Caitlin Lavin writesCaitlin Lavin’s Best of 2010

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members' top albums of 2010. The next list is from CHIRP Radio DJ and Assistant Guest Coordinator Caitlin Lavin.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members' picks.)

1. Best Coast – Crazy For You (Mexican Summer)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Haters gonna hate, but I dig this record. A bunch of sunny, fun pop songs from the Sunshine State. Oh wait, that's Florida. Whatever. I can get down with Bethany Cosentino, seems like she likes the finer things in life. Hanging out, cats, smoking weed. Will this band be popular next year? Who cares, that's what year-end lists are for.
2. Dissapears – Lux (Kranky)
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   Quite possibly my favorite local band currently. CAN, Suicide, Wire, Joy Division all rolled up into one heavily distorted and repetitive bliss. Also, I love it when Brian Case goes "WHAAAAT!"
3. Dum Dum Girls – I Will Be (HoZac/Sub Pop)
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   2010 had a lot of "girly" fronted bands and this one was at the top of the top. Great harmony, perfect pop songs. This record made me nostalgic for a time that was around before I was born, riding w/ my Johnny and his leather jacket.
4. Joanna Newson – Have One On Me (Drag City)
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   Yet again an artist that I would've never thought would ever be on my year end list had made the cut. Never really understood Joanna Newsom before. Her last record, Ys was too overblown for me and her voice grated on my eardrums. When I saw that her 3rd release was going to be a 3CD/LP set, I groaned. But this one grew on me. There was just enough instrumentation to make each song exquisite, and it seems like Joanna has finally grown into her voice, it's a lot more playful and melodic. This is a headphones record for sure.
5. Magic Lantern – Platoon (Not Not Fun)
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   Awesome spaced out psychedelic record from California. I don't have much to say except give it a few spins real loud after a long bong hit. (It's even great without hallucinogens.) Produced by Bobb Bruno of Best Coast, who was rad before people started going crazy for his current band.
6. Benoit Pioulard - Lasted (Kranky)
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   Some people describe Benoit Pioulard as "bedroom pop." What does that even mean? I hope it means that he'll play some of his songs in my room someday, that would be pretty sweet. This is his third full length on kranky and definitely his best. Ambient loops act as buffers between lush, guitar ditties over his soft alto. Also, his name isn't really Benoit Pioulard, it's Thomas. But his stage name conjures up my imagination of a brooding existential French man, so that's all right with me.
7. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings – I Learned the Hard Way (Daptone)
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   2010 had its share of soul revival, but Sharon Jones has been doing it the hard way for a long time. Now in her 50s, she had several jobs including a prison guard before she started singing professionally a few years ago. The first time I listened to this record, I instantly replayed it a second time. I wish I could wail like her and have a backing band of studious looking brass-guys. Sharon Jones is my hero.
8. Super Wild Horses – Fifteen (Hozac)
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   Two super cute chicks from Melbourne, Australia that didn't even know how to play instruments before starting up this band made one hell of a rockin' record. It gives me hope for whenever I decide to finally pick up my guitar and learn to play. "Mess Around" is one of my favorites of the year, and a totally this decade's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun."
9. Ty Segall – Melted (Goner)
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   If you look at producing credits for garage records in 2010, there's a pretty good chance you'll see Ty's name on the cover. So it makes sense on why this is one of the well produced garage rock records of the year, and quite possibly ever. This guy knows how to write a pop song. He's also cute. I gotta big crush on him.
10. Belle & Sebastian – Write About Love (Matador)
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    I may be a bit biased, 'cause this is my favorite band. Their first record in nearly five years is something quite special. A well-done blend of their glossy newer songs mixed with the intimacy of their older ones. When I first heard "I Want the World To Stop" I nearly cried, cause it had been so long since they had written a song like that, and it's like they haven't missed a beat.

Best Reissue:
Black Tambourine – s/t (Slumberland)
The Welders – 7" (BDR) ("P-E-R-V-E-R-T, You're a perv with a capital P!" – that's all you need to know)

Honorary Mentions:
The Mantles – EP (Mexican Summer)
Moonhearts – s/t (Tic Tac Totally)
Zola Jesus – Stridulum EP (Sacred Bones)
Swiss Dots – Glaciers (Vinahyde)

Carolyn Kassnoff writesCarolyn Kassnoff’s Best of 2010

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members’ top albums of 2010. The next list is from CHIRP Radio DJ Carolyn Kassnoff.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members’ picks.)

