It is the best and truest mark of artistry in the music industry, and sales are no indication of significance.  Sequencing and thematic continuity, sonic experimentation within a basic set of familiar parameters, a healthy range of types and topics: these are the standards by which to judge an album.

The album.

It ascended into an art form in the mid-sixties under the careful work of artists like the Beatles, Bob Dylan, and the Beach Boys.  It was taken to new heights with the experimentation of later bands, from the concept albums of the Moody Blues to the spin-off success of artists like Bruce Springsteen.  The album – and rock in general – saw a rebirth in the nineties, with the work of those like Weezer, the Wallflowers, the Barenaked Ladies, and a slew of others who led a surge of excellent rock music.

These days, the album has faced a crossroads.  Specifically, with the advent and surge of digital sales, the physical formats of music are on the chopping block.  Still, with the rise of vinyl sales even as CD sales continue to decline, there is hope yet.  And, contrary to an army of naysayers, there are still excellent albums being made.  This year, as with the past several years that I have been tuned into a vast array of albums, I would say there are about five albums that will undoubtedly stand the test of time and compete for top spots when I eventually get around to my Best Albums of All Time list.  Which, at this point, might have to wait until I hit retirement.

But, for the moment, you have my Best Albums of 2011 list, and if you’re interested in reading more about any of these albums, you can access my Weekend Review report (including star rating, production info, and a full review) by simply searching the album title and band name in the search bar above.  And, of course, if you see reason for disagreement or any gaps in my list, it’s up to you to leave comments below.

1)  The Whole Love (Wilco)

2)  The King is Dead (The Decemberists)

3)  Last Night on Earth (Noah & the Whale)

4)  Wasting Light (Foo Fighters)

5)  Bad As Me (Tom Waits)

6)  Unfortunate Casino (Gerry Beckley)

7)  The King of Limbs (Radiohead)

8)  Yuck (Yuck)

9)  Lasers (Lupe Fiasco)

10) W H O K I L L (The Tune-Yards)

11) The Graduation Ceremony (Joseph Arthur)

12) Vol. 2: High and Inside (The Baseball Project)

13) Collapse Into Now (R.E.M.)

14) Move Like This (The Cars)

15) The Valley (Eisley)

16) Cloud Maintenance (Kevin Hearn)

17) I’m With You (Red Hot Chili Peppers)

18) Alpocalypse (Weird Al Yankovic)

19) No Color (The Dodos)

20) Nighty Night (8in8)

Honorable Mention:

The Way It Was (Parachute)

The Dreamer, The Believer (Common)

Related posts:

1. The TOP FIFTY SONGS of 2011 (The Year-End Awards)
2. The BEST VOCAL PERFORMANCES of 2011 (The Year-End Awards)
3. The BEST PACKAGING of 2011 (The Year-End Awards)

A Special Edition of the Weekend Review

I think we’ve all heard the term “deep track,” used to refer to songs that do not receive much (or any) commercial radio airplay.  This series is dedicated to brief but focused reports on ALBUMS that do not receive as much commercial or critical attention as they should.

By Chris Moore:

Considerable time has passed since I last dug deep into the racks for a dusty gem, as Cuomo and company might say, to wipe off and take out for a spin.  Inadvertently coming across this record today has proved reason enough to revive the Deep Racks Report.

To suggest that The Envoy is least appreciated of all Warren Zevon albums would be an understatement.  It is the production whose reception resulted in his record label dropping him by the wayside.  It is the release that coincided — not so coincidentally, after he discovered he was unemployed via a music magazine — with a self-destructive run that landed him in rehab.

Some albums that are not as successful as the big-wigs may have hoped are given a second shot in re-release. The Envoy was given that chance…

…twenty-four years after it hit the shelves.

On the eve of its release in 2006, I found it conspicuous that this Zevon record had never been converted to CD previously.  The obvious question was, how bad could it possibly be?

I had my reservations.

