Black Swan (2010)

Paranoid Android

We first meet Nina (Natalie Portman) in a dream. In it her perfectly executed movement is juxtaposed to shades of light from a theatre, where she is the Odette, the princess in Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. It is the scene where she must thwart the advances of the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart. She does so, fluttering gracefully around on tip-toe before the scene fades out.

Directed by Darren Aronofsky (The Fountain, Requiem for a Dream), Black Swan is a jarring, extensive look at the effect of fears upon the psyche, whether real or imagined. Nina, a veteran ballet dancer, is good enough to get recurring roles but just not the biggest one. That changes though when the theatre’s artistic director Thomas (a lusty Vincent Cassel) decides to cast a younger face into the role of the Swan Princess for their upcoming version of Swan Lake. Initially, he lies to Nina in telling her that Veronica (a delicious, bitchy turn by Ksenia Solo) has got the part. As she is about to leave, he shuts the door and delivers a frank summation of her dancing technique before kissing her. She bites him as a reflex action but with this one gesture, Thomas is apparently inspired to give her the role.

Of course, he does not tell her this but the look on Nina’s face when the roles are finally posted begins her ascent to stardom and rocky descent into madness. She quickly experiences highs (her mom’s unabashed approval) as well as lows (the word ‘whore’ scribbled on a bathroom mirror). It is at this point that her dreams start to get darker. She starts to pick at her skin and fingernails. This is followed by bulimia and, finally, neurological projection. The film’s brilliant cinematography works in tandem with Aronofsky’s idea of showing her inner conflict as primarily black and white and their conflict upon each other as dual forces, coursing throughout Nina. It captures the isolation that surrounds her, making her every move knife-edged. Portman—in the role of a lifetime—delivers deftly: along with Clint Mansell’s score, she is the constant that allows Aronofsky to pull off what is a totally engrossing film.

Aronofsky’s lens only gets dicey when it refuses to explore fully the duplicity of everyone. Erica (a frighteningly-good Barbara Hershey) watches over her daughter’s career in an unbearable manner. Her apartment serves as both prison and shrine to Nina’s accomplishments. The extent of her envy though is obvious but never tested. Beth (Winona Ryder), whom Nina envies, is hellish because she only sees younger versions of herself literally willing to suck up to Thomas for stardom. Then there is Lily (Mila Kunis), Nina’s shadow for the play, who is carefree and sensual...all the things Nina is not. The range of envy with the latter two is never revealed either but it’s clear that they too are knee-deep in basic insecurities. The type that forces them to spend so much time together but never truly pulling them closer to any sort of bond, just tense rivalry at every turn.

Black Swan never approaches a truce or communal peace, just a result without emphasizing it. ‘All the dedication, for what?’ Thomas asks Nina at one point and she remains speechless. What she should respond with is obvious but even clearer is the fact that she must not say it or else things may change yet again. Thomas, modeled after the legendary George Balanchine, waits for her to gather up the courage but realizes that she’s just not ready yet. But she will be one day because he’s seen this all before. What he hasn’t figured out yet is why his stars end up psychologically scarred nor the extent of his hand in it. He merely pits them against each other and hopes for the best.

Of course no one who sees Black Swan will forget the exquisite torture Portman brings to her role. If every Aronofsky film features a central performer struggling for redemption--the delusional Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn) in Requiem for a Dream, Randy the Ram’s (Mickey Rourke) painful meltdown in The Wrestler—then Nina is the result of what happens when there is no happy ending, just heavy delusion. Aronofsky takes a step deeper into the psychotic thriller genre with Black Swan—the point at which he’s no longer mimicking classics but attempting his own. He does borrow heavily from Polanski’s Repulsion but he’s taken that film’s silent idiosyncrasies and turns them into contemporary, transmogrified terror. Whereas Polanski jabs repeatedly at the androphobia gripping Carol (Catherine Deneuve) but fails to reveal its source origin, Aronofsky manifests Nina’s hallucinations at every angle the camera allows him to. And even though we’re robbed of time to witness the full Freudian damage, we know what Nina’s demons are capable of and she will ultimately pays the price for daring to achieve perfection.

That ultimately sets Black Swan up for a lot of personal interpretation. More terrifyingly though it reveals a well noted psychosis and its often-times overstepped limits. It demands outstanding direction from Aronofsky and he delivers and he in turn throws back a fanatical dare to its star, Portman; engulfing both in a hectic pas de deux that ultimately should land her an Oscar. In the process, Black Swan revels smugly in its own controlled world of conflicted emotions that takes no prisoners or cry-babies, just absolute prince and princesses when the curtains go up—or down.

