Obviously, sentimental reasons exist for why I ranked my favorite albums of 2013 the way I did, in addition to how simply good I felt the music was. I was raised a Beatles fan, and any sign that McCartney is still producing strong songs will be met by much enthusiasm from me. Thing is, there really are some great songs on here, with his comfortable style right out front, but augmented at last by weird bits he's been trying to incorporate into his music for a while - it's his best in a long time, and worthy of your attention.
12. Sean Nelson - Make Good Choices (Really)
Vocals and lyrics are Sean Nelson's greatest gifts. The first proper solo album from the former Harvey Danger frontman is pure pop, evoking his heroes Harry Nilsson, Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello, et al. As such, it's truer to his heart than any other music he's made to date, whether with The Long Winters in their earliest incarnation, or the 1997 alt-rock megahit he once helped write. Speaking of which, Chris Walla from Death Cab helped write the three best tracks on this album: "Make Good Choices," "More Good News from the Front," and "Kicking Me Out of the Band," while "I'll Be the One" is an obscure Badfinger cover. Run it up the flagpole and see who salutes.
13. Seacats - Seacats (Fin)
The second full-length from this band of Pac-NW crunch-pop kids was produced by Steve Fisk (Nirvana, Low, Beat Happening, The Posies) and continues the irreverent approach of their self-made 2011 debut. Über- catchy melodies, thick riffs, and a sense of humor permeate the album, earning them fair comparisons to Weezer, Fountains of Wayne, et al. The lyrics suggest more experiences of heartbreak, with songs about love and loss and all the things one obsesses over as a young adult. Is the Sears portrait studio listed in the credits? Yes. Yes it is.
14. Superchunk - I Hate Music (Merge)
These people are true indie rock veterans, treasures really, and their consistently good records make them easy to place high on a year-end list. Still crunchy, still topped by Mac McCaughan's high muppety vocals, still more clever than it seems at first listen. I'm just so grateful for this band's existence, not to mention that amazing record label Mac and Laura have been running all these years.
15. The Arcade Fire - Reflektor (Merge)
What can be said about Arcade Fire that hasn't already been covered by Pitchfork? Their first two albums are amazing, and to make up for no one noticing at the time, their third, less-amazing album got a Grammy.
Best things about Arcade Fire in 2013:
1. Still on Merge
2. Made their fourth record with James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem
3. Totally famous and making intelligent, weird-ish pop music for the mainstream.
Least best: Maybe trying too hard? I don't know. I really like their catchy songs.
Best things about Arcade Fire in 2013:
1. Still on Merge
2. Made their fourth record with James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem
3. Totally famous and making intelligent, weird-ish pop music for the mainstream.
Least best: Maybe trying too hard? I don't know. I really like their catchy songs.
16. Earl Sweatshirt - Doris (Tan Cressida)
First of all, just like a lot of people, everything I've heard in relation to Odd Future in general pretty much sucks. My mind was closed. Then I heard Frank Ocean and was like - well, okay so except for him I guess. Then I saw the video for "Chum" (below), and became enamored of Earl Sweatshirt. When Doris finally dropped, I was slightly disappointed, but only a little. It lacks the depth and pull of "Chum" across all the tracks, but many are very strong. His skill with interior rhyme is astounding to my layman ears. Massive, crazy huge promise. "Chum" alone is largely why this album placed as high as it did on this list.
17. Sandrider - Godhead (Good To Die)
The sophomore release from this self-described "melodic sludge band" is a massive, thundering collection of exhilarating riffs and throat-shredding vocals. Produced and engineered by Matt Bayles (Russian Circles, Mastodon, The Sword) at Red Room in their home base of Seattle. Featuring former members of Akimbo and The Ruby Doe, Sandrider bears a strong resemblance to The Jesus Lizard, Drive Like Jehu, and Helmet. Now then... spice, anyone?
18. John Vanderslice - Dagger Beach (Tiny Telephone)
Singer-songwriter and producer John Vanderslice creates somber, delicate music with more intellectual and emotional heft than many of his peers. On the 9th proper studio album since going solo in 2000, he stretches his typical framework by writing melodies to rhythmic patterns already laid down by drummer Jason Slota on some tracks, or creating songs in his mind while on multi-day hikes deep in the California woods, stating he was inspired by the "spirit and fearlessness" of Radiohead's King of Limbs, Joanna Newsom's Have One On Me, and Silver Jews' Natural Bridge (not that this album sounds like any of those). Thematically, Dagger Beach is an album about rebuilding yourself alone after a painful life event lays you out. Vanderslice funded this release solely with fan support, self-releasing it under the Tiny Telephone moniker, also the name of his analog recording studio in San Francisco.
This is not a cover album as much as an interpretive album, in that John Vanderslice reworks every track from David Bowie's druggy 1974 take on George Orwell's 1984, finding new life within. The lyrics are the same, and the melodies are mostly the same, but the overall experience is a reimagining, all the way down to the track titles - a new piece of art, inspired by another. Recorded in five days at his Tiny Telephone studio in San Francisco with the same crew that helped him make this year's album of original material, Dagger Beach, JV released the album with the help of crowdfunding on his own label. Don't talk of dust and roses...
