My Top 10 Albums Of All Time.

Okay, so today was the first time I'd read this blog, and if I'm going to be blunt the quality of the posts really surprised me, surprised me to such an extent that through incredulity I almost instantly wanted to be apart of it. This will be my first post, and possibly the last, depending on how the "owners" of this blog feel about my writing, and if they like it, I'll be happy to write again.
I decided to keep my first post as innocuous as possible, and base its subject on something that the writers of this will be able to relate to on a direct way. The subject being my top ten albums of all time. I began this article with a large introduction to what we now define as "Indie" music, its content had spanned a good 1,000 words, so I thought I'd paste it into a word document and keep it for a possible future post, as together with this article, readers may well be preyed upon by alsimus, dementia, incontinence or any other medical defect that pairs itself with old age.
So here it is, my top ten of all time. It may sit well in the musical stomachs of some, others may find it massively ignominious, enjoy.

10. FROG EYES- GOLDEN RIVER.
Maybe you've read a story that follows this plot line: a generally well-liked but socially nondescript protagonist searching for meaning in his/her life encounters a rambling madman who changes their perspective of the world forever. The madman could be homeless, or strung out on drugs, or an outlaw on the lam, or any number of other scenarios that might drive a man toward insanity – but their reckless rambling inevitably triggers an epiphany in the restless protagonist. The moral of the story is you've got to come a little unhinged to be worth anything in this world – the faceless nobodies are just as tragic as the madmen, and the most admirable personality probably lands somewhere in the middle. This is a story most amateur writers try to craft at least once – mostly because artists like to frame themselves as wild, misunderstood beasts of meaning.
It is only against this backdrop that I can begin to explain the allure of Frog Eyes. If you have not heard them, get this album, they may well warp your musical taste to irreparable proportions.

9. DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES- IN EAR PARK.
Some of you may have heard "Grizzly Bear" a New York based group that play with the likes of Beirut and Final Fantasy. Department Of Eagles are a side project from Grizzly Bear, and in my opinion are far more substantial with their sound. Department Of Eagles deliver Grizzly Bear's melancholic sound but mix in a healthy amount of pop to really bring the band members visionary look at indie music into the light. With punchy double bass and one of the largest cases of reverb-itis I've ever heard , this record will sit happily with me for a long time to come.


8. BELLE & SEBASTIAN- IF YOU'RE FEELING SINISTER.
Belle & Sebastian's second record, If You're Feeling Sinister, is, for all intents and purposes, really their first, since their debut in 1996 was not heard outside of privileged inner circles. And If You're Feeling Sinister really did have quite a bit of an impact upon its release in 1996, largely because during the first half of the '90s the whimsy and preciousness that had been an integral part of alternative music was suppressed by grunge.
This album was an instant favourite for me from the first time I heard it. That 60's acoustic sound that hadn't really been fully exploited in modern music had finally been capitalized on and to see the least I became slightly obsessed with this band. Stuart Murdoch's lyrics follow the style of folk like storytelling which is particularly prevalent in this album. I don't think there are many other CD's in my collection that are better to wind down to than this one, and in my humble opinion this is without doubt Belle & Sebastian's best work.

7. ARCADE FIRE- NEON BIBLE.
The beauty of this album is the simple fact that it was self produced, in a church, in temperatures of up to minus 10, 50 miles outside of Montreal. Arcade Fire have always had the ability to create a massive sound, from their first EP that impending rumble has trickled out of the cracks and finally materialised in this record. The record begins with "Black Mirror", and the rumble starts, in comes the heavy, low piano and the 80's style drums and Win Butlers ghostly howls and you're more or less frozen in time until that church organ resonates its final chord on "My Body Is A Cage" and you sit in the silence, and if you're like me you usually go back to the first track and let it take you for a ride again. Easily one of the best records I have ever heard and probably ever will.

