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December 31, 2006

Reflections on 2006

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2006 was a great year for music and a great year to be a fan of music. It seemed like every month, some unheard of band released a great album, making you ask “where have you been all my life?!” And for every album I heard and thought this, I am quite certain there are three others released the same time… which could’ve made me think exactly the same thing. I’ve been checking out other bloggers best of lists and have been thoroughly impressed at the breadth of music that was released this year. Sure, there were over-hyped bands and acts that I just didn’t get… umm Artic Monkeys anyone?!? And genius artists who it seems got no press (outside of SOTS)… like my personal favorite, Elvis Perkins or up-and-coming Seattle band, The Sea Navy. But all in all, the way technology is increasing, it seems like you could be almost anywhere in the US and find a great band. Sure there’s still Top 40 Radio (which makes no sense to me) and somehow acts like Fergie and dribble like “My Humps” get massive amounts of air play, but then there’s things like KEXP, music blogs like largeheartedboy and goodweatherforairstrikes, and even the dreaded, MySpace which gives all of us without ‘payola’ or major labels a chance to be heard and beloved.

The following are abbey’s random reflections on 2006…. enjoy!

* What a great year to be a music fan in Seattle! KEXP continues to grow by leaps and bounds, and has perfected it’s incredible website… compelte with searchable live archives, streaming playlists, and a blog. With all our great local venues, you could easily catch a show a night. Even better We have great neighborhood venues for live music, all within walking distance of your house or apartment! Like Georgetown’s “Jules Maes,” Ballard’s “Sunset Tavern” and “Tractor Tavern,” Fremont’s “High Dives,” and my hood’s “Chop Suey” and “Neumo’s.” And to go with all those great venues… we’ve got GREAT FUCKING BANDS! Sure there’s the biggies, local/national acts like: “The Decemberists,” “The Shins,” “Pearl Jam,” “Death Cab for Cutie,” “Neko Case” and this year’s breakout success “Band of Horses.” But many of the best Seattle bands don’t get national press or play like: “Thee Emergency,” “The Sea Navy,” “Ice Age Cobra,” “Speaker Speaker,” “Awesome!,” “Man Plus,” “A Gun That Shoots Knives” and “The Long Winters.” For you Seattle hip-hop fans, the 206 has also been having a revival… “Blue Scholars” and “Common Market” have had the city abuzz all year long.

* 2006 just might have been the year of the EP. I’m hoping 2007 features full length releases from the following EP Stars: Voxtrot (who can do no wrong in my mind…. or at least, they haven’t yet), Tokyo Police Club, The Little Ones, Wild Sweet Orange, Joanna Newsom, Cold War Kids (whose EPs were immensely better than their full length… which was filled with… redone songs from their EPs.)

* Even though I wasn’t crazy about The Avalanche, Sufjan Stevens still completely rocks my world. I mean, the guy did the impossible: release a 5 cd set of Christmas music, that I like! Since Sufjan’s a young, talented, prolific song-writer, he get’s the Dylan Label… but I think Sufjan is our generations answer to Woody Guthrie. His work, like Guthrie before him, is a cohesive musical narrative about America and life in the United States.

* and since I’m sharing… I’d like to let you in on Abbey’s fan-geek accomplishment of the Year: travelling to middle of nowhere Illinois (champaign-urbana) to see Cursive kick off their US Tour at a great venue, The Canopy Club, with Sound On the Sound’s biggest mid-west fan, Chris Mayne. Then catching one of the tours last shows in my hometown, three months later. And still getting my mind blown. Completing the perfection: grabbing the Seattle set list from Tim Kasher. Cursive, and many of the bands I’ve loved this year, are easily worth the trip to the midwest.

Happy New Years!

December 29, 2006

The Top-Twenty from KEXP’s Top 90.3 of 2006

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For the Full List… please go to the Best Radio Station Ever’s: Handy Website

20. Tom Waits- Orphans

19. The Thermals – The Body, The Blood, The Machine

18. Tapes’n'Tapes – The Loon

17. Yo La Tengo – I am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass

16. Ghostland Observatory- Paparazzi Lightning

15. Beck – The Information

14. Gnarls Barkley – St. Elsewhere

13. The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America

12. Belle & Sebastian – The Life Pursuit

11. The Long Winters – Putting the Days to Bed

10. Cold War Kids- Robbers and Cowards

9. Thom Yorke – The Eraser

8. Cat Power – The Greatest

7. Built to Spill – You in Reverse (great minds think alike… this was my #7 of ’06 too!)

6. The Black Angels – Passover

5. TV On The Radio- Return to Cookie Mountain

4. Silversun Pickups – Carnavas

3. Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood (& the very same choice for number 3!!)

2. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife

1. Band of Horses – Everything All The Time

December 22, 2006

This list goes ALL THE WAY TO ELEVEN! or Best Albums 2006

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11. Silversun Pickups – Carnavas After their 2005 EP (Pikul)  I eagerly awaited Silversun Pickups’ full length release. Carnavas did not disappoint. Even more impressive- Carnavas is filled with brand new material, not a single song from Pikul was included. Similar to Built to Spill, no matter where I come in on a song, I know when     it’s Silversun Pickups. And it’s not just the lead singer’s trademark raspy yowl; it’s the structure of their songs, the layers of instrumentation, the fuzzy-fullness of their sound.  While this can lead to their album sounding a bit formulaic at times- it is a winning formula and it’s all their own. In a year these guys (and gal) have gone from playing Neumo’s with little fan-fare to selling out one of Seattle’s larger venues The Moore Theatre. Their skyrocketing year all culminated in booking an early 2007 gig at Key Arena, home of the Seattle Super Sonics. And for once, I’m glad… I think these guys are gonna be the 2000′s answer to the Smashing Pumpkins.

10. Cursive - Happy Hollow Ask anyone who knows me and they’ll tell you: I love me a concept album. I understand, however, that this is treacherous territory, as most concept albums come across as self-important and trite. This is currently being made painfully clear by HotTopic-hipster’s, My Chemical Romance’s: Welcome to The Black Parade. Blessedly there are bands who excel at the concept album, most notably, mid-westerner’s: Sufjan Stevens and Cursive. Cursive already had one successful concept album under their belt with 2003′s The Ugly Organ, which tended to the theatric and personal. With Happy Hollow, Cursive focuses their lenses on the modern dystopic American landscape under the specter of Christian Fundamentalists and the Bush Regime. It features songs about religion trumping science (“There Was a Big Bang Once”), homosexual priests (“Bad Sects”), the War in Iraq (“Flag and Family”), and the challenges of being a non-believer in an increasing fundamentalist country (“Rise Up! Rise Up!”). Maybe it’s the angry Atheist in me… but every song on this album speaks to me, not in a whisper but a SHOUT: from the lyrics that are used, to the beautiful fury of instrumentation.

9.  Ghostland Observatory – Paparazzi Lightning               Beer, dark chocolate, strong espresso … some of the best things in life are an acquired taste. Austin’s Ghostland Observatory could easily be included on such a list.  I’ve had a number of readers write asking “Really– is Ghostland Observatory worth the hype? Because I think he sounds like my neighbors dog when he’s been left out too long.” And I answer, without hesitation: YES. Ghostland Observatory is worthy of any and all hype they are receiving. While most of the praise is focused on Ghostland’s manically inspired concerts/dance parties, it is not just their performance that’s worth lauding. Paparazzi Lightning is a great album all on its own. It is probably the only “dance” album I have ever liked, and other than the requisite copy of Thriller, it’s certainly the only one I actually went out and bought. While I own Thriller for posterity’s sake, I own Paparazzi Lightning because even the saddest of sad bastards needs an album that’s so good that they can’t help but boogie…and this album is it. I challenge you Seattle… put on “Ghetto Magnet” or “Sad Sad City” and try not to move… it’s physically impossible.

