The Year in Music

FAVORITE MUSIC OF 2005
An Annual Report By Dave Ratzlow

Another great year in music. Not as many fantastic albums this year, but I did attend some of the most thrilling and inspiring concerts in my life. As much as NYC can suck sometimes, the vitality of the music scene (among other things) will keep me here for a long time.


TOP TEN FAVORITE ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

10. YOUNG PEOPLE – Five Sunsets In Four Days (E.P.)

09. THE WHITE STRIPES – Get Behind Me Satan

08. BECK – Guero

07. CELEBRATION – Celebration
(A young and energetic band with a lot of power and ideas, they invoke The Clash, Siouxsie and Blonde Redhead, and come out of the gate with the BEST DEBUT of the year.)

06. STEPHEN MALKMUS – Face The Truth

05. THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS – Twin Cinema

04. CAMILLE – Le Fil
(My French is horrible these days, but I'd follow this quirky young woman anywhere. Tight harmonies, human beat-box and vocalized trumpet, the album is fun without compromising its emotional impact. Good songs and good performances need no translation.)

03. ROISIN MURPHY – Ruby Blue
(You can probably tell, I like my female singers beautiful and quirky. Roisin, formerly of Moloko, adds funky to the mix. She takes a lot of musical risks here, creating some of the most interesting pop/soul I've heard in years.)

02. BETTYE LAVETTE – I've Got My Own Hell To Raise
(One of many albums I've bought just because I liked the cover. An R&B singer from the 60s making a blues-inspired comeback, LaVette captivated me within the first few seconds of hearing her soulful voice, and I knew the album would become one of my favorites of the year.)

01. FIONA APPLE – Extraordinary Machine
(I prefer the strange Kurt Weill-inspired bootleg version produced by John Brion which was floating around last year. This one is a bit more "normal", but it still packs an emotional punch. Apple is a great singer and a clever yet honest songwriter.)


HONORABLE MENTIONS

THE RATZLOW – Silly Love Songs
(Such a good year in music, even my own album didn't make the top ten. Some of these songs are my favorites of all time and it was a joy working on it and sharing it with everyone. The next one will be better, I promise!)

DYNAMITE HAM – I Believe In You
(My high school buddy also released a great album this year, jam-packed with ideas and many different styles, yet it's still anchored by his sweet voice and the clever cover songs that he makes his own.)

PAUL McCARTNEY – Chaos and Creation in the Backyard
(Kinda cool that I can be on the same list as The Mac. He had some clunkers in the past few years. Nice to hear he can still weave silly love songs into pop gold.)

PEGGY HONEYWELL – Faint Humms

BRIGHT EYES – I'm Wide Awake It's Morning

ANDREW BIRD – The Mysterious Production of Eggs

THE SPINTO BAND – Nice and Nicely Done

GOLDFRAPP – Supernature

THE KNIFE – Deep Cuts

THE DITTY BOPS – The Ditty Bops


ON MY LIST LAST YEAR BUT WEREN'T POPULAR UNTIL THIS YEAR

FEIST – Let It Die

JEM – Finally Woken

REGINA SPECTOR – Soviet Kitsch

TEGAN AND SARA – So Jealous


GREAT ALBUMS THAT I MISSED LAST YEAR

MAGNETIC FIELDS – I

ELLIOT SMITH – From a Basement on the Hill


TOP TEN FAVORITE SONGS OF THE YEAR

10. (tie) MADONNA – "Hung Up"

10. (tie) GWEN STEFANI – "Hollaback Girl"

09. ARCHITECTURE IN HELSINKI – "Do The Whirlwind"

08. THE DUKE SPIRIT – "Cuts Across The Land"

07. (tie) MIA DOI TODD – "Tongue-Tied"

07. (tie) MADELEINE PEYROUX – "Dance Me To The End Of Love"

06. SCOUT NIBLETT – "Ruler Of My Heart"

05. (tie) NOSTALGIA 77 – "Seven Nation Army"

05. (tie) AMON TOBIN – "El Cargo"

04. YOLANDA ADAMS – "Victory"

03. DYNAMITE HAM – "Lovelier Than Ever"

02. (tie) FIONA APPLE – "Better Version of Me" (bootleg version)

02. (tie) LAVENDER DIAMOND – "You Broke My Heart"

01. BETTYE LAVETTE – "I Do Not Want What I Have Not Got"


TOP TEN CONCERTS OF THE YEAR

10. BRIGHT EYES and TILLY AND THE WALL @ Town Hall, January 27th

09. DOLLY PARTON @ Radio City Music Hall, August 14th

08. FIONA APPLE @ Virgin Megastore, September 20th

07. (tie) RILO KILEY @ Webster Hall, May 26th
(One of the tightest pop bands around right now. The ever-so-slight country twang from Jenny Lewis whets my appetite for her solo debut due soon.)

07. (tie) CELEBRATION @ Bowery Ballroom, November 5th
(The singer got her ass in the audience several times. If music was a religion, this would be the best preacher in the tri-state area.)

06. NIKKA COSTA @ Canal Room, October 22nd
(The female Prince is much better live where she can let it all hang out.)

05. FEIST @ Bowery Ballroom, June 25th
(A beautiful voice, melancholy songs, top-notch talent, and NYC's best venue made this a memorable night. I think my heat skipped three or four beats when she said hi to me at the bar.)

04. M.I.A. @ The Knitting Factory, February 5th
(Even though it was packed and stuffy, the girl could've gone on for hours with the same groove, her infectious smile and joyful sass. Her fans knew, the Knit was the center of the universe that night, and she was gonna be BIG!)

03. THE ARCADE FIRE @ Irving Plaza, February 2nd
(A breathtakingly energetic performance, included an encore with David Byrne. One of the very few times I was willing to shell out $180 for a pair of tickets, but it was well worth it especially since I eventually had to miss their Summerstage show.)

02. BETTYE LAVETTE @ Knitting Factory, December 4th
(For an over-60-year-old woman, she has a tremendous amount of sex appeal. Backed by a top-notch band of session musicians, she worked her audience into a frenzy of adulation.)

01. LHASA DE SELA @ Bowery Ballroom, June 30th
(The best singer of what I call "Sadness Porn". Sometimes you just need a good cry and Lhasa is the perfect singer to wring it out of you.)


MORE GREAT CONCERTS

LHASA DE SELA @ Satalla, February 6th

NEKO CASE @ Bowery Ballroom, February 13th

FEIST @ Joe's Pub, March 22nd

NELLIE MCKAY @ Irving Plaza, March 30th

LEZ ZEPPELIN @ The Cutting Room, April 22nd

DITTY BOPS @ Mercury Lounge, June 9th

TEGAN AND SARA @ Webster Hall, July 14th

THE JUAN MACLEAN @ Tribeca Grand, July 23rd

FEIST @ Knitting Factory, September 13th

SI SE @ Sol, October 19th

JAKE SHIMABUKURO @ Rothko's, October 27th

NEKO CASE @ Joe's Pub, November 17th

GOLDFRAPP @ Nokia Theater, December 5th


May the Force of Music Be with You!

Happy New Year,
Dave Ratzlow