Interlude: Best of 2019

25 Best Songs of 2019

1. Beirut - Landslide
2. Andrew Bird- Manifest
3. Weyes Blood - Everyday
4. Sharon Von Etten - Seventeen
5. Ex Hex - Tough Enough OR Cosmic Cave
6. Bleached - Hard to Kill
7. Emily Wolfe- Holly Roller
8. Tank and the Bangas - Nice Things
9. Kehlani - Nights like this (feat. Ty Dolla $ign)
10. DJ Shadow - Rocket Fuel (feat. De La Soul)
11. Princess Nokia - Sugar Honey Ice Tea
12. Lower Dens - I Drive
13. Operators - I Feel Emotion
14. Ashley Tisdale - Love Me & Let Me Go
15. Ashley O - On a Roll
16. Dilllon Francis - Catchy Song (feat. T-Pain & That Girl Lay Lay)
17. The Dandy Warhols - Motor City Steel
18. Seratones - Gotta Get to Know Ya
19. Sunflower Bean - Come for Me
20. King Gizard and the Lizard Wizard - Self-Immolate OR Mars for the Rich
21. Power Trip - Hornet's Nest
22. Le Butcherettes - spider/WAVES (feat. Jello Biafra)
23. His Many Colored Fruit - Staring at Facebook Til It Makes Me Vomit
24. Purple Mountains - Snow is Falling in Manhattan
25. The Comet is Coming - Summon the Fire OR Unity

Best Album

1. Andrew Bird - My Finest Work Yet
2. Sharon Von Etten - Remind me Tomorrow
3. Charli XCX - Charli

Best Show

1. Kitty - Rose Gold: The Musical w/ vvervvolf (Rock and Roll Hotel, 8/14)
This show was by far the best thing I saw live this year, perhaps all the more so because it was too-sparsely attended and I never saw a word of press about it. Tragic! It blew my freaking mind by impressively turning a consistently great album into a sensory-overloading experience. It was totally an actual musical because there were spoken interludes, other people on stage, and a narrative. The officially stated story is this: a hot girl has problems, gets drunk, and plays music AND THAT IS LITERALLY WHAT HAPPENED. It was a very meta theatrical multimedia experience, and yea SUPER hot, but as a reminder, I'm here for the impressively independent DIY aesthetic, not the sex appeal. OK, fine- both. Both!  After years of internet-based fandom bordering on obsession I finally got to see Kitty, and it was all I could have ever wanted and more: the incredible new album in its entirety, the very best songs from her band with her husband, The Poms-Poms, performed with gusto, and just one classic Kitty song was all that was needed to make everyone dance- even the old people. vvervvolf was a perfect opening act, and I expect great things from them in the future. It was not even a tour, so I felt so fortunate to be able to catch it in DC, as it was only every played there and in NYC and LA. It was the kind of event that makes one feel lucky to have gotten out of the house and witness something fantastic that has never happened before and will never happen again. And as a late entry at the tail end of 2019, the new stuff from The Pom-Poms is making me VERY happy! I feel like I've been trying to tell everyone about  the greatness of Kitty since 2014 and while few cared as much as I did, this whole experience proved, at least to myself, that I was right a long about her.   
2. Spiritualized (Lincoln Theater, 4/6)
I've seen Spiritualized every chance I've had since 1997, and this was easily the best. This version of the band has been together long enough, and it's not too big but not too small either. The addition of three gospel singers (neither just 2 nor a full choir) was perfect, and the soul-pop renditions of songs that melted into glorious chaos was something to experience live - from a padded seat for the first time. And that light show- Oh happy day!  

Best New Artist
Sigrid 
It is kinda stretching here for the best new artist, but that was a really good debut pop album (she had an EP out last year). I liked both "Don't Kill my Vibe" and "Strangers" (the bigger hit), but the whole album is eminently listenable. She's young, so it will be interesting to see how it goes from here. I also can tell you (and the GRAMMYs) that the best new artist is NOT: 
Tank and the Bangas, 
'cause they are super-great but they've been around for too long to reasonably be considered new. Then again 
Lindsay Lou 
has been around for nearly that long, but this was the year I was so pleasantly surprised to "discover" her at Del Fest; new-to-me discoveries like that keep me going back to music festivals even if the announced artists seem either redundant or unknown. Let's have an honorable mention for the uniquely impressive 
Seratones, 
another "new" band that I was exposed to thanks to WTMD's First Thursday concert; just like 
Emily Wolfe, 
I didn't even make it to the show but was still blown away from seeing stuff online and listening to their full albums. 

