2007: Favorite Songs, L.A. releases, Top 25 Albums, and some great live performances

I'm pretty much done blogging until after Christmas. Here's a re-post of my year's favorite releases:

2007's Ultimate Mixtape Extravaganza:

1. The Besnard Lakes: "Devastation"
2. The National: "Mistaken for Strangers"
3. David Vandervelde: "Nothin' No"
4. A Sunny Day in Glasgow: "C'mon"
5. !!! (Chk Chk Chk): "Must Be The Moon"
6. Midnight Juggernauts: "Shadows"
7. Art Brut: "Direct Hit"
8. The Sea & Cake: "Crossing Line"
9. The Jealous Girlfriends: "Machines"
10. Xu Xu Fang: "These Days"
11. School of Seven Bells: "My Cabal"
12. Shocking Pinks: "I Want U Back"
13. Spoon: "The Ghost of You Lingers"
14. Clinic: If You Could Read You Mind"
15. Adam Franklin: "Shining Somewhere"
16. The Twilight Sad: "And She Would Darken the Memory"
17. AIR: "Mer Du Japon"
18. Deerhoof: "The Perfect Me"
19. Bat For Lashes: "Sarah"
20. Blonde Redhead: "23"
21. Caribou: "Sandy"
22. Dungen: "Familj"
23. The Clientele: "The Garden at Night"
24. Deerhunter: "Like New"
25. Film School: "Go Down Together"
26. Young Galaxy: "Outside the City"
27. Justice: "Phantom Pt.1"
28. Liars: "Freak Out"
29. Panda Bear: "Bros"
30. The Ponys: "Everyday Weapon"

Here are my favorite L.A. releases of the year. If you think my list is missing something then you might be more on par with this guy. On any given day I would change up the order depending upon my mood. Regardless, all of the releases below are pretty choice.

1. The Broken West: I Can't Go On, I'll Go On (Merge)


2. Great Northern: Trading Twilight For Daylight (Eenie Meenie)


3. Ken Andrews: Secrets of the Lost Satellite (Dinosaur Fight)


4. Division Day: Beartrap Island (Eenie Meenie)


5. Xu Xu Fang: These Days (Vacancy)


6. The Moon Upstairs: Guarding the Golden Apple (Gifted Children)


7. The Henry Clay People: Blacklist the Kid with the Red Moustache (Self-Released)


8. Le Switch: Hello Today (Self-Released)


9. Coco B's: Coco B's (Self-Released)


10. Health: Self-Titled (Lovepump United)


Honorable mentions:
Secretary Bird: Secretary Bird (In De Goot)
The Front: Smiles & Handshakes EP (Self-Released)
Lion Fever: Who Hears, Who Talks? EP (Self-Released)

Albums that ruled:

1. The Besnard Lakes: The Besnard Lakes are the Dark Horse (Jagjaguwar)


2. Blonde Redhead: 23 (4AD)


3. !!! (Chk Chk Chk): Myth Takes (Warp)


4. The Twilight Sad: Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters (Fat Cat)


5. Brad Laner: Neighbor Singing (Home Tapes)


6. Caribou: Andorra (Merge)


7. Radiohead: In Rainbows (Self-Released/XL)


8. A Sunny Day In Glasgow: Scribble Mural Comic Journal (Notenuf)


9. Dungen: Tio Bitar (Kemado)


10. Film School: Hideout (Beggars Group)


11. Apparat: Walls (BPitch Control)


12. Liars: Liars (Mute)


13. Ulrich Schnauss: Goodbye (Domino)


14. Marnie Stern: In Advance of the Broken Arm (Kill Rock Stars)


15. Dr. Dog: We All Belong (Park the Van)


16. Panda Bear: Person Pitch (Carpark)


17. The Shins: Wincing the Night Away (Sub Pop)


18. Deerhoof: Friend Opportunity (Kill Rock Stars)


19. Shocking Pinks: Shocking Pinks (Astralwerks)


20. Earlimart: Mentor Tormentor (Majordomo)


21. Clinic: Visitations (Domino)


22. The Jealous Girlfriends: The Jealous Girlfriends (Self-Released)


23. Bat For Lashes: Fur and Gold (Caroline)


24. Young Galaxy: Young Galaxy (Arts & Crafts)


25. Deerhunter: Cryptograms (Kranky)



Loose change:

AIR: Pocket Symphony (Astralwerks)
All Smiles: Ten Readings of a Warning (Dangerbird)
Okkervil River: The Stage Names (Jagjaguwar)
David Vandervelde: The Moonstation House Band (Secretly Canadian)
Menomena: Friend and Foe (Barsuk)


Most Memorable Performances of 2007:

Sonic Youth @ Greek Theatre (performing Daydream Nation)
Young Galaxy @ Spaceland
The Besnard Lakes @ The Troubadour
Autolux @ The Glass House
Blonde Redhead @ The Wiltern
BRMC @ Little Radio
Airiel @ Boardner's (club moscow)
Deerhunter @ Fuck Yeah Festival, Echoplex
Film School & Ulrich Schnauss @ Detroit Bar
Snowden & Land of Talk @ SXSW
Peter Bjorn & John @ Henry Fonda
The Jealous Girlfriends @ Echoplex