RATING: 8/10

MINI MUSIC REVIEWS

Happy New Year to visitors of the blog. I've never done mini reviews before but here goes:







Don’t Rock the Boat, Sink that Fucker (Des Ark) (2011)

Des Ark is a band but Aimee Argote is the only one that matters on Don’t Rock the Boat…, a pop album that has tons of lyrical depth and melodic intrigue. Argote’s voice is warm and inviting no matter the tempo it’s caught up in. This shows confidence even though the songs aren’t necessarily epic. Competency guides her through Ashley’s Song, perhaps the finest testament to her credentials. I feel there is much theoretical work here in the band though where practicality should be but once they find a steady focus for their range or mix it up musically like on Girls Get Stuff, then we’ll see the real good stuff pouring through them to get them on level with a band like Metric. 7/10



Kaputt (Destroyer) (2011)

Dan Bejar can really do no wrong and Kaputt continues his amazing streak. For once though, he’s not overtly relying on his gorgeous vocals to get by, but instead jazzy, lush textures. Saxophones reign supreme here as well as the female backing vocals. Savage Night at the Opera is the brilliant lull that propels everything else afterwards it. Song for America follows, and it too is similarly tropical. Bejar has always been able to pull these results off in his sleep but he’s never explored the themes on Kaputt so broadly. It’s not a hugely risky album but it is one that perfects the art of hugeness in scope defining an artist. Bejar may have much more left in him but it is here at this point we will always remember as his springboard. 8/10




Native Speaker (Braids) (2011)

An early contender for best new artist, Braids soars under the vocal work of Raphaelle Standell-Preston as she tackles Sylvia Plath (Plath Heart) to life’s little fucked-up moments (Glass Deers). Lammicken starts nicely out as if deep in the clubs before worming out from under synths to reveal the sheer beauty of her voice. At such moments she recalls a younger Bjork but the backing music isn’t as intense. But this is a debut so there is lots of time to improve upon greats ideas like Same Mum…just as long as they don’t, in the future, continue to end up with the same results. 7/10

The Top 30 ALBUMS of 2010: Part Three

As is custom, a new decade ushers in an abundance of ideas. It seemed as if every artist or band created some form of music this year and when it was good then hell, it was good. Album sales continue to peter off but somehow the creative process flourished. The album, a medium of conversation that critics felt was being eroded, is back as a talking social point across the world. This final part- of three parts-- looks at the very best of the year and how hip/hop records have totally dominated the year. Here we go:







1: Kanye West

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Kanye West returns after a forgettable past year and he’s immediately astride the current resurgence in hip/hop. Monster grooves for days amid the subservient lyrics. How he manages to swirl Jay Z, Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver into it is his own secret. Runaway name-checks his ego and those who put up with it over a soulful groove but nothing tops the no-holds barred Power, with its catchy yet deft chorus. So Appalled is self-depreciation magnified with a sense of sarcasm. West also continues his hot streak as king of reinvention; he juxtaposes Pharrell Williams and a Foxy Brown sample to great effect on Don’t Stop. Ditto for the retro vibe of Devil in a New Dress. Devil, indeed.









2: Joanna Newsom

Have One on Me

In the end, love or hate the format, Newsom has yet again successfully pushed the boundaries of her art-form up a notch. She has forced us to view contemporary music as progressive and clever. This feat mirrors the re-positioning of pop that Bjork achieved in the 1990s as well as the way M.I.A viciously detonated the genre with third-world consciousness a mere decade later. Newsom may never be seen as revolutionary as those women but that’s exactly where all this is heading. What she shares with them is a stubborn, singular vision that will have its way and succeed despite being antithetical to everything else around it. Similarly, she may never reinvent sensuality as rabidly as Tori Amos did nor be as hallucinatory as Kate Bush in full flight. Neither is this some sort of Joni Mitchell-like folk revivalism. Instead Newsom resides somewhere betwixt them all in a fantastic web of complexity. And in this lovely process that lasts for two hours, she has given us yet another great album.








