i dont normally post mp3’s from non-philly bands, but this song has always summed up my feelings about new year’s eve, quite possibly the worst holiday for a single person ever. [i am a fan of new years day because mummers are crazy awesome.] hope you are safe, wherever you may be!

scrawl, “11:59 it’s january” from the working holiday! simple machines compilation.

my last show of the year for WPRB. see, this would have worked awesomely except that we didnt have the records for fiery furnaces and teeth. well, they were locked away in the music office for some weird reason. even when shows are superstructured and i know what im playing, sometimes it still gets a bit hectic. i got my first call from an inmate! he requested antony & the johnsons, which i was gonna play after the last two songs but i ran out of time. would have been a good closing set. regardless, this was a really fun show!

kinski - hot stenographer - alpine static - #10
golden ball - signature abstract - 7″ - N - #10
jennifer gentle - i do dream you - valende - #9
audible - sky signal - sky signal - #9
fiery furnaces - tropical iceland - EP - #8 (sub for rehearsing my choir)
the teeth - when someone hits you - s/t - #8 (sub for “carry the wood”)

sleater kinney - whats mine is yours - the woods - #7
hail social - get in the car - s/t - #7
electrelane - one two three lots / bells - axes - #6
espers - flaming telepaths - the weed tree - N - #6
blood on the wall - stoner jam - Awesomer - N - #5

oxford collapse - proofreading - a good ground - #4
b.c. camplight - blood and peanut butter - hide, run away - #4
the a-sides - sidewalk chalk - hello, hello - #3
mary timony - 9×3 - ex hex - #3

spoon - i turn my camera on - gimme fiction - #2
sympathizers - american tourister - dread at the control - #2
the spinto band - oh mandy - nice and nicely done - #1
Constantines - love in fear - Tournament of Hearts - #1 - the friggin’ best record

volcano suns - opening - 7″ - now, its time for the “honorable mentions”
the hold steady - stevie nix - separation sunday
Coyote - sugar - split 12″ w/ bottom of the hudson
Fireball - archangels thunderbird - Blessed Be - N - this is the band i want to be,
free kitten - party with me punker - our band could be your life - C - minuteman tribute from 1995
the joggers - ziggurat traffic - with a cape and a cane
hockey night - for guys eyes only - keep guessin
lee, jae-won - hayley - s/t - N

matthew sweet - teenage female - superdeformed ep - recorded in princeton, circa 1990!
the blow - hey boy - mp3

clockcleaner, silk city
unrest, black cat
belegost / amateur party / true if destroyed / partyline, space1026
psychic ills / jennifer gentle, church of the friendly ghost
sonic youth / cat power, university of pennsylvania
spinto band / PAS/CAL, manhattan room
the evens, princeton
electrelane, khyber
spoon, TLA
bloc party, trocadero
superchunk, cat’s cradle
oxford collapse / constantines at north star bar, empty bottle, bowery ballroom
cause co-motion, bryn mawr college
mike wexler, silk city
annie, north star bar
sufjan stevens, TLA
blood on the wall, vox populi

Music Festival of the Year: Intonation Festival, Chicago

these are also fantastic records, in no particular order:

the sames, you are the sames
black taj, self-titled
portastatic, bright ideas
sally crewe and the sudden moves, shortly after take-off
the eames era, double dutch
robyn, robyn
love is all, nine times that same song (2006’s first best record)
various artists, nao wave / the sexual life of savages
united state of electronica, self-titled
the hold steady, separation sunday
lcd soundsystem, self-titled [come on james murphy, it's time to admit WPRB inspired you to write "losing my edge"!]
the joggers, with a cape and a cane

notekillers, notekillers (1977-1981)
dragon city/perfectionists split 7″
future tips, girls on wheels
pattern is movement, stowaway
plastic little, self-titled ep
the yah mos def demo
national eye, roomful of lions
shai halperin, “tale of the city”

