2010 album chart of the year part 5

4 WOMEN - Women

"Cameras"



"Shaking Hand"



This scraped in, it was released in January '09 in the UK!

3 VECKATIMEST - Grizzly Bear

"Two Weeks"



"Ready, Able"



Two of the year's best videos! THE BEST

2 SIGNAL MORNING - Circulatory System

"Overjoyed"



"Woodpecker Greeting Worker Ant"



1 HUNTING MY DRESS - Jesca Hoop

This record only came out about a month ago so video is thin on the ground! Here are some wholly representative live jams from a stellar LP.

"Murder Of Birds" (live)



"Hunting My Dress" (live)



For all that 2010 seemed a thin year, I enjoyed all the records on my list a great deal and there were several others in contention right up to the end, all worthy of investigation:

ESPERS III - Espers
WOLFGANG AMADEUS PHOENIX - Phoenix
BITTE ORCA - Dirty Projectors
LIFE AND TIMES - Bob Mould
FITS - White Denim
JEWELLRY - Micachu & The Shapes
THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART - The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart

2010 album chart of the year part 4

8 WIND'S POEM - Mount Eerie

"Between Two Mysteries"



Perhaps this fan-made video should try to be more painfully literal ho ho

7 THE GOLDEN SPIKE - Sky Larkin

"Antibodies"



"Fossil, I"



Sky Larkin are a fantastic band, I hope they get their chance.

6 THE HAZARDS OF LOVE - Decemberists

"The Rake's Song"



5 FEVER RAY - Fever Ray

"When I Grow Up"



"Triangle Walks"



A thrilling act! In conservative times, we need more artists like her.

2010 album chart of the year part 3

12 POPULAR SONGS - Yo La Tengo

"Avalon Or Someone Very Similar"



"Nothing To Hide"



11 SUPER SCIENCE FICTION - Seal Club Clubbing Club

"Dawn Lamb"



I think this might be an out-take from "The O Zone" with Jayne Middlemiss &etc

10 WILCO (THE ALBUM) - Wilco

"Bull Black Nova"



"Wilco The Song"



9 REAL ESTATE - Real Estate

"Fake Blues"



"Pool Swimmers"



This reminds me of Flying Nun Records, the first Shins album and Chronic Town by REM, this could be a truly great band one day.

2010 album chart of the year part 2

16 LOGOS - Atlas Sound / RAINWATER CASSETTE EXCHANGE EP - Deerhunter

"Quick Canal" (feat Laetitia Sadler of Stereolab)



"Famous Last Words"



I love these fan-made videos, they remind me of the old Chart Show indie chart when there was no video for a song so they'd sync up a bit of abstract looking wobbly film.

15 ANCIENT LOVER - Tigercity



Most of the budget for this video was apparently spent on the arty looking angle that opens the clip.

14 I'M GOING AWAY - Fiery Furnaces

"Charmaine Champage"



The best fringe of all time.

13 TOUCHDOWN - Brakes

"Worry About It Later"



"Don't Take Me To Space (Man)"

2010 album chart of the year part 1

20 BLUE ROSES - Blue Roses

"I Am Leaving"



19 THE WHIP - Wye Oak

"Mary Is Mary" (Live)



None of the videos for Wye Oak are very good, apparently no singles have been "lifted" from this album. But in a year of over-rated, undercooked indie follow-ups (I was underwhelmed by Animal Collective and Dirty Projectors' 2009 efforts), I played this one over and over again.

18 - EM ARE I - Jeffrey Lewis And The Junkyard

"To Be Objectified"



17 LET'S CHANGE THE WORLD WITH MUSIC - Prefab Sprout

"Earth: The Story So Far"



"Let There Be Music"



This is a beautiful record and to say that these are demos made on a computer from 1987, I think there is something movingly brittle about them.

Bless the lad

Happy Christmas, readers. I can't update my website at the moment because I am at a wintry stalag, so I will say it here, next week Shelley presents her Dr Ladysounds album reviews, and comics return on January 4th.

Painting practice

I foolishly agreed to participate in a charity auction this evening, I can tell it was a mistake because they spelled my name wrong on the poster (they clearly expected another, more talented John), but it is a very good cause and ought to be fun once I finish panicking. Anyway, I did some picture practice so that I would be ready to draw big tonight, I never draw big!

"6 idiots"


"The Casual 3"


Sharpie and Posca markers on cardboard.