2010 Albums of the Year (Nos. 100-81)

I hope everyone who celebrates Christmas had a lovely weekend. Thankfully I am off from work this week and have lots of free time on my hands.  Continuing my Best Of lists from the past two weeks, this week I will counting down my top albums of 2010.  100 seemed like a nice round number and oddly enough was the number I came up with.  So, without further ado, here is beginning of the list, Nos. 100-81.


100.  Oneohtrix Point Never - Returnal

Simply gorgeous neo-psychedelic drone music.  Each of the eight tracks is concise and to the point; never overstepping its bounds, or overstaying its welcome.  Daniel Lopatin sculpts sounds into figures you might never have heard before, and even finds ways to incorporate vocals unobtrusively into the mix, whether cut up an unrecognizable, or, as with the amazing voice of Antony Hegarty, into something recognizably sublime.


99.  Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Before Today

This album has been on and off this list so many times I was starting to feel bad for it, and yet, here it is.  Simultaneously enthralling and infuriating, no other album this year played as much with my emotions.  When the album is on, as with "Bright Lit, Blue Skies," and "Round and Round," it is a pop masterpiece, full of delicate melodies and wonderful song craft.  When it is off though, you want to erase it from your hard-drive.  But in the end, it is the great songs that balance out the chaff.

98.  oOoOO - oOoOO EP

Witch house is another one of those genres, like chillwave, that seem to be a catch-all for bands that don't fit neatly within any specific category.  Where this ep has all the hallmarks of witch house (trap-hop drum machines, chilly synths), he expands on the sound, incorporating elements of world music (the Hindi infused "Mumbai") and even traditional pop music (the delicate R&B of "Hearts").  oOoOO doesn't appear to want to fall into the trap of being pigeonholed too early, and his restlessness is exciting.

97.  Toro Y Moi - Causers Of This

Another artist lumped into the ridiculous "chillwave" genre.  Seriously, I think some critics get lazy and just throw everyone into some pot without the slightest regard.  Toro Y Moi, aka Chaz Bundick, is another in a line of electronic artists like Flying Lotus, Nosaj Thing, and Baths, that are electronic in nature, but like to take their sound out on the road and with a variety of effects pedals, pads, and machinery, are able to manipulate and mold their music live and on the fly.  Causers of This is simultaneously gauzy and gossamer, meaty and substantial.  He clearly loves the allure of the studio, being able to create these dense pieces of music, but where he shines is allowing his pop sensibilities shine through.

96.  Teengirl Fantasy - 7am

Sort of the antidote to How To Dress Well's insular bedsit R&B, Teengirl Fantasy takes that template, and instead of drenching the music with reverb and haunting intimacy, ratchets up the emotion and drama, melding rich melodies and gorgeously thick productions.  The album reaches its climax with the amazing "Cheaters," taking a wonderful old 60s soul sample and merges it with post-modern beats.

95.  Dum Dum Girls - I Will Be

30 minutes of pure, fuzzy-scuzzy girl band power pop.

94.  Laurie Anderson - Homeland

Laurie Anderson gets better and better as she ages, and her return to a full length album after ten years of working on a variety of projects is a cause for celebration.   Working in a more minimal mode, primarily ghostly/glitchy synths and muted drum beats along with her trademark violin and acerbic and witty vocals, Anderson continues her lifelong critique of the United States, and while she is still saddened by what she finds, her love for this great country is always apparent.

93.  How To Dress Well - Love Remains

This record is almost suffocating in its raw intimacy.  Taking his love for classic and modern R&B, Tom Krell refashions it for his own purposes, pushing the vocals well to the fronts of the mix, hitting the red more often than not, feeling like one has discovered old, classic tapes locked away in a drawer for private use.  Listening to his debut album is not easy, and there are many times when the emotion is unbearable.  But like all great musicians, it is impossible to ignore.

92.  Deftones - Diamond Eyes

Diamond Eyes is the sound of a band recovering from a period of immense sadness, following the tragic car crash that severely injured bassist Chi Cheng.  This album finds the band leaning more to their alternative side, which I think is what makes them sound more distinctive.  While there are heavy songs full of killer riffs and air-raid siren screaming from vocalist Chino Moreno, the majority of tracks are quiet and hushed, full of atmospheric and almost ambient textures.  A remarkable return to form, and a step forward.