8.  Figurines – Skeleton Initially, I was disappointed with Skeleton. I’d just seen the Figurines live, where they put on an ear destroying, raucous, punk show.  I went in expecting the album to sound the same, with the fire and furor of their live performance. Thus, on first listen, Skeleton came across sounding a little too produced, the instrumentation too tight, and the voices too silky. But today, I can appreciate Skeleton for exactly the album it is– an album filled with one great song after another. The songs may not be super complex, but they are insidiously catchy and they translate amazingly live. One song after another, I hear them and think… why hadn’t someone written that before? The album is even more impressive, as it’s not written in the band’s native tongue, which is Danish. (Though I have gotten a tremendous laugh trying to imagine an American band writing and recording an album in Danish…)

7. Built to Spill - You In Reverse An album that was truly worth waiting for. There is only one song on this album that I don’t absolutely adore. (Track 9,” Just a Habit,” if you’re curious) A number of tracks from the album are battling for my favorite Built To Spill song of all time (a coveted title).  I love that whatever part of a song (drums, vocals, guitar) that you come in on… you know it’s Built to Spill within moments. This is a band people try to sound like… there have even been some decent imitations, but no one does it like Doug Martsch and the boys from Boise. There isn’t a bad Built to Spill record out there, but this is one of their best.

6. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife I know you’re supposed to be glad when good bands succeed and get noticed- but I rarely am. When a band I love signs to a major record label, I am filled with dread. When a band as beloved as The Decemberists signed with Capitol, I was sick to my stomach. What would the demand for commercial success do to the unique sound and stories spun by Colin Meloy and Crew? Would the songs about pirates and lyrics with olde english and GRE words be banished to B Sides? Thus, it is with great joy, that I include The Crane Wife on this list. It is an album which saw The Decemberists stay true to themselves, while continuing to evolve as a band. Who else could have a major label release with such compelling songs about Japanese ghost stories, civil war lovers or meat cleaver murders? No one.

5. Thee Emergency – Can You Dig It? Thee Emergency are pure rock’n'rollers.  These guys could light a guitar on fire or destroy their instruments after a set and not seem cliché at all. Because in 2006 Thee Emergency managed to make a classic 70′s rock album. I listen to it and think… if this came out in the 70′s it would be the biggest thing ever… giving bands like Zeppelin and The Who a run for their money. If it comes out later that Thee Emergency is a State Department experiment in cloning or cryogenics, I truly wouldn’t be shocked. Rock and Roll this authentic, this good… just isn’t made anymore.

4. The Thermals – The Body, The Blood, The Machine   An incredible Northwest release AND a stirring concept album?!?!  Add in plenty of religious imagery, driving punk riffs, great vocals, ridiculously clever lyrics… and this half of SOTS is the closest she’ll ever be to heaven. The Body, The Blood, The Machine brings the political and disenfranchised back to punk. It’s like someone created an album out of George Orwell’s nightmares and prescient visions. Despite starting the The Body, The Blood, The Machine with one of my favorite songs of the year, “Here’s Your Future, the album manages to build momentum with each track. The songs are succinct; lyrically and musically, while still containing much to be explored and contemplated. The Thermals write songs filled with lines that make me think–”damn! I wish I’d written that!” And I imagine I’m not alone in that feeling. I’m pretty sure The Body, The Blood, The Machine is the album Green Day wanted to write when penning American Idiot, ditto on Cursive’s beloved Happy Hollow. Consider the following lines from, “Our Power Doesn’t Run on Nothing”, and tell me that Billy Joe isn’t kicking himself.  “They’ll give us what we’re asking for, cause God is with us and our God’s the richest. Yeah our power doesn’t run on nothing. It runs on blood. And blood is easy to attain, when you have no shame. We have no shame. …You think we’ll cease? You see a reason? Do you think its fair? Do you think its fair? Do you think we care?”   

3. Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings The Flood Neko Case managed to make an album which is at once beautifully antique, as well as thoroughly modern.  I listen to it and hear an album that would’ve been hugely successful, no matter the decade it was released. I mean, tell me that “That Teenage Feeling” wouldn’t have been a huge hit in the early-60′s? That “Star Witness” couldn’t go hand in hand with the great teenage death songs of the 1950′s? Or that the Carter Family wouldn’t do a great version of “John Saw That Number?” Though the album is filled with one standout song after another, “Hold On, Hold On” is on a completely different plane of greatness. It is a song Lennon/McCartney could’ve been proud of. A song that Willie Nelson listens to and thinks – “Why didn’t I write that?” When I hear “Hold On, Hold On”, I hear an instant classic, something that could become a “standard.”  I don’t think many artists could have managed to pull off this album with the grace and authenticity that Neko Case does. There’s nothing kitschy about it… it’s not a throw back album or a take on Americana, it’s Fox Confessor Brings The Flood and it’s just about perfect. 

