10. OK Go- Of the Blue Colour of the Sky
OK Go is one of those bands that I wasn’t really sure that I would enjoy. I knew about the treadmills and loved the mousetrap-like video for “This Too Shall Pass” but whenever I’d ask for advice on whether or not they were good beyond their videos, it seemed that none of my friends has actually listened to them, even the hip Long Island friends! So, thanks to the magic of the internet, I acquired Of the Blue Colour of the Sky knowing that I enjoyed “This Too Shall Pass” and hoping that the rest would at least be listenable. And it is a privilege to say that the rest of this album is really listenable. The band definitely meshes together very well, and as an audio junkie, it’s awesome to be able to say that the album is mixed really well. And it’s not just the sound of the record, the songwriting is top notch too, frontman Damian Kulash Jr. has a firm grip on how to craft a catchy, fun pop-rock song. In the age where the music video is dying, it’s great to see a band make such bold videos that compliment equally bold pop rock music. I may have to go listen to their back catalogue now.
Notable Tracks: “WTF?” “I Want You So Bad I Can’t Breathe” “End Love”
9. B.o.B- B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray
I think B.o.B is one of, if not the breakout star of 2010. While I’d heard him a lot during the summer of ‘09 with his song “I’ll Be In The Sky” he seemingly disappeared without making much of a mark by the end of the year. But, The Adventures of Bobby Ray came out only a few months later, and made him a certified music superstar. Having three huge crossover hits with huge crossover collaborators (Bruno Mars, Hayley Williams and Rivers Cuomo) took B.o.B from having that one song that you heard on hip hop radio stations to having all of those songs that people quote on their Facebook statuses. And what I love about B.o.B is that he does it all well. It’s pretty clear that he’s the creative genius behind this album, whereas many rappers get handed beats and spit over them, Bobby Ray is undoubtedly steering the ship that is his musical career. And while he’s not the next Eminem or Jay-Z lyrically, his presence is a lot of fun, and he knows how to deliver catchy songs without making his audience feel like they’re being degraded (I.E. Soulja Boy, New Boyz, and my favorite V.I.C.). And while Mars, Williams and Cuomo appear on his radio friendly hits he has the guts to bring on performers that don’t get frequent radio play like Janelle Monae and Lupe Fiasco to help make some good tunes as well. If this list was based purely on mic skills and things that make classic hip-hop albums classic, this would certainly not be here, but to say that this album is not entertaining and absurdly catchy is a lie. And when an artist does that well without screaming “YOU!” a million times on his track, that deserves applause.
Notable Tracks: “Nothin’ on You” “Past My Shades” “Fame”
8. Elvis Costello- National Ransom
I’ve always liked Elvis Costello, but I’ve never really taken the time to listen to anything other than his epic two disc greatest hits album. So when I saw he had a new album out, I decided to actually give it a spin front to back. And it’s great. One of the most consistent albums of the year without question. Costello is an entirely unique entity in the rock and roll world, both historically and at the moment. While too many rock stars fade into the past making music that sounds like its in the wrong decade, or even going as far as to re-record classic hits, Costello makes tunes that sound fresh yet still retain his trademarked sound. Is this an album that re-defines the aging rock star? No, but it shows that you don’t have to sell out to keep the train going. KISS and AC/DC could learn something from Mr. Costello.
Notable Tracks: “A Slow Drag With Josephine” “Dr. Watson, I Presume” “My Jezibel”
7. LCD Soundsystem- This is Happening
I was in the front seat of my buddies car when he put on “Dance Yrself Clean” the first track on This is Happening, and I just had to listen in awe to the audio bliss that it is. The song just builds and builds and builds to the point where you’re almost done expecting a payoff, sort of like Coldplay’s eternal classic “Viva La Vida” but NO! It kicks, and when it does, my brain just imploded and I had to listen to the rest of the album. And what’s great is that the other songs are just as funky and catchy as track 1. I don’t really know any of LCD Soundsystem’s other albums, nor do I really know much about the dance genre in general, but nonetheless I was super satisfied by this album overall. Not too many albums can be so catchy and still have decent lyrics, especially in a genre like this. So hats off to the Soundsystem, good work gentlemen.
