Happy 2011!

When at all possible, make lists. Document your thoughts on everything...the grandiose down to the minuscule. Make sure your paper is filled with re-writes, notes in the margins, and scratch outs. Let's start with an easy one.

Rank the following: cookies, cake, cheesecake, pie, candy, ice cream.

My order: 1) cake 2)cheesecake 3)ice cream 4)cookies 5)pie 6)candy

See. Everything in life can be broken down into a carefully crafted hierarchy.

This summer a group of friends and myself sat down to rank our favorite Beatles songs. I'll spare you the details but the number ones include...
Amy: "A Day in the Life"
Elena: "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"
Enrique: "Let it Be"
Taylor: "Don't Pass Me By"

Of course, Tom Bavis, aka the Beatles Maven/Know It All/Aficionado, did not hierarchically rank his favorites, rather, he made up 3 different categories because a simple Top Ten was impossible to fathom.


This lengthy introduction has (finally) lead me to the point of the post; let's take a look back at the past year and all it has to offer musically.

I'll start with MY Top Six Albums of the Year:

1)LCD Soundsystem This is Happening

2)Arcade Fire Suburbs

3)Sleigh Bells Treats
4) Vampire Weekend Contra
5) Kanye West My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
6) Beach House Beach House

Album Everyone Loves But I Haven't Listened to YET:

Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest


The Catchiest Singles of 2010 (In Alphabetical Order)

Arcade Fire - "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)" - Suburbs

Arcade Fire - "Rococo" - Suburbs

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - "Round, Round" - Before Today

Far East Movement ft. The Cataracs & Dev - "Like a G6" - Free Wired

Beach House - "Norway" - Teen Dream

Best Coast - "Boyfriend" - Crazy for You

Broken Social Scene - "World Sick" - Forgiveness Rock Record
Caribou - "Odessa" - Swim
Crystal Castles - "Not In Love" - Crystal Castles (II)

Die Antwoord - "Enter the Ninja" - 5

Fang Island - "Daisy" - Fang Island

Girl Talk - "Let It Out" - All Day

Gorillaz - "Rhinestone Eyes" - Plastic Beach

Katy Perry - "Teenage Dream" - Teenage Dream

Kanye West - "Runaway" - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

LCD Soundsystem - "Dance Yrself Clean" - This is Happening

Vampire Weekend - "Diplomat's Son" - Contra
LCD Soundsystem - "All I Want" -This is Happening
Sleigh Bells - "Rill, Rill" - Treats
Of Montreal - "Coquet Coquette" - False Priests
The New Pornographers - "We End Up Together" - Together

The Morning Benders - "Excuses" - The Big Echo

M.I.A - "XXXO" - Maya
Matt & Kim - "Good For Great" -Sidewalks
Taio Cruz - "Dynamite" -Rockstarr (2009)
Neon Trees - "Animal" - Habits
Kayne West - "Power" - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Vampire Weekend - "White Sky" - Contra
Rihanna - "Rude Boy" - Rated R (2009)
Kate Nash - "Do Wah Doo" - My Best Friend Is You

The Albums That Just Didn't Deliver

1. MGMT - Congratulations
2. Of Montreal - False Priest
3. Ratatat - LP4
4. New Young Pony Club - The Optimist
5. Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager 6. The National - High Violet

The Top 5 Cheesy/Girly Songs Elena Loves and Taylor Hates / AKA Top 40:

1. B.o.B feat. Bruno Mars - "Nothin' On You"

2. Train - "Hey Soul, Sister"

3. Bruno Mars - "Just the Way You Are"

4. The Script - "Breakeven (Falling to Pieces)"

5. Kris Allen - "Live Like We're Dying"

The Most Overrated Artist: Drake

I acknowledge that I may stand alone here, but what's the big deal? Why is it that my student's final exams are riddled with incorrect grammar exclamations stating "Me gusta Drake"? Ok generic male name, you are not sexually attracted to Drake. Minus five points.

It's a tie: "Over" & "Find Your Love"

My Biggest Surprise: I. LOVE. TAYLOR. SWIFT.

Be nice, Kanye.

My Fave: "Mine"

The Most Overplayed 2009 Song on Television Commercials in 2010 but it's still pretty darn catchy:

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - "Home" - Up From Below



I invite you to channel your inner listographer to tear my lists to shreds.

Sleigh Bells - Treats

It has been a month since my last entry and for that I apologize. It's not that I haven't attempted to complete another entry. Believe me, I most certainly have. In my "Edit Posts" tabs there sits approximately 4 artists whose albums I have started to review but have yet to publish. Will this album have the same plight? Only time and a few taps on the keyboard will tell....

Lately BIG (in all capital letters, yes) sounds is what seems to catch my attention. Hello, Fang Island? Sleigh Bells' debut album Treats listeners with just that (see what I just did there?). Mr. Buck Pennington said it so well and for that reason I quote "They're sort of like a cross between the White Stripes and Animal Collective [check out "Run the Heart"], but with a female lead [Alexis Krauss]. Incredibly catchy (and loud)." I would have to interject that Krauss brings to mind the lead from the Dirty Projectors.

