The Movies of My Dreams

2011-06-16T14:58:00.001-07:00

Glitter Graphics - Myspace - Orkut - Bebo - Hi5 - Friendster - Facebook - eBay

Art history vdieo nerding

2010-03-02T09:01:00.000-08:00

70 Million by Hold Your Horses ! from L'Ogre on Vimeo.

Not in love with the song. It's kind of eh.. but this video gets my art history heart all a-flutter.

Baldessari sings LeWitt.

2010-02-28T10:19:00.001-08:00

...

2010-02-25T00:25:00.000-08:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Kieth Olbermann can be brash, overindulgent, even narcissistic but his impassioned plea for health care is really good. Sharing an anecdote about his own father's illness, is raw. It's real. He's preaching to the choir with me, so his rant has only reinvigorated my own views. Yet it would truly be difficult to argue against this.

From Tablehopper

2010-02-24T00:25:00.000-08:00

~Betty White~ came in to ~SCALA’S BISTRO~ and had the crab toast, mushroom pizza, and petrale sole. According to my source, “She was here for the Marine Wildlife Rescue in Monterey, she is super fun and sweet. She came in with a Monsignor, they went to the Starlight [Room] after for Champagne, and she loves the Drake, super cute.”

ahhhh!!!! <3 <3 <3

Tumblrosity

2010-02-21T22:36:00.000-08:00

Kids, I have two blog homes for absolutely no reason.
http://popcacophony.tumblr.com/

Pioneer 10 plaque

2010-02-20T22:09:00.001-08:00

YES.

Go on, go on

2010-02-19T14:49:00.000-08:00

WTF 1) Joe Jonas
WTF 2) Daft Punk impersonators
WTF 3) Jake Gyllenhaal
WTF 4) Lil' John

In related news, the RZA is awesome.

You're making it hard for me

2010-02-17T10:19:00.000-08:00

Such a sap

2010-02-16T15:19:00.001-08:00

So I'm watching Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao's pairs free routine, and I get a major cry lump.
I'm such a sap for these Olympic stories.

Oh and their short program? OMG.

Satin chic

2010-02-15T18:58:00.000-08:00

Add some wolves or unicorns, and we're all set here.

Awesome

2010-02-14T17:55:00.000-08:00

I need more badass Obama criticizing the GOP in my life. There's not enough of that.

P.S.1 Studio Visit

2010-02-14T15:40:00.000-08:00

Someone is messing with P.S.1

Also, Lifetime (I know) aired this during Christmas. I watched it. Yes. Really.

Crushing on Drake

2010-02-14T15:33:00.001-08:00

Big time.

Bon Iver - "Re Stacks (Tomas Barfod Remix)"

2010-02-13T20:22:00.000-08:00

MP3: Bon Iver: “Re: Stacks (Tomas Barfod Remix)”

Yo La Tengo-ing

2010-02-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

My text on "More Stars Than There are In Heaven" from Yo La Tengo's Popular Songs, first seen here (exclusive!) was published by Treble Zine.

http://treblezine.com/columns/146.html

Lost joke

2010-02-09T16:44:00.000-08:00

pfffftttt....

Lost as told by non-Losties

2010-02-09T16:41:00.000-08:00

"Is this a racist depiction of the locals?"
- Newsweek guy regarding Mr. Eko

Deitch overload pt. 2

2010-02-08T22:51:00.000-08:00

Jeffrey Deitch and MOCA jokes have officially become an internet meme.

Super Bowl Adverts

2010-02-07T21:55:00.000-08:00

Woah, Google. Nailed it.

I won't lie. I got a little misty....OVER A GOOGLE COMMERCIAL. Officially lame.

Also, Tim Tebow's mom freaks me out.

If filmmakers directed the Super Bowl

2010-02-06T22:36:00.001-08:00

Really appreciate the Godard and Herzog.

Wes Anderson's Spiderman

2010-02-06T22:31:00.001-08:00

Ha.

"Gilbert own George"

2010-02-06T22:15:00.001-08:00

Lost as 60's B-movie

2010-02-05T22:04:00.000-08:00

Ha.

bathroom graffiti venn diagram

2010-02-01T00:31:00.001-08:00

I love a good venn diagram.

Yezzy returns!!

2010-01-29T15:19:00.000-08:00

After keeping a low profile after the whole "Imma let you finish"-Swiftgate, Kanye West returns with this:

"WHEN IT'S ALL SAID AND DONE, REMEMBER THE FEARLESS, REMEMBER THE DREAMERS, REMEMBER THOSE WHO REPRESENT THE GHETTO...THE FAIRY TALE OF NOTHING TO SOMETHING. I'M BRIEFLY SADDENED BY NEGATIVE COMMENTS, BUT I HAVE TO REMEMBER THOSE PEOPLE ARE SCARED, INCAPABLE OR JUST PLAIN IDIOTS. WE ARE THE FUCKING ROCK STARS BABY. NO COCAINE, JUST LIFE MY NIGGAS!! NO COCAINE, JUST LIFE! IT'S FUNNY TO ME WHEN FASHION BLOGGERS DOWN OUR OUFITS AND THEN SUPER JOCK OUTLANDISH SHIT ON THE RUNWAY BUT THEN THEY DRESS MAD PRUDE AND DON'T LIVE FASHION. WE LIVE IT MAN. FUCK THAT, WE LIVE IT!!! WE LIVE IT SO HARD PEOPLE LIVE THROUGH US! WE REPRESENT YOUR INNER SPIRIT!! THE CHILD IN US ALL, THE BRUTAL HONESTY, THE NAIVETY, THE BRAVE WARRIOR, THE ADRENALINE THAT ALLOWS A MOTHER TO LIFT A CAR IF HER CHILD WAS TRAPPED UNDER IT! REMEMBER, THERE WAS A TIME WHEN EVERYBODY DISSED MICHAEL JACKSON EVERY CHANCE THEY COULD. IMAGINE THE PRESSURE OF BEING A TRUE ICON. VERY FEW HUMAN BEINGS ARE STRONG ENOUGH TO TAKE CONSTANT HATE!!! IF WE DON'T DO WHAT YOU FEEL IS THE SHIT, YOU BEAT US UP VERBALLY AND MENTALLY, LIKE A CATHOLIC SCHOOL TEACHER BEATING A CREATIVE STUDENT INTO SUBMISSION. I CAN HEAR YOU SCREAMING 'COLOR INSIDE THE LINES!!!' WELL FUCK YOUR COLORING BOOK, COLOR BY NUMBERS APPROACH TO LIFE. AT THE END OF THE DAY WHO ARE WE HURTING??? OH "THE NEW BLACK???" SINCE BARACK IS PRESIDENT BLACKS DON'T LIKE FUR COATS, RED LEATHER, AND FRIED CHICKEN ANY MORE?! WHEN YOU TRULY UNDERSTAND CULTURAL SETTINGS, BOUNDARIES, AND OUR MODERN DAY CASTE SYSTEMS, THEN YOU CAN FEEL THE GLORY AND PAIN FROM THE DAYS OF KINGS IN AFRICA TO THE NEW KINGS OF THE MEDIA. LET THE BALL PLAYERS DANCE AFTER THEY SCORE! IT'S LIFE MY NIGGAS, IT'S LIFE! REMEMBER CLOTHING IS A CHOICE. WE WERE BORN NAKED!!! FRESH IS AN OPINION, LOVE IS OBJECTIVE, TASTE IS SELECTIVE, AND EXPRESSION IS MY FAVORITE ELECTIVE. NO MORE POLITICS OR APOLOGIES!!!"

