Yet another blogger releases a best of '07 list? Unfortunately, this time, it's me.
Here goes:

Armchair Apocrypha
Andrew Bird
After ...& the Mysterious Production of Eggs, my expectations were high for the whistling master and violin virtuoso Andrew Bird to produce another masterpiece. The album's more subdued sense of humor and somewhat darker instrumentation (more electric guitar!) work well with its title and theme...oh yes, the apocalypse. Every time I listen to "Yawny at the Apocalypse" I can feel a shiver run down my spine. At TGH's 2-year anniversary I declared Fiery Crash my favorite song of 2007, and it still holds true.

Andrew Bird - Cataracts
Buy Armchair Apocrypha from Amazon.com

Little Jabs
Two Hours Traffic
Throughout the year I've found myself continually falling in love with this album's playful take on the intersection between pop music and life. I hope you find yourself listening and giggling too. Two Hours Traffic may have begun my (bad) jokes about being addicted to Canadian artists.

Two Hours Traffic - Nighthawks
Buy Little Jabs (directly from the band)

Boxer
The National
Admittedly, I've spent more time listening to Alligator this year than Boxer, but mostly I've just spent a lot of time with the National. In "Brainy" Matt Berninger sings, "You might need me more than you think you will," and I'd agree: without the National to bring a sad smile into dark places, I think would have lost my mind this year.

The National - Apartment Story
Buy Boxer from Amazon.com

The Shepherd's Dog
Iron & Wine
This album came as a pleasant surprise. Though he's kept his beard (too bad), Sam Beam is a new man - suddenly he's comfortable with a dramatic piano, guitar solos, and a real drum part... it's crazy! And beautiful...because the man's voice keeps everything in line.

Iron & Wine - The Devil Never Sleeps
Buy the Shepherd's Dog from Amazon.com

The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter
Would I miss the opportunity to plug my favorite famous musically-inclined Oberlin alumnus? Never. Josh Ritter, who critics call "the new Bob (Dylan)" produced another prolific album. Beat that, Wesleyan!

Josh Ritter - Open Doors
Buy the Historical Conquests of... from Amazon.com


Page France and the Family Telephone
Page France
There's something in Michael Nau's songs that always manages to strike me unexpectedly, despite their cryptic and often whimsical lyrics and dainty instrumentation. This year I've found myself listening to ...and the Family Telephone on repeat, finding some deeper meaning for which words escape me. Goodness, what a great cop-out.

Page France - Wet Dog Afternoon
Buy ...and the Family Telephone

A Cork Tale Wake
Chris Bathgate
Not only do I love this album, but Chris Bathgate has been one of my favorite discoveries this year. Usually I'm not a fan of music that takes itself too seriously, but Bathgate's talk of life-changing moments and awakenings grabbed me. Not to mention his delicate, beautiful instrumentation.

Chris Bathgate - Serpentine
Buy A Cork Tale Wake

Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
Of Montreal
This album made the list despite my disappointment after seeing them live this year. Why? Because, to state it simply, I was converted to an Of Montreal fan this year entirely because of this album.

Of Montreal - Bunny Ain't No Kind of Rider
Buy Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? from Amazon.com


Peel (self-titled)
Peel
I've been dancing to this album's chaotic electro-rock city soundtrack all year and not writing about it on TGH. Shameful? Yes. Catchy? YES.

Peel - Oxford [alt link]
Buy Peel from Peek-A-Boo Records



Heroes and Sheroes
The Eames Era
This album was responsible for filling my ears with female-fronted indie pop all year, and I'm grateful. I think you'll find you are too.

The Eames Era - Could Be Anything
Buy Heroes and Sheroes from Insound



Honorable Mentions:
1990s: Cookies
LCD Soundsystem: Sound of Silver
Pela: Anytown Graffiti
Sea Wolf: Leaves in the River

Not on the list: Bishop Allen. This is because, for me a least, The Broken String didn't really feel like a new release. I listened to the album as though it was the remastered version of 2006's greatest hits...otherwise it would be here.

Coming soon: best songs of 2007.

Labels: Andrew Bird, chris bathgate, Eames Era, Iron and Wine, josh ritter, Of Montreal, page france, peel, the national, top list, two hours traffic

Josh Ritter - Open Doors [download or die]

Come back. You make proclamations to the moonlight, you tell the rain - it's an order, you see. The autumn leaves gather at your feet while you stare,

and stare. You laugh at the absurdity of it all, the kind of chuckle that begins in your throat and echoes upwards till nothing's funny anymore. The leaves blow in through the open door, yes? Wet, moldy, in with the chill running up your back. I never notice my hands are cold until someone tells me so. Of course, the person to tell me would be

It's too bad that trains of thought don't run on railroad tracks.