Artist of the Year
The Regrettes
Their newest wasn't even my favorite album of the year--even though it sounds like a pile of near-perfect singles--and the best songs from it ("Pumpkin," "I Dare You," and "Dress Up") didn't even make the short list, but this band was everywhere in my media feeds this year, and I am all for it. This might be the perfect band that everyone in America should be listening to right now- an absolutely ideal mix of timeless rock influences and modern punk-ish sensibilities. "Pumpkin" might be their song I liked best, but it's not exactly representative enough of their overall sound. "I Dare You" is the perfect run-away single. The thing that really blew my mind was this incredible cover of an underplayed Queen song; I'm comfortable declaring it superior to the original! (Not necessarily from this year, but they are killing these covers: previously "A Teenager in Love" and this impeccably spunky performance of another excellent, underplayed classic rock song, this one from Sweet.)  I can only assume that their sold-out show in Baltimore (that I missed) was excellent because they immediately booked a larger venue in DC for their next pass through the area: my loss. They are all insanely adorable people, but more importantly they are so smart- making excellent musical choices paired with incisive, emo-esque lyrics. The way the brilliant lead singer (and lead songwriter) adds just the right amount of snarl to her sweetness is a 10/10. She and the band also released a Christmas duet with her actual rock-star/actor boyfriend. The whole band rocks, and those backing vocals are well-played too. Tell the young people!   

Looking forward to new stuff NEXT Year from
Ruby Ibarra
Sierra Hull
Kesha

and Playing over the End Credits of 2019
Titus Andronicus "I Blame Society"
OR
The 1975 

And now for some good heavy music that defies simple classification. Is it metal? I guess. Heavy metal? (Am I the only one that calls it that anymore?) Punk? Nah- there are not really any theatrics. Hardcore?  Not exactly (thanks for your opinion though, Wikipedia), but I bet someone calls this a post-punk band. Maybe even a post-punk hardcore band. Anything is possible. 

Whatever it is, I am here for it. I was completely unfamiliar with this band at first. They leaked into my library via a bandmate's recommendation, and then just sat there waiting to be heard. However, after this listening I can say that it certainly passes the time ably, if not always impressively. Yes, I could definitely listen to this endlessly, even if it never turns out to be my favorite band, and no single song is really too distinguishable from any of the others.

The fact that they got signed to Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles, after opening for him and the Melvins, is a big hint that there's something a bit more going on 
Whatever it is that makes this band more than just a hardcore band is probably not found in the lyrics though. Despite frequently clever song titles being a hallmark of the group, I understood almost not one word of their screaming. That's a little odd, but the almost-Cookie Monster-type vocals actually fit in quite well with the slamming guitars and brutal drums. The bass has to be called out a bit - it just plays the guitar riff nearly all the time. I was several albums deep before I was ever able to discern a distinct bass line. We will cut the guy some slack though since that's the vocalist and founding member playing bass. So he's busy screaming his head off, and writing stuff...probably booking shows and selling t-shirts too. The cute story is he met the founding drummer in a high school gym class after they noticed each other's homemade punk rock t-shirts in 1998.  I saw that story repeated several times online and would love to  hear what bands were on the shirts; it was some DC hardcore, apparently, which makes a lot of sense. Rites of Spring? Other than those two founding members on rhythm, there have been ELEVEN different guys playing guitar in this ongoing trio. One of the key guitarists quits to be a financial analyst, and many of the rest are key players from the Pacific Northwest scene. Since it is essentially a power trio, there are a lot of heavy, heavy guitars upfront, so it was surprising to lean it's basically a different guy every time. The riffs are consistently crunchy and delicious, huge. If Seattle Grunge had a baby with D.C. Post-Punk, but then that baby grew up and had another baby with like some violent, inebriated Metal, that baby would be this band. 

Although they release a few things between 1999 and 2003 on other labels, for the streaming listener it begins with 2001's aptly-titled Harshing Your Mellow. There's little on the next five albums that isn't set out here already. Yet it is appreciably noisy and sounds great loud, and we all want that at one time or another in our listening lives. I don't know what he's howling about, but the song titles are all either harrowing or hilarious: from "Paul Reubens Theater" to "Steal Your First Born" or "Life in the Noose."

Next, City of Stars (2004), is an album I listened to a fair amount, and it grew on me eventually, yet it's still not a deep appreciation: even hearing the songs over and over, I liked them each time but never came to recognize them. The titles are again often silly, but the singing is not. "I Think I'm a Werewolf," "High and Fighting," and "Afraid of Mountains" all earn at least an appreciated slight pause, but the "Have A Good Time All The Time" gets a special nod from me; it's not just good advice, it's the last line from the Spinal Tap movie, as spoken by their keyboardist. Sure, they do slow down for the 8-minute closer, but it would be deeper into their existence before they really made the most of dynamics. The last song works well, even though it could be an entirely different band. One might recall the schizophrenia of Lard's repertoire, particularly given the Alternative Tentacles connection.

