Best of 2006

It seems like an obligation that I have to fulfill...the requisite "best of" list for 2006. I enjoy skimming other bloggers' lists to see what folks enjoyed this year, but once beyond the initial skim, they're all fairly predictable. Obviously, if a record made someone's best-of list it's going to receive some praise, usually heaps of it. So I'll try to hold back and limit myself to a couple of sentences per album. After all, you know I like these records...

At the end of the post I'll include links to a mix I made for friends and family of some of my favorite performances of the year. Some of the songs on the mix come from the albums I mention here, and some do not. If you found music on this blog over the course of the year that you liked, chances are you'll enjoy the mix.

Here we go...

SWEET OBLIVION's ESSENTIAL ALBUMS FROM 2006
(in alphabetical order by artist)

Brandi Carlile - Brandi Carlile

Technically, this one was released in 2005, but I didn't pick up on it until the beginning of this year and it was re-released during 2006. Imagine Patsy Cline, Roy Orbison, Radiohead and Jeff Buckley all hanging out making music together and you'll come close to Carlile's sound. The Bends for the singer/songwriter set. Buy it here.

Centro-Matic - Fort Recovery

Listening to this record feels like driving along a dusty road watching a magnificent western sunset in the distance - a great thing. Peaceful & disturbing, tender & rocking, always melodic and soulful, if you like your rock with roots and a taste of Nirvana, Fort Recovery will treat you right. Buy it here.

Chris Cornell - Unplugged In Sweden

That's right, kids, a bootleg is one of my favorite releases of 2006. I don't care if it breaks some kind of blogger "rule" regarding official releases, this live set is so good that it deserves recognition. Cornell never sounded better, and his powerful, soulful vocals take center stage when accompanied only by his acoustic guitar. The fact that the recording quality is outstanding and the set includes covers, Soundgarden songs, Audioslave songs, and Temple Of The Dog songs elevates this boot to "best of" status. Download it here as MP3s or here as a torrent for FLAC files.

Drive-By Truckers -
A Blessing And A Curse

Impossibly honest, intelligent, heartfelt southern rock anthems about love, pain and the triumphant struggle of life forged by the band's three talented singer/guitarists. And what a live show... Buy it here.

Gov't Mule - High And Mighty

I never thought Warren Haynes' outfit could return to form like this, but here they are putting out what might be the best record of their career. It's dense, intense, lyrically potent, and of course dominated by the powerhouse one-two punch of Haynes' guitar riffs and vocals. A modern classic-rock masterpiece. Buy it here.

Muse - Black Holes And Revelations

Muse takes another step forward with this album, albeit not quite the grand leap that was 2004's Absolution. Grandiose, apocalyptic and rocking songs are Muse's trademark, but this record grooves more than their previous efforts. Buy it here.

My Morning Jacket - Okonokos

A phenomenal live album from one of the best live bands around. The songs from 2005's Z feel like they belong on It Still Moves when played in a live setting, which is about the biggest compliment I can pay the band. It's good enough and different enough from their studio albums to almost feel like their next proper record. Buy it here.

Rainer Maria -
Catastrophe Keeps Us Together

The swan song from these indie-faves is the best record of their 10-year career. It's full of majestic indie-pop anthems, and bassist/singer Caithlin De Marrais's vocals soar over the top of the band in ethereal fashion. Buy it here.

Roddy Woomble - My Secret Is My Silence

Idlewild's singer puts together a stunning record of folk music, infused with Scottish influences and Woomble's trademark poetic lyrics. A musical stroll along the Highlands indeed. Buy it here.

The Black Crowes - The Lost Crowes

Two previously unreleased albums from the Crowes. Need I say more? The Band half of the record could sit comfortably alongside their best studio work, and it's criminal that these songs didn't see an official release until now. Buy it here.

The Twilight Singers - Powder Burns

Dreamy, lusty, dark, seedy, and hopeful all at once, this is Greg Dulli's best work to date. Recorded in New Orleans both before and after Hurricance Katrina hit, this powerful collection will seduce you quickly, put you through an emotional ringer, and spit you out uplifted on the other side. Buy it here.

Thom Yorke - The Eraser

Radiohead's singer takes his music to the next level on his first solo effort. The songs sound like Kid A and Amnesiac but with sparser arrangements and possibly stronger melodies. After hearing Yorke perform "The Clock" on acoustic guitar, one can't help but think that this might've been one of Radiohead's best albums if it'd been recorded by the band in 1998. Buy it here.

