Paul's Hot Tops

Alright Top Gobblers, Here's the list of the century. Well actually it is my best of the best that came out in the first half of the year before I went to Afghanistan, excluding the lots of albums I forgot to take with me and so couldn't give them good listens or forgot about them. So probably a totally useless list basically, but lists rule and I also haven't posted on this blog yet and ought to get one in before they get me.

I was going to post album art, but you guys know what they look like and I am lazy. Also there isn't much hip-hop because most of the good stuff came out after I left. but it wasn't a good year for it anyway from the looks of it. And actually the 25 was an accident.

25. Supersilent - 8: This would probably be higher but I didn't have it in ganerstans and so couldn't really listen to it. But Frankly Supersilent is amazing and have only gotten progressively better since the beginning. Which is hard to do with so many albs (They started at 1). Most of you all won't be into them as they are sort of Avant-Garde/Noise/Rock/Jazz/Scandanavian Intense Dark Shit but if you feel like being a little adventurous in your listening, give it a go. Actually Not knowing much about this one, I would probably recommend "7" first.

24. Pharoah Monch - Desire: Also down here because I forgot to take it to afghans. But It sounded good.

23. Marissa Nadler - Songs III, Bird on the Water

22. Bjork - Volta: Good at first, disappointing later, still Bjork.

21. Black Moth Super Rainbow - Dandelion Gum

20. Fennesz/Sakamoto - Cendre

19. Dntel - Dumb Luck: Disappointing at first, good later, still not as good as you hoped.

18. The Beautiful Berish Wereish - Three Gentlemen Dogs with Darcy and Hank: Kind of weird including an album you helped make, but I made this with Joe and Steven and Darcy and Hank and it has some amazing moments of sound. Toot my own horn!

17. Simian Mobile Disco - Attack Decay Sustain Release: Didn't take this to ganers so maybe could have gotten worse but first impression was good.

16. Avey Tare and Kria Brekken - Pullhair Rubeye (re-reversed): Jonny Rice is wrong. The reversed version of this rules. The officially released one wasn't that interesting but the reversed one was very nice. 

15. Deerhunter - Cryptograms

14. Feist - The Reminder

13. Justice - Cross: Good although I feel most of the best songs were already realeased on eps and stuff. but whatevs

12. Explosions in the Sky - All of a Sudden I miss everyone: Sure it was more of the same, but the same is quite good. Plus the album title is something i find myself thinking a lot during my times away.

11. The Field - From Here we Go sublime: Real nice.

10. Battles - Mirrored

9. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha: Highly Underrated, perhaps his best album yet. a fine gent if there was one.

8. Gui Boratto - Chromophobia

From this point on, all the albums are insane awesome masterpieces in my view and also pretty hard to make a proper order for. so the numbers and pretty much arbitrary and fake to make a list.

7. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam: Actually I didn't feel like this was any kind of big move or change for Animal Collective, but since they are awesome dudes, they don't really need to do that kind of thing. It was a good year for them and their members. Nice work boys.

6. Arve Henriksen - Strjon: Good Gravy! I have a lot to say about this but mostly just geez. Absolutely underrated and mostly ignored album of the year. So beautiful and good. Ambienty/electronicy avant tape jazz from one of the main bros of the aforementioned Supersilent. Get in on it!

5. Dan Deacon - Spiderman of the Rings: I was actually cool enough to have had a previous album by him brought him out into the world of awesome. However, I mostly ingnored that album because it wasn't that good. But this albums is a dream of dreams from the rightful heirs of Devos throne to supergeeky awesome jamhood. Lost of people didn't like it probably but I could care less. they are probably dummies anyway.

4. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver: More Good jobs all around. I love the DFA and I hope they never lose it. really coming into it though with this album, this is much more of a real album then thier last one. yeah! What an interesting comment!

3. Stars of the Lid - And Their Refinement of the Decline: Another underrated one although I can see that ambient music doesn't generate much hype. At first I thought there was no way anything could top "tired sounds of" thier last outing which is perhaps my favorite record of all time. But This is close. So sweet, so filling your brains and hearts with print outs of sweet candles and hamhocks. Geez ow! What a gentlesmans delight!

2. Panda Bear - Person Pitch: Hell yeah! What more can be said, a summer record for spring, a spring record for winter, a spring in your step, a cat on your hide, an old man on your tail! Call the cops and the coptic church, good times are heard to be herded around! and this is the main herder! if only there was a new nerf herder album! this would be it!

1. Rhys Chatham - A Crimson Grail, For 400 Electric Guitars: More than hell yeah! How about hell yeah times 400. I take back things I said before, this is the most underrated, under-talked about, just under-known album of the year. Even if this album had sucked it still would have ruled for being a symphony for 400 guitars! 400! His previous top of 100 guitars was also the amazing "an angel moves to fast to see." I don't know if that tops that but this is incredible. Its like GY!BE if they were absolutely amazing and magnified by a million. When you think of 400 guitars you probably think of a balls out rock fest but this things got so much sound that its practically an ambient album or an album of just beautiful sound. It's live, a dream, and a real live dream, from france! I want to say some beautiful bonners about this but I don't have any right now and basically you should just butt out and put it into your ears. You need it bad, especially if you are like me and love really long songs of so much sound and your body elevating to higher planes of goodies grubers. Get with the programs! An album entirely made of product placements for living 12000 years and then returning as the one true being of all combinations! welcome to the combinatorium!

----------------------------------------------

Well there it is...Coming soon...best old stuff and best movies, although probably just old stuff, because I could see many new movies.... oh yeah!