2004was a strange year for music for me. for the first time ever, i
think i may have gone to more shows than purchased new albums. a lot
of CDs i bought came out before this year. not that this is a retro
trend in my buying habits, just catching up on what i was missing. i
found some really good things this year. but when i separate out the
2004 copyrights, i find i'm not so enthused. some i put back,
because they were simply not favorites (like isan's latest, although
i like it). i wanted to include the morrissey comeback too, but it's
basically just pleasant left-wing pop music. which is ok, but not
essential, and he's just done so much better. one of the most
amazing albums i think is a sort of reissue (ulrich schnauss'
"strangely isolated place"), or it would've been on here too.
and so, below is the very un-idmish list of 2004 albums i can't
imagine being without.
lali puna - faking the books
now this is pop music dammit! stuff you can't get out of your head
and tastes sweet going down, but has subtext and substance. mixing
laptops and indie rock once again (a bit heavier towards the latter
this time), the notwist axis spreads its influence further. think
the poppier end of pixies and new order.
mum - summer make good
a darker album than previous outings, with more weird songs and
homemade instruments mixing with electronic sounds. spookythe
singer's voice is less breathlessly girly and annoying on this one
too. they're really artists in their own right instead of some kind
of "bjork lite".
pluramon - dreams top rock
i read about this in the wire and the my bloody valentine references
made me pick it up. here's an electronic guy who makes loops and
noise, who decided to throw in distorted guitars and pastoral chord
changes and work with julee cruise. it's like a fuzzy, blissed-out
slowdive/mbv/lush/jamc tribute that somehow creates its own space.
bark psychosis - codename: dustsucker
i walked into a record shop and this was playing. before one song
was over i knew i had to own it. it's that amazing. slowcore,
ethereal, shoegazer, indietronica, unique, beautiful.
xiu xiu - fabulous muscles
one of the most amazing, gorgeous, raw, contradictory,
confrontational bands going today. and when i say those things i
don't mean them in the usual ways - other artists can do those things
too. but only jamie stewart alternates between tender jeff
buckleyesque moments and happy house music with neubauten-like
percussion and noise while lacerating his vocal cords in ways that
morrissey, ian curtis, and david bowie have only approached in their
most over-the-top moments.
ghost - hypnotic underworld
a band i've waited far too long to get into. this album is beautiful
and peaceful, even in its more raucous moments, totally living up to
its name. from pseudo-traditional japanese instrumentation to
krautrock-like workouts to off-kilter jazzy numbers and psychedelic
folk, this band deserves to be a lot hotter than they are.
interpol - antics
blah blah overyhyped blah sellout blah hipster buzzword flashinthepan
whatever blah. ok now that's out of your system, this album is
actually really good, barring the first two absolutely horrid songs
and a fairly repetitive penultimate droner. if you've heard the
singles, those are the most boring and obvious things on here, which
is proof of a true pop band. this does not sound like anyone else
and it kicks ass.
the secret machines - now here is nowhere
ok, this one is a bit retro sounding, i admit. but it's ultrimately
not only catchy but also goes for interesting journeys. some of it
could be a bit more harmonically interesting, but it's a really good
start. promise for the future is something that's hidden in 2004's
music, and this is a good example of that.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe, e-mail: idm-unsubscribe@hyperreal.org
For additional commands, e-mail: idm-help@hyperreal.org