3: Janelle Monae

The ArchAndroid

Dance or Die is a nifty club number with a stunning guitar rave up towards its end. Faster flames out into a Badu-esque last few minutes that literally bring the funk curtain down on any thoughts of insincere flattery. Locked Inside juxtaposes her lovelorn vocals with a warm chorus and rhythms that wash over in seamless bliss. Come Alive literally does just that under her screams and electronic guitars. Oh Maker is a simplistic ballad but the multiple-vocal work is brilliantly layered to full effect. Mushrooms and Roses, a track dipped into so much Prince-like energy that by the time the electric guitars trip in you’ve already died and gone to heaven. These are simple songs but when the music is this glorious then it feels miles ahead of anything else R&B has now sake for Badu and Santi White. Cold War and Tightrope, the first two singles, both gloriously expand on Monae’s funk credentials. Tightrope evinces so much dirty funk that it’s hard to imagine your midsection not quivering under its command. Cold War ups the amps with its horns and irresistible beats. At such groovy moments, she becomes inhabited by a huge source of proto-funk, the source origin I’m still trying to figure out but all those years hanging around with Outkast have clearly influenced her.









4: Big Boi

Sir Lucious Leftfoot: Son of Chico Dusty

A stunning opus that serves as a tool of red-hot revenge against his many naysayers. It doesn’t feature a single Dre moment either in its near hour long spell. Patton’s gift has always been to produce a comfort zone for others around him to bloom Tangerine, a clear interpolation of Eve’s Tambourine—gets a star turn by T.I but Patton hijacks parts with some brilliant wordplay. After their magic on her own opus, Janelle Monae turns up to direct the action on Be Still. Sir Lucious sees him taking more centre stage though. Follow Us is pure black swagger that takes a swipe at Jive (‘before the fame I was the s-it/now I’m just big’). He even drags the overrated Gucci Mane into some potent lines on Shine Blockas before stealing back all the thunder. Daddy Fat Sax finds him in his best tongue-tying form, almost seeming to show off his level of flow and emceeing. Lead single Shutterbug creeps over a steady 808 groove replete with shimmering textures. Turns Me On features a jazzy chorus and Joi, beautifully refrained as always, as Patton changes up his flow to deliver yet again.








5: Sufjan Stevens

The Age of ADZ
The immediate difference between The Age of Adz and its predecessors though is the fact that instead of interpolations of ideas, Stevens now is sharing real, actual things that we’ve all felt during our lives. The relatable factor is what makes the opener Futile Devices touching even amid his trademark acoustic arrangement. I Walked, the standout, starts out with a quasi-R&B beat but mutates into a mournful wall of reverb that ricochets so sumptuously that it’s exhilarating and sad at the same time. It’s hard to imagine that this is the same Sufjan Stevens we’ve thought on as a Bible-thumping, Jesus-loving, Republican-voting and lily white moralist the past decade.








6: Summer Camp

Young EP

Jeremy Warmsley and Elizabeth Sankey are more than lovers; they’re the duo behind Summer Camp, the duo responsible for the year’s best EP. It’s just over twenty minutes but the breezy brilliance contained on these six songs should be criminal: Jake Ryan features Sankey’s easy vocals wrapping around a lithe beat but it’s so damned catchy that it shows up the distance other electro-pop bands have to catch up to. Why Don’t You Stay features a newer blues hybrid than that coming from bands like Best Coast. Round the Moon sounds ethereal with its pockets of day-glo beats. Was it Worth It loops the opposing vocals into a neat, tidy ribbon but still feels fresh. Veronica Sawyer slumbers drunkenly along but when Sankey repeats the line, ’I’ve got so much more than this’, over and over again then it’s the stuff of greatness, leaving the listener humbled yet totally indebted.









7: Twin Shadow

Forget

We’ve spent such a long time trying to unearth the latest Prince reinvention that we haven’t realized that indie’s real hero remain David Bowie. Twin Shadow is George Lewis Jr, who is Dominican-born. Yes indie-heads, you’re newest messiah isn’t white but as assorted as his masterful music. If Bradford Cox is reinventing shoegaze as mini-operas then Twin Shadow’s debut is bringing the 80s pop scene back massively. Everything is technically masterfully in place, all the vocal work tweaked to perfection, just as Bowie does it. Tether Beats slams so subtlety that the vocals seem like ghostly musings. Slow reverses that order, pasting its voice as the main tool. The nostalgia is overwhelming but brilliantly so and voila, like FrYars last year, this is the best batch of pop songs by a new artist.