1. The Arcade Fire – The Suburbs (Merge)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Best Track: “We Used To Wait” – Pounding pianos, a spectacular interactive music video, plus the haunting vocals that have become synonymous with the Arcade Fire’s orchestral style make this a standout song this year.
2. Cee Lo Green – The Lady Killer (Elektra)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Best Track: “F*** You” – Cee Lo’s soulful tale of a one-sided love story shows the worst of heartbreak makes the best of songs. This song slips straight out of the 1960s, featuring Doo-Wop background singers and a video that is reminiscent of Little Shop of Horrors, with a straightforward message that can’t help but be shouted to the girl that won’t give him a glance.
3. LCD Soundsystem – This is Happening (DFA)
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   Best Track: “Dance Yrself Clean” – This lengthy track pulses for the first few minutes before breaking loose into a full-out dance riot
4. Janelle Monáe – The Archandroid (Atlantic)
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   Best Track: “Tightrope (feat. Big Boi)” – Speaking of dance riots, here’s Janelle Monae, with the classiest choreographed dance moves in the craziest of locales.
5. RJD2 – The Colossus (RJ’s Electrical Connections)
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   Best Track: “Let There Be Horns” – Screaming strings screech into RJD2’s racing anthem. Bonus: he’s fascinating live, orchestrating every minor element with precise attention to detail.
6. She & Him – Volume Two (Merge)
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   Best Track: “Don’t Look Back” – Zooey Deschanel’s adorable voice and M. Ward’s beautiful guitar harmonize perfectly on this sweet country ballad.COMMENTARY
7. Ben Sollee & Daniel Martin Moore – Dear Companion (Sub Pop)
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   Best Track: “Something. Somewhere, Sometime” – Two folksingers with a cello. A very pleasant track from a very pleasant album.
8. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings – I Learned the Hard Way (Daptone)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Best Track: “I Learned the Hard Way” – Sharon Jones returns with more music that sounds like the best of the Motown era, with her heartfelt telling of love and loss.
9. Stornoway – Beachcomber’s Windowsill (4AD)
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   Best Track: “I Saw You Blink” – British folk singers with nice harmonies and catchy melodies.
10. John Legend & The Roots – Wake Up! (Columbia)
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    Best Track: “Our Generation (The Hope Of The World) (featuring CL Smooth)” – It’s been a good musical year for both John Legend and The Roots. They team up on Wake Up! to outstanding effect.

Honorable Mentions (with Best Tracks):

1. The Budos Band, The Budos Band III (“Crimson Skies”)
2. The New Pornographers, Together (“Crash Years”)
3. Frightened Rabbit, The Winter of Mixed Drinks (“Swim Until You Can’t See Land”)
4. Of Montreal, False Priest (“I Feel Ya’ Strutter”)
5. Sufjan Stevens, The Age of Adz (“Impossible Soul”)

Peter Zimmerman writesPete Zimmerman’s Best of 2010

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members’ top albums of 2010. The next list is from CHIRP Radio DJ Pete Zimmerman.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members’ picks.)

1. The Tallest Man on Earth – The Wild Hunt (Dead Oceans)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   The record that I listened to the most this year. Sure, the comparisons to early Bob Dylan are inevitable, but I don’t mind since I love early Bob Dylan. The record also made me sign up for guitar lessons at the Old Town School of Folk Music so be afraid, ears of people who know me.
2. LCD Soundsystem – This is Happening (Virgin/DFA)
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   Not only did James Murphy put out an awesome record but he also made an appearance on The Soup with Community’s Donald Glover and that is pretty cool.
3. Joanna Newsom – Have One on Me (Drag City)
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   I hate you, Andy Samberg.
4. Janelle Monáe – The Archandroid (Bad Boy)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   The only negative to this record is that it makes me want to dance and nobody should be subjected to that.
5. Aloe Blacc – Good Things (Stones Throw)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Thank you to HBO and “How to Make it in America” for introducing me to Mr. Blacc. Sometimes watching too much TV pays off.
6. Girl Talk – All Day (Illegal Art)
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   Two words: Spacehog. Toadies.
7. Allo Darlin’ – Allo Darlin’ (Fortuna Pop!)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Having a bad day? Need to feel better? I first put this record on 3 months ago and still have a smile on my face.
8. Robyn – Body Talk (Konichiwa)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   See description for #4. Robyn’s show at Pitchfork was one of the highlights of the summer and she ends the year with a bang.
9. Wild Nothing – Gemini (Captured Tracks)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Sometimes being reminded of high school is okay.
10. Orgone – Cali Fever (Ubiquity)
    BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
    If my guitar lessons don’t work out, I’m totally taking up the trombone.