Admittedly due in part to my low expectations, I became immediately enamored with these nine tracks.  It is a brief album, to be certain, but in my opinion, there are far too many examples of those releases that suffer from the opposite flaw.  The nine songs that comprise The Envoy are a cohesive set that negotiate the common territory of, well, negotiating the concerns of the singer: love and authority, to name a couple.

While not innovative, these songs are far from pedestrian.  Zevon continues along the same sonic veins that he has established on previous records, adding the uncharacteristically stripped-down, acoustic “Jesus Mentioned” — a preview of what was to come in the latter half of his career — and the unhinged romp “Ain’t That Pretty At All,” which shakes up the formula at the top of side B.

Warren Zevon's "The Envoy" (1982)

There are those that might scoff at my self-righteous resurrection of a lost album, mumbling to themselves about how albums are often deserving of their respective fates.  How low must my bar be set that I could admit such a lost and forgotten sample from Zevon’s nearly three decade long recording career?  The answer is: because I’ve heard lots of Zevon lots and lots of times.  I know a good Zevon release from a great one, and I can distinguish between the misguided, the mediocre, and the amazing.

This album leans decidedly towards the latter.

The Envoy has it all.  There is the fantastic, destined-for-the-greatest-hits track “Looking for the Next Best Thing.”  There are the straightforward rockers “The Envoy,” with its clever, then-contemporary political implications, and “The Overdraft,” which voices concerns of a more personal nature.  There are the tongue-in-cheek, tragic (i.e. typically Zevon-esque) tracks “The Hula Hula Boys” and “Charlie’s Medicine.”  And, for good measure, the songwriter reminds us that he’s not entirely jaded with a pair of purposeful, confident, and dare I say even romantic numbers: “Let Nothing Come Between You” and “Never Too Late for Love.”

Equally important to any serious study of The Envoy is the investigation of the songs that didn’t make the cut.  Wisely, Zevon withheld the overly eighties-sounding “The Risk,” a decision that speaks volumes for his clear mindedness regarding album sequencing, even at the worst of times. And it does makes a fun little bonus track, as does his cover of “Wild Thing.”  I would hope there was never any serious consideration paid towards adding this Troggs cover to the lineup, but all that really matters is that it was never included.

Even if these outtakes had been added, there would be no clear reason to excommunicate The Envoy from Warren Zevon’s body of available work.  There would have been less reason to respect it, but the nine tracks that did, in actuality, make the cut amount to a tight, smart album that knows when to crank up to breakneck speed and when to unroll a ballad, where to be sardonic and where to be sincere.

It is with great pleasure that I add The Envoy to my list of “Deep Racks” recommendations.  I hope you enjoy it!  (If you can find it…)

Related posts:

1. The Weekend Review: January 2011 Report
2. The Weekend Review: February 2011 Report

By Jim Fusco:

Hi Mike and hello to all other participators. Here is my weigh-in for the “Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!!)” album- a true classic.

SUMMER DAYS (AND SUMMER NIGHTS!!)

