Uncut's Top 50 Albums Of 2006
Can we complain about Brit critics fawning over Scritti Pollitti if we haven't listened to the new album? Didn't Arctic Monkeys come out in, like, 2002? And while Stereogum loves us some Steely Dan ... Donald Fagen, really? Over Gnarls? We're getting sort of agitated now. [Deep breath.] It's just a list... Via ILX:
Uncut's Top 50 Albums Of 2006
50) Drive By Truckers – "A Blessing And A Curse"
49) Belle & Sebastian – "The Life Pursuit"
48) Muse – "Black Holes and Revelations"
47) Gnarls Barkley – "St. Elsewhere"
46) Band of Horses – "Everything All Of The Time"
45) The Walkmen – A Hundred Miles Off
44) Kasabian – "Empire"
43) Bruce Springsteen – "We Shall Overcome"
42) Donald Fagan – "Morph The Cat"
41) Jenny Lewis – "Rabbit Fur Coat"
40) Joan As Policewomen – "Real Life"
39) Lambchop – "Damaged"
38) Lily Allen – "Alright, Still"
37) OutKast – "Idlewild"
36) Scissor Sisters – "Ta-Dah"
35) Sonic Youth – "Rather Ripped"
34) Grandaddy – "Just Like The Fambly Cat"
33) Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – s/t
32) Johnny Cash – "American V"
31) Mastodon – "Blood Mountain"
30) Neko Case - "Fox Confessor Brings The Flood"
29) Oakley Hall – "Second Guessing"
28) Tom Waits – "Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards"
27) Yo La Tengo – "I am Not Afraid Of You and I Will Beat Your Ass"
26) TV On The Radio – "Return To Cookie Mountain"
25) Scott Walker – "The Drift"
24) Howlin' Rain – s/t
23) Ghostface Killah – "Fishscale"
22) Espers – "Espers II"
21) Vetiver – "To Find Me Gone"
20) Burial – s/t
19) Beck – "The Information"
18) CSS – "Cansei Der Ser Sexy"
17) Ali Fakra Tourne – "Savane"
16) The Raconteurs – "Broken Boy Soldiers"
15) Brightblack Morning Light – s/t
14) Cat Power – "The Greatest"
13) Lindsey Buckingham – "Under The Skin"
12) Bonnie 'Prince' Billy – "The Letting Go"
11) The Flaming Lips – "At War With The Mystics"
You're really not gonna like the top ten...
10) Thom Yorke – "The Eraser"
09) Sufjan Stevens – "The Avalanche"
08) Hot Chip – "The Warning"
07) Midlake - "The Trials of Van Occupanther"
06) Arctic Monkeys – "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not"
05) Neil Young – "Living With War"
04) Joanna Newsom - "Ys"
03) Comets On Fire - "Avatar"
02) Scritti Pollitti – "White Bread, Black Beer"
01) Bob Dylan – "Modern Times"
Posted at 2:04 PM in Shit List, Year-End List
Tags: Bob Dylan
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I'm pretty thrilled about Joan as Police Woman showing up--now if only that album could get released over here. Joan is from Brooklyn, after all.
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I am pleased with the choice and position of all 50 albums.... this never happens!!
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I actually agree with 2, 7, and 8. Would bump TVOTR and Beck into my top ten and add Yeah Yeah Yeahs (I'm not even a huge fan, great record though), Small Sins, Division Day, and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin. And maybe Cold War Kids.
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What the hell??? How can the Music Maul collective not warrant a listing? This is easily the most original and invigorating mish-mash of styles to be heard across any country or continent, let alone lil' ol Canada alone (yeah so what if they just happen to be from the land of the frigid!).. check it out http://www.musicmaul.com
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I'm cool with the top ten only because Hot Chip, Thom Yorke, and Arctic Monkeys made it up there... which they ought to have...
Btw I know that has fuck all to do with this list... but I saw an advert for Young Love on Stereogum... and I seriously suggest that no one listen to this band as they are the biggest pile of shit I have ever heard in my life... unless you are a 15 year old girl who still likes watching ABC Family and stealing your older sister's Cartel records... I saw them open for Lady Sov the other day and I seriously wish I could get that half hour of my life back... I know it's not your fault Stereogum... I just want to let the people know!
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I'm cool with the top ten only because Hot Chip, Thom Yorke, and Arctic Monkeys made it up there... which they ought to have...
