A list

In an attempt to not think about this too much, I've abstained from reading any of your posts so far, so probably there will be some overlap.  Or maybe there's a running joke I'm playing right into.  

This was fun making a list of stuff I like rather than trying to think of what I like best or think will survive the longest.  One thing I'll say about my current music listening is that I'm heavily influenced by NPR First Listen.  I first heard at least three of these picks there. These are in the order in which I thought of them:

Purity Ring - Shrines

The Horrors - Skying

Wilco - Sky Blue Sky

The Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy

Uncle Tupelo - March 16-20 1992

Lord Huron - Lonesome Dreams

Patty Smith Group - Wave

Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal

Sigur Ros - Kveikur

Psychedelic Furs - Mirror Moves

Also, all of these mostly have words.  Not all in a real language, but still...

- Bruce

Death Match 2013 Final Results are in, and the winners are...

Days - Real Estate
Farrah - Farrah
August & Everything After - Counting Crows
The Taking - Duff McKagan's Loaded
Heaven - The Walkmen
Closing Time - Tom Waits
Jagged Little Pill - Alanis Morissette
Prairie Wind - Neil Young
Natural Born Killers Soundtrack
Chinese Democ^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^HThe Essential Neil Diamond - Neil Diamond

Bonus Song:   Did It On'em - Nicki Minaj (Cher - Nair!)

Listen to Duff's We Win and tell me it isn't the greatest.  I dare you.  Also read his book.  It was pretty darn good.

Neil Diamond is a double album, but I trust I won't hear any complaints.

August and Jagged - I think both stand up pretty decent after time.  I mean both albums have had subsequent (re-recorded) releases (some seemingly multiple times!?)...  Take a look at Johnny Cash's album list on Spotify, 30 songs - 3.4 billion different albums, and people say he's The Man

Prairie Wind is an attempt to represent anything Neil Young.  Listening to him a lot, and recently watched Heart Of Gold, recommended.

Lazy man's list

Keeping with keeping it simple, I've selected albums that show many plays in my latest iTunes install, a few CDs I've dusted off, and at least one that must have been stuck on repeat in my Nano when I tried going to the gym a semester back:

• 100 Grim Reapers -- Ben and Bruno
• Viva La Woman -- Cibo Matto
• Disintegration -- The Cure
• Wake Up Child -- the Soil and the Sun
• Lioness -- Songs: Ohia
• What Would the Community Think? -- Cat Power
• 69 Love Songs -- The Magnetic Fields
• Reunion Tour --The Weakerthans
• Halcyon Digest -- Deer Hunter
• The Last Broadcast -- Doves

I supposed I'll have to be Eric A. for this Death Match.

Public Enemy

I know that when I'm stressed with moving into a new house, trying to sell my old house, dealing with a young child and another on the way, as well as getting ready for a vacation to Canada, followed by the beginning of the school year, I like to unwind by moderating a music tournament in which the majority of the participants are a bunch of whining, needling, needy, overly particular assholes.  Anyway, here are my picks, in no particular order.  Proceed to unzip your skinny jeans and piss all over them:

Beruit – The Rip Tide

Washed Out – Within and Without

Chemical Brothers – Further

Spiritualized – Sweet Heart Sweet Light

Twin Shadow – Confess

Andy Stott - Luxury Problems

Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest

Frank Ocean – Channel Orange

Low – C’mon

Purity Ring - Shrines

Jane Z's picks

1.       Reconstruction Site – the Weakerthans

2.       The Head and the Heart – the Head and the Heart

3.       Gossamer – Passion Pit

4.       The Double Cross – Sloan

5.       Feed the Animals – Girltalk

6.       Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming – M83

7.       Bon Iver – Bon Iver

8.       Soundtrack to The Mission – Ennio Morricone

9.       Heart that’s Pounding – Sally Seltmann

10.    In Light – Givers

11.    And then nothing turned itself inside out – Yo La Tengo

Andy W's picks

1. Nilsson Sings Newman - Harry Nilsson
2. Lisbon - The Walkmen
3. Push the Sky Away - Nick Cave and Bad Seeds
4. Wounded Rhymes - Lykke Li
5. Olympia - Austra
6. Let England Shake - PJ Harvey
7. Ceremony - Anna von Hausswolff
8. Electric Warrior - T. Rex
9. MCII - Mikal Cronin
10. Helplessness Blues - Fleet Foxes

Brian's List

Waxahatchee-Cerulean Salt
Phosphorescent- Muchacho
Vampire Weekend-Modern Vampires
Washed Out- Within and without
Fleet Foxes-helplessness blues
Grimes-Vision
Fiona Apple- The Idler Wheel
Panda Bear- Tomboy
Caribou- Swim
Burial- Untrue
Perfume Genius- Put your back into it

Eric's List

I tried to stick to stuff that has come out in the last 5 years or so.  Just some stuff I enjoy...

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Push the Sky Away
Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications
Four Tet - There is Love in You
Foxygen - We are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic
Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears - Scandalous
Little Dragon - Ritual Union
Mos Def - The Ecstatic
Quakers - Quakers
The Radio Dept. - Clinging to a Scheme
Jamie xx/ Gil Scott-Heron  - We're New Here

Everybody should vote for all of these albums because I like them.

Sarah's Top Ten

1. The National - Trouble Will Find Me

2. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake

3. Matthew E. White - Big Inner

4. The Tallest Man on Earth - The Wild Hunt

5. Phosphorescent - Muchacho

6. Cold Specks - I Predict a Graceful Explosion

7. Bon Iver - Bon Iver

8. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...

9. Lord Huron - Lonesome Dreams

10. Veronica Falls - Waiting for Something to Happen

Andrew Z's 11 picks

1. Sloan - The Double Cross
2. Megafaun - Megafuan
3. Dr. John - In the Right Place
4. Waterboys - This is the Sea
5. Matthew E. White - Big Inner
6. Brendan Canning - Something for all of us
7. Jason Collet - Idols of Exile
8. Willie Nelson - Red Headed Stranger
9. Metric - Synthetica
10. Anathallo - Sparrows
11. Cold Specks - I Predict a Graceful Expulsion

Stevie D's list

1. Constantines "Constantines"
2. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings "Naturally"
3. Gaslight Anthem "American Slang"
4. Fitz and the Tantrums "Pickin' up the Pieces"
5. Titus Andronicus "The Monitor"
6. Lee Fields "My World"
7. Low "C'mon"
8 Mavis Staples "One True Vine"
9. Bruce Springsteen "Wrecking Ball"
10. Antrim Dells "Given Name"

The Basic Rules

Step 1: Everyone submit ten or so albums. These do not have to be your favorite albums of all time, but they can be from any era, genre, etc. I suggest choosing some albums you've been enjoying the last few years, whether they were just released or you just recently discovered them. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. The whole theme this time is easy-going death match.

You can choose albums that you had one previous lists, but I would advise avoiding ones that already got a lot of play.  If you had something that lost in the first round, though, and you're convinced that that was an absolute oversight/fluke, go ahead and resubmit.

Step 2: Rather than assigning different people to different albums, everyone is going to vote on every match-up. To keep things moving, you'll have just a day or two to submit your vote. If you don't vote in that time, sorry, we're moving forward. You can write a rationale for why you chose the album you did, and you can try and persuade others, provide humor, rip someone a new ahole or whatever, but entries should be short. There is no pressure to write an ingenious, ground-breaking, creative thesis to support your vote even though I know you're all capable of it. Easy-going! That's it. There's no prize and therefore no scoring. So, let's get going. Start sending in your lists...