Choice words, Mr. West.

R.I.P. Howard Zinn

2010-01-27T22:19:00.000-08:00

Fever Ray + Acceptance Speech = AMAZING

2010-01-26T19:52:00.000-08:00

Things to notice:
1) The audience seems to be sitting on storage boxes from Ikea (this is Sweden, right?).
2) The arrangements of the seating seems to be an incredibly awkward situation for everyone involved.
3) That guy in the dreads.
4) The matching suit guys!

This pretty much proves that Lady Gaga is like the poor man's Fever Ray's Karin Dreijer Andersson. Just sayin'.

Frieze, you're rocking my world

2010-01-25T21:59:00.000-08:00

Pitch Perfect by Jace Clayton

He just brought Haraway into this party!

Everything that happens now, is happening now

2010-01-22T11:10:00.001-08:00

KILLIAN

2010-01-22T01:09:00.000-08:00

PEHDTSCKJMBA

2010-01-21T23:23:00.000-08:00

"I'm Here" by Spike Jonze

2010-01-21T20:43:00.001-08:00

Art Handling Olympics

2010-01-20T09:31:00.000-08:00

Ha.

LEGO Falling Water

2010-01-20T02:04:00.000-08:00

http://architectgiftsplus.com/learfrllwrfa.html

And I don't have this....why?

FIERCE

2010-01-19T16:38:00.000-08:00

I would first like to thank the internet for this. But most of all, I would like to thank Beyonce for her utter ridiculousness. Keep it up, B.

Patti Smith - "Time Is On My Side"

2010-01-17T23:38:00.000-08:00

"tick tock, fuck the clock"

FLASHBACK

2010-01-17T17:11:00.000-08:00

courtesy of D.J. Bunnystyle

Figure skating + Poker Face = SPECTACULAR

2010-01-16T15:09:00.000-08:00

Bluffin' with my muffin.

Jay Reatard R.I.P.

2010-01-16T14:11:00.000-08:00

Fuck the Clock

2010-01-13T21:48:00.001-08:00

Deitch overload

2010-01-12T22:56:00.000-08:00

"Why does the Museum of Contemporary Art’s board of trustees dislike art museums?"
- Christopher Knight

Boom, roasted.

Also: MOCA co-chair Maria Bell repeatedly called Deitch an "independent curator." Right.

skiiiii

2010-01-11T12:10:00.001-08:00

http://ffffound.com/image/40dcd031bcdca8ae9dd5a931a081655d0edafbc5

Fun-A-Day sneak peak

2010-01-06T23:16:00.000-08:00

This year I've decided to participate in Fun-A-Day in the Bay, organized by The Art Clash Collective, which will culminate in an exhibition at Rock Paper Scissors in Oakland in February.

In a sort of deranged move, I've decided to do an embroidery-a-day project, stitching the most used fonts by designers onto the fabric I happen to have on hand. Considering that embroidery can be a little time consuming, this is a ridiculous idea.

But here's a couple that I have done.

Life is life

2010-01-06T17:45:00.000-08:00

"Every minute of the future is a memory of the past"

In retrospect, that lecture was awesome for showing this video.

Also: STAGS.

Joseph Beuys

2010-01-06T17:32:00.000-08:00

A few things:

1. That girl has two-toned pants (leggings?).
2. I think at some point I'll have to dress up as Joseph Beuys.
3. I need to learn German.
4. "Sun instead of Reagan."

Russian Constructivism therapy

2010-01-06T17:27:00.000-08:00

"You're just a wonky triangle!"
"I'M A TRAPEZIUM!!"

Ha.

R.I.P. Willie Mitchell

2010-01-05T16:12:00.000-08:00

Legendary music producer, arranger and musician Willie Mitchell has passed away today at the age of 81. He is perhaps best known for his work with Al Green and Ann Peebles.

From Wikipedia:

Known at the recording studio as "Papa Willie", Mitchell earned his nickname by taking over the reins of Hi Records in 1970 and guiding it through its most successful period. Mitchell's productions have been much noted for featuring a hard-hitting kick drum sound (usually played by pioneering Memphis drummer Al Jackson, Jr. of Booker T. and the MG's).

A trumpeter and bandleader in his own right, Mitchell released a number of popular singles for Hi Records as an artist in the 1960s, including "Soul Serenade."

He and Al Green revived their successful recording partnership in 2003 when Green recorded I Can't Stop, his first collaboration with Mitchell since 1985's He is the Light. Their 2005 follow-up project was Everything's OK.

Werner Herzog eats his shoe

2010-01-05T13:14:00.000-08:00

He goes to Chez Panisse to prepare it.

In related news, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans is amazingly over the top. So good.

Art history + Regretsy = amazing

2010-01-04T13:26:00.001-08:00

"Expressionist Painting Girl with the Pear Earring"

The Knife "Heartbeats"

2010-01-04T01:35:00.000-08:00

There are many different versions of The Knife's "Heartbeats." There's the original version from Deep Cuts, there's the remix by Rex the Dog (among others), the live version, or covers by Jose Gonzalez or the Scala Choir. With every version of the song - the essence of the track remains the same: desire, nostalgia, the rush of a fleeting romance is captured so beautifully and truthfully.

Of all the versions, I still believe that "Heartbeats" is best heard through Karin Dreijer Andersson voice. Fraught with tension, lust, practically trembling with vulnerability, Andersson's voice evokes nights of intense romance and passion: one night to push and scream / and then relief. Unlike the somber tones of Jose Gonzalez's version, Andersson articulates just as much pain with the pleasure adding rich dimension to the song. With the chorus, there is a sense of loss, of regret: To call for hands of above to lean on / wouldn't be good enough for me. It suggests a sense of mourning for a temporary romance that had all the love and truth of a longer one. Yet at the same time, perhaps aided by the neon-hued synths, there is something life affirming about "Heartbeats," as if it was simply enough to feel something so deeply that the eventual heartache was worth a moment of pleasure and love.

It is in this life affirming aspect of the Deep Cuts version that keeps it so close to my heart. I've had my fair share of fleeting romances, destined to last just a few moments and while the ache was real, it is always enough to have felt, to have experienced something so deeply and truly. Andersson's performance manages to capture the sort of temporary blindness of lust and love - the optimism of it, the carnal emotions of it, and even a suspension of belief and practicality. But then again, when has love ever been practical? In this sense, maybe "Heartbeats" is one of those songs that captures not only the highs of love but the messy lows as well. As Andersson said so eloquently: we had a promise made / we were in love.

Heartbeats - The Knife

My top 10 albums of 2009

2010-01-02T01:14:00.000-08:00

Each year, I write my list of the best albums of the year as part of Treble Zine's annual feature. This year was a bit different. Normally the list is of 50 albums, but as I revealed in my entry on Grizzly Bear's "Two Weeks" (my favorite track of the year), I hardly listened to any albums this year. I eventually turned in a list of 25 and even so, I felt that I had only really enjoyed, lived in a few of them. Here then, are those 10.

