Top 10 Albums of 2010: American Slang - The Galight Anthem

Best Song: The Diamond Church Street Choir

Track List
1. American Slang
2. Stay Lucky
3. Bring It On
4. The Diamond Church Street Choir
5. The Queen of Lower Chelsea
6. Orphans
7. Boxer
8. Old Haunts
9. The Spirit of Jazz
10. We Did It When We Were Young


Before this album I was never a big fan of The Gaslight Anthem. Their influence from Bruce Springsteen is pretty obvious but on The ’59 Sound they end up sounding like the middle point between The Hold Steady and The Killers, two other Springsteen disciples. There is nothing wrong with this sound (“Here’s Looking at You, Kid” was a great song) its just that I would rather listen to the bands that make up their sound.

American Slang works to forge a new identity for the band. The decide to leave the harder punkish sound to The Hold Steady and the spacey echoing sound to The Killers and instead pick the middle speed semi loud rock that Springsteen really excelled at. Turns out The Gaslight Anthem excels at them too. The title track sets the quality of all that follow a great anthem that I could here working in an arena better then any other venue. It just feels so big. The best song here is “The Diamond Church Street Choir”. It feels extremely old school with a pure Rock ‘n Roll pattern and sure enough a Choir in the middle of the song hidden for those who want to notice.

There is really only one downside to this album. Just like most albums by their idol; diversity is not the spice of life. It is hard to talk about each song because they all meld together. But as a cohesive whole or taken individually each track is worth something. Try playing it while driving to get the best effect from the songs.

Now we talked about a sound track and a very traditional rock album. But next we will start to get into more experimental and unusual sounds when we continue our list in 2011, Happy New Years everyone!

Top 10 Albums of 2010: #10 Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Best Song Soundtrack: Garbage Truck
Best Song Score : Katayanagi Twins vs. Sex Bob-Omb

Soundtrack Track List:

1. We Are Sex Bob-Omb
2. Scott Pilgrim
3. I Heard Ramona Sing
4. By Your Side
5. O Katrina!
6. I'm So Sad, So Very, Very Sad
7. We Hate You Please Die
8. Garbage Truck
9. Teenage Dream
10. Sleazy Bed Track
11. It's Getting Boring by the Sea
12. Black Sheep
13. Threshold
14. Anthems for a Seventeen-Year-Old Girl
15. Under My Thumb
16. Ramona (Acoustic Version)
17. Ramona
18. Summertime
19. Threshold (8 Bit)

Score Track List: Oh, just go check Wikipedia before this gets ridiculous

Technically this is two albums but who cares. Scott Pilgrim was a fantastic and fun movie, and a large part of that had to do the movie’s score and soundtrack. Both fit perfectly in context but the test of a good soundtrack is how well it works out of the frames of the movie. This is a test that both pass exemplary.

Now lets take a quick look at the score first. It was primarily written and arranged by Nigel Godrich, an extremely talented producer/engineer who has worked with Radiohead, Pavement, Paul McCartney, and R.E.M. Each piece is a complete composition, a strength that many movie scores fall short on. But each track here portrays a mood that flows into the next. My favorite in this department are “Love Me Some Walking” “The Vegan” and “Bass Battle”. But even if you don’t like scores there are a couple of essentials even for you. “Slick (Patel’s Song)” is complete fun combining a Middle Eastern style of sitars and strings with some great 16-bit video game runs sprinkled through out. Another essential is the great electronica vs. punk “Katayanagi Twins vs. Sex Bob-Omb”, which is the best version of the song “Threshold” on both albums (and trust me there are a LOT of different versions).

The Soundtrack while having even more highlights does also have the misfortune of having some songs that just don’t work out of the movie. Both versions of “Ramona” just aren’t worth my time and bore me without the visuals to help them along. It also doesn’t help that they have the song Beck was emulating earlier on the album. “Teenage Dream” is one of T. Rex’s best with the mid-tempo and light tone with a slight reverb to everything to make this fantastic echo. And I hate to break it to Beck but he is no Marc Bolan and “Ramona” just plods along with an acoustic tone you have heard a thousand times before.

So Beck may have fallen short on his performance on the album, but his writing is extremely strong. If you see the name Sex Bob-Omb listed as the artist it is a must listen. Every one of them is a dirty, riff driven, garage rock standouts. Out of all of them “Garbage Truck” is my personal favorite followed by “Summertime”. “Threshold” is great in any form but I feel the “original” is actually the weakest (as I said the best version is on the score, but the soundtrack also has an 8-bit version).