8: M.I.A

MAYA
MAYA panders too much to expected fame, is an imperfect blueprint, rails too hard to be noticed and bloats on its own excess...all traits that are uniquely American. All M.I.A has done is captured these elements, jotted them down and delivered a Sandburg-esque ode to a country she must surely love and hate in equal measure. Indeed, that is the uncompromising sentiment that hovers around this record. Hate her now but it’s also worth asking that if this is her ‘worst’ album then how comes it’s still ten times more interesting than anything her counterparts can produce even at their best?








9: Tanya Stephens

Infallible

Infallible continues Stephens’ trend of jetting away from the crowd even while exploring the same issues. She’s added so much more melody too: No Strings Attached is a perfect example of this. The song examines the current state of the ‘sex buddy’ system but never sounds dated or trite. Elsewhere, social and ethical responsibility are explored, particularly the struggles of the discriminated and women. What Stephens does better than her peers is bring a point across without being preachy. Still Alive raps hypocrisy square on its finger. The title track is dedicated to her daughter and is a precious examination of her own life and legacy. She maintains her femininity though without the crassness dominating the dancehall culture with tasty tracks like Try Me (‘try me/ when you climb up on it/ you a go think/ you Spanish-fly me’) and Bury a Bone that’s a devilish ditty.








10: Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti

Before Today

There’s always been some untested genius level in Ariel Pink but here, finally, it gets tastefully measured on the stunning Before Today. If the opener Hot Body Rub serves as a mere introduction then consider what follows as a smorgasbord of the most filling post-punk air you’ve had the privilege of inhaling in a while. He’s kept it full of fun too: Fright Night (Nevermore) is a sun-drenched scare that fits best in dreams as well as Halloween. Butt-House Blondies best illustrates the lo-fi recording tactic of Pink to give his textures the extra cheese and glam. This is punk for contemporary ears; ears that can wax metrosexual on Menopause Man without a second thought.

THE TOP 100 SONGS OF 2010: PART FIVE

2010, by and large represented the comeback of the single as an event instead of merely being a tool to drive album sales. This final bloc of songs features Kanye West’s debut as well as his battle with Joanna Newsom and Janelle Monae for supremacy. The song—as a sprawling epic—is back. Here goes:





1: Joanna Newsom

Good Intentions Paving Company

Any traveller by night will tell you that the long drive to (or back, depending) of any trip is the time most do their thinking. Put a broken-heart record on and your life falls into precious minutes of recollection. It’s a reduction that touches us all and here, finally, Newsom zeroes in on the terra firma that we felt her aesthetic was too highbrow for. With her harp tucked away for a melodic piano and drums, magically piped in at just the right moments, Good Intentions Paving Company rolls up so many different styles that it leaves one devastated with its humanness.








2: Joanna Newsom

Have One on Me

Who says a song can’t unspool like a finely-written novella? Surely not Newsom, a woman who is prone to sprawling, epic ideas that –when juxtaposed to the harpsichord—is like nothing else in contemporary music. The title track from her current album takes a beautiful leap near the two minute mark, delving much deeper into the life of Lola Montez than Wikipedia ever did. Over a span of eleven minute, we are treated to Lola’s encounters with King Ludwig I of Bavaria (lovingly called ‘Daddy Long legs’) and the emotional delusion suffered. Towards the end when things get truly frantic, Newsom tosses off breathless gaggles like, ‘I remember everything/down to the sound of you shaving-/ the scrape of your razor/ the dully-abrading black hair/that remained…’ and, ‘I saw a star fall into the sky/ like a chunk of thrown coal/ as if God himself spat/ like a cornered rat…’ with so much ease that the sheer mastery is blinding.










3: Kanye West feat. Rick Ross, Jay Z, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver

Monster

Conceived in Hawaii of all places, Monster flows red-hot like lava from a rampant volcano. The overriding theme here is violence and it matters little who grabs the mike and passes it along: Rick Ross thugs on it a lil’ bit then it’s unto Jigga , who rolls it to Minaj and she drops a lethal clocking before rolling it on to Yeezy who gleefully brings it on home.









4: Cee-lo Green

Fuck You

It’s only on a closer examination that one realizes that the target for Cee-Lo’s rant is the guy who’s stolen his woman from him but that doesn’t mean she’s spared; the line, ‘f-uck you too’, takes sufficient care of her. It’s a damning kiss off, one where he lists her need for materialism as greater for emotional connection and no one—I mean no one—can smooth-talk us into feeling his pain like him.








