Monthly Archives: December 2010

The BEST ALBUM COVERS of 2010

Posted on by
Reply

The BEST ALBUM COVERS of 2010

This is a category that I feel is becoming increasingly lost in the shuffle of digital downloading.  There are, however, an increasing number of music consumers who desire to have the visual aesthetics return to the music industry, expressed in the nostalgia of vinyl.  There’s really nothing quite like a full vinyl-size album cover, especially if it’s an interesting or well-rendered image.

Although it was one of the most disappointing albums of the year, Rooney’s Eureka hit a home run with its hand-drawn covers and in-lay.  The Dead Weather take the cake for quirkiness this year, as the Sea of Cowards cover is populated by the band looking like they just walked into a costume party.  Locksley, another band to grace the cover of their album, went all-in as they wore all white clothing and ended up looking like the canvas for an abstract painting, a visual motif that was nicely continued in their music video for “The Whip.”

Arcade Fire’s cover for The Suburbs is minimalist, but it fits with the album’s themes perfectly.  Even before the listener has heard the first track, there is a seventies/eighties suburban aura around the release.  Finally, Best Coast created an eye-catching cover for their debut, and I couldn’t resist recognizing it here.

My honorable mention this year is the Scissor Sisters’ Night Work, an album that tests your comfort level even before you’ve heard its scandalous, primal tracks: if you can walk up to the cashier with this album in hand and without blushing, then you’ve passed!

I’ve linked images of these albums to the titles listed below, so simply click for a quick peek at a .jpg version.  They’re much more impressive in person though — but don’t take my word for it.

Remember to check back tomorrow for the Top 25 Songs of 2010 list!

1)  Eureka – Rooney

2)  Sea of Cowards – Dead Weather

3)  Be in Love – Locksley

4)  The Suburbs – Arcade Fire

5)  Crazy for You – Best Coast

Honorable Mention:

Night Work – Scissor Sisters

The Best Debuts of 2010

Posted on by
Reply

By Chris Moore:

Hello and welcome to yet another list in this Weekend Review special end-of-year series.  Today, the focus is on the top three debuts of the year.

Regarding the three newly formed bands recognized below, the decision of how best to order them was somewhat difficult.  However, in the end, it is Fistful of Mercy — comprised of Dhani Harrison (yes, George’s son), Ben Harper, and Joseph Arthur — that receives the honor of best debut.  Their album is strikingly well-defined for a first effort, the band quickly finding their collective voice amidst lush harmonies and subdued instrumentation.  One can only hope that there will be a follow-up album in the not-so-distant future.

Broken Bells is perhaps one of the most fascinating collaborations of recent years.  Brian Burton (aka Danger Mouse) and James Mercer (of the Shins) aren’t the most likely couple, but the combination of Burton’s hip hop/electronica background and Mercer’s indie pop/rock mentalities simply work.  The result — the self-titled Broken Bells — is a pensive yet poppy trip.

The third entry on this list is from a band fronted by Kevin Devine and supported by members of the Manchester Orchestra.  Bad Books is a dynamic release that runs the gamut from fully produced indie rock to stripped down solo acoustic performances.  The vocals are likewise well-arranged: simple and raw at times, full and multi-layered at others.

The honorable mention is Mumford & Sons’s Sigh No More, a band with an impressively interesting acoustic sound, and, although I find the album’s sound to be somewhat predictable after the first few tracks, there are strong songs and a strong overall sound that has been developed for this record.

And so, with this brief list, I leave you for the day, and I officially invite you back tomorrow for another!

The BEST DEBUTS of 2010

1)  As I Call You Down – Fistful of Mercy

2)  Broken Bells – Broken Bells

3)  Bad Books – Bad Books

Honorable Mention:  Sigh No More – Mumford & Sons

The Best Vocal Performances of 2010

Posted on by
Reply

By Chris Moore:

Welcome back for another installment of this year-in-review list series, brought to you by the Weekend Review.  Tonight, I’m happy to present the top fifteen vocal performances of 2010.  Some, like “In Vain or True” and “White Blank Page,” are impressive for their use of complex vocal arrangements.  Others, like “Machine Gun” and “Memories” are notable for the emotive quality of Sara Bareilles’ and Rivers Cuomo’s respective performances.