As for none Sex-Bob-Omb songs we get the fantastic New Wave song “Black Sheep” from Metric. Then there are the two classic rock interruptions (the aforementioned “Teenage Dream” and the Rolling Stones “Under My Thumb”) that break the flow just as I am getting sick of the very hipster feel.

The fact that such great albums as these merely take the number 10 spot just shows what a great year for music 2010 has been. So tune in next time as we climb the ladder towards #1.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #1

1.) Aim and Ignite- fun.
Best Song: Walking The Dog vs. The Gambler vs. Take Your Time (Coming Home)
(hope to find some better quality versions to post here then these YouTube ones eventually)

When this album was announced two conflicting feelings coursed through me. One was of excitement. Nate Ruess of The Format, Jack Antonoff of Steel Train, and Andrew Dost from Anathallo are all amazingly talented and I could see how the could mix. On the other hand I was worried. There was always something kind of intentionally sloppy about the music of The Format and I was unsure how much of this was due to Nate. I was unsure how this would mesh with the perfectly calculated arrangements of Dost. It was only Antonoff I wasn’t worried about since over the course of Steel Train’s two Albums he has proven himself an accomplished guitarist who can switch from loud distortion to heart warming acoustic folk to delightful pop riffs without batting an eye, the only thing that worried me is he would have to play like this was The Format Part II.

Of course as it turned out I didn’t need to worry about anything. With the question being what parts or The Format, Anathallo, and Steel Train will be brought to the table? The answer is: All the right ones! They took Nate’s very distinctive voice and used the Formats sloppiness to tone down the too mechanical arrangements of Dost to make them truly beautiful. From the opening of “Be Calm” we are introduced to something I didn’t expect. fun. isn’t just a project or a one off supergroup; this is a BAND.

Since there is not a single song I don’t like I am going to take this track by track and talk about each one.

“Be Calm” is an almost Queen like track, with very anthem like orchestration with sparse but effective guitar work underneath and an effective use of channels. There is a certain art to recording in mono knowing what ear is going to hear what sound, an art that has not always been acknowledged and has become mostly unused since most artists just record in complete stereo, but if you want to know how to do it this track is a perfect example.

“Benson Hedges” was the first song I ever heard by fun. back when it was just a demo, and at first I was under whelmed. The album version however is a different story. It manages to pay homage to gospel and soul music without actually being a gospel or soul song. Instead it is a pure pop song that sounds like is an old Beach Boys demo they pulled out of Brian Wilson’s basement.

“All the Pretty Girls” makes the Queen comparison all the more apparent. Except it is better then almost any song that Queen has done. The guitar work it fuller, and there is a just enough pomp to have fun (I congratulate myself for not using this word for anything but the band name before this point) but not enough to make you think they are too full of themselves.

“I Wanna Be the One” is one of my favorite songs lyrically. It has music that sounds like a cross between a circus and ska played about ten times slower then usual. I know that sounds crazy but listen closely past the strings to the horns, bass, and guitar.

“At Least I’m Not As Sad (As I Used To Be)” continues Nate’s line of songwriting that started with “Dog Problems” and “Does Your Cat Have A Moustache?” Namely multipart pop songs with impassioned bridges/outros.

“Light a Roman Candle” is quiet simply a beautiful innocent song that shows the boys in a Brian Wilson-esque mood again and it works even better then it did on “Benson Hedges”

“Walking the Dog” is simply the best pop song on the record. Between the Reggae influenced guitar work and the use of electronic noise and voice modification that bridges them into an acoustic bridge there is hardly a pointless note in the entire song.

By the time you get to “Barlights” you know what to expect. great horns, great guitar, great singing, and great use of noise. And you will find them here.

For a change of pace from the rest of the album you have “The Gambler”. This is not a rock song. It is full of piano and strings and fanfares. It is so uplifting and heartfelt. The point where Nate sings “You swore you’d be here till we decided it’s our time/It’s not time you never quit in all your life” always gets me.

Now as far as closers to albums there are closers and then there are closers and “Take Your Time (Coming Home)” is a closer. Of all the songs on the album this is the most Rock ‘n Roll. It is a driven song that lasts 7:53 but never gets boring. Nate only gets more energized and frenzied as the song continues, and the guitar break in the middle and ending solo are some of my favorite Jack has ever done.

