favorite albums of 2006

It wouldn't be fair to assess the year's best releases in gaming, having missed the most crucial part of the year. But if I had to make a choice in my small sample set, I'd easily select Battle for Middle Earth II for its pronounced improvements over the original (such as its near flawless implementation of scale) and its back-to-rts-basics style of play. While it may not have made any significant contributions to the genre, I can't help but think back and remember how many hours I spent just playing skirmish mode versus the computer.

As was the case last year, I listened to a lot of music with the assistance of my MP3 player. After the baby was born, that's pretty much all I did in my spare moments, because it didn't require any hands. Indeed, there were many Sunday afternoons where the baby and I would nap to Lush or The Clientele or Benoît Pioulard. Naturally, if I felt like rocking out to Forward, Russia! I had to break out the headphones.

The following list is in no particular order. Despite there being a surplus of good music last year, there was no one record that stood above the rest that I found myself listening to over and over again. Though if you ask anyone I know they would probably say it was Kill Hannah, but I'm never going to admit to that.

top 5 albums of 2005

Getting an ipod mini has enabled me to appreciate music again, even though in the span of roughly 8 months it has become another New Relic. It's all too easy to expose myself to new music when I have the capacity to browse multiple records at once. Coupled with my iTrip I never had to listen to the radio again.

But first, a preamble to the year of music that was 2005: If I hear of one more band with the word "fire" in their name, I will scream. I am serious about this - I will scream and you will hear me, wherever the fuck you are viewing this hypertext from. And as for Wolf Parade making their way onto year end lists left and right - I say again that copying someone else makes you unoriginal. You might as well be listening to Funeral again you pretentious twats.

How the fuck did I get so off track? This is supposed to be a best of list, not my intense hatred of Pitchfork Media made flesh. The following albums are the best things I listened to all year. And I force fed myself a lot of polished turds based on some of these.

Billy Corgan at The Carlu

Obviously my first reaction to hearing about Billy Corgan's July 2nd Toronto performance was one of elation unbound. The venue, though - that suprised me. The Wife and I went to a wedding at The Carlu back in January, and were suitably impressed by it's unique decor. The place is slathered in art deco straight out of 1930s Hollywood. I'm not familiar with what kind of an arrangement they have there for shows of this nature, but I expect it to be a very intimate performance. I shamefully missed the presale but managed to secure some tickets this morning.

Billy's new solo album, TheFutureEmbrace, hits stores June 21st. Based on what I've heard, it's as if Adore and the more electropop sounds of Machina|The Machines of God had converged. The question you must ask yourself while listening to it, though, is whether you're a Smashing Pumpkins fan or a Billy Corgan fan.

the confessions of billy corgan

If there are any Billy Corgan fans in the audience, they might be interested in some text he has been posting the last few days over at his website. These aren't the little "here's what I'm up to" snippets that were posted in the past - excluding of course his calling out of D'Arcy as a spiteful, vindictive bitch - these are stream of consciousness ramblings that take us inside particluar periods of his life. In his own words, this is to be "a story of rags to riches to expensive rags".

Now, as I've discussed with others, Billy starting up these weblog "confessions" in earnest could be viewed cynically as an attempt to garner interest in preparation for the release of his new album this June. Furthermore, why publish them on the web at all? Even though I got his book of poetry as a gift I would have gladly paid money for it. As a fan that's been with him since I saw the "Rhinoceros" video on MuchMusic in grade 8, I could easily sit here and argue the legitimacy of these writings as those handed down in the purest form. Though all you have to do is read it yourself to realize their sincerity. I don't think he wants sympathy or your money; rather, I think the fallout of Zwan and this new record has spawned some introspective phase that he wants to share with the fans and hardly works as a marketing concept. We're probably the only ones that would care enough to read them all anyway.

Not many people understand Billy Corgan the musician, and he says himself it's a result of pushing everyone away - including his bandmates. The tour for Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and the subsequent recording of Adore was probably the band's toughest time, and despite knowing the story more or less it was an interesting read. Many critics say that the Pumpkins "quitting" the music industry because they couldn't compete with the current singles-driven artists was a cop-out; I used to agree. Now I realize that was the only thing he could do, because the relationship with his bandmates was strained at best. Thinking Billy might shape Zwan into what the Pumpkins might of been had they continued was foolish of me - it would have never worked, Billy was too driven and controlling at that point, having all but eliminated the other members from the creative process. So again they had no choice. Releasing an album of his own material is just a natural progression.

