Yes, yes. Though we may not agree with all the selections, we'll get on the bandwagon and let you know, in case you haven't seen it yet, that the Marathon Packs top 19 of 2006 post is pretty great. (Um, as much as we love Will Johnson, that Centro-matic record isn't that great... and jeez, since when is everyone mad for Ghostface and Clipse all of a sudden? Or, in other words: Goodness, it was weird to miss most of December in the Blog-o-sphere.)

Also, courtesy of Idolator, we'd like to direct you to the video below made when Beat Street Records closed. Believe you me, we're not Serato fans over here -- just watching the second half of the video made us itch to play some vinyl. Which reminds me, we totally need to get some little cases on wheels for our NYC dj debut. More details on that later, as the deets firm up, naturally.



Thanks to James at GreenPeaness, we heard the what may be the best song of the year approx. 15 minutes ago -- the delicious modern disco of Brooklyn's own Escort. Needless to say, we're dying to hear them play live ASAP.

***

So, here's the deal. I almost universally hate end-of-year lists. I mean, it's like this: I write about music every day, or, well, almost every day. WHY DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU AGAIN ABOUT WHAT I LIKED in 2006, COMPLETE WITH A GIMMICKY FORMAT?

Everything that I write about is good. Or, well, I think it's good anyway. But, in case you missed it, here's a list -- a brief list, mind you -- of the records we liked this year. One of the problems with generating a best-of list at this late date is that one runs the hazard of unintentional repetition -- so we'll stick to the point, or something.

1) Shearwater -- Palo Santo. We wrote about this record so often you shouldn't be surprised that it's our favorite of the year. This album was criminally overlooked, in our humble opinion -- but look for big things from Shearwater in 2007. I have a feeling it's going to be a banner year for them.

2) Neko Case -- Fox Confessor Brings The Flood. Hey, remember when I told you like, I dunno, six years ago about that Neko Case girl who was really, really awesome? Oh wait, I didn't know you then -- so you're forgiven if you are just now getting on the bandwagon. Shockingly, success has not spoiled this lady. She just gets better and better. Now, what can we do about making Kelly Hogan famous too?

3) The Blow -- Paper Television. Teaching the indie kids to dance. For reals.

4) (tie) The Stills -- Without Feathers, The Walkmen -- A Hundred Miles Off, The French Kicks -- Two Thousand, and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs -- Show Your Bones. Wait, I think these were all the same record. But, it was a really good record. Jaded retro-rockers who came out on top ca. 2001? The line forms here. (And, yes, we'll say it again -- great googly-moogly, we hope that new Interpol record next year is like all these records too -- only, you know ... better.

5) The Decemberists -- The Crane Wife. Actually, I never wrote about this. I never wrote about the leak, or the preview tracks, or even reviewed it at the appropriate press time. But, in a weird way, it's just like all the records mentioned in item four above, only with cowbell and accordion and only one song over 10 minutes long. Amazing what happens when you replace a band's entire rhythm section -- the songs get a backbone.

6) Voxtrot -- Your Biggest Fan EP. Dammit, you guys -- finish that full-length already. It's the second year running that we've gushed about a Voxtrot EP. We're all for appropriately-time artist development, but meh! We are also horribly impatient. To tide you over until Voxtrot finally drops an LP, you can't go wrong with this EP.

7) And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead -- So Divided. Yes, it's uneven. Yes, the best track is a cover. But goodness gracious, TOD still shows up the latest Glammo/Gloth offerings from My Chemical Romance and Evanescence by several thousand miles or so.

8) Snowden -- Anti-Anti. We thought they'd be a flash in the pan. They weren't.

9) (tie) The Format -- Dog Problems and The Long Winters -- Putting The Days To Bed. I have story about these two records, and really, it just bears telling the punchline. I told Nate from The Format in a phone interview that we never got around to posting that Dog Problems usurped Putting The Days To Bed as my record of the summer. I have seriously never heard any musician sputter and be at a loss for words in such a charming way -- for it turns out that Putting The Days To Bed was Nate's favorite record of Summer 2006. He's one of The Long Winters' biggest fans.

10) Joanna Newsom -- Ys. This is great record when alone in your garret apartment with your giant headphones and your Anne McCaffrey novels. It is SO FUCKING ANNOYING on a 10 hour road trip on the most boring parts of Interstate 10 through Texas. True story!

Runners up: The Mountain Goats -- Get Lonely // Final Fantasy -- He Poos Clouds // Tilly & the Wall -- Bottoms of Barrels // Jenny Lewis and The Watson Twins -- Rabbit Fur Coat // The Elected -- Sun Sun Sun // Matmos -- The Rose Has Teeth In The Mouth Of The Beast // The Twilight Singers -- Powder Burns // Ratatat -- Classics // Asobi Seksu -- Citrus // Midlake -- The Trials of Van Occupanther // Pompeii -- Assembly // Pink Nasty -- Mold the Gold // The Hourly Radio -- The Lure of The Underground // The Black Angels -- Passover // The Rapture -- Pieces of the People We Love // The Long Blondes -- Someone To Drive You Home // The Boy Least Likely To -- The Best Party Ever // Lansing-Dreiden -- The Dividing Island // Camera Obscura -- Let's Get Out Of This Country // Herbert -- Scale // Junior Boys -- So This Is Goodbye // Hot Chip -- The Warning // T.I. -- King // The Dears -- Gang of Losers // The Changes -- Today Is Tonight.