5: Kanye West

Power

A marvel of construction, Power builds itself from a sample of King Crimson’s 21st Century Schizoid Man, a fitting riff for Kanye to lose himself in. This funk riot long withheld is the best self-hate rap tale since Eminem dropped The Way I Am ten years ago.








6: Shad

Rose Garden

The Canadian has long perfected his conscience rap shtick but Rose Garden rises to highest ground possible due to the smartly-configured one-liners (‘those who have eyes/ should act like it’) juxtaposed to some retro soul music.








7: Big Boi feat. T.I

Tangerine

Tasty rap treat.









8: Sufjan Stevens

I Walked

Loosely based on Royal Robertson’s tumultuous life after his wife left in 1975, Sufjan soulfully twins it with his own apparent loss of faith recording this album.







9: Summer Camp

Veronica Sawyer

Even if you weren’t aware that Veronica Sawyer was the character Wynonna Ryder played in Heathers, the tone of lead singer Elizabeth Sankey makes the feminist intent resoundingly clear. The song conjures up a hazy imagery of all those cheesy parties in film where the heroine is the social outcast, underappreciated yet totally headstrong. Sankey manoeuvres her sublime vocals with so much sadness, that where she repeats the line, ‘I’ve got so much more than this,’, it becomes a frightening yet realistic mantra of what every youngster hates the most: the feeling of being trapped forever within their social limitations.








10: Janelle Monae

Wondaland

The fembot gets totally rocking.









11: Kanye West

So Appalled/ Devil in a New Dress

if My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is West finally embracing his inner demon then Devil in a New Dress grabs the women in his life—his rich, fabulous, sinful life—and its shady ties involved into one big, brilliant mess. So Appalled is its sinister twin and just as devastatingly brilliant.








12: M.I.A

Teqkilla

Runs an exhausting six minutes but damned if it doesn’t crashes up against a wall of baille funk, ganja references and, most obviously, alcoholism.








13: Janelle Monae

Tightrope

More conventional blues than what we’re used to but yet again Monae bleeds more funk out of minimalism than all her contemporaries put together.









14: Janelle Monae

Cold War

Tripped-out, space funk as only she can.










15: Nedry

Squid Cat Battle

A lovely, screeching chaos.










16: The Morning Benders

Excuses

A sad yet poignant tale of recollection.








17: Joanna Newsom

Soft as Chalk

Where our heroine, in her best Tori Amos-esque garb shrieks at us winningly the line, ‘there is no treason where there is only lawlessness’.








18: Xiu Xiu

Gray Death

Picks up where The Leash left off as Jaime Stewart unwinds his fidgety gayness into self-loathing.









19: Janelle Monae

Come Alive (War of the Roses)

Literally does just that under her screams and electronic guitars.








20: Joanna Newsom

Easy

A wicked experiment that juxtaposes her lovely voice with strings and violins. ‘I am easy/ easy to keep/ honey, you please me/ even in your sleep’, she croons, channeling Kate Bush lusciously throughout.

The Top 30 ALBUMS of 2010: Part Two

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

As is custom, a new decade ushers in an abundance of ideas. It seemed as if every artist or band created some form of music this year and when it was good then hell, it was good. Album sales continue to peter off but somehow the creative process flourished. The album, a medium of conversation that critics felt was being eroded, is back as a talking social point across the world. This second part- of three parts-- looks at the very best of the year and features four hip/hop records. And there are more to come. This part also highlights singer/songwriters and bands that have held it together and are in their prime. Here we go:








11: Sharon van Etten

epic

By track one (the brooding A Crime), van Etten has us hooked with her electro-folk musing and is not emitting a strong vibe that doesn’t appear to tire at all. It’s a stunning turn from her mostly instrumental debut that sounded like a woman chasing a broken heart. Epic is the sound of that realization met and now being dissected. Her improved efficiently is fiercely on show: D sharp G is lulled into a structured space that would’ve floundered previously. Peace Sign never caves into its repetition, instead it radiates strength. Don’t Do It does the craftily impossible: delivers a stinging but non-bitter examination of infidelity. When she croons, ‘and, you want to do it/ if you want to do it/ you will do it/ even if I don’t want you to’, its painfully but realistically faced. I haven’t even mentioned the heart-breaking effect of One Day, a track that features just her gorgeous voice with a guitar.







