writhaus

With the year over, it’s that time when people lazy from stuffing their faces over the holidays phone in their work by doing “Year in Review” lists. Here at writhaus, we definitely aren’t above such things, either. You might remember just a few months ago, our 2006 music list. I liked writing my portion. I liked highlighting tracks from lesser known performers, too. Hopefully that trend continues with my segment of this post.

Driving around in February handing out resumes, I heard a track that immediately annoyed me. That’s certainly not the best way to start one of these things, but bear with me. Writhaus music guru Dave and I were driving around L.A. and Sirius’s Left of Center played this strange song that just kept repeating, “Can you feel it?” over and over. Immediately after, the next song was by the same band. It’s the first song of 2007 that popped for me. It’s “Energy” by The apples in stereo. These guys had a really great year and have been featured on a lot of these lists. All the attention they are getting is deserved. The album (New Magnetic Wonder) is great and “Can You Feel It” actually did grow on me.

Another in the group of songs that didn’t immediately grab me was Survivalism by NiN. The song didn’t really click for me until I bought the album and listened to Year Zero in its entirety. After that I had a new appreciation for that song, but my favorite track from the album is still “Capital G.”

I tried very hard to get the most out of the L.A. music scene. One of the bands I saw was Nick Black. The title track from their album “Hollow” is haunting and beautiful and stands out from the more traditional rock tracks. The album is really well crafted and worth the download on iTunes.

A band I tried to see but always failed is Moonrats. Their song “FLM” infected my mind instantly when I heard it, with it’s raw feel putting me in mind of Archers of Loaf. Here’s hoping they are still together when I finish doing my gig here in Ukraine so I can finally see them perform.

From Against Me!s sellout album “New Wave“, “Thrash Unreal” currently is the most played song in my iTunes library. It has great lyrics and a well put together sound. The album doesn’t feel like a sellout, so you are pretty safe buying it.

William Tell‘s album You Can’t Hold Me Down holds two songs for this list, “Fairfax” and “Slipping Under.” Both songs have been in heavy rotation on my iPod. Tell’s musical resume is very strong, and the album leaves you wishing there were a few more songs on it.

Two bands that had label problems hit back in a big way this year with strong debut singles. Jimmy Eat World‘s “Big Casino” and The Starting Line‘s “Island” are both worth mentioning.

Brad Paisley, about the only good country music singer to come about in the last 15 years, had a great album hit this year. 5th Gear added two songs to my 2007 playlist: “Ticks” and “Online“. You wouldn’t think a song about blood-sucking arachnids would be much fun, but the idea of a superhero named The Tick probably didn’t sound awesome the first time you heard about it, either. How can a blogger not like “Online” since it pokes good-natured fun at those of us in the nerdery.

In July, for a week, Matt Pinfield took over Sirius’s Left of Center. One of the tracks I got to hear him spin was “I Wish” by Brinkman. Just how do you tell a girl you’re sorry for that one night stand and let her know it’s not her, it’s you? Give the song a listen.

Test Your Reflex is a band I had never heard of before 2007, but I absolutely love their single “Pieces of the Sun.” Sure, it’s a ballad, but those aren’t inherently bad, are they?

The Dallas, TX band The Vanished popped up with a song on my list: “Chemical Reaction.”

Studying Russian, I managed to find a Russian-language pop song I enjoyed a good bit. Рыжая translates to “Red Haired Girl” and feels like a great summer song. I only have a basic idea what the lyrics Aviator are singing are about, but still, it’s a fun song.

That’s my list for 2007. As always, the year started slow, but there were plenty of songs I loved in the end. There are quite a few more, too, like that new album from The Bravery, Arcade Fire and others, but they get enough press as it is, anyway. Do these bands a favor. Track down their music. You’ll be happy you did.

In less than 10 days I will be headed off and will be out of pocket for two years. One of the myriad thoughts that passes through the mind when faced with something like that is simply, “How the heck am I going to find out what music I am missing and how do I keep that from happening?”

With that in mind, I have compiled a list of five songs from the summer of 2007 I feel are worth giving a listen if you’ve been overseas and missed the season’s sonic goodness.

1. Spoon – The Underdog
In a year where the classic cartoon was mined for a terrible movie, it’s nice to know something named Underdog didn’t suck this summer. From the album Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, Spoon’s The Underdog features tight lyrics, hand claps and blaring trumpets set the tone for my summer: the appearance of light and airiness with plenty of things going on beneath the surface.

2. Modest Mouse – Missed the Boat
Modest Mouse is always pretty pensive and the moody tone of this song summed up my feelings as this summer fades into fall.

3. The Starting Line – Island
I always liked The Starting Line. When I heard this single, I was both happy they were back and relieved they were getting airplay again. Thematically, who doesn’t enjoy a song about just getting away and starting over? Songs like this allow us to vicariously do the things life usually doesn’t allow.

4. Moonrats – FLM
Until I graduated from high school in 1994, I listened pretty much exclusively to country music. This summer, Sirius DJ Demos introduced me to alternative rock pioneers Archers of Loaf. I mention them because this song from LA’s Moonrats reminds me of them. It has the same raw vibe, the same “new” feeling which is saying something for a song recorded long after Archers broke up.

5. Brad Paisley – Online
I don’t listen to much country music anymore. It isn’t the same kind of music I grew up with save for a few exceptions. One of those exceptions is Brad Paisley. With Online, Paisley infuses a country song with a timeliness usually reserved for rock acts. He submits his critique of internet culture with a knowing wink and a great video.

