Yeasayer - "Reagan's Skeleton" (Live Video)

Top 25 Albums of 2012 (as of October)

It's October. Tame Impala's long awaited Lonerism has finally been released. There are no announced releases for 2012 left that I'm looking forward to. New records from Unknown Mortal Orchestra and Toro Y Moi have been announced, but they're coming out next year (they might leak this year, but technically that wouldn't count). I'm eagerly awaiting the next release from MGMT, but I expect it will slip into 2013, at this point.

There could be some surprise music releases in the next few months, but typically there isn't too much. Maybe a surprise release from Bradford Cox (Deerhunter / Atlas Sound). He hasn't released a record yet this year! If he doesn't, this will be the first year that he hasn't in a long while. 

There could be an album that's been released already that I haven't discovered, or could yet discover a greater appreciation for. But anyway, here's how my personal rankings for the Top 25 Albums of 2012 are shaping up so far.

Yes, I love the Yeasayer record that much. I could easily have it at #1, but Hot Chip's In Our Heads remains so utterly enjoyable to listen to that it's currently holding on to the top spot. Yeasayer's Fragrant World must be ahead of its time. The instrumentation on that record is so interesting, every song is a gem. Tame Impala's Lonerism is the newest entry on this list, but it's easily a Top 5 record, got it at #3 for now.

Antlers' fantastic Undersea isn't on here because it's an EP. I was hoping to make that a separate list for the best EPs of the year, but so far I've only got that and Le Common Diamond's self-titled EP. Not much of a list. At any rate, I'll have to give both of those records separate recognition.

01) Hot Chip - In Our Heads

02) Yeasayer - Fragrant World

03) Tame Impala - Lonerism

04) Beach House - Bloom

05) Twin Shadow - Confess

06) Grimes - Visions

07) Purity Ring - Shrines

08) Alt-J - An Awesome Wave

09) Miike Snow - Happy to You

10) Porcelain Raft - Strange Weekend

11) New Build - Yesterday Was Lived and Lost

12) Animal Collective - Centipede Hz

13) Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Mature Themes

14) Grizzly Bear - Shields

15) Jack White - Blunderbuss

16) Frank Ocean - Channel ORANGE

17) Divine Fits - A Thing Called Divine Fits

18) Passion Pit - Gossamer

19) Bear In Heaven - I Love You, It's Cool

20) Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action From A Distance

21) How to Dress Well - Total Loss

22) Lower Dens - Nootropics

23) DIIV - Oshin

24) Lemonade - Diver

25) Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory

Yeasayer - I Remember

Yeasayer - "I Remember" Video

Today's music news will undoubtedly be dominated by Radiohead's surprise announcement of their new record The King of Limbs, but that's not the only cool music item I woke up to this morning.

Yeasayer, who released a live record called Live At Ancienne Belgique on Christmas Day, are getting in the holiday spirit once again, releasing a video and an EP with remixes for their love song "I Remember", just in time for Valentine's Day.

You can watch the new video and download the I Remember EP from the band (for free) at their site:

Yeasayer

Yeasayer - Live At Ancienne Belgique Review

Explaining the band name Yeasayer to a friend: "You know how there are naysayers? Well..."

Yeasayer released Live At Ancienne Belgique on Christmas Day 2010. You can download it straight from their website, and like with Radiohead and Progressive Insurance, you are free to name your own price.

"Dear Wonderful Fans, To celebrate the close of 2010, your amazing support, and numerous requests, we have decided to unlock the Yeasayer vault and release this live show recorded at the lovely Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. We are letting you, the fans, name the price. See you in 2011. – Much Love, Yeasayer"

Yeasayer's sophomore record Odd Blood was one of my favorite albums from last year. Others didn't like the record quite as much. A common criticism is that it's uneven. I don't quite buy it, as I find the record to be an incredibly enjoyable listen from start-to-finish. If that's what you thought though, Live At Ancienne Belgique gives you the best material from Odd Blood, along with highlights from their debut record All Hour Cymbals, in a different package. The live performances are great, and the recording is high quality.

01) Madder Red
The familiar opening chords, with a bit of a looping effect. The sound of a cheering crowd to remind you that you're listening to a live record.

"It's getting hard to keep pretending I'm worth your time."

The chanting vocals kick in and give me a surge of joy. I love this song.

