Our Favorite Albums of 2007

One of the things that I love most about the end of the year are critics "Best Albums of the Year" list. Although I know that critics' opinions don't really matter in the end, I always like to read what they have to say, either to see if my favorite albums get on other peoples list, or to discover good music that I had overlooked this year. So, since the internet allows everyone to publicly voice their own opinions, I am proud to present Theresa and my "favorite albums of the year." Since our household is a democracy (at least for now - when we have kids, it will shift to an oligarchy) Theresa and I each made our own Top Ten list and then, giving each of us equal weight, compiled a master list (In parenthesis are Theresa and my individual rankings) :

1.) Spoon: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
T: I love Spoon. I like the name because spoons are useful and the songs are fun to sing. "Give me my... Japanese cigarette case!" (R:7, T:1)








2.) Feist: The Reminder
T: Feist's music is so dancey. She inspires even the worst dancers to get on their feet. And because even the non-dancey songs are good, this album is wondtabulous (wonderful + fabulous). (R:6, T:2)






3.) Radiohead: In Rainbows
R: Radiohead definatly got a lot of press this year with their no- record- label- internet- only- pay- what- you- will album, but did anyone take the time to mention the music? I really, really liked Radiohead's previous albums, but lets face it, they can be kind-of downers. I enjoy In Rainbows because it seems a little cheerier. Thom's mother would be proud. (R: 3, T: 5)

4.) Sunset Rubdown: Random Spirit Lover
R: This was my favorite album of the year, and it is only number 4! I guess this goes to show that it might not be for everyone, but I love it! If you give it a chance, you might just be caught up in its frantic neon-lit Laberynth-esque stage-play of a production. (R:1, T:-)




5.) Metric: Grow Up And Blow Away
T: I like this new-old record, despite the fact that none of Metric's other albums float my boat. It's bluesy and cool and just plain better. (R:8, T:4)








5.) Stars: In Our Bedroom After The War
T: I like this record, but we are not yet at the point in our relationship to drop the L-bomb. It is a lot of fun, but it's just not that beautiful. [funny - that's what Theresa said to me when we first started going out.] (R:9, T: 3)





7.) Rock Plaza Central: Are We Not Horses
R: Mechanical Horses that think they are real, having an exestential crisis after a war between the humans and the angels, with the narrative focusing on one of these creatures' love affair with its enemy - what can I say more. (really though, the music is very good). (R:2, T:-)


8.) Frog Eyes: Tears Of The Valedictorian
R: Another acquired taste. Think of Chris Farley frantically playing a guitar and yelping like a wolf, and you'll have Frog Eyes. I think Tears is their best album, and the 9-minute epic "Bushels" is mostly why I rated it so high. (R:4, T:-)





9.) Kevin Drew: Spirit If...
R: Think of this as the low-key follow-up to Broken Social Scene's last album, which alone should be enough to get on this list. I liked it when I first heard it, but it wasn't until repeated listens that I really started to love it. (R:5, T:-)







9.) The New Pornographers: Challengers
T: I don't really like this record, but it has some really great songs on it. My new favorite song is Challanger (Neko Case is awesome). It alone put this album on my list. (R:-, T:5)






A couple things I've noticed while making this list: First, Theresa's favorite bands are sure higher on this list than mine - I guess I like her favorite bands more than she likes mine. Second, We sure like Canadian music - 8/10 albums are from Canadian artists.

So, do you agree with us? What were your favorite albums this year?