The production and drumming gets notably fancier on later albums. For better or worse? It's kinda a wash. I'm not going to complain about hearing things clearer; it's not like it turned into overproduced cock-rock. The guitarist is new again, but you'd be hard-pressed to notice. This is absolutely NOT punk/hardcore drumming, nor are the production values. The production is so bizarrely (deliberately?) muted, like listening to a really loud show with heavy ear plugs in, but it's a somewhat different sound and it works for this material. The next album, Forging Steel and Laying Stone (2006), has a notable reference to Conan, with "Tower of the Elephant" being one of Conan's first adventure stories--and a song that does a lot in five minutes. Otherwise it's more of the same decent heavy rock on this album and the next, Navigating the Bronze. My joke: it's NOT a concept album about trying to play a gig in the Sunnydale. But you know what is a concept album? Their next album.

After playing with Converge (fuck yea) and Neurosis (OK, I guess), they left Alternative Tentacles to be on the Neurot label, which is basically Neurosis.  That's when they released the fairly incredible concept album Jersey Shores in 2008. The vinyl-exclusive version of the cover art is pretty sick

Maybe I just have a soft spot for concepts albums, but this one really seems to kick it up a notch for these guys. It's a bit like heavy metal prog rock at times, and that's to say nothing of the story they are telling. I don't want to spoil it for everyone, but the scariest bit is how far inland the killer shark gets by swimming up little streams. Yes, it's a true story, from New Jersey. I enjoyed this album the most and am grateful for having discovered it. 

They announce their breakup and play a farewell show before releasing Live to Crush. They might have gone back to Alternative Tentacles. It does seem like they might be broken up for real this time. So when the most recent guitarist and writer mostly responsible for the Jersey Shore stuff leaves the other two decide not to continue. They formed a new band, called Sandrider. And people call it "grunge metal" - on purpose! In 2011- to present! I snuck a listen and I definitely dig it. Sounds like stoner-metal to me.

I hope I haven't damned this band with faint praise. While it's true that few if any individual tracks rise above the muck, I thoroughly and consistently enjoyed listening to the band. I find them refreshingly aggressive, and just abrasive enough. After an evening at home listening to the Avett Brothers with the fam, it was a nice palette cleanse to start the early morning commute with these bashers. It looks hella fun too. I wouldn't have to remember the name or tune of a single song to enjoy this show:

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BONUS INTERNET PLAGIARISM 

According to Merriam-Webster.....

(hey, at least I didn't start the essay that way)

akimbo

 adjective or adverb

akim·​bo | \ ə-ˈkim-(ˌ)bō  \

Definition of akimbo

1: having the hand on the hip and the elbow turned outward

2: set in a bent positiona tailor sitting with legs akimbo

Did You Know?

It's "akimbo" nowadays, but in Middle English, the spelling "in kenebowe" was used for the bent, hand-on-hip arm (or later, for any bent position). Originally, the term was fairly neutral, but now saying that a person is standing with "arms akimbo" implies a posture that communicates defiance, confidence, aggressiveness, or arrogance. In her novel Little Women, Louisa May Alcott took the word one step further, extending it into the figurative realm when she explained that tomboyish Jo had not been invited to participate in an elegant event with the other young ladies of the neighborhood because "her elbows were decidedly akimbo at this period of her life."

First Known Use of akimbo

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for akimbo

Middle English in kenebowe

Ak1200

We aren't going to make this a whole blog post about jungle/drum'n'bass. And we certainly aren't going to get into the differences between jungle and drum'n'bass here today. All I know is that when I play this stuff my stereo simply cannot get loud enough, regardless of who is mixing it. It was a big thing in the 90s and I wish there was more now. It really seems like a niche subgenre, but it's got to be one of my favorites. It's kinda like that heavy metal of electronica.

I would also say that AK1200 is one of the Big Three when it comes to the jungle subgenre. But he's definitely a distant third behind Dieselboy and DJ Dara, with whom he started the legendary and never-ending Planet of the Drums tour. Still - not bad. He collaborated with those artists and many other big names in the genre. He did a little something with a Tribe Called Quest too that turned out great, and that kinda matters.

Despite his importance to the genre, the difficulty of how to listen to a DJ's entire repertoire in chronology order was solved by Google Play, which only offered me 10 songs. And really there were only four songs, with multiple remixes of several.

The first of these is "Keep Hope Alive" from the Urbal Beats 2 collection, which is a pretty legit collection from URB magazine. It's strange that it's not the first song on the album because it does that quirky thing where it starts off as a sorta goofy house song that emerges into a darker drum-and-bass beat. It's great. (If we ever get to listen to Atmospheric Drum and Bass that album starts with a similar trick.) The song is a remix of a Crystal Method track. Enjoy it:

Other than a random but decent track called "Fake," the other major streaming tracks were the singles for "Emancipate" and "Real Justice." Both are hard, fast bangers with a dark tone but a socially conscious edge. Basically, this is exactly what I'm looking for - sometimes, like late at night. Someone made a video of it, and there's not much more to listen to or comment on but it sure rocks hard:

Air Supply

And now for the musical-equivalent of a daytime soap opera.

