December 14th, 2005
KYLE RYAN
1) Sleater-Kinney, The Woods (Sub Pop)
Few would have guessed that Sleater-Kinney's dramatic overhaul of their sound would work so well. Stepping beyond the friendly confines of their punky, poppy past, the trio employed the fuzzy, overdriven style of rock from the beginning of the '70s, when punk and classic rock co-mingled. The result was a bold, thoroughly enjoyable album that made its predecessors seem half-baked.
2) Bob Mould, Body Of Song (Yep Roc)
While Sleater-Kinney expanded their sound, Bob Mould returned to a more familiar guitar-rock style after experimenting with electronic rock on 2002's Modulate. Body Of Song marries Mould's distant past with his more recent past; "Best Thing" sounds like a long-lost Sugar song, but "(Shine Your) Light Love Hope" would have worked on Modulate. The middle ground Mould created with Body Of Songs helps satisfy longtime fans, but allows him room to grow.
3) Criteria, When We Break (Saddle Creek)
Criteria's 2003 debut, En Garde, showed Stephen Pedersen's dexterity at blending noisy post-punk with melodic riff-rock, but When We Break has a more realized and powerful feel. The rest of the album can't top the opening salvo of "Prevent The World," with its huge, catchy riffs, but When We Break is solid from start to finish.
4) The New Pornographers, Twin Cinema (Matador)
5) Sufjan Stevens, Illinois (Asthmatic Kitty)
6) Death Cab For Cutie, Plans (Atlantic)
7) Foo Fighters, In Your Honor (RCA)
8) Neil Diamond, 12 Songs (Columbia)
9) Kanye West, Late Registration (Roc-A-Fella)
West's acclaimed debut, The College Dropout, set expectations exceptionally high for its successor. That helps explain Late Registration's cram-in-as-many- ideas-as-possible approach, which renders the album a sprawling mess. But misfires—like the sub-two-minute "My Way Home," which wastes a strong Gil Scott-Heron sample—don't outweigh the album's stronger moments: the ominous "Addiction," the elegant simplicity of "Heard 'Em Say," and the dizzyingly catchy "Gold Digger." West's future albums will probably be similarly messy, but also similarly redeemable.
10) Latterman, No Matter Where We Go…! (Deep Elm)
Punk empathy found fruit in 2005, as a seemingly endless stream of histrionic emo, soulless pop-punk, and earnest, Jesus-loving hardcore groups sold truckloads of records using rigid musical templates. Nonetheless, Latterman's refreshingly raw No Matter Where We Go…! proves how vital indie punk still is, with explosive, catchy songs that couldn't seem less calculated. It isn't groundbreaking, but the classic melodic-punk style never sounds stale when it's in the right hands.
Close, But Not Quite There
The White Stripes, Get Behind Me Satan (V2)
Say Hi To Your Mom, Ferocious Mopes
Kevin Devine, Split The Country, Split The Street
Low, The Great Destroyer (Sub Pop)
Hey Mercedes, Unorchestrated.
What Would Jesus Rock?
Never before have so many religious musicians succeeded beyond the cloistered walls of the Christian music scene. When groups like Creed and Jars Of Clay crossed over a few years back, hipsters (rightly) dismissed them. But it's okay when one of their own, Sufjan Stevens, praises the Lord, because he doesn't sound like a square. He isn't alone; Christian punk bands such as Underoath, Relient K, and others have enjoyed similar acceptance.
Worst Band Names Encountered This Year
Public Display Of Funk
Well Hungarians
Test-Icicles
Snatches Of Pink
Goblin Cock
Swollen Members
Clitastrophy
Libido Funk Circus
Cunninlynguists
Assbaboons Of Venus
Best Worst Band Names Encountered This Year
I Will Kill You Fucker
Let's Get Out Of This Terrible Sandwich Shop
The Asshole Two
When Rocky Beat The Russian
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