91.  Tamaryn - The Waves

I am always a sucker for a shoegaze band.  Tamaryn really don't add anything new to the sound other than make it beefier and less hazy.  Probably the best description of this album comes from a friend of mine who, upon hearing it, said it sounded like Mazzy Star went out on the town in a roid rage.

90.  Lindstrom & Christabelle - Real Life Is No Cool

Norwegian producer Hans-Peter Lindstrom, along with the improbably seductive chanteuse Christobelle,  came up with the years most slinky and sensual head-bobber.  Lindstrom forgoes the ridiculously long tracks of his recent output in favor of a more streamlined approach.  It suits the songs well, whether they are trading on disco, Baleric, R&B, or new wave.


89.  Frank (Just Frank) - The Brutal Wave

Sounding like the lost sequel to The Cure's goth masterpiece Pornography, The Brutal Wave from French duo Frank (Just Frank) trades on icy synths, tinny drum machines, and skeletal guitar riffs.  In less assured hands it come across as pure Cure karaoke, but Frank (Just Frank) appear to know exactly what they are doing.


88.  Scuba - Triangulation

One of dubsteps few artists that works in full on album mode instead of working on genre defining singles.  Triangulation is not going to bowl you over with hit after hit and a smattering of filler, instead it is a complete work of art, showing a brilliant use of pacing, texture, and adventure.  Scuba is not afraid to take the genre in a more pop oriented route (which seems to be a huge detraction for dubstep purists), and he succeeds wildly.


87.  Autre Ne Veut - Autre Ne Veut

Sounding like a "chocolate in my peanut butter" pairing of old school Maxwell R&B and avant garde electronic experimentation a la Animal Collective, Autre Ne Veut walks the fence between the mainstream and avant garde.  You are not likely to hear a more puzzling yet enthralling album all year.

86.  Perfume Genius - Learning

Sometimes Perfume Genius' (nee Mike Hadreas) music is so raw and naked that you have to shut it off to steel yourself up to begin again.  His confessional songwriting style transcends mere teenage journal navel gazing, opening up to show an acute knack for revealing the somber details of growing up in our fraught modern times.  

85.  Gold Panda - Lucky Shiner

Many people erroneously dismiss electronic music as being too cold to truly enjoy.  Artists like Gold Panda show that warmth and pure human feeling can be pulled from electronic sources.  


84.  Ramadanman - Ramadanman EP

Dubstep already thrives on fractured time signatures, cut-up textures, disembodied vocals, and punishing basslines.  It is not a inclusionary genre of music.  Ramadanman (David Kennedy), already known for his experimental remixes of other artists, has a very limited output of his own, and yet, his few tracks are some of the most out there music released in the past year.  On this ep, he further stretches the genre, pulling it closer to the IDM territory of Autechre or Squarepusher, then pulls back to reveal one of the genre defining tracks of 2010, the jawdropping "Don't Change For Me;" brimming with hardcore breakbeats and a deliciously sexy house vocal sample.


83.  PVT - Church With No Magic

PVT are sometimes maligned as the poor man's Battles.  While they also focus on the push and pull between man made sounds and machine made, PVT explore the more punishing aspects of this dichotomy, rather than Battles' more playful take.  With Church With No Magic, PVT has streamlined they sound with no note out of place and nothing extraneous.  This album is not their masterpiece, but it is definitely the first step to getting there.


82.  Simian Mobile Disco - Delicacies

After following up their strong debut Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release with the attempt at mainstream success, Temporary Pleasure was a bloated mess, overrun with too many ill-conceived guest vocalists, and horror upon horrors, overlong and mostly made up of filler.  To my surprise, Simian Mobile Disco retreated back to what made them so special in the first place, emphasizing the music more than what latest diva flavor of the month would spice up a track.  A concept album of sorts, Delicacies features all songs named after food delicacies around the world.  The tracks are long and banging, but instead of being bloated on bombast, they are brimming with great ideas, hooks, and whimsy.  An amazing rise from the wreckage.

81.  LoneLady - Nerve Up

Borrowing heavily from post-punk bands such as Wire, Gang Of Four, and Joy Division, LoneLady (aka Julie Campbell) re-energizes a stale genre and throws lovely curves into the mix, whether through her slightly askew vocals, treated guitar, or use of a drum machine.  Nerve Up is, as the title suggests, all nervous energy; melodies and ideas bouncing off the walls, some of them missing the target, but when hitting on all cylinders, show a remarkable new talent.