This music is incredibly boring and marred by over-singing, but at least it's a real band making original music. The two guys' different voices work well together; I hadn't realize that was their thing in this band, but OK. There are many lineup changes, but the founding duo remain consistent: Graham Russell is the Brit that sing, writes, and plays guitar while Russell Hitchcock is the Aussie lead vocalist. Later, they sometimes serve as substitute hosts on Solid Gold. They met while performing together in a 1975 Australian production of Jesus Christ Superstar, so excuse me if I proceed with caution. (One of the sisters that would go on to form the band Cheetah was also in that production and briefly played with these guys; her replacement in this band would eventually leave to play with Divinyls, and then later recruit away another Air Supply player to join him.) It turns out that I did know some of these songs, and overall it wasn't that bad, but it wasn't that great of an experience either. I appreciate moving on my with listening.

I'm not really complaining, but it is a little awkward that their first four albums are not available streaming (in America?), so I went hunting through the dreaded Greatest Hits collections for the singles from some of those albums. Some were there, but others were not. Some showed up on the later albums. Still, I didn't even get to hear the entirety of Love & Other Bruises, third overall and their 1978 debut in America, which got to #2 in their native Australia, but the title track, their first single, did make it onto a collection. The album failed to chart in America, even though they had gone and re-recorded some of their earlier tracks for the occasion. So some of these songs were on the old albums, and some of them show up on later albums; there's some international repackaging going on here. It recalls the debate over what constitutes AC/DC's "first" album. There might be a self-titled floating around first in some markets. In the early days they toured with the likes of Rod Stewart, Boz Scaggs, Chicago. I know those are beloved bands to some, but we are undeniably dealing with "Soft Rock" here. The Simpsons called it wuss rock. If you enjoy Adult Contemporary then you might view these guys as masters of it.

Apparently there is a prior 1979 concept album(!) that morbid curiosity makes me interested in, but not that much. Lost in Love is actually their 5th album, but it's sorta the first in the US and the first I was able to listen to. Again, they are re-mixing and re-recording songs from previous albums. The first song "Lost In Love" comes from the concept album. It's a stunningly bland song to debut with. Nonetheless, this is where they make their mark. There are three Top 5 singles here. We all know "All Out Of Love," right? It is only the third song I l heard out of over a 100, but it has got to be one of their best. Oddly, I didn't recognize the song at first, but when the chorus hit the memories came flooding back. Where do I know this song from? From elevators? Commercials? The radio in my mom's car? Rollerskating? I suffered through often-cringe worthy lyrics and singing, but no more so than on "American Hearts," a shit song that made me want to confront these sappy Australians. They go a bit country, for some reason, on "Old Habits Die Hard." The funky disco  of "Just Another Woman, however, is a near-gem that sounds like late-period ABBA and showed this band can pep up when they want to. They don't want to often. Their ratio is all off: the rock album should have a few ballads on it, not the other way around.

I'm not entirely sure if my parents actually owned the next album or I've just seen it in so many thrift store record bins that I've become familiar with it in that way. Again, I hear some of these songs and wonder where I know them from, so vaguely on the edge of my childhood memories. It does contain a couple good songs that some might remember: "Here I Am (Just When I Thought I was Over You)" and "The One That You Love." It is super-easy to get the two hits confused, not least of which because when the latter's title is sung in the song it is also preceded by the line "Here I am...." Nonetheless, this is peak Air Supply and their most successful album. Pop maestro Clive Davis produces here, and he gets his hits. There's no denying the sweetness of their harmonies. "Sweet Dreams" is less memorable than the first two but a third Top Five single from the album. A song of theirs also gets used in a Japanese TV show, and so they become the proverbial "big in Japan." If soft rock is a genre then this album is a masterpiece of the genre, but it's not exactly what I'm looking for. After "Sweet Dreams" the album ends with four catatonic songs in a row, which is really damning because this was supposed to be their best ever work. It almost made me fall asleep while driving, so there's a legitimate danger lurking there.

They follow up with Now and Forever (1982), which effectively capitalizes on their momentum and success through the release of "Even the Nights are Better".  OK, sure that's a good song. So now we've got three or four pretty good songs worth acknowledging. I mean it's not great, but as long as I don't have to next listen to endlessly watered-down iterations of the same stuff for several more albums....