Favorite Local Records of 2010
1. In Tall Buildings – In Tall Buildings (Whistler)
2. Gold Motel – Summer House (Good as Gold)
3. Disappears – Lux (Cranky)
4. Canasta – The Fakeout, The Tease, and the Breather (RWIM Chicago)
5. White Mystery – White Mystery (Self-Released)

Andy Weber writesAndrew Weber’s Best of 2010

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members' top albums of 2010. The next list is from CHIRP Radio DJ Andy Weber.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members' picks.)

For me personally this year has been such a great ride! Being a CHIRP DJ has broadened my musical horizons and challenged me to go way outside that proverbial box everyone is always talking about. Last year I took this forum to go on some sort of diatribe about how I only listen to songs and not full albums. Boy was that guy stupid, I am referring to the “last year me” of course. The full album is back in my life and I think it is time for rejoicing!

1. Polar Bear – Peepers (Leaf)
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   The future of Jazz is in good hands with the London outfit Polar Bear. Coffee and Peepers will start any day off on a the right foot. This record has become my most listened to release in 2010.
2. Calibro 35 – Ritornano Quelli Di (Nublu)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   If my life was a Chinese calendar 2010 would be known as the “Year of the Funk!” Now if that said year were to be conceptualized into a movie, Calibro 35 would score the soundtrack. The straight funk, mixed with 70’s action film chase scene fun, filled my summer with plenty of windows down car driving material!
3. White Mystery – White Mystery (Self-Released)
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   When I want no frills, stripped down, fuzzed up rock nothing beats White Mystery. The pure energy and quick pace of this album makes this band a Chicago treasure.
4. Gonjasufi – A Sufi and a Killer (Warp)
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   I had a transcendental experience with this LP on a flight to New Orleans in April. It took a few listens for the album to speak to me, or even make sense. But when it finally does it will hook you.
5. Mike Reed's People Places and Things – Stories and Negotiations (482 Music)
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   Here is the second local act to make this list. This album was recorded live in Millennium Park which features Chicago music icon Mike Reed. This album is a celebration of new sounds to old Chicago jazz songs. For me the album is downright mood altering. In a good way!
6. David Karsten Daniels and Fight The Big Bull – I Mean To Live Here Still (Fat Cat)
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   On paper this collaboration should not work. You take one part folk artist from San Francisco and mix in a 9 piece avant-garde jazz collective from Richmond, VA. what you come up with is one outstanding fusion LP.
7. Stephen Paul Smoker – Violent Sun/Violent Fun (EP)
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   Clocking in at just 27 minutes long there is not one second wasted on this EP. This Chicago artist displays an incredible wide range of styles and influences packed into this little package.
8. Jack Rose – Luck In The Valley (Thrill Jockey)
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   The blues had to represent somewhere on this list for me. This new release from the late Jack Rose is very fitting for my blues pallet which is predominately acoustic and all instrumental.
9. Dissapears – Lux (Kranky)
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   The fourth and final Chicago representation on my top 10 is the Disappears. The raw guitar and haunting vocals spoke to me in a way that few albums did this year. There was plenty of garage style rock to choose from in 2010 but this one stood out from the pack.
10. Surfer Blood – Astro Coast (Kanine)
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    So for my money “Swim” is the feel good song of the year. In my mind every year needs a good “drinking beer on a boat under the hot sun” song. This album delivers just that!

Honorable Mentions

• 3 more albums just missed my list and ironically the bands all start with the letter “C” and are from the city of Chicago:
  Canasta – The Fakeout, The Tease and The Breather (RWIM Chicago)
  Cave – Pure Moods (EP) (Drag City)
  Chaperone – Cripple King (EP) (Self-Released)

Mike Gibson writesMike Gibson’s Best Of 2010

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members' top albums of 2010. The next list is from CHIRP Radio DJ & Director of Online Media, Mike Gibson.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members' picks.)

The first version of this list inadvertently included Why?'s Eskimo Snow, which came out in 2009. The list has now been corrected.

