My Favourite Records of 2004

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My Favourite Records of 2004 This past year has been a really great one for me as a listener. There has been tons of unremarkable but highly danceable retro pastiche (Scissor Sisters, VHS or Beta, The Killers) dolled out by record A&R people like goopy mashed potatoes at a prison cafeteria. Which is fine but for the most part excluded from this list. Now I think what's important to realize that what someone perceives as "the best" is of course highly subjective. It is of course the quality of the analysis that leads credibility to the taste of the reviewer. I like to try and decipher sociological factors that lead to the type of music being made. It's something I spent an unhealthy amount of time thinking about. The past 12 months have made up aa pretty trying year. From the US Federal election, The War on Iraq and the continuing resurgence of the ideological religious right (both Christian and Islamic) the world has seen some of the most politically charged times in recent history. But this sort of tension and conflict is only the best fodder for musical inspiration. It is fuel for the soul and reminds us of the great drama of life unfolding all the time around us. For musicians, as artists who feel and convey the world around them with sound and image, things could not be more alive. With each political defeat came everything from cocky punk rock swagger and idealistic youthful rebellion to sweet meditations on how good life could be. For each action, a reaction with strokes more skilful at each pass. This is the machine of our culture as it responds to a world in constant peril. 2004 has been a fantastic year. Inspired even. Here is what I've been listening to, in no particular order.

Mouse On Mars Radical Connector I've always sustained that people who say "it's all been done" aren't really paying attention well enough. Although previous records by MoM can only be described as "squirty" and "weird" Radical Connector is a real attempt at a consolidation of their sound into an uncompromising but accessible record. And smashingly so 21st century anthems like Mine Is In Yours and Spaceship propel perfectly seamless and a-spherical bass lines and ultra precise shuffling beats into your ears. Send Me Shivers provides something to sing along to but best of all is Wipe That Sound which simply must be heard. This is progressive, contemporary music that makes you feel sorry for all the poor saps getting exciting about bands re-hashing New Order, Gang of Four and The Cure for cheap retro thrills on the dancefloor.

!!! Louden Up Now I was sold with the verse: "You can tell our President to suck my fucking dick. Does that sound intelligent? Like I give a fucking shit." Speaking of retro thrills it must be said that they aren't all bad. At least when they're served with a modern twist. !!! come with reverb drenched snare drums but are also a highly improvisational octet great for dancing. From punk funk to soaring dance floor euphoria at the height of their first hit Me And Guiliani Down By The Schoolyard (A True Story) this band delivers on the dance punk promise of stylish, danceable punk music with attitude.

The Grand National Kicking The National Habit A tasty mish-mash of the vocal harmonies and off-kilter timings of The Police with prog-rock synths all drawn together with dance beats and the occasional horn break down. Best of all the song writing is strong without trying to be profound or earth shattering. A satisfingly stark contrast to the Duran Strokes Duran theatrics of the much hyped Killers. Like !!!, The Grand National are a retro knod without being a cover band.

Secret Frequency Crew The Forest of Echo Dawns The Schematic label, and much electronic music in general, has the perhaps deserved reputation of being cold and inaccessible. It doesn't often breath or glow much at all. Althoug when it does (see Boards of Canada) something magical happens. Where Boards of Canada scored the bleak archtic tundra, SFC has created something of a soundtrack tour of the rainforest. Natural elements like the croaks of frogs and bird calls dither and blur across your ears syncronized in time. Like some sort of crazy natural network the record creates an audio ecosystem to paint a vivid picture of a natural organic world through very unnatural means. Simply a brilliant record, start to finish.

M83 Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts Ahh shoe gazing music. M83 provides a grand and sometimes exhillerating back-drop to childhood memories, star gazing and all sorts of idealistic activities. The alarming and unsettling single "America" is the only pock mark on the record as it plays a little trite characterising the USA as a violent place. While this may be true it sticks out like a sour grape in an otherwise grandeous and beautiful record that is much larger and encompassing than silly political statements.