Although still in the early stages of their seventeen-album discography, things deteriorate rapidly after those two decent albums. For some reason the album they release in 1985, smack-dab in the middle of their career and not representing a change of sound in any way, is self-titled; it might have something to do with revamping the band personnel. When I read that Hearts in Motion (1986) was "a serious step down in the band's popularity" I got scared. I had every reason to be afraid. It is consistently weak and forgettable, but remember - they are trying to rock softly, so maybe somebody wanted this music.  Only "Lonely Is the Night" can rise above the pack; it was a mildly successful single, but you've got to really want it to like it. It's post-peak Air Supply and awkward, but it's the best they've got at this point. They follow it up with the uncalled-for Christmas Album, that adds nothing to any of the classics. They don't even make them sounds like Air Supply songs. It is a shamefully pointless collection of songs reminiscent of those 99 cent CDs you can get at Cracker Barrel or the grocery store: music by nobodies for anybody.

After a long break, during which the one guy releases a solo album that has a single featured in the 1990 movie Arachnophobia, they return with The Earth Is..., which fails to chart but launches them on a successful tour of Asia. I got nothing from this album except a brief nod for lead track, "Stronger Than the Night," the second in their series of songs about the night. It could be a great 80s power ballad, but it didn't chart. The problem might be that it was released in 1991. So this tolerable 80s band forges on into the 90s with limited success. Despite the alarming title of 1993's The Vanishing Race it actually alludes to the plight of the indigenous Australian people in sympathetic terms, not that there's a coherent concept album about it or anything. Again, I wasn't really too interested in most of this stuff and it generally sort of just washed over me inoffensively. There are some fine melodies on occasion I suppose ("Faith" comes to mind), but I gave most of these songs multiple listens trying to care and they never sunk in. Still, there is a mild rock band hidden in there somewhere. It sounds most like Styx when the electric guitar and driving drum beats occasionally kick in predominantly because the vocal similarities can be stunning at times.

News from Nowhere is a an apt title for their 1995 album that is seemingly devoid of purpose or meaningful content. It contains an unforgivable cover of "Unchained Melody" that cops too much from the Righteous Brothers' version. The album's title track is so airy that it's almost not even there. This was the album I lost patience with Air Supply. They seem to be mailing it in but enjoyed continued success in other places. There's another album that charts only in Asia.

The vanishing act continues on Yours Truly, which is also barely there. The beats are largely replaced by palatial strings and light acoustic guitar. I kept waiting for each song to kick in, and I got through more than half the album before anything happened. The lyrics become truly horrific, as in: "you are the future from the past/ You are the spell that has been cast." It recalls "Body Glove" from a previous album with the ghastly line: "the world is just potato chips/ joined together at the female hips." The last thing I want to hear is anybody's explanation of what that line is supposed to mean.

After a 16th unsuccessful album, it finally kicks up a slight notch for Mumbo Jumbo, a notable release from 2010 and their most recent album to date. As the title suggests, there is a bit more sonic variety here. Most of the songs chug-along with a decent beat. There's more electric guitars and drums, even hints of weirdness. It's more of a pop rock album, although they may very well have considered themselves that prior to this album. The ballads are power ballads. It's not all great, but at least they are trying-- and no doubt succeeding at their self-appointed task. It sits well with their other albums, so I hope their actual fans were pleased. Still, there are real problems. "Me Like You" is as dumb as it sounds. "Can I Be Your Lover" (no question mark) is irrirtating.  "Lovesex" is not just annoying-- it's actually kinda repulsive. It gets to a core issue: this is supposed to be a romantic band but there's little eroticism to this music (anymore, if there ever was) and some genuine potential for irritation. I didn't want to hear about "Learning to Make Love To You" either.

They are still touring and recently released a new single: "I Adore You" is OK. The track reels it in a bit and concentrates on what they do well: keeping it classy and smooth. And yet, even as I can picture this as someone's wedding song, I still don't want to hear it. "Do you mind if I adore you?" Gross, leave me alone. This stuff doesn't appeal to me much, but either does Thunder from Down Under - and both can still fill a room, so to each their own. I will leave this to the target audience. I have no doubt that this type of safe music and over-singing appeals to folks that watch American Idol and such.

Even bands that I might find musically dull can perhaps tell interesting stories. Taking a closer look can reveal nuances worthy of attention, even as it sharpens the focus on flaws. This band may have been done a disservice by the parameters of my project: perhaps Air Supply is not meant to be listened to in album chunks (much less all of them in a row). For most people, there's a time and a place where some of these songs will do nicely, and I'm comfortable including myself among them. Good for these two guys for still doing their thing today with little-to-no compromise of their original vision, whatever that might have been.

Air

French band Air's legendary album Moon Safari was--fittingly--the first album I ever downloaded on my first iPod. This ubiquitous 1998 album changed everything at the time and it has aged remarkably well. The band themselves, however, seem to have fallen victim to an odd phenomenon: after changing the musical landscape with a genre-bending and innovative album, everybody started sounding like that. As a result, their later albums fell somewhat flat, despite some great material. We were not calling this type of music EDM back then, but the type of electronic music it heralded is inexorably woven into the fabric of modern popular music now.  I like to think of Air as post-dance electronica, which is only a little bit weird since their repertoire actually falls largely before that electronic music Renaissances of the 2000s. This artsy European band deserves credit for mainstreaming an influential sound that goes way beyond computer-generated techno or mixing records. 

