Best of 2010

My 11.5 favoritest albums from 2010, in no particular order...

Arcade Fire- The Suburbs
GOOD SONG: Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)

Sufjan Stevens- Age of Adz
GOOD SONG: Get Real Get Right

Florence + the Machine- Lungs
GOOD SONG: Hurricane Drunk

Josh Ritter- So Runs The World Away
GODO SONG: The Curse

LCD Soundsystem- This Is Happening
GOOD SONG: I Can Change

Deer Tick- The Black Dirt Sessions
GOOD SONG: Mange

Justin Townes Earle- Harlem River Blues
GOOD SONG: One More Night in Brooklyn

Delta Spirit- History From Below
GOOD SONG: Salt in the Wound

The National- High Violet
GOOD SONG: Bloodbuzz Ohio

The Black Keys- Brothers
GOOD SONG: Ten Cent Pistol

Tallest Man on Earth- The Wild Hunt

GOOD SONG: King of Spain

(note: his EP "Sometimes the Blues Is Just a Passing Bird" is also awesome and gets an honorary mention on this list. GOOD SONG: Thrown Right At Me)

What were YOUR favoritest? What do you think I left out? What would you not have included?

Over and out,
Anna

P.S. Merry Christmas (it's still Christmas time for another 10 days) and Happy New Year!

Strong Love, Weak Hearts

So a few years ago (November 2007 I think) I saw Dr. Dog live in NYC with a friend of mine. This fantastic band opened for them- the Delta Spirit. I was completely blown away by their energy onstage.
When they came onstage at the end of Dr. Dog's set, to help them sing/play the
GOOD SONG GREAT SONG "Heart It Races"
(originally by Architecture in Helsinki), I knew they were awesome. I eagerly got their album and then even more eagerly awaited more of their stuff. I have not been disappointed. Since then, they've gotten a lot more press but they haven't "sold out" or any of that sort of thing (what does that even mean anyway? Who cares?). This June they released their second album entitled "History From Below," which is fantastic. It's darker than their debut, but they work that quite well.  And I think it's high time their made their debut on AGSIHTF.

What most apartments in Bushwick look like.
Hence the blues. 

The band is originally from San Diego, and they still reside somewhere in Cali, I believe. It's comprised of Mathew Vasquez (vocals), Jon Jameson (bass), Brandon Young (percussion), and Kelly Winrich (other schtuff). Although they may hail from lighthearted SoCal, their songs deal with some heavy stuff. Example: the song "Streetwalker" on their debut album, which dealt with the subject of child prostitution. And the song on "History From Below" entitled "Ballad of Vitaly," which is about a Russian man who kills an air-traffic controller in revenge because... well, it's a long story. A true one. Super dark. But a FANTASTIC ballad.

Anyway, on their new album, I really like this GOOD SONG:  Bushwick Blues

FYI, Bushwick is a neighborhood in Brooklyn. It could easily give one the blues. 

I love the lyrics: 

Because my love is strong/

and my heart is weak/

after all

Anyhoo, if you like these songs, you might also like:

Dr. Dog

Dawes

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros

Cold War Kids (they toured with them)

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (they also toured with them)

Ra Ra Riot

Kelley Stoltz

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: Delta Spirit

Over and out,

Anna

P.S. Merry Christmas!!!