Top 10 of the best 18
Brendan Murphy
bmurphy@hour.ca
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Murph says O'Brien has a big Cockfight
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These are simply the local albums that I listened to the most this past year. That said, they may be considered empirically if that turns you on. 1) Mike O'Brien, Cockfight (Independent) An incredibly well written, played and arranged folky roots debut. It might seem like a bit of a critic stunt to put this above some of the other better-known releases, but Cockfight is pretty damn close to a perfect album. As the boys say: "Big-tiiime." (myspace.com/mikeobrientunes)
2) Handsome Furs, Plague Park (Sub Pop) The extent that I replayed this album surprised me - the drum machine as backing band is not the drawback I'd expected, but rather part of the success. Industrially harsh and gutter-fucked, yet filled with fleeting moments of cloud partings and closeness. (myspace.com/handsomefurs)
3) Stars, In Our Bedroom After the War (Arts & Crafts) I love this album. Mock or agree as you see fit, but you'd be made of stubborn stone not to love some of the stronger tracks found here. And, like it or not, Stars are a Montreal band. (myspace.com/stars)
4) Katie Moore, Only Thing Worse (Borealis) Like Mike O'Brien, the quality of this release is on par with a lot of music getting much more attention. Moore's voice is enthralling: sad but wise, happily heartbreaking. Recent re-listens have shown that she also knows how to write a really good tune. (katiemoore.ca)
5) Miracle Fortress, Five Roses (Secret City) The beach as seen
through the buildings of St-Henri. An incredibly adventurous and ambitious debut, a bedroom production exploded out into Technicolor. What will the next album be like? (www.secretcityrecords.com/miracle.html)6) Sunset Rubdown, Random Spirit Lover (Jagjaguwar) Sunset Rubdown reviews cause writers to be as aloof, mystical and ethereal as they imagine the band to be, but not me: These are wickedly twisting and turning songs of animals and peoples, old-world narrative tales and ether clippings with dips down into a sarcastic seriousness and magic elevator rides up into the sublime... oh shit, got me. (sunsetrubdown.net)
7) Sixtoo, Jackals and Vipers in Envy of Man (Ninja Tune) My favourite Sixtoo album from his behemothian back catalogue. Sophisticated production that sounds deliciously simple. It's almost like he isn't angry anymore! (myspace.com/sixtoo)
8) Ghislain Poirier, No Ground Under (Ninja Tune) The more Big Ghis works the dancehall/soca sound into his already deep arsenal, the less likely you'll be to find other producers willing and able to duel him at high noon/3 a.m. Blazin' with Face-T is a classic. (ghislainpoirier.com)
9) Plants And Animals, With/Avec EP (Secret City) I'm going to stop writing about P&A soon, as we're several shared hangovers past personal bias, but this late '07 EP is clear indication that their full-length, Parc Avenue, is going to be one of the big Canadian albums of 2008. (plantsandanimals.ca)
10) Socalled, Ghettoblaster (Jdub) While other burgeoning musicians grow and expand, Socalled (already possessing a head filled with more musical ideas, expertise and inspiration than other brain bins could handle) excels here because he reins in the magic and lets the music big-up itself. (socalledmusic.com)
11) Nomadic Massive, Nomad's Land (PTR)
12) Hot Springs, Volcano (Quire)
13) Torngat, You Could Be (Alien8)
14) CPC Gangbangs, Mutilation Nation (Swami Records)
15) Trigger Effect, Dare to Ride the Heliocraft (Turbo Machine/Signed by Force)
16) Mongrels, Oshawa (WeirdBeard)
17) Starvin Hungry, Cold Burns (Signed by Force)
18) Omnikrom, Trop Banane (Saboteur)
