Tim Davis’ 20 Favorite Releases of the Year (In no particular
order):
1. Modest Mouse — Good News For People Who Love Bad News
2. Pavement — Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain: L.A.’s Desert Origins
3. Sondre Lerche — Two Way Monologue
4. Nick Cave — Abattoir Blues/ The Lyre of Orpheus
5. PJ Harvey — Uh Huh Her
6. Wilco — A Ghost Is Born
7. Brian Wilson — SMiLE
8. Kanye West — The College Dropout
9. The Arcade Fire — Funeral
10. Bjork — Medulla
11. Morrissey — You Are The Quarry
12. The Streets — A Grand Don’t Come For Free
13. Leonard Cohen — Dear Heather
14. Blonde Redhead — Misery Is a Butterfly
15. William Lazarus — Like Trees We Grow Up To Be Satellites
16. Rob Sonic — Telicatessen
17. Death From Above 1979 — You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine
18. Interpol — Antics
19. Mission of Burma — OnOffOn
20. (tie) Loretta Lynn — Van Lear Rose / William Basinski — The Disintegration Loops
Notes: Modest Mouse probably deserves #1 on my list, if you’re going for sheer spins. However, this list — like all “best of” lists — is completely subjective, dependent as it is on the circumstances circling in one’s particular life at a given time. Mike Skinner of the Streets unbelievably topped Original Pirate Material with one of the best concept albums ever recorded. Interpol looks to be around for a long time to come, their livers considering. Kanye West has united the hip-hop world (making one of the very best rap releases of the new century probably has a bit to do with that). Welcome Back Morrissey, Leonard Cohen, and Mission of Burma. Bjork’s Medulla: best musical instrument-deficient album ever? The Arcade Fire: we don’t need no water, just extra quarters.
Samir Shukla’s 2004 favorites (In alphabetical order):
Albert Ayler — Holy Ghost
Bjork — Medulla
Caetano Veloso — A Foreign Sound
Anja Lechner and Vassilis Tsabropoulos — Chants, Hymns and Dances
Choying Drolma and Steve Tibbetts — Selwa
Comets on Fire — Blue Cathedral
Elevator Action — It’s Just Addiction
Gipsy Kings — Roots
Keb’ Mo — Keep it Simple
Loretta Lynn — Van Lear Rose
Mastodon — Leviathan
Morrissey — You Are the Quarry
Nick Cave — Abattoir Blues/ The Lyre of Orpheus
Ozomatli — Street Signs
R.E.M. — Around The Sun
Ray Charles — Genius Loves Company
Sonic Youth — Sonic Nurse
The Crystal Method — Legions of Boom
Wilco — A Ghost is Born
John Schacht’s Top 20:
1. Arcade Fire — Funeral A massive, sprawling, epic debut from
this Canadian quintet, equal parts Neutral Milk Hotel and early Roxy Music and
refreshingly unique.
2. Elliot Smith — From a Basement on the Hill A bittersweet swan song from the troubled but brilliant songwriter, a Beatles-like pop masterpiece.
3. The Sadies — Favorite Colours The Good brothers finally harness all that promise and their disparate styles — surf, garage, country, psychedelia — into a masterful whole.
4. Wilco — A Ghost Is Born Jeff Tweedy’s crew goes organic while paying tribute to newer influences (krautrock, Tortoise) in the gorgeous follow-up to Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.
5. Viva Voce — The Heat Can Melt Your Brain Psychedelic lounge rock from this Portland, OR, husband and wife team — think early Floyd mixed with the Shins and some Cowboy Junkies.
6. Shannon Wright — Over the Sun Brutal yet beautiful angular set of songs from former Crowdsell frontwoman; her best solo work to date.
7. Chicago Underground Trio — Slon Trumpeter Rob Mazurek and company may be the best jazz ensemble many jazz fans have never heard.
8. Tom Waits — Real Gone Returning to the noir-roots of Mule Variations, these swamp blues fit the hoarse-whisperer like a bourbon-soaked glove.
