New pics up, including this one. On my way outside there was a foul stench in the stairwell of my apartment building. I’m starting to think it’s me. I hope it’s not residual of Stella poop.

I tend to come to the party late on these things, and this year is no exception, but a quick and dirty list is in order, especially for those without the patience to read anything but a few words. Here’s a little of what I listened to this year. It’s in no particular order, and is very incomplete. Part II will come as soon as I finish writing up the rest of the short reviews. Enjoy!

Death Cab for Cutie – Plans
I’d say almost by default, but maybe that’s not giving them enough credit. Some songs still strike gold, like “Marching Bands of Manhattan” and “Brothers on a Hotel Bed”, while others I’m not as fond of, but they will always, always hold a special place in my CD collection.

Kanye West – Late Registration
I respect a man willing to go outside of conventional hip-hop production, and possibly because he chose to work with Jon Brion, this album transcends the standard hip-hop fare. Lyrically, it’s pretty much the same, but Lupe flows like fiber optics on “Touch the Sky”, which pops like no other song on the album. My favorite part on the song is Lupe’s: “Now, let me end my verse right where the horns are like -“. That said, West is still a mama’s boy.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – S/T
At the end of “Is This Love?”, I start to remember when Modest Mouse was all guts and rhythm section – No cowboy lyrics, just some bad but catchy-as-hell vocals, some long slides on the bass and very crisp, loud high-hats. Saying that doesn’t give as much credit to CYHSY as they deserve. The album is solid, and I’m glad a band that really did everything by themselves got so successful doing it.

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin – Broom
When the Push Kings and all the Elephant 6 Collective stopped making music that paid heavy tribute to The Beatles and just plain catchy pop music, and when Superchunk left that temporal pop plane of Come Pick Me Up, a void waited to be filled for a long time. SSLYBY made it all better; track after track of sing-alongs and smart, winning pop hooks. A more sophisticated Bishop Allen?

Bright Eyes – I’m Wide Awake It’s Morning
I entirely understand some people’s aversion to Bright Eyes, much like that to the Decemberists, and certainly, the constant comparisons to Bob Dylan are taxing, but this album isn’t as weighty as previous ones and its strengths are many. Oberst’s songwriting has always been smart, his voice always flawed. That was the charm, but I think the guest vocalists here, specifically Jim James on the opening track and Emmylou Harris on the second, give some depth and context to his voice. By the time the rest of the tracks come along, it’s refreshing to hear it alone. “I Will Follow You into the Dark” seems a little like a reprise of “First Day of My Life”; both touching, if you’re willing to admit it.

Sufjan Stevens – Illinois
The research and effort put into this album definitely shows – and is only matched by the harmonies and melodies Stevens uses to tell historical and fictional stories about Illinois. Like I said in the Christmas list, when the flood gates open on “The Predatory Wasp of The Palisades is Out to Get Us!”, it’s absolutely the defining moment of the album for me. Grand timpani, horn, flute and guitar strums bring an epic deluge of sound and choir. This album is number one on everyone’s list for a reason. More here.

This Friday at the Sunset Tavern (in Beautiful Downtown Ballard):

9pm: Skinny Productions presents: “Happy Birthday Heather Hydra!” w/ The Revolutionary Hydra, Rat Cat Hogan, Karl Blau, Secret Special Guest!, Selector Dub Narcotic -$8

I know who the guest is. I’ll be there, provided I don’t find some insane deal for tickets to Los Angeles for my niece’s birthday. That does, of course, include ticket donations to L.A. Otherwise, my neighborhood, rockin’ music, special guests! good times.

Josh told me about this last week, but I didn’t get the chance to write about it or even subscribe until today, since now I have the money and the time. 

 Nonstop Cooperative is the new record label started by Andrew Kaffer and Dusty Reske.  There’s a few songs available for free download, including the spectacular “The Sequel” by Andrew.  All free songs are downloadable here, but I encourage everyone to just drop the measly 30 bucks for the subscription, and you get all the songs currently available there, which is what you spend when you buy two CDs at Best Buy or wherever the fuck you buy your crappy music. 

So I found out for sure today that this bike is a 1970 Raleigh Professional, which means all Reynolds 531. It rides great. Owl and I rode around town a bit today, got some pho, and cruised on the BGT for a while. The Brooks was a little painful, I moved it back a little, could be moved back some more, but my ass felt a little tender from one of the rivets poking me yesterday.

I took those pictures yesterday after taking the GRE (don’t ask), and felt much better about myself. Lots more obsessive pictures of the bike at Flickr. Two days of riding with no brakes, and my thigh and ankle are feeling the pain of skid and skip stops. I tried teaching myself doing it right foot forward with only minor success.

I should start writing posts like they were meeting agendas, just so I know that I’ve gone over all the essential items. I’m just trying to think of the least creative ways to update as possible, that way, it’s more automatic. If I had an audioblog, I could literally just phone it in.

Look for infiniteregress podcast audioblogs soon! Nothing like hearing me drone on about inane crap!

I got the Wholphin DVD in the mail yesterday with McSweeney’s 18. The Al Gore Documentary that Spike Jonze filmed is great, the liner notes for the DVD talk a lot about how if this was seen before the election, that the “stiffness” problem that Gore faced could have been swiftly eliminated. What is really great is the self-deprecating humor Gore has about him, he jokes on more than one occassion that his “stiffness” is a trait that haunts him. He almost looks hurt when he talks about it. He also seems like a very funny and humble man, something that is in complete contrast to Bush. In any case, if you want to borrow the DVD, let me know, I’d gladly share that doc with you, I think a lot of people would get a kick out of it.

And not just because Al Gore is on it. Patton Oswalt make a brief appearance. Longer than Mike White’s, anyway. Oswalt is hilarious, even without saying anything. I still can’t quite put my finger on it, but watching him stare into the camera is like a compact silent film; I expect his head to explode at multiple points in the short. The Dutchman singing “Stairway to Heaven” backwards is pretty good, too.

Christmas was good times, I have pictures that will find their way to my flickr account soon. New Year’s was equally fun, what with watching Goonies and dancing on the couch. Pictures as well, soon.