2. The Long Winters – Putting The Days To Bed Putting The Days to Bed is doubtlessly my most listened to album of 2006. The Long Winters write songs that sound instantly familiar, in the best way and which have been scientifically proven to be impossible not to tap your foot too. Featuring gems like “Pushover” and “Teaspoon,” this album is pop the way it should be, made by the nicest guys in rock’n'roll. Like the Long Winters themselves, Putting the Days to Bed, is witty, loud, welcoming, unafraid of displaying quirks and it doesn’t take itself too seriously. These are guys who have a ball making music together and it’s obvious. To me, it’s all like watching the early Beatles, before the feuds and insane fame.  Indeed when reviewing the album, I made not one, but multiple Beatles references. And while it may be “old school” of me, such references are rare and compliments of the highest order. My most recent Fab Four thought is: The Long Winters could (and should!) pull off making a movie like “Help!”

1. Elvis Perkins ­- Ash Wednesday Elvis Perkins was my single best discovery of 2006. I bought Ash Wednesday after hearing only a fragment of one song live. I couldn’t even wait for the song to end (much less his set) … not wanting to spend another moment without his music in my possession. It is likely the best ten dollars I have ever spent. Ash Wednesday satiated me like no other album, yet left me wanting infinitely more. In fact, one of my favorite Elvis Perkins songs, “How’s Forever Been Baby?” didn’t even make the cut for Ash Wednesday. Trying to describe the album’s title track, the power of its lyrics and melody, leaves me painfully wordless. (It’s going to be my generation’s “Hallelujah…”)  Each time a decent young songwriter comes around, they get the “new-Dylan” label, but Elvis (and this album) are actually worthy of such lofty comparisons.

 

Most Noticeably Missing -  Cold War Kids – Robbers & Cowards While Cold War Kids were the best live act I saw this year, as well as being the authors of my favorite song(s) of 2006, their debut album fell flat. The vocals are too produced, lacking the growl and passion that make Cold War Kids so extraordinary. Despite choosing to release material from their previous flawless EP’s (Up in Rags and With Our Wallets Full) they made a mistake by revising and over-polishing the tracks. Perhaps if you’d just heard the album without knowing the truth of just how fucking incredible the Cold War Kids really are, you’d think Robbers & Cowards was amazing. To me the release was one of the great disappointments of 2006.

December 20, 2006

Favorite Albums 2006

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When trying to write this list I originally wanted to say something about each album. Obviously that didn’t work out, there is too much that I have to say. I couldn’t even limit it to ten. All that really needs to be said is that these are the albums that instantly moved me and convinced me of their brilliance. These are the albums I listened to the most. These are the albums that after repeated listens, still intrigue me.

20. The Antiques – Nicknames and Natives 19. Beirut – Gulag Orchestar 18. Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins – Rabbit Fur Coat 17. Thee Emergency – Can You Dig It? 16. Band of Horses – Everything All The Time 15. Figurines – Skeleton 14. Grizzly Bear – Yellow House 13. Bob Dylan – Modern Times 12. Cursive  – Happy Hollow 11. Cat Power – The Greatest

10. The Cold War Kids – Robbers and Cowards 9. The Mountain Goats – Get Lonely 8. Silversun Pickups – Carnavas 7. Regina Spektor – Begin to Hope 6. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife 5. Built to Spill – You in Reverse 4. Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood 3. The Thermals – The Body, the Blood, The Machine 2. The Long Winters – Putting the Days to Bed 1. Elvis Perkins – Ash Wednesday

December 19, 2006

2006 MVP’S or The Velvet Space Helmet Goes To…

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We have appropriated what I am sure is a very personal moment from an Elvis Perkins song and named our MVP awards after them. Since we are small blog we don’t have any cool graphics or actual velvet space helmets to give out. Maybe next year. I prefer it in my imagination for right now anyway. Without further ado, onto the awards. 

Most Valuable Live Act: Cold War Kids I’ve had the pleasure of seeing the Cold War Kids three times this year and the boys NEVER dissapointed. When seen lives these guys are fucking incredible, blowing their much lauded record out of the water. Live the sweet rawness of the vocals and the jangly, jarring blues of the song-writing really comes through. To add to the great pleasure:  the (very intense) bassist looks like a T-Rex (the dinosaur, not the band), the guitarist is soaked in sweat by the end of the first song, the lead singer trades back and forth between guitar and piano with ease, the drummer is flawlessly on time and loud, and the entire band makes like Pong on stage–bumping into and off each other.

