I’ve been looking through some “best albums of 2010″ lists over the past few weeks. It might just be me, but for every year the blogging community does this, the lists become more homogenous, slightly reordered versions of the same lists. We’re all listening to the same ten albums. Music critics are becoming a singularity, which goes against what it means to be a critic in the first place: pointing out unique gems and curating music for those who share similar preferences with the critic in question. Furthermore, it’s not helping support all those arguments about the internet being a home for individuality. But those are thoughts for another day.

So, instead of my favorite records of 2010, here are some records I loved that didn’t get the attention they deserved.

The Hold Steady: Heaven Is Whenever

They’ve been a mainstay among the fist-pumping classic rock lovers for a few years now but, aside from a decent amount of publicity right when it came out, this album seems to have fallen flat for a lot of people compared to past successes. Granted, Heaven Is Whenever was a stylistic departure from past albums. But after four releases of fairly straightforward American bar band rock and roll and heavy touring, a band with die-hard fans should be permitted a chance to try something new.

Sonic evolution aside, the writing on this album is some of the best Craig Finn and company have concocted thus far. Finn has consistently produced some of the most honest and soul-searching wordplay that’s seen the light of day in recent years.

Listen: The Hold Steady – “We Can Get Together”

Various Artists: Get Darker Presents: This Is Dubstep Vol. 2

Posting a compilation might be cheating, but considering my attraction to all things electronic this year, the Get Darker This Is Dubstep series — a who’s who in the UK dubstep scene — was both thrilling and educational for me. Get Darker pulled together a grab bag of club bangers, remixes and some of the darker, headier material most of America’s “bro-step” fans tend to overlook. Highlights include Caspa’s remix of TC’s “Where’s My Money?” and Chasing Shadows’ Weezy-sampling track “Ill.” To top it off, DJ Darkside then took all fourty (yes, fourty) tracks on this two-disc set and make continuous DJ mixes out of them. Start to finish it works great as energetic background working music or the soundtrack to a killer dance party.

Listen: Chasing Shadows – “Ill”

Four Tet: There Is Love In You

Minimal techno at its finest. Four Tet gained some attention for a few Radiohead remixes a while back, and his own material only continues to improve. “Love Cry” was one of my most-played songs of the year, and the album as a whole is a finely crafted work of art that is compelling, intricate, delicate and worthy of any introvert’s headphones.

Listen Four Tet – “Love Cry”

Flying Lotus: Cosmogramma

I never could get into jazz, but a blood relative of the Coltranes who collects off-kilter beats, Dilla-worthy hip-hop production, impressive collaborations and an Adult Swim sense of humor is hard to ignore. It has a Coltrane spirit to it in a very psychedelic, new age sort of way. Also, if you’re looking to kill some time, FlyLo is one of the most compelling producers to watch do his thing live.

Listen: Flying Lotus: “Clock Catcher”

Local Natives: Gorilla Manor

Like it or not, “indie” has a formula now. The big record labels know it sells and people making iPod commercials and films for twentysomethings take full advantage of the ubiquity of The Indie Band. Local Natives somehow fits this cookie cutter quite well, but simultaneously uses the stage in a pretty clever way. I couldn’t really tell you what makes this dance-friendly guitar pop different than your average indie band, but they manage to maintain a unique sound within that bubble. They also put on one hell of a show.

Listen: Local Natives – “Airplanes”

Gold Panda: Lucky Shiner

Some are calling it glitch or a fun take on the dubstep craze. I’m not sure what to call it, but Gold Panda does it well. His remixes are worthy of some attention, but Lucky Shiner, his debut LP full of jumpy beats and tweaked vocal samples, is better than all those remixes from start to finish.

Listen: Gold Panda – “You”

Max Richter: Infra

Richter spans the gap between modern minimalist classical and ambient. Infra is going to please anyone who likes that chunk of the musical spectrum. It’s of a type normally reserved for background music, but Richter manages to keep it interesting and yawn-free. Think of it as expanding on the territory where Philip Glass began.

Listen Max Richter – “Infra 1″

Infinite Body: Carve Out the Face of My God

Another entry in the ambient spectrum. This is more droney, using a lot of toothy synths and gritty pads that are clearly electronic but flirt with the edges of more guitar-based drone and sludge. Again, this is another one good for background music. But I would submit that such music is good for anyone doing knowledge work where long periods of focus are essential.

