Review Of The Year pt.1 - Music
time to take stock culturally - and influenced by publications left right and centre (and gaytard) i've drawn together a bunch of lists which encompass my favourite articles of culture from 2006.

 best albums of 2006

1. el perro del mar - el perro del mar
2. liz durrett - the mezzanine
3. thanksgiving - cave days and moments
4. neko case - fox confessor brings the flood
5. kazumi nikaidoh - no album
6. juana molina - son
7. smoosh - free to stay
8. the tiny - starring someone like you
9. beirut - gulag orchestra
10. band of horses - band of horses
11. dat politics - wow twist
12. the blow - paper television
13. the shins - wincing the night away
14. kimya dawson - remember that i love you
15. emile simon - vegetal
16. nina nastasia - on leaving
17. paavoharju - paavoharju
18.cansei de ser sexy - css
19.lo-fi fnk - boylife
20. ms. john soda - notes and the like

el perro del mar created her own sound by filtering the spector wall-of-sound thru desolation; liz durrett made the record cat power ought to have made, thanksgiving put me in mind of early palace bros - and neko case made the best album of her career.

songs (in no order and besides the ones on the albums above)

midlake - roscoe, helios - halving the compass, kahimi karie - you are here for a light , ronnie spector - all i want , imogen heap - hide and seek , imogen heap - headlock , bertine zetlitz - girl like you , yeah yeah yeahs - warrior, burka band - blue burka , lil chris - getting enough, sugababes - easy , paris hilton - stars are blind , shakira - hips don't lie , nelly furtado - maneater , love is all - used goods, lavender diamond - you broke my heart , jamelia - something about you , utada - sanctuary , fergie - glamourous , fergie - fergilicious , dragonette - shockbox , robyn - with every heartbeart , amy winehouse - rehab , rihanna - sos , patrick wolf - accident and emergency , betty curse - god this hurts, christian falk feat robyn - dream on , matson jones - wrecking ball , pony up! - the truth about cats and dogs , shiny toy guns - don't cry out , sally shapiro - i know , anna oxygen - fake pyjamas , joan as policewoman - eternal flame , final fantasy - arctic circle , xiu xiu - hello from eau claire, the whitest boy alive - alive , piana - early in summer , belong - i never lose, never really , magneta lane - bridge to terabtia pretty girls make graves - pyrite pedestal , immune - you landscape , monotekktoni - chemicals , lau nau -kuula ,casiotone for the painfully alone - scattered pearls , charlotte gainsbourg - af607105 , cortney tidwell - mama from the mountain ,bodies of water - i guess, hanne hukkelberg - berlin , jenny lewis with the watson twins - big guns , jenny lewis with the watson twins - melt your heart , margaret berger - seek i'll hide , robinella - break it down , psapp - new rubbers , the konki duet - daylight song , tilly and the wall - bad education , tuung - the pioneers , tokyo police club - cheer it on , young people r and r , oppenheimer - this is not a test , feist - mushaboom , beyonce - ring the alarm

musical disappointments

1. joanna newsom - ys (keep it simple, love - all those words and strings have smothered your spirit)
2. cat power - the greatest (keep telling youself that, shitbag)
3. dresden dolls - yes, virginia (no, virginia)


tomorrow i'll make my way thru film, books and televison with lists galore.