Sigur Ros – Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good

musicforants.com's Best Albums of 2012

We’re quickly approaching the end of 2012 and/or the world depending on your interpretation of Mayan prophecy, and that can only mean it’s time to reflect on the best albums of the year. For me, one record stood head and shoulders above the rest in 2012, so album of the year was an easy decision, but there was much deliberation for the other 24 positions (plus, honorable mentions). This was one of the most diverse years of music in recent memory, with pop, guitar-oriented rock, folk music, indie-pop and electronica all being represented just about equally. It was also a year where lots of debut albums and new favorites dominated my listening, with 3/5 of the artists making their first appearance on one of my year-end album lists.

I want to thank you guys for continuing to read and support this blog. Next year, musicforants.com will be making some changes / transitions. I’m dedicated to continue sharing my music recommendations, mixes, lists, musings and whatever else, but for a variety of reasons, that won’t look the same in 2013 as it does now (stay tuned for more info on that). As always, feel free to leave a comment if you like what you see on this list and let me know if you have any of your own favorite albums to add. Have a wonderful holidays!

25. Father John Misty – Fear Fun

MP3 Nancy From Now On
MP3 Hollywood Forever Cemetary Sings

24. Hospitality – Hospitality

MP3 Eighth Avenue
MP3 Friends of Friends

23. Dirty Projectors – Swing Lo Magellan

MP3 Gun Has No Trigger
MP3 About To Die

22. Allo, Darlin’ – Europe

MP3 Capricornia
MP3 Tallulah

21. Jessie Ware – Devotion

MP3 Wildest Moments

20. Bowerbirds – The Clearing

MP3 Tuck The Darkness In
MP3 In The Yard

19. Cloud Nothings – Attack On Memory

MP3 Stay Useless
MP3 Wasted Days

18. First Aid Kit – The Lion’s Roar

MP3 Emmylou
MP3 King of the World

17. Bat For Lashes – The Haunted Man

MP3 Laura

16. Titus Andronicus – Local Business

MP3 Still Life With Hot Deuce On A Silver Platter
MP3 In A Big City

15. Shearwater – Animal Joy

MP3 You As You Were
MP3 Breaking The Yearlings

14. Lord Huron – Lonesome Dreams

MP3 Time To Run
MP3 Brother

13. DIIV – Oshin

MP3 How Long Have You Known

12. The Mountain Goats – Transcendental Youth

MP3 Cry For Judas
MP3 Harlem Roulette

11. Sigur Rós – Valatari

MP3 Ekki múkk

10. Twin Shadow – Confess

MP3 Five Seconds
MP3 When The Movie’s Over

9. Hot Chip – In Our Heads

MP3 Don’t Deny Your Heart
MP3 Flutes

8. Andrew Bird – Break It Yourself

MP3 Eyeoneye
MP3 Danse Carribe

7. Spiritualized – Sweet Heart, Sweet Light

MP3 Hey Jane

6. Japandroids – Celebration Rock

MP3 The House That Heaven Built
MP3 Younger Us

5. Jens Lekman – I Know What Love Isn’t

MP3 I Know What Love Isn’t
MP3 The End Of The World Is Bigger Than Love

4. Chromatics – Kill For Love

MP3 Kill For Love
MP3 Lady

3. Beach House – Bloom

MP3 Myth
MP3 Lazuli

2. Grizzly Bear – Shields

MP3 Speak In Rounds
MP3 Yet Again

1. Frank Ocean – channel ORANGE

MP3 Pyramids
MP3 Thinking About You

Honorable Mentions:

Moonface – with Siinai: Heartbreaking Bravery
Grimes – Visions
The Tallest Man On Earth – There’s No Leaving Now
Tame Impala – Lonerism
Chairlift – Something
Kindness – World, You Need A Change Of Mind
Alabama Shakes – Boys & Girls
Porcelain Raft – Strange Weekend

Spotify Playlist: musicforants.com’s Best Albums of 2012

Thanks again to everyone for reading! Stay tuned…

musicforants.com's Best Songs of 2012

(photo by cubagallery)

These are 50 tracks that delighted, inspired and fascinated us in 2012 and that we think are worthy of remembering long after the year is over. We present them here in highly unscientific ordered list form, with Matt’s songs marked with a “-MG” and my choices with a “-TJ” next to them. To better spread the love, we’ve stuck with the one song per artist rule. Click here to download all the tracks in a zip and subscribe to our Spotify Playlist to stream them all. Enjoy y’all!