Dykehouse Midrange A watery psychedelic record with an indie rock edge swirls sweet tales of love and adolescence. Most impressively it is the work of a single musician, Micheal Dykehouse, working out of his bedroom. It's another testament to the empowering technolog availabe to musicians. We should all be so talented.

The Arcade Fire Funeral Current darlings of the indie aesthete and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Arcade Fire arrived from Montreal out of near obscurity. A smashing orchestral ensemble this band combines many great talents from strings, horns, guitars and fabulous vocals to outline a plight of sorts. Funeral is the great drama of youthful rebellion recorded.

Death From Above 1979 You're A Woman, I'm A Machine A rocking break-up record of sorts. DFA79 is a duo if bass and drums, but really sounds like a whole band. Yup, that ol' trick. A great soundtrack to a post-relationship drinking binge. The record goes from hand banging rock-outs right down to chocolate funk breakdowns without a single second down time. Everything you need to forget what you're leaving behind.

Junior Boys Last Exit Ahh, the home town boys! They've done well for themselves so far with their unique brand of herky-jerky garage beats and electro subtly. A sort of fusion of Soft Cell with a Timbaland rhythm track. But what's most remarkable about Last Exit is how sweet the sentiment is written and delivered. Jeremy Greenspan croons softly and so sincerely it's easy to look past the great stylistic gloss and really hear a great poetic voice.

Squarepusher Ultravisitor If this were to be Tom Jenkins career record I would not be disappointed. What we have here is virtuoso musicianship finally departing from the pure technical wizardy and marrying itself to feeling and even moments of incredible intimate tenderness on the stellar Iambic 9 Poetry. Still dark and brooding at break-neck speed this is still Squarepusher. Some might think him a bit of a nutter but really all geniuses are pretty crazy.

Air Talking Walkie To be honest I stopped listening to Air after Moon Safari came out. But on a lark I gave Talkie Walkie a listen to find they'd made something a bit less sexy but ultimately just as pleasing. Talkie Walkie both undulates and coos. At times the sounds are so natural to the act of thinking that I find it becomes nearly transparent.

The Hidden Cameras Missisauga Goddamn Joel Gibb comes from an alternate universe where queerness is universally accepted as natural, pure and even holy. A Cameras live show is like attending the church of piss and bondage, kneeling at the alter of dick one comes to find a sort of universal innocence denied to us as an invisible and traditionally persecuted minority. This is the sound of queer rejoicing. The record wins a prize for the best title as well. Missisauga being he gaudy suburb of Toronto. Home to quarter-million dollar three-car garage townhomes, American chain big box stores and endless bland streets of heterosexual conformity. Also the home to some countless closeted gay and bisexual men. Most of them married. Ban Marriage!

Feist Let It Die Despite being an ex-patriot now living in France, Leslie Feist has created something of a quinessential record of Canadianess. The fantastic singe Mushaboom delights in fantasy of a life that could be like an ember burning in a fireplace on a frosty December evening. With elements of funk and soul as well as masterful song writing Let It Die is both sexy and heartwarming.

Animal Collective Sung Tongs Weird acoustic folk. This record is seriously weird. Like that time I got high on mushrooms in the forest and felt connected to the earth Sung Tongs starts with a whisper and explodes into a roaring wind of song and silliness. Telling titillating tales of rabbits and I don't know what the fuck else I find myself just totally fascinated with them.

The Decmeberists The Tain EP This is what you'd call Prog-Folk-Rock really. An EP of five songs that tell some sort of story of love, betrayal and murder. Colin Meloy once again captures the imagination with his brand of vivid anachronism with a dark underbelly. Also the perfect length of the average commute. Giving you just enough time to daydream and re-create the story being seamlessly sown on The Tain.

The Faint Wet From Birth An impressive sophomore effort from The Faint. Fresh vocal ennunciations, dark politically inspired gothy lyrics and lotsa new electro dance funk punk. Perfect for a late night drive or brooding dancefloor.