So by my very rough count I saw about 45 shows this year. That includes a few festivals (Big Day Out, Laneway, Great Escape, Homebake), shows in LA and Vancouver, shows in record stores, shows in backyards, and shows in stadiums. And it’s tough to isolate just a few shows but, hey, it’s a listy time of year. So, in no particular order, here are the best gigs I saw in 2006. If you weren’t at these gigs, you suck.

Broken Social Scene @ The Metro, Sydney (March 4)

I’d seen them before but nothing prepared me for how friggin ON Broken Social Scene were at their final ‘proper’ Australian gig. The band played for nearly three hours, played everything I could have wanted to hear, and just completely slayed. Easily the best gig I saw in Sydney this year and easily one of the best gigs I have ever seen in my life. Setlist and original review here and photos here.

Download:
Jimmy and the Photocall (live in Stockholm)
Where’s Your Heart, Where’s Your Mind (live in Toronto)

Radiohead @ The Greek Theatre, Los Angeles (June 29 & 30)

Biased? Sure. But it’s always special whenever I see Radiohead and even more so when it’s in a small venue. The Greek Theatre in LA is buried up in the hills overlooking the city and I felt very lucky both nights to be heading up to the very sold out shows with friends I don’t get to see nearly enough. The first night was special as it was my first time hearing the new songs live and we got a full version of Follow Me Around on the Rhodes. But the second night was a far better show as the band were far more intense. And we got True Love Waits on the Rhodes. And the somewhat rarish Bones. The new songs were fabulous both nights. 15 Step is just insane when you’re actually there and Videotape is one of the most beautiful songs they’ve ever done. LP7 should be pretty damn good. But the shows in LA…well I still get a thrill every time I see them live. Orignal reviews/setlists here and here and photos here.

Download: (all songs from last show on the 2006 tour)
15 Step (live in Amsterdam)
Videotape (live in Amsterdam)
Bodysnatchers (live in Amsterdam)
All I Need (live in Amsterdam)

Constantines @ Pit Pub, Vancouver (January 14)

How good are the Constantines? I’m relatively new to this band so it wasn’t until this year that I finally saw them live. I have since repeatedly kicked myself for not seeing them sooner. Kicking off with Draw Us Lines and never looking back, Guelph’s favourite sons (screw any Guelphian (?) hockey players) proceeded to blow me away with every song they played. And the crowd just lapped it all up. Please come to Australia. I’ll friggin sell your merch, get your beer, and drive you to all your gigs. Just come. Original review here and photos here.

Download: (live on the CBC Jan. 16, 2006)
Draw Us Lines (live on CBC)
Lizaveta (live on CBC)

The (International) Noise Conspiracy @ The Annandale, Sydney (April 8 )

If you’ve seen this band live you know what I’m talking about. Punk music that you can actually dance to. Sweat, the most limber frontman going, music with a message…and you know what? All that and they still make it fun to be there. Seeing the Noise Conspiracy negotiate the tiny stage at the Annandale was great too. Original review here and photos here.

And some very, very honourable mentions go to The White Stripes @ Hordern Pavilion, Sigur Ros @ The Enmore, The Grates @ The Metro, Belle and Sebastian @ The Enmore, The Mess Hall @ The Annandale, Young and Restless @ Candy’s, The Drones @ The Gaelic Club, Die! Die! Die! / Gotye / The Basics @ Homebake, and Noel Gallagher @ The Enmore. Not a bad year I must say.

Some other year end live wrap ups by people I care about: Amanda, Quinn, and Geoff.

With the soundtrack for her third film, Sofia Coppola has once again compiled a collection of songs that manages to be cohesive and enjoyable from front to back. I haven’t even seen the film yet as it has just opened this week in Australia, but the soundtrack for the controversial Marie Antoinette already justifies the film’s existence. Spanning two discs, the music captures a moment in time that, of course, is about 200 years after the events of the film they are soundtracking. Does it work in the film? I’m not sure yet. But it sure as hell works as a kickass mixtape.

While the album features some bands I already love (New Order, The Cure, Air, Squarepusher) the real thrill for me with a Coppola soundtrack is discovering a new band I have either never heard before or never even heard OF before. With Lost in Translation it was Phoenix, and with this soundtrack it’s The Radio Dept. and Windsor for the Derby. Both bands evoke a soft, dreamy world that Coppola seems to love (both bands could have easily fit on the Lost in Translation soundtrack).

Download:
The Radio Dept. – Pulling Our Weight

Dustin O’Halloran also contributes a number of beautiful opuses to the soundtrack, mostly on the second disc, which brings me to my final point on why this soundtrack works. You can tell a lot of time and thought has gone into not only the artists and songs chosen, but also the tracklisting of the record. Disc 1 features a lot of upbeat post-punk and 80s pop songs while Disc 2 is dominated by quieter pieces and classical music. And as a final piece of closure, both discs close with songs by The Cure, including the brilliant Plainsong. Each disc has it’s own feel and I find myself listening to each disc when I’m in very different moods and at very different times of the day which ensures this soundtrack will have a long life on my iPod.