Treats is an album of juxtapositions. Borrowing from Funkadelic's "Can You Get That", nostalgia is paired with contemporary pop percussion in the true gem of the album, "Rill, Rill". A time line union sorts. "Tell 'Em", is a most definite "wake-me up anthem". Here Krauss' demure voice is set side by side with an onslaught of carefully created noise stemming from drum machines to guitar riffs to blown out beats. "Crown on the Ground" and "Riot Rhythm" combine rock sensibilities with that Pep Rally staple sound--the stomp your feet and clap your hands together duo.

My suggestion...play this album and play it loud.

The New Pornographers - Together (2010)

You all have just witnessed history. I just snatched a copy of The New Pornographer's latest release Together and within 20 minutes was hooked by the first 3 songs I decided there was no better opportunity than the present to sit down and write a review. Before I get started I'd like to say that I usually sit down to write after I've gotten to know an album, after it's been on a I-pod loop played to and from campus and my once a week internship-bound drives to Atlanta, so in advance I would like to say that I hope my writing doesn't come off rushed, naive or overly optimistic. Perhaps one day in the future, post my June 26th (first) New Pornographers concert...I will return pen to pad to delve deeper and more analytically into each song.

As a side note, since the album still hasn't "officially" debuted, there are no YouTube videos for me to hyperlink. Luckily, you can check out the entire album at NPR music.

The following are first impressions on first listenings:

Let's start from the place where most things do: the very beginning and Together's opening triad "Move", "The Crash Years", and "Your Hands Together". The epithet Power Pop which has been branded on the Canadian music group never sounded more accurate. When listening to it at full volume you can't help but to be washed over and quite frankly impressed by the cohesiveness of such an unquantifiable amount of sounds: cello, electric guitar, tambourines, keyboards, drums, violins and vocals in "Move" echoing "these things get louder" which is precisely what is happening melodically. The album was definitely front loaded, with weaker tracks sandwiched in the middle;"Silver Jenny Dollar" leading the pack. Perhaps, the trend of songs that just don't reach their full potential reside with the Dan Bejar set. Nevertheless, the album exits on a high note with "We End Up Together". Is the title a promise to fans promising future collaborations especially with the presence of Case and Bejar whose participation is always a shot in the dark? I hope so.

1/42k10Playlist + Fang Island

First let me begin by offering my apologies, even though what follows seems to be more of an excuse. Simply put at times life tends to take the reigns and just doesn't let up. What I've missed out on was the opportunity to review a massive catalog of artists and albums released in the first quarter of 2010. With each new album release, I kept sinking further and further in the proverbial quicksand and repeating the following Elena Logic: "Well, I can't review y album, until I review x album, and so on and so forth, etc., etc., yada yada, ad naseum". So here I stand, on the verge of May with my last entry in January. Shameful.

Then it struck me (visualize mighty Zeus or Thor...whichever mythological lightening/thunder wielding god you prefer slinging a perfectly timed epiphany). Why not create a play list comprised of the year's most noteworthy releases? Check.

Moving on to a dilemma of sorts: to review artists/songs chronologically or to review them as inspiration strikes? Check two: I'm siding with the more whimsical of the two.

What about all those songs that I've had stuck on repeat that weren't released in the past few months? What then? Disregard them entirely? Check three: Nope. I'll send those your way as well.

So without much further hooplah I introduce what shall be known as 1/42k10Playlist.

The first feature artist since my hiatus: Fang Island

To be perfectly honest I am surprised to present this artist as my initial just out of hibernation blog entry. Rewind to early April and my first two-word impression of Brooklyn band Fang Island's self-titled debut album: lukewarm hesitation. Working against them was their lack of lyrics (it's mainly instrumental) post-punk, heavy rock tendency which is not my personal go to music style of choice. Nevertheless, I was intrigued and decided rather than diving at once into the 10 track album, baby steps would be necessary to achieve aural acclimation.

Here are my findings: Fang Island, especially in the standout tracks "Life Coach" and "Daisy", is a straight of the gates band who have no qualms about slapping you across the face with crescendoing hardcore guitar riffs, dizzying synthesizer solos in the pinnacle of a song's intensity, and well placed echo-melodic vocals. Their songs are anthemic in nature recalling long gone 80s arena glam rock with the band itself describing their music as "everyone high-fiving everyone". If you aren't convinced by my review I invite you to watch their music videos. If the music alone doesn't do it, their creative and entertaining visual flair most definitely will.

Rewind, Replay, Review: 2009

Albums of the Year

Some were overrated. Some were underrated. Others hit the nail on the head. Nonetheless the following artists all delivered in '09.