10. Atlas Sound - Logos
I'd love to be able to see Bradford Cox play live, whether it's with Deerhunter or as Atlas Sound. But you see, the sight of him makes me nervous. Diagnosed with Marfane syndrome, Cox's body is thin, tall and fragile looking. Though I know he is otherwise healthy, I'm still afraid that something could happen. The cover of Logos depicts Cox's bare concave chest, with his face lit up, a flash of blinding light. The duality of radiance and frailty is made also through the music Cox composes. Sugary pop confection in "Sheila" attracts yet reveals to be a romantic tale of an elderly couple burying themselves together. The music throughout is swathed in reverb, loops, samples, atmosphere but still lay bare the wounds Cox writes of. In "Quick Canal," Stereolab's Laetitia Sadier sings, wisdom is learned and Cox seems determined to make his journey transparent. His songs of revelation and redemption highlight process and as Noah Lennox sings in "Walkabout": Forget the things you've left behind / Through looking back you may go blind.

9. The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love
I can see how The Decemberists can be an incredibly polarizing band. They're nerdy. They like Prog rock. They create concept albums that aren't so much albums as they are narratives, stories. So it was only a matter of time that they created an opera of sorts. And that's what The Hazards of Love is, you see, it's really an opera disguised as a rock album. It's not quite a leap of faith as Colin Meloy's songs had always been thinly veiled short stories. With that, The Hazards of Love is Meloy's tale of love and jealousy. The music is not exactly revelatory - it's pretty much what The Decemberists have always done only bigger. In fact, I wouldn't even call it the best Decemberists albums, so why is it on my list? Simply put, I loved listening to it. The bookworm in me relished the language Meloy uses. Most of all, it was the dual showstopping performances by Lavender Diamond's Becky Stark and My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden that propels the album into my top ten. It was Worden's powerhouse vocals in particular that won my heart. She pounds, she commands, she pretty much blows everyone else out of the water.

8. St. Vincent - Actor
Recently I was talking about St. Vincent and what it was that I liked to much. After some false starts and altogether empty statements, I said that I loved her voice - how beautiful it was, angelic even - and how she contrasted that beauty with harsh guitars, with noise, fuzz. Annie Clark's confident vision was brought to attention on Marry Me, but truly came into fruition on Actor. Dominated by contrast - the meticulous arrangements are disrupted by a crunch of the guitar or squirm of a saxophone. Clark's complex and fully realized sound sometimes obscure her knowing and acute character studies. Her cool demeanor and delivery underplay the inventiveness of her compositions and her writing. Actor is an album that is truly singular - from the biting "Actor Out of Work" to the seductive "Save Me From What I Want" - with a vision that is truly unique, that it's difficult to guess what Clark will do next but whatever it may be, it will be her own.

7. Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
Inhabiting the persona of Pearl (inspired by Patricia Arquette's blonde femme fatale in David Lynch's Lost Highway), Natasha Kahn sings, my name is Pearl and I love you the best way I know how. Devastating yet toxic words, this line encompasses all that Two Suns is about: impossible desire, frustrated love, and dark romance. Swathed in evocative atmosphere and shadows, Kahn's theatrical compositions are rich with layers of synths, harpsichords, guitars, drum machines, and perhaps best of all, Kahn's own voice. Her performance is expressive, shifting to fit the tone of each song, of each character - at times passionate, feral, melancholy, haunting and cold, her range is truly stunning. It's Kahn's performance that keeps these songs from veering to absurd theatrics or overwrought tragedy. Rather through her performance and her keen sense of melody, Two Suns is rich with mystery and romance - never over the top and always a pleasure to listen to.

6. Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs
After 25 years together, would it now be appropriate to call Hoboken's own Yo La Tengo old timers? Their albums are so consistently good that it's a given that I'll be picking up a copy with each new release. Popular Songs sees the trio fine-tuning their eclectic sound—everything from funk to '60s fuzz pop to noisy epics, they're all here. There aren't any huge shockers here – no massive game changers in the Yo La Tengo oeuvre but at this point in their career, that's not even the point anymore. What is the point is to make great music that is singularly Yo La Tengo, and Popular Songs more than fills that requirement.
Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Albums of 2009.

5. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Phoenix had been slapped with the "soft rock" label before - is that fair? Maybe, but is that so wrong? With songs like "Lisztomania" and "1901," I'll take the soft rock, please. Phoenix's songs are so tightly, meticulously crafted but manage to sound so easy, so effortless, you almost have a hard time believing Thomas Mars' diaristic struggle with writer's block in "Lisztomania." In any case, like on It's Never Been Like That, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix proves that tried and true indie rock tropes have a place on the dance floor and the pop charts. Tight, angular guitars can easily blend with sleek synths, introspective lyrics can become sing-along pop anthems to dance to. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is about Phoenix crafting beautifully infectious songs, giving in to the pleasure of pop, the romance of dance and at the end of the day, it isn't about soft rock or whatever label you try to affix on them. It's about really good songs to nod your head to.

4. Mos Def - The Ecstatic
I couldn't possibly articulate what a relief and joy it is to be writing about a Mos Def album as one of the best of the year. After years of false starts, disappointments, and bizarre tangents, Mos Def delivers a return to form with The Ecstatic. While in no way equal to the amazing Black on Both Sides (and considering my own obsession with that album, I doubt there ever could be), The Ecstatic was the album so many Mos Def fans have been waiting for. While on The New Danger and True Magic he seemed to be phoning it in, Mos Def brings in a tangible hunger and ferocity that we haven't seen since, well since Black on Both Sides. Had The Ecstatic just been about Mos Def's sharp, wordy flow, it would have still been great, but coupling that with great Stones Throw samples, rich with the crackles of the record was a genius move. Embedded in beats by Madlib and Oh No, Mos Def sounds perfectly at home in everything from Middle Eastern inflections to J Dilla soul samples to Brazilian funk. The Ecstatic isn't just a return to form, it's a whole new and engrossing chapter in Mos Def's career.

3. Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
On the cover for Middle Cyclone, Neko Case is perched on top of her own bitchin' car (natch), brandishing a sword – subtle, this is not. Yet I can't think of a more fitting cover image. Her red hair blown back by the wind, Case looks gorgeous, powerful and even a little dangerous. The image matches the stunning physicality of her voice and Middle Cyclone takes full advantage of that. In Middle Cyclone, Case embodies a killer whale, an elephant, and a tornado – brazen and fervid, the tracks are darkly romantic, wildly evocative and more troubled than those on Fox Confessor Brings the Flood. Beyond the powerhouse tracks like "This Tornado Loves You" and "People Got A Lot of Nerve," Middle Cyclone is a grower – each track slowly revealing its gifts at each listen. "Vengeance Is Sleeping" and "Polar Nettles" are mysterious and beautifully descriptive. Middle Cyclone is a work that couldn't have been made by any other artist – Case's voice, writing, and personality reverberate through, crafting an album that is cloaked in shadows and nature and likely the most gorgeous I've heard all year.
Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Albums of 2009.

2. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
If Yellow House was like a meandering walk through a desolate country field, then Veckatimest is like walking through busy city streets - brimming with little details that come together to form a dazzling collage of imagery and sounds. Grizzly Bear was always noted for their intricate compositions and Veckatimest takes that to another level. Their elegant arrangements sounds more immediate, there is a stunning clarity in their sound that while they still meander and flow, there's more presence, more oomph to these songs. From the dreamy stomp of "Two Weeks" to the fantastic acoustic guitar breakdown of "Southern Point" and the off-kilter bounce of "Cheerleader," Veckatimest has a looseness and comfort to it; the sound of band completely at ease with each other. Each member contributes to the glowing interlocking sound, creating a dense, rich collage - easy to get lost in, but one that is worth it.

1. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
There must be something special about an album that was released in January of 2009 to become unanimously praised and top year end lists, almost across the board. Indeed, Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion is beautifully bizarre - it's arguably their most accessible album to date, yet it's still rooted in their experimentation and flights of fancy. It's an album that stays absolutely true to their sound but also managed to end up in the Billboard Top 20, and outsell popular label-mates Franz Ferdinand and Arctic Monkeys' most recent albums. Just how did this happen?

It could be safe to say that everyone just happened to catch up to what Animal Collective fans have known already: their music is unequivocally unlike any other band, always interesting and always arresting. With Merriweather Post Pavilion, there was no change to their sound - maybe a sharper focus on the twin harmonies of Avey Tare and Panda Bear - but nothing that would be deemed mainstream by any means. Each song here is reminiscent of prior Animal Collective songs - the yelps, the psychedelic washes, the West African beats - treading the line between accessibility and experimentation, the songs on Merriweather Post Pavilion are wonderfully listenable and create full and livable atmospheres that envelop you. Couple that with some of the most emotionally honest Animal Collective lyrics they have ever written, and you have an album of cacophonous sounds, intricate compositions, and heartfelt and poetic lyrics. After writing all of this, I can't help but think, 'of course it was this album. How could it not be?' And there it is.

1. Grizzly Bear "Two Weeks"

2010-01-02T00:34:00.000-08:00

Would you always / maybe sometimes

I've been obsessed with my fair share of songs this year. I pressed repeat on songs by artists ranging from Lady Gaga to Animal Collective to Neko Case to Drake to Girls, etc. etc. 2009 was the year where I felt I gave the album a short shrift - I hardly listened to any albums this year. When I say listen, I mean live inside them, know them inside and out, know the album tracks as much as I do the singles. 2009 will be the year of the single or the track for me and no song dominated my year more than Grizzly Bear's "Two Weeks."

It's safe to say that I had a bit of a love affair with "Two Weeks." I played it near constantly, my mood brightened each time I heard it, it made it's way onto nearly every mix I made this year, in short: it was my jam. I loved the simple, plinking piano chords, the slumping guitars, the lurching drums, but most of all I loved the way the voices of Ed Droste and his cohorts wove together creating beautiful, blissful harmonies that made my heart swell. Each time I listened to "Two Weeks" I felt enveloped by the dreamy, angelic melodies - like being swathed in soft fabric. If it all sounds a bit cheesy or overblown, then it is. "Two Weeks" puts me in a mood that I can barely describe - it's not just happy, not just comforted, not just anything. Each time I try to put my finger on it, it slips away just as their voices do. But it's precisely that indescribable feeling that made me put "Two Weeks" as my favorite song of 2009. The slippery nature of the song, the way I can never place what it does to me but I know it's good - though to a lesser scale, it's the same things I feel when I like someone: transported, ebullient, and utterly transfixed.

2. Animal Collective "My Girls"

2010-01-01T21:10:00.000-08:00

I just want four walls and adobe slats for my girls

The centerpiece of Animal Collective's outstanding Merriweather Post Pavilion is undoubtedly "My Girls." Buoyant, infectious, and inviting, "My Girls" is thick with atmosphere; pitter-pattering with synths, awash with hand claps and synchronized "ooohs" and gorgeous harmonies by Panda Bear (a.k.a. Noah Lennox) and Avey Tare (a.k.a. David Portner). The song's cycle completely envelop you and there is something so warm, so comforting that's hard to resist.

Had the song just been about the music, it would have been enough. Yet "My Girls" is more than pretty melodies, it also gives us some of the most honest and earnest lyrics of the year and certainly the most open Animal Collective song written. Lennox's wish for a home for his wife and daughter is so basic yet revelatory. In the wake of his father's death, Lennox found himself thinking about his life, his priorities, his family and his desire to provide for them: I don't mean to seem like I care about material things / like our social status / I just want four walls and adobe slats for my girls. Four walls and adobe slats are modest but that's not the point - the point is to provide, to house. "My Girls" is a song about someone coming to terms with their adulthood and while Lennox hedges, his ultimate expression is to care for his family and with that, he grows up.

3. Neko Case "This Tornado Loves You"

2010-01-01T21:03:00.000-08:00

My love, I am the speed of sound

When Neko Case sings, "My love, I am the speed of sound," my heart was won. A force of nature, Case has a voice that knocks you down with its gorgeous clarity, emotion, and physicality. In "This Tornado Loves You," she sings from the point of view of a tornado but it's so much more. The torrential force of love is beautifully captured in the whirling guitars and pattering snare drums. Singing of tearing up trailer parks, cutting through 65 miles of land in search of her love, Case's lyrics have never made destruction sound so romantic. The aching longing brought to lines like "I carved your name across three counties" and "come out to meet me / run out to meet me," are clear evidence as to why Case is one of the best singers around. While likely not the kind of love for everyone, I identified with Case here. "This Tornado Loves You" is about a love that is unrelenting, unwavering and yes, maybe a little dangerous, but it's precisely that wild passion that makes the song so soulful and gorgeous. If only all love could have that passion.

Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Songs of 2009.

4. Yo La Tengo "More Stars Than There Are In Heaven"

2010-01-01T20:12:00.000-08:00

We'll walk hand in hand

This past summer my boyfriend and I broke up. Just edging the two-year mark, the relationship disintegrated and I was heartbroken. Mind you, it was all for the best and I'm a better person, in a better place for it but at the time, it certainly didn't feel like it. I'm a bit of a romantic at heart and through I'm often loath to say it, I am happiest when I'm in a partnership of some sort. Now, this entry isn't going to be about my romantic trials and tribulations, rather I use this to preface why Yo La Tengo's "More Stars Than There Are In Heaven" is so high on this list, where it might not even get a mention elsewhere.

Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubely have been married for as long as I can remember. Like Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore, they're low-key and there's something so stable and loving about their relationship. Perhaps I'm projecting, but the idea of a couple that can create together, tour together and be seemingly sane human beings just tugs at my heartstrings. When I reviewed their latest album, Popular Songs, it was two months after my break-up and I was absolutely disinterested in any sort of committed relationship. Yet when I listened to "More Stars Than There Are In Heaven," my heart just fell to pieces. When Kaplan sings we'll walk hand in hand, I got a little misty and I longed for such a simple gesture. It hit home: I wanted a love, a romance like Kaplan and Hubely, like Gordon and Moore. Part of the reason why my relationship ended was that we couldn't be the partners we each wanted, no matter how much we loved each other, no matter how much we wanted it to work - it couldn't. Listening to Kaplan and Hubely sing, in hushed tones as percussion steadily progresses and the guitars swirl around them:

We'll walk hand in hand
Never as we planned
And even those we never knew
Fast they disappear from view
Fading world without a price
Right before our very eyes
Melts before our very eyes
Dies before our very eyes

Yes, there's something morbid about it, but also so romantic about wanting to spend your moments, even as the world disappears, with your spouse, your partner, your significant other. That bare and simple desire that Kaplan lays out is more profound than anything I had heard this year. The more I listened to "More Stars Than There Are In Heaven," the more secure I felt in what I wanted in a partner, the more I felt ready to be committed to someone. It feels a bit cheesy to admit that a song had that much of an affect on me, but it did and it still does.

