My Ten Favorite Albums of 2007

The title says it all. I know this is a blog about advertising, but good advertising needs good taste. You don't hear a lot of Nickelback in ads, do you? Without further ado, the 10 albums I liked the most this year. I've done them 1-10 so that you don't have to scroll down to see what my number one choice is. I know that's what everyone does.


1. Radiohead - In Rainbows
I'm aware that putting Radiohead atop any kind of best-of list is cliche. I don't care. Earnest and afraid, warm and meticulous, the piece organically describes what it was to be alive in 2007.


2. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
A lot of music is described as literate. This is the only artist that I actually wanted to talk about books with. Neither happy nor sad, Bird bests his previous release with erudition that inspires.


3. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
The rockingest album on this list. Husky electric guitar and tambourines mesh with gruff vocals and appropriate underproduction to great effect. From its cover art to the last note, it's an album that will make you want to stay in the city no matter how crappy your studio apartment its.


4. Daft Punk - Alive 2007
How many artists can layer a bunch of their songs on top of each other and make new, better songs? How many artists don robot helmets and perform atop a seraphic neon pyramid? Only one. Only Daft Punk.


5. Handsome Furs - Plague Park
With bizarre lyrics moaned over almost-catchy guitar/synth hooks, Plague Park is like a good piece of performance art: commercially nonviable in a beautiful way.


6. Klaxons - Myths of the Near Future
The princes of Nu-Rave make good on their promising eps with a rip-roaring full length. For best results, this album should be put on repeat and played at a thunderous volume. For worst results, try and force yourself to stay still while listening to it.


7. Feist - The Reminder
With a voice that breaks hearts and sells iPods, Leslie Feist had a huge year. You're probably already familiar her quicker singles, so make a point to try some of the slow songs (I prefer So Sorry) for a sexy ache in your chest.


8. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
Simple neo-folk that (perhaps unfortunately) eschews the melodrama of their previous release. The Stage Names forces consideration of just what it means to make your living being in a band, something that most of us will never really know.


9. Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
Get your rucksack. Put some sweaters and maps in it. I hope you like the Old Country. Indie-wunderkid Zach Condon entices us further east with a mix of ukulele, trumpet and accordion.


10. Clap Your hands and Say yeah - Some Loud Thunder
"Creative" guitar lines. Unconventional vocals that sound like they're in Italian (they're not). This is not an easy album to listen to, but it's absolutely worth the work. Nowhere else this year were the complexities of adult life refocused in such childish, fantastical ways.