It's a hard line to walk. Using the country music example, I think they truly love country music. You can tell by their knowledge of the genre, which is evident all over that record. At the same time, they see the ridiculousness of it and use country cliches as a running joke. But the jokes are all tinged with truth. Like "Scrape the Mucus off the brain". They're poking fun at drinking songs of sorrow, but at the center of the song is real heartbreak. It's almost as if they took themselves seriously, they'd cry so they choose to laugh. Does that make any sense?

I personally find the two to be exclusive properties but I do see what you're driving at. Also, humour in music is mostly lost on me.

And the worst EP of 2010 goes to....

Die Antwoord

yeah that's pretty bad.

"fooock, this is loik... the best remix I ever hoid in me 'ol loif... DJ Fishsticks up in the house..."

That MIA record is pretty fucking terrible...this morning's review echoed my sentiments exactly.

how the hell can you people not dig the Ariel Pink album? easily one of the years best.

The Micah P. Hinson has no right to be in that cover. Awful.

The Alabama 3 LP is pretty stinky as well.

yeah, but alabama 3 sucks to begin with...

the national for me. surprisingly bad.

airiel pink for me. i kinda dig the midlake album.

i thought this the first few spins, too. and then it clicked. and then about a month later it really clicked.

It's been on the opposite trajectory for me. Just gets worse and worse.

My current AOTY

i can't even work up the courage to give it a 3rd listen.

Try this: skip "Terrible Love" immediately and let the album play through, then pick it up at the end.

if this doesn't work, it's going out the window

I love how the people who like that National album (and the band in general) don't seem to like "Terrible Love". It's the best song on the album by a mile.

I mean, you can skip that song, but you'll still have to listen to "Conversation 16" and "England". But let me guess, those are probably considered "highlights" by most of you.

the album version of Terrible Love is absolute crap, and definitely the worst track on the album.

It's not that I don't like "Terrible Love". I just think it's a poor choice for an opener, being of demo sound quality. Yes, I think "Conversation 16" along with "I'm Afraid of Everyone" and "Bloodbuzz Ohio" are the highlights, but I don't really have any lowlights. "Runaway" is a midlight.

I'd like to know if anyone here is capable of articulating what makes that track "absolute crap", or, for that matter, what makes the rest of the album so much better.

Stop Breathin', I really don't hear how it's "demo sound quality", other than that maybe it isn't quite as overworked or sterile as the rest of the album.

earl greyhound is pretty sucktacular

I've read in a few other places that it is the actual demo version that appears on the album, and that they did it intentionally. Don't ask for a link, though.

because it is the demo of the song that went on the album.

the live version is far superior in sound and scale. it sounds big and majestic. the demo version does not, that's why imo it's absolute crap.

Love the national but I teeter on liking it a lot and being kinda underwhelmed.

Alligator and Boxer were two of my favorites this decade, and I know I SHOULD love this but...