9. n.Lannon — Chemical Friends The best bedroom recording in a year chockfull of great ones; the Film School member and electronica wizard combines the two flawlessly.
10. Pinback — Summer in Abbadon Super catchy, somewhat math-y dark pop from San Diego duo.
11. Thalia Zedek — Trust Not Those In Whom Without a Touch of Madness The ex-Come front woman returns with another superb set; imagine the Dirty Three with one of rock’s most emotive female voices out front.
12. Califone — The Heron King Essentially just an extended EP to tour behind, this tasty eight-song set again captures the Chicago band’s timeless sound, a harmonious mix of familiar roots and experimental dissonance.
13. Will Johnson — Vultures Await Next to Elliot’s Smith’s entry, the most haunting record of the year from Centro-Matic’s prolific frontman.
14. oRSo — My Dreams Are Back and They Are Better Than Ever Acoustic chamber pop in the truest sense of the term, with strings, banjo and sax highlighting this acoustic set from ex-Rex member Phil Spirito.
15. Don Byron — Ivey-Divey A finger-poppin’ mix of post-bop and funk from the clarinet master.
16. Lambchop — Aw C’mon/No, You C’mon In essence a double album of sprawling, Lambchoppian dimensions, Kurt Wagner sings about Steve McQueen, Bic lighters and the dark spaces between lovers.
17. Richard Buckner — Dents & Shells Another beautifully crafted ode to melancholia, and the full-band sound suits him well after the sparse Impasse.
18. Modest Mouse — Good News for People Who Love Bad News A shinier, poppier entry from Isaac Brock, but don’t let the knee-jerk naysayers turn you off — still a strong record.
19. Menomena — I Am the Fun Blame Monster A wild ride through familiar indie territory, but done with an abundance of panache and zeal.
20. Giant Sand — Is All Over the Map Howe Gelb’s best and most
accessible since Chore of Enchantment.
As a special bonus, CL contacted some local musicians for their favorites.
Here are a few of their responses:
Houston Brother Justin Faircloth’s Mostly-2004 Top 10:
Elliot Smith — From a Basement on a Hill
Bjork — Medulla
Jill Scott — Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds Vol. 2
Pavement — Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain: L.A.’s Desert Origins
Sea and Cake — One Bedroom
Clem Snide — Moment In The Sun
Outkast — Speakerboxxx/ The Love Below
Blonde Redhead — Misery Is a Butterfly
The Magnetic Fields — i
The Shins — Chutes Too Narrow
Calabi Yau’s Top Ten albums of 2004:
Aleuchatistas — On the Culture Industry
Blonde Redhead — Misery is a Butterfly
Bobby Conn — The Homeland
Deerhoof — Milkman
Hot Snakes — Audit in Progress
Liars — They Were Wrong, So We Drowned
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds — The Lyre of Orpheus/Abattoir Blues
Oneida — Secret Wars
Sightings — Arrived in Gold
Wrangler Brutes — Zulu
Jay Fernandez, Semi-Pro:
Eagles of Death Metal — Peace, Love, and Death Metal
Clutch — Blast Tyrant
P.J. Harvey — Uh Huh Her
Fantmas — Delirium Cordia
Kid 606 — Kill Sound Before Sound Kills You
Mark Lanegan — Bubblegum
Loretta Lynn — Van Lear Rose
The Hives — Tyrannosaurus Hives
Devo — Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! (New to me this year)
Queens of the Stone Age — Stone Age Complications
Mark Lynch (David Childers and the Modern Don Juans, Lou Ford):
Brian Wilson — SMiLE (FiNALLY!)
Faces — Five Guys Walk Into Bar…
The Streets — A Grand Don’t Come for Free
Tom Waits — Real Gone
Modest Mouse — Good News for People Who Love Bad News
Loretta Lynn — Van Lear Rose
The Gourds — Blood of The Ram
Legendary Shack*Shakers — Believe
Elliot Smith — From a Basement on the Hill
David Childers & The Modern Don Juans — Room 23
This article appears in Dec 29, 2004 – Jan 4, 2005.