Consider this a brief detour from the site's regular content, but to say that I am not fascinated with Billy Corgan the musician, the artist, the anti-hero of rock would be lying. Look at the god damned name of this place. It's a given that I'll be first in line to buy his new album, but in the interim I'm curious to see what else he decides to reveal.

I declare myself of faith

another chapter in the book of self-loathing

The first, of course, being the inception of this website.

I once made a habit of sneering at anyone in possession of an iPod. They seem like such a fashion accessory, the owners flaunting them like it was some sort of status symbol. I laughed when the flashmugging site went online, and the subsequent downturn in the number of white earbuds I saw on the street. Forget subscribing to Apple's school of over designed hardware - I wanted a Nomad Zen NX.

My flimsy shell of rebellion was swiftly shattered by my in-laws this weekend, who surprised me with a gift from Hong Kong - a 6 GB iPod mini. Something I never expected, because while I was over there I specifically avoided this type of technology because it was too much of a temptation (and still way too expensive). So now I join the ranks of the MP3 player elite, ashamed to be counted among this unstoppable marketing force. Though on the same token, eternally grateful for such a generous gift. I hear that the visions of Avril Lavigne t-shirt wearing high school students rocking out to their Minis eventually subside. Mostly.

After opening the obnoxiously arty packaging and rubbing my body with the deliciously sleek, silvery device, I decided to try it out. Apple loves to make their hardware completely idiot proof, but when someone other than an idiot wants to know how it works or configure the shit out of it, things tend to happen.

I remember downloading and installing iTunes when it became available for Windows. This was shortly after iPods became usable with Windows, and was considered a kind of watershed for digital music. I've always wanted to replace WinAmp with something less, well, WinAmp and figured that was the answer. Little did I know I was basically downloading Windows Media Player designed by Apple, and uninstalled the damned thing a day later. It had an interface that was smooth and appealing to the eye. In fact, it made sure to maintain the design conventions carried over from Mac OS. But what it didn't tell you was what it was doing to your meticulously organized digital music library in the background. iTunes loves to make you think its doing you a favour, but it's really just an annoyance dressed up in brushed metal. I have a 6 GB portable storage device, and the only way to use it is through that blasted program.

Loading songs onto my iPod mini was effortless, but I noticed that most of the ID3 tags were completely off (my own fault). The iPod onboard menu automatically organizes your songs according to album, artist, genre, etc., so this is pretty important if you expect to find a specific song to listen to. I can't stand the singles-driven music culture that MP3s players foster, so for albums, track numbers are doubly important. Otherwise you're listening to The Wall in alphabetical order, and suddenly "Another Brick in the Wall" Parts 1 to 3 are back to back and completely lose all their meaning. Adding or changing any of this information in iTunes will only update your library database, and not the MP3 file attributes itself - for that you have to "convert" the ID3 tags first. This made me constantly refer back to Windows Explorer and my beautiful hierarchical folder structure to correct them manually. Of course, this will only affect those that get tired of iTunes' sluggish response and wish to use their old MP3 player. Custom playlists are easily creatable, and an "On the Go" function on the iPod itself will allow you to create playlists on the fly. I found that especially handy if I wanted to listen to a few albums in succession.

In the iPod's Extras menu, you have the ability to store "To Do" lists, text files, contacts, and sync with iCal (if you have the program). This is a great idea! It's not like any of this stuff takes up space. The coolest feature outside the obvious music playing one is the games. In this age of gadget-philia, everything must have games on it to be useful. The iPod mini sports Brick, Parachute, Music Trivia, and Solitaire. Solitaire definitely has the best graphics. I felt it was my actual hand on screen moving those cards. Brick is that age old classic Arkanoid dressed way, way down, but it's fun to use the magic touchpad. I don't know how often I'd play that one in public though, because it would defeat the purpose of wearing shitty headphones.

It's hard to believe I can put half of my music collection on this thing, because in reality I doubt I'd ever make it through the playlist in my entire life. I think knowing that I have this capability makes this feel comforting, even though iTunes is essentially tying my hands.

as you claw the thin ice

relish the mustard

Where did this site come from? Where? Have I been too transfixed on gaming? How is it that the anti-hero of modern rock has had his very own home on the web for a week without me knowing about it? It's a bit on the unattractive side, but I'm pretty keen on the blog-style content.

After the breakup of Zwan, Billy hinted pretty heavily about going solo. But I didn't expect him to head into the studio this soon. Corgan notes: "I am excited to work on this music, because for the first time in my life it will be my tunes with no compromises to anyone or anything. It's gonna be loud and beautiful and poetic and dumb. Just the way I like it."

