Those crazy, kooky year-end lists

BEST ALBUMS of 2004 (no real order, just a list)

• Razorlight - Up All Night
  (Boozy Clash-like rock from London - my #1 album of 2004)
• Morrissey - You Are The Quarry
  (The Moz comes back with no signs of stopping)
• Ambulance Ltd - self titled
  (Spans every kind of guitar rock from shoegaze to alt country in a great way)
• Franz Ferdinand - self titled
  (I'm sure everyone's heard a tune or two, fun artsy new wave pop)
• Loretta Lynn - Van Lear Rose
  (Than you Jack White for helping this gorgeous songstress not fade away)
• The Futureheads - self titled
  (like Franz Ferdinand, but better IMHO because its harder)
• Interpol - Antics
  (the return of "That band with the singer who sounds like Ian Curtis")
• Brian Wilson - Smile
  (it took 37 years and it still sounds timeless. Brian Wilson is one ofthe last great composers)
• William Shatner - Has Been
  (Yes, Capt Kirk does spoken word over tunes arranged by Ben Folds. Hiscover of Pulp's 'Common People' is so good)
• The Ocean Blue - Waterworks EP
  (The addition of Oed Ronne helps the band stay alive with great pop songs)
• The Shore - self titled
  (Another top fave. The Verve meet Gram Parsons like SoCal psychedelia)
• Secret Machines - Now Here is Nowhere
  (Prog Rock meets Led Zep rhythms. Amazing trio of sounds)
• Division of Laura Lee - Das Not Compute
  (Forget The Hives, this Swedish band rocks out alot more with less pomp)
• Keane - Hopes and Fears
  (Who'd think a pop trio with Piano, Vocals and Drums would sound so pure)
• Air - Talkie Walkie
  (Beautiful electronic symphonic pop)
• Bjork - Medulla(probably the most unique release this year. She really made musicbased on the rhythms out of her head)
• The Killers - Hot Fuss
  (The return of 80's style rock with a Milennium crash)
• Polyphonic Spree - Together We're Heavy
  (More from the best Psychedelic rock choir from Texas)
• Tears for Fears - Everybody Loves a Happy Ending
  (Second to Morrissey as comeback of the year. I'm so glad the pair reunited)
• The Streets - A Grand Don't Come for Free
  (Funny yet honestly skint street poetry fused with UK hip hop)
• Starsailor - Silence is Easy
  (more from the band who could be Coldplay)
• Muse - Absolution
  (Radiohead meets King Crimson and Queen. Bombast awaits)
• Probot - self titled
  (Dave Grohl joins up with his "Dark Metal heroes" and makes a train wreck of an album)
• The Stills - Logic will Break Your Heart
  (Yeah, released in late 2003, but more impact in 2004. Wonderful swirling guitar pop)
• The Cure - self titled
  (cool comeback with the Curiosa tour)
• Rufus Wainwright - Want Two
  (The gay messiah returns with more swooning orchestral pop)

DISAPPOINTMENTS of 2004

• Why so many damn re-releases! Do I really wanna hear Nirvana from a distorted 4-track across 3-cd's? Why buy another version of Franz Ferdinand's and Morrissey's albums that were already released this year?
• The Vines release a decent album and implode
• The Prodigy and Fatboy Slim come back a few years too late with mediocre releases
• The Hives become too much pomp under the wrong circumstances
• Velvet Revolver formula becomes STP + GNR = DOA
• Legendary DJ John Peel dies. The world of new music mourns
• Courtney Love becomes a sideshow unto herself
• Ashlee Simpson does a lip-sync-ed hoe-down on SNL and still says she's "punk rock"
• Britney Spears gets married twice and scarfs down Cheesy Poofs. Role model?
• Ray Charles dies soon before Jamie Foxx brilliantly portrays him in his biopic
• Good Charlotte screw their fans over by releasing the same album on two separate discs each with its own bonus track
• Los Lonely Boys and their grammy nods
• U2 become a caricature of themselves
• The Libertines get overshadowed by Pete Doherty's inasnity and Razorlight's persistence
• Lawsuits from the RIAA become as common as soldier's deaths in Iraq with the same reaction. We know there's a better way to solve these issues than just sending in more people!

FAVORITE SHOWS from 2004

• Muse at The Wiltern in LA and The Metro in Chicago
• The Stills at Empty Bottle in Chicago and The Henry Fonda Theatre in LA
• The Shore at Spaceland in LA
• The Ocean Blue at The Troubadour in LA
• Starsailor at Metro in Chicago
• Morrissey (with Nancy Sinatra opening) at Universal Amphitheatre in LA
• Polyphonic Spree at The El Rey Theatre in LA
• Air at The Hollywood Bowl with the LA Philharmonic Orchestra (this year's best)
• Interpol w/Secret Machines at The Wiltern in LA
• Franz Ferdinand at Empty Bottle in LA

HOPES for 2005

• Kasabian - hopefully the album gets released out here and people catch\onto their Primal Scream meets Happy Mondays rock vibe
• Soulwax - usually known as the DJ group '2 Many DJs' and all their famous mash-ups of popular songs, but their rock band is fantastic as well
• Emma - also known as Baby Spice or Emma Bunton. Yes, that same one. She made a great album of Nancy Sinatra like pop that opens your eyes
• Doves - release their third album early in 2005
• The Soundtrack of Our Lives - yeah, some people call it dad rock, I call it genius.

And thats the year in music from my perspective...