So when we get down to it this album is derivative and adds nothing new to the music scene and pushed no boundaries. So what? Neither did Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors but does that stop it from being one of the greatest pop records I have ever heard? Of course not, and it doesn’t stop Aim and Ignite from being the best record of the year. Sometimes you need a revelation, sometimes you need a revolution, but sometime…sometimes you just need some fun.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #2

2.) Get Lucky- Mark Knopfler

Best Song: Border Reiver vs, Get Lucky

Mark knopfler - Border river download

found at bomb-mp3 search engine

Mark knopfler - Get lucky download

found at bomb-mp3 search engine

I have to be honest this is a hard album to talk about. Get Lucky isn’t an album to party to, or dance to, or drive to. It is an album to lay around and really LISTEN to. I will never insult this album by just putting it on in the background; it requires all your attention to truly be appreciated.

Mark Knopfler has always been an old man, even when he founded the Dire Straits back when he was 28. And his formula hasn’t changed much since then. But to hell with that, if it isn’t broke don’t fix it and let all those new guys push boundaries and set trends. As it stands Get Lucky is Knopfler’s strongest offering since Making Movies.

“Border Reiver” starts us off and you wonder if you haven’t put the Lord of The Rings soundtrack on by mistake. But then it transforms into a contemplative jig which, sure enough is about Border Reivers. The other highlight is the title track which is a great unassuming song about how life is hard but sometimes you just get lucky. It is almost a Springsteen song but with out all the pompousness. All the other songs are equally good and worth your time but will take some time to assimilate. This is not a one listen album, but let me tell you; on that 3rd or 4th listen you will suddenly get it and Get Lucky will take you away.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #3

3.) Backspacer- Pearl Jam

Best Song: The End

Pearl jam - The end download

found at bomb-mp3 search engine

Pearl Jam has always had a problem. They always wrote good or even great songs, they were consistent in image and content, and they have some serious playing chops. What they always lacked was the knowledge of when to stop a song. Almost every song they have ever written goes on maybe one or two minutes longer then it should. Either the solo spot it to long or there is a needless outro or a superfluous verse. Either way with the exception of “Daughter” and “Alive” there have been very few Pearl Jam songs that I will sit all the way through when I am not actively listening.

Of course that problem has completely gone away with Backspacer. It starts with four very enjoyable poppy rock songs with the longest lasting 3:02. Now of these four enjoy “The Fixer” the most enjoyable (others might be sick of it being played all over the radio but I never listen to the radio). It feels the most like an old Pearl Jam song with all the unnecessary bits left off while the rest seem like a new face for Pearl Jam which they really do need. Heck “Johnny Guitar” almost sounds like a Panic at the Disco song which I think is awesome.

The second best song comes courtesy of the delightful acoustic ballad “Just Breathe”. The true charm of the song doesn’t lie in Vedder’s homely bleat that is reminiscent of pre-glam rock Marc Bolan, or in the lush orchestration, or the soothing acoustic guitar. Well it does owe a lot to all of these things but the secret is very much the same as the secret of “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles. That delightful background synth. It just chimes in and takes you away. Most of the second half of Backspacer is filled with a type of songwriting that reminds me of The Pixies, short rock songs that are both sparse and fully arranged at the same time (if that makes any sense) and that is just fine with me!

“The End” is an acoustic and a string laden song that is so heartfelt that you can’t help but be breath taken. It sounds like it was written by Chris Smithers, and it sounds timeless as far as rock music is conserned. There is nothing about this song that screams out when it was written. This songs could have been from the 60’s or 70’s and no one would bat an eye.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #4

4.) Nothing Rhymes With Woman- Carbon Leaf

Best Song: N/A

Now this was a tough one to decide on and it almost didn’t make the list. But wait a second how can an album have the fate of either being number four or off the list? Well at first every thing before this was going to be up one and Weezer’s Raditude was going to be number 10. Then I started to think about what barely sat off the list at number 11 and started to think about Carbon Leaf. Carbon Leaf is consistent, one of the most consistent bands I have ever listened to with not a bad song in their catalogue something even the Beatles can’t claim. On the other hand this album didn’t wow me like even some of the ones lower in the list. Another thing is unlike all the below this is not the best Carbon Leaf has ever done, that is Indian Summer.

So why does it still make it? Because a good album is a good album; it didn’t wow me, not because it wasn’t wow worthy, but because I expected great. And since I got what I expected Nothing Rhymes With Woman has risen to number 4 while Raditude now sits off the list at number 11.

