Top 10 Records of 2010
Well here it is. Due to the combination of work and school, I didn’t hear quite as much stuff this year as I would’ve liked, especially with the sheer amount of stuff released. I did my best, though, and here are the 10 full-length albums that stood out for me this year.
Leatherface – The Stormy Petrel (Big Ugly Fish/No Idea)
I don’t know what else to say about this one that I haven’t already written, but I’ll try anyway. Suffice it to say that not only is this hands down my favorite album of the year, but it’s a career zenith for them as well (yes, I even like this more than Mush and that’s saying something). A total stunner in every possible way, Frankie Stubbs and company (now with ace guitarist Dickie Hammond for the first time in over a decade) provide hooks, passion, riffs and thought-provoking lyrics over the course of every song on this record. An absolute must.
Teenage Fanclub – Shadows (Merge)
While I wouldn’t call this album a return to form since I quite liked 2005’s Man-Made, thank you very much, this is still the best record they’ve done since 1997’s amazing Songs from Northern Britain and in certain ways, this one evokes that ’97 masterpiece because of the orchestration and melodic flourishes. However, this is an older, quieter and gentler Teenage Fanclub. Boy have they aged gracefully, though. Though “Baby Lee” is the “hit” and a wonderful song, Norman Blake‘s other contributions here (“The Back of My Mind” and “When I Still Have Thee”) are stunners and two of the best he’s ever written. “Into the City” is gorgeous and another standout as well, but truth be told, there isn’t a bad or even close to mediocre track on here.
Roky Erickson and Okkervil River – True Love Cast Out All Evil (Anti)
Perhaps it’s no surprise that this is Roky’e most cohesive sounding record since 1980’s Stu Cook-produced The Evil One (later released in the U.S. as I Think of Demons) as Okkervil’s Will Scheff not only plays on it, but produced it and selected the tracks as well. As such, on the surface Okkervil’s jangly indie-pop may not be what fans of The Aliens, The Explosives and some of Roky’s other backing bands may want, but it works remarkably well here. Those who complain that Scheff’s contribution dilutes the “purity” of Roky’s songwriting miss the point. If anything, Scheff is able to bring out great performances out of Roky and how he strings together these songs is what makes it such a moving, powerful record. Sad to the bone, songs like “Goodbye Sweet Dreams,” “John Lawman” and “Please Judge” can’t help make a listener think that Roky is singing solemnly about his own life, days gone by and the arduous struggles he’s faced. This album is also heavy on the ballads, but again those more attuned to Roky’s harder side should give this one a chance. This is 2010’s most affecting record for sure.
Superchunk – Majesty Shredding (Merge)
Their first album since 2001’s Here’s to Shutting Up is not only a stunning return to their early to mid ’90s period, but it’s also the best album in their entire discography. By taking the infectious energy and hooks that made classics like “Slack Motherfucker,” “Precision Auto” and “Hyper Enough” vault to the top of any self-respecting indie-rock fan’s playlist and combining it with the more melodic explorations of later albums like Come Pick Me Up and the aforementioned Here’s to Shutting Up, Superchunk have crafted an album that combines the best of both worlds. Just try getting “Digging for Something,” “My Gap Feels Weird,” “Crossed Wires” or “Learned to Surf” out of your head. It’s almost impossible.
The Subhumans – Same Thoughts, Different Day (Alternative Tentacles)
I’ll be honest here. Most albums of rerecorded material stink. No matter their intentions (in this case, legalities prevented the band from reissuing their classic 1980 debut album Incorrect Thoughts, so they just re-recorded it and tacked on a few additional songs), the performances just can’t recapture what made the originals special and as such, they rarely equal the originals. This is the exception that proves the rule. This album flat-out smokes, even rivaling the (very similar sounding) original in terms of its firepower. Even if you already have Incorrect Thoughts, this is still a must for fans and if you’ve never heard The Subhumans (this is the Canadian band, not the UK band of the same name), it’s also not a bad place to start though the 2008 singles and odds and sods compilation Death was Too Kind is a must, too! Trust me.
Best Coast – Crazy for You (Mexican Summer)
I know that this band has gotten all kinds of great press and phenomenal reviews and blog love, but every iota of it is well-deserved. Aside from the insanely catchy songwriting, singer/songwriter Bethany Cosentino has one of the finest voices in indie rock. For all of the lazy Beach Boys comparisons that are perhaps mostly due to geography, most of the references here are ’90s alt-rock. Sometimes, this honestly sounds like Neko Case fronting a rawer, catchier Rilo Kiley, That Dog, Veruca Salt or even Celebrity Skin-era Hole. Some may be turned off by these references, but I love this album.
Wild Nothing – Gemini (Captured Tracks)
By now, you all know the deal. Jack Tatum recorded this in his bedroom and though he wasn’t even born when most of the music he’s influenced by was recorded, he’s somehow recorded the best ’80s indie-pop homage of the year. Think (depending on the song) mid ’80s Cure, For Against, Factory, 4AD, Cocteau Twins (sometimes all of the above in the same track) as well as the Sarah/Slumberland roster and you’ll be close. If any of that means anything to you, check out “Live in Dreams,” “Summer Holiday”, the amazing “O Lilac” and the rest of this brilliant album.
OFF! – The First Four EPs (Vice)
This is a relative latecomer to this list since I just got it. It’s strong enough that it absolutely needs to be on this list, though. Before hearing this, I already loved their 1st 7” (included here) and the rest of it more of the same. All of it was recorded in two separate sessions in January and August (respectively) of this year and man oh man does it rip. Keith Morris hasn’t sounded like this since Black Flag‘s debut 7” “Nervous Breakdown” or some of the outtakes that ended up on Everything Went Black. Fast, angry and pissed-off but also a helluva lot of fun, this is a must for old and new punks alike. Besides, you know that any record with a tribute to Keith’s former roommate Jeffrey Lee Pierce has to be worth buying!
Corin Tucker Band – 1000 Years (Kill Rock Stars)
Although she wasn’t able to translate these songs into a live setting as well as I would’ve liked, I still like this debut by the former (and hopefully future) Sleater-Kinney vocalist a whole lot. Very different from S-K in places (a few tracks even feature piano and strings and Tucker only occasionally unleashes her trademark yelp), it’s still identifiably Tucker, though, and the quality of songs like “Half a World Away” and “Riley” make it well worth hearing.
Len Price 3 – Pictures (Wicked Cool)
Len Price 3’s third album sounds just like their first two. In other words, it’s chock full of more late ’70s mod-revival era rave-ups in the vein of the early Jam, The Chords and others as well as mid ’60s Who, Kinks (or a number of UK bands on the 2nd Nuggets box set), et al. The band’s contemporary lyrics make this feel much less like an exercise in nostalgia, though, and the catchiness of tunes like the title track and “The Girl Who Became a Machine” is enough to dispel any doubters left.
