I didn't like this at first, but it's been growing on me in a big way. Not really what I'd expected or hoped for, but I'm enjoying the somewhat more song-oriented direction, and I like (what I assume are) Adam Forkner's atmospheric contributions. It'll probably end up pretty high on my list.

Badgerlore at #1, huh? Hm. I like it, but I can't decide how much.

I also like those Sunburned and NNCK albums. Qvaris is a little long, though, and Complexion has some dull spots. Both have been sitting in the bottom half of my Top 20 for a while.

And while I thought I'd finally come around to liking that 6 Organs album, on the last few listens it's just seemed way too spotty. That title track... ugh.

elbow
the duke spirit
patrick wolf
bloc party
doves
hood

all in my top 20.

others in the elephantstone hott 100:

arab strap
the editors
supergrass
malcolm middleton
the magic numbers
british sea power
super furry animals
babyshambles
franz ferdinand
teenage fanclub
art brut
the wedding present
gorillaz
sons and daughters
magnet
the tears
the paddingtons
maximo park
oasis
little barrie
the clientele
mark gardener

pretty good year for "british" music in my eyes.

oh yeah forgot about the Malcolm Middleton...

1. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Cold Roses
2. Spoon - Gimme Fiction
3. LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsystem
4. Crooked Fingers - Dignity and Shame
5. Martha Wainwright - Marthat Wainwright
6. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
7. Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning
8. The Magic Numbers - The Magic Numbers
9. My Morning Jacket - Z
10. System of a Down - Mezmerize
11. Mike Doughty - Haughty Melodic
12 Patrick Wolf - Wind in the Wires
13. Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary
14. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! - ClapYourHandsSY
15. BRMC - Howl
16. Brazilian Girls - Brazilian Girls
17. The Clientelle - Strange Geometry
18. Black Mountain - Black Mountain
19. Lightning Bolt - Hypermagic Mountain
20. The Fiery Furnaces - Rehearsing My Choir

?? (not sure, but some of these below could take over spots on any given day)
Beck - Guero
Ike Reilly Assassination - Sparkle in the Finish
Stephen Malkmus - Face the Truth
Love As Laughter - Laughter's Fifth
The Books - Lost & Safe

Honourable Mentions:
Caribou - Milk of Human Kindness
Opeth - Ghost Reveries
Common - Be
Quasimoto - The Further Adventures of Lord Quas
The Mountain Goats - The Sunset Tree

Guilty Pleasure:
My Chemical Romance - Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge

Cheers,

audiobill

god damn it
this art brut is fucking good
now i need to revise my list...

That Jackie O is my favorite of theirs actually, and that's high praise as I love Fig. 5 and Change. In general it was odd this year with Deerhoof, them, and Animal Collective all becoming more "song" oriented, but it worked well for all three albums. But I agree definitely that Forkner's additions are the high point of the band on this record.

As far as Badgerlore, it was a no brainer for me. Three of my five favorite artists+Fisk on one record. It's just gorgeous stuff. I'm really impressed with how gentle Pete Swanson is on it compared to the brutality of the past couple Yellow Swans CDRs. Not to mention Chasny and Carter's guitar interplay is unreal. I don't think Tom Carter has ever had a collaborator work so well with his style. I just think it's the outright prettiest album I heard all year.

I'm very much looking forward to your, Ish, and Moxie's lists to find some things I overlooked this year and can kick myself in the ass about later (assuming I didn't already overlook your lists).

1. The Decemberists - Picaresque
2. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Cold Roses
3. Bright Eyes - I
4. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
5. The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
6. Kanye West - Late Registration
7. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Jacksonville City Nights
8. Josh Rouse - Nashville
9. Maximo Park - A Certain Trigger
10. Bright Eyes - Digital Ash In A Digital Urn
11. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
12. Ryan Adams - 29
13. The Magic Numbers - The Magic Numbers
14. Spoon - Gimme Fiction
15. The Mountain Goats - The Sunset Tree
16. John Vanderslice - Pixel Revolt
17. Andrew Bird - The Mysterious Production of Eggs
18. Ladytron - witching hour
19. The Mars Volta - Frances The Mute
20. Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy

[Sucked leaving this off the top 20...]
21. Apologies To The Queen Mary - Wolf Parade

Here's my 20, plus 5 others.

