Because Patchen Can't Leave Well Enough Alone...

I've got more albums I can't resist listing for one reason or another this year. So as promised in my last post, here are a few Honorable Mentions and other nods:

Honorable Mention:
Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley — Welcome to Jamrock

Best Album I Still Haven't Bloody Heard All Of:
The Pipettes — We Are the Pipettes

Best Album I've Only Heard Online:
The Fratellis — Costello Music

You can, too! Listen to the whole thing here.

Best of Baltimore:
Karmella's Game — The Art of Distraction

Best Blues:
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals — Nothing But the Water

Best Group Fighting the Power (Punk):
Pretty Girls Make Graves — Élan Vitale

Best Group Fighting the Power (Hip-Hop):
Rhymefest— Blue Collar

Best Gratuitous Use of Dave Matthews:
Jurassic 5 — Feedback

Best Video Illustrating the Song:
Lily Allen — "LDN"



Best Live Show:
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah with Architecture in Helsinki in Philadelphia

I knew going in I was going to see CYHSY, and they didn't disappoint — it was what you hear on the radio, only gleefully moreso (the vocals more slurred, the whoops almost howled, and so forth). But since a friend had snagged the tickets, I had no idea I was seeing AiH until just before they went on, and I was thrilled since I've been spinning them for years. But even as a long-time fan, nothing prepared me for their live show—drum pads, fevered instrument-switching, shifts from indie rock to calypso mid-set, and an amazingly knowledgable audience that sang along and danced till the floor bowed. If you have a chance to see AiH, do it; they're from Australia, so it's not like they can just pop into town on a whim.

Best "I Totally Know These Guys" Moment:
Last week I realized that back in college I ran a light show for The Slip in this lovely converted Gothic revival chapel.

Sam Sessa Won't Stop Bugging Me Until I Admit:
...that he's a genius for discovering Amy Winehouse's "Rehab."

My Cooler Younger Brother Is Horrified I Haven't Yet Mentioned:
The Hold Steady — Boys and Girls in America

OK, I'm done. Let's all go and make a pie. Or some cake.

Patchen's Top 10 of 2006

In 2006, we found some artists producing sounds we'd never heard before (Lily Allen), some showing whole new sides of themselves (Bruce Springsteen), and some just doing that particular thing they do to perfection (The Decemberists). Thus, my list:

1. Lily Allen – Alright, Still
2. The Long Winters – Putting the Days to Bed
3. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife
4. LazyTown [TV series soundtrack] (Yes, I am serious.)
5. Gnarls Barkely – St. Elsewhere
6. Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins – Rabbit Fur Coat
7. Regina Spektor – Begin to Hope
8. Bruce Springsteen – We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions
9. The Submarines – Declare a New State
10. Tilly and the Wall – Bottoms of Barrels

And coming in at #11...

Best Album Unfairly Knocked Off the Above List by a Children's TV Show from Iceland:
Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris – All the Roadrunning

I'll have some more Honorable Mentions and other albums I want to give a nod to later in the week. Cheers!

TMD Morning Guy Weighs In

Since my job is to keep you entertained and engaged with incredible music while you're driving to work, I thought, "why not take a road trip and base my best of '06 picks on how they sound to me in the car?" Ahhh, New Jersey never looked so good as it did set to the soundtrack from this past year. So, thanks for inspiring me everyday...and here are my top driving albums from a memorable year in music!

1. Eric Lindell- Change in the Weather

2. Neko Case- Fox Confessor Brings the Flood

3. Joseph Arthur- Nuclear Daydream

4. Anders Parker- Anders Parker

5. Art Brut- Bang Bang Rock and Roll

6. Cold War Kids- Robbers and Cowards

7. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals- Nothing But the Water

8. Gomez- How We Operate

9. Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins- Rabbit Fur Coat

10.M. Ward- Post War

Jenny Lewis had my first favorite record this year, and clearly, my favorite video. Check out Sarah Silverman introducing the Hee Haw inspired clip.

Oh, did you catch that 21-year-old blogger on Good People this morning? He chronicles all the goings-on in the tv news business and counts Brian Williams among his biggest fans. Check out Brian Stelter's tv newser blog:

http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/