A Conclusion to You

So this big portion of my life has come to an end, and I am more than ready to move on.  This project took place over a very transitional point in my life and was written all over the country.  I am glad that's all over.  There are a few ways I wanted to end.  First, this is not the last time I will do this.  Already  there is along list of album that should have made it, but did not.  Second I would like to talk about some great artist that never made it.  There is the Fall, who has made so many amazing album, but none  of whom made it.  Great band, check them out if you somehow have not.  My favorites are Live At The Witch Trials and This nation's Saving Grace.  Look at when those came out.  I can be forgiven.  Then there are great bands, mostly from the 60s that never released any LPs, like the Creation or the Action, but also in other decades like the Clean.  Then there are artists like Arthur Russell who pretty much never released anything in their lifetimes.  Third, there is this:

Top 3 albums of 2013 so far.

I have listened to more than three and liked more than three.  I just started listening to the new Vampire Weekend and that's something.  Also the new Deerhunter.   That's something else and makes me glad I underlined bassist Josh Fauver so much in previous Deerhunter reviews.  Also the Flaming Lips, still gotta catch up.  These three, in no particular order are ones about which I feel comfortable writing now, in no particular order.

My Bloody Valentine - m b v
22 years later and it finally happened.  I did not rush myself into hearing this and I'm glad I did not.  Still, it is phenomenal, as pretty much everything the Irish group has made.  My one complaint is it sounds less like a group effort.  You will notice Kevin Shields' name over the credits more than usual and I don't think that's really a good thing.  Still, he is capable of much more with the other three, obviously.  It's definitely a bit of a grower and with Shields' diminishing ears the bass is lower than ever, but still the overall sound might be an improvement.  It shows a progression from the last album and is much better than the disappointing Wire cover they recorded in between.  Loveless it is not, and I mean that in a good way for a band whose reputation has soared for decades thanks to that masterpiece.  It's a grower and I still can't say too much in certainty and surely that is part of the plan.  It was worth the wait and I would dare to say it's better than Isn't Anything, at least for me.  Another great sonic achievement.

Yo La Tengo - Fade
Twenty years in the classic lineup and the Hoboken trio still can't do wrong.  As great as all of their albums are this one hit extra hard with it's quality.  Perhaps it was a little extra energy on pop songs like "Well You Better."  I sorely had not listened to many of YLT's 00s albums and they were left off the lists.  I have heard them now and know that was one of the biggest omissions.  In a way, that's good because they are hard to write about.  Like this one they are one of the best bands ever just giving their fans even more proof.

Guided by Voices - English Little League
The Reuinited GbV continues to get better and better on their fourth album.  Many saw this as the biggest improvement and I, after a few listens am inclined to believe.  It is all solid and focused and even the skip-able songs prove their charm on repeated listens, as with all of GbV's best albums.  Pollard is catching back up with Sprout on songs like "Flunky Minnows," but Sprout is still at a new peak with songs like "Islands (She Talks In Rainbows)" - easily the album's best.  The quintet is playing more like a band than ever.  It is obvious on every song that rather than Pollard with four buddies this is a band, and a band that by now has recorded more albums together than any other lineup of the band.  This one also rocks harder than the last three overall with songs like "W/ Glass in Foot" and obviously, "Know Me As Heavy."  If this continues, we may have another Alien Lanes on our hands very soon.

Here is the geographical report I was taking all this time, in order:

1. United States:  306
1. California:  62
1. Los Angeles:  42
2. SF Bay:  15
3. San Diego:  3
2. New York:  50
1. New York City:  47
3. New Jersey:  27
4. Ohio:  21
1. Dayton:  16
5. Massachusetts:  15
1. Boston:  7
6. Georgia:  15
1. Athens:  11
7. Minnesota:  14
1. Minneapolis:  9
8. Texas:  14
1. Austin:  6
9. Illinois:  10
1. Chicago:  8
10. Washington:  9
1. Seattle:  2
11. Maryland:  9
12. Colorado:  6
13. Oklahoma:  6
14. Tennessee:  5
1. Memphis:  4
15. Idaho:  5
16. Michigan:  5
17. Oregon:  5
18. Arizona:  5
19. Virginia:  4
20. Pennsylvania:  4
21. North Carolina:  2
22. Wisconsin:  1
23. Kentucky:  1
24. Florida:  1
25. Hawaii:  1
26. Rhode Island:  1
27. New Mexico:  1
2. United Kingdom:  132
1. England:  116
1. London:  64
2. Manchester:  8
3. Cambridge:  7
4. Liverpool:  6
5. Birmingham:  4
6. Oxfordshire:  4
7. Sheffield:  2
2. Scotland:  10
3. Wales:  5
4. Northern Ireland:  3
3. Germany:  13
1. Düsseldorf:  5
4. New Zealand:  10
1. Christchurch:  6
2. Dunedin:  3
5. Australia:  9
1. Brisbane:  3
2. Perth:  3
6. Iceland:  7
7. Canada:  6
1. Vancouver:  2
8. France:  6
9. Ireland:  4
10. Sweden:  4
11. Japan:  3
12. Brazil:  2
13. Russia:  2
14. Netherands:  1

Obviously, some places are overrepresented by one artist - particularly Dayton, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Idaho, or one time, in the case with Germany.

Finally done.  Maybe I will talk about something else another time.  Now, after almost three months, I can go back to listened to whatever I damn well feel like again.