The Top Five 2007 Albums You Didn’t Hear

Woods – At Rear House

At Rear House, the second full-length from Woods (the lo-fi, acoustic, back-porchy offshoot of Meneguar), was one of my most-listened-to releases of the first part of this year. To paraphrase Fake Jazz, it’s something like “a junk shop TV on the Radio covering old school Sebadoh.”

MP3: Woods – Be Still

Dolorean – You Can’t Win

This is the other record that soundtracked the first part of my year. I’ve been a fan of Portland, Oregon’s Al James since 2003’s Not Exotic, and this one is, I think, his best yet. It’s a dreamy, lovely, meandering record, if a bit overly melancholy and beatdown. Al James sings of futility and disillusionment here, and rightly so; he’s an artist creating solid, well-crafted slow-burners, in a world that seems interested mainly in faceless Facebook pablum pop.

Album Stream: Dolorean – You Can’t Win

Giantess – s/t

There was a band called Battles that was really big this year, and there was a band called (The) Battles that was really big (to me, at least) last year. The band that was called The Battles last year is now called Giantess, and they put out another great record this year. Featuring members from Destroyer, the New Pornographers, Black Mountain, and Precious Fathers, Giantess deals in a left-field 70’s vibe, reminiscent of the Soft Boys and Roxy Music (which is to say: Good Shit.)

MP3: Giantess – Saturday Night

Jason Anderson – Tonight

People love Jason Anderson. Well, people that know of/have seen Jason Anderson love Jason Anderson. For years now, Jason has been gracing living rooms and backyards all across the country with his ebullient one-man love-in acoustic-guitar dance-parties. But for the most part, Jason’s recorded output hasn’t come close to matching the exuberance of his live show. Tonight manages to do just that.

MP3: Jason Anderson – July 4, 2004

Nathan Lawr & The Minotaurs – A Sea Of Tiny Lights

I got familiar with Toronto’s Nathan Lawr via his amazingly great 2003 release, The Heart Beats A Waltz. 2005’s Secret Carpentry wasn’t a great departure from the previous release’s sound, and neither is this new record trying to be dramatically different, per se, and you know what? These are good things. Lawr is a greatly talented songwriter, with a wonderful, smooth voice, to boot. Lawr keeps good company; he’s played in Royal City, The Constantines, and with Jim Guthrie and more. They all seem to recognize that there’s Something About Nathan Lawr, and so should you.

MP3: Nathan Lawr & The Minotaurs – Righteous Heart