Wednesday, May. 07, 2008

For music fanatics, this is the most wonderful time of the year

By Jeremy Dutton

This year in music was just like any other lately if you didn't know where to look for the good stuff. Radio and music videos were dominated by the usual suspects like Rhianna and Fergie beckoning you with sexy curves rather than groundbreaking tunes.

But with most of the major outlets' top 10 lists now available, it's time to see who has made the cut. For most websites and mags, this year is playing out like the Republican presidential candidate field with some lists pandering to their base and others trying to be everything to everyone. So for an incredibly unscientific poll (my opinion) in who's leading the race in rating the year's best, here's the breakdown:

Stereogum.com

Stereogum is one of the best music blogs out there if only for its user friendliness. There is always a heavy dose of free downloadable MP3s — most notably they've got all 100 of indie music website Pitchfork's top tracks of the year available for download. But they also put out the 2007 Gummy awards, which highlight the best in albums and music videos voted on by its readers. Their top five? 1. Radiohead, In Rainbows; 2. The National, Boxer; 3. Arcade Fire, Neon Bible; 4. Spoon, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga; 5. of Montreal, Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?

Pitchfork.com

Known for its biting criticism of even the most vaunted indie artists, Pitchfork's list this year hit on the major great releases from bands you've never heard of but tends to eschew most anything even remotely popular except for its highlights of several great hip-hop albums. But like Mike Huckabee, if you don't happen to be an Evangelical Christian, the message may fly by. The top five: 1. Panda Bear, Person Pitch; 2. LCD Soundsystem, Sound of Silver; 3. M.I.A., Kala; 4. Radiohead, In Rainbows; 5. of Montreal, Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?

Rolling Stone

The granddaddy of all music mags shows its age this year and its constant attempt to walk the line between highlighting the best of rock and trying to show the kids that it listens to cool music too. Its top 50 list stutter-steps from Britney Spears (50) to Mavis Staples (48); from Alicia Keys (36) to Willie Nelson (33); from the Apples in Stereo (28) to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss (24); from Bright Eyes (12) to John Fogerty (11); and finally from Bruce Springsteen (2) to M.I.A (1). If this isn't a case of mid-life crisis, I don't know what is.

Paste

This music mag may be the best at straddling that line that Rolling Stone merely grabs at these days. But this list is a bit gray and does exactly the opposite of what Pitchfork's does. Instead of eschewing the popular, it shuts out many great indie releases. This was their top 5 out of 100. 1. The National, Boxer; 2. Arcade Fire, Neon Bible; 3. Bruce Springsteen, Magic; 4. The White Stripes, Icky Thump; 5. Feist, The Reminder. A good set overall, but even with an expansive list of 100, many were missed.

The best way to catch a glimpse of the best this year remains to try to find individual writers' lists because they represent a smaller slice of the pie. The big magazines poll all of their list makers and what comes out tends to be homogenized. Pitchfork, Paste and another music blog, Chromewaves.net, all have comprehensive lists that show a much broader range of what the industry had to offer and what resonated with writers and readers alike.

So keep all of this in mind and check back next week for my list. And you'll see where my taste lies, then you can rip me and tell me what I missed.

w Jeremy Dutton 582-1525; jdutton@tricityherald.com