More Top Tens of 2007? This Time the Artists Are in Control

Aaron Dessner - The National
Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
Bruce Springsteen – Magic
Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Feist - The Reminder
Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene) - Spirit If
Neil Young - Live At Massey Hall
Doveman - With My Left Hand I Raise The Dead
PJ Harvey - White Chalk
Radiohead - In Rainbows

Richard Swift
The Tuss - Confederation Through EP
The Tuss - Rushup Edge EP
Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
Ponytail - Kamehameha
Mahar Shalal Hash Baz - L'Autre Cap
Sitar Beat! - Indian Style Heavy Funk
Madlib - Beat Konducta, Vols 3 & 4: In India
Carlton Patterson & King Tubbby - Black & White In Dub
Neil Young - Live At Massey Hall 1971
Rockwell (Rockwellian)- The Music Is Free, The Packaging Is Not
(Unless I Just Gave It to You, In Which Case Maybe You Can Buy Me a Drink Sometime

Brad Laner
Robert Wyatt – Comicopera
Miles Davis – The Complete On The Corner Sessions
Apparat – Walls
Dirty Projectors - Rise Above
Efterklang - Under Giant Trees
Caribou - Andorra
Dungen – Tio Bitar
Deerhoof – Friend Opportunity
Christopher Willits & Ryuichi Sakamoto – Ocean Fire
Radiohead – In Rainbows

Vampire Weekend
Dirty Projectors - Rise Above
White Williams - Smoke
Panda Bear - Person Pitch
Feist - The Reminder
MIA - Kala
Kanye West - Graduation
Sam Rosen - Get the Motion
Studio - Yearbook 1
The National - Boxer
Sekos/Yoro Diallo - s/t

Nedelle - Cryptacize
Top Ten Things of 2007
1. Movies- Stardust, Ratatouille, Lagerfeld Confidential
2. Bands- Ponytail, Half-Handed Cloud
3. New Discovery- Dark Carnival Bookstore in Berkeley, CA
4. Surprisingly Good Live Show- Dave Brubeck + Orchestra performing his "Elementals" suite at Moscone Center, SF
5. Fun Venues/Cities to play in- Gaff Gallery in Vancouver, Rhinoceropolis in Denver, Jake's Backroom in Lubbock, TX
6. Books I read (Sorry they're not from 2007)!- Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, Flatland by Edwin Abbott, Bright Moments (Roland Kirk bio) by John Kruth
7. Disappointments- Kanye West, Wes Anderson
8. Personal Hero- John Galliano
9. Musical Experiences- Playing in Half-Handed Cloud's band for a few shows, singing in my on and off barbershop quartet
10. Moment- Seeing Saturn through a massive telescope at Chabot Space Center in Oakland, CA

Chief Xcel - Blackalicious
1. Lifesavas - Gutterfly
2. Sa Ra - The Hollywood Recordings
3. Jeanine Smith - "Baby, It Aint Over"
4. Rich Boy - "Throw Some D’s" remix
5. Aggregation - "Can You Feel It"
6. Ms. Josie Stingray - "Doin My Thang"
7. Patti Bligh and the Alkebulan Five - Sagala
8. El P - I’ll Sleep When You're Dead
9. Erykah Badu - Real Thing
10. Wood Harris - Black Magic

Sam Valenti IV - Ghostly International (Founder, A+R)
1. Interpol - Our Love To Admire
2. Various Artists - After Dark (Italians Do It Better)
3. Various Artists - Cocoon Compilation 6
4. Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals
5. Pantha du Prince - This Bliss
6. Peter and the Wolf - The Ivori Palms
7. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedaa
8. Uuitsitalo - Karhunainen
9. New Young Pony Club - Fantastic Playroom
10. Ghostly and Spectral releases (Someone's gotta do it. I'm extremely proud of our releases from Audion, Cepia, Daso, Kiln, Lusine, Matthew Dear, Mobius Band, Osborne, Par Grindvik and Skeletons and The Kings Of All-Cities.)