It's essentially two guys: Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel. They formed the band in a fancy school in Versailles in 1995. Even on the band's pre-Moon Safari EPs the concepts and sound of the band were almost fully formed. It may not have the sheen of their hyper-produced classic, but there are already flashes of genius. There's rich sonic potential from mixing modern beats and sounds with pure, warm organic instruments like piano, organs, and horns. Most of the elements are present, so the unified vision arrives almost fully intact and well-honed when they drop their proper full-length debut. Some argue it all gets a little too perfect, ideal for pumping out of sterile white speakers or earbuds; a Pitchfork writer once said they befit "minimalist architectural design (circa 1974)". Yet they really hit the zeitgeist on the head, particularly in terms of downtempo electronica: they may not have been the first band to make dance-music you can't dance to, but nobody else doing it at the time got a song on the radio or sold so much to the masses via international success.

Moon Safari begins with "La Femme D'Argent" (possibly translated as The Silver Girl), an unforgettable shimmering electro-symphony, which--as the opening track on a well-regarded album--deservedly gets a lot of play. It soundtracks the opening moments in the first episode of Veronica Mars. (Side note(s): of course the Dandy Warhols play the show's theme song, and Albert Hammond's "It Never Rains In Southern California" plays the series out three stellar seasons later.) It's an amazing, lush track to start off with, but then "Sexy Boy" is jarring as the first "song" most people hear from the band, or at least the first song with lyrics in English. Yet, it was a huge hit single in Europe and got some airplay over here too. It's not my favorite Air song; it's too much of a regular song, and more jarring than sexy. The album ping-pongs back and forth after that between such concise songs and the more expansive soundscapes. They get that ratio just right on this album more so than on any of their others. The many slides and glides that emerge throughout the album make it so smooth, but not always. The stomp that propels "Remember" is a sample from a Beach Boys song, "Do it Again": the single from 20/20 with the b-side written by Charles Manson; it's not the last time they'll share an influence with modern spacey rock or chamber pop bands. "Ce Martin La" (That Morning) is a great song I've been falling asleep to since it came out; it had 640 plays from my digital library at last count, and that may or may not be including all those previous iTunes plays. What a gorgeous song! The muted horns over lush strings recall a 70s film soundtrack, or the Academy Awards live orchestra's rendition of a 70s film soundtrack. The whole album is classic, five star stuff because of an endless stream of near-perfect songs. I listened to the Rarities disc that came out to mark its 10th anniversary, not because I had to but because I wanted to. Some of these remixes could more accurately be called re-imaginings, as in the funk rock of "Kelly Watch the Stars"; the original has an interesting official video.  Even a buried track like "Talisman" is a fantastic song that should have been a Bond theme. (Why didn't these guys ever score a James Bond movie?) Live staple "You Make it Easy," demonstrates brilliant production, with the airy female vocals mic'd so hot every breathe intake is clearly audible. It really snaps in new Apple ear buds. Some have argued that the album lacks fun or irony, and that it takes itself too seriously. The strength of the songs and their collection as whole more than makes up for that slight, and they seem to address it with more exuberant playing on later albums. Their debut takes the cake though. It makes the 1,000 Albums You Must Hear Before you Die list, and with good reason. For me, it's virtually a desert island disc, as the frequent instrumentals with lots going on in them give me plenty to hear anew each time I listen, without getting stuck on tired lyrics. It's an incredibly diverse album, despite it consistency. There is a time and place for every album, and this one has lots of applications: sleeping, reading, relaxing, and sexing. It does have a certain romance about it, without ever being intrusive, so yes--it is ideal for lovemaking. Maybe that's why it made so many Best of the Year lists when it came out, although of course that's not the only reasons. OK, it may be mostly suited for primarily downtempo activities, but the point is that this now-20 year old album still gets lots of consistent airtime (from me at least) to this day during various modern activities that need musical accompaniment, and it doesn't sound dated; it doesn't really sound too much like the 90s since it was revolutionary for its time. This album could come out today and people would still rave about it, no pun intended.

