It's been a slow morning. All I've done so far is sit around and listen to music. What have I been listening to? Let me tell you.

James Brown - Funky Christmas

xxtapemakerxx hipped me to this one. It's really fun. I'll have this one in rotation for the next month. I was happy that JP identified it as "early James Brown" instead of saying, "Is this Kanye West?"

Scott Weiland - The Most Wonderful Time of Year

OMG What?! This album showed up on a site where I occasionally get my music. Under the album cover, it said, "Because you *know* you're intrigued..."

It's really fun! For most of the disc, he sounds really good. There were a few songs where he sounded affected and out of tune, but what do you expect from a 90's grunge rocker who can't stop doing heroin?

Morrissey - You are the Quarry Deluxe Edition

I have a few Morrissey Deluxe Editions, but I need this one. You Are the Quarry is so well-produced and catchy. The deluxe edition has a bunch of b-sides and comes with a bonus DVD. I found it on Amazon used for $6. Yes.

I'm really in to a singer called Gotye. Last weekend, xxtapemakerxx hipped us all to his music. It's effing brilliant. I think he's a big deal in Australia right now. He certainly is not big in America... YET.



( Click here for some of his music. )

I love the band Fucked Up, but their latest release, a fake compilation called David's Town - 11 Original Hits From Byrdesdale Spa, UK!, totally slipped under my radar.



Apparently David's Town, which is a vinyl-exclusive compliment to their mainstream release David Comes to Life, was released on Record Store Day, back in April and is limited to 2,000 copies. My understanding is Fucked Up plays all the music, while lead vocals are provided by various band members and guest vocalists.

I got it in the mail yesterday and copied Side A in to iTunes. It's pretty fun. Check this video out. It's adorable. The guy and girl are Sandy (aka Mustard Gas) and Ben (aka Young Governor) of Fucked Up.

I needed some new music, so I payed a quick visit to America's favorite music store, amazon.com.  I picked up CDs by two bands that I feel are ultra-hipster, The Decemberists and The Fleet Foxes.  They made turn out to be too hip for me.



I heard a song by Fleet Foxes the other day and really liked how it sounded.  I figured they were good for a listen.

My friend Liz loves the Decemberists, but they never made it on to my radar. That was until the Decemberists' Jenny Conlee appeared on a show called Portlandia as a musician named "Sparkle Pony".

A few months back, I heard that Fucked Up was playing a show in LA. I didn't see anything about a show in San Diego, so I sprung for a $15 ticket. Turns out they had a show in San Diego the next night. So I wound up going to both.

Los Angeles

On my way up, I had dinner with Dave and Jason in Sherman Oaks. We had tacos at a hippie/vegan/organic place called Hugo's. Their Honey Chipotle sauce was a win.

The show, at the El Ray Theater, was great. And it was huge, compared to the San Diego venue. I'm guessing like 2000 people. The theater had great sound, was spaced out nicely and was air conditioned. But it didn't feel entirely like a punk show. It kind of felt like going to a U2 concert. I'm sure if I got closer to the stage, it would have been more engaging, but I would have certainly been kicked in the face the mosh pit. No thanks.

I ran in to some LJ buds, bought some flair and a 45. After the show, I hurried off to xxtapemakerxx's house, which is half-way home. Crashed there and drove home in the morning. Good times.



San Diego

I almost didn't go. I was so tired from the night before, but I pushed through. The moment I finished my PBR, they started playing. The crowd was tiny but very cool. Damien, the singer, was in the crowd for a lot of the show. I rubbed his head and hugged him mid-song. It was that kind of night. This is more what I'm used to.

At the end of the night, Damien was hugging fans. I snuck in for a goodbye hug. Awesome.

OMG, I met Robyn!



I was waiting around at Coachella to see Cee-Lo (who showed up late and sounded awful, fun fact) when someone mentioned that Robyn was doing a signing.

I was all over that. I love Robyn. She seemed very put off for having to do the signing, which is understandable. I just wanted a picture with her for my collection.

Hours later, we saw her perform live. She sounded great!



I'm having a great time at Coachella.

Last night, after work, I went to dinner with my buddy Liz and my new love interest JP. It was fun, but I was wiped out after a full week of work. I had a Rock Star Pomegranate in the afternoon and a coffee after dinner; neither of them helped much.