Yeasayer Live At Ancienne Belgique

On Christmas Day, Yeasayer surprisingly dropped a live album. This was fantastic news for me, as I had been scouring the internet for any Yeasayer bootlegs with no success.

You can download Yeasayer Live At Ancienne Belgique directly from the band here.

The band follows Radiohead's model for In Rainbows and allows you to choose your own price...including free.

The recording is from their show on October 28, 2010. Set is a solid mix of material from All Hour Cymbals and Odd Blood, as well as the beloved "Tightrope" from the Dark Was the Night compilation.

last.fm Artists 21-25

21. Yeasayer - 395 plays
Odd Blood was one of my early favorites of 2k10 albums, and remains one.  "Ambling Alp", "Madder Red", and "O.N.E." are undeniably good.  I was raving about this band for a little while here on this blog.  Their debut All Hour Cymbals is damn fine as well.  Put on a great show at The Guggenheim.

22. Passion Pit - 392 plays
I sure love this brand of electro pop.  This band hits a lot of pleasure centers for me.  I understand how the chipmunk style vocals can be a turnoff for some, but I dig it.  Both their EP Chunk of Change and debut LP Manners are stellar.

23. Dirty Projectors - 366 plays
Bitte Orca was one of 2009's standout albums, and shit, it stood out.  The music seems orchestrated and calculated down to the finest detail, and it's supported by gorgeous female vocals.  I've listened to the previous record Rise Above a fair amount as well.

24. Vampire Weekend - 349 plays
Not sure how I feel about this one.  I wouldn't name Vampire Weekend among my favorite bands.  But I listened to their debut a lot, and it's not like I avoided listening to Contra.  Some of that shit's annoying, but I like "Giving Up the Gun".  So here they are.

25. No Age - 347 plays
I like their most recent work, the Losing Feeling EP, more than anything I've heard from the band thus far.  Nouns is definitely cool, but I've never gotten into it into it.  Excited for a new long player from the band.

Yeasayer - O.N.E. Video

Yeasayer just released a cheesy/awesome video for one of the best cuts off of their stellar new album Odd Blood, "O.N.E."  Check it out here.

Track-By-Track: Yeasayer - Odd Blood

Yeasayer's sophomore album Odd Blood will be officially released on February 9.  I've been listening to it nonstop for over a month now.  It's definitely my personal frontrunner for 2010, the album to beat.

You can download ONE on their website here.

Or you can stream the whole album on their MySpace.

01) The Children - Yeasayer opened with this track when I saw them play at The Guggenheim last year, and at first I wasn't sure if the right band was on stage.  Incredibly distorted robotic vocals.  It sets the tone for the record, and it's a perfect intro for Ambling Alp.

02) Ambling Alp - The first song to be released off of Odd Blood, this is an anthem.  "You must stick up for yourself son, never mind what anybody else done".  I love the part towards the end when it explodes TV on the Radio style, with horns and funky vocals, saying something about one's "ass on the line".

03) Madder Red - An early favorite of mine when finally hearing the album in its entirety (I had already played Ambling Alp a million times at this point).  The lyrics seem to be about realization/acceptance that a relationship isn't working.  I love the line "It's getting harder to keep pretending I'm worth your time".

04) I Remember - In between two songs that are about relationships that have failed and are over is a pretty straight up love song.  "You're stuck in my mind all the time".

05) ONE - This song is amazing.  The band is now offering this tune for free on their website, as a preview for the record.  There's a Caribbean electronic beat, and it's incredibly danceable.  "No, you don't move me anymore.  And I'm glad that you don't, 'cause I can't take it anymore."

06) Love Me Girl - And we're back to love...sort of.  Definitely some paranoia, wondering what the girl's up to.  Beats lead into a power piano intro, and some more robotic vocals.  Then a horse whinny before the real singing starts.  "Don't give up on me, and I won't give up on you". 

07) Rome - This is a fun stomper.  Seems to be a power trip, basically about conquering the world...eventually.  "Rome is gonna be mine.  It's just a matter of, it's just a matter of, it's just a matter of time".

08) Strange Reunions - This is a song about how weird it is to continue to have interactions with your ex.  The singer has apparently had enough of these "strange reunions", and wants to end the connection once and for all.  "Don't ask me for any favors, and I won't ask how you're doing.  Leave me alone now, 'cause after all now, dealing with you is a nuisance".  Musically, the song is hazy, with a clap-clap-clap keeping the beat.