Technically this is his first solo project, but as he said himself in the interview many people - including former Pumpkins and Zwan bandmates - would argue otherwise. With Corgan now finally having complete creative control over his musical vision, I expect nothing less than greatness from his new record.

you know I'm not dead

billy in the background (again)

Rolling Stone crapped out a newsbite noting that Billy Corgan has added guitar to a track on the upcoming album by Blindside that's due next year. Sure I'm a fanboy - and this is the same reason I bought New Order's Get Ready. Not because it's a mediocre album that averages out my collection, but because our anti-hero of rock sings in two songs, and provides guitar and keyboards for most of the record. He even toured with them that year. Do you understand why the breakup of Zwan fucking kills me? I had to listen to that shit for a full two years before I got more official Corgan material.

radio play my favorite song

Today I received some most unfortunate news. It's official; Billy has decided to dissolve Zwan.

Back in 2000 when I heard that the Pumpkins were on their final tour after formally announcing their lame excuses for breaking up the band, I was saddened, but glad that I would be able to see them at Summersault 2000. In hindsight, I was completely into their performance, but I can see why a lot felt that it was sub par. Hey, at least he waved goodbye to everyone when they had played their final encore. Only to break down sobbing after their final performance ever at The Metro in Chicago later that year.

And now he's doing it again with Zwan? Sure, they weren't together for that long so I doubt it was a very sorrowful goodbye for any of the members. But what about the fans, Billy? As soon as I heard about this new project, I was waiting for the Second Coming. And for all intents and purposes, for me it was. Zwan's first album was fantastic, and I completely rocked out during their Toronto show back in March (although the crowd were a bunch of dimwits that had no idea what they were witnessing, they were too busy posing).

Maybe I'm taking this a bit too hard, but it seems to me that Billy is just giving up. He says he's going to get into poetry or some shit, maybe a solo career. But we need a band, Billy. Already the members of Zwan are going their separate ways. The dream is dying and it breaks my fucking heart.

a little sunshine, just to butter my toast.

pretty comfortable

I figure I'd write a little bit on my impressions of Sloan's new CD. Ever since Navy Blues, they've been steadily cranking out albums every two years. They've changed their sound a lot since their early days, in fact I'd say the turning point was the excellent One Chord to Another. I'm not selling their CDs or anything. If you haven't heard anything by these guys, but do enjoy such works by the bands The Ataris, Good Charlotte, or Dashboard Confessional, I'd recommend getting the fuck off this website. If you're still here, I ask you, why do you have such fickle tastes in music? Go and check out Sloan. One thing I can say with certainty is that Sloan has remained true to their fans and their music over the years with a sound that won't go out of style as quick as your power-pop-punk-asscaptain band du jour. Now on to the album.

lounge act

Krist Novoselic to the music industry: "I quit."

The former Nirvana bassist (for those that make a point of ignoring the last 10 years in music) is packing in his music career in favour of a future in politics. Some of us might say that his career after Nirvana went nowhere anyway, since he basically fell off the face of the planet after the questionable Willie Nelson tribute. It's not like he had the luck or charisma of Dave Grohl either, to launch another band into the stratosphere. Instead he was seen as a failure with such bands as Sweet 75 and Eyes Adrift who both did very poorly in record sales (and had little or no publicity). He claims that is the reason for leaving the business, but I'm sure he was just frustrated.

Personally, if he wants to pursue a career in politics, good for him. I'm sure he's had more than a taste of that while battling the she-bitch. My first reaction was to label him a coward for calling it quits with the music industry, but if you look back on what he had, it was too much too soon. The grunge scene exploded with Nirvana at the top, so how the fuck are you supposed to follow something like that? I can only imagine his lack of success outside of Nirvana made him seem inadequate alongside his former bandmate.

Krist began several good causes after the breakup of Nirvana, the most notable being JAMPAC (Joint Artist and Music Promotions Action Committtee), which lobbies against censorship and other legislation detrimental to the cultural and economic vitality of the music community.

I wish him the best of luck.

so that's how it is

I heard today that James Iha was now one of the guitarists in A Perfect Circle, and they have a full studio album coming out in September. It seems a bit weird, almost as if this was planned. Paz Lenchantin used to be the bassist for APC before Billy lured her away for Zwan.

