work, the lightweights of the movement would produce the best record? Showing little interest in modernizing their sound, Andy and Vince give us 11 songs that sound like the could be the soundtracks to important moments in '80s teen flicks. And yes, that's a good thing.


Atmosphere - You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having

Slug and Ant had a busy year with their label (Rhymesayers) and side project (Felt) but the duo still found time to build on past successes with this disc. Ant's beats are varied and soulful and Slug tackles his demons: girls (Smart Went Crazy), family (Little Man), addiction (Pour Me Another) and tragedy (That Night). And though the title is likely ironic, the album isn't a drag at all. I swear it isn't the white rapper thing, but Slug reminds me of Eminem, albeit a less crass and psychotic version.


The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
Whatever it was that prevented me from going as gaga over their last album as everyone else did is gone now. Though early reports that the album was slower and more introspective had me worried, it's "slow songs" like These Are The Fables and The Bleeding Heart Show that I find the most thrilling. But I still can't figure out the lyrics.

Vicious Vicious - Don't Look So Surprised
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I can handle a year without a new Hopefuls disc if the solo members put out work this good in the meantime. Just barely more than an EP, these seven songs tell a sad story of a relationship that was doomed from the start.

Nada Surf - The Weight Is A Gift

Maybe Death Cab For Cutie guitarist Chris Walla shouldn't have done such a good job of producing this album, since it's actually better than his own band's latest. Here, Nada Surf finally fulfill their power pop promise on songs like Concrete Bed and Always Love. The only flaw in the album is the extended time on the end of the final track. Why do bands continue to do this?!

Motion City Soundtrack - Commit This To Memory
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Was it slavish of me to buy this CD and then promptly follow the directive given in the title? Maybe, but I have no regrets.


Glen Phillips - Winter Pays For Summer
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This CD is a lot like my year: A little bit of the unexpected, a little bit of the familiar, thrilling in places and slow in others, but always benefiting from the presence of good friends.