1. Fight Like Apes – The Body of Christ And The Legs of Tina Turner (Model Citizen)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   The second album from this Dublin quartet is exactly what I was hoping for: sugary sweet melodies with a sinister underbelly, all driven by MayKay's foul mouth that's always on the cusp of breaking into a blood curdling wail. I'll be planning my next trip to Europ around finally seeing them play.
2. Iron Chic – Not Like This (Dead Broke)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Rarely do I want "ex-member" bands to sound like the band they used to play in, but when Latterman broke up things were different. I wanted ALL of the members' new bands to sound like them. Iron Chic is the first that truly picks up where Latterman left off, with plenty of anthemic courses wrapped up nicely in a gooey, passionate, unrefined blanket.
3. Les Savy Fav – Root For Ruin (French Kiss)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Count me in with the crowd that thought Les Savy Fav had lost it. Root For Ruin is the smack in the face I needed to pay attention again. They're back in all their spastic, sweat-filled glory.
4. Superchunk – Majesty Shredding (Merge)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! This is the album that the 18 year old version of myself expected to hear as a follow up to Here's Where The Strings Come In.
5. Ted Leo & The Pharmacists – The Brutalist Bricks (Matador)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   While the album art was a major letdown (listen, I care about these things) the songs contained within are all the proof that even after almost 25 years of writing music a good songwriter will always be at the top of their game.
6. Off With Their Heads – In Desolation (Epitaph)
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   High energy, no frills, rough around the edges punk. It's a dime a dozen nowadays, so what allows Minneapolis' Off With Their Heads to stand out from the rest? It's their ability to find inspiration in the bleakest situations. It's hard to feel bad in a crappy situation when you're screaming along with a hundred strangers at the top of your lungs in a darkened club.
7. Auxes – Ichkannnichtmehr (Gunner)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   Few musicians have a track record as impeccable as Dave Laney's. Having spent time in Milemarker, Challenger & Griver, I've had Dave's voice screaming in my headphones for the better part of the past 15 or so years. Auxes fits the lineage perfectly.
8. Los Campesinos – Romance Is Boring (Arts & Crafts)
   BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
   If it weren't for the absolute snoozer of an opening track this would've been a bit higher on the list. Still, there's nothing like a huge helping dose of childlike recklessness when there are a bunch of instruments lying around and microphones to record the results. Los Campesinos is perfect in their sloppiness.
9. Leatherface – The Stormy Petrel (No Idea)
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   While a household name in the UK, Leatherface has been living in the shadow of everyone they've influenced here in the states for the better part of the past two decades. Leatherface has been directly cited as the influence that led Hot Water Music to start their band, No Idea Records to start their label and countless fans of punk to find the sound to begin with. The Stormy Petrel sees the bnd in some of the finest form they've ever been in.
10. The Measure [sa] – Notes (No Idea)
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    The Measure [sa] utilizes several elements that win me over every time. Dual male/female vocals, songs that are played either fast or faster, and honest/heartfelt lyrics that paint their hearts on the outside. I'm still a bit torn on the band's production decisions, but hopefully they'll get that sorted out for LP3.

Honorable Mentions:

• "Supergroup" of the year
  Forgetters – Forgetters 2x7" (Too Small To Fail)
  BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
  Blake Schwarzenbach (Jawbreaker/Jets To Brazil), Caroline Paquita (Bitchin'), and Kevin Mahon (Against Me!). I so wish Blake would have skipped Jets To Brazil and just gone here.
• Most successful exploitation of the exclamation mark
  Bomb The Music Industry! – Adults!!!… Smart!!! Shithammered!!! And Excited By Nothing!!!!!!! (Quote Unquote)
  BUY: Amazon / Insound / iTunes
  17 exclamation marks is not enough to properly convey the happiness I felt when I listen to this EP.
• Best collection of songs that were better than what actually got released
  Weezer – Death To False Metal (Geffen)
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  Sure, while Hurley may be the Weezer album the everyone talked about this year, everyone should be listening to Death To False Metal. The album compiles songs that the band wrote and recorded throughout their career and for some reason scrapped. Not just B-Sides, these are fully worked studo tracks from all of the band's sessions, including some hiatus era post-Pinkerton/pre-Green album stuff that is just superb. It's almost enough to make me forget about Make Believe.
• Best album of 2010 that was recorded in 1985
  Dag Nasty – Dag With Shawn (Dischord)
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  Back in the mid-80's there was a band in DC named Dag Nasty. They were pretty awesome. They went and recorded a supposedly great demo, but then they all got cranky and the singer, Shawn, left the band (and then formed Swiz, which is a whole other awesome story). Not to be deterred, the rest of the group found a friendly boy named Dave Smalley to take his place. They went and re-recorded all the songs on the demo (along with some others), released their debut album, Can I Say, and the rest is history. This is the release of that supposedly great demo, finally seeing the light of the record shelf 26 years late.
• Collaboration of the year
  Ben Folds & Nick Hornby – Lonely Avenue (Nonesuch)
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  Nick Hornby writes the words. Ben Folds writes the music and sings Nick's words. Only thing left to say is that it's obvious that Ben works best when he's working with others.