5. Camera Obscura "French Navy"

2010-01-01T19:07:00.000-08:00

I wanted to control it / But love, I couldn't hold it

When Camera Obscura first emerged, Tracyanne Campbell was a bit of a wallflower, even taking a backseat in a few tracks to John Henderson. But something really lovely happened with Henderson's departure - Camera Obscura's songs got bolder, Campbell's writing became more secure and confident and the music became more than bookish romances, but beautifully crafted pop songs. On 2006's Let's Get Out of This Country, their first album without Henderson, the songs had a lovely Motown swing that was far and away more assured than 2003's Underachievers Please Try Harder.

Yet still with two drum beats, "French Navy" is a showstopper that bests them all. Yes, it's still bookish - it does take place in a library after all - but here, Campbell indulges in fantasy, a daydream about the titular military man. Complete with string flourishes and stomps that are reminiscent of The Ronettes, "French Navy" is urgent and giddy, full of the rush one feels in the wake of a romance. Yet ever the sensible student, there is a tinge of pessimism - I wanted to control it / but love, I couldn't hold it - as Campbell lets this fleeting love get the better of her. Even so, Campbell gives in and her sweet and confident performance makes the song - a wallflower no more.

6. Mos Def feat. Slick Rick "Auditorium"

2009-12-31T13:07:00.000-08:00

Chop a small axe and knock a giant lopsided

I loved Black Star. Black on Both Sides is a record that profoundly changed my relationship with hip-hop. Mos Def was always an important figure for me and I waited, ever faithful, for a follow-up that would do his talents justice. When I first heard "Auditorium," I felt relief and excitement – finally, a track that could live up to everything Black on Both Sides delivered. The gorgeous sample from Madlib's Beat Konducta in India provides a lush, meditative backdrop for Mos Def and Slick Rick's complex flow. The two emcees touch upon everything from the Iraq War to writing. Ever the wordsmith, the best aspects of Mos Def's songs have always been in his lyrics and "Auditorium" is no exception. Mos Def's turns are stunning and it's a pleasure to hear the words, the rhythms fly off his tongue. Lines like "Soul is the lion's roar, voice is the siren / I swing `round, wring out and bring down the tyrant / Chop a small axe and knock a giant lopsided" are refreshing in their complexity but made all the better in Mos Def's ease in the delivery. While "Auditorium" might not quite reach the heights of a track like "Mathematics," nonetheless, it was worth the wait.

Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Songs of 2009.

7. Phoenix "1901"

2009-12-31T12:33:00.000-08:00

And I'll be anything you ask and more

If The Strokes still existed, it would be a safe bet that they would simply be blown out of the water by Phoenix. Hell, any band working in the disheveled indie rock mode is outdone by these charming French lads. Proving that all those cliche indie tropes don't have to be about snobby posturing but can be turned, so easily into pop gold, Phoenix crafted songs so exquisitely catchy and ebullient that I can't imagine anyone disliking them. As with "Lisztomania," "1901" is so effervescent, so seemingly effortless it's almost jealousy inducing. Heavy on the beats with a synth line that just cuts through, "1901" is glitzy, glamorous and impeccable in its execution. The romance of the lyrics - who doesn't melt a little when Thomas Mars sings, and I'll be anything you ask and more? - of a love that has drifted away, there's beautiful ache amidst the cheery pop. There is something so euphoric as the snyths soar and the guitars shimmer. As I listen to "1901" I want to dance with a special someone, I want the fleeting romances to never end, I want the joy of the track to never stop. If the worst thing I can say about the song is that it ends, then I think they've done their job.

8. Grizzly Bear "While You Wait for the Others"

2009-12-31T11:59:00.001-08:00

So I'll ask you kindly to make your way

Lurching forward with a crunch and slump of a heavily reverbed guitar, "While You Wait for the Others" countered the flowy, dreamy piano chords of "Two Weeks." Brash, aggressive, "While You Wait for the Others" was still polite (so I'll ask you kindly to make your way), but Daniel Rossen's unusually direct vocals made it clear that it is not a suggestion, but a demand. Instead of giving way to a chorus that soars dreamily to euphoria, the harmonies are bracketed by terse, ragged guitars beautifully contrasting the angelic vocals. Rossen's matter-of-fact performance lend a wonderful shrugging off to any melancholia, leading to a song that is unmistakenly resolute in its kiss off and cut off.

9. Lady Gaga "Paparazzi"

2009-12-31T01:31:00.000-08:00

I'm your biggest fan, I'll follow you until you love me

For her companion album to The Fame, Lady Gaga appropriately titled it The Fame Monster. Indeed her performance has centered on our obsession with fame, with celebrity - the notorious Lady Gaga, if you will. Yet it was on The Fame's fifth single that her scrutiny on celebrity and obsession came to stunning clarity.

Straight off, I will say that "Paparazzi" is one incredibly good pop song. It's the song Madonna should have released. The slinky melodies, dominating beats, alternately sensual and snappy lyrics - "Paparazzi" took all the best elements of Euro-dance and blended them into a song of perfect hooks and was just inescapable. Coupled with a video that was a spectacular pastiche of Noir, Hitchcock and Matthew Barney excess, "Paparazzi" mined the comparisons between celebrity obsession and romantic ones cleverly and shrewdly. If it's over the top, then it's meant to be - one gets the sense that Gaga is in on the joke. In the chorus, Gaga sings baby, there's no other superstar, you know that I'll be and it's really hard to argue with that.

10. Passion Pit "Sleepyhead"

2009-12-31T01:27:00.000-08:00

Like stars burning holes right through the dark

When I reviewed Passion Pit's Manners in July, "Sleepyhead" dominated the tone of the review and it's not hard to see why. A spectacular, dizzying arrangement of falsettos, chipmunk-speed soul samples, and hooky synths, "Sleepyhead" is catchy and giddy fun. Sitting with headphones on doesn't do the song justice. The pounding percussions ask – no, demand jumping and clapping among a crowd of other skinny-jean clad kids. Coming to the cathartic climax, you might even start jumping alone in your apartment. Lead Pit Michael Angelakos has crafted a song that is so wildly infectious (even commercials can't escape its grasp) and sublimely melodic that it's hard for any other track to match it.

Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Songs of 2009.

11. The Dirty Projectors "Stillness is the Move"

2009-12-31T00:25:00.000-08:00

Where do you and I begin?

The first time I heard The Dirty Projectors was when I saw them open for TV on the Radio and I could not stand them. I thought, 'this is what the bru-ha-ha is about?' As Bitte Orca gained more and more acclaim, I resisted. It wasn't until a few months ago did I finally relent and gave them another shot. I began with "Stillness is the Move" and my initial resistance gave way listening to what is essentially a love letter to appropriation. Twitchy jam band guitars, Afro pop, slow jams, Top 40 pop - have I missed any others? It's absurd that this song exists. It's absurd that a band like The Dirty Projectors exists and makes music that on paper sounds absolutely ridiculous but somehow works. Amber Coffman's tour de force lead vocals are what won me over; it's hard to deny her beautifully acrobatic performance, so in tune with the song's rhythm and making the absolute best of her limited range. While I'm not totally convinced that The Dirty Projectors are the best thing going, I have conceded that "Stillness is the Move" is a truly exceptional song.