12: Robyn

Body Talk: Series

The coolest Swede on the planet returns with a trio of dance/pop songs split up in three separate discs. While not everything is as booty-shaking as previous work, Robyn has uncovered some definite groove. Love Kills sounds like a 80s Madonna dust up and it works well. She reveals thuggish intent on U Should Know Better (‘even the Vatican knows better/ than to fuck with me’) but grabbing Snoop Dogg for the ride. Disc I is the most successful because it offloads the newest version of her pop style: the melodic intonation of Dancehall Queen and Dancing on My Own. Ethereal and Bjork-like on None of Them and Femot. Don’t Fucking tell Me What to Do is all her original sass though, laced up on an 808 groove.









13: Active Child

Curtis Lane EP

Active Child clearly believes in second opinions: after a less-than-stellar fill LP, he turns around and delivers this EP, a far more interesting concept. Buoyed around Wilderness, the flow of the opus is dreamy, ultra chillwave and compelling. Wilderness is the standout but it’s all uniformly good, with deep, brooding beats that show how complexity can be structurally broken down by sheer vocal work. When Your Love is Safe features a club feel juxtaposed to soaring vocals. Weight of the World minces the beats to showcase the music on show. Take Shelter has a haunting reverb propelling it above the average fare out there.








14: Black Milk

Album of the Year

It takes guts to title a body of work as album of the year but when one exudes confidence like Curtis Cross then who cares? The rapper is retro and now in his fourth reinvention. A transformation marred with pain after losing a close friend and nearly his manager to a stroke. Cross buries his pain with loud, jarring hip/hop beats and outsized collaborations (Over Again). Like his mentor Jay Dill, he’s never pessimistic though nor trying too hard to convey a mood. The music flows seamlessly along with his verbal barbs. Welcome (Gotta Go) ups the ante with a haunting sampled beat driving everything else and unearths an inevitable Kanye West comparison.








15: Cee-Lo Green

The Lady Killer

When I opined a few years ago that Gnarls Barkley was done as a group, many scoffed at the idea but, as both Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo have moved on I guess I was right after all. Cee-Lo’s talent is as immense as is his determination to remain in our sight. The Lady Killer tries too hard to be seen as what its not (to swoon the ladies)but when he just simply wants to rock then the results are at turn stunning (Bright Lights, Big City), affirming (I Want You) and groovy (It’s Ok). Lead single, Fuck You is where it all swings classiest though, because his disparate urges unite. And that voice, so reminiscent of Al Green, can shake one down to the core.








16: The National

High Violet

The photo cover of High Violet features what looks like an ornate junk drive emitting fuzzy, colours and textures and that’s totally fitting, given the atmospherics on the album. The band has long established a solid rock base so they’re veterans now, polished and secure. In essence, one could see Grammy awards now aligned in the not to distant future. Lemonworld is the subtle two-step that U2 has been failing to replicate for years. Afraid of Everyone and Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks explore a type of vulnerability that we rarely see a successful band expose. It’s to the National’s credit that in rummaging through their experience that they haven’t lost the human touch even while moving on.








17: Deerhunter

Halcyon Digest

Diverting slightly from his Microcastle-era recordings a bit have not hurt Bradford Cox but rather expanded his genius. Halcyon Digest is the work which most embodies his expansive idealism for a genre that, quite frankly, he is rapidly outgrowing. The opener Earthquake ripples with tiny electronic riffs and shards of guitar feedback to the point of unclassifiable beauty. The album is full of sadness however, the type that comes by spending way too much time alone (Basement Scene, Sailing). When he lifts the gloom then we get stompers like Coronado and Revival, stuffed with blissful horns and his gorgeous vocals. Everything pales though to the seven minute ending track He Would Have Laughed, a tribute to his friend the late Jay Electronica.








18: Erykah Badu

New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh

After getting some heavy analog shit off her chest, Badu reconnects to her Baduizm phase and it’s yet another wonderful effort. This is the victory lap segment of her riveting career but Badu’s mature posterity incites much clarity: Window Seat thus distances her while pleading for understanding simultaneously. Turn Me Away is a sweet, introspective look at her love life. Even when she borrows from others or her own past, Badu skilfully navigates the waters, as life. It’s interesting to hear her uncovering more while her contemporaries struggle to remain as relevant, as fresh. At times inspired, at times almost drunk on revivalism, Badu strolls out yet another winner.