Experimental rock supergroup Tomahawk's recently-released full-length is their first in six years. Fronted by the guttural-voiced Mike Patton (Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Fantomas, Lovage, and a bajillion other projects), with Duane Denison (of Chicago's mighty Jesus Lizard) on guitar, John Stanier (from MFing Helmet) on drums, and Trevor Dunn (also of Mr. Bungle) newly installed on bass, they recorded in Nashville at Easy Eye, a studio owned by The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach. The end result is a heavy, weird, interesting album of nevertheless accessible and catchy songs played by veteran dudes who've been at this for decades.
20. Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin - Fly By Wire (Polyvinyl)
The fourth full-length from this Springfield, MO pop band is 31 minutes of bright twee fun, a pleasant mix of influences from Big Star, The Zombies, Beach Boys, Weezer, The Shins -- you get the idea. Longtime singer/guitarist John Robert Cardwell left the band prior to this album, leaving the remaining trio -- singer/drummer Philip Dickey, guitarist Will Knauer, and bassist Jonathan James -- to create adorably bittersweet pop songs on their own, which they did by returning to the attic home studio their debut was tracked in. In 2012 the band headlined the Old New Rock Festival in Yekaterinburg, Russia, prompting the U.S. consulate there to name them cultural ambassadors to Russia for a day. Yра!
21. Kelley Stoltz - Double Exposure (Third Man)
Embarrassing as it is to admit, I ignored Kelley Stoltz for years because I thought he had a silly, unremarkable name. Then one night I was listening to the opening set from the DJ who came on after my CHIRP show, and I caught "Are You My Love" -- a pulsing, groovy little retro number that legitimately had me wondering what year it was recorded. Poppy, hooky, classy: all adjectives I respond to warmly when they apply to music bands make. Kelley Stoltz is based in San Francisco and is a part of the fertile garage scene there, but not nearly as prolific as many of his peers. The man is a whiz at crafting mid-60's-style mod jams, and I can dig it.
22. Low - The Invisible Way (Sub Pop)
Not unlike Superchunk (above), Low are veterans of the American indie rock scene who make consistently strong albums; in Low's case, the music is intense slowcore stuff, simultaneously quiet and powerful. This time around Low worked with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy acting as producer, who stated that he mostly just tried to stay out of the way in the studio, to give them room to create. Fortunately for me, I was able to attend a terrific in-store performance + interview with Low (and Tweedy) at saki this year, which lasted over an hour. Afterward, guitarist Alan Sparhawk asked me where he could buy cigarettes, or rolling papers or something, which effectively put a pin in my belief that they're average Mormons. They're indie rock slowcore Mormons!
23. Future of the Left - How To Stop Your Brain in an Accident (Prescriptions)
The fourth full-length from Welsh band Future of the Left carries forward their intellectual punk/metal hybrid using arch humour, delivered with a sharp, hostile ferocity that places the group in a category occupied by the likes of Shellac, the Jesus Lizard, Les Savy Fav, and of course Mclusky, the former home of FoTL's lead singer/guitarist Andy Falkous and drummer Jack Egglestone. Recorded at Monnow Valley studios in Monmouth Wales by Charlie Francis, paid for with internet crowd funding, and released on their own Prescriptions label, this latest release finds the noisy quartet eschewing hooky riffage for something more artfully-inclined, and succeeding. Look: I don't know what you ketamine (but I think I love you).
24. Diminished Men - Capnomancy (Abduction)
Granted, if Diminished Men's guitarist, founder and spiritual center Steve Schmitt were not a former roommate of mine, I might not be as deferential toward the band. Fate is funny though - he is my former roommate, and because of that I know and approve of this dark + spooky instrumental group's music. Produced by Randall Dunn of Sun City Girls and released on his record label, the album's experimental rock bona fides are quite unfuckwithable. By the way, "capnomancy" as a concept is a method of divination using smoke. It's magic. It's possibly hallucinogenic. It's a fitting title.
25. Thao & The Get Down Stay Down - We The Common (Ribbon Music)
Frequently referred to as "indie folk" or "alt folk" or whatever, I'm pretty sure Thao Nguyen just makes indie rock. I mean, it ain't Unwound, but then again maybe Unwound was just a punk band. You know? These sub-sub-sub genres wear me out.
So yeah, she plays banjo sometimes, or someone in the band does. Is it folk now? Is Mumford & Sons folk? (No.) The songs are hummable and usually fun. There's a duet with Joanna Newsom which ends up being one of the best cuts on the album, as well as one of the oddest. Chaos erupts occasionally, with percussion, distortion, and shouts punctuating Nguyen's thoughts.
For some reason, I haven't seen this band live since 2010.