12. Atlas Sound feat. Noah Lennox "Walkabout"

2009-12-30T23:52:00.000-08:00

What did you want to be when you grew up?

If only all road trip games resulted in beautiful songs like "Walkabout." Inspired by a game played on the road, Bradford Cox's first foray into looped samples is a gorgeous study of euphoric nostalgia. Working with a sample by The Dovers, "Walkabout" mines sunny '60s California pop with Noah Lennox evoking The Beach Boys (as always), while also remaining fully of and by the Atlas Sound. The round robin harmonies highlight the back and forth struggle of moving forward while also invoking the past: what did you want to see? / what did you want to be when you grew up? Youthful ideals are challenged, we grapple with pragmatism, this struggle of adulthood, of coming into one's own is articulated in such a sunny, astonishingly beautiful fashion. Cox's treatment of this turmoil becomes less a part of the drudgery but a process of growth and change and messy but profound eloquence. To go away and not look back and think of what the others say / to go ahead and change your life without regard to what is said. The Aborigines have a rite of passage called the walkabout. A spiritual journey, Cox uses this to point that growth is essential, to come of age is intrinsic to our being - what did you want to see? / what did you want to be when you grew up?

13. Bat for Lashes "Daniel"

2009-12-30T01:03:00.000-08:00

I knew that you had a flame in your heart

There is something about Bat for Lashes' "Daniel" that just set hearts afire this year. Perhaps it was the Ralph Macchio tattoo on the single cover art. Perhaps it was the beautifully misty music video. Or maybe it's the mysterious romanticism that permeates the track. Cloaked in shadow and fog, eerie synths and pulsating drums, "Daniel" is beautifully rich with moody texture. Natasha Kahn's ethereal vocals convey longing beautifully. With a Gothic tinge, "Daniel" can't help but invite comparisons to Kate Bush or even the Concrete Blonde, yet Kahn's romantic yearnings remain fresh and captivating nonetheless.

Bat For Lashes - Daniel (HD) from Peter Pan on Vimeo.

14. Kid Cudi feat. Kanye West & Common "Make Her Say"

2009-12-30T00:44:00.000-08:00

I make her say

Cleverly using a sample of Lady Gaga's acoustic version of "Poker Face," Kid Cudi and his cohorts spin an infectious yarn that's less about sex than it is about their own masculinity. Trading mischievous rhymes about all too willing girls, Cudi, Kanye West and Common play a game of one upmanship: from West's I got seniority with the sorority to Cudi's interjections with Gaga's oh's. Amidst the crudeness, there's something so juvenile about their tales as if they were exaggerating, puffing up their chests, proving their sexual prowess, their masculinity. No homo, of course. Instead of using some faceless, nameless breathy studio singer, Cudi chooses someone like Lady Gaga, someone so unapologetically carnal that she not only holds her own among the trio of men, but once she sings the full chorus, she blows them out of the water.

15. Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Zero"

2009-12-30T00:20:00.000-08:00

So get your leather on

I can't think of another song released this year that is more about sex but also not about sex than the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Zero." Karen O's seductively invites you to get your leather on, Nick Zinner's guitar tremble with palpable energy, almost with anticipation, then O breathily cries crying, crying, crying, oh oh / can you climb, climb, climb higher? Oh my. Whether the zero O sings to is a would be lover, an outcast, a subculture, what have you, there's no sugarcoating it: you're a zero / what's your name? no one's gonna ask you. The euphoric release of climbing your way to the top is epitomized in the dizzying synths, crunched out glam guitars, and a pulsating beat as O's coos give way to ecstasy. Being a zero never sounded so good.

16. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart "Young Adult Friction"

2009-12-29T23:58:00.000-08:00

Don't check me out

There were good reasons to be skeptical about The Pains of Being Pure at Heart: that twee band name and the crush of writers and blogs praising them, chief among them. Yet the effervescent pop of "Young Adult Friction" would win anybody over, and did so for me the first time I heard it on a mix CD. Taking all the best elements of garage pop and girl group melodies, "Young Adult Friction" was at once familiar and utterly awakening. Clearer than the fuzz of the Vivian Girls, less distorted than No Age, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart creates joy out of simple three-chord melodies, effortless and natural – it's a track that seemed custom-made for flirtatious dancing. "Young Adult Friction" is the sum of great pop songs but it never comes off as calculated or studied, rather the jangle of the guitars, the perfect splash of the high-hat and the fantastic vocals (particularly by keyboardist Peggy Wang-East) culminate to a breathtaking anthem. Consider me a skeptic no more.

Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Songs of 2009.

17. Metric "Help, I'm Alive"

2009-12-29T22:49:00.000-08:00

They're gonna eat me alive

Metric's Emily Haines has always been sultry and alluring - that's not new. But as soon as she coos I tremble, there's a stunning vulnerability just revealing itself. Perhaps it was due to Haines' ballad-filled solo effort, Knives Don't Have Your Back that inspired a bit more romance, more aggression, more period. "Help, I'm Alive" has big hooks, pounding drums, more swagger than any previous Metric songs. The rock-disco sheen of "Combat Baby" and "Empty" is still there, barely containing a brazen sexuality. Yet there's also nervousness, anxiety as Haines' heart pounds, displaying vulnerability and humanity under the sheen. She may protest, worry that they'll eat her alive, yet "Help, I'm Alive" is pounding with nervous energy all while performing a sleek sexuality - the cracks in the disco's mirror.

18. Lady Gaga "Bad Romance"

2009-12-29T21:25:00.000-08:00

You and me could write a bad romance

Recently I've found myself fiercely defending Lady Gaga and her over the top performance art to more than a few skeptics. 'Those costumes!' I exclaimed, 'they can't just be for show. There's something deeper happening here, something more than pure spectacle.' I can't tell if I've converted those skeptics but I've certainly solidified my stance on her. Her flamboyantly dramatic flair, exposing and satirizing fame, art, femininity and sexuality all while spinning pop gems, it's pop performance art.

All of these elements came of a fabulous head in "Bad Romance," a pop song so deliciously over the top and so earwormingly good that it was hard to ignore, even for the skeptic. The track is epic, telling the tale of a love so bad it's good - a drama that's been told countless times but here there's a dirtiness to it, a savage neediness that makes it unrelenting and fascinating. The best part of Lady Gaga's persona/performance is that she is wholly unapologetic and it's wonderfully carnal, energetic, and completely brave. Simply put, unlike anything else on pop radio.

19. Mos Def "Casa Bey"

2009-12-29T20:56:00.000-08:00

Magnetic, the flows are athletic

Inspired by a trip to South America and a track by Banda Black Rio, Mos Def unleashed a whopper of a track, whetting the appetite for the ever faithful who patiently awaited a return to form from the gifted MC. Backed by a superb groove, chopped up and looped dizzying heights, Mos Def unleashes a spitfire of words that easily flow off his tongue and completely astounds you. The pure ease of this delivery, the relaxed cadence, it's clear that while Mos Def has recently found a place as an actor, his home is on the mic. His comfort with words, with rhymes is a joy to listen and it is a profound thing to hear a song to simply be about the beauty of words and flow.