California Girls – 10 (An American classic- especially for a Beach Boys fan, it just simply doesn’t get much better than this. I have to rank this a 10, even though I believe God Only Knows deserves the undisputed highest spot.)
Salt Lake City – 7
*The Little Girl I Once Knew – 10 (A long-standing choice for my favorite Beach Boys song of all-time. It’s still gotta be in my Top 3)
The Girl from New York City – 6 (It’s okay, but very much under-produced compared to the rest of the album and they seem to be a bit more sloppy. I do like Mike’s overly-low backing vocals, though!)
Help Me, Rhonda – 10 (You know, it’s kind of expected that people will give songs like this a 10, but if you just sit back and LISTEN to this version of “Help Me Rhonda”, you have to realize it’s an incredible song. It’s catchy, but still has substance. It truly is that “Beach Boys” sound. I love Mike’s low part in this tune, as well.)
Let Him Run Wild – 10 (This is one of the best songs EVER- it’s unique and has that incredible chord progression. I think the bass line and the sound of the bass in this song is the best of any song I’ve ever heard. Brian’s vocals are perfect and the emotion is heartbreaking. I can’t believe I’m putting so many 10′s on this album!)
*Let Him Run Wild (alternate) – 8 (Brian’s vocals don’t have that edge like the final version)
You’re So Good to Me – 6.5 (Still a great song, but its simplicity just doesn’t match up with the rest of the classics. Also, those “la’s” in the background get annoying to anyone but true Beach Boys fans)
And Your Dream Comes True – 5
Then I Kissed Her – 6.5 (One of their best covers- a great lead by Al!)
Girl Don’t Tell Me – 8 (Catchy and a great little jab to the Beatles style of the period. Carl gives a great vocal performance, as well.)
Amusement Parks USA – 3 (All I can say is: eh)
Summer Means New Love – 3 (I like the tune and the production, but it’s kind of elevator-music sounding)
I’m Bugged at My Ol’ Man – 5 (This is a really cute song with great vocals by Brian, bad vocals by the others, and a truer-than-it’s-supposed-to-sound lyrics)

** This album IS the Beach Boys on record, as far as the 60s are concerned. This album is what “Sunflower” is to the 70′s Beach Boys. “Summer Days” defines the Beach Boys sound, especially on cuts like “California Girls”. I would challenge anyone to give this album a bad review. It still has that innocence I love so dearly, but pushes the musical envelope as far as it can go without getting too serious. This album is really the farthest Brian could go before getting into the emotions and themes he did on “Pet Sounds” and “Smile”. For me, this album marks the end of an era and the Beach Boys just wouldn’t be the same after this. That early-60s summer fun, teenager, innocence just evaporated when “Pet Sounds” arrived. Of course, I’m not saying that the music to come wasn’t some of the greatest ever, but looking back, I wish they could’ve stayed innocent for just a couple more years… **

Related posts:

1. “Busy Doin’ Nothing” (Beach Boys Acoustic Rock Cover Song) – The Laptop Sessions
2. “Soulful Old Man Sunshine” (Beach Boys Acoustic Rock Cover Song) – The Laptop Sessions
3. Video Blog: How Songwriter Jim Fusco Records A Song- Part 1 of a four-part documentary

At last, we arrive at the second most important list of the year: the top fifty songs.  This is the list that takes me the longest every time, even more time than the albums list.  This might be helped in part because I start writing my best albums list as early as summertime, but it’s also because I find albums easier to evaluate and rate than individual songs; oftentimes, songs shift and flux up and down over the year.

This year, my greatest challenge was finding a place for two of my former (mOu) and current (the DKBH) bandmate Mike Fusco’s new releases.  I typically avoid having one artist hog the top spots, but the truth was that I couldn’t honestly deny “Modern-Day Pocahontas” the top spot, and I tried but couldn’t come to terms with placing “Chasing Pigeons” any lower than second, even below such outstanding tracks as Brett Dennen’s “Sydney” or Wilco’s “Born Alone.”  If this reduces the authenticity of my list, then so be it: this is my honest assessment of the best fifty songs of 2011.

1)  “Modern-Day Pocahontas” – Mike Fusco

2)  “Chasing Pigeons” – Mike Fusco

3)  “Sydney (I’ll Come Running)” – Brett Dennen

4)  “Born Alone” – Wilco

5)  “L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.” – Noah and the Whale

6)  “Arlandria” – Foo Fighters

7)  “Give It All Back” – Noah and the Whale

8)  “Rox in the Box” – The Decemberists

9)  “Hello” – Gerry Beckley

10) “Buckner’s Bolero” – The Baseball Project

11) “All That You Are” – Goo Goo Dolls

12) “Lost All My Ambition” – Mike Fusco

13) “Suicide Policeman” – Yuck

14) “Jejune Stars” – Bright Eyes

15) “Uberlin” – R.E.M.