Notable Tracks: “Dance Yrself Clean” “Drunk Girls” “Pow Pow”
6. Wale- More About Nothing
Last year Wale released his major label debut Attention Deficit, which got decent reviews, but was a tame, toned down version of the Wale the world got to know through his mixtapes, the most well known of which was 2008’s The Mixtape About Nothing, which quirkily combined serious issues with sound clips from the TV show Seinfeld. When I heard Wale had released a sequel mixtape, aptly titled More About Nothing, I was torn. Having heard Wale lose his lyrical edge on Attention Deficit made me question whether or not it was worth my time, but thinking it could half as good as the original Mixtape About Nothing, I felt it was my duty to at least give Wale the 70 minutes of my time. And what this piece of work does is show that maybe Wale isn’t a major label kind of guy. While so many signed rappers use mixtapes as a way to bide time between albums, Wale actually says a whole lot on More About Nothing, even making mention that he wasn’t proud of Attention Deficit and the way he was treated by the folks at Interscope. At the core of this mixtape is Wale’s incredibly sharp eye for what to say and when to say it, that eye being the missing link on Attention Deficit, where studio executives placed him next to Lady Gaga instead of any serious political and social issues. So where other rappers would use this format to simply keep fans happy, Wale delivers a socially potent album that once again brings in Seinfeld lines to make light of some of the things he talks about. If the folks at Interscope know how to cultivate Wale into a mainstream artist that can say the things he says the way he says them on More About Nothing, he can become an unstoppable force in hip hop, but if they keep him on a short leash, mixtapes may be his only outlet to truly be himself.
Notable Tracks: “The Soup” “The Eyes of the Tiger” “The Work Workin”
5. Vampire Weekend- Contra
After their 2008 self titled debut, Vampire Weekend took absurdly catchy indie rock to a new level that alienated the hipster folks that helped them gain the attention that made them famous. After touring for a while and gaining a nice mainstream following they released Contra in early 2010, and the album certainly packs the same punch as its predecessor in many ways. The guitars aren’t heavily distorted, the subject matter is similar lyrically, and the music is still for the most part a lot of fun. What’s different this time around is the scope of it all. While on the debut Vampire Weekend is sort of a straightforward guitar, bass, drums, sometimes keyboards, vocals kind of band, on Contra they rely more heavily on the keys, as well as some samples, which in my opinion brings the band down. On the song “Diplomat’s Son” there is a just barely recognizable sample of M.I.A. in the background, which made me scratch my chin and say “Is this necessary?” but for their few missteps the band also charges forward musically. Songs like “Cousins” would fit perfectly on the debut, which is good, but increasing the keyboard presence gives us the poppy “Holiday” and tracks like “Run” and “Giving Up The Gun”. It’s pretty clear that this band knows what they’re trying to do and while there are a few more missteps on this album than on their debut, the goods far outweigh the bads on Contra and it is certainly worth any rock fans time.