19: Shad

TSOL

Born in Kenya but raised in Ontario, Shad is basically the non-American version of Lupe Fiasco. That said when TSOL is on its shit then that comparison seems skewered. His clear, wry delineation of the black urban experience cuts through regions like a knife in hot butter: Telephone may lament about a ‘mixed bag’ then buries itself in a lovely sample but its shockingly real. It’s yet another old joint record but this is the best one of the year because his perspective isn’t chuffed up with flashy accessories...Shad’s too busy parting dollops of wisdom upon us (Yaa I Get It). Of course, Rose Garden is the highlight. It features his best line (‘those who have eyes/ should act like it’) and an infectious sample that grooves for days.








20: Wolf Parade

Expo 86

I could limit this mini review to just three words: Krug is back. Yes, let the bromance flow like good bubbly because Wolf Parade’s third opus is all about reliving their past lives. Cloud Shadow on the Mountain dusts up familiar territory while everything else rallies back to the 80s hard. Yulia and Pobody’s Nerfect both are down-tempo numbers, heavy on synths and an almost reggae beat. But it is Krug’s now trademark growl that snaps back everything into contemporary relevance: it shifts the ground that In the Direction of the Moon finally touches down on as well as the jittery suitability of Ghost Pressure. And even if this is really their last record together then it’s still a hell of a way to bow out.

The Top 30 ALBUMS of 2010: Part One

As is custom, a new decade ushers in an abundance of ideas. It seemed as if every artist or band created some form of music this year and when it was good then hell, it was good. Album sales continue to peter off but somehow the creative process flourished. The album, a medium of conversation that critics felt was being eroded, is back as a talking social point across the world. This first part- of three parts-- looks at the very best of the year. Though there will be outrage in some quarters by the placing of two of the albums here, it must be noted that any spot on my list means excellence and at the expense of someone else. Besides unlike a lot of indie critics, I hold no bias in terms of genre or expectation. A year-end list must be void of favoritism but look squarely on the music. It must purge track-by-track an album and not the existential meaning of a grand release only. Here we go:




21: Arcade Fire

The Suburbs

The year’s most anticipated record also feels like the most unsettling. That’s both blessing and curse because no matter how far Win Butler strains, he can’t get past Funeral’s comparative state. The title track nicely sets the stage for the theatricality to follow. Whereas Neon Bible felt joyless, The Suburbs paints its angles with a surprising amount of invigoration (Empty Room, Ready to Start). It’s not as brilliant as their debut of course but here, at last, Butler successfully is questioning his current life and his inevitable future. It’s a poignant move and one that’s technically great and well executed even though Butler may want to give the others more airtime in subsequent releases because what Regine does to Sprawl II is criminally too good to be upstaged.








22: The Irrepressibles

Mirror Mirror

If the point of popular music is to challenge then The Irrepressibles will find the going good this year with Mirror Mirror, their debut album. The ten-piece orchestral band is headed by Jaime McDermott whose vocals will remind one of Antony Hegarty, pre-Another World. McDermott, however, doesn’t frame a personal transformation on record though…no, his theatrical force is central to the appreciation here but it doesn’t become burdensome. He has a sense of humor too: opening track, My Friend Jo teases with the line, ‘my friend Jo/ was a crazy bitch’. His stunning falsetto vocals is what holds this venture together even though it nearly tips over in its own intricate excess. The lovely improvisation of Anvil is the highlight, with its maddening vocal wrap and guitars. McDermott’s unmitigated gayness comes through hauntingly because Mirror Mirror does not reflect fabulously but truthfully everything that affects his life and that—like the art his band seeks to provide---is stark reality.













23: Holly Miranda

The Magician’s Private Library

Though tackling the same fantasy themes as Owen Pallett’s Heartland, Miranda’s debut is the superior opus because she never gets stuck too deeply into her own idealism or bore us with the samey approach that Heartland suffers from. Produced by David Sitek (band-member of TV on the Radio), the album takes what could have been the weakest link (her voice) and deposits it squarely into our consciousness. She may be feather-light vocally but unlike Norah Jones, her aesthetics are fresh within the audio waves we’re presented. Bass lines meander throughout gently (Waves) or beats plod minimally (Slow Burn Treason) or the harmonies weave a pattern that mesmerizes (High Tide).