16) “New Year’s Eve” – Tom Waits

17) “Codex” – Radiohead

18) “Comeback Kid (That’s My Dog) – Brett Dennen

19) “Black and Yellow” – Wiz Khalifa

20) “Lonely Boy” – Black Keys

21) “Two Against One” – Danger Mouse, Danielle Luppi, and Jack White

22) “Rope” – Foo Fighters

23) “Ambulance” – Eisley

24) “Face in the Crowd” – Joseph Arthur

25) “Feel” – Gerry Beckley

26) “This is Why We Fight” – The Decemberists

27) “Jardin Du Luxembourg” – The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger

28) “Till I Get There” – Lupe Fiasco

29) “Dawned on Me” – Wilco

30) “Fire Fly” – Childish Gambino

31) “Release Me” – Jack’s Mannequin

32) “Tangie and Ray” – The Fruit Bats

33) “Season’s Trees” – Danger Mouse, Danielle Luppi, and Norah Jones

34) “Us Against the World” – Coldplay

35) “Surprise, Surprise” – Brett Dennen

36) “Triple Spiral” – Bright Eyes

37) “Someone’s Gonna Break Your Heart” – Fountains of Wayne

38) “Wonder Why” – Vetiver

39) “Art of Almost” – Wilco

40) “Don’t Carry It All” – The Decemberists

41) “Don’t Call Them Twinkies” – The Baseball Project

42) “You and Me” – Parachute

43) “Police Station” – Red Hot Chili Peppers

44) “Titty’s Beer” – Colt Ford (feat. Trent Tomlinson)

45) “Don’t Try and Hide It” – The Dodos

46) “I Don’t Want to Be a Bride” – Vanessa Carlton

47) “Ruined” – Hannah Fair

48) “Because the Origami” – 8in8

49) “Bad As Me” – Tom Waits

50) “Fly Solo” – Wiz Khalifa

Honorable Mention:

“Factory of Faith” – Red Hot Chili Peppers

“Raw (How You Like It)” – Common [late entry]

“Keep On Knocking” – The Cars

“Damn These Vampires” – The Mountain Goats

Related posts:

1. The TOP TWENTY ALBUMS of 2011 (The Year-End Awards)
2. The BEST COVER SONGS of 2011 (The Year-End Review Awards)
3. The BEST MUSIC VIDEOS of 2011 (The Year-End Awards)

By Chris Moore:

RATING:  4 / 5 stars

No other artist or band brings as much raw, unbridled energy to their music as Locksley.

On their sophomore effort, Be in Love, they are beginning to refine their arrangements and modify the formula established on 2007′s Don’t Make Me Wait.  In many ways, the songs on this record sound very much like the songs on their 2007 debut: the jangly, early Beatles-esque guitars gone punk, the nearly shouted vocals, the breakneck pacing.

And yet there are significant distinctions to be drawn, particularly in the subtleties they have injected throughout these twelve tracks.

The harmonic feedback that functions as the intro to “Love You Too” — and, thereby, to the album as a whole — suggests an implicit desire to postpone and properly frame the energy that has appropriately defined the Locksley sound for the past three years.

Be In Love is a slow burn, if you will, as opposed to an explosion, although it does have its explosive moments.

Elsewhere, the lead vocals are augmented by more intricate arrangements, specifically the background vocals on tracks like “21st Century,” that allow for the layered feel of these songs.  The breakdown after the core of “Days of Youth” betrays more patience than the band has previously possessed, just as “Away From Here” stretches out and breathes, acting as the perfect closer to the first half of this album.

By the time the second half fades in, introduced as was the first half with feedback, it is clear that Locksley have wound themselves up again.  The eminently singable “The Whip” introduces a second batch of songs as varied and nearly as satisfying as the first six tracks.