Notable Tracks: “Cousins” “Run” “Giving Up The Gun”
4. The Dillinger Escape Plan- Option Paralysis
When presented with The Dillinger Escape Plan a few months ago, I was really perplexed. What on earth was mathcore and why should it be worth my time? However, after listening to their 2007 album Ire Works and their Mike Patton collabo-EP Irony is a Dead Scene I found myself unable to not go out of my way to listen to them. I don’t really like modern metal music for a lot of reasons, but Dillinger just hooks me in. Where a band like the Mars Volta just do things in excess for no apparent reason, everything in the Dillinger Escape Plan has a purpose musically, especially on Option Paralysis. While the vocals may be a bit tedious and obnoxious for those who dislike metal, any musician can appreciate the structures of each song and the musicality of each performer. It’s chaotic and schizophrenic, but it all fits like a glove. While I can guarantee most people reading this would not enjoy listening to the Dillinger Escape Plan, for those that enjoy loud, energetic, and best of all, musical tunes, check out Option Paralysis, it will blow your mind and probably your headphones too,
Notable Tracks: “Gold Teeth on a Bum” “Widower” “Parasitic Twins”
3. Gorillaz- Plastic Beach
In my initial review of this album (link here: ) I said I was upset that the mystique of the cartoon characters that made up Gorillaz was gone and that the music was sub-par in comparison to Demon Days. However, as each day passed and I found myself walking the halls of Hofstra, the streets/subways of New York City, and driving around suburban Connecticut, Plastic Beach always seemed to call my name. It is corny and sometimes the guest spots are a tad too mainstream or off-kilter for their own good, but it’s a perfect summer pop album. And this perfection is attained by one thing, the keyboard lines. While not to say the rest of the music lacks, in fact the rest of the music is above par, it’s just the synth lines are perfect. “Rhinestone Eyes” and “Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach” go from cheesy to incredible thanks to these simple synthesizer chords, and they highlight the great songs on this album too, adding depth to more straightforward hip-hop songs like “Superfast Jellyfish”. While I still stand that it’s not as good as Demon Days, after being drawn to this album time and time again, I can’t deny that it is a fantastically fun, and perfect for those sunny days.
Notable Tracks: “Superfast Jellyfish” “Plastic Beach” “White Flag”
2. Kanye West- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
What is there to say about this album that hasn’t been said already? It’s a work of art. It’s an album that from top to bottom does everything it sets out to do perfectly, never once failing. I remember after buying Graduation, I knew the words to every song within a week, and I said to myself that that’s how I would gauge the greatness of MBDTF. And sure enough, within days I was humming along and rapping through every song with Kanye and his guest list of greats like Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Kid Cudi, John Legend, the RZA, and too many others to count. The one thing keeping this song out of the number one position is the fact that the songs run on a bit too long. I find myself prone to skip tracks after it hits the 4 minute mark. But as an album, MBDTF is incredible top to bottom, it just seems that some songs run on a bit out of the context of this work of art. Is this Kanye’s best album to date? Yes. Can he make a better album following this? I hope.
Notable Tracks: “Dark Fantasy” “So Appalled” “Runaway”
1. Big Boi- Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Son of Chico Dusty
After an undeniably catchy introduction that lasts less than a minute, Big Boi’s first words on Sir Lucious Leftfoot sum things up perfectly, as he says “Damn, and that wasn’t nothin’ but the intro.” The brief and casual show of confidence in his work throw this rollercoaster of an album off the track incredibly well. From top to bottom this an awesomely fun and well put together album. Does it tackle the social issues of The Mixtape About Nothing or does it boast a massive guestlist and grand instrumentals like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy? No. But what it does do is deliver infectious song after infectious song with no remorse. Whether he’s rapping about banging girls or kicking someone’s ass, Big Boi always manages to make himself look great, and not just in his lyrics alone, but in his style and presence. While fellow Outkast member Andre 3000 always had an out-of-this-world appeal, Big Boi kept himself rooted in the southern hip-hop landscape that helped make him the star he was in his early career. While not to say that he hasn’t progressed musically, his sound is a bit more ambitious than it was in his Outkast days, he’s not going off the rails quite as much as Andre has been (there’s no cartoon for children that Big Boi is producing, at least not to my knowledge). In this day and age where everything is overanalyzed and hypercriticized, Sir Lucious Leftfoot is an album that indulges in the things that please our ears, catchy beats, simple yet well put together lyrics, and just the notion that we all want to have a damn good time. We should revel in this album, because artists that are still down to have this much fun without being ironic and obnoxious are getting to be hard to find.
Notable Tracks: “Turns Me On” “Shutterbug” “Tangerine”
That's it! Post some comments. I'm going to be posting a little ditty about misc. favorites of 2010 like Wrestler of the Year, Movie of the Year, Song of the Year, color of the year. I don't know what else I can do! CRAZY!