CONSTANTINES, TOURNAMENT OF HEARTS

So, here I am at number one and I’ve run out of things to say. Well, that’s not true. I just don’t know where to begin with this record without writing a book. Since I’m a fan of short stories, let me keep it brief - if “Gimme Fiction” was fiction, “Tournament of Hearts” is a non-fiction about the working stiffs “from Herald Square to the heavens, earth, and sea.” And what bigger overarching theme for my year is there than work? My parents sold their business after 35 years of ownership, my own job, my brother finding his first real job as a cop [and the disturbing thought that the state of NJ has allowed him to use firearms] – I could go on. Documentary rock? Perhaps. Aside from all of that, it’s the first record the band has done that doesn’t strive to replicate their live shows [best live band of the next 50 years!]. You can almost see the band breathing, pulsating from underneath the cellophane, growing into a continuously amazing creature.

THE SPINTO BAND, NICE AND NICELY DONE

For every moment that makes me want to pack up and move to parts unknown, along comes a moment that makes me never want to leave here. Case in point: the way that we’ve welcomed Wilmington, DE’s native sons the Spinto Band with loving, open arms. I’ve watched warehouses filled with folks erupt at the first strummy mandolin sounds of “Oh Mandy”, which is enough to make you want to believe in a higher power. Say hello to Philly’s greatest band.

SPOON, GIMME FICTION

From the hooded figure on the cover and heavy stock of the packaging, to talk of delicate places and dual identities, “Gimme Fiction” might be the most opaque album on this entire list. It’s easy to figure out what Britt Daniel discusses in the songs because they’re so obviously narrative, but I have to wonder: Why? What’s behind it? That’s the most frustrating thing about “Gimme Fiction” – the fact that I’ve had the record for nearly a full year and still can’t figure it out. Couple with all the rumors about the sequencing [which were flatly denied by the band], it’s doubly puzzling. That’s why it’s the second best record of the year for me. “Gimme Fiction” is a record that doesn’t serve up easy answers, squarely putting the responsibility of what the record is about in the hands of the listeners. It’s like a giant puzzle that I’ll keep playing for years to come.

SYMPATHIZERS, DREAD AT THE CONTROL

In the span of three weeks, three different mailing lists I read all discussed politics and music. It was kind of crazy, especially since each list had a different take on the subject. I suppose that if it’s done right, political music can be awesome. But most of the time the music and message wind up being convoluted, sometimes downright condescending for the intended audience. Last thing we need is another George Bush Is A Bad President song, ‘cause like, we already fucking know that. “Dread At the Control” is highly aware of this and thus internalizes the discourse, creating perfectly hummable tunes about bioterrorism, espionage and corporate media, all the while sounding like Pavement-meets-a- Roland-808-in-a-non-Clear-Channel-bar. “Dread” is smart but doesn’t alienate and grows more engaging with each listen.

[writers note: man, so many of you objected to that "second tier" remark in my last post! you know what i mean -- those bands are awesome. now let's get cracking on repogramming the rest of the world to think the same way!]

MARY TIMONY, EX HEX

Before New Weird America was even a blip on the hipster radar, Ms. Charming Melodee was getting slammed by critics left and right for sounding too folky, too D&D. But then Devendra, CocoRosie, etc, etc were lauded for these exact reasons. My Point Is This: Mary Timony is way ahead of all y’all motherfuckers; take notice when she changes gear because at some point in the near future, every band will jump her train. More shocking than the change of stylistic pace is the infusion of religious, nay, Christian, imagery into her secret fantasy world of whores, vampires and pirates, especially when it’s used to paint scene after scene of being screwed over by friends. The end result is the rock-solid record we’ve been expecting from Mary all along and sign that change is a-coming.