Most Valuable Opening Act (Show Stealer’s of the Year): It’s an unprecedented three-way-tie. This year I saw a number of live acts who easily stole the show from the “Big Name” on the ticket. I’ve stopped avoiding opening acts and started coming early to shows, thanks to these performers: Cold War Kids, The Figurines who unquantifiably out rocked their headliners Tapes n’ Tapes, and lastly, but not least, Elvis Perkins and Dearland who won my heart, despite playing before the impeccable Cold War Kids and The Pernice Brothers.

Most Valuable Performer (female): Dita Vox of Seattle’s Thee Emergency Holy shit this girl has PIPES!! I saw Dita perform in 90 degree weather, as the very first act in a killer festival-ish line-up. There were literally ten or so of us standing in the front rows, but Dita sang like she was playing Woodstock. I have written before that her performance reminded me of recordings of Janis Joplin concerts.  She growled and cooed, making love to the music, while screaming a battle cry. Though I love the work that other female artists like Neko Case, Regina Spektor, and Jenny Lewis  have done this year; Dita stands alone for rocking out, rocking hard, keeping up with the boys, singing her ass off and looking damn sexy doing it.

Most Valuable Performer (male): Aaron of Ghostland Observatory In a span of two days I saw Mick Jagger (the iconic front man) and Aaron from Ghostland, and the latter was embarrassingly superior. I think I get what people felt like when they saw Elvis shake his hips for the first time. If you haven’t heard- Aaron’s got moves like a dorky, pre-Neverland Michael Jackson with the King’s hips and 1990′s bump’n'grind. Watching him perform, you feel like an voyeur… and yes, the tightness of the acid wash jeans paired with pelvic thrusting, just might have something to do with that. Honorable Mention: John Roderick of The Long Winters The funniest man in rock and roll.

Most Valuable Improved Live Act: Tapes n’ Tapes A year of touring has done these boys good. Now their live performance truly stands up to the amazing feat that The Loon is. And we here couldn’t be more pleased….because they really fucking rock.

Most Valuable Venue (Seattle): The Crocodile Cafe Which has become Sound on the Sound’s second home.

December 17, 2006

Best EP’s of 2006

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Here is Sound on the Sound’s favorite EP’s of the year. 

1. Cold War Kids – Up In Rags 2. Voxtrot – Raised by Wolves 3. The Little Ones - Sing Song 4. Wild Sweet Orange – House of Regret 5. Colin Meloy -  Colin Meloy Sings Shirley Collins

And as a side note on this topic, mad props go out to “Silversun Pickups,” whose 2005 EP Pikul reinvigorated the EP. Ever more props for releasing a full length album of great tunes, without re-using a single song from the EP, even if they were all great. (cough, cough… Cold War Kids?!?!?)

December 16, 2006

Josh finally chose his Best Songs of 2006

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So much music deserved notice this year that I couldn’t just limit this lit to ten or twenty. This one has a whopping thirty songs and this is limiting each artist on the list to a single song. A number of the songs are linked on abbeys post below so you can take a look at hers for the dl. I did write my list without looking at Abbey’s. After taking a look there are alot of similarites in the top ten.