Tool - 10,000 Days

How is it possible that Tool continues to be this good? Their latest is a bludgeoning tour de force, full of long songs, thundering drums & bass, awesome guitar riffs, and singer Maynard James Keenan's versatile vocals holding it all together. The individual songs are strong enough to suggest that this album rivals their masterpiece, 1996's Aenima. Buy it here.
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Sweet Oblivion's Best of 2006 Mix
(in four parts b/c of Savefile size restrictions)

Volume I: Rock (part 1)
Volume I: Rock (part 2)
Volume II: Roots (part 1)
Volume II: Roots (part 2)

Tracklist:

Volume I: Rock

01 Pearl Jam - "World Wide Suicide"
02 The Twilight Singers - "Bonnie Brae"
03 The Lemonheads - "Become The Enemy"
04 Muse - "Starlight"
05 Rainer Maria - "Already Lost"
06 Army Of Anyone - "Disappear"
07 Tool - "The Pot"
08 Thom Yorke - "Analyse"
09 Gomez - "How We Operate"
10 Foo Fighters - "Over And Out (live)"
11 Some Girls - "He's On Drugs Again"
12 Gov't Mule - "Brighter Days"
13 Snow Patrol - "Open Your Eyes"

Volume II: Roots

01 Centro-Matic - "Covered Up In Mines"
02 The Black Crowes - "Thunderstorm 6:54"
03 Brandi Carlile - "What Can I Say (live)"
04 Roddy Woomble - "If I Could Name Any Name"
05 Isobell Campbell & Mark Lanegan - "Revolver"
06 Neko Case - "Hold On, Hold On"
07 Gob Iron - "Death's Black Train"
08 Eddie Vedder - "Here's To The State Of Mississippi (live)"
09 Chris Cornell - "Wide Awake (live)"
10 My Morning Jacket - "Mahgeetah (live)"
11 Drive-By Truckers - "Space City"
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If you like checking out "best of" lists, Largehearted Boy has a running tally of blogs that have chipped in their lists for 2006.

Thom Yorke - From The Basement

Producer Nigel Godrich started a new internet-only TV show called From The Basement and one of the guests on the first episode was Radiohead singer Thom Yorke. He played two new Radiohead songs solo on the piano. Enjoy.

Thom Yorke
From The Basement

Videotape (live)
Down Is The New Up (live)

Buy Thom Yorke's solo album, The Eraser, here.

Thom Yorke on Henry Rollins: Part Deux

In case you haven't yet seen the second song Thom Yorke played on IFC's Henry Rollins Show ("The Clock" made the rounds on the web last week), here's a link to the video and an MP3 of "Cymbal Rush".

Thom Yorke - Cymbal Rush (live on Henry Rollins Show)

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Thom Yorke on Henry Rollins

Thom Yorke will be performing on the Henry Rollins Show this coming Saturday, so if you've got IFC you best be tuning in. From Greenplastic:

This episode will air July 15 at 10 PM ET with an encore July 20 at 11 PM ET, and will feature another performance by Thom with the help of Jonny and Nigel. Set your Tivos!

Also, from Greenplastic:

"Harrowdown Hill" is set to be released as a single off of Thom Yorke's album The Eraser and will be out on August 21, 2006 according to XL Recordings. It'll be released as 12" vinyl and what's even better is that there will be two b-sides called "The Drunkk Machine" and "Jetstream".

Here's "The Clock" from Thom's upcoming Henry Rollins appearance.

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The Clock (live)

Radiohead Is Cruel

Ok, now they've made me really mad. Radiohead singer Thom Yorke started teasing fans with a bit of "True Love Waits" as an intro to set staple "Everything In Its Right Place" a couple of shows ago. Last night in LA he teased with about a minute and a half of "Follow Me Around". You're a mean one, Mr. Yorke. Record the damn thing and release it already!

Fans got a glimpse of "Follow Me Around" in the OK Computer tour documentary Meeting People Is Easy (photo at left). The full-band live version in the film was incomplete, cut in the middle by interview footage. The song, however, was awesome. I mean, so good that I remember being furious the first time I saw it when the footage of the performance cut away to the interview.

Thom would later play acoustic renditions of the song at various radio stations during the band's promo for Hail To The Thief and, very rarely, during the occasional concert. I don't believe anyone has heard a full-band version of the song besides the cut-up one from the doc.

Here's the edited rendition from Meeting People Is Easy, an acoustic version recorded for the BBC in 2003, and the teaser just recently performed in LA on 06-29-2006.

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Follow Me Around Meeting People Is Easy version
Follow Me Around BBC Radio version
Follow Me Around 06/29/06 Los Angeles

Thom Yorke To Release Solo Album

The net was abuzz (i.e. sites like greenplastic) with the news that Radiohead singer Thom Yorke has finished a record that he worked on by himself with producer Nigel Godrich. The record is called The Eraser and is due out July 11 on XL Recordings. The tracklist, as reported by Pitchfork, follows.

01 the eraser
02 analyse
03 the clock
04 black swan
05 skip divided
06 atoms for peace
07 and it rained all night
08 harrowdown hill
09 cymbal rush

Word is that the band will resume work on the next Radiohead album after their current tour and will release the record sometime next year.