50. Porcelain Raft – Unless You Speak From Your Heart MP3

Porcelain Raft’s Strange Weekend is one of my favorite debut albums of the year, and this swelling synth-pop anthem is the shining moment. -TJ

49. Sharon Van Etten – Give Out MP3

“Give Out” is Sharon Van Etten exploring the tension of exciting possibilities that she knows will inevitably lead to resentment. It exists in this weird space of breakups that haven’t actually happened yet. -MG

48. Moonface – Teary Eyes and Bloody Lips MP3

One of our generations’s most gifted songwriters delivers this soaring new-wave guitar anthem that sits as one of the best (and most explosive) tracks in Spencer Krug’s extensive catalog. -TJ

47. The xx – Chained [stream]

Even if “Chained” wasn’t really indicative of the rest of The xx’s new album, it proved that their first round wasn’t a fluke. They sound even more sure of themselves here, stripping away their sound until we’re left with something simple and pure. -MG

46. Hundred Waters – Me & Anodyne MP3

Hundred Waters have proved to be one of the most promising new bands of the year with tracks like this otherworldly gem, filled with layers of vocals, synth textures and bubbling electronica. -TJ

45. Dirty Projectors – About To Die MP3

The best part of any Dirty Projectors song is trying to figure out why they put these particular sounds together, and “About to Die” provides plenty of puzzlers. It’s simultaneously weird and accessible, a combination few pull off as well. -MG

44. Bobby Womack – Please Forgive My Heart MP3

Soul legend Bobby Womack delivers a passionate, heartfelt vocal performance in this electro-soul confessional produced with gorgeous sonic flourishes by Damon Albarn. -TJ

43. Nite Jewel – One Second Of Love MP3

“One Second of Love” sounds homemade, but not lo-fi. It’s intimate, but still gives off the vibe that it could pour out of speakers if it needed to. -MG

42. Eternal Summers – Millions MP3

The Virginian indie pop duo, Eternal Summers captivate with this dreamy, sunkissed power-pop tune that captures the very essence of summer in a brisk 2 minutes and thirty seconds. -TJ

41. Death Grips – I’ve Seen Footage MP3

“I’ve Seen Footage” was Death Grips’ shot across the bow of 2012, and by the end of the year the band had courted more than their share of controversy. It’s a reminder of a simpler time, when they were just assaulting eardrums instead of offending eyeballs. -MG

Follow the jump below to see the rest of the list!

Continue reading “musicforants.com's Best Songs of 2012” →

The Kids Are Alright (Children's Choir Mix)

Whether it’s Radiohead, Justice or Kanye West, lots of artists have used children’s choirs in their music and it can have the effect of sounding uplifting, cute, anthemic or just plain creepy. The Langley Schools Music Project album, Innocence & Despair showed that’s even possible to maintain the concept for an entire album and still be fascinating. Sigur Rós are the latest to use a children’s choir in their gorgeous track “Varúð” (translation: “Caution”) from their upcoming sixth LP, Valtari, and it inspired me to make a mix of some of my favorite uses of singing kids. Download below or listen to (most of) the mix at Spotify.

MP3 Radiohead – 15 Step
MP3 Gorillaz – Dirty Harry
MP3 Kanye West – We Don’t Care
MP3 The Smiths – Panic
MP3 Sigur Rós – Varúð
MP3 John Lennon – Happy Christmas (War Is Over)
MP3 Passion Pit – Little Secrets
MP3 The Wombats – Let’s Dance to Joy Division
MP3 The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love 3 (Revenge!)
MP3 Justice – D.A.N.C.E.
MP3 The Langley Schools Music Project – Space Oddity
MP3 Fun. – All Alright
MP3 Pink Floyd – Another Brick In The Wall (Part 1)
MP3 Jay-Z – Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)
MP3 Karen O and the Kids – All Is Love

Spotify Mix: The Kids Are Alright (Children’s Choir Mix)

MP3: Jónsi – Gathering Stories

Jónsi has been a busy man lately. Sigur Ros just announced their glorious return next year with a “floaty and minimal” new album and they just released a magnificent live double album, Inni (which is worth the purchase for the beyond-gorgeous version of “All Alright” alone). If that wasn’t enough, he also composed the score for the new Cameron Crowe film We Bought A Zoo and contributed two new solo tracks to the film.