1. “While You Were Sleeping” – Elvis Perkins – Ash Wednesday 2. “Hospital Beds” – Cold War Kids – Up In Rags EP(linked abbeys post) 3. “Pushover” – The Long Winters – Putting the Days to Bed 4. “The Funeral” – Band of Horses – Everything All The Time 5. “Here’s Your Future” – The Thermals – The Body, The Blood, The Machine (linked abbeys post) 6. “Going Against Your Mind” – Built to Spill – You In Reverse 7. “Flag and Family” – Cursive – Happy Hollow 8. “Hold On, Hold On” – Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood (linked abbeys post) 9. “Lazy Eye” – Silversun Pickups – Carnavas 10. “Postcards From Italy” – Beirut – Gulag Orkestar 11. “Raised by Wolves” – Voxtrot – Raised by Wolves EP 12. “The Greatest” – Cat Power – The Greatest 13. “Thunder on the Mountain” – Bob Dylan – Modern Times 14. “Bad Education” – Tilly and the Wall - Bottoms of Barrels 15. “The Perfect Crime #2″ – The Decemberists – The Crane Wife 16. “Phantom Limb” – The Shins -Phantom Limb Single 17. “In The Morning” – Junior Boys – So This Is Goodbye 18. “Naive” – The Kooks -Inside In/Inside Out 19. “Cha Cha Cha” – The Little Ones – Sing Song EP 20. “Cream” – Thee Emergency – Can You Dig It? (linked abbeys post) 21. “Time Bomb” – The Format – Dog Problems 22. “Crazy” – Gnarls Barkley – St. Elsewhere 23. “Hold You In My Arms” – Ray Lamontagne – Until The Sun Turns Black 24. “All Night” – Figurines – Skeleton 25. “Don’t Make Me Wait” - Locksley - Don’t Make Me Wait 26. “Automaton” – The Pernice Brothers – Live A Little 27. “Memphis Moon” – Magnolia Electric Co. – Fading Trails 28. “Near Yorktown and At the X” – The Antiques 29. “Mercy Me” – What Made Milwaukee Famous – Trying to Never Catch Up 30. “Stranger Lover” – Ghostland Observatory – Paparizzi Lightning  

December 13, 2006

Abbey’s Best Songs of 2006

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The Best of 2006: Songs

I am pleased to say that choosing the best songs of 2006 has been a daunting task with all the incredible tunes that have been released this year. The following are, after much consideration, a thousand listens, and just about as many changes… my favorite songs of 2006:

1. (Gasp! A Tie!) “Hospital Beds” and “We Used To Vacation” – Cold War Kids – Up In Rags EP Hospital Beds 2. “Hold On, Hold On” – Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood Hold On, Hold On 3. “While You Were Sleeping” - Elvis Perkins- Ash Wednesday 4. “Fire Island, AK” – The Long Winters- Putting the Days to Bed 5. “Here’s Your Future” – The Thermals – The Blood,The Body, The Machine Here’s Your Future 6. “Samson” – Regina Spektor – Begin To Hope 7. “The Phantom Limb” – The Shins – Phantom Limb Single 8. “Flag and Family” – Cursive – Happy Hollow 9. “The Funeral” – Band of Horses- Everything All the Time 10. “Cream”- Thee Emergency- Can You Dig It? Cream 11. “Moon Over Goldsboro” – The Mountain Goats – Get Lonely 12 “Future Foe Scenarios” – Silversun Pickups – Carnavas 13. ”Sad Sad City” – Ghostland Observatory- Paparazzi Lightning Sad Sad City 14. “Just A Thought” – Gnarls Barkley – St. Elsewhere 15. “Bad Education” – Tilly and The Wall – Bottom of Barrells 16. “Start of Something” – Voxtrot – Raised by Wolves EP 17.”Good Weekend” – Art Brut- Bang Bang Rock & Roll 18. “All Fires” – Swan Lake- Beast Moans All Fires 19. “Handle With Care” – Jenny Lewis with guests Ben Gibbard, Conor Oberst, & M. Ward- Rabbit Fur Coat 20. “Jah Didn’t Kill Johnny” – Sage Francis – A Healthy Distrust

Beloved Songs of 2006, That Were Not Released in 2006

“Lisa” – Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers “The River (live)” – Atmosphere w/Heiruspecs – from First Avenue, Mpls “No Children” and “Best Ever Death Metal Band Out of Denton”- The Mountain Goats “I Found a Reason” – Cat Power “Breathe Me” – Sia “Heartbeats”- Jose Gonzalez

December 12, 2006

Best Northwest Shows 2006

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Since I don’t have my act together yet on the Protest Songs of 2006 yet, here are Abbey and my lists for Northwest shows of the year. Unsuprisingly we share a few of the same this year. Checkout the “No Children” video from the concert we went to for a crowd sing-along.