Btw I know that has fuck all to do with this list... but I saw an advert for Young Love on Stereogum... and I seriously suggest that no one listen to this band as they are the biggest pile of shit I have ever heard in my life... unless you are a 15 year old girl who still likes watching ABC Family and stealing your older sister's Cartel records... I saw them open for Lady Sov the other day and I seriously wish I could get that half hour of my life back... I know it's not your fault Stereogum... I just want to let the people know!
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This really isn't that bad. I'm sure the NME's will be much worse. I mean, b-sides albums don't really belong here, but there are quite a few great albums on the list.
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I'm down with 3 and 4, Ghostface should be higher, Beck should be nowhere near the list, Killer Mike, The Hold Steady and the Thermals are missing.
Same old, same old.
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this is skewing a little old... I'm a big Dylan,Neil Young and Thom Yorke fan - but those records were not that great???
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Right, so whatever comes out in November and December is not eligible for the list. . .
Lists lists lists.
I can never really take these things seriously, especially when they include actual crap albums (Kasabian, naturally), groups I actually haven't heard of (Burial? Oakley Hall? Nary a Pitchfork or blog mention to my memory) or are mostly refective of current trends in Pop music (runs the gamut of folk musics, 15 albums by my criteria, from freak to Johnny Cash). The most recent Outkast album is actually really uneven and way too long. Furthermore, does anyone else not really like "the Greatest," or is it just me?
Anyhow, there is certainly no way I have heard, or care to hear, all 50 of these albums, but I am certain that none of them are as good as "Silent Shout" by the Knife or "the Air Force" by Xiu Xiu. So I guess Hot Chip and Thom Yorke will have to suffice.
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I pretty much agree with Jack. Rep the YYYs and some Boris Yeltsin!
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eh? i feel that either gnarls barkley and out kast should be switched or outkast shouldn't even be on the list at all.
Go bob dylan!!
I guess i have a few more items to add to my x-mas wish list.
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The DBT album is *easily* one of the biggest disappointments of the year and should not be included on any one's Best Of list much less a list that does not include the new Lucero cd. Also, IMO, The Raconteurs cd should be in everyones top 10.
That last part is just opinion mind you....but the DBT shit is plain fact.
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The DBT album is *easily* one of the biggest disappointments of the year and should not be included on any one's Best Of list much less a list that does not include the new Lucero cd. Also, IMO, The Raconteurs cd should be in everyones top 10.
That last part is just opinion mind you....but the DBT shit is plain fact.
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Terrible.
Where are Rubies and Boys and Girls in America?
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clap your hands say yeah?
clap your hands say, "what the hell- didn't that come out in '05?"
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Strange, I didn't realize any good records were released this year...
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Hell yeah on the Lucero record. While it's no Tennessee, it's still pretty great and is easily one of the top 50 albums of 2006.
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(Burial? Oakley Hall? Nary a Pitchfork or blog mention to my memory)
fwiw, Burial LP was reviewed and recommended by P4k, and two Oakley Hall LPs from 06 were reviewed.
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Lists are funny, and people's responses to lists are even funnier. Some good choices, some out-of-the-blue poor ones, some hero worship, and some oversights. What else would you expect?
Everyone should head over to rateyourmusic.com and help crank up the indie snobbery on the "best of the year" list, if you care about that sort of thing.
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tv on the radio below at war with the mystics, beck and css? wtf?
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(Burial? Oakley Hall? Nary a Pitchfork or blog mention to my memory)
fwiw, Burial LP was reviewed and recommended by P4k, and two Oakley Hall LPs from 06 were reviewed.
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any Top 50 of 2006 list without Califone's Roots and Crowns is a total joke....no Destroyer or Decemberists absurd. Midlake is good, but no way in the top 10. Band of Horses probaby deserves higher. Sufjan and Joanna are way too high. Liars, Man Man, the Knife, and esp. M. Ward deserve to be AT LEAST in the Top 50. God, i could go on forever...
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The Lips should have been in the Top 10 in my opinion. That was an amazing album.
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The Lips should have been in the Top 10 in my opinion. That was an amazing album.
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The Lips should have been in the Top 10 in my opinion. That was an amazing album.
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No Jandek? No Lily Allen? What's the matter with these people?
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oh, it's that list time of year!!! so pointless and so fun.
out of that list, the only ones of those that are a lock for making my top 25 are ghostface, tv on the radio, mastodon and band of horses. ghostface might actually end up as my #1 whenever i get around to making it...it's only competition so far is the exploding hearts comp and destroyer, but there is still 2 months to go.