So yeah, she plays banjo sometimes, or someone in the band does. Is it folk now? Is Mumford & Sons folk? (No.) The songs are hummable and usually fun. There's a duet with Joanna Newsom which ends up being one of the best cuts on the album, as well as one of the oddest. Chaos erupts occasionally, with percussion, distortion, and shouts punctuating Nguyen's thoughts.
For some reason, I haven't seen this band live since 2010.
26. Bottomless Pit - Shade Perennial (Comedy Minus One)
The third full-length from this local post-rock group of veterans features just over 30 minutes of assured, high-quality indie rock. Known in part because the quartet features former members of Silkworm (guitarist Andy Cohen and baritone guitarist Tim Midyett, who changed his name from Midgett), Seam (drummer Chris Manfrin), and .22 (bassist Brian Orchard), they've maintained a somewhat low band profile since forming in 2005. This new release offers a slightly looser set of songs from their previous efforts, influenced to a degree by the sound of Silkworm's Libertine, a now-classic 90's release that was reissued, and therefore remastered, just recently. Recorded, as always, by Steve Albini at Electrical Audio.
27. Fake Limbs - The Power of Patrician Upbringing (BLVD)
Fake Limbs are a perplexing Chicago heavy rock band, fronted by Stephen Sowley, a giant man with a propensity for crawling across the floor at live performances, and defined in a big way by the irony-free guitar shredding of Bryan Gleason, who sounds like he grew up on Slayer, not Shellac. The combination of noise-rock aesthetics with metal facemelters is weird at first, but it ultimately works just fine. Speaking of Shellac, Sowley works at Albini's Electrical Audio recording studio, which might help explain why, in the middle of their nutso album release show, the band left the stage to be replaced by Albini + Weston, wearing instruments, to take questions for 5 minutes à la Shellac, before yielding the floor back to Fake Limbs.
Hands-down this is my favorite album cover of 2013, featuring a Chris Ware-esque depiction of Logan Square, with an overturned, abandoned wheelchair in the foreground, created by Paul Hornschemeier. Beautiful, yet unsettling - not unlike their music.
28. My Bloody Valentine - m b v (self-released)
Here's another embarrassing admission: I've never really lovvved MBV. Indie rock hipster types are supposed to lerv MBV. My feelings are more on the "these guys are important and cool" tip, but almost never do I think "I really want to listen to Loveless" while waiting for the train. But SFW, right?
What I like best about m b v:
1. Sonically the band is unchanged by modern technology. Still a wall of sound, encasing a pop song, topped by an Irish person.
2. They didn't tell anyone it was coming til it arrived, a move Beyonce copped 2 weeks ago.
3. They released it themselves.
4. That really is an almost-glowing blue on the cover.
What I like best about m b v:
1. Sonically the band is unchanged by modern technology. Still a wall of sound, encasing a pop song, topped by an Irish person.
2. They didn't tell anyone it was coming til it arrived, a move Beyonce copped 2 weeks ago.
3. They released it themselves.
4. That really is an almost-glowing blue on the cover.
29. Voyeur - Little Death (self-released)
Often music industry publicists email me about their newest project, but most of the time I'm not interested. Something about Voyeur drew me in, however, where I found a lovely home recording of melancholy, electronic pop songs made by a 22-year-old from Richmond, Virginia named Robert Sewell. Chattering sweeps of percussive sound, evocative of dance music in terms of sonic vocabulary, are slowed to a languid pace. Further infused with dramatic flourishes and Sewell's hushed vocals, Voyeur has potential I am excited to watch unfold. Also, he kinda resembles Dave Navarro, which makes me wonder if Sewell's mom was a Jane's Addiction fan.
30. Neko Case - The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You (ANTI-)
This woman's voice is not to be denied. When I refer to her voice, I mean two things: her actual physical singing, which is so sturdy and enjoyable to listen to. Also, I mean her point of view in lyrics. She lays out a lot of painful observations on this record, albeit the specifics are unclear. Often utilizing very spare production, Case's 5th solo release is alt-country, I suppose, but bleeds into other genres in places.
And hey, it's her album. If she wants to give it a powerful yet meandering title, she can.
And sure, Case lived in Chicago for a few years, tended bar at The Hideout (allegedly), etc. But she's not from here. Her debut album is titled The Virginian for a reason: she was born there. She grew up in Tacoma, WA. She started making music in Vancouver, BC. She lives in Vermont now in a house with an upright piano in the kitchen and four more in the barn. She's not from Chicago though. Sorry.
And hey, it's her album. If she wants to give it a powerful yet meandering title, she can.
And sure, Case lived in Chicago for a few years, tended bar at The Hideout (allegedly), etc. But she's not from here. Her debut album is titled The Virginian for a reason: she was born there. She grew up in Tacoma, WA. She started making music in Vancouver, BC. She lives in Vermont now in a house with an upright piano in the kitchen and four more in the barn. She's not from Chicago though. Sorry.
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PSST!
CLICK HERE to listen to my Best of 2013 Radio Show on CHIRP.
CLICK HERE to check out #31-50 of my Best of 2013 list.