09) Mondegreen - Any argument that this album is top-heavy falls apart when listening to this song, which may be the album's best.  Majorly funky.  Some horns are playing and keeping the song driving along.  Then there's an awesome guitar riff.  "Everybody's talkin' about me and my baby, makin' love 'til the morning light".  The song ends with one of those robot voices slowly dying...at least, that's what it sounds like to me.  Anyway, it's cool, really.

10) Grizelda -The perfect resolution after the climax of Mondegreen.  Some soothing chanting vocals, and what sounds like a flute, wrapping the album up nicely.

New of Montreal Album

Stereogum have issued a progress report on the status of the new of Montreal album.  As I start to read it, I realize just how excited I am to hear new material from this band.  I'm sure the new Panda Bear record will be awesome, but...after the recent EP Fall Be Kind, I'm still gorging on Animal Collective.  But it feels like I've lived an entire lifetime since of Montreal's last album.  This is my most anticipated album of 2010, easily.  (Yeasayer's fantastic second album Odd Blood, which I've now listened to over a dozen times, doesn't count, even if it doesn't officially come out 'til February)

Frontman Kevin Barnes says he's wavering between calling the new record False Priest or The Controller Sphere.  They're both good choices, I'm not sure which I like better.  Apparently Kevin is determined to title all of his records with lyrics from the song "Faberge Falls for Shuggie" from now on.  The title for 2008's Skeletal Lamping was also a phrase pulled from there.

Anyway, the album is going to be produced by Jon Brion.  Kevin is planning to have a bigger band for future live shows (10 or so musicians) and is guiding the sound of the record accordingly.  70's funk and R&B serve as inspiration.  Cameos from Solange Knowles, Janelle Monae, and "one or two other people" will be included.

The record is due in August or September...shit that's a long wait.  I need something to make me happy now, dammit.

2010 Anticipated Albums

2009 has been a great year for music. It looks like 2010 is gonna pretty sweet too. There are a bunch of albums I'm looking forward to in the new year...

Spoon - Transference
The last LP we got from Spoon is 2007's Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, with fantastic songs like "Don't You Evah", "The Underdog", and "Don't Make Me a Target". This year we got an EP from Spoon called Got Nuffin. It turns out that EP was an appetizer for the new album, with the title track "Got Nuffin" showing up on Transference as well. I didn't think too much of that track at first, but it's definitely grown on me. And now we have the piano-based single "Written in Reverse", which I'm loving. It sounds vaguely menacing and has a cool groove to it. Spoon have been producing solid albums time-after-time for many years now. I don't expect this effort to be any different. One interesting tidbit that I heard is that the band produced this album themselves for the first time.

Yeasayer - Odd Blood
Yeasayer's Odd Blood is the album to beat for 2010, so far. How can I say that? Um, because I've listened to it 7 times already. It's a funny world we live in now where albums are leaked out onto the internet months before their official release. But you've gotta draw the line somewhere, and my Best of 2009 list is already written. This album has a little less folk and world music influence than Yeasayer's All Hour Cymbals, and a little more electro pop and funk. I love All Hour Cymbals, but I don't need another one. I'm happy with the direction Yeasayer have moved in. These are catchy, incredibly listenable tunes. "Ambling Alp", "Madder Red", and "ONE" are early standouts.

Yeasayer

I'm really getting into this band Yeasayer.  They've got a trippy intense sound with some Middle Eastern elements thrown in.  Their new album Odd Blood is less folksy, and a little bit more funky.  I hear some people wishing the album was more like their debut All Hour Cymbals, but I'm loving it.

Animal Collective released Merriweather Post Pavilion at the start of this year, and it immediately became the album to beat for 2009.  Ultimately it never was beat, and ended up being the best album of the year, in my (and many others') opinion.  Now Odd Blood is the album to beat for 2010.

I saw Yeasayer perform at the Guggenheim a few months ago as I was first getting into them.  It was a sweet concert venue.  A couple videos of the show that I took with my iPhone are below.

Yeasayer - Odd Blood

Yeasayer's new album Odd Blood has leaked, even though it doesn't come out officially until February.  Can't wait to give it a spin.  The trippy album artwork is above.