The first of these, “Gathering Stories” is an exuberant, uplifting song that could have easily made it on Jonsi’s triumphant debut album Go. The track features the flourishing instrumentation and percussive thrust that has shaped much of his solo work. He really makes creating beautiful music seem effortless. Download the track below and click here to watch the international trailer for We Bought A Zoo.

MP3 Jónsi – Gathering Stories

Pre-order the We Bought A Zoo OST from Amazon.

50 Songs Of The Decade (2000 – 2009)

(photo by dcdead)

I released my 50 albums of the decade list two years ago with all intentions to follow it up with a matching songs list. Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. No such list ever materialized and I kindof gave up on the idea. That is until earlier this summer when I took a weekend trip to visit some friends in Chicago and decided to soundtrack the drive with a playlist of my favorite songs from 2000-2009. I thought the mix turned out pretty good so I chiseled it down to my absolute favorite 50 songs, gave them a mostly-arbitrary ranking and now I’m sharing it with you. Of course, belating this list for two years has given me the necessary perspective to narrow this list down to only the essentials. These are the tracks that I play over and over and never get tired of, the songs that always make me turn the volume up when they shuffle on my iPod, basically the songs that are “really, really ridiculously good looking” and not just “so hot right now”.

A few words of about this list, I’m not claiming to have made an end-all be-all “greatest songs of the naughts” list, just my personal favorites. A few folks took offense to the lack of some genres (ahem, hip hop) on the albums list but hopefully this one will counterbalance that woeful underrepresentation somewhat. Furthermore, I didn’t do full reviews of each track, because seriously, who has that kind of time, but I’ve created a Spotify Playlist where you can listen to all of the tracks (there’s also vimeo/youtube videos linked to each one). In keeping with my yearly songs lists I’ve limited myself to one track per artist. If you scroll all the way down you’ll see some songs that “just missed” and some per-year stats (‘05 reins supreme again in my book). So here it is, the long overdue top 50 songs of the decade according to me. Feel free to dispute or agree with my choices in the comments. Enjoy!

music for kids who can’t read good presents: 50 Songs Of The Decade (2000 – 2009)

Most easily found on: The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place

Most easily found on: The Execution Of All Things

Most easily found on: Bows + Arrows

Most easily found on: Veckatimest

Most easily found on: Sticking Fingers Into Sockets

Most easily found on: Black Sheep Boy

Most easily found on: White Blood Cells

Most easily found on: Let It Die

Most easily found on: Shut Up I Am Dreaming

Most easily found on: Give Up

Follow the jump to see the rest!

Continue reading “50 Songs Of The Decade (2000 – 2009)” →

Jónsi – Live @ The Vic

In the days before this concert I’d read reviews describing Sigur Rós frontman Jónsi‘s live show as a magical, awe-inspiring, tear-inducing experience that would ruin any future concerts for me. I’d seen video of Jónsi performing songs live and some behind-the-scenes shots of the stage. None of this prepared me for the truly amazing concert that I experienced though. Because of its vast scope and engrossing nature, it took me a while to collect my thoughts on this concert (which might explain my delay in reviewing). What’s sure is that Jónsi’s show at The Vic in Chicago was a unforgettable display of the Icelander’s artistic vision as he accompanied his gorgeous songs with incredible visuals that seemed more fitting for an elaborate Broadway stage show than a rock concert.

Jónsi opened the show with an acoustic song called “Stars In Still Water” the first of a few songs that to my knowledge have not been recorded on an album (possibly outtakes from a more acoustic-based Go). The new songs played were exceptionally pretty, but did not have the percussive, jubilant spirit of his recorded work, used primarily as mood-setting pieces and showcases for Jónsi’s otherworldly falsetto. The show really hit it’s stride when the band played the heart-wrenchingly beautiful “Kolnidur” which featured breathtaking visuals of running deer, flying owls, and leaping wolves across the screen curtain that encompassed the entire stage. As the song hit the climax, the curtain fell down revealing what looked like an abandoned greenhouse complete with torn down walls and fauna peeking out the sides.