1. Kings of Leon - Aha Shake Heartbreak
2. Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary
3. The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan
4. The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
5. My Morning Jacket - z
6. Broken Social Scene - S/T
7. Marah - If You Didn't Laugh You'd Cry
8. Ryan Adams & the Cardinals - Cold Roses
9. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
10. Neil Young - Prairie Wind
11. Babyshambles - Down in Albion
12. Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabyes to Paralyze
13. Kaiser Chiefs - Employment
14. Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have it So Much Better
15. Andrew Bird - The Mysterious Production of Eggs
16. Spoon - Gimme Fiction
17. Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
18. Ryan Adams & the Cardinals - Jacksonville City Nights
19. Shooter Jennings - Put the 'O' Back in Country
20. The Rolling Stones - A Bigger Bang

21. The Magic Numbers - S/T
22. Sigur Ros - Takk
23. Frank Black - Honeycomb
24. Hot Hot Heat - Elevator
25. Oasis - Don't Believe the Truth

** I had Feist - Let it Die on my list, but on the charts is down for 2004.

you know that you can add them in, right?

I think it might fall at #21 on my list as well...

Seriously? I didn't know that was an option. I will investigate.

Reading is an important skill.

Thanks, I'll try to keep that in mind

It's fixed now.

Yep. Got your replacement, though I saw no Feist on the list. Perhaps you changed your mind.

When I search the charts for Feist, I get Let It Die (2004). It's another of those iffy release date issues.

Ah. Okay.

Elvis Fu stumbles in pantless to the fuckin' party…

01 South San Gabriel :: The Carlton Chronicles
02 Marah :: If You Didn't Laugh…You'd Cry
03 Ry Cooder :: Chavez Ravine
04 Ike Reilly :: Junkie Faithful
05 Devin Davis :: Lonely People Of The World, Unite!
06 Crooked Fingers :: Dignity And Shame
07 Okkervil River :: Black Sheep Boy
08 Lucero :: Nobody
09 Mary Gauthier :: Mercy Now
10 ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead :: Worlds Apart
11 Neil Young :: Prairie Wind
12 Archer Prewitt :: Wilderness
13 The 88 :: Over And Over
14 Sleater-Kinney :: The Woods
15 Ryan Adams & The Cardinals :: Cold Roses
16 Graham Parker :: Songs of No Consequence
17 Spoon :: Gimme Fiction
18 Eels :: Blinking Lights and Other Revelations
19 Micah P. Hinson :: Micah P. Hinson and the Gospel of Progress
20 Love As Laughter :: Laughter's Fifth

20. Elliot Murphy~ Murphy Gets Muddy
19. Graham Parker~ Songs of No Consequence
18. Vic Chesnutt~ Ghetto Bells
17. Bruce Springsteen~ Devils & Dust
16. The Frames~ Burn The Maps
15. Sun Kil Moon~ Tiny Cities
14. John Prine~ Fair & Square
13. Son Volt~ Okemah & The Melody of Riot
12. Mountain Goats~ The Sunset Tree
11. Marissa Nadler~ The Saga of Mayflower May
10. Okkervil River~ Black Sheep Boy
9. Ry Cooder~ Chavez Ravine
8. My Morning Jacket~ Z
7. Magnolia Electric Company~ Trials & Errors
6. Damon & Naomi~ The Earth Is Blue
5. Al Kooper~ Black Coffee
4. Andrew Bird & The Mysterious Production of Eggs
3. Decemberists~ Picaresque
2. Mary Gauthier~ Mercy Now
1. Micah P. Hinson & The Gospel of Progress

1. Akron Family - Akron Family
2. Jens Lekman - Oh You
3. Andrew Bird - The Mysterious Production of Eggs
4. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
5. Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary
6. Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
7. The Clientele - Strange Geometry
8. Akron/Family & Angels Of Light - Akron/Family & Angels Of Light
9. Sam Prekop - Who
10. Broken Social Scene - Broken Social Scene
11. My Morning Jacket - Z
12. The Decemberists - Picaresque
13. The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
14. Devendra Banhart - Cripple Crow
15. The Silver Jews - Tanglewood Numbers
16. Antony And The Johnsons - I Am A Bird Now
17. M.Ward - Transistor Radio
18. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
19. (Smog) - A River Ain
20. Constantines - Tournament of Hearts