Buy the Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter's Website/Myspace

Labels: josh ritter, song piece

If it isn't obvious already, both of these songs are download or die.

Right Away, Great Captain - Night, Marry You

The only ocean I’ve ever lived on is hot in the summertime, painfully hard, full of steel and glass and rubber, those strange machines that live at sixty miles an hour. For the past few weeks I’ve lived on an island on the 81 coast, the shores are green but the sprawl is ugly. There are bays and harbors everywhere, with white lines for buoys. It makes DC look like Venice. And Venice is sinking.

Before you listen to this song, try this: imagine you’re on a ship, your crew mates at close quarters, friends by the force of proximity, and the person you care about the most lives entirely in your imagination for months on end. You tell yourself stories, you write songs because to utter the words out loud would force you to confront the part of yourself you had to cut off and put away to live. The alternative is to stay in bed all day. The Bitter End lives in this imagined world, and the resulting music is brilliant.

Right Away, Great Captain's Myspace

Josh Ritter - The Last Temptation of Adam

Ever since my little sister heard of someone getting stuck in an elevator she's avoided them as much as she can. I've always thought getting stuck with someone for long enough without hope for an end - in an elevator, on a desert island, in a car on a road trip - would forge an interesting friendship, the kind that most commonly occurs when you've grown up with someone.

"The Last Temptation of Adam" takes this idea and places it in the Cold War in the wake of the Atomic bomb. I think I understand the title, being one of the last two people on earth would be a little like being one of the first two people on earth, and therein lies the temptation. When Josh Ritter sings "Our love would live a half-life on the surface"...well, don't we all have some memorable half-life's of our own? I'm sure I still have some of the resulting radiation poisoning.

Buy the Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter from Amazon.com (released August 21)
Josh Ritter's Website/Myspace

Labels: josh ritter, right away great captain, song piece

No, I'm not really having one. But you can here, where you can stream the Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter. No kidding.
Thanks to Turn the Page for letting me on to this track off the new album, I think Ritter played this song when he came to Oberlin last year. If you get on his mailing list and buy your concert tickets in advance you get an mp3 from the new album - I don't think this is very fair because there's no Oberlin date yet, and he always comes to play there being his ruggedly handsome, beard-sporting alumni self.

Josh Ritter - Next to the Last Romantic (The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter)
Josh Ritter - Thin Blue Flame (The Animal Years)

I can't decide how I feel about what I've heard from the album, I'm going to have to listen to it more.

Update: You can also see Josh Ritter's performance at the Verbier Festival here, just click on July 24th (the video quality is really great).

Labels: Country, folk, josh ritter

There's also some great recordings up for streaming here. The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter will be released on August 21st.

Time to cheer:
1 - 2 - 3 ....OBERLIN! Yeomens! That's why me and Josh rock so hard, we go (me) / went (him) to Oberlin. One of these days I'm going to work the college connection.

Josh Ritter - Thin Blue Blame (The Animal Years)

Labels: josh ritter, music video

I got my wisdom teeth removed this morning, and my little sister thinks I look like Santa Claus walking around with two ice packs strapped to my face.
Death Cab for Cutie - Crooked Teeth

John Edwards: "Uh, I still do believe, without regard to Paris Hilton, that, uh, we have two Americas and I think what’s important is, it’s obvious that the problem exists." (from the New York Times)

I can't decide if this YouTube video is cute or not, the same way I was surprised and confused when Joe Trippi joined John Edwards' campaign after the talk he gave at Oberlin (this was a week prior to when he joined the Edwards' campaign, and he said he didn't think any of the Democratic candidates had embraced the "populist message"). Lately, though, you can see the impact of his presence in things like...Edwards attacking Obama and Clinton on Iraq in the last Democratic debate.

Josh Ritter, one of my favorite (non-jazz or classical) musically-inclined Oberlin grads, has announced info about his next album. It's The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter (what?) and will be released on August 21st.

1 To the Dogs or Whoever
2 Mind's Eye
3 Right Moves
4 The Temptation of Adam
5 Open Doors
6 Rumors
7 Edge of the World
8 Wait for Love
9 Real Long Distance
10 Next to the Last Romantic
11 Moons
12 Still Beating
13 Empty Heats
14 Wait for Love (You Know You Will)
I heard "Next to the Last Romantic" when he came to Oberlin last fall, and it was excellent, so you can expect the same from the rest of the album, duh.

Yeah, he's playing in Charlottesville on August 18, and he ALWAYS comes to Oberlin, so no beef here. I love you Josh Ritter.
His Website

Josh Ritter - Girl in the War (Animal Years )
Josh Ritter - Harrisburg (Golden Age of Radio)
Buy The Animal Years from Amazon

Labels: Edwards, josh ritter