There have been some excellent vocal performances this year, ranging from the raw vulnerability of Steven Page’s cover of “Virtute the Cat Explains Her Departure” to the unleashed quality of Alison Mosshart’s lead on “Gasoline.”  This was one of the most difficult lists to assemble, as the great vocal leads of the year run the gamut in various ways.  So, I’ve done my best to assemble and rank these tracks, taking into account the quality of the individual voices, the emotion behind each delivery, and the overall coherence and interest potentially generated by each vocal.

Without further ado, here’s the list, and be sure to check back tomorrow for another list in this end-of-2010 series!

BEST VOCAL PERFORMANCES of 2010

1)  “In Vain or True” – Dhani Harrison, Ben Harper, & Joseph Arthur (of Fistful of Mercy; As I Call You Down)

2)  “White Blank Page” – Marcus Mumford (of Mumford & Sons; Sigh No More)

3)  “Machine Gun” – Sara Bareilles (Kaleidoscope Heart)

4)  “Memories” – Rivers Cuomo (of Weezer; Hurley)

5)  “Please Move” – Kevin Devine (of Bad Books; Bad Books)

6)  “Thieves” – Zooey Deschanel (of She & Him; Volume Two)

7)  “Gasoline” – Alison Mosshart (of Dead Weather; Sea of Cowards)

8)  “I Have Learned” – Ed Robertson (of BnL; All in Good Time)

9)  “Only the Ocean” – Jack Johnson (To The Sea)

10)  “Summer Sun” – Ben Thornewill (of Jukebox the Ghost; Everything Under the Sun)

11)  “The Chorus Girl” – Steven Page (Page One)

12)  “Ain’t No Grave” – Johnny Cash (American VI: Ain’t No Grave)

13)  “The Dance Class” – Rhett Miller (of Old 97’s; The Grand Theatre, Vol. 1)

14)  “Virtute the Cat Explains Her Departure” – Steven Page (A Singer Must Die)

15)  “Don’t Look Down” – Philip Selway (Familial)

“Farmer’s Daughter” (Beach Boys cover)

Posted on by
3

By Jim Fusco:

Hello all! Here’s another song for the Laptop Sessions! This one is by request for an early Beach Boys tune called “Farmer’s Daughter”.  It’s a pretty cute little song (only four chords!) made exponentially harder because of the fact that it’s ALL sung in falsetto!  But, as Brian Wilson was about when he recorded this, I’m in my early 20s, so I think I hit the notes!  I, for one, love the songs from the very early Beach Boys albums.  It was definitely a different time.  It was before the Beatles made it big in America and there was an innocence to the music.  Of course, that’s why I love the music I love- I try not to listen to too many depressing songs.  For instance, I was starting to get in to Elliot Smith’s music.  But, as anyone who has heard of Elliot Smith knows, his songs are almost always dark and with an overtone of suicidal thoughts.  Elliot was a great musician and songwriter.  But, I could never become a huge fan because of the songs’ subject matter.  Listing to music has always been a source of joy for me, so I’ve decided to stay in my happy pre-Vietnam music world, smiling all the way. 🙂

Although, I will admit, “Farmer’s Daughter” is a bit too “vanilla”, even for me.  But, Brian Wilson sings it so sweetly and it works.  In fact, many of the songs from their early albums are a bit embarrassing to listen to now.  Remember “Chug a Lug”?  Probably not- it’s not that memorable.  But, basically, it’s about drinking beer…root beer!  I’ve played that song for people over the years and it’s embarrassing every time I do.  But for some reason, I really like that song.  It’s just a song a bunch of teenage friends, brothers, and cousins wrote and sang together for fun.  And their voices are so “cute” that you can’t help but smile while singing.

Speaking of SMiLE, I wonder if these early songs gave Brian Wilson some influence over his most notable work.  He wanted SMiLE to be something fun- something that was brilliant, but also made you not take the music so seriously.  He always seemed stuck in a child-like state.  I wonder if he looked back on these early songs and thought, “Yeah, I’d like to get back to that fun again.  How do I do that while still sounding cool, complex, and relevant?”

One other album I love so much (which you’ll see plenty of videos from here on the music blog) is the Beach Boys Christmas Album from 1964.  It’s one of my absolute favorite albums of all time.  Why?  Well, it fits all the criteria I listed above!  It’s great music with the wonderful innocence and happiness of Christmas built right in.  Nothing puts a bigger smile on my face (musically) than their Christmas songs.

I hope you enjoy, and stay tuned for many more updates to the Laptop Sessions Acoustic Cover Songs Music Video Blog in the coming days.