20. Empire of the Sun "Standing on the Shore"

2009-12-29T20:27:00.000-08:00

Don't want to talk / All I hear is noise

Having seen the Sleepy Jackson before, seeing firsthand Luke Steele's egotistical performance, I approached Empire of the Sun with an understandable amount of apprehension. (The '80s fantasy movie cover art may have also played a part in the apprehension.) By the time I heard "Standing on the Shore," the gloriously over the top third single off of Walking on a Dream, I was sold. A mix of glam rock, dance pop, and unbridled ambition, "Standing on the Shore" is meticulously crafted, ridiculous, but undeniably catchy. Complete with a video that mines everything from Pan's Labyrinth, The Cell, and Cirque du Soleil, "Standing on the Shore" is an exercise in ridiculous yet amazing pompousness.

21. Phoenix "Lisztomania"

2009-12-29T18:53:00.000-08:00

This love's for gentlemen only

The easy pop brilliance of Phoenix is so deceiving, as illustrated by "Lisztomania." The frustrations of music-making is made clear in Thomas Mars' eloquent yet infectious lyrics. The neurosis of so sentimental / not sentimental, no! / romantic, not disgusting yet is evocative of so many behind-the-scenes works, everything from Woody Allen to Fellini's 8 1/2 - you can practically see the discarded notes littering the floor. What's even better is that "Lisztomania's" music isn't a study of anxiety and neurosis. The music is so meticulously catchy, so blissfully good that the disgust, the loneliness of writing is evident only in the lyrics. As Mars so perfectly put it: from mess to the masses.

22. Girls "Lust for Life"

2009-12-29T14:15:00.000-08:00

Oh, I wish I had a boyfriend

Much has been made of Girls' bold move of swiping Iggy Pop's iconic song title - but let's get real, that's just fodder for the obsessive record collectors out there (myself included). Pop's "Lust for Life" was about druggy excess and getting fucked up, but Girls' version is essentially about being a fuck up, about being an aimless twenty-something with not much to do other than write songs about being an aimless twenty-something. Girls' "Lust for Life" is not about dramatic excess but simple needs or wants - a boyfriend, a pizza, a bottle of wine. The beauty of the song is that Christopher Owens reveals that below these needs/wants, there is an undercurrent of sadness, of an upbringing devoid of such things: I wish I had a father / Maybe then I would've turned out right. The jangly guitars and sunny melodies are cheeky and inclusive and the sun dappled videos have the casual breeziness of an afternoon in the Mission. The great thing about Girls' "Lust for Life" is that yes, there's a glimpse of Owens' personal life but at the end of the day, there's something inclusive about it. Wanting a boyfriend, pizza, wine - who hasn't thought that? The lack of pretension and the catchy riffs all underscore that "Lust for Life" is ultimately not about Owens' life, but anyone's.

23. Fever Ray "When I Grow Up"

2009-12-29T01:46:00.000-08:00

I wait for him to catch me

Amidst the cold, forbidding tones of The Knife's music (most particularly on Silent Shout), the was always an undercurrent of romance. In her solo effort, Karin Dreijer-Andersson crafted an album of surprising narratives, beautifully spare compositions that creep under your skin, embedding themselves with vivid imagery and sensations. "When I Grow Up" epitomizes all of this in a song with poetic lyrics loaded with romance and darkness. Dreijer-Andersson evokes nature and innocence with music that chills. What results is almost a musical equivalent of Alice in Wonderland: a bit fantastical, strange, a little scary, but fascinating and absorbing nonetheless.

24. Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Heads Will Roll"

2009-12-29T01:25:00.000-08:00

Dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead

Trading in her drunken yelps, brassy squeals for Debbie Harry coos, Karen O is a natural disco queen. With shimmery synths, perfectly mechanical drumming, and guitars that are equal parts slick and grungy, "Heads Will Roll" is exactly the kind of dance song you imagine the Yeah Yeah Yeahs crafting. O's command of dance, dance, dance 'til you're dead is just that: a command. O's fierce stage presence is fully articulated in the stomping posturing of the track. "Heads Will Roll" doesn't pretend that the dance floor is always pretty - sometimes it's messy, its raucous, chaotic but always fun.

25. Bon Iver "Blood Bank"

2009-12-29T00:56:00.000-08:00

And I know it well

The devastating emotional power of For Emma, Forever Ago could have been a fluke, it could have been an album that would and could only occur once based on the circumstances that created it and it would have been ok. It would have been ok for Justin Vernon to create one beautiful piece of work; it would have been enough for it to have existed.

Fortunately for fans, this was not to be. The Blood Bank EP proved that was no fluke, and no more so than the titular track. The wintry setting, the quiet moment of a couple warming their hands inside a car leading to a kiss, Vernon fills the song with beautifully evocative imagery. The downbeat tempo of the song, the heartbeat rhythm leading to a clamorous outro and a chorus of and I know it well, gives "Blood Bank" a somber tone - the happy ending seems a bit far off here. It is the somberness, the quiet moments that give fleeting joys that Vernon excels at conveying. The creaks and timbres of the guitars evoke the fragility of relationships and it is here, where Vernon succeeds: delicate relationships conveyed not just by lyrics but the music itself.

26. Animal Collective "Summertime Clothes"

2009-12-27T01:09:00.000-08:00

I want to walk around with you

When I listen to Animal Collective's "Summertime Clothes," I imagine grassy fields, hand holding, general summertime merriment. I think of falling in love in the summer – carefree and fun. This wasn't the actual summer I experienced but "Summertime Clothes" still makes me think of all of that. The buoyant synthetic programming, marching beats, churning distortion and the effervescent vocals capture the restless energy of a hot day or night. Kicking off your socks, meandering walks, dancing to "songs from the cars as they pass" – all illustrate the best memories of summer and even better, sharing that with a special someone. Sitting here, on a chilly December night, listening to "Summertime Clothes" makes me nostalgic for a summer that didn't quite exist for me. Yet the sweetness of the song, the pure pop bliss of the music makes me believe that that summer happened to me.

Written for Treble Zine's Top 50 Songs of 2009.

27. Wavves "No Hope Kids"

2009-12-27T00:40:00.000-08:00

I got nothin' nothin' nothin' not at all

Listening to Wavves' album Wavvves is like listening to an audio version of Richard Linklater's 1991 film, Slacker. On "No Hope Kids," Nate Williams (a.k.a. Wavves) sings about his no-fi lifestyle - no car, no girl, no money, no hope. Not exactly a winning combination, but Williams does have a guitar and recorded a slew of slap-dash, catchy takes on drony surf rock. "No Hope Kids" is just one of many songs about Williams' dead-end lifestyle, yet if there's no hope it certainly isn't reflected in the music. Sun dappled, energetic, and remarkably tuneful for such a scuzzy song, "No Hope Kids" may be about Williams' slacker life, but it's also innately relatable.

