Ok here goes nothing.
Best Full-Length Albums
30) Lindstrøm and Prins Thomas - II
29) Moderat - Moderat
28) Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
27) jj - n° 2
26) Black Moth Super Rainbow - Eating Us
25) Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
24) The Raveonettes - In And Out Of Control
23) Jay-Z - The Blueprint 3
22) The Big Pink - A Brief History of Love
21) Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport
20) St. Vincent - Actor
19) DJ Hell - Teufelswerk
18) Micachu & The Shapes - Jewellery
17) Cass McCombs - Catacombs
16) Converge - Axe to Fall
15) Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
14) fun. - Aim & Ignite
13) Fool's Gold - Fool's Gold
12) Little Boots - Hands
11) Portugal. The Man - The Satanic Satanist
10) Local Natives - Gorilla Manor
09) Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt II
08) Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
07) Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
06) Telepathe - Dance Mother
05) Bibio - Ambivalence Avenue
04) The Horrors - Primary Colours
03) The xx - xx
02) Fever Ray - Fever Ray
01) Florence + the Machine - Lungs
It's been a strong year for the foreigners, with Florence, Fever Ray, xx, etc. Thankfully, Telepathe, Dirty Projectors, AnCo, Raekwon, and my homeboys in Local Natives are all holding down the American fort. Florence has absolutely blown me away though - no filler, and every song brings with it so much emotion and a captivating feeling that you are really listening to something special.
Honorable Mentions:
La Roux, The Flaming Lips, Doves, Major Lazer, Golden Silvers, Invasion, 2562, Simian Mobile Disco, Miike Snow, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, HEALTH, Every Time I Die
Best EPs
10) Eternal Summers - Eternal Summers
09) Animal Collective - Fall Be Kind
08) Zomby = One Foot Ahead Of The Other
07) Julianna Barwick - Florine
06) Deadboy - U Cheated
05) thecocknbullkid - Querelle
04) Washed Out - Life of Leisure
03) Bon Iver - Blood Bank
02) The Drums - Summertime!
01) Suckers - Suckers
Best Singles
20) Lady Gaga - Paparazzi
19) Hockey - Too Fake
18) Avi Buffalo - What's In It For?
17) Girls - Lust For Life
16) Memory Tapes - Bicycle
15) Filthy Dukes - Messages
14) Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
13) La Roux - Bulletproof
12) Marina and the Diamonds - Obsessions
11) Golden Silvers - True No. 9 Blues
10) Fool's Gold - Surprise Hotel
09) New Boyz - You're A Jerk
08) The Big Pink - Dominos
07) Joker - Digidesign
06) Lady Gaga - Bad Romance
05) Dizzee Rascal - Dance Wiv Me (feat Calvin Harris and Chrome)
04) Plastiscines - Barcelona
03) Suckers - It Gets Your Body Movin'
02) Florence and the Machine - You Got The Love (The XX Remix)
01) Jack Peñate - Tonight's Today
Obviously, I have a thing for pop music. Good, catchy pop music, aka Top 40 charts.
Best Live Shows I Saw
10) fun. - 8/31 - Spaceland, Los Angeles
09) Phoenix - 6/28 - Wiltern, Los Angeles
08) Dillinger Escape Plan - 9/5 - FYF Fest, Los Angeles
07) We Are The World - 3/25 - Henry Fonda Theatre, Los Angeles
06) Nine Inch Nails - 9/6 - Echoplex, Los Angeles
05) The XX - 10/23 - Music Hall of Williamsburg, New York
04) Suckers - 3/19 - Malverde, Austin
03) Fever Ray - 10/7 - Henry Fonda Theatre, Los Angeles
02) Florence + the Machine - 8/29 - Reading Festival, UK
01) Bon Iver - 9/27 - Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Los Angeles
A couple of these shows were very special. Bon Iver's was a one-of-a-kind show at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in LA. Gates opened at midnight and a couple thousand BI fans gathered in a large field in the middle of the foggy cemetery, sleeping bags, wine and snacks in hand. As the sun began to rise six hours later, Bon Iver took to the stage for one of the most unforgettable and haunting performances I'll probably ever witness.
The other special one was for Nine Inch Nails. The Echoplex in Los Angeles has a capacity of around 600+ or so, and this was supposed to be NIN's last show ever (the last show on the last tour), but Trent ended up getting sick and had to reschedule two other shows to be after this one. Nonetheless, this will probably be the only time that I would ever be able to see NIN in such a small club environment
Albums That Were Critically Acclaimed But I Just Don't Get
02) Wavves - Wavvves
01) Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
Looking Forward To Their Albums In 2010 (No Particular Order)
00) Salem
00) Arcade Fire
00) LCD Soundsystem
00) MIA
00) Apache Beat
00) NewVillager
00) Suckers
00) Sade
00) The Hundred in the Hands
00) Darwin Deez
00) Hot Chip
00) Sleigh Bells
