Like the evenly cooked oatmeal in “Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” so many things about Pants Yell!’s Received Pronunciation are just right. The guitars jangle along the edge of fuzz but not to the point of stylization; the vocals are sincere and dorky but not without confidence (at one point, singer Andrew Churchman sings, “Your boyfriend’s an asshole,” and on “Not Wrong,” drops the line “You had the gall to tell me I’m wrong / but I’m not wrong”); and the performances are joyfully loose even as the songcraft is sewn tight with care. Despite their links to twee labels Asaurus and now Slumberland Records, four albums in, Pants Yell! have risen above their indie-pop roots to the broader camp of indie-as-pop – the big tent of Pavement and Beulah. I will now listen to this album for the fourth time in a row.

Pants Yell! – “Cold Hands”: mp3

(Received Pronunciation is out now on Slumberland; the band plays in L.A. in March as part of the epic Slumberland 20th anniversary celebration)

Previously: First Look: Pants Yell! – Received Pronunciation

Clean Equations member Jim Thomas set out to make a soap-scrubbed piano pop record with The Blue Floor, his solo debut. He landed just south, singing like a Tennessee-born Jackson Browne (who’s originally from Germany, believe it or not) and embracing bluesy Memphis guitars. He’s at his best on tracks such as “Billy On 4th,” a bright, Brion-esque song that leans closer to the modernist indie rock of his regular band, but the whole collection is miles away from running on empty.

Jim Thomas – “Billy On 4th”: mp3

(The Blue Floor is out now)

Best Of 2009: Albums | Songs | Concert Photos | Movies | Rawky Awards

2009 Album Release Calendar

Best of the Decade: Top 100 Albums of the 2000s

2009′s Most Popular Posts: New Music: The Beatles – “Revolution No. 1 (Take 20)” | Elliott Smith – “I’ll Be Back” (Beatles Cover) | Ryan Adams & Mandy Moore Are Engaged | First Look: Girls – Album | The Radiohead Wall Of Ice Debacle: WTF

And one final word: While it’s been a fantastic year for new music, the absolute best albums released this year are the Beatles’ long-awaited remasters. Over four decades later, they remain the best albums ever made, and to these ears, they’ve never sounded more totally fucking stunning than their sorely needed new incarnations. There’s not enough hyperbole on Earth.

With that said, happy holidays, and I’ll see you in 2010, Rawkers!

Photo/illustration by David Greenwald

After a year where I avoided making a best-of for six months, I’m thoroughly excited to bring you this year’s albums of the year list. After the jump, the 40 finest albums of the last year of the decade — a list full of fresh faces and modern heroes alike. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo/illustration by David Greenwald

All due apologies to Animal Collective, Mandy Moore really brought it in the singles department this year. My top 54 pretty young white people playing guitar and singing earnestly after the jump. (Note: Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the USA” not included.)

Best Of 2009: Albums | Songs | Concert Photos | Movies | Rawky Awards

The list after the jump! Read the rest of this entry »

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All photos by David Greenwald

Just over a year ago, I decided to turn my concert photography from hobby into a considerably more expensive hobby and bought a DSLR. It’s the most satisfying purchase I’ve ever made. So this year’s best concert photos are, hopefully, a few steps up from their predecessors and a document of my growth as a photographer. Along the way, I documented great bands on the verge of break-ups, the Rawky Awards pick for the year’s worst band in one of his first (and worst) concerts, and Thom motherfucking Yorke. In 2010, I’m looking forward to shooting SXSW and hopefully selling some photos (holler at me if you want to buy prints, folks), but for now, 10 shots I love from 2009. After the jump — my 10 favorite shows of the year. Read the rest of this entry »

Boys and girls, welcome to the 2nd Annual Rawky Awards, indie rock’s most discerning user-voted poll party. Hundreds of you voted on the album of the year, the best new band, the worst hipster drivel we pretended to like and more — all the winners and losers after the jump. B.Y.O.B.! Read the rest of this entry »

Photo by David Greenwald

There’s no better way to say it than this: Richard Hawley and “Early Morning Rain” were made for each other. In a respectful take on Gordon Lightfoot’s original, the British troubadour adds a stomping rhythm section that brings out hitherto unheard rockabilly accents and treats the vocals with the same patient baritone he brings to his own best material. A whimsical harmonica zips through the air, an army of guitars sparkle in the sun, and Gordon Lightfoot’s classic is reborn, bigger and brighter but as sad-eyed as ever.

Richard Hawley – “Early Morning Rain” (Gordon Lightfoot cover): mp3

(Buy on Starbucks’ Sweetheart compilation)