It is fitting that a film soundtrack is their next album, the score for The Virgin Suicides in 2000. It is damn near almost as good as their classic debut and even in some ways better, given my penchant for instrumental music, as most of this is. Despite occasional forays into electronica or orchestral maneuvers, this is often a more band-oriented sound, relying frequently on keys, drums, and bass. The subject and sound get aptly dark for the film, but it is thematically and musically consistent. "Playground Love," despite making me uncomfortable with the subject matter, is when they sound most like Spiritualized; maybe it's the vibes or the perfectly subdued vocals. The song is written and sung by the guy from Phoenix, another French alternative band.  Again, I was happy to sit through the rarities and outtake from the album that were added for the 15th Anniversary edition. It was really great to hear them stretching out live and pumping more humanity into these songs. The album does not have the staying power or variety of Moon Safari, but it is a great listen as more than just a movie soundtrack. Their debut was more revolutionary, but this one effectively follows the trajectory they set for themselves. Their sometimes-drummer, who also played in Red Kross, did another Sophia Coppola film soundtrack, Lost in Translation, which warmed all our hearts by bringing The Jesus and Mary Chain back into cultural prominence, among others. Air also appears on Coppola's soundtrack for Marie Antoinette. They also back up Charlotte Gainsberg on her 2nd album in 2006 (the first being 20 years earlier), which I'm sure will be great when I hear it for the first time when I get to 'C.'

The true successor to Moon Safari, however, is the clumsily titled 10,000 Hz Legend, but it sometimes gets lost in the cultural chaos of 2001. Some have noted a departure in sound from the debut on this second official album, but only to those who skipped the soundtrack album, which bridges the two slightly-different sounds and telegraphs their evolution. Far more song-oriented, it seems like an almost a deliberate attempt to capture (or capitalize on) the magic of Moon Safari with a more accessible collection of tracks. Although some of those songs are fantastic, as a whole it falls just slightly short of their former grandeur. Some of this perspective may reflect my personal bias as almost all of these songs have words, many sung by guest stars (some by computer). The song featuring Beck, "The Vagabond," is a pretty great collaboration that lets both artist do their respective things well. Maybe only the wonderful "Radian," with its slow build to lush strings and flutes, could rest easy on Moon Safari; it's my favorite track here. Not for the last time, but the band starts to sound like Pink Floyd, particularly when they are holding long synth chords over funky beats like it's 1977 all over again. A track called "Milk Bitchy" seems to confirm the Floyd influence with a reference to their Atom Heart Mother. "Radio #1" is decent electronic pop ditty (albeit not a beautiful, shimmering sonic landscape) and it gives us the great word "stereogum," which would go on to title what may be my all-time favorite music blog/site, still going strong to this day. The album also featured a Japanese rock group called Buffalo Daughter, which I was previously unfamiliar with but now interested in. Again, the album is good, but it inevitable disappoints a little following the magnificence of Moon Safari and the excellence of The Virgin Suicides. Sadly, they never seem to regain the sparkling, revolutionary impact of their debut. I don't fault them (much) for that even as I point it out. Too much of their music remains impressive.

Talkie Walkie is good soundtrack-sounding work that was well received, but in retrospect it doesn't rise above the heap of the rest of their catalog and doesn't rise from the growing pack of early 2000s electronica-influenced music. The lead single is "Cherry Blossom Girl." It's not their best song, and for some reason they got a porn director to shoot the incongruous music video, which seems to have some actual porn in it (so click with caution).  Ah, the French! That song from Lost in Translation is on here: "Alone In Kyoto" ends up being one of their most popular non-Moon Safari song; let's give some credit for that to Scarlett Johansson, who has somehow now made her second appearance on this blog. The album offers yet another song from Veronica Mars and one from some French movie. Many critics think that these guys are better at soundtracks then songs, noting this record as an improvement over the last. There are definitely some good songs. The endless arpeggios of "Mike Mills" made me think it was about the guy from R.E.M., but it's actually a tribute to the [mostly-music-video] director and musician of the same name. This led me down a wonderful rabbit hole to find the band Butter 08, which is basically the two women from Cibbo Matto (a band I deeply love and appreciate) and others including someone from Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, plus Mills. The one Butter 08 album from 1996 seems brilliant after just dipping my toes in, and I am grateful to have discovered it now. Nigel Godrich produced Talkie Walkie, and he's a big name: he produced (and played with) Radiohead on every album since OK Computer, he also did Thom Yorke's solo stuff and plays with him in the supergroup Atoms for Peace along with Flea, and he deserves massive credit for shepherding a fantastic recent solo album by Pink Floyd's Roger Waters, which also sounds alot like 1977. So this Air album has got star-power and is recognized as a return-to-form. I find some of the songs truly excellent, but nowhere near as impressive collectively as Moon Safari. Should I apologize to the band for repeatedly comparing everything they've recorded to their debut record? Is that fair?