When Locksley’s debut was re-issued a year after its initial release, they tacked on three additional tracks — not listed as bonus tracks — unceremoniously to the end of the record’s lineup.  With Be in Love, they have turned a corner and begun to process their work with more purpose, deliberate action being taken to ensure the optimal arrangements of individual songs, as well as the overall order of tracks, to work toward a cohesive whole.

Remarkably, they have done this while sacrificing little — if any — of the abandon that made Don’t Make Me Wait so exciting.

Locksley's "Be in Love" (2010)

One criticism of their previous work which cannot be lifted here is regarding their lyrics.  Certainly, words aren’t the end-all, and there is much to be said for the “feel” of a musical composition.  Still, what the singer is saying should matter.

Here, at times, the singer isn’t saying much (see the opener: “If you leave me, oh would I be blue” for the first instance of inane lyricism).

However, there are numerous occasions across the record that deliver much more, not least of all the promise of progression from this young act.  Take lead guitarist Kai Kennedy’s excellent “Days of Youth.”  This song opens with the lines, “And your body full of stars, constellations made of scars, recalls a time when you were young, body baking in the sun.  And how I hope that you can see I see you innocent and free; that’s the way that you will stay with the passing of your days.”  This introductory stanza pulls in thematic elements up for consideration throughout the album, particularly that of looking back on youth and ahead to the future, considering how one’s past experiences affect his identity in the present.

This song also includes the title line: “Be in love with you tonight beside an old house full of light, city cold and far away, can be anyone when day comes down.”  It is unclear here whether the singer is advocating a fresh start or endorsing an escape of sorts when he sings about the ability to be “anyone when day comes down.”  At the end of the day, he sings, “And I’ll try to remember you, when we were brand new, in our days of youth.”  This selective imagining of the person in question suggests a desire to banish unwanted thoughts of the present, choosing instead to cling to more pure memories.

This is the subtext throughout Be in Love:  live in the present, but cling to the beautiful simplicity of the past, a question asked as far back as on the 2007 track “The Past and Present” as “Every day now she finds memories when she shuts her eyes…  Leave it, why don’t you leave it?”  The answer three years ago was, “It’s just as well these days are gone.”

Now, the statement being made is clear:  embrace what is true.

Often, what is true is that which has strong roots in the past.

In “Love You Too,” the singer declares, “I remember the morning that I fell in love.  Now every evening, I just can’t get enough.”  Here, the connection between the past and present is clear, and it is an over-simplification to suggest that Locksley’s argument is to resort to nostalgia.  Far from it, on “Down For Too Long,” Laz asserts, “Whatever I am is alright.  Whatever you are is alright.  Whatever it is is alright.  Whatever we are is alright.”

Clearly, the present isn’t so unmanageable.

The point of the album seems to boil down to a central crisis.  On “Down Too Long,” Laz sings, “Shout out!  We’re men in the middle of a shake down!  God don’t it make you want to break down!  Yeah, but you know that we’ve been down for too long.”  Later, as Locksley channels the White Stripes, he sings, “All the time I’m trying to be the man you want me to, but all I ever get from you is silence.  Now I’m on fire and out of control!”

This is expanded upon later, as he sings of a girl who inspires lust rather than love.  “I won’t give in; it isn’t love that I’m thinking of,” he declares.  The implication is apparent: if love is not present, then lust is not worthwhile.

For so many reasons — quality and content to name two — “21st Century should be read as the centerpiece of Be in Love, a track which helps to frame the context of the conflict.  The chorus describes a turning point, specifically the moment that all people face at the intersection between youth and maturity.  As Laz puts it, “We’re all coming together, we’re all falling apart, reaching the end only the end of the start, taking the pictures to remember the times, remember the times when we were young and out of line.”

The friction, the simultaneous shaking into and out of one’s skin, is palpable here.  Again, the topic of memory juxtaposed with living in the present arises.  Ultimately, we are left with the suggestion of promise and possibility: “I’ve got memories of things I’ve never done, some from when I’m older, some from when I’m young.  I’ve got best friends that I never get to see.  I hope I’ll find the time, I hope they find the time for me.”