Idiotjed's Top 20 Of '05


01. Dredg (Catch Without Arms)
02. The Posies (Every Kind Of Light)
03. Foo Fighters (In Your Honor)
04. Nada Surf (The Weight Is A Gift)
05. The High Dials (War Of The Wakening Phantoms)
06. Sigur Rós (Takk)
07. Beck (Guero)
08. Queens Of The Stone Age (Lullabies To Paralyze)
09. Ok Go (Oh No)
10. Feeder (Pushing The Senses)
11. Chris Whitley (Soft Dangerous Shores)
12. Eisley (Room Noises)
13. Sufjan Steven (Illinois)
14. Aqualung (Strange And Beautiful)
15. Catlow (Kiss The World)
16. John Davis (John Davis)
17. Kashmir (No Balance Palace)
18. A Northern Chorus (Bitter Hands Resign)
19. Tahiti 80 (Fosbury)
20. Giant Drag (Hearts & Unicorns)


Honorable mention, purchases and downloads:


American Analog Set (Set Free)
Dangerdoom (The Mouse And The Mask)
Doves (Some Cities)
Elbow (Leaders Of The Free World)
Harvey Danger (Little By Little)
Kent (Du And Jag Doden)
Kobayashi (Strange Lights And Resolutions)
M83 (Before The Dawn Heals Us)
Maximo Park (A Certain Trigger)
The Standard (Albatross)
Team Sleep (Team Sleep)
The Veronicas (The Secret Life Of ...)
Youth Group (Skeleton Jar)


Best EP's:


Caspian (You Are The Conductor)
Damone (Out Here All Night)
Pris (Back Courting The Masses)
Nine Black Alps (EP)
Silversun Pickups (Pikul)


2004 releases bought this year and enjoyed:


I Am X (Kiss And Swallow)
Motion Soundtrack (The Bridge)
Special Goodness, The (Landairsea)
Wax Tailor (Tales Of The Forgotten Melodies)
Worm Is Green (Automagic)

1. Avalon Sutra – Harold Budd
2. Illinoise – Sufjan Stevens
3. ER – Nils Pettar Molvaer
4. Z – My Morning Jacket
5. School of the Flower – Six Organs of Admittance
6. Black Sheep Boy – Okkervil River
7. The Four Quarters - Vladislav Delay
8. Oh, You’re So Silent Jens – Jens Lekman
9. Twin Cinema – The New Pornographers
10. Broken Social Scene – Broken Social Scene
11. The Mysterious Production of Eggs – Andrew Bird
12. Black Forest – A- Frames
13. Tijuana Sessions #3 – Nortec Collective
14. Zweite Meer – F. S. Blum
15. Wilderness - Wilderness
16. Nashville – Josh Rouse
17. Brian Eno – Another Day on Earth
18. Le Fumeur de Ciel – Julien Neto
19. Black Mountain – Black Mountain
20. Chavez Ravine – Ry Cooder

Honorable mention:

21. Okemah and the Melody of Riot – Son Volt
22. The Carlton Chronicles – South San Gabriel
23. Veneer - Jose Gonzalez
24. Miniatures –Alog
25. Pine Cone Temples - Thuja
26. What Comes After the Blues? – Magnolia Electric Co.
27. Snow Borne Sorrow - Nine Horses
28. A River Ain’t Too Much to Love - (smog)
29. Prairie Wind – Neil Young
30. Some Cities – The Doves
31. Pale Ravine – Deaf Center
32. 13 & God – 13 & God
33. Multiples – Keith Fullerton Whitman
34. Gimme Fiction – Spoon
35. Alligator – The National
36. Late Registration – Kanye West
37. A Bigger Bang – The Rolling Stones
38. Apologies to Queen Mary – Wolf Parade
39. On My Way to Absence – Damien Jurado
40. Belladona – Daniel Lanois

Just found out about this over the holidays... very solid choice. Kudos for having this as #1.

I could probably post my 'Official' Konstantiranks Top 20 right now but because I've had to subtract 4 albums under Shmoo's rules I'm still in the position where a number of albums could sneak into the lower reaches.

Still have 24 albums to give a second spin.

My goal for today is stop thinking about doing this and just get it done.

My goal is to go 13 more days without changing anything on my list. It's noble but probably futile.