24: Beach House

Teen Dream

The revelation of Teen Dream surely is the deepened effect of Victoria Legrand’s vocals. The way she tears into Silver Soul could break the hardest heart. Alex Scally, the other half of the band, wisely sits back and paints the landscape with haunting refrains and sad guitars and atmospherics. Though the dream-pop market is mainly monochromatic, Beach House has found a way to apply icy layers that melt eventually with solid production. Walk in the Park swirls with a pre-programmed drum and the effect is hazy and psychedelic…just one of the many pointers of the amazing progress they’ve made from their past two albums.







25: The Tallest Man on Earth

The Wild Hunt

There’s no avoiding the Dylan comparison so let’s get that out of the way. Whether that continues to damn or lift Kristian Matsson could hinge on so many things but let’s focus squarely on the music. His nasal delivery drives home the intensity of his lyrics, especially the nice title track. Matsson’s world is deeply introspective yet not alienating. Tracks like Love is All and Kids on the Run may have an easy musical intuitiveness but that doesn’t mean they’re simple. The Wild Hunt succeeds when its stealth is allowed to shadow everything and that occurs often here. Besides, there are worse things to have haunt you than being a Dylan clone.








26: Of Montreal

False Priest

Kevin Barnes’ dedication to hot, messy albums continues its winning streak with False Priest. The album is less cohesive that it’s two immediate predecessors but it’s more melodic. He’s stepped way back into a decidedly 80s vibe sans the Prince-aping stance. What he unearths though is a type of hurt locker: Famine Affair juxtaposes its tenderness with hectic beats. Our Riotous Defects begins slowly then unwinds with spoken word but it works. Enemy Gene features Janelle Monae in a warm moment of subtlety. Girl Named Hello is the quirkiest number though: a disco-laced track that lays the funk and cheese on thickly simultaneously. Good stuff indeed.







27: Curren$y

Pilot Talk

Nothing ground-breaking here but the execution is remarkably fresh despite the cheese. Beyond the obvious homage to swag though, Curren$y has a decidedly sensitive touch. Skybourne spreads it groove evenly between hip/hop and R&B a-la Outkast. Then there are the show-stoppers like Prioritize that dish the fast-talking rap in mesmerizing spells. Audio Dope II evades a drawling effect by its stirring beat and demonstration of mic hunger. It’s parallel to Mos Def’s The Ecstatic is clear enough but the bits this youngster is chomping at holds more menace and soon he’ll arrive at that exalted point of his career.








28: Future Islands

In Evening Air

Sometimes trying to define genres can be lugubrious but when a band steadfastly sticks into one then it can be a joy. Enter Sam Herring and his raspy voice, re-defining how cool the 1980s were upon a generation of singers. Future Islands is unreservedly retro but that’s cool when you hear the transformative power of Walking Through that Door then note that you’re in for a treat. And yes, it touches on those bad hair bands that we liked for their five minutes of fame but here is true beauty, the type that lasts. As I Fall leads the sad charge, repeating the line, ‘I can’t touch you anymore’, over a smooth groove that oddly reminds me of watching Randy Ram in The Wrestler. It’s the same thematic look at loneliness and isolation that’s being explored and it is exquisite.









29: Method Man, Raekwon & Ghostface

Wu-Massacre

While no one is holding their breath for another record to feature all nine members of the Wu, almost no one expected this very rushed project to ever see the light of day. Purportedly recorded years ago, the three emcees involved have kept it tight and short; itself another feat. Our Dreams is a stab at the sample-heavy past that’s current again and it works as well as It’s That Wu Shit, with its rhyming deftness. While the trio still steps thickly into that great puddle called self-importance, Meth rises time and time again to cut through the red tape with amazing sharpness. Time surely has robbed them of some thunder but the guys are still very, very hungry.










30: Small Black

New Chain

Just like Micha Levi last year, Small Black is a band out to sculpt the sound of everyday life. The band, led by Ryan Heyner, is interested in showing us the beautiful atmospherics of synths in a recording studio. It results in a uniformly good batch of chillwave and demonstrates that bands are finally finding variety in the genre. Search Party deftly ups the ante with disco grooves that go for days. But the remarkable thing about this debut is how affirmative it sounds and the link to what is basically a simple DIY mode of living. I can imagine noise geeks in basements assembling ideas like Crisp 100s and marveling at their perceived coolness. And, in some great unstated way, that’s just the point of New Chain.