Listen Infinite Body – “Dive”

Freelance Whales: Weathervanes

It’s quaint, quirky, modern, relevant to a young twentysomething, merges folk and light electronics and is delightfully lighthearted. Shoot me in the face, right? Yeah, probably. But it’s good. And it’s entertaining. And repeated listens reinforce how damn good every song on the album actually is.

Listen Freelance Whales – “Hannah”

Junip: Fields

If I didn’t know better, I’d just call this José González’s next album. You might know him from his impressive solo work — which is mostly acoustic folk with some simple precussion — or his collaborations with semi-supergroup Zero 7 — who is mostly known for being a total snoozefest that causes me fall asleep. But Junip is great. It’s upbeat and folky all at once, and González’s vocals and lyrics are a gentle, yet driving, force of nature.

Listen Junip – “Sweet & Bitter”

Salem: King Night

I literally just found this one a couple weeks ago. Right in the nick of time. People are tossing it into this whole witch house genre, which is basically a bullshit way to pigeonhole people making electronic music that sounds evil, spooky and often a bit campy. However, I don’t particularly care what you call Salem as long as you call it good. It sounds like someone making a “chopped and screwed” hip hop remix album on even more quaaludes than a normal “chopped and screwed” remixer would be taking, then filtered through some toothy synths from your favorite Halloween sound effects record that got warped when you left it out in your mom’s hot garage.

Listen Salem – “Sick”

Hammock: Chasing After Shadows…Living with the Ghosts

They’re a Nashville favorite and they belong in that ever-growing ambient genre. This record came out days after my move to Nashville, which also happened to be mere days after a massive flood, which turned out to be a pretty good time for this record to come out. While not as strictly backgroundy as their last record, this one had a great, watery, 80s new wave/gothy vibe thatfelt dark and uplifting all at once. Also, I kind of like that a member of Hammock is also a member of The Choir, and they collaborated with a member of The Church on this record.

Now, if only we could get them to play a show in their own hometown.

Listen Hammock – “The Backward Step”

Another all-over-the-place kind of month. Aside from a couple St. Patty’s Day jams, there aren’t really any trends to speak of here. A few new releases (Prodigy, Neko Case, Tim Hecker) and a return to some personal favorites where less-noticed tracks got a little more attention.

1. The Prodigy – “Invaders Must Die” (Invaders Must Die)
2. Circa Survive – “Kicking Your Crosses Down” (On Letting Go)
3. Romance of Young Tigers – “Long Withdrawing Roar” (I Have Supped Full on Horrors)
4. Neko Case – “People Got a Lotta Nerve” (Middle Cyclone)
5. Fleet Foxes – “Blue Ridge Mountains” (Fleet Foxes)
6. Frightened Rabbit – “The Modern Leper” (The Midnight Organ Fight)
7. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Zero” (It’s Blitz!)
8. Tarlton – “8719806823″ (Van EP)
9. Tim Hecker – “The Inner Shore” (An Imaginary Country)
10. My Chemical Romance – “Desolation Row” (Watchmen: Music From the Motion Picture)
11. Wild Light – “California On My Mind” (Adult Nights)
12. Moby – “My Weakness” (Play)
13. Ponytail – “Late for School” (Ice Cream Spiritual!)
14. Dropkick Murphys – “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” (The Warrior’s Code)
15. He Is Legend – “The Walls Have Teeth” (I Am Hollywood)
16. dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip – “Development” (Angles)
17. Frightened Rabbit – “Backwards Walk” (The Midnight Organ Fight)

I’ll let my die-hard fans take care of an imeem playlist for this.

I’m shopping for a keyboard/synthesizer so I can learn to play piano better and have something to make nerdy electronic music. I’m sitting here, staring at MusiciansFriend.com and realizing that it’s a terrible idea to try to buy an instrument that I don’t know how to play.

