2010 Music Survey Results - Top 50 Albums (21-30)

# 21

MGMT - Congratulations (April 13, 2010)

"When I was a kid, I heard the Supertramp song "Breakfast in America" and I was, somehow, deeply affected by it. This bubblegum pop song made me feel like I was, in a way, rushing towards a future that contained things my 10 year old consciousness couldn't fathom. Well, 30 years later, this album makes me feel that way too. Or, I may be having a stroke..." - Rain

"A classic sophomore curveball. Congratulations finds MGMT abandoning their synth-pop utopia for much darker territory.This is the comedown, the freak-out... the claustrophobic nightmare after the dream. Transfigurations this violent can be frightening for the world at large but make no mistake- this is a work of courageous quality and you get the feeling that this may just be the beginning of a brilliant career." - Luc

# 22

Kings Of Leon - Come Around Sundown (October 19, 2010)

"Kings of Leon could write songs about unicorns and fairy dust and it would still sound sexy. The gut wrenching, sexified vocals of Anthony Followell are still there and could make any girl swoon (or make out with the closest guy)" - Layne

"The music was a little slower than what I anticipated." - Julia

# 23

Twin Shadow - Forget (September 28, 2010)

"Soaked in the '80s. Love those thumpy bass lines and Talking Heads-esque vocals. Rising on the significant other scale as the year ends." - Jeremy

"'At My Heels' creates an instant dance party in our house...  even for the member of our family who can't walk yet." - Ancient Indian Wizard

# 24

Broken Bells - Broken Bells (March 9, 2010)

"We used 'The Ghost Inside' in a skate clip at work this year.  I got to hear the song like 100 times and I still love it." - Ancient Indian Wizard

"I was sad when the Shins stopped making interesting music. This album combines James Mercer's unique voice with an updated sound. Solid album" - Brasilliant

# 25

The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang (June 15, 2010)

"Fresh and refreshing, but with an old-style influence and character. So awesome on album & in person." - NightraiN

"Fuck those Jersey Shore kids, Gaslight's killer tunes make me proud to be a Jersey native." - Mona

# 26

Wolf Parade - Expo 86 (June 29, 2010)

"A solid third release from a band that always puts out flawless and exciting indie rock albums.  I fucking love Wolf Parade, there's really not much else I can say." - Mona

"Perhaps the greatest triumph of our modern independent rock is it's acknowledgment & mastery of every era of rock music. Wolf Parade's Spencer Krug & Dan Broeckner seamlessly merge the hiccup of post punk & 90's indie with the guitar crunch & epic scope of classic rock. Expo thinks hard and rocks harder... and it's damn good driving music." - Luc

"Another artist whom I'd come close to finding kinship with in recordings past, Wolf Parade nailed it for me this year with Expo '86.  Another band I should have seen live this year but had to miss, sadly. Dreamy, ominous, and rockin'." - Tex

"This has been a grower on me... Jerky, jumpy and energetic." - NightraiN

"Love everything they do, but needs a little more time to marinate." - Ernesto

# 27

Hillstomp - Darker The Night (July 20, 2010)

"A two-man wrecking crew that pounds and sweats out the blues with hypnotic guitar riffs, 5-gallon buckets and a country-mile of duct tape." - awmercy

"My favorite new band this year. More banjo please." - Sandenuts

# 28

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach (March 9, 2010)

"Very different kind of sound (as always) and pretty awesome, though I wouldn't say I loved all the songs." - Julia

# 29

Sharon Van Etten - Epic (September 21, 2010)

"Great songs, outstanding voice. I'm a sucker for a little slide guitar too. One song sounds like The Cranberries and I don't even mind." - Jeremy

# 30

Free Energy - Stuck On Nothing (May 4, 2010)

"Feel good classic rock. Every song feels like a celebration of youth, friends and just having fun." - awmercy

"Like awesome 70s FM radio never went away. And, for my own list, something other than Americana/roots." - JasonT

FNBP: New Belgium's Explore Series & The Gaslight Anthem

One day The Gaslight Anthem wasn't on my radar, the next they where everywhere. The same, I believe, can be said for New Belgium Brewery's ever-growing fleet of beers—one day they weren't anywhere to be found, the next day they were popping up on the shelves of every neighborhood market and the beverage lists of any self-respecting watering hole. For tonight's Friday Night Beer Pairing I would like to focus on New Belgium's Explore Series (consisting of Ranger IPA, Mothership Wit, Abbey and Trippel) and The Gaslight Anthem's American Slang.