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Here we are halfway through 2007. I noticed last week that I don’t have anywhere near the number of songs in my “Best of 2007″ folder as I had in my “Best of 2006″ folder last year. I consoled myself with the satisfaction of knowing there are still a lot of albums coming out this year, even if new Radiohead isn’t among them.

I did think it would be a good time to look back at the music of 2006, though. We have four contributors who have varied tastes. Why not let you, dear reader, know what we liked best last year? Hopefully, in the process, you will discover new music for yourself. To make it easier (or harder, depending on whom you ask), we are selecting five songs. One contributor is sitting out (although he promised new content of his own for Thursday), so you end up with a nice selection for creating a mixed CD or quickie iTunes playlist.

Zandi’s List:

5. (Coming Soon)

4. Royksopp- “Remind Me”
Great commercial, even cooler song.

3. India.Arie- “I Am Not My Hair”
Again, deep meaning with this song. It was a HUGE anthem for women here in the ATL.

2. John Mayer- “Daughters”
My father requested and got daughters, so it resonates.

1. P!nk- “Stupid Girls”
Who can’t appreciate biting satire of today’s celebutants?

Brian’s List (in no particular order, as it was hard enough to distill to five):

1. Arcs- “Ghosts of Shopping Malls” – Emo still exists without mascara. There are kids who can play music with skill. Canada does have a vibrant music scene. These three things come together with Arcs, a group of college guys who happened to put out one of my fav EPs of 2006. I discovered them thanks to CBC Radio 3 (via Sirius) and spent a morning trying to find out more about them. I nearly had given up when a light at the end of the tunnel not only revealed their Web site but their completely free EP. (You can thank me for linking to it in the comments below.) I have high hopes for these guys.

2. Black 47- “Downtown Baghdad Blues” – Sharing a lead singer with ’80s sensation Dexy’s Midnight Runners, I discovered Black 47 with this song. Starting with the drone of a helicopter, this song is one of an elite pantheon that I loved instantly, especially how well-integrated the pipers are. The song is basically a soldier’s questions about why he’s in Iraq. With lyrics like these, it’s easy to wonder: “Mission accomplished, yeah, up on deck, Got no armor for my humvee, left facin’ this train wreck. Shia don’t like me, want Islamic revolution; Sunni say civil war is part of the solution.”

3. Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s- “Quiet as a Mouse”
Chamber pop at its best, Margot broke onto the scene in 2006 with this song getting into heavy rotation on Sirius’ AltNation. For me, the song is a mix of the depressing and the hopeful, which is a distilled version of how I see the world. You definitely should throw this into heavy rotation on your MP3 player of choice.

4. Roman Candle- “Something Left To Say”
North Carolina’s Roman Candle had this song mulling around the Internet for a couple of years before they finally got their first CD out the door. I am glad it was last year so I could include the song on this list. Essentially a song about moving on in life, it spoke to me the first time I heard it. Definitely worth a listen.

5. Johnny Cash- “God’s Gonna Cut You Down”
For this song, I sorted my 2006 list by plays and presto! This is what was at the top. John R. Cash is dead and gone, but thanks to God and Rick Rubin, his music is still with us. Made better knowing it was recorded in the years leading up to his death, the song just reminds us that no matter what we do, God is watching and will have the last say.

It was tough to distill this to five songs. I want to throw out an Honorable Mention to Gnarls Barkley with “Crazy,” a song I have yet to tire of hearing.

Dave’s List:

5. Arctic Monkeys- “A Certain Romance”
This is the closing track to my favorite album of 2006, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not. As with all of the tracks on my list, it’s a catchy song that’s relatively immediately accessible. I especially like the mournful and quiet guitar work. The lyrics are a cool snapshot into hipster life in England. It’s the perfect cap to a brilliant album. My favorite line is: “There’s only music so there’s new ringtones.”

4. The Kooks- “Eddie’s Gun”
This was the quintessential British two-and-a-half-minute rocker of 2006. It’s sexy: “Did you see the way she looked at me?” How the line is sung perfectly captures the essence of the feeling you get when a girl gives you “that look.” I don’t look for it much anymore, seeing as I’m engaged, but I still can appreciate it.

3. My Chemical Romance- “Welcome to the Black Parade”
At points, “Welcome to the Black Parade” sounds as if it could have come from Newsies, but it somehow retains a cool edge. I tend to shy away from musicals, and this song is as “big” as many songs from musicals. The track is catapulted to elite status, though, by Gerard Way’s vocals. He is the epitome of teen angst. The track also is powered by its powerful and anthemic chorus. At its height in popularity, this song was overplayed on the radio to the point where it was nearly ruined. Luckily it wasn’t.

2. Angels & Airwaves- “The War”
With the guitars issuing relentless power chords and Tom DeLonge’s impassioned vocals, “The War” is my favorite anti-war song of 2006. It’s full of disturbing imagery: “And the houses, laid out like targets. With a deafening sound, we watched them all go down.” DeLonge’s vocal performance is epic, and he perfectly speaks for much of the nation: “Why won’t you tell me that it’s almost over? Why must this tear my head inside out?”

1. Cold War Kids- “Hang Me Up To Dry”
“Hang Me Up To Dry” is the perfect rock song, with its driving beat and accessible melody. The metaphor in the chorus is what got me hooked to this song: “Hang me up to dry. You wrung me out too, too, too many times.” The swagger and attitude of singer Nathan Willett solidify the song as a classic.

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