Here is how I shop for a keyboard:

1. People seem to care about the number of keys. A full keyboard has 88, so 61 is good for a beginner, right?
2. I don’t really get MIDI, but I know I need it if I’m going to hook it up to my computer.
3. Okay, that still leaves me with like 50 options.
4. My friend Justin said something about weighted keys. I don’t see anything about that on here.
5. Ooo, I want one with a sample pad!
6. Oh wait, $2600. Never mind.
7. Too many words I don’t understand. “16-part multitimbral, dual polyphonic arpeggiators, and 384 combinations constructed of up to eight programs each.” I think my brain just melted a little.
8. Maybe reading reviews will help. Wait. This guy bashed it to pieces in his review, but then gave it four out of five stars. I can trust no one.
9. Screw it, let’s just see what I can get a deal on that most people don’t complain about.

My guess is this isn’t that far off from how most people buy things. It seems like everything has about the same base features, so I could probably just roll the dice and end up with something I won’t hate.

I think I’ve narrowed it down to three. Would anyone care to enlighten me?

Oh no! A meme on my blog? It’s all downhill from here. But really, did you expect me to pass up a music-themed post, especially when I’m not feeling my best and have a hard time finding inspiration?

Think of 25 albums that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life or the way you looked at it. They sucked you in and took you over for days, weeks, months, years. These are the albums that you can use to identify time, places, people, emotions. These are the albums that no matter what they were thought of musically shaped your world.

I couldn’t even begin to put these in order of preference. They’ve all been number one in my heart at some point or another. So, in true Rob Gordon fashion, I put them in autobiographical order, all the way from high school up to now.

I won’t even begin to try and explain each album or even the general progression of my music habits. If you are curious, that’s kind of what comments are for.

1. Jimi Hendrix – Woodstock
2. Project 86 – Drawing Black Lines
3. Incubus – Make Yourself
4. Radiohead – OK Computer
5. Tool – Aenema
6. A Perfect Circle – Thirteenth Step
7. Sigur Rós – Ágætis byrjun
8. Extol – Undeceived
9. Sufjan Stevens – Michigan
10. The Dillinger Escape Plan – Miss Machine
11. The Mars Volta – De-loused in the Comatorium
12. Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven
13. Radiohead – Amnesiac
14. He Is Legend – I Am Hollywood
15. Killswitch Engage – The End of Heartache
16. The Dillinger Escape Plan – Irony is a Dead Scene
17. Explosions in the Sky – The Earth is Not a Cold, Dead Place
18. mewithoutYou – Catch for Us the Foxes
19. The Appleseed Cast – Low Level Owl: Volume 1
20. mewithoutYou – Brother, Sister
21. This Will Destroy You – Young Mountain
22. Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
23. Sigur Rós – Takk
24. Ryan Adams – Heartbreaker
25. This Will Destroy You – This Will Destroy You

A pretty small music month, for some reason. I think I spent a lot of time going over old favorites. Regardless, there are some gems here.

1. Fredrik – “Black Fur” (Na Na Ni)
2. P.O.S. – “Purexed” (Never Better)
3. M83 – “You Appearing” (Saturdays=Youth)
4. Caroline – “Winter” (Murmurs)
5. Soul-Junk – “Ill-m-i” (1956)
6. Ingrid Michaelson – “Can’t Help Falling in Love” (Be OK)
7. Adele – “First Love” (19)
8. Jens Lekman – “The Opposite of Hallelujah” (Night Falls Over Kortedala)
9. Lily Allen – “Everyone’s At It” (It’s Not Me, It’s You)
10. Laura Gibson – “Shadows on Parade” (Beasts of Seasons)
11. Joe Bonamassa – “Feelin’ Good” (The Ballad of John Henry)
12. Duffy – “Live and Let Die” (War Child: Heroes)
13. Lily Allen – “Fuck You” (It’s Not Me, It’s You)

Fredrik’s “Black Fur” is a warm piece of freak folk. When I don’t know what to listen to I just let it loop over and over.

All of Laura Gibson’s new album is phenomenal, but “Shadows on Parade” — the opening track — is a personal highlight.

Lily Allen and P.O.S.’s new ones are catchy start to finish and the War Child compilation is a winner.

And Jens Lekman? I was listening to the new Morrissey record and recalled a song I thought was his, but it turned out to be Lekman’s. Go figure.

January was an interesting music month. Animal Collective’s new album slapped me in the face, and a lot of freak folk and experimental stuff I hadn’t cared much for before finally hit me (Bowerbirds, Gang Gang Dance, Fredrik).