28. Neko Case "People Got A Lot of Nerve"

2009-12-26T23:03:00.000-08:00

I'm a man eater

Amidst the animal imagery, the sunny guitars, and Neko Case's sweet intonations, lies a song of wild savagery. Counterbalancing the Byrds-era guitars with tales of wild revenge, "People Got A Lot of Nerve" exemplifies the fiery brand of lyricism and imagery that Case excels at. Vividly violent, Case's descriptive lyrics imagines killer whales pinning down a trainer at the bottom of a tank, taking half your leg and both your lungs, cops shooting a hailstorm of bullets - a Bonnie and Clyde-style shoot-out. In Middle Cyclone, Case's passions run wild and in "People Got A Lot of Nerve" so does her anger. Yet despite the savage revenge of the lyrics, the melodies remain sweet and jangly, catchy. Her clever phrasing and expert counterbalance creates a song of virulent rage wrapped in a fun and sweet package.

29. Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys "Empire State of Mind"

2009-12-26T21:10:00.000-08:00

I'm the new Sinatra, and since I made it here
I can make it anywhere, yeah, they love me everywhere

This certainly isn't Jay-Z at his best - his flow has been smoother, his songs more anthemic, his lyrics more complex - yet once Alicia Keys comes in with that soaring hook, all those flaws goes out the window. Perhaps there's a bit of over-inflation here - shit, I made the Yankee cap more famous than a Yankee can, ok... - but there's no denying that "Empire State of Mind" is supremely catchy and inspiring. Jay-Z's ode to New York is so full of pride and genuine love that you can't really knock it. The pristine production, the spot-on sample by The Moments, and Keys' pitch-perfect sing-along chorus transcend the track from schmaltz to something you feel inspired by and can nod your head to. The jury is still out on the Jigga Man being the new Sinatra, but it's safe to say that Jay-Z has equaled Sinatra on a stunning portrait of a city.

30. St. Vincent "Actor Out of Work"

2009-12-26T20:42:00.000-08:00

You're a supplement, you're a salve

Biting words for an object of (supposed) affection. In about 2 and a quarter minutes, Annie Clark (a.k.a. St. Vincent) delivers seething insult after insult yet her tirade ends with I think I love you, I think I'm mad, bringing new meaning to the phrase "guilty pleasure." Clark's frosty, disaffected delivery is the icing on the cake filled with distorted noise, electronically-tweaked saxaphones, and scuzzy synthesizers. Brimming with controlled anger, guilt and disconcerting sounds, "Actor Out of Work" is Clark at her barbed best.

Los abrazos rotos

2009-12-26T00:11:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday I went to see Pedro Almodovar's Broken Embraces with David and we both left the theater feeling a bit underwhelmed with the film.

A few days later, I find myself going back to Almodovar's film - reviewing the plot in my head, specific scenes, moments that have stayed with me. My original criticism of it feeling like Almodovar was holding back feels a bit trite now - was it not melodramatic enough? Perhaps another viewing is in order.

In the end, I feel that I initially didn't give Penelope Cruz enough credit. It's due to her melancholic performance that I keep thinking about the film. Thinking about it more, I realize that it is less about the love affair, the intrigue but rather Almodovar's love letter of sorts to cinema. While I wouldn't say Broken Embraces is Almodovar's best (I'm quite partial to All About My Mother), it's stayed with me in a way that I did not anticipate.

R.I.P Vic Chesnutt

2009-12-25T23:59:00.000-08:00

Athens, Georgia-based singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt passed away this afternoon. He was 45 years old.

Constellation Records released this statement:

"In the few short years that we knew him personally, Vic transformed our sense of what true character, grace and determination are all about. Our grief is inexpressible and Vic's absence unfathomable."

Chesnutt had released over a dozen albums since the early 1990s, including collaborations with Michael Stipe, Lambchop, Elf Power, Van Dyke Parks, and A Silver Mount Zion. A prolific songwriter, Chesnutt's music was powerful and unique. He will be sorely missed.

Kara Tanaka

2009-12-25T23:36:00.000-08:00

Dissolver: The Filthy Detritus of Transmigration, 2008
acrylic, aluminum, fiberglass, motor, wood
149 x 84 x 84 in.

Detail of Dissolver: The Filthy Detritus of Transmigration

Pining Wind (Fragmented on the Night Sea of Eternity), 2008 (still from video)
orbital satellite body, stupa, video

Crushed by the Hammer of the Sun, 2008
mechanical sculpture, silk skirt
91 x 84 x 84 in.

I am a Vessel in the Void (Between Charon and the Moon), 2006
glass, light, paper, poplar
82 x 50 x 45 in.

Detail of I am a Vessel in the Void (Between Charon and the Moon)

Kara Tanaka is a Los Angeles-based artist. Tanaka received her MFA from the California Institute of the Arts in 2008, BA from the University of California, Irvine in 2005, and a Postgraduate Diploma from Goldsmiths College, University of London in 2006. Recent exhibitions include Mad Amour, a two-person show with Marco Rios at Simon Preston Gallery, New York. Her work has been included in numerous group exhibitions both nationally and internationally and California Biennial (CB08) at the Orange County Museum of Art in Newport Beach.

Tanaka's work was included in A Universe We Can Believe In at the Tecoah Bruce Gallery in the Oliver Art Centre, California College of the Arts, Oakland, CA - curated by David Huff, Jackie Im and Josephine Zarkovich.

Tanaka will also premiere a new collaboration with Marco Rios at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in March, titled Death's Boutique.

Judy

2009-12-25T23:25:00.000-08:00

I love this so much.

Some holiday love from George and Andrew

2009-12-24T13:42:00.001-08:00

Schools Lipdubbing

2009-12-21T18:42:00.000-08:00

A) Shorewood High

B) Université du Québec à Montréal

Ok, CCA. We can do beat this.

Steve's Roommate

2009-12-15T17:59:00.001-08:00

Click on the image to check out the site.

Larry Sultan

2009-12-15T13:55:00.000-08:00

Larry Sultan, California Photographer, Dies at 63

Side A

2009-12-15T13:22:00.000-08:00

Side A

Ah-wooo!

2009-12-07T23:08:00.001-08:00

we'll walk hand in hand...

2009-11-26T15:54:00.001-08:00

Gaga-ing

2009-11-22T23:52:00.000-08:00

Look at his vest!!!

This is like if Jason Mraz/Jack Johnson/John Mayer/Dave Matthews was Asian and sang Lady Gaga.

Classic

The Giving Tree

2009-11-20T21:30:00.001-08:00

Diedrich Diederichsen

2009-11-20T16:29:00.000-08:00

Fillip podcast: Diedrich Diederichsen, Judgment, Objecthood, Temporality

thesis-ing

2009-11-20T13:40:00.000-08:00

Dave Muller, NY Sonic Strata (2007)
Artist, DJ and music freak Dave Muller depicts downtown New York through the album covers and book spines that have contributed to the mythology of the city.

definition

2009-11-20T10:31:00.000-08:00

Main Entry: adore
Pronunciation: \ə-ˈdȯr\

Function: transitive verb

Inflected Form(s): adored; ador·ing

Etymology: Middle English adouren, from Anglo-French aurer, adourer, from Latin adorare, from ad- + orare to speak, pray — more at oration

Date: 14th century

1 : to worship or honor as a deity or as divine
2 : to regard with loving admiration and devotion <adored his wife>
3 : to be very fond of s pecan pie>

synonyms see revere

— ador·er noun

— ador·ing·ly adverb

Personally, I like the inclusion of pecan pie in this definition from Merriam-Webster.

can't stand it...so sweet.

2009-11-11T22:25:00.000-08:00

Johanna Billing, Coming Up trailer (1999)

2009-11-08T14:16:00.000-08:00