If nothing else, it is clear that Locksley’s title mantra of “be in love” is, much like Ringo Starr’s 2005 title track, an espousal of the “choose love” school of thought.  In all that we do, we should “find the time” for others in the hope that others will do the same.  We all have “memories of things [we've] never done,” so why not work toward actually doing them?

Be in Love is one of the most fun, rocking, simple, and yet subtly smart and purposeful albums of the year.  As I wrote in my review of their debut release, I write again:  I can only imagine the potential for what their next album will be like.

Related posts:

1. Al Jardine’s “A Postcard From California” (2010) – The Weekend Review
2. Michelle Branch’s “Everything Comes and Goes” (2010) – The Weekend Review
3. Arcade Fire’s “The Suburbs” (2010) – The Weekend Review

Although the music video may have slid significantly farther down in relevance since its heyday in the eighties and nineties, there are still artists making them.  In fact, it seems to be fairly standard procedure, and the venue of choice appears to have become YouTube’s VEVO provider.  I spent a long time watching more videos than I’m willing to admit here.  The result, below, is a streamlined list of only the best.  To be truthful, I have recognized more than I believe are truly notable, if only because I felt they were worth mentioning after I had taken the time to watch them.

If you like music videos and miss them, I encourage you to take the time to watch those listed below, especially the top ten, all of which are available via YouTube.

1) “Give It All Back” – Noah and the Whale

2) “Calamity Song” – The Decemberists (Inspired by David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest)

3) “Perform This Way” – “Weird Al“ Yankovic

4) “This is Why We Fight” – The Decemberists (Directed by Aaron Stewart-Ahn)

5) “Call” – Joseph Arthur (Directed by Joseph Arthur)

6) “Stay Young, Go Dancing” – Death Cab for Cutie

7) “Born Alone” – Wilco (Directed by Mark Greenberg)

“Monarchy of Roses” – Red Hot Chili Peppers (Directed by Marc Klasfeld; inspired by the work of Raymond Pettibon)

9) “Wake and Be Fine” – Okkervil River (Directed by Daniel Gibb)

10) “Thunder on the Mountain” – Wanda Jackson (Directed by thirtytwo)

11) “Jejune Stars” – Bright Eyes (Directed by Lance Acord)

12) “Suck It and See” – Arctic Monkeys

13) “Rope” – Foo Fighters

14) “Get Away” – Yuck (Directed by Michael)

15) “Lotus Flower” – Radiohead (Directed by Garth Jennings)

16) “CNR” – “Weird Al” Yankovic

17) “White Limo” – Foo Fighters

18) “Casting Lines” – Jack’s Mannequin (Directed by Claire Marie Vogel)

19) “Monsters Anonymous” – Kevin Hearn (Directed by Dr. Minz)

20) “Words I Never Said” – Lupe Fiasco

21) “Louder than Ever” – Cold War Kids

22) “Comeback Kid (That’s My Dog)” – Brett Dennen (Directed by Ben Moon)

23) “Paradise” – Coldplay (Directed by Mat Whitecross)

24) “Summer Place” – Fountains of Wayne

25) “Longing to Belong” – Eddie Vedder

26) “You and Me” – Parachute

27) “Amy, I” – Jack’s Mannequin (Directed by Chloe Fleury)

28) “Waiting for My Chance to Come” – Noah and the Whale

29) “What I Know” – Parachute

30) “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie” – Red Hot Chili Peppers (Directed by Marc Klasfeld)

Honorable Mention:

“Satisfied” – Tom Waits (Directed by Jesse Dylan)

“Blue Tip” – The Cars

“Royal Blue” – Cold War Kids (Live at Third Man Records)

Also of Note:

Nine Types of Light – TV on the Radio (60 minute feature)

No related posts.