THE A-SIDES, HELLO, HELLO

The following statement could potentially have me kicked out of “the scene” and dude, I hope so: 2005 marks the year where Lilys became irrelevant. For those of you who continue to claim “Ginger” as the Greatest Philly Indie Rock Song Ever, it’s time get a clue, ‘cause that shit is so O-V-E-R. I mean, don’t you think it’s kinda sad/scary/etc that a song/band from over ten years ago holds this vise-like grip on the city? Strangely enough, the greatest approximation of Kurt Heasley and his band of merry thieves are The A-Sides, a group of hardcore dudes who stumbled onto a treasure trove of Beatles, Jam and Spiritualized albums. But what’s amazing here is that the intent was never to be a tribute act; their eagerness and energy are what sets them miles apart from the rest of the bands in this city.

BONUS: have a listen to their contribution to the plain parade comp!

if you want to hear my top three records of 2005, tune into WPRB today. i’ll be on the air from 2:30 to 5:00pm EST. you can listen in online here or find it at 103.3FM on your radio dial. but you knew that already, right?

[ps: no worries, ill post the final three here as well]

OXFORD COLLAPSE, A GOOD GROUND

Reasons why I adore the Oxford Collapse, personal secret-note-passed-in-third-period edition: First, no one’s bothered to replicate the Feelies this flawlessly [at the very least, on "Cracks in the Causeway"] since the final Butterglory album in the greater scheme of this whole “post-punk revival”; perhaps this is its greatest crime. I appreciate that you see the value in second-tier bands like Spiral Jetty and the Embarrassment. [so much for the latter that you sought out the artist of that band's album covers for this record.] Second, you brought your A-game this year, my friends. Fuck, I saw you play, like, three times in the span of a month and a half and each time I was blown away. Third and final reason: Few bands can hold a candle to your smart, smart songs and brilliant, energetic, always on-point execution. You deserve infinite applause, packed rooms and riches beyond your wildest dreams. Why? Because you guys are the real deal. And yeah, I know reasons #2 and 3 are the same but the more ink I can shed on you, the better, even if I risk sounding like a sycophant.

B.C. CAMPLIGHT, HIDE, RUN AWAY

Just how do you write about a record that made you shake and shimmy with glee on a weekly basis? Simply put, Brian Christinzio beat the New Pornographers at their own game. Judge and jury, allow me to present exhibit A, “Blood and Peanut Butter”, a track so much fun that I’m starting a petition to have it replace “Summer Nights” in the musical Grease. If that is not remarkable enough for you, Exhibit B: B.C.’s auxiliary players, specifically Cynthia G Mason in what might be her finest moment since appearing on the Believer mag comp earlier this year. Cynthia’s introspective and plaintive voice usually finds itself on more stripped-down haunts, so it’s a complete shocker to hear her totally blissing out, all Neko Case-like.

BLOOD ON THE WALL, AWESOMER

Lately it seems indie rock bands fall into two categories – “jokey” and serious, leaving almost no space for a band that can display characteristics of both. On “Awesomer” [dude, best title of the year!] you’re in for lots of laughs without poking fun at any particular person, except maybe for themselves. In this day and age any self-respecting hipster [yay, oxymorons!] would pick some obscure freak folkie’s career to resurrect, but BOTW picks – WTF? – miggy littleton of motherfucking IDA. The fact that they are so comfortable with their indie rockness and not afraid to flaunt it is only part of the charm. If you’re not laughing at the thought of a song called “Stoner Jam” and, and, and, thoroughly rocked by its muddy three-chord romp, perhaps it’s time to remove the stick from your ass.

[note: botw have the best google image search ever!]

TRUE IF DESTROYED, SELF-TITLED

one of the big problems about philadelphia is that its so skewed to the pop side of things and yes, plain parade might be complicit in this. but you know, we’re not totally to blame, philly has always want to divide and not unite. tucked away in the basement shows of west philly, true if destroyed raged against the dying of the light, like a mission of burma meets pretty girls make graves, until it was their turn to meet their maker. if “the scene” suffered any casualties, it was these two things — one, the departure of TID’s julia gaylord, quite possibly one of the city’s best women musicians, for the west coast; two, the fact that this record went largely unheard by the city at-large.