The Bhoy's Decade of Albums... In 104 Parts

Originally I was not going to do something like this. I thought I was too inexperienced, that I hadn't heard enough albums, nor have I been a mature music conoisseur long enough. But I started making it one day to tide my exam studying boredom and lo and behold I came up with 104, excluding many more. 104 is indeed a random number and I chose it just for that reason, totally random. Is it perfect? I don't know, but it's mine. So without further ado:

1. Radiohead - Kid A
2. Kayo Dot - Choirs of the Eye
3. Do Make Say Think - Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn
4. Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy
5. Godspeed You Black Emperor! - Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven
6. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
7. The Weakerthans - Left & Leaving
8. Andrew Bird - The Mysterious Production of Eggs
9. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
10. Isis - Panopticon
11. Mew - Frengers
12. Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
13. Dave Holland - What Goes Around
14. Streetlight Manifesto - Somewhere in the Between
15. Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism
16. Arcade Fire - Funeral
17. The National - Boxer
18. Do Make Say Think - Other Truths
19. Destroyer - Destroyer’s Rubies
20. maudlin of the Well - Bath
21. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
22. Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans
23. Tom Waits - Orphans, Bawlers & Brawlers
24. Brand New - The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me
25. Tord Gustavsen Trio - Being There
26. Bright Eyes - I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning
27. Eluvium - Copia
28. The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
29. Kayo Dot - Dowsing Anemone With Copper Tongue
30. Sun Kil Moon - April
31. Battles - Mirrored
32. The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
33. Broken Social Scene - You Forgot It In People
34. TV on the Radio - Dear Science
35. The Knife - Silent Shout
36. My Morning Jacket - Z
37. Caribou - Andorra
38. Band of Horses - Everything All the Time
39. Venetian Snares - Rossz Csillag Allat Szuletett
40. Explosions in the Sky - The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place
31. Do Make Say Think - You, You’re a History in Rust
42. Menomena - Friend and Foe
43. Portishead - Third
44. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
45. Bill Frisell - Disfarmer
46. The Shins - Oh, Inverted World
47. Spoon - Kill the Moonlight
48. Deltron 3030 - Deltron 3030
49. Hot Water Music - A Flight and a Crash
50. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd’s Dog
51. David Francey - Skating Rink
52. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
53. Jaga Jazzist - What We Must
54. Ulf Wakenius - Notes From the Heart
55. The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
56. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
57. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
58. Andrew Bird - Noble Beast
59. maudlin of the Well - Part the Second
60. Les Savy Fav - Let’s Stay Friends
61. James Ehnes - Barber, Korngold, Walton Violin Concertos
62. Stars of the Lid - And Their Refinement of The Decline
63. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
64. Opeth - Damnation
65. Boards of Canada - Geogaddi
66. Chicago Underground Quartet - Chicago Underground Quartet
67. Japandroids - Post-Nothing
68. Dave Holland - Critical Mass
69. Deerhunter - Microcastle
70. Pg.lost - It’s Not Me, It’s You!
71. Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway
72. Charles Spearin - The Happiness Project
73. Burial - Untrue
74. Sunset Rubdown - Dragonslayer
75. Madvillain - Madvillainy
76. Radiohead - Amnesiac
77. Isis - Wavering Radiant
78. The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble - The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble
79. Raekwon - Only Built for Cuban Lynx Pt. 2
80. Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover
81. Calexico - Feast of Wire
82. Rogue Wave - Descended Like Vultures
83. Stars - Set Yourself on Fire
84. Mono - Hymn to the Immortal Wind
85. The Decemberists - Picaresque
86. The Besnard Lakes - Are the Dark Horse
87. The Dodos - Visiter
88. The Go-Betweens - Oceans Apart
89. Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs
90. The Drones - Havilah
91. Kiss Kiss - The Meek Shall Inherit What’s Left
92. Johnny Cash - American V: A Hundred Highways
93. Fever Ray - Fever Ray
94. Radiohead - In Rainbows
95. John Scofield - Up All Night
96. Max Richter - The Blue Notebooks
97. At the Drive-In - Relationship of Command
98. DeVotchKa - A Mad and Faithful Telling
99. Eric Whitacre - The Complete A Capella Works
100. Antony and the Johnsons - I am a Bird Now
101. Ali Farka Toure - Savane
102. Built to Spill - There Is No Enemy
103. Sigur Ros - Takk
104. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere

Do Make Say Think - Other Truths

If you don't have this by now, what are you waiting for? Best post-rock release since the last Do Make Say Think album. 4 fantastic tracks that flow better than any of their other albums, Other Truths is equal parts intricate and spacious. At first you might be left wanting something more to grab onto, like the crescendo in "Fredericia" or the wonderful drumming in "Executioners Blues" but give it time and the rewards of all 4 tracks (Do, Make, Say and Think) will reveal themselves in time. Awesome.

9.4/10.0

Built to Spill - There Is No Enemy

Built to Spill have earned the respect of the indie community and beyond since starting in the 90's. From the beginning they had sound that was fun and chock full of great melodic interplay. The now famous switch to a more mature and layered sound with their magnum opus Perfect From Now On, endeared them further to the indie crowd. They also held one thing over most of their contemporary’s of then and now– they’re actually good musicians. Doug Martsch can shred with the best of them and both Scott Plouf at the drums and Brett Nelson on bass are no slouches either. So, at the announcement of a new album I was intrigued as to just what it was going to be like. Sprawling schizophrenic song structures like Perfect From Now On? Glorious, sunny, but still complex guitar rock like Keep It Like a Secret? Or perhaps the jam band sound that was both a blessing and a curse on their last effort, You In Reverse? The answer: all and none of the above. Just like Yo La Tengo’s earlier 2009 release Popular Songs, There Is No Enemy is a clear exhibition of what has made Built to Spill an indie staple and how they are still able to make relevant records this far into their career.

At its core, There Is No Enemy is pure Built to Spill. Shifting song structures, layered guitar riffs, shredding solos and a solid rhythm sections are the dominant qualities of the record, but it’s the small touches that make the record shine a little brighter. The horns that blare out in the middle of "Life’s A Dream" or the trumpet solo in the middle of "Things Fall Apart" are totally unexpected and add such a rich texture to the songs. Another deviation from past Built to Spill is the lack of noise and fuzz in the guitar work. While past guitar solos often had to be picked apart through a wall of noise, this album breathes with a cleaner, more energetic sound. The up-tempo indie rocker "Pat" is a prime example of this and features some of the best guitar work on the album. It also happens to be a shining example of the economical approach to length employed by the band on this album.

Built to Spill have always been known for their sprawl, but their last album wandered too often into jam band territory and songs began to drag. The songs on There Is No Enemy seem far more focused, like the breezy and dreamy "Hindsight". Even on the longer cuts the band seem to be more focused, which means every second of the song is earned. They don’t ever drag on and they usually have a direction that progresses the song to a destination, instead of just adding a three minute jam session onto the end. Every part of the slow burning "Oh Yeah" seems perfectly paced, so once the song finally spills over into its album highlighting guitar solo climax, you’re left thinking, "fuck yeah Built to Spill." Finally the sprawl comes in spades from the epic album closer, "Tomorrow." It shoots for the stars with big guitars, good bass work and solid drumming. This keeps it in line with the traditional Built to Spill album closer by adding some extended, layered guitar soloing to bring the album home.

Return to form is a bit of a misnomer considering Built to Spill have never really been out of form. Rather, There Is No Enemy feels more like a tightening of the screws. Instead of trying to rewrite a winning formula, they evolve it slightly as if to say, "yeah, we’re still here and this is why you love us." It’s classic Built to Spill with some slightly uncharacteristic diversions thrown in. We still have Doug Marstch’s wonderfully melodic vocals delivering pondering’s of eternity, as he states, "And if God does exist / I am sure he will forgive." But these familiarities seem to breathe a certain vitality that was missing from the past few records. I mentioned in my review of You In Reverse that the band seemed to be missing a certain x-factor. Well, they must have found it once again as they create their best record in years. It might not be quite up to the standards of say Perfect From Now On or Keep It Like a Secret, but you know what? It really isn’t all that far behind.

9.1/10.0