My number one pick? Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

On their 2009 album, Phoenix interjects their name with the legendary 18th century celebrated composer, Wolfgang Amadeus, evoking a sort of egotistical milieu. Was their intention to "drop bombs" on the music scene as the album cover suggests? Allusions to classical composers aside, the contemporary French band has delivered with this synth-rock fourth album. "1901", the electro-pop lead single has traversed the indie scene and has been thrust into the consumer driven American airwaves a là Cadillac commercials, and with due cause because in short, it's catchy. Acoustic guitar strums, Thomas Mars' falsetto, synthy scale progressions and a high-hat driven percussion all contribute to "Fences" disco etherealness. Throughout the album, musings of loves lost and nostalgia are paired with uptempo musical compositions creating a sort of 40%bitter 60%sweetness. In a time where albums seem sloppily arranged and syncopated, each track maintains a flair of individuality, yet when placed in succession with one another, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is a deliberate cohesive entity.

# 2: Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
# 3: Kid Cudi- Man on the Moon: The End of Day
# 4: The Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
# 5: The XX - xx
# 6: Andrew Bird - Noble Beast





Great albums must be appreciated in their entirety...but sometimes we just don't have time. That is why I've also composed a list of singles (in no particular order).

2009's Catchiest Singles

Phoenix - "1901"
Animal Collective - "My Girls"
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Heads Will Roll"
Matt and Kim - "Daylight"
Drake - "Best I Ever Had"
Kid Cudi - "Cudi Zone"
Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks"
The XX - "Basic Space"
Phoenix - "Liztomania"
Pains of Being Pure At Heart - "Young Adult"
Cold Cave - "Life Magazine Test"
Camera Obscura - "French Navy"
Washed Out "Feel It All Around"
Kid Cudi (Crooker's Remix) - "Day 'n' Nite"
Lady GaGa - "Bad Romance"
Jay-Z (feat. Alicia Keys)- "Empire State of Mind"
Little Boots - "Stuck on Repeat"
Telekinesis - "Coast of Carolina"
Discovery - "Orange Shirt"
Here We Go Magic - "Fangela"
Passion Pit - "The Reeling"
The Dirty Projectors - "Stillness is the Move"
Andrew Bird - "Tenuousness"

Taking the Plunge: Both Feet First

It's a quiet Wednesday night in January and I sit poised and ready at my laptop glass of wine within grasp, cake within sight, Winamp alternating songs on my carefully crafted "Songs of the Day" Playlist, notifications of g-chat conversations with friends blinking in a Mozilla Firefox Inactive Tab. Charles says... John Says... Cheyenne says... I'm sure you were wondering how my Top 5 could all possibly be related to music....Now you know.

But seriously, this is a big step for me; a giant leap rather. Up until a few months ago, music reviews were strictly personal and private. After finding myself in a long term relationship dead end writing became a refuge of sorts. The entire process was so elaborate and demanding that it simply took my mind off of my life and the lack of a certain individual's presence. Speakers to ears to pen to paper became the rhythm of my life.

Fast forward to fall 2009 and a little push (ok, no...thrust) from several fronts. Great friends with whom I finally entrusted with writing samples encouraged me to consider submitting reviews to local music magazines. None of these opportunities came to fruition, but c'est la vie. For this very reason, I am here today; wearing my ear (and heart) on my sleeve ready to share with you.

It goes without saying that music has had such a profound effect on my life. It has defined days, months, years and decades. It has molded friendships, relationships and conversations. It's seen me through many pitfalls and its been there for all my triumphs. Music defines the law of physics. It is a time machine whisking us away to our past allowing us to recall (bitter) sweet memories . I'm constantly amazed at the contradictory nature of songs. While one may have the ability to mend a broken heart another has the power to reopen old wounds.

Curious as to my ultimate amazement with music? It's gravitational pull. It has simultaneously caused frustrations with certain individuals yet it has brought me so very close to others. And this is where my first introductory blog entry has taken me. The following is not a list of my ultimate favorite songs, by no means. I give you, in no particular order, the songs that have come to mean something between certain individuals and myself. Can you spot the shout out?



Crystal Waters - Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)
Tantric - Breakdown
Hootie and the Blowfish - Let Her Cry
*N SYNC - Tearin' Up My Heart
Coolio - Gangsta's Paradise
Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah! - The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth
Ke$ha - Tik Tok
Clarence Carter - Strokin'
Hall & Oates - I Can't Go For That
Wyclef Jean - Stayin Alive
Kid Cudi - Day 'n' Nite (Crooker's Remix)
Luscious Jackson - "Naked Eye"
Daft Punk - Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
R. Kelly - Ignition
Coldplay - The Scientist
Juanes - La camisa negra
The Fugees - Killing Me Softly
Veruca Salt -"Seether"
No Doubt - "Spiderwebs"
Jamie Foxx - Blame It
The Smiths - How Soon Is Now
Alana Davis - 32 Flavors
Tony Orlando and Dawn - Knock 3 Times
Peter Bjorn and John - Young Folks
Celine Dion - My Heart Will Go On
Depeche Mode - Enjoy the Silence
Madonna - Hung Up
Death Cab for Cutie - The Sound of Settling
White Town - "Your Woman"
David Bowie - Starman
The Apples in Stereo - Energy
Of Montreal -Climb the Ladder
MGMT - Kids
INOJ - Love You Down
Lil John (Feat. Usher and Ludacris) - Lover's and Friends
Hey Champ - Cold Dust Girl