Download:
Dustin O’Halloran – Opus 23 (via Largehearted Boy)

More mp3s by The Radio Dept.
Lots of mp3s by Windsor for the Derby

—> See A Reminder’s Top 25 Albums/Songs of 2006 here

Album #1: The Eraser by Thom Yorke

When Thom dropped the news on everyone that he’d be releasing a solo album in a matter of weeks I was a tad worried. I was expecting an album full of Autechre-lite techno doodles or songs on par with some of Radiohead’s weaker electronic b-sides (i.e. I Am Citizen Insane). So perhaps the low expectations helped because when I first listened to The Eraser I loved it instantly. Not only were the tracks not weak techno doodles, they were actual songs featuring some of Thom’s most impassioned vocals in years. So while some of the other records on this list may be ‘better,’ I didn’t enjoy a single record more this year than The Eraser.

Download: Analyse (live on XFM)

Song #1: Wolf Like Me by TV on the Radio

Live Blogging My Favourite Song of 2006

0:02 – Are those jingle bells????

0:14 – How much does this bass kick ass? ROCK.

0:31 – Lyrics I still don’t know.

0:35 – TRAGEDY

0:46 – MOON IS ROUND AND FULL…GUT THAT FISH

0:53 – More guitars!

0:56 – OK so this seems to actually be about werewolves.

1:04 – Wow, I really am singing all the wrong lyrics.

1:31 – Blowin’ my mind now dude.

1:42 – Me? Me? Me?

1:46 – SAXAMAPHONE!! I love it because it’s kind of buried in the mix…I didn’t even notice it the first few times I heard the song.

2:05 – OOOooooohhhh the quiet bit….which makes the last bit the best part of the best song of 2006.

2:37 – The backing vocals here are great…

3:05 – HERE WE GO

3:17 – jumping around….

3:33 – HOWLIN FOREVER oh oh

3:54 – My god this band kick ass.

4:10 – The power is in the beards I think

4:35 - Out like a lamb

Download: Wolf Like Me (via Insound)

—> See the rest of the list here

And so the second annual A Reminder year end list ends and I’m sure anyone who knows me is probably rolling their eyes now…but I actually don’t think I’m being super biased. I hope you all have a safe and Merry Christmas if you celebrate that sort of thing. And if you don’t, well enjoy your holiday season.

Album #2: Return to Cookie Mountain by TV on the Radio

So very predictable. Sure it’s been on everybody’s year end list but you know what? That’s because this record kicks ass and takes names. It’s funky, it’s atmospheric, it’s extremely well-produced, it rocks etc. The best part about this record is that whenever I listen to it I still hear something new in the songs. It might be a bit of sax here, a synth there, but it never stops being interesting. I’ll still be listening to this one lots in 2007.

Song #2: Cymbal Rush by Thom Yorke

What gets me about this song is the ending: “There were 10 in the bed, and the little one said, ‘roll over.’ I think it’s a perfect way to end a record. Other than that I think it’s the melody of this song that does it for me.

Download: Cymbal Rush (live on the Henry Rollins Show)

—> See the rest of the list here

Someone once said, “There ain’t no party like an SClub Party” and last night you would definitely have agreed. The fine folks at Sandwich Club put on a Christmas party at The Clubhouse in Glebe featuring The Holidays and Joe from The Religion playing a solo set. It was a veritable who’s who of people who live on/near Glebe Point Road and beyond. The Holidays kicked the evening off with a short, tight set with surprisingly great sound considering they were playing in a garage/patio/Tom’s storage unit. After their set I commented to someone that they reminded me of The Strokes; he refined my statement to “The Strokes on red cordial.” The gathered throng of partygoers seemed to really enjoy the set too.

Later on Joe from The Religion played a fantastic solo set. Since I had seen the band a couple times before I was very much looking forward to hearing Joe play on his own as his voice is absolutely amazing. Hutch commented to me last night that it reminded him of Antony and the Johnsons which is exactly what I thought when I first saw them by accident back in August. Joe’s set was so damn good that people living a few houses down heard his voice and crashed the party just to see him. Great great stuff. Be sure to check out their MySpace site to stream their new single which will be released in March next year.

All in all a fantastic night and not just because I could walk home in 3 minutes. Thanks SClubbers!