I also met a few cool girls — Gayle Skidmore, Valeri Lopez and Soyu Sae — who played some very inspiring music at a coffee shop a few weeks ago. Two of their songs got stuck in my head like whoa and thus appear here. Hopefully I’ll be seeing a lot more of them in the future.

1. Eluvium – “New Animals From the Air” (Talk Amongst the Trees)
2. T.I. – “Whatever You Like” (Paper Trail)
3. Bowerbirds – “In Our Talons” (Hymns For a Dark Horse)
4. Hammock – “City in the Dust on My Window” (Maybe They Will Sing For Us Tomorrow)
5. Gang Gang Dance – “House Jam” (Saint Dymphna)
6. Fredrik – “Black Fur” (Na Na Ni)
7. 3oh!3 – “Punkbitch” (Want)
8. Jay-Z – “Threat” (The Black Album)
9. Jay-Z – “Moment of Clarity” (The Black Album)
10. Animal Collective – “My Girls” (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
11. Gayle Skidmore – “Crazy” (Cowley Road)
12. Valeri Lopez – “Just PB&J Thank You” (Eugene Lovely)
13. Bon Iver – “Woods” (Blood Bank)
14. Modeselektor – “The White Flash feat. Thom Yorke (Trentemøller remix)” (Happy Birthday! Remixed Pt. 1)
15. Animal Collective – “College” (Sung Tongs)
16. The Dead Texan – “A Chronicle of Early Failures, part 2″ (The Dead Texan)
17. Black Moth Super Rainbow – “Forever Heavy” (Dandelion Gum)
18. Lil’ Wayne – “Lollipop” (Tha Carter III)
19. Lil’ Wayne – “La La” (Tha Carter III)
20. Sigur Rós – “Gódan daginn” (með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust)

Much to the dismay of many an anti-hipster, I am thoroughly enjoying Animal Collective’s new album Merriweather Post Pavilion. The song “My Girls” especially is ridiculously catchy and ingenious.

This morning I watched the music video for “My Girls” and a sense of inspiration hit. All of a sudden there was an itch to be creating music. Something about the song touched the creative nerve in my brain (however dormant the action of creation may be). It reminded me of something Bob Boilen of NPR’s All Songs Considered said about a Radiohead show (that I was at!):

These guys write great songs, and sometimes you can even sing along to them, but what they do better than any band is create a sonic adventure — a soundscape which, at its best, stretches time and allows the mind to wander and rejuvenate. I think of it as resetting the synapses. Creativity breeds creativity. When the music was over, I felt unboxed and changed and pretty darn happy. Drugs are overrated; music is underrated.

Resetting the synapses. I like that. Everyone should make a list of songs (or any kind of art, for that matter) that resets their synapses, where its creativity inspires your creativity. Here are eight songs that inspire me to create:

1. Radiohead – “15 Step” (In Rainbows)
2. Black Moth Super Rainbow – “Forever Heavy” (Dandelion Gum)
3. Animal Collective – “My Girls” (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
4. Eightball – “Drama In My Life (feat. Psycho Drama)” (Lost – Chopped and Screwed)
5. Burial – “Archangel” (Untrue)
6. Radiohead – “House of Cards” (In Rainbows)
7. Ryan Adams – “The Shadowlands” (Love Is Hell)
8. M83 – “Lower Your Eyelids to Die With the Sun” (Before the Dawn Heals Us)

And an iLike playlist if you want to listen to the songs:

Read the rest of this entry »

2009 has arrived and it’s time to start looking forward to what I want to accomplish and improve in my life this year.

I’ve cut down on the number of goals because, one, some are going to take longer to accomplish and, two, I don’t want goals to get in the way of enjoying my free time. That was probably the biggest lesson I learned about myself after last year.

I’m excited for all of these and pretty confident that they’re all achievable. Check ‘em out!

Read the rest of this entry »

2008 is almost over, so let’s have a look at how I did on my goals!

Read the rest of this entry »

Because I’m a self-promoting narcissist, I figured I would make sure my top albums of 2008 list on Buzzgrinder gets as much attention as possible.

Maybe I’m having trouble seeing it from someone else’s perspective, but there are absolutely no surprises on that list. Either way, I highly recommend you check out every album on there, as well as anything on my fellow Buzzgrinder writers’ lists that are being posted all this week. I’ve already made a few new discoveries this week thanks to them.