The Best Albums of 2007: #31 to #40

Posted Sun Dec 23, 2007 5:49pm PST by Robert of the Radish in The Y! Music Playlist Blog

The seventh installment of our top 100 albums of 2007 year end list. Number 21 through 30.

40.   Good Arrows by Tunng
Tunng produces artsy folk music with the perfect amount of electronic highlights and British-accented vocals. The band's latest effort on Thrill Jockey Records is titled Good Arrows, and it's much like having a warm cup of hot chocolate, naked in the mist, after sex.

39.   Magic by Bruce Springsteen
Rolling Stone Magazine critic David Fricke has given Bruce Springsteen's new album Magic a 5-star review. And although Rolling Stone lost most of it's credibility decades ago, I must agree with them on this one. The Boss comes through big, and like Bob Dylan, continues to show the world what "legend" really means.

38.  Chrome Dreams II by Neil Young
Neil Young has recorded more albums than most people own. And being a legendary songwriting machine with the maturity of experience behind him, you can usually count on something good to exceptional from him. Chrome Dreams II falls into the exceptional category. No heady instrumentation or arty shtick required. Neil has stood the test of time for a reason -- talent, and this record reflects it well.

37.  River: The Joni Letters by Herbie Hancock
What do you get when you take some of the best jazz musicians and vocalists on the planet, and combine them with the unique beauty of songs written by the great Joni Mitchell? Well, you get something so gripping that it's impossible not to be captured completely in its spell. Hancock takes these songs and exposes the brilliance behind their composition even better than Joni could. Wayne Shorter's saxophone is especially riveting.

36.  The Big Doe Rehab by Ghostface Killah
Ghostface Killah is one on hip-hop's most impressive voices, and he's been on quite a winning streak of critically acclaimed albums. It's hard not to listen to the new album without being influenced by this frame of reference. But once the beats grab you, it becomes clear why Ghost is so hyped, and that he deserves every kind word written.

35.   Sound Of Silver by LCD Soundsystem
LCD Soundsystem have a masterpiece on their hands here. Sound of Silver is a mind bending combination of incredibly infectious electronica, epic vocals and rock power. The production is clean, but non-glossy, and repetition is used to mesmerize the listener just enough to help James Murphy drive his art home. Sound of Silver makes you feel dirty and alive.

34.   The Flying Club Cup by Beirut
The Flying Club Cup is better than the band's debut, which was quite a good album itself. Zach Condon has found a niche with his theatrical French pop delivery and velvet crooning. And he takes full advantage of the sound he's developed, but even without the brilliant arrangements and spot on vocals the songs would stand alone.

33.  Beauty & Crime by Suzanne Vega
Vega's newest record is a loose concept album in the vein of Bruce Springsteen's The Rising. Although it's formed somewhat around the attacks of 9/11, the aftershocks, and New York City, she avoids cliché and the political demagoguery we've been fed up with for the last 6 years. Suzanne takes a personal and poetic tact that's an approach she has mastered and made her own. Being a positive force in the face of pain is a hard thing to do musically without coming off as tacky or forced, but Vega has succeeded beyond measure here.

32.  At My Age by Nick Lowe
Nick Lowe is reveling in his old(er) age and his new album At My Age shines with a maturity and wisdom that will last eons longer than any group of 20-something punks making music today. His smoky-smooth voice is wonderfully appealing and backed by some of the most professional and tasteful arrangements I have heard this year.

31.  Tio Bitar by Dungen
Dungen returns with the much awaited follow-up to their critically acclaimed 2005 album Ta Det Lugnt. Tio Bitar, which means "Ten Pieces", has the much-desired 1970's analog production sound that warms up any room made cold by the digital production of today. Gustav Ejstes, the band's driving creative force, makes swirling, psychedelic prog rock that has enough folk flavor to prod your mouth open a crack so that he may jam the whole damn album down your throat.

Continue to #41 to #50

Return to #21 to #30

36 Comments

1. A Yahoo! User -
Not much to comment on here......springsteen is cool.

LCD Soundsystem? how about

SOUNDGARDEN!

p.s. i know most of the stuff i mentioned wasn't created in 2007. so how about "music you should have listened to in 2008". it could tie in current events and emotions to any album.

2. Bryan S -
Albums that should be on this list:

HellYeah - HellYeah
Drowning Pool - Full Circle
Ozzy Osbourne - Black Rain

3. angela g -
hey hey hey ho ho ho I like so much yahoo music

4. angela g -
hey hey hi all I like music

5. angela g -
hey hey hi all I like music

6. angela g -
hey hey hi all I like music

7. Yahoo! Music User -
hey hey

8. Keefer D -
Beirut needs to be way higher on the list, theres nothing like the bands music and the raw power of the feelings the music conveys. It should at least be above LCD soundsystem.

