2007: Top Ten CDs
I can’t really claim to call my Top Ten List a list of the ten *best* albums of the year, because I haven’t heard all the albums released this year. No, I haven’t even heard all the albums released by major artists this year. All I can do is offer my esteemed opinion on what new music I most *enjoyed* this year.
So in alphabetical order, here are those ten new shiny aluminum-coated plastic discs (yes, this consumer prefers CDs to MP3s)...
Marc Almond - Stardom Road
Marc triumphantly recovers from a near-fatal motorcycle accident with this stunning covers album. Sadness, loneliness, triumph, redemption - it’s all here in one glorious package of a life uplifted by song. (Sanctuary)
Erasure - Light At the End Of The World
Synthpop is one of life’s pleasures, and who better to deliver than Vince and Andy? After last year’s acoustic diversion, Erasure came back with a nice peppy album stuffed full of twinkly songs of love. (Mute)
Imperial Teen - The Hair The TV The Baby And The Band
Yes, the title lets us know what the four non-teens have been up to in the half decade since their last album. Kind of a Fountains of Wayne meets the Go-Go’s, this is smart and hooky pop. (Merge)
Deborah Harry - Necessary Evil
Debbie put out solo album number five (her first for 14 long years) and it was all over the place (in a good way!). As with many a Blondie album, there’s genre-hopping galore, and Debbie has the confidence and authority to nail most of them, altho I remain partial to pure pop gems such as the yearning first single Two Times Blue. (Eleven Seven Music)
Junior Senior - Hey Hey My My Yo Yo
Denmark’s jolliest, fun-est, dancy-est duo around finally have their sophomore album out domestically two years after surfacing overseas. This stuff is catchier than a staph infection, and borrowing Kate and Cindy from the B-52’s for a sing-along really nails the party vibe. (Rykodisc)
Mika - Life In Cartoon Motion
I probably played this one the most. Candy coated pop sung exuberantly by a young, wildly talented songwriter, Mika also delivered my favorite concert of the year last June at Avalon. How could I resist the second coming of Freddie Mercury? (Casablanca)
The Pipettes - We Are The Pipettes
Still more exuberant pop, this time delivered by a trio of polka dot princesses who slice and dice girl group conventions with 2007 attitude. Songs about boys and dancing fill this irresistable little album that had me smiling from the first time I played it. (Cherrytree/Interscope)
Rufus Wainwright - Release the Stars
Nobody does Rufus like Rufus; my way of saying that Rufus is THE drama queen’s drama queen. Back after three years, Release the Stars is another album of baroque, orchestral, theatrical songs, short on pop hooks but long on torch and grandeur. This album’s appeal became more apparent to me after hearing/seeing the bulk of it performed live at Avalon this summer (another of the best concerts of ’07) (Geffen)
Amy Winehouse - Back To Black
Before she was a tabloid headline and bloggers favorite, she was just the little British woman with the big beehive and big voice. This perfectly produced album showcases Amy’s songwriting and vocals, and sounds like some long lost amalgam of 60s girl group and 70s soul. It’s an instant classic. (Universal)
Pylon - Gyrate Plus
Okay, this one’s a cheat: its my vote for reissue of the year. Pylon was the influential Athens Georgia band of the late 70s/early 80s that the B-52’s and REM cite as a favorite. For good reason - their short sharp songs were minimal, jerky, strange and wonderful. The original Gyrate album has never appeared on CD til now, and is augmented with the incredible Cool/Dub single and a few bonus tracks. Fans of new wave bands from the Gang of Four to Bloc Party should investigate this one. (DFA)