Abbey’s List

1.Elvis Perkins – The Tractor Tavern – November 16, 2006 (With Pernice Brothers) Watch : While You Were Sleeping (Live) (YouTube)

2. The Mountain Goats – Neumos – June 9, 2006 (With Barbara Morgenstern and Kimya Dawson)Watch: No Children – June 9, 2006 (YouTube)

 3. Ghostland Observatory – The Crocodile Cafe – October 19, 2006 (Early Show with the Coconut Coolouts)

4. Dr. Dog, Elvis Perkins, and The Cold War Kids – The Crocodile Cafe – September 12, 2006

 5. (tie) Cursive, The Thermals – Neumos – October 20, 2006 (With Chin Up Chin Up) and The Figurines, Speaker Speaker – The Crocodile Cafe – Halloween 2006

Damn! You Just Barely Missed The List: Thee Emergency, Devotchka, Ghostland Observatory, and The Long Winters – KEXP BBQ at a random field in “South Lake Union”

The National – Neumos – October 6, 2006 

And if I wasn’t so Drunk… I bet You Would’ve Made My List: Built To Spill- Showbox – You opened with a searing version of “Car”… and that’s about all I remember.

 

Josh’s List (I am limiting my list items to a single act, not an entire bill.)

1. The Constantines – Sasquatch 2006 At the Sasquatch Festival at the Gorge in May, the Constantines put on the show of their life. Play a song here. Band your head there. Suddenly solid, paintball size hail began to fall. Fans who had formerly been lounging on grassy knoll in just barely 60 degree weather were scattered, to take cover in the beer garden if you were of age, or to dive under a picnic table if you weren’t, at least to wait out the maelstrom for a few minutes. Unfortunately the hail didn’t stop. 10 minutes passed and the Neko Case show at the mainstage never started. The band didn’t flag for a second, hanging from the rafters of the stage and playing just as fast as normal, turning what could have otherwise been wet towel into the most memorable concert moment of the year. After attempting to pack our selves into the already sopping and overcrowded covered beer garded we decided to go with the flow and join the insane superfan mob in front of the stage. By this time the downright painful hail had driven all but a few brave souls under cover. Those remaining few were dancing hard, among large elecrified cables, surrounded by inches of hail (turning to slush) building up on the grass. After twenty minutes the band decided to call it, but not before making a number of new fans in the form of some festival fans. We were drenched and shivering and glad we weren’t electrocuted, but we didn’t care because this show was instantly historic in our minds. Watch: Constantines at Sasquatch in a Hail Storm (YouTube)

2. Elvis Perkins – The Tractor Tavern – November 16, 2006 (With Pernice Brothers)

3. Cold War Kids – The Crocodile Cafe – September 12, 2006 (With Elvis Perkins and Dr. Dog)

4. The Mountain Goats – Neumos – June 9, 2006 (With Barbara Morgenstern and Kimya Dawson)

5. Death Cab For Cutie – Key Arena – December 9, 2006 (With Jenny Lewis & the Watson Twins and Ted Leo & The Pharmacists)

December 11, 2006

Best of the Northwest 2006 – Albums

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Here is Sound on the Sound’s first list of 2006. This Best of the Northwest list is limited to artists from the Oregon, Washington, and Idaho areas. We love you Death Cab, but sorry, you didn’t make our top ten.

Northwest Artists – Top Ten Albums of 2006

10. Awesome – Delaware  (Seattle) 9. Math And Physics Club – Math And Physics Club (Seattle) 8. Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam  (Seattle) Our Review 7. Crystal Skulls – Blocked Numbers (Seattle) 6. Band of Horses – Everything All The Time (Seattle) 5. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife (Portland) Our Review 4. Built to Spill – You In Reverse (Boise) Our Review 3. Thee Emergency – Can You Dig It? (Seattle) Our Review 2. The Thermals – The Blood, The Body, The Machine (Oregon City) 1. The Long Winters – Putting The Days To Bed (Seattle) Our Review

We have been suprised and dissapointed that not to many others are giving the Long Winters album it’s due. Other notable northwest bands that didn’t make our top ten but were albums we really liked are:

Islands – Return to the Sea Blue Scholars – Blue Scholars Common Market – Common Market Colin Meloy – Colin Meloy Sings Shirley Collins Rocky Votolato – Makers Jeremy Enigk - World Waits

Without a doubt we missed a few. Any other northwest releases we egregiously missed?

 Update: I forgot the links to our reviews of most of the above albums. They have been added now.