IKRS Countdown: Onze favoriete albums uit 2010 - Nr. 9

Onze eindejaarscountdown! De tien favoriete albums van Linda, Ilse, en ondergetekende uitgebracht in 2010. Favoriet, omdat iedereen natuurlijk andere dingen leuk vindt en andere connotaties heeft bij de muziek en thema’s/genres die we daarin kunnen terugvinden. Dus dit zijn niet objectief de beste albums, maar de albums die op ons om de een of andere reden de meeste indruk hebben gemaakt. Enjoy!

Our list thus far: 10

Nr. 9 – Linda
Album: All Delighted People EP
Artist: Sufjan Stevens

Yes, I’ve included an EP. But as it is the first ever EP to be released on double vinyl (as in, the thing didn’t fit on the by convention defined one slack of vinyl which managed to hold all EPs up until the moment Sufjan Stevens decided All Delighted People didn’t qualify as an album) I reckon I’ll be granted permission to include it on this list (if not, bite me). And a great EP it is. Just look at the cover! It’s like a ‘Where’s Waldo’ book without Waldo (so far, I’ve located five Sufjans, Leonardo DiCaprio, Aaron or Bryce Dessner – they are far too similar for me to able to tell them apart – an inflatable Santa and the Dalai Lama).

Highlight of the album, sorry: EP, are the two versions of ‘All Delighted People’ which are very loosely based on Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘Sound of Silence’ – and apparently the Apocalypse and existential ennui, whom always make for an interesting combination if I may say so. And of course the fact that it just so happens to come rolling out of Sufjan Stevens’ head only months after admitting in an interview that the whole “I’ll write an album for each and every American State” project might have been a bit overambitious and that he feared he could never write music again. Only to release this beauty and an album to critical acclaim this year. And though The Age of Adz might be wonderful, it doesn’t measure up to this EP. However, it’s still no Illinois, on which even the song titles were a delightful read.
Random Track: 'Enchanting Ghost'

Nr. 9 – Ilse
Album: Crazy For You
Artist: Best Coast

Bethany Cosentino, once part of Californian drone duo Pocahaunted, is the leading lady behind this sunny surf pop outfit called Best Coast. In earlier demos and EPs, Best Coast’s sound appeared somewhat reminiscent of that first band she was in. On the album however, all the noise and reverb vocals have disappeared and have made place for more polished and poppy versions of some of the earlier released songs. Interestingly enough, Best Coast’s boyfriend Nathan Williams (a.ka. Wavves) went down a similar path this year and also produced a more pop oriented record. Preferring his earlier noise work, I have hated Wavves for doing so. Opposed to this I actually love Best Coast’s more poppy sound, and Crazy For You has been the soundtrack to countless bus rides between home and work this summer. A nice comparison would be the Beach Boys, if the Beach Boys were in fact Beach Girls, smoked a bit of weed every now and then, and spent their days waiting by the phone in case that one special person called.

Lyrically speaking, Bethany Cosentino doesn’t appear to be the most poetic, intelligent or diverse of songwriters. The lyrics are mainly about boys, love, the summer and the beach, and Bethany’s limited set of vocabulary is mainly covered by the following words: ‘lazy’, ‘crazy’, ‘miss you’, ‘phone’, ‘with you’, and as you may be able to guess she is not the most innovative when it comes to rhyming either: crazy/lazy, miss/kiss, end/friend . The whole thing makes you feel like you’re reading a thirteen year old girl’s diary, which only supports the atmosphere this album provides; longing for the sun and the beach, and the insecurity that comes with puppy love. All in all, it is not necessarily the most genius of albums, but then again proves that it doesn’t have to be; sometimes fun and simplicity make an album enjoyable enough as it is. And truly, with this one it is summer all year long.
Random Track: 'When the Sun Don't Shine'

Nr. 9 – Stef
Album: Albuterol
Artist: Mike Simonetti & Johnny Jewel

So is this cheating? Well, if Linda can put an EP on her list, I can put a mixtape on it no? Plus it got the proper album release as it was put on vinyl and in shops. This after it was first set free on the internet for nought. Plus I think it is as much of a creation as the monster is a creation of Dr. Frankenstein. It is a sort of get together of different styles and genres which are merged into one single narrative. A narrative although drawing upon previous styles, genres, and works (often by incorporating them wholly in this new narrative), still forms a new work with its own style and function. The new work changes the original function of the songs and endow them into a new aesthetic; the Italians Do It Better aesthetic.

Mike Simonetti and Johnny Jewel are the prime exponents of the Italians Do It Better label. A label which has brought the world Italo Disco bands like Desire, like Glass Candy, like Chromatics: all bands including Johnny Jewel. The sound of this mixtape is that of the bands above, taking old country songs and what not and putting the distinct sound of the label on them. This makes the mixtape full of interesting songs that sound both fresh, innovative yet also familiar (both for the people who know the original songs as for the people who know the sound of the label). It surprises on first hearing, and it doesn’t falter on repeated listens as the songs are just well put together and dancey affairs.
Random Track: 'The Dead of the Night'