6. CAT POWER-MOON PIX.
This album is majestic in every sense of the word. As far as singer/songwriters go Cat Power will probably always be my favourite. She manages to create such a deep sound, with only a guitar with a bucket full of reverb and her Grace Slick style voice. I can only describe this album as a journey into Chan Marshall's dark, dark mindset, and is by far the deepest record, both musically and emotionally of her career. I'm particularly fond of her cover of Bob Dylans "Moonshiner", which really highlights the dark places this album can take your ear drums.



5.WOLF PARADE- APOLOGIES TO THE QUEEN MARY.
Wolf Parade's debut album was put into the spotlight for largely the wrong reasons, such as the fact that is was produced by Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse. Wolf Parade have masses of talent and it is made evident in the sheer amount of musical projects each of the members have under their wing, with ties in Frog Eyes, Sunset Rubdown, Handsome Furs and Swan Lake, all Montreal based bands. This record has a pretty ghostly feel to it, but sounds thick and full and the more you listen to it the more and more of Spencer Krug's lyrics flake away, slowly revealing the meaning behind each song. Using a complex set up of instruments including large electronic influences, Wolf Parade gave indie music a handjob, collected its semen and injected it straight into the womb of the likes of The Knife and hoped for a child, and the child was born, and it sounded really, really good.

4. ANIMAL COLLECTIVE-MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILLION.

I first heard this record only a week ago but has only been released this year, and after the last track faded out it became one of my favourite albums I'd ever heard. It also came in a really cool folder thing which also works as an optical illusion (look at the picture on the left). I've been following Animal Collective for about 4 or 5 years, and I'd been waiting for this CD with pretty high expectations. I wasn't disappointed. Animal Collective are easily one of the most experimental bands I've ever heard, and I could argue that their experimentalist style rendered their music inaudible to some people, but this record has Finlay made their music acceptable to a bigger audience. Yes, it may be the bands more "pop" record, but they haven't changed their style, they've rearranged everything they've explored and spat out an order of things. Buy this CD.

3.EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY- HOW STRANGE, INNOCENCE.
If you're looking for a cinematic experience through music then look no further. Explosions In The Sky manage to create vast, sonic landscapes with their music which I find really consuming. The band follows the post rock style, with only instrumentals but this does not degrade their music in any way, in my opinion it opens new doors, and allows them to tell a story without the use of lyrics. Their songs cruise at a mellow rate for minutes on end, but the guitar parts are often so captivating it is nearly impossible to lose interest and you hang onto every note, and can almost see them floating past you. The songs kick in and a heavy, intense sound often fills the room, yet this heavy isn't as grossly atavistic as other "heavy", it's calm, it's tranquil, yet it still kicks the shit out of your eardrums. I'll never get bored of this album.

2. NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL- IN THE AEROPLANE OVER THE SEA
Massively ahead of their time, Neutral Milk Hotel reign as one of my favourite bands of all time. They paved the road for a variety of the artists I have already mentioned in this post, and they brought such a unique sound for the mid 90's that finally allowed alternative music to peel itself from the moody boot of grunge and start a new movement. The band had the feel of an early Arcade Fire without the political influence and sense of impending doom. Jeff Magnum strums away and bleats his vocals over a sometimes massive brass presence, and Neutral Milk Hotels huge unified sound carries you away. "Holland, 1945" and "Untitled" really showcase the bands massive sound, that left the door open for many other bands to carry their sound forward.

1. ARCADE FIRE-FUNERAL.
Describing how I feel about this record will undoubtedly be difficult, but I can only try. I remember putting this CD in the player for the first time and hearing the first few delicate notes of "Tunnels" being played on the piano and being instantly devoured by it. As the song really began I was completely taken back, the sound that this band had found was something I felt was missing from music and the equilibrium has finally been found. The ghostly, almost ancient sound of Arcade Fire is celebrated in this album. Each track melts into the next, and that massive military style sound drags you with it, marching you through every verse and chorus. Listening to this record makes you feel a part of something. Each member of the extensive group contributes something unique to the track, from the arching sound of violins to the continental feel of the accordion. If you haven't listened to this album from start to finish, you're a fucking idiot.


Thanks for reading.
-Spencer.