Johnossi
Some Albums:
MIA – Kala
Beirut – The Flying Club Cup
Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
The Shins – Wincing the Night Away
Queens of the Stone Age – Era Vulgaris
Tegan and Sara - The Con
Mark Knopfler - Kill to Get Crimson
Electrelane - No Shouts No Calls

And Some Songs:
Laakso - "The Death of Us"
Maskinen - "Alla Som Inte Dansar är Våldtäksmän"
Rihanna - "Umbrella"
Mando Diao - "If I Don't Live Today, Then I Might Be Here Tomorrow"

Cameron Fraser - Bella
1. Travis - The Boy With No Name
This record wins hands down as my most listened-to record released in 2007. After a minor misstep with 2003's "12 Memories", Travis returned triumphant after a four year hiatus (excluding their "Singles" release in 2004). This is quite possibly my favorite Travis record, and an indication of what Coldplay could have aspired to had they not become as universally renowned.

2. Apartment - The Dreamer Evasive
These guys win two awards from me, the first being "Best Artist Discovered From a Canadian Phone Company Commerical", the second "Guitar Tone of the Year". This disc is just a lot of fun, with catchy melodies and the aforementioned killer guitar tone. I just wish I could figure out what the guitarist was playing through. Oh, and the fact that they're British adds a lot of credibility.

3. The National - Boxer
Another outstanding release from New York's "The National", "Boxer" couples gorgeous musicianship with thoughtful lyrics for an entirely affecting result. I've only recently started listening to them, and feel blessed to get to hear such beautiful music with fresh ears.

4. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
I think what first got me about this album was Spoon's idiosyncratic production values. This album deserves an award for "Best Use of Reverb", and, as with every Spoon release, "Best Sounding Hand Claps". Their incorporation of a brass section also knocked my favorite tracks, "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb" and "The Underdog", right out of the stratosphere.

5. The Brothers Martin - The Brothers Martin
I had been waiting for this album to come out ever since I learned that the guy from Joy Electric was the brother of the guy from Starflyer 59. Jason and Ronnie Martin are my two favorite musicians in the world, and to finally have them record an album together ensured I could die a happy man.

6. Starflyer 59 - Ghosts of the Future 7" Box Set
While my subscription to this mail order series of 10 7" vinyls is yet to be fulfilled, what I've received so far is enough to place indie rock's greatest unknowns on my "Top 10 of 2007" list. Consistently progressive and innovative, each new release from Starflyer keeps me begging for more, so what could be better than having them delivered in rapid succession, right to my door? (that last bit was a poem).

7. Joy Electric - The Otherly Opus/Memory of Alpha
I personally consider Ronnie Martin, the genius behind Joy Electric, to be one of the most fearlessly unwavering (not to mention brilliant) fixtures in modern pop music, and nobody seems to know who he is. I can think of no other modern musician that could demand of himself such rigid methods and techniques of recording, and still manage an average of two or three release a year, all of which are worth owning. Astounding.

8. Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House
I will always remember 2007 as the year I solidified my love for Josh Rouse. After finding a used copy of his 2005 release, "Nashville", at the Amoeba in San Francisco while on tour, I was hooked. I'm just glad that he's managed to bang out as much new material since then as he has, "Country Mouse City House" being this year's offering. "Hollywood Bass Player" is my mixtape single of the year.

9. The Foxglove Hunt - Demo
While perhaps not necessarily an official 2007 release, this two song demo from the ex-headman of the now sadly defunct "Fine China", and "Joy Electric"'s Ronnie Martin, packs enough catchy pop perfection in two songs to rival the best 12 song effort of most other bands. Their full length is easily my most anticipated album of 2008.

10. She's Spanish, I'm American - She's Spanish, I'm American
This collaborative effort between Josh Rouse and his Spanish girlfriend, Paz Suay, only served to further cement 2007 firmly in my memory as "The Year of the Rouse".

Miguel Castillo - Catfish Haven
1. Panda Bear - Person Pitch
2. A Place to Bury Strangers - A Place to Bury Strangers
3. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
4. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
5. Dan Deacon - Spiderman of the Rings
6. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala
7. St. Vincent - Marry Me
8. Besnard Lakes - Are the Dark Horse
9. Liars - Liars
10. Dirty Projectors - Rise Above

Michael Tapscott - Odawas
1. Stars of the Lid - And Their Refinement of the Decline
2. Louis Phillippe - An Unknown Spring
3. Phospherescent - Pride
4. Noah Georgeson - Find Shelter
5. CocoRosie - The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn
6. Panda Bear - Person Pitch
7. Zelienople - His/Hers
8. The Field - From Here We Go Sublime
9. Air - Pocket Symphony
10. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver

Megan Johnson - Vancougar
1. The Goodnight Loving – Crooked Lake (Dusty Medical Records)
2. The Duchess and the Duke – “Reservoir Park” 7” single (Boom Boom Party Records)
3. Cheater Slicks – Walk into the Sea (self-released; CD on Dead Canary Records)
4. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings – 100 Days, 100 Nights (Dap-Tone)
5. So Cow – Moon Geun Young 7” single (Almost Ready Records/Myoclopic Records co-release)
6. Modern Creatures – “Thick Thick Black” 7” EP (Grotesque Modern)
7. Gentleman Jesse and his Men – “I Don’t Wanna Know” 7” single (Douchemaster Records)
8. Human Eye – “Spiders and their Kin” 7” EP (Cass Records)
9. A Frames live, and the reissues of their previously out-of-print A Frames I and A Frames II LPs (Born Bad Records)
10. Hubble Bubble - Hubble Bubble (Reissue - Radio Hearbeat/Daggerman Records)

Will Schwartz - Hey Willpower!
1. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
2. Juvelen – Juvelen
Sexy Swedish pop singer we toured with in Europe
3. M.I.A – Kala
4. “No Country for Old Men”
5. "I Love New York" Season 2
6. Electrelane - No Shouts No Calls
7. Keyshia Cole feat. Missy Elliot & Lil’ Kim - "Let It Go"
8. Melt festival in Berlin
Seeing Kelis with Erase Errata and hearing Hot Chip.
9. "Just for Laughs"
Funny British hi-jinks and pranks on YouTube.
10. Lily Allen - Alright, Still

Cameron Bird - Architecture in Helsinki
Top Ten Songs of 2007:
1. Glass Candy - "Rolling Down The Hills"
2. Late of the Pier - "The Bears Are Coming"
3. Santogold - "Shove it"
4. Mr Oizo - "Patrick 122"
5. Qua - "Lapsang Souchong"
6. Animal Collective - "Winter Wonderland"
7. LCD Soundsystem - "Time To Get Away"
8. Soft Tigers – "Mr. Icecream"
9. Tough Alliance - "1981"
10. Panda Bear - "Comfy in Nautica"

Nicole Atkins
1. Richard Hawley - Lady's Bridge
2. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
3. Bat for Lashes - Fur and Gold
4. Soulsavers feat. Mark Lanegan - Its Not How Far You Fall, It’s How You Land
5. Arcade fire - Neon Bible
6. Radiohead - In Rainbows
7. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
8. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
9. The Avett Brothers - Emotionalism
10. Dax Riggs - We Sing of Only Blood or Love

top 10 songs:
1. Radiohead - “Bodysnatchers”
2. Dax Riggs - “Dethbryte”
3. Bruce Springsteen - “Girls in Their Summerclothes”
4. Soulsavers - “Revival”
5. Scott Liss - “Sweetheart Spin”
6. The Doo Doo Stains - “Global Swerve”
7. The Avett Brothers - “The Ballad of Love and Hate”
8. PJ Harvey - “When Under Ether”
9. Richard Hawley - “Roll River Roll”
10. Devendra Banhart - “Shabop Shalom”

Daedelus' 2007 best of the (so called) worst places to play...
10. Athens, Georgia
Indie rock has a home in Athens, natives won't let you forget, but a habitat for electronics? for HipHop? But it will be a theme on this list on changed expectations, and wide open minds. People who weren't then were and why surprises lurk everywhere...

9. Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Again with the rock band history, but after a brief gig there with Busdriver, Antimc and Desert Eagles I must admit even if they weren't prepared it still was a wonderful night full of every dancing, silly, wonderful reaction, including (happy) crying, and Ms. Pac-Man high scores.

8. Salt Lake City, Utah
People are sleeping on SLC.

7. SXSW, Austin, Texas
Critics said it wouldn't be a good idea to play this festival when among a thousand other bands you can count the number of electronic acts playing on two hands, and it's no accident. But no one told the fantastic Austin people, or perhaps it was total import out-of-towners, but this was sold-out surprises galore!

6. Nagano, Japan
Olympics, Yes. Music, perhaps? Who knew people travel from the major cities to the countryside, practice questionable activities, and rave like no other city the world? I played a sunrise set after 18 hours of previous entertainment and kids didn't quit. I was amazed.

5. Glasgow, Scotland
The city doesn't seem so bad, even charming in many ways, however I was warned about being teased for my Dandy attire and being punched in the face. Nonsuch occurred, and some of Scotland's finest didn't disappoint.