9. daves_1117 -
Nick Lowe's At My Age was a huge disappointment when compared to his previous release. In this one, he seems to be simply going through the motions. I would have replaced this choice with Dolores O'Riordan's Are You Listening? An amazingly beautiful album, and I didn't see it anywhere on this top 100 list.

10. kingo904 -
wow this is the worst list i have ever seen only one hip hop album from 1-31? what about jay-z american gangster or kanye?

11. rocknrollyapukes -
Who is Of Neil Young? Who is the moron who made this list?

12. Fish Fan! -
Who are these artists? I've heard of Radiohead at no. 1, and Springsteen and Neil Young at 39 and 38? Come on. How about The Hives' Black and White Album. Simply fantastic. This just goes to show that anything a "critic" says is good, usually blows, and why none of these albums sold any copies.

13. yankees#1 -
Wow this guy thinks Rolling Stone has lost its credibility. At least they have some Bruce again like Kayne Top 10.

14. ambigu0us_21 -
beirut needs to be upped 20 spots, easy.

15. Jason F -
Im just glad you didnt put that recist titty baby kanye west on here

16. Noah -
if bruce's album is so good, then why do you put it so low on the list??

In my opinion, it's his best since Born in the USA

17. ML -
An interesting list of music will always anger some people and inspire others. I'm ignorant about a lot of these artists, but it makes me want to learn more. If you truly like music I think you will agree.

18. Dinaynay -
Bruce Springsteen is still alive?

19. mike s -
I wholeheartedly agree with the last comment. Bruce Springsteen produces the cheesiest music in the world. How he consistently manages to give music critics a collective boner is one of the enduring mysteries of our time. I would expect this from the fossils working at Rolling Stone, but this guy seems like he's still plugged in.

Now you might think that I just hate the old school musicians. Absolutely not. I understand why Dylan, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot and Paul Simon are referred to as legends - they write incredible, meaningful music. Springsteen writes nothing more then tortured cliches about American blue collar mythology while using his Jersey roots to back it up. Yuck. He has about as much depth as Bryan Adams.

I'm a musician and a huge music fan - I own about 600 very diverse albums. So I know my stuff. And this I have learned - if you want to know if a music critic knows nothing about music, there are two infallible ways to tell:

1. He doesn't recognise the Beatles as the most important band of the twentieth century.

2. He recognises Bruce Springsteen as an important artist.

20. Yahoo! Music User -
i love ml's comment. a music list always provides good conversation. and thanks to mike s for backing me up. you said it better than i ever could. if you're ever in bozeman, mt, i will buy you a cold one.
Page:  1 | 2 
Next »
Leave Your Comment
You must sign in to leave a comment
Select a Blog Posts
And The Winner Is...
by Lyndsey Parker
12
As Heard On...
by Suzanne Baran
8
Better Living Through MP3
by Ken Micallef
130
Chart Watch
by Paul Grein
39
Framed
by John Kordosh
50
GetBack
by Julee Stover
32
Hip-Hop Media Training
by Billy Johnson, Jr.
35
List Of The Day
by Rob O' Connor
220
Maximum Performance
by Lyndsey Parker
68
New This Week
by Dave DiMartino
54
On the Road With JamBase
by Aaron Kayce
21
Reality Rocks
by Lyndsey Parker
208
Rock's Backpages
by Jim Arundel (1994)
56
Rolling Stone Song Of The Day
by Chuck Eddy
18
That's Really Week
by Lyndsey Parker
57
The ARTHUR Blog
by Paul Krassner
33
The Lefsetz Letter
by Bob Lefsetz
160
The MOJO Blog
by Kris Needs
39
The NME Blog
by Dan Martin
20
The Spin Blog
by David Marchese
15
The URB Blog
by Brandon Perkins
9
The Y! Music Playlist Blog
by Robert of the Radish
251
Video Ga Ga
by Lyndsey Parker
17

Music Blog Archives

July 2008 (15)
June 2008 (18)
May 2008 (19)
April 2008 (20)
March 2008 (21)
February 2008 (22)
January 2008 (21)
December 2007 (22)
November 2007 (19)
October 2007 (22)
September 2007 (21)
August 2007 (21)
July 2007 (7)
June 2007 (3)
Connie Francis hospitalized, misses NY performance
AP
Fri Jul 25, 2008 3:00pm PDT
AP - Singer Connie Francis is being treated at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York where she was hospitalized after falling ill earlier this week. Her agent, Mike Church, says the 69-year-old singer had been…
More »
More Music News
My Music


Create your very own radio station based on your music tastes.