By the time Liz and I got to The Casbah (my favorite place in the world) to see The Dum Dum Girls, at about 11pm, I was officially out of steam. They sounded great, but I was not feeling it.



"Liz, I gotta go outside. I'm hot and falling asleep."

So we went outside in the rain for a sec, I bought their vinyl, then we watched the rest of the show from the back lobby. Second wind. PERFECT. The rest of the show was a real treat. They ended their set with a cover of There is a Light that Never Goes Out by the Smiths. Yay.

A year ago, I listed my top 5 albums of 2009. It's extremely subjective, of course, but it's fun for me to think about what I've found over the year.

That being said, here's my list for 2010.

5 - Matt & Kim Sidewalks



I just realized that last year I mentioned their previous album as one of the best of 2009. I guess I'm a big fan. They just sound so happy, and their music is perfect. This new album seems to be a themed album. Just about every song has some kind of reference to their home, New York. I generally am not a fan of Ney York-themed songs (Example: I Love New York by Madonna), but they make it work.

It's like new york in the late summer time
can breathe again even through this lovely grime

4 - Janelle Monae - ArchAndroid



I picked this one up specifically because I heard Kevin Barnes of the band of Montreal worked on it. Turns out he was only involved in one song.

But that's what makes this album great. The songs are written and produced by several guest artists, but somhow all the songs work together. It's quite an experience.

Side note. I was bored one day, and I looked up YouTube videos from this album. I thought this one was particularly great: Cold War

3 - M.I.A. /\/\/\Y/\




I just think this album is brilliant. It's very much a "noise" album, where the drum loops that hold the songs together are almost insufferable. I can't get enough of it. It reminds me a little of classic, bomb squad-era Public Enemy or even i care because you do-era Aphex Twin. Some songs are a little bit easier to digest, like the reggae-esqe It take a muscle.

I had been talking up this album to my music buddy, Liz, for months, and she kept asking for a copy. I finally played her this song. A few measures in, she said, "who's this?" "It's M.I.A." "Oh, I don't like this!"

2 - of Montreal False Priest



of Montreal's previous album, Skeletal Lamping, was a bit too crazy for most, but with the help of an outside producer, they reeled it in quite a bit for this one. Janelle Monae and Solange Knowles (yeah, Beyonce's sister) but make guest appearances.

My favorite part of the album is Our Riotous Defects, where he talks about being crazy for a girl who turns out to be more crazy than he is.

My God, I should have realized, on our second date
When you dragged me into the bathroom at Tanika's house
And screamed at me for like twenty minutes
'Cause I had contradicted you in front of your friends

I was like "Oh"
and then later that night at my apartment
As punishment you killed my beta fish
Just threw it out the window

1 - Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy



I know, Kanye West. "I can't believe what he did on MTV." "He's a jerk."

I wasn't a fan of Kanye West, mostly because I just couldn't get in to his stuff. He made a lot of appearances on Common's albums, and I always disliked those parts.

One day on the Howard Stern Show, Howard was talking about the new "douche bag" song from Kanye. He thought it was hilarious and refers to it often on the show. But I heard something really special in that song, Runaway. He really pours his heart out on it.

Turns out the whole album is brilliant. Even Jay-Z shows up and does his best rapping, maybe ever.

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Honorable Mention

- Apples in Stereo - Travellers in Space and Time
- The Hold Steady - Heaven is Whenever
- Rihanna - Loud

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Worst album of the year? Easy.

The Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

I forgot how great this album is.





Back in the 90's, like most music geeks, I built up a substantial portion of my music collection using Columbia House and BMG. Remember that? It was like sign up, get 12 cds for FREE, buy a few for $20 each, cancel, then repeat. I liked the song It Ain't Over Til It's Over so much that I had no problem dropping $20 for it.

If memory serves me correctly, Slash (post-Guns, pre-sell-out, pre-c'mon-just-reform-Guns-already) appears in the first two songs. And then there are wonderful gems like Stand By My Woman and What Goes Around Comes Around. This is back when LK was really on that 60's/70's vibe and just nailing it. Mama Said has a laid-back, effortless vibe that he was never able to reproduce in any of his subsequent albums.

And of course, It Ain't Over Till It's Over is bliss.



Fun Fact:
Lenny Kravitz wrote a song that appears on the new Michael Jackson album. It's a good one.