The good people at New Belgium, with special credit to Belgian brewmaster Peter Bouckaert, are helping Americans from coast to coast expand their malted beverage horizons by "brewing delicious beers with loads of character and aspiring ingredients." Abbey is a Belgian dubbel brewed with six different malts and authentic Belgian yeast and weighs in at 7.0% alcohol. Trippel is smooth and complex, but the strongest of the four. Mothership Wit, named after the Fort Collins Brewery, is a citrusy, refreshing white beer. Lastly, the Ranger IPA is a deliciously hoppy butt-kicker of a beer with hints of citrus and fruit, but mostly awesomeness. All four make for great sipping and enjoying, and especially with the right musical pairing. When I think New Belgian, I think fresh and refreshing, but with an old-style influence and character. This is almost precisely the way I feel about the amazing things The Gaslight Anthem have been doing with their Boss-esque, invigorating sound.

I think it's fair to say that The Gaslight Anthem's music goes well with a wide variety of beers; however, something about the trailblazing, multi-influence approach of the New Belgium Brewers couples well with the diverse and dynamic music generated by Brian Fallon and the rest of the band. Gaslight's music on American Slang ranges from introspective and touching to jubilant and uplifting. The influences are comprised of the obviously heavy touch of punk and classic rock to more subtle strains of rockabilly and blues. Regardless, the tracks off of this effort are just as catchy and well-structured as those found on The '59 Sound.

Great beer; great album. It is undeniable that you will look and feel ridiculously cool while enjoying both.

Mona's Summer Short List (2010)

Welcome to my half-year hootenanny...

5) Lady Gaga's Ego Reaches Bieber-Fever Levels
Hey folks, so what's the deal with Lady Gaga? Thanks to Nightrain's list, it's great to know I'm not the only person who feels she is dying a slow, miserable death every time I see her smug mug, well, everywhere. I hate her megalomaniacal fantasy, I hate the hype, I hate her songs with confusing lyrics (fine, you're saying goodbye to "Alejandro", but then who the hell is Roberto? Fernando?), and I hate how she never seems to wear pants (is this an F-you! to those pesky wang rumors?). On slaying her self-doubt: "When I wake up in the morning, I feel just like any other insecure 24-year-old girl. Then I say, 'B*tch, you're Lady Gaga, you get up and walk the walk today.' " Before I could even bring up my own Gag(a) reflex, Jerry Seinfeld beat me to it: "You take one 'A' off of that and you've got gag." Zing!

4) The Dresden Lounge in Hollywood

When I was in Los Angeles, I wanted to check out the Silver Lake/Sunset Junction area, aka the supposed "Williamsburg of the West," to see if it was every bit as hip as I'd read. It was... not so much on that late Sunday night, but at least I was able to pop by The Dresden on the way home with the hopes of catching jazz sensations Marty & Elayne (of Swingers fame). My impromptu trip lead me there on their off-night, but awesomely washed-up resident country/classic rock cover trio The Drinks was there to purvey all of my favorite requests with very little wait time, such as "Night Moves," "Take It Easy" and "Sister Golden Hair." It was like a cover song jukebox and I was the only person who kept feeding it quarters. One of the sweet waitresses even had the brilliant idea of requesting Talking Heads' "Life During Wartime" and they just busted it out on the fly. I've found my new favorite hangout next time I'm in L.A. and I'm looking for more low-key fun with real, everyday people. This place is so money and it doesn't even know it. Or maybe it does?

3) Folk Me Up: Banjo and Whistling Edition

Again, Nightrain beat me to this mention of ubiquitous folk-rooted rock revival all over the airwaves these days, but two specific tracks have captivated my apparently banjo-lovin' heart in ways I couldn't begin to ignore... even when I tried.

Mumford and Sons - "Little Lion Man"
Retrosexual to the max, these guys look like Leonardo DiCaprio's "working class" pals in Titanic who threw that killer dance party in the lower decks and pretty much drowned because the stupid rich people took over all of the lifeboats. "Little Lion Man" caught my ears' attention and has never let it go. I love the way they all chant along with increasing intensity as the song begins to climax, it's definitely my vote for epic breakdown of my half-year (starts at 2:35 mark).


Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - "Home"
Hi. My band runs ten-deep and we travel around the country in vans like dirty hippie rockers. So irritating, so intoxicating, man I can't stand this song... so then why can't I shut it off? "Alabama, Arkansas, I do love my ma and pa, not the way that I do love you..." Sure, she may be singing about her brother at this rate but who knew the banjo could be so damn romantic and set the mood for this year's campfire sing-along love song? "Ahh home, let me go ho-oh-home, home is wherever I'm with you..." With the catchy whistling and a chorus as gosh-darn-cute as that, I'm willing to overlook the fact that ES&TMZ's are completely insane. By the way, what the heck are you guys on (particularly the female lead singer here)!? And don't say "life" because the Polyphonic Spree already used that excuse. Either way, feel free to send some this way whenever you're done singing "Kumbaya."


2) The Gaslight Anthem
Why have I been so late on the ball getting into this band? The first song of theirs I ever heard was "Old White Lincoln," and I damn near got into a minor traffic accident because it was so good and I knew I needed to hear more. But it took the first few lines of "American Slang" to officially reel me in. "Look what you started, I seem to be coming out of my skin..." By far, my favorite intro of this half-year, but the real tingles happen when he sings "I've got your name tattooed inside of my arm" -- I know Brian Fallon isn't singing about me, but the personal, emotive nature of his delivery temporarily humors me. If you think I'm kidding about their effect, last month I "accidentally" fell asleep with "American Slang" on loop, only to wake up in the middle of the night from a dream where a Born In The U.S.A.-era Bruce Springsteen picked me up for a date (he beeped, I found him outside leaning against a red Chevy Camaro), we went to a drive-in movie theatre, came home, and then we made out in the backseat of his neighbor's car. And when it was over, I woke up alone in a state of delusional happiness. Do I really need to say more?


1) Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner's Enigmatic Partnership

After recently seeing Wolf Parade for the 5th time, I can't help but wonder... is it the musical bromance of the century? Or do they secretly despise each other? Spencer Krug once mentioned in an interview how there's little room for egos in the studio since he and Dan Boeckner barely get to see each other and this is only proof that long distance musical relationships can make the hearts grow fonder... and the music only better. These guys manage to stay prolific in respectable side projects (specifically, Krug's Sunset Rubdown and Boeckner's Handsome Furs), yet each undeniable life force still has time for their bread-and-butter indie rock super-group Wolf Parade, both bringing something unique and different to the song-writing table. There's "Krugs' songs" and "Boeckner's songs" and some fans prefer one to the other, but I think it's a toss-up because the sum of this pairing's musical capabilities is greater than its individual parts. Yes, the theory of musical emergence in action. When it comes to their live shows, I love the equality as they insist on switching off vocals every other song to a T. And on songs where they share frontman duties (usually one sings, while the other ignites the song further by filling it out more), its a musical synergistic explosion on stage for all to see. The way they go back and forth on stage is like an insane ping-pong match where I'm left rooting for both members... I'm the ball, of course. Hit me! But since words can't do it justice, I urge all to witness their raucous musical romp in person and I promise you will be reeling for days.

The Gaslight Anthem - "Great Expectations" Video

The Gaslight Anthem come are playing at Bertbati's Pan tonight and Murder By Death is opening. It should be a kick ass show of punky roots rock. I'm already amped.

The Gaslight Anthem @ Slim's

Headliner: Somewhere between Bruce Springsteen and Social Distortion their sounds meet at a junction called The Gaslight Anthem. With a combination of punk and rockabilly instrumentation and lyrics that pay homage "the every man's" real-life experiences, it is difficult not to be swept up in the energy of the music and the passion of the vocals and harmonies. There is certainly a charming element to the rough-around-the-edges appearance of the band members, which had the female portion of the crowd swooning, but what impressed me most was their spot-on live renditions of songs off of Sink or Swim, Señor and the Queen, and The '59 Sound. They played all my favorites and there were very few people in the audience who were not at least signing along with all the choruses. A fantastic performance.

2nd Act: If The Black Keys added two members, and Dan Auerbach was a female vocalist, then they would be the Heartless Bastards. As a HB first timer, I was blown away by Erika Wennerstrom's blue-eyed soul vocals and reverberating garage rock. They are definitely worth a listen, so check out their 2009 release, The Mountain. For San Franciscans, HB will be back for Outside Lands... so plan accordingly.

Opener: The opening act, A Death in the Family, were familiar sounding Australian punk rockers. Familiar because their sound was a combination of The Bouncing Souls, Rancid, and Bad Religion. A solid, energetic opener, but lacking originality... or maybe my pure punk days are behind me, which is possible.