4. Stavanger, Norway
A place most famous for it's now dead fish canning industry, with museums on the subject to boot. But look closer and see beyond the fish byproducts for a place unspoiled by Eurotrash and preconceptions.

3. Bestival, Isle of Wight, UK
I worried myself into a hole; a line-up as long as your arm full of amazing talent, electronic and otherwise, all practically at the same time (festival style), on an island south of nowhere. But no fear at all, when something is so closely curated chaos, and at every turn was wonderful this and that. Trust the UK to get the festival right as rain.

2. New York, New York
Given a bad rep for all around all over prints, a perpetually
(better?) party somewhere else, and center-of-the-world delusions. The hard truth is no matter, kids here have been training for the best parties ever. First in the role as small towns celebrity, then graduating thru magazines and trendy hard habits to it's big city parties that never want to stop. They have practiced for a good time all their lives. They practically can have one without you even being there (this is usually true and a difficult pill to swallow at times but it is gratifying just to know America can be a kind of Berlin as
necessary)

1. Los Angeles, California
The city everyone loves to dismiss; they'll tell you kids will be bored, cops will be cruel, promoters will be shady, celebrities will be there, and all the venues are too cool for school. Couldn't be further from my heavily biased truth. Los Angeles takes the cake for its diverse amazing highlight nights! Of course low expectations mean high outcomes...

Ezra Feinberg - Citay
1. Panda Bear - Person Pitch
2. The Papercuts - Can't Go Home
3. Concentrick - Aluminum Lake
4. The Fucking Champs - VI
5. Entrance - Prayer Of Death
6. Earthless - Rhythms From a Cosmic Sky
7. Blonde Redhead - 23
8. Deerhunter - Cryptograms
9. Arp - In Light
10. Battles - Mirrored

Editors
1. The National - Boxer
2. Apparat - Walls
3. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
4. Modest Mouse - We were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
5. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
6. The Good, The Bad and The Queen – The Good, The Bad and The Queen
7. Burial - Untrue
8. Robert Wyatt - Comicopera
9. Radiohead - In Rainbows
10. Shady Bard - From The Ground Up

Scroobius Pip - Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip
My Top 10 Acts of 2007:
1. Gideon Conn - I saw him at Glastonbury and he was my highlight of the festival season. I had never heard anything about him or anything like him before. A great songwriter, a great character and an amazing live act.

2. Peggy Sue & the Pirates - Every time I see these two gals live they just get better and better. My highlight would have to be seeing them at the Barfly supporting the Gossip. When they started the room was half empty and I can honestly say that it wasn’t until they finished that I realized the room had filled. Their vocal layering and general originality is a sight to see/hear.

3. Polar Bear (the poet not the jazz band) - Being on the spoken word scene you see an awful lot of poets so it takes a lot to stand out. Polar Bear does that without even trying. Effortlessly and humbly the best in the business right now and that fact is a great motivation for the rest of us to up our games.

4. Adele - Since I 1st found Adele on MySpace I haven't been able to stop listening and adoring. Her songs are the type that cause the listener to spend those 3 minutes completely enraptured and in love with everything about her style and approach. In days gone by that kind of thing would be called witchcraft. Now its just...umm... ace.

5. Jack Penate - Jack has the enviable ability to write perfect, energetic pop but still inject lyricism and general credibility. I need say little more.

6. Paloma Faith - Paloma Faith can be compared to no one. Like Gideon, catching one of her live shows is a spectacle to behold. A true performer in every sense of the world. Greatness beckons.

7. Bat for Lashes - Catching her mid-Sunday set at Bestival was another highlight of the summer for me. And her Mercury worthy album is a stunning mesh of sounds and styles that just float together beautifully.

8. Kate Nash - No introduction needed here. It has been great watching Kate climb to great fame and accolade. One of the greatest young songwriters this country has. “Birds" still gets me every time.

9. Sibot & Spoek - Caught these guys at a festival in Metz and they were amazing. As a front man Spoek is unrivaled when it comes to both style and flow and Sibot backs it all up with beats to drool over.

10. I Shouted Gun - We took these guys on tour with us this year and they smashed every show. Good, balls to the wall, songwriting (whatever that means). And they added a much needed rock n roll element so that we had some good tour stories buy the end. Legends in the making.