Next was one of my favorites from Go, “Tornado” which featured some of the prettiest and most epic orchestration of the show as well as one of Jónsi’s most stunning vocal performances. The drumming throughout the night was among the most energetic and dramatic I’ve ever seen. When þorvaldur þorvaldsson would hit a cymbal he wouldn’t just sit idly by, he would leap out of his seat and thrust his arm in the air to finish. All of Jónsi’s band were extremely talented, and although the focus was clearly on the experience of the show and not the members themselves, it was a joy to watch them masterfully jump from instrument to instrument, including pianos, guitars, xylophones, harpsichord, and a second drum set made completely of found items (including a suitcase for the bass drum).

Another Go highlight, “Sinking Friendships” marked the mid-point of the show and had Jónsi moving to the piano to create the twinkling melodies as the backdrop featured visualized water trickling down the walls. I can understand while watching this why many have insisted on seeing the show twice (and perhaps why Jónsi is playing twice on many his stops), as it’s difficult to absorb everything that’s happening on stage. The visuals played an even bigger role as we reached the “poppy” portion of the show and singles “Go Do” and “Boy Lilikoi” were performed back-to-back. Birds fluttered and leaves fell while bright reds and greens filled the stage and the band vigorously played the euphoric tunes. The semi-title track was most delightful with Jónsi strumming a ukulele while the band recreated the intricately arranged, exuberant composition.

The set ended with the triumphant “Around Us” which began with Jónsi playing the sublime piano intro before grabbing two microphones (one which was for sampling his voice) and taking center stage. The band’s performance of this song was nothing short of enchanting and it ended with Jónsi on the floor using the floor pedals to distort and break up his voice, making it sound even more unearthly. The band left the stage briefly before kicking off the encore with the primal, frenticly paced “Animal Arithmetic”. When Jonsi came back out he was sporting a full Native American headdress, his playful, childlike dancing making it near impossible to snap a good picture of the rainbow-colored garb. Projected images showed an army of ants carrying off household items into a forest during the song.

Nothing though, could compare to the band’s final song of the night, “Grow Till Tall”. The band played their heart out, each intently focused on their instrument as the track built to an overwhelming, epic climax. The visuals matched the song’s intensity perfectly beginning with a light snow covering the screens and building to a full windy snowstorm blizzard complete with trees falling over and an array of strobe lighting effects. Jónsi (still in full headdress) was down on his knees unleashing his falsetto into the microphones while swaying as if he himself was succumbing to the storm. The song crescendoed until it was ear-shatteringly loud and then abruptly it was over.

It was a completely immersive experience unlike anything I’d seen or heard before. After the band briefly came back on stage to take a bow (very classy those Icelanders) the audience flooded out onto the Chicago streets with completely stunned looked on their faces. There was hardly any talking while the crowd exited the theater just a shared feeling that we had all witnessed something extraordinary.

MP3 Jonsi – Go Do
MP3 Jonsi – Tornado

There’s more Jónsi pictures after the jump. Click here for the entire set.

Continue reading “Jónsi – Live @ The Vic” →

Go

As Sigur Rós fans will know, for the last few years Jónsi has been pushing his music further and further into pop territory. With Með suð i eyrum, Sigur Rós moved further from the guitar-oriented post-rock sound and made strings and trumpets the primary instrumentation. The closing song, “All Alright” was even sung in English. Jónsi’s first solo outing, simply titled Go, is a culmination of all of his pop sensibilities, showcasing the artist at his most exuberant, childlike, and accessible. It’s hard to believe after hearing these dense, glorious compositions that this album was originally intended to be acoustic. You have to give credit to Jónsi’s collaboraters, composer Nico Muhly’s phenomenal arrangements, producer Peter Katis’ huge, layered sound, and drummer Samuli’s powerful percussion.