I hate to get all emotional, but this kind of news gets me missing the Pumpkins. They were a great fucking band.

as the curtain falls we bid you all goodnight

disc 2, track 6

I've been hanging out at J. Kinyeta's space a lot lately, and he brought up an interesting topic last week that I've had a bit of time to reflect on. The music industry as a whole is indeed in shambles, and you've heard me (and some readers) bitch about it before so there's no need to reopen old wounds. Check out his post for more discussion on this topic.

As a result I felt like writing about another aspect of music consumption. I was talking to a friend a few days ago about one of the CDs he recommended to me, and he asked me what my favorite tracks were. I named them off, to which he responded "um...what track numbers?". And I couldn't relay them (well, not right away).

Whenever you get a new CD, do you ever look at the track listing at the back? Sometimes it isn't there, but in that case do you go right for the liner notes? The song titles are there. Yes, that's right, those wonderful pieces of music have names. I suppose it is yet more evidence that for media to be consumed by today's society it must be immediately gratifying. Don't bother learning the title of the song you like - instead remember the track number. Makes perfect sense to me.

So how many times have you referred to a song by track number? I get that shit all the time. And whenever I ramble off a few song names on a given album, and the person says "Uh...what? I need a track number", it enrages me because you end up trivializing the the song into a fucking number. I mean if it was meant to be that way, do you think musicians would invent song titles? Stop being so god damned lazy. Now that creating mix CDs is more accessible than ever, track numbers have become irrelevant. I can't wait for the CD to become obsolete.

I wonder, did people do the same thing with cassettes? I can't remember if anyone dumbly pointed out "Oh the third song on Side A" as if it meant something. I'm almost positive this phenomenon arrived with the advent of the CD; I suppose it has just become a convention of the medium and modern consumers of music.

The order of tracks on the album is indeed important, but the songs have names for a reason. Appreciate them.

Afterword: Props to anyone who can get the reference for the title of today's post, but it's not too hard. Don't expect a prize or anything.

del c:\mp3\*.*

"It really is unprecedented to sue your best customers...It's plain that the dinosaurs of the recording industry have completely lost touch with reality." - Fred von Lohmann

I sense a theme in here. Yet again I must take you through the wayback machine to another post, where I discussed the detriments of having music CD copy protection that basically categorizes your users as those who “have a shitty computer that won’t play this” or “have a shitty computer that won’t play this, but it will work on my stereo so I will buy it anyway”.

The latest tactic in the RIAA’s war against humanity is going after individual users of file sharing software. Hold back the laughter, I know it's hard – but you must keep reading. We all saw the RIAA take a run at Napster a few years ago, and everyone knows how that turned out. About a million different file-sharing clients emerged from its wake. Yeah they were around before Napster died - but Joe User didn't know about them. That is, until the media started talking about them. Then stuff like LimeWire and other Gnutella-based clients took off. Then of course Kazaa came along to basically take the crown. And then a couple months ago a US Federal judge made a landmark descision declaring these file-swapping programs legal.

Excuse that poorly written bit of history - but I am coming to a point. This latest round of attacks against the common filesharer reeks of desparation. There seems to be a media blitz covering this absurd decision, and the only ones it is hurting are Joe User and his family. It is FUD at its finest; the RIAA is using scare tactics to instill fear into the common man so that the next time s/he fires up their favorite MP3 sharing tool they will think twice. This may be a bit of a reach, but I’m willing to bet half the time the common MP3 sharer doesn’t realize what they are doing. It’s so commonplace they don’t even think it’s against the law.

In this new strategy, just who are the RIAA going to go after? Kazaa users? Grokster users? Anyone using gnutella-based clients is essentially untraceable, until you go to the ISPs. But then, as the c|net article says, the RIAA will have to put in hundreds of requests to multiple ISPs to monitor suspected user activity. Taking the typical conspiracy theorist’s approach, I highly doubt they will be hunting for their so-called offenders through legal means.

Wouldn't the money for this new initiative be better spent trying to develop a new model of distribution that is reasonable to consumers? And who is going to pay for these lawsuits? I can just imagine the price of CDs skyrocketing. The amount of money that is pumped into the recording industry each year is absurd. I do not believe for one second that the bands are losing out on music piracy. It is the record companies, all the way: the mind-numbing ad campaigns for a record release, the promotional materials, the packaging, and the radio exposure. On top of that they are going to spend tons of money going after people who maybe took the "fair use" clause a little too far, and happily offset the cost of this to the consumer.

Live in the fucking modern ages. We don't all need turntables to listen to music anymore. Suing your market, or even threatening legal action, is not a way to increase sales. It is a way to frustrate and alienate your biggest customers - the general public - and in the end it will make them want to find new ways to screw you over even more.