best of 2006

so i've finished my best of 2006 list. instead of a top 50 albums, i cut it down to 30 this year. but there are still some gems to be found here in this list. as always check out my best of list from previous years here:

best of 2005
best of 2004
best of 2003

once again, offer your thoughts and if you have a list of your own, post it. even if it's just a top 5, anything.



Top 30 Albums of 2006:

30. Yo La Tango
I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass



29. Camera Obscura
Let's Get Out Of This Country



28. Junior Boys
So This Is Goodbye



27. Cursive
Happy Hollow



26. Girl Talk
Night Ripper



25. Belle & Sebastian
The Life Pursuit



24. Swan Lake
Beast Moans



23. Xiu Xiu
The Air Force



22. His Name Is Alive
Detrola



21. Sparklehorse
Dreamt For Light Years In the Belly of a Mountain



20. Band of Horses
Everything All The Time



19. Bonnie "Prince" Billy
The Letting Go



18. The Fiery Furnaces
Bitter Tea



17. Jenny Lewis With The Watson Twins
Rabbit Fur Coat



16. Sufjan Stevens
The Avalanche



15. Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Show Your Bones



14. Mogwai
Mr. Beast



13. Danielson
Ships



12. Neko Case
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood



11. We Are Scientist
With Love And Squalor



10. Candy Bars
On Cutting Ti-Gers in Half and Understanding Narravation



9. Boy Omega
The Black Tango



8. Built To Spill
You In Reverse



7. TV on the Radio
Return to Cookie Mountain



6. Joanna Newsom
Ys



It seems everyone is listening to Miss Newsom these days and why not with an album like Ys? Although the album contains only 5 songs and runs just under 56 minutes, I had no problem listening to this album over and over again. Many critics seem to claim this as her best album, some even claiming album of the year or ever for that matter. I still stick by The Milk-Eyed Mender as her best effort, but it's very close.

5. The Decemberists
The Crane Wife



How a band like the Decemberists managed to crack my top five two years in a row is beyond me, but somehow they did it. Not only that, but they did it with an album (in my opinion but is very debatable) that's better than their previous effort. Moving to a major seems to have had no effect on the outcome of this album, which is good to see. My only problem is that The Perfect Crime #2 is an awful song and doesn't belong on this album, but other than that, you couldn't ask for a better record.

4. Sunset Rubdown
Shut Up I Am Dreaming



Spencer Krug is one busy dude. Not only a full-time member of Wolf Parade and Swan Lake (side project with Dan Bejar and Carey Mercer), he also has this side project of his, Sunset Rubdown. Very much in the same vein as Wolf Parade, Shut Up I Am Dreaming offers Krug's signature style, but with some varying differences. If Krug continue's musically like this, we may have another indie musically genius on our hands.

3. The Long Winters
Putting The Days To Bed



All I can really say about this album is that it is perfectly constructed pop/rock music. Every song, lyric, note, sound blends together in perfect unison. Frontman John Roderick couldn't have constrcted a better pop-sensibility for an album than this. Much more than just a solid effort, I highly reccomend this.

2. Grizzly Bear
Yellow House



First off, if you haven't heard this album yet, you can listen to the whole thing here. Second, these guys are really in a genre all on their own. Yellow House is the quintessential album of 2006. No other album showcases a better mixture of dense atmospheric music coupled with numerous instruments that each play a very inergral part in each song. Honestly, listen to the whole thing and give it a couple listens.

1. Destroyer
Destroyer's Rubies



Dan Bejar examplafies a kind of song-writing ability that i really don't see in any other artist. He puts melodies and words together in a class all in it's own. If there was ever an album this year that i kept coming back to, it was definitely rubies. Who else can start off an album with a song that's over 9 minutes and each time you listen to that album, you never skip the first song?

Honorable Mentions:

Beirut - Gulag Orkestar
Cat Power - The Greatest
The Flaming Lips - At War With The Mystics
J. Tillman - Long May You Run, J. Tillman
Akron/Family - Meek Warrior
El Perro Del Mar - El Perro Del Mar


Top 4 EP's

4. Hella
Acoustics



3. Sigur Rós
Sæglópur



2. Land of Talk
Applause, Cheer, Boo, Hiss



1. Voxtrot
Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives/Your Biggest Fan



Top 20 Songs:

1. The Long Winters, Ultimatum
2. Destroyer, Rubies
3. Sufjan Stevens, Sister Winter
4. The Decemberists, The Island-Come & See/The Landlord’s Daughter/You’ll Not Feel The Drowning
5. Sunset Rubdown, Stadiums and Shrines II
6. I'm From Barcelona, We're From Barcelona
7. TV on the Radio, I Was A Lover
8. Yeah Yeah Yeah's, Warrior
9. Grizzly Bear, Knife
10. Cursive, Retreat!
11. Built to Spill, Traces
12. I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness, According To Plan
13. Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Cursed Sleep
14. Peter Bjorn And John, Young Folks
15. Boy Omega, Explode
16. Candy Bars, Landscape
17. Swan Lake, All Fires
18. The Flaming Lips, Mr. Ambulance Driver
19. His Name Is Alive, Mama Don't You Think I Know
20. The Blow, Parentheses

Best Comedy Album:

Demetri Martin
These Are Jokes



Most Disappointing Album:

Tenacious D
The Pick of Destiny



Most Overrated Album:

Arctic Monkeys
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not



Worst Band of 2006:

Panic! at the Disco

Worst Song of 2006:

James Blunt - You're Beautiful

Best Concert:

Sufjan Stevens W/ My Brightest Diamond @ The Fox Theater in Atlanta, GA



Runners Up:
Mount Eerie/Adrian Orange/Jason Anderson @ Cornerstone in Miami, FL
Jenny Lewis w/ The Watson Twins/Jonathan Rice/The Blow @ Firestone in Orlando, FL

Best Music Video:

Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Cursed Sleep

Best Music Blog:

Stereogum



Runners Up:
The Catbirdeat
I Guess I'm Floating

Cutest Indie Rock Girl:

Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond)





Runner Up:
Joanna Newsom



Best Video Game:

Call of Duty 2 (Xbox 360)



Runners Up:
Guitar Hero II (PS2)
Dead Rising (Xbox 360)

Best Movie:

Borat



Runners Up:
Snakes on a Plane
Jackass #2
Little Miss Sunshine

Best Purchase:

Xbox 360