The first two tracks released for Go set an immensely high standard for the album, “Boy Lilikoi” and “Go Do” are both overflowing with beauty. Amazingly, Jónsi manages to ride that high for the entire album. From my count, there’s not one weak song on here. The music with it’s flourishing piccolos, strings, guitars, and piano is awe-inspiring and transportive to the highest degree, often approaching the sublime, ethereal quality of Sigur Rós. The percussion, provided by Mum’s Samuli, also plays a huge part in driving the sound, especially in the frentic-paced “Animal Arithmetic” and tribal beats of “Around Us”. Jónsi’s vocals are always magnificent, and even more-so on this album, often layered and tweaked creating a beautiful effect such as on “Sinking Friendships” which near replicates the opening to “Hoppipola” with only his voice.

The lyrics, which save two songs are sung in English, are very simple and uplifting, which if you’ve read some of his Icelandic translations, won’t come as a surprise. Playful, childlike lines like “just say no more, use your eyes, the world goes and flutters by” and encouragements like “We should always know that we can do everything, Go do!” may sound naive in it’s approach to life, but that’s kind of the point and I think it accurately reflects the way this music makes you feel. Nowhere is this felt more than on “Tornado”, a song which is so breathtakingly gorgeous it hurts. The soaring climax will likely go down as one of Jónsi’s most triumphant moments, solo or otherwise.

MP3 Jónsi – Go Do
MP3 Jónsi – Tornado

Go is a spectacular album. It comes out April 6. Pre-order it here.

Track Review: Jonsí – Go Do

While I was very bummed to hear that Sigur Rós were taking an indefinite baby-making hiatus, I’m getting more and more excited about the debut album from the band’s frontman, Jón Thor Birgisson (who we all know as Jonsí). I was a big fan of the direction that Sigur Rós was taking with their last album, and Jonsí’s new track, “Go Do” is an explosive, triumphant fulfillment of all the pop sensibilities hinted at throughout Með suð i eyrum við spilum endalaust.

Jonsí’s vocals are as exquisite as ever and the instrumentation is glorious with fluttering piccolos, expansive strings, and a pounding bass drum adding the percussive thrust to the song. Composer Nico Muhly (who Matt profiled here) has done a truly phenomenal job with this arrangement, which is bursting at every seam, making this a joyous and wonderful track. Download the MP3 and watch the lovely avian-themed music video below:

MP3 Jonsí – Go Do

(untitled mix)

Often used to either open, close, or provide an instrumental interlude on an album, untitled works have long been a staple of rock music and director’s cuts of Cameron Crowe movies. Here’s a mix of some of my favorite songs that show great music doesn’t always need a title (just ask Beethoven).

Andrew Bird – untitled
Interpol – Untitled
Neutral Milk Hotel – Untitled
Smashing Pumpkins – Untitled
Sigur Ros – Untitled #1
Julie Doiron – untitled
Oasis – (Untitled)
Ted Leo – Untitled
The Cure – Untitled

50 Albums of the Decade

(photo by dcdead)

I told myself I wasn’t going to do a decades album list. I mean how can you really rank all your favorite albums over a period of ten years that isn’t even completed yet? Over the last couple of months though, I found myself slowly beginning to compile a list of my albums from the 00’s that I loved and I then I began chiseling the list down to around 50 albums. I guess my love for making lists got in the way of the logic and reasoning I had for not making a list. Also since, I started this blog around the middle of the decade I thought only fair that I share this list to acknowledge those great albums that I wasn’t around to write about or put into a fancy EOY list.

A few words of about this list, firstly, these are my personal favorites of the decade and not the end-all be-all of decade-end lists. I realize that some genres (ahem, hip hop) are being woefully underrepresented because of this. Secondably, I would have liked to do full-scale reviews for each album but life kept getting in the way so instead for each album I’ve linked reviews that I feel capture the spirit of the album (click the album cover to go to there). Scroll all the way down to see some albums that “just missed” and some per-year stats (if you want to know which year is best, it’s between ’02 and ’05). So without any further ado, here’s the top 50 albums of the decade according to me. Feel free to dispute or agree with my choices in the comments. Enjoy!

music for kids who can’t read good presents: 50 Albums Of The Decade