MMIV

In keeping with tradition (or rather procrastinaton) of the past 2 years, i'm sharing with you the albums and shows that made 2004 for me on the last day of the year. I have to say the list was hard to compile. 2004 was the year of major low attention span, i listened to a lot of songs/singles but not a lot new albums in their entirety (i still have a pile and list of 2004 albums waiting be listened to). Add to that the fact that this year, i spent most of my disposable income on vinyls of old(er) music i never owned or knew before, which pushed the new records a bit aside... but i'll get to them somehow. In any case, if you've been a reader of the site, no alarms no surprises here...

Favorite 8 albums of 2004 (in alphabetical order):
Ambulance Ltd - Ambulance Ltd
Blonde Redhead - Misery is a butterfly
Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
Inouk - No Danger
Interpol - Antics
Phoenix - Alphabetical
Rilo Kiley - More Adventurous
Secret Machines - Now here is nowhere

Favorite 9 shows of 2004 :
1. PJ Harvey @ Knitting Factory & Pianos - june 2 & 5
2. Phoenix / Inouk / Benzos @ Bowery Ballroom - december 1
3. Blonde Redhead / Secret Machines @ Bowery Ballroom - april 12
4. Saints+Lovers @ Mercury Lounge - june 19
5. Coachella Music Festival - may 1 & 2
6. Bloc Party @ Knitting Factory - september 30
7. Morrissey @ Apollo Theater - may 8
8. Rufus Wainwright @ Beacon Theater - february 13
9. The Shins @ Mercury Lounge - january 11

So that's it. I can't wait for the 2005 releases and shows, but before we get there, HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!

new year's eve 2004

Tomorrow night will be the last ATOMIQUE of 2004, so i hope to see a lot of you! It's also the eve of new year's eve and a great way to end the year and start the party early. Michael Goodstein (WFMU) is spinning and bringing a few friends to help. We'll have the blue light special as always, and no cover. It all starts at 10pm and Eleven is located at 152 Orchard St.

Now for some new year's eve 2004 (new york) options

MisShapes at Tribeca Grand with Peaches playing! For tickets call: 212-519-6677.

In williamsburg, Crashin'in 12 hour party people with Beans and Mommy and Daddy playing.

Asobi Seksu, The Winter Pageant, Other Passengers, Levy, Stylofone and Autodrone @ Mercury Lounge.

Trash! Party with Saintface, Unisex Salon, The Affair @ Don Hill's.

Motherfucker after-hours with The Bravery playing.

metal on a gun

It's very quiet during the holidays, so i'm trying to remember things i've been meaning to post and never did. One of them was this book i read when i was in paris, it's the biography of Joy Division's Ian Curtis called Touching From a Distance written by his widow Deborah Curtis. I loved the book because it's told from her point of view, it's very honest and heartbreaking and nothing about it is romanticized. I recommend it if you love the band, or are just interested in finding out more about the short-lived life of a very talented man in a very important band.

I can't remember if i've ever mentioned Lansing-Dreiden's debut album The Incomplete Triangle, which came out this past april. If i didn't, then shame on me because it is fantastic. I very often spins one of their songs when i DJ. They may be weird and all (i.e. they don't play shows, do any press or show their faces for that matter), but L-D's music is totally up my darker alley. They also have a new (or re-released?) EP called A Sectioned Beam, which is equally as great as the album.
This song is from the album: Lansing-Dreiden :: Glass Corridor [mp3]

Listening to Lansing-Dreiden led me to listen to another Kemado band, Diamond Nights... they've been playing around town, i've been missing them, and when i played their 12" So Fantastic, i had no idea what to expect. Surprise, surprise, i loved it! You can't deny the catchiness:
Diamond Nights :: The Girl's Attractive [mp3]

If you're into christmas music these days, download La Blogotheque's Christmas mix, and Pas/Cal's cover of Last Christmas [mp3] (via Fluxblog and also La Blogotheque's mix).