The next two albums, 2007's Pocket Symphonies and 2009's oddly-titled Love 2 offer more of the same: solid, electronica-influenced pop(ish) rock. The sound is slightly less downtempo and slightly more song-oriented than ever. I had some frustration with the sporadic and generally unimpressive lyrics, preferring their soundtrack-esque work. However, this music is as good as most songs showing up in the late 2000s. It charts and sells enough. They actually got my attention and appreciation most on the blissed-out ambiance of the last song on Love 2, "The Dream of Yi"; it only last 5 minutes, but I could easily listen to its sounds for 10. So the music is occasionally great, but nobody can claim it is as innovative as the music at the start of their career. At the time it came out, I was so very into Moon Safari, but I lost interest after 10,000 Hz Legend. When I caught up with them for this listening project there was definitely some good stuff I missed. Chief among that stuff is their last, most recent album Le Voyage Dans La Lune (2012). It's a lot more interesting and thematic than their previous two efforts. In fact, it's kinda a concept album: a soundtrack to the restored version of that classic 1902 silent science fiction film A Trip To the Moon, which is of course what their French title translates into. The whole concept is pretty incredible and works well, as you can see here in this unofficial version, which isn't the impressive remaster or necessarily synced up exactly right, but you get the idea. It was a welcome change of pace. It's tight rather than expansive. Although it gets very Floydian again, overall the album is less epic--just 11 shorter songs and it ends with a thud, not a bang. Despite being mostly a literal soundtrack, there are two songs with words...and this time they are both great! Both feature excellent guest stars contributing vocals and lyrics: the three singing and keyboard playing ladies of Au Revoir Simone, of Roadhouse fame from Twin Peaks: The Return, and Victoria Legrand from Baltimore's own Beach House (who has also sung with the band Grizzly Bear). The album left me wanting more, but there is no more to hear. They did create something called Music for Museum, but it was an actual commission for the Palais des Beau-Arts de Lille and made available only as a limited-edition of only 1,000 copies of clear vinyl. What I could I hear on YouTube is stunning and right up my alley. It's closer to Brian Eno than modern electronica-influenced rock music, and I wish I could stream it all, but it remains elusive in an official, complete form.

They did release a compilation in 2016 to celebrate 20 years as band, but it would be nice to hear what they sound like now. Last we heard, modern Air is a pleasant mix of groovy space jams and sophisticated beats. For their diverse sounds, their innovation, their classiness, Air comes out on top in the end. They dropped an undeniably groundbreaking, classic album at the start of their career and have managed to remain interesting and entertaining, if not innovational, since then. So, whether you're reading or studying, trying to fall asleep, making sweet love, or just need some background music for your cosmic cocktail party, Air has got you covered.

Don't get them confused with Daft Punk! 

Interlude: Best Music of 2018

It's the day after Christmas. The year is drawing to a close. It's time for me to stop fiddling with the list of what I believe represents the best music to come out in 2018. More accurately, it's the music that I personally enjoyed the most.

I hope everyone had a great year, discovered some new bands, and heard something new and great from beloved artists. There's a lot of stuff out there, so please let me know: what's the best thing you heard this year? Which of these songs or bands do you hate/love?

Best Songs of 2018

1. Belly "Shiny One"
2. Janelle Monáe "Make Me Feel"
3. Kero Kero Bonito "Only Acting"
4. of Montreal "Paranoiac Intervals /Body Dysmorphia"
5. Lily Allen "Trigger Bang (feat. Giggs)"
6. The Pom-Poms "I Got that Boom"
7. Big Freedia "Rent"
8. Poppy "Time is Up (feat. Diplo)"
9. Sylvan Esso "PARAD(w/m)E"
10. CHVRCHES "Get Out"
    --------------------------------------------------------
11. Tune-Yards "Heart Attack"
12. The Decemberists "Severed"
13. Holly Miranda "Golden Spiral"
14. MGMT "Hand it Over"
15. Dr. Dog "Go Out Fighting"
16. Snail Mail "Heatwave"
17. Mikaela Davis "Other Lover"
18. Bishop Briggs "River"
19. Lissie "Best Days"
20. Brandi Carlile "Whatever You Do"
21. Kacey Musgraves "Butterflies"
22. Rising Appalachia "Resilient"
23. Twisted Pine "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'"
24. Old Crow Medicine Show "Flicker & Shine"
25. Kamasi Washington "Fists of Fury"
26. Zeke "Hellbender"
27. Sleep "Sonic Titan"
28. Spiritualized "I'm Your Man"
29. Perfume "Let Me Know"
30. Demi Lovato "Sober"

Honorable Mentions
Soul Cannon, Lindi Ortega, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Low

Best Show

Zeke (@Metro Gallery in Baltimore)

Best New Artist
Mikaela Davis

Best Album

Janelle Monáe Dirty Computer

and Playing over the End Credits of 2018
Calexico "Under the Wheels"

"Defy the system
And avoiding the eyes that stay well hid
Surrendered the words while the lovers leap
Out of the fray and into the infinite

Deep
In the war regime
Always someone else's schemes
Show me a sign
When the world falls apart
Coming together from all of the corners tonight
From the core to the seams
From the threads that we seek
The threads that we seek

Oh

Find me some peace, a mindful heart
A break in the tide when the fighting starts
Power's down and the town goes dark
When the words fail we scatter"