My Ten Favorite Records Of 2010

In alphabetical order...



Bad Banana - Crushfield

This not-even-real release has been the most infectiously catchy, stripped-down pop release of the year for me. Despite the fact that my default mode is apathy and my default tone is monotonicity, my dear friends Milli and Jess can tell you that every so often I get really excited about a crush, and Bad Banana was lined up in this company when I inexplicably woke at 5 am one Monday morning in September. Allison captured my heart with the best crush song of the year, "Stand Next to Me," and the long-distance-makes-my-heart-want-to-melt-'cause-it's-so-fucking-cute "Celery." As the Dark Lord said in October, this recording finds its strength in simplicity. Bad Banana find the perfect edge between pop punk and fuzzy indie pop. For all you fans, Bad Banana, along with Sourpatch (see below), are taking the East Coast and Midwest by storm in February. They'll have a few copies of this on cassette with them and will hopefully have a 7" put out by yours truly, as well.

Download Here

Billy Raygun - Split CS w/ Georgian + Split 7" with Rational Anthem

This band is exactly what pop punk should be-- teenagers singing/playing their fucking hearts out in a perfectly scrappy but never veering on mall-kid punk kinda way. Billy Raygun take equal cues from Jawbreaker, their New Hampshire forefathers, the Queers, and more recent New England pop punk like Witches With Dicks (mostly the "goddamnit" shout out on "Clone" is a total rip-off). Let's talk about feelings and inane shit, sing until our cheeks even rosier than they already are, and have fun with some riffs. I'll add an honorable mention for their Seasick 7" since I foolishly didn't hear it until this year.

Download Split CS Here

Download Split 7" Here
Buy all three from Traffic Street Records

 Des Ark - Third Radio Demo

If last.fm is any indication, I have listened to Des Ark more than anything else in the past ~ four years. This new demo is no let down... nine songs that break your heart, either because their truly heartbreaking or because you know you're never going to have something so beautiful written for you (or maybe both). I like that Aimee always breaks her seriousness with wit, either with charming stories or song titles like "Which One of You Assholes Ate Christmas" and "Pregnant Motherfucker." I tend to prefer the acoustic version of Des Ark, and while her side of the Battle of the Beards split is one of my favorite sides of a split LP, I think I often prefer the radio demos. Production value doesn't matter so much when you just have a girl and an acoustic guitar, but there's something that's closer, more direct about these simpler recordings. Favorites are "Le Debut de la Fin," "Giving Tree," and the aforementioned "Which One of You Assholes Ate Christmas."

Four Eyes - Self Titled 7"

My favorite not-so-new-anymore Dinosaur Jr. imitators from Somerville, Massachusetts. Emotionally raw (but not really emo) indie rock with just a small twinkle in the riffage. They've got a new 7" coming out any minute now... more shameless self-promotion.

Download Here


To Buy, email foureyestheband@gmail.com, $5 ppd.

Lac Labelle - Self Titled

I was somewhat hesitant to include Lac Labelle in my list, simply because I don't really know anything about the country/bluegrass genre. But fuck it- this is one of my favorites of the year! My friend Christa grabbed this CD at the incredible Homegrown Fest in Boston and sent it along to me. This album packs combo female/male vocals and lovely intricacy while remaining simply and distinctly Americana.

Buy Here

Lazy Mary - Crazy Hairy 7"

Totally raw, grungy Heavens to Betsy-esque duo from Long Beach, California. Frantic at times, hollowed out at others, I don't know quite how to explain why I love this release so much, but since the summer I've probably listened to it at least once a week. Perhaps it's the power of simplicity with lines like "mask emotion with addiction" jutting up against loudness.

Download Here
Buy Here

Libyans - A Common Place

I've gotten to the point where I've already written about almost all of the releases on this list, and Libyans are the most recent in this category. Without repeating myself too much, I love how snotty this band has become. A Common Place is both a great album as a whole and a good collection of singles, particularly "Paralyzed," one of my favorite straight up punk songs of the year.

Download Here
Buy Here

P.S. Eliot - Living In Squalor 7"

I needed no convincing to fall in love with P.S. Eliot all over again. "Broken Record" was one of my favorite songs on the demo, and I think this rerecording is better than the songs that carried over from that release to the LP. Songs of relationship confusion and love reign supreme with this release. My favorite new track is definitely "A Bear Named Otis." Secret letters, Katie fucking howls, and when everything drops out my heart just drops with it. I think this is the most cohesive release for P.S. Eliot as a whole and is a great recording balance in terms of reflecting this band's polish and scrappiness. The cover art/design by Kate Wadkins deserves a shout-out as well... love her signature script on the back cover. I got to see P.S. Eliot three awesome times in 2010, witnessing a little preview of their LP Sadie over the summer, which is coming out soon on one of my favorite labels, Salinas Records.

Download Here

Sourpatch - Crushin' LP

Perfectly tinny indie pop. I think this might have actually come out in 2009 but at the very end of the year, and I didn't get it until 2010. It's no surprise that I love a band whose primary influence is Tiger Trap and that sings about hopelessly cute crushes: "You like cars and you like stars/You like kites and eating candybars/Warm summer days when the sky is blue/While I like everything about you." Perhaps all the ICDT hardcore kids are gagging right now (more likely they've just skipped over my entire list), but Sourpatch's sweetness doesn't ever seem contrived; it's simply propelled by jangly guitars and girly voices. Occasional boy vocals too, but mostly ones my girls, and it should stay that way. I'm not as fond of "Outerspace." I know it's supposed to be cute, but I wish this didn't have the mega creepy little kid on the first track.

Buy Here

Weed Hounds - Beach Bummed 7" + Split 7" with Dude Japan

If I could go back in time, the Weed Hounds demo would be in my top 10 from last year, but no regrets! Both sides of the Beach Bummed single provide more of the swirly, encompassing pop we all loved on the demo. While I love the more Swirlies/MBV-style pop on the Beach Bummed 7", I love the more driven "Hard Drivin'" even more. The song has probably become my favorite by the Weedies. I enjoy seeing this band live, but I would definitely say that recordings are their strong point. Seeing them play something like "Hard Drivin'" though is more energetic... I like Adam's description of the song as "propulsive." Weed Hounds haven't missed a beat yet, and I'd say there's a good chance their LP will be on my rendition of this list next year.

Download Beach Bummed Here
Download Dude Japan Split Here