And good news for people who love Dappled Cities Fly tour news: they will be opening the Modest Mouse gig at the Enmore on January 3rd. I had heard Temper Trap were opening but that is just the Melbourne show apparently. Needless to say it will be some more great exposure for the Dappled boys. Dave Rennick of DCF will also be playing some solo dates as support for The Veils in early January. And then (if that wasn’t enough already) the whole band will be taking over the Hopetoun for a couple nights in January. I think I’m hitting up the second night as the support acts are stellar. Details below:

3 Jan: The Enmore Theatre, Sydney, with Modest Mouse
9 Jan: The Gaelic, Sydney, Dave Rennick solo, supporting The Veils
10 Jan: East Brunswick Club, Melbourne, Dave Rennick solo, supporting The Veils
19 Jan: The Hopetoun, Sydney, with Jack Ladder and The Smallhours
20 Jan: The Hopetoun, Sydney, with Belles Will Ring and Ghosts of Television
25 Jan: Big Day Out, Sydney
10 Feb: Bootleg, Melbourne

Download:
Dappled Cities Fly – Within Hours
Belles Will Ring – Mad Love
The Smallhours – Expecting What’s Coming Next From You (demo)

Album #3: Modern Times by Bob Dylan

What more can you possibly say about Bob Dylan? Modern Times was the first studio record he’d released since I’d become a huge fan, so it was the first Dylan record I was super stoked to run out and buy. And I was not disappointed. Jazz, blues, rock…Dylan distills it all into one cowboy record while showing us all how to age gracefully.

Check out videos for Thunder on the Mountain and When The Deal Goes Down here.

Song #3: Trains to Brazil by Guillemots

No other song this year had the power to put me in a great mood like Trains to Brazil. No matter what I was thinking, if I heard this song come on I was instantly smiling. The music of very few songs manage to capture the joy of the lyrics. This one does. Listen here.

—> See the rest of the list here

Album #4: Drum’s Not Dead by Liars

As one of the few humans who actually quite enjoyed We Were Wrong So They Drowned I was very much looking forward to what Liars would come up with as a follow up. Drum’s Not Dead not only met my expectations, but exceeded them by quite a bit. While I still find the whole narrative of the album a bit iffy, the music more than makes up for it. The atmosphere created on this record is perfect: it seems dark and portentous and then ends on, what for Liars is, an incredibly bright, beautiful note. The most effectively executed album of the year.

Song #4: False Flags by Massive Attack

The sample of a Radiohead song is not what does it for me…it’s the organic sound Massive Attack employ on this creeping single. Robert del Naja’s simple vocal strips away any chance of the message being misunderstood: nothing’s changed. If the album next year sounds anything like this I’ll be thrilled.

—> See the rest of the list here

Album #5: Ys by Joanna Newsom

There are very few records where I can honestly say to myself and to anyone who will listen, “This album sounds like nothing else you’ve ever heard.” Ys is one such record. It’s an astonishing album of lush arrangements and stories full of pathos and a record that sounds like nothing else in your record collection. It deserves all the praise it has received.

Song #5: Cunts Are Still Running The World by Jarvis Cocker

Aren’t those piano chords just lovely at the beginning? So peaceful. Then Jarvis lets loose.

Well did you hear, there’s a natural order.
Those most deserving will end up with the most.
That the cream cannot help but always rise up to the top,
Well I say, shit floats.
If you thought things had changed,
Friend you’d better think again,
Bluntly put in the fewest of words,
Cunts are still running the world,
Cunts are still running the world.

Your free market is perfectly natural,
Or do you think that I’m some kind of dummy,
It’s the ideal way to order the world,
Fuck the morals, does it make any money?
And if you don’t like it? Then leave.
Or use your right to protest on the street,
Yeah, use your rights but don’t imagine that it’s heard, Oh no no,
Cunts are still running the world,
Cunts are still running the world.

When I saw Children of Men a couple months ago I was pretty surprised to hear this song playing over the credits. Very random…but cool. Check out the video below:

—> See the rest of the list here

Album #6: Gulag Orkestar by Beirut

Every year there is generally an album or two by an artist who I had not heard of in January that goes on to become one my favourites at the end of the year. This is certainly the case for Beirut. If you had told me in January that a Balkan-gypsy-folkesque record made by a kid from New Mexico would be on my year end list at #6 I would not have believed you. At all. But, as I wrote about here, I love this record because it evokes an entire world in a way so few records do. Beautiful stuff.

Download:
Postcards from Italy
Mount Wroclai (Idle Days)

Buy the album here.

Song #6: Jezebel by The Drones

Jezebel is the opening song on Gala Mill and it is one hell of a way to open a record. The song is a relentless, pounding primal scream documenting the horrors of modern civilzation. Nuclear testing, terrorism, Daniel Pearl’s execution…it’s not an easy listen but it is an essential one. Check out the video below:

—> See the rest of the list here

The Australian music blog ‘scene’ is pretty small in comparison to the U.S. There isn’t a ton of intteraction between labels and blogs here like there is in other parts of the world and today’s court decision isn’t going to get people excited about blogging about music here. THEY HAVE MADE LINKING TO MUSIC ILLEGAL. From the article:

A court ruling has