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Just bad :-( Muse and Band Of Horses should at least be in the Top 15....
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julie,
as an eight-year-old, i'm appalled at your taste - or lack thereof. the lips have been milking the same poo since i was in diapers.
oh, man, i said poo.
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It's Uncut. Think of it as where Rolling Stone's tastes go to wither and die.
LOL at Scritti Politti, though.
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Honestly, if people don't recognize the majesty of "Destroyer's Rubies" then they don't deserve to compile a list or comment on one. Spend a week listening to Bejar's latest--nothing in the last two years is as complex, intelligent, and funny.
At least there's no Hold Steady.
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This just goes to show that it was a sub-par year.
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yay for joan as police woman!
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Yes, I must second the POO.
Here Comes The Future... The Future Is Now! Much better than at least 3 bands on this list, possibly 47, depends on your own subjective criteria.
http://poopoodles.com/menu.htm
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The list is not that bad, but I'm missing Camera Obscura, M. Ward and The Knife
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That Midlake album is completely average.
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scitti politi makes this list null & void....
& the absence of m ward makes me very sad....
post war should be on everyone's top ten list....
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great to see Midlake so high... it's still in my top 3
the rest of the top 10 is a bit eh imo
agreed BoH is too low
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oh, and that Scritti Pollitti at #2 = lol
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I must say I'm disappointed that Islands is nowhere on the list.
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I'm pleasantly surprised by this list. We're always going to disagree, but this is a lot easier to take than other lists I've seen. I, too, am glad to Midlake up there. But I also think M Ward & Destroyer are sorely missed.
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I was going to get mad about this, but whatever. I'll wait like a good indie yuppie for the Pitchfork list to get upset over.
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How on earth did At War With the Mystics end up at #11?? Where's Josh Rouse? Where's Islands? Where is Film School, darn it! I think I agree with Modern Times though, have to say, it is going to become a rather 'timeless' album. :P
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no black angels = a shit list.
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No M.Ward or Camera Obscura is rather disappointing. And as amazing as Sufjan is, Avalanche shouldn't be allowed in. Biggest let down for me though is the overlooking of Regina Spektor.
Ah well. Lists are just peoples opinions. I'm sure no two people would be able to agree, so in that sense it's not TOO bad, I guess.
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putrid. just a putrid attempt at a list...
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and no grizzly bear from any of you?!
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What!? No "STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD"?
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people, stop dissing 15 year old girls.
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Evangelicals should be on here, definately my favorite of 2006 and why is cyhsy on here? thats 2005. oh well who even reads uncut.
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where the hell is goldfrapps supernature???? that belongs on this list..
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1. Sunset Rubdown.
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bob dylan? who's that? is he related to that dreamy guy from the wallflowers?
but seriously folks. bob dylan? one of the greatest musician / songwriters of all time: check. yet another example of a genius who should have stopped recording solo albums after 1976: CHECK!
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Hell yes.
SUNSET RUBDOWN - Number one
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You know who sucks? Kasabian. So, so much.
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Whither Josh Ritter?
And no Margot & The Nuclear So And So's? Blasphemy!
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No Chad Vangaalen?
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I'm sad there's no Junior Boys, the Blow, Thermals... o well.
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Xiu Xiu, Scott Walker, Sunset Rubdown?!
And why did Outkast make it on there at all? That album blew.
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What about 120 days?!?
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this list doesn't have an animal collective album on it, therefore it is incomplete
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The Magic Position- Patrick Wolf.
His shit's gonna be better than all of 50-35 combined.
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See? Those damn English! Apparently, the Hold Steady and the Decemeberists haven't been released. Or the Uncut staff has been replaced by a dozen retarded monkeys.
Hot Chip are the only ones who deserve to be in the top 10.
Oh yeah, apparently the don't have calenders across the pond 'cause it's fucking november you sphincters. And CYHSY was released in 2005, which is not in 2006.
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no regina? no panda band? no decemberists, goldfrapp or m ward? cookie mountain in the bottom half???
and i do love sufjan, but the avalanche IS NOT AN ALBUM. albums are crafted, with a dynamic and an aesthetic. it's a well-put-together compilation of fantastic material but it's a compilation nonetheless. you wouldn't put a best-of on there, would you?