So what is it exactly you are looking for from this album? A catchy sing-a-long chorus? Don’t miss “Another Man’s Woman” which will have you singing along before you finish the song the first time. Southern Rock guitar? We have that all over the place like on “What Have You Learned?” Make sure you don’t miss the very Tom Petty-ish “Meltdown” which is one of the most rocking songs on here. There is not best song, and this isn’t like on Long Fall Back To Earth where my favorite just keeps changing. There just is no song that I like better then the others. “Another Man’s Woman” will probably most people’s favorite upon first listen but that is only because it is the most accessible. Once you start listening more and more to the album it will stop standing out; which, for once, isn’t a bad thing.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #5

5.) The Long Fall Back To Earth- Jars of Clay
Best Song: Headphones

Jars of clay - Headphones download

found at bomb-mp3 search engine

Going into the top five stretch, and what do a start with; a Christian Rock album!!! The fact is that this is a good album, no that’s wrong. This is a GREAT album! You see there are two things that Jars of Clay have that make them better then most Christian Bands. Number one is good Taste. The other, and this is related to the first point, is they are subtle. This is not an album of songs about how “Jesus Saves” this is a group exploring all parts of their lives, they just happen to be believers.

The musical approach is very similar to the “Musical Jungle” that is used by The Cure only much more upbeat. There is a sort of echo to this entire album like it is resonating inside of your head, so maybe comparing it to the echoey jangle of Grapes of Wrath is more appropriate. OK so the Best Song up there doesn’t really mean anything. This album is so amazingly even that all of them are equally good. Be it the powerful anthemness of “Weapon” or the jangle of “Scenic Route”. “Headphones” is a stand out for me because it is just so simple; a simple little song about a break up and trying to hide from the world by engulfing yourself in a song. But like I said that means nothing, even as I was typing this I thought about changing the best song to “Scenic Route”. Get this album; don’t think of it as a Christian album, just get it.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #6

6.) Duke Pandemonium- Marmaduke Duke

Best Song: Rubber Lover

Marmaduke duke - Rubber lover download

found at bomb-mp3 search engine

This is a record that belongs somewhere between Talking Heads, DEVO, and The Art of Noise. Meaning it is really quirky dance rock with creative use loops and samples. This is pretty obvious from the opening track “Heartburn” which invites you to dance to its primitive drum machine but makes you question if you should. Of course the next track is called “Everybody Dance” and it sure makes the choice for you, which is to dance only to feel awkward when the danceable part goes away and then comes back.

Everything here has something interesting going for it. Whether it be the weird transitions that feel like they shouldn’t work but yet they do, or the fact that this seems to be all about having fun with the disguise of being super serious; you will never be bored listening to this album. I am particular found of the controlled chaos of “Demon” as it transitions from noise to quasi-funk which then starts to add jangling guitars and cow bell until the funk beat is dropped as it becomes a full blown Brit-pop number. Before once more changing to an avant-garde noise piece and then to a space rave songs and then to a heavenly dream/space pop song for a gorgeous coda.

With out stopping “Demon” transitions into another highlight the hilarious “Erotic Robotic” with the line “erotic robotic/despite the accent we’re Scottish”. The complete Highlight though are the closing two songs. “Rubber Lover” is a favorite of mine. It samples Billy Joel’s “Sleeping with the Television On” which is an oft overlooked gem with a great hook and Marmaduke Duke does not let the source song down. The song then seamlessly flows into “Skin the Mofo” which is a song that needs to be heard to understand its charm.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #7

7.) The Life of the World to Come- The Mountain Goats

Best Song: Hebrew 11:40

Oh thank god this album is better then Lady GaGa, I think I would have been crucified if I put it under her. Now I am going to say something that may surprise some people who know my general opinion of the Mountain Goats. John Darnielle is a genius......but not in the way most people talk about him. Most people talk about how his lyrics are stunning and how these songs hold so much meaning. Well yeah that’s all well and good. He is a good lyrist and he does put himself into his songs but he is no Bob Dylan and he is no John Lennon in those categories. What he is, is an amazing hook writer…well at least with this release. In fact I will call him one of the greatest minimalist hook writers ever… when he bothers to write a hook.

I am not going to talk about the lyrics needless to say they are good like they always are (even the songs I don’t like I admit are strong on this point). The opening song “1 Samuel 15:23” starts out and I hate it. Until 1:36 into it when he decides it is time to actually make this a songs and not just him singing over uninteresting strumming. Even then it is still the weakest number on the entire album, thankfully I don’t need to judge just by the weak songs.

