Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream

I’m not really sure what to do with the 1990s. Are they just a bunch of perverted Scottish dudes that happen to have a very quirky sense of humor? Or are they rockpop savants that know how to craft an intriguing ditty? I’ll go with easy way out: they’re both.

The thing to remember with the 1990s is everything is an innuendo, or at least a strange juxtaposition of words that makes for a mad libs delight! The truth is that the 1990s are incredibly talented in making danceable rock tunes, and they’ve managed to maintain that energy from song to song, album to album. Their debut Cookies was amazingly underrated, and I’m sure their sophomore effort Kicks will fly under the radar as well. But please, I ask, don’t let that happen. You’ll miss Jack McKeown’s earnest request, “C’mon, do it like we practiced” on “Sparks”, and you won’t have the privilege of hearing the infectious guitar riff and the chant-like chorus of “Balthazar.” Worst of all, you would certainly miss the declarative “Everybody Please Relax” and the hoppy highlight “Tell Me When You’re Ready.” Who wouldn’t want to hear cryptic vocals like “Will you be my body / at the zoo” or “What’s that in your hair/ blowing bubbles like you just don’t care?”? I ask you, who?!

Get yourself a copy of Kicks.

Listen to “Everybody Please Relax”

Listen to “Tell Me When You’re Ready“

Ladies and Gentlemen. I present to you the first of a multiple part series of CSV’s Top 20 of 2007 feature. Be sure to look out for the comprehensive Top 20 mix at the end of the series!

This past year has been chock full of excitingly fresh artists, while also featuring some bands and artists that have further cemented their place in the ‘indie’ rock lexicon. A trend that I noticed in copiously drafting up my list was the number of female artists that appear on this year’s top 20. I think we’re finally seeing an encouraging trend within the indie rock scene that seems to be fostering high quality female acts. That’s enough commentary, let’s get to the albums!

Today we will start with albums #16-20 and 5 honorable mentions:

16. Voxtrot - Voxtrot

This blog-hyped band really seemed primed for some indie stardom, but unfortunately their self-titled debut (after several EPs) didn’t take well with critics. Nevertheless, this underrated album is well-produced, thoughtfully constructed, and heartening. At times urgent, and at others serenadingly sweet, Voxtrot is quite the entrance for the quintet. More about Voxtrot can be found in this post.

Listen to “Ghost” (4.9/5)

17. Laura Veirs - Saltbreakers

This richly layered album from perhaps the nerdiest lady in all of indie rock has such deep imagery to match the lush, voluminous instrumentation. Saltbreakers really caught my ears by surprised, especially when I queued up “To The Country”, which (if you remember) broke the 5 point scale for CSV (it got a 5.2). What a wonderful collection of songs, that is sure to warm the soul on the coldest of these wintry days. More on Laura Veirs here.

Listen to “To The Country” (5.2/5)

18. 1990s - Cookies
By far the most downright fun album of the year,the Glasgow trio really has a knack for writing catchy riffs. While they may not be the most attractive of bands, their handsome harmonies and their jangly guitars are sure to get you rocking. “See You At The Lights” is fantastic sing-along while “You Made Me Like It” is pure formulaic goodness. More on 1990s here.

Listen to “See You At The Lights” (4.8/5)

19. Kula Shaker - Strangefolk

Veteran retro-rockers Kula Shaker take another page out of the new-to-sound-old genre (what I call Positive Retrograde), finding themselves somewhere between Bob Dylan (”Hurricane Season”) and The Rolling Stones (”Out on the Highway”). Don’t mistake this album for some hipster-wannabe product–this is just a straightforward, earnest record that consistently delivers powerful folk and rock songs track after track. Indeed, the album is a strange kind of folk–something so psychedelically delicious that even 12 tracks seems too little.

Listen to “Dr. Kitt” (4.9/5)

20. The Sea and Cake - Everybody

Chicago collective The Sea and Cake have produced another unearthly gemstone with their sensationally sensitive Everybody. The band skillfully straddles the glazey-eyed softness to their sound with thoughtful vocals, all that the band’s very name might suggest. Further solidifying themselves in the indie scene as they perfect their signature sound, The Sea and Cake continue to impress. More on The Sea and Cake here.

Listen to “Up On Crutches” (4.8/5)

Honorable Mentions:

James Morrison - Undiscovered
Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are you the Destroyer?
Art of Fighting - Runaways
Greyboy Allstars - What Happened to Television
Jose Gonzalez - In Our Nature