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There is no Mars Volta [Amputechture]. This list officially Void.
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I can't believe Michael Leviton wasn't on this list!
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although kudos for JXPW - there is some justice....
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Somehow, looking at this list, I get the feeling 2007 is going to at least seem like a very good year...
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i guess those brits dig Ethan Miller since they have Howlin' Rain (whose shows here in LA weren't packed) and Comets On Fire. Kudos for putting Avatar so high on the list. But otherwise like someone before mentioned, "I'll wait like a good indie yuppie for the Pitchfork list to get upset over"
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band of horses should be way higher. the new flaming lips album a little lower. CYHSY should also be higher. and hot chip isnt THAT great.
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guillemots should be in there.
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The best thing going in their Top 10 is Hot Chip. I've got them at #18 (so far). But it's early November, nobody should be putting out a final 2006 list at this point. I update my Top 20 regularly from June on, here's where it stands as of now at newmusicnation.com:
http://newmusicnation.com/top-20-albums-standings/2006/11/07/top-20-albums-of-2006-as-of-11706/
Glaring omissions from their list that are included on mine are: The Evens, The Coup, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Blood Meridian, The Hold Steady and The Decemberists. Plus, TV On The Radio should be higher.
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i can't believe there is no Knife and Grizzly Bear
Uncut is clearly idiotic
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On a no-risk list like this one M Ward should be in there, as should Juana Molina, and Tom Verlaine's 2 releases. But it's about what I would expect.
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Josh Ritter, Islands, Decemberists, Mountain Goats and Califone are list worthy
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and morrissey, YYYs, Guillemots, Strokes????
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i'm surprised that the YYY's new one didn't make the list. but i'm pleased that scott walker's album is up there.
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how the f*ck did Sunset Rubdown not make the top 5, much less the top 50??!?!?! same goes for The Knife.
and where is Islands' album?!?!?! jesus, this list is terrible.
i'm not a Holdy Steady fan....it's just not my thing, but it's better than half the sh*te on this list.
TV on the Radio should be way higher.
I love that Ghostface got some kudos.
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I thought they liked Larrikin Love and Graham Coxon over there. Surprised not to see them on the list.
I guess the British have never heard of Film School or Destroyer, try to ignore the Scots (Camera Obscura) and the Swedes (Love is All, I'm From Barcelona -- at least six Swedish indie records should make everybody's Top 100 lists this year if they're being honest), and tremendously underrate Band of Horses -- all top ten for me this year. If Monkeys was really 2006 (my ipod says it was!) then they got that about right.
I've got Hot Chip as undisputed #1 this year, though.
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Neko Case should be in the Top 10. HEr new record is amazing.
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When dads don't have shelves to fit or kids to pick up they make lists like this ... motherfuckers.
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'A Hundred Miles Off' by The Walkmen was the best record of the year. I'd throw Sunset Rubdown in there, The Spits and Liars also.
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Have any of you FUCKNUTS even HEARD the Scritti Politti record?
Maybe not the best album of the year but neither is it the Scritti Politti of 1987, if that's yer reference point.
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nobody cares about sunset rundown in the UK
I wonder why beirut didn't make it. grizzly bear surely should be there. I agree with their lack of M. ward as well, they really screwed up.
And to think the brits wouldn't put Jarvis in!
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UKers like really shit bands.
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The Black Angels should be there.
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Am I the only one who thinks M. Ward is completely overrated? Lyrics are OK, music makes me slip into a coma. Nothing new there, at all.
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Very bad list.
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Don Fagen: Immense.
Sufjan Stevens: I love the guy, but this isn't a record to even think twice about.
Joan As Police Woman: Yes!
Yo La Tengo: Oh, yes!!
Grandaddy: I hate to say it but, no.
Hot Chip: Mneh.
Neil Young: I listened to it only once and nearly cringed to death. (Why does political disgruntlement have to sound so tuneless. See also: Thom Yorke.)
Espers: mmmmmmm!
Midlake: Proper. So very proper.
Lambchop: I dig.
The Flaming Lips: Patchy, but 'Sound of Failiure' is probably track of the year.
(On the subject of M. Ward: it's ridiculous that he isn't in here. This Ryan Adams-Devenda Banhart hybrid is exactly the kind act Uncut usually creams it's jeans over. I'm convinced that they're just bitter that Word mag - an Uncut rival - hyped him before they got the chance.)