Because “Hebrews 11:40” is the best Mountain Goats song ever! Everything about it just clicks, from the brilliant use of strings to the bright piano. The simple completely irresistible drumming to the felt but only heard if you search for it and then it will be yours to always hear bass. All over the very rudimentary strumming that keeps every thing together. Hardly worse is the delightful folk pop of “Romans 10:9”. There is only one song that I let slip by on resonance alone: “Deuteronomy 2:10”. It bores me so much musically but when Darnielle sings that stupid vocal melody that sounds like it was meant for a different song…well he can get a pass every now and then on heart strings alone.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #8

8.) The Fame Monster Deluxe Edition (includes The Fame)-Lady GaGa
Best Song: On The Fame Monster: Teeth
On The Fame: Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Could Say).


Wait, Wait, WAIT!! Before you go get a pitchfork for me putting Lady GaGa above a group I called the successors of The Who let me explain myself. Lady GaGa is actually a great artist, a brutal force in the mainstream pop industry something that has been missing on the scene for quite a while. She is not dumb. She knows exactly how much spot light she wants and knows how to market herself. But all this would be meaningless if the songs weren’t good. And if you are willing to let a fusion of dance music and glam rock tendencies to infect you ears you will be bobbing your head like there is no tomorrow.

Of course if you are looking for sincere heart tugging from your music you are in the wrong place. This is music to groove, not be breath taken by. The fact that not a single track on either album seems uninspired or cliché amazes me since that is how I feel about most dance music. (I am kind of cheating cause the second disc is her first album from last year) on The Fame Monster the song “Teeth” reminds me of Fleetwood Mac’s “Tusk” but only in the fact that they are both these primal romps that grab you. Also great is the hilarious ABBA like “Alejandro”. As for The Fame, make sure you don’t miss the very pleasant and charming (musically at least) “Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Could Say)”; the part that goes “cherry, cherry, boom, boom” just puts a smile on my face.

Top10 Albums of 2009: #9

9.) 21st Century Breakdown- Green Day

Best Song: 21^st Century Breakdown

This is without a doubt the best Green Day has every done. I could just stop there and let this monster of an album speak for itself but then why would I have bothered writing anything in the first place. With this album Billie Joe Armstrong has defiantly cemented that Pete Townshend is his personal guru. Townshend, with all his rock operas both mini and full (in fact the Itunes deluxe edition of this album has Green Day tackling A Quick One, While He’s Away with awesome results) never sacrificed melody and catchiness for the sake of the “plot”. And that is always the problem I had with American Idiot. It always seemed to focus on its “message” before the music, even if some of it was great.

But that problem is completely gone on 21^st Century Break Down. In fact out of 18 tracks there is only one complete misfire. “Know Your Enemy” is just a dumb bad song. It is a leap backwards for Green Day. Not to loud, not to soft, not to melodic, not to smart, and just plain not to good. But that is just one out of 18! On the other hand the tile track is the absolute pinnacle of what Green Day has become. That Townshend reference wasn’t just for kicks; they are caring the banner of The Who. They rock hard. They have good pop sensibility. They art with out getting too pretentious; and they do it all with out missing a beat. Other songs not to miss are “Before the Lobotomy” “Viva La Gloria (Little Girl)” and “21 Guns”

Top10 Albums of 2009: #10

Hello and Welcome to Half Inch Speakers! This blog will be where I put all my thoughts and opinions about the music I listen to, from the really great to the practically unlistenable. There will be something new here every weekday even if it is only a short blurb and a youtube link.

So with that promise made let us kick things off with what I consider to be the best albums of 2009. Starting with…

10.) Them Crooked Vultures-Them Crooked Vultures
Best Song: Spinning in the Daffodils

What would you expect of a band that consists of Josh Homme (Queens of The Stone Age) on guitar and vocals, Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) on drums (which means I probably should have mentioned his work with Nirvana) and John Paul Jones (My favorite member of Led Zeppelin)? Well if you answered some damn good music then you get your wish. It combines the quirkiness of Queens of the Stone Age with the sheer HUGENESS and funky bass that helped classify Zeppelin. As for Grohl’s contribution to the band… well it is there but you really have to dig for it. But every now and then you can come across a great Grunge/Pop hook that Grohl is so good at.
This group does have something strange going on. Most of the time a group has a problem of making their songs too long. Well when Them Crooked Vultures decide it is time to do a short song, it seems to last FOREVER! Ok well not all of the short songs but “Mind Eraser, No Chaser” seems to never end. On the other hand all the longer songs simple never miss; the opener “No One loves Me & Niether Do I” lets you know right away what they are all about. Though the best song comes with the closer; “Spinning in the Daffodils” is an absolute stunning song. I especially love the intro as the gorgeous piano starts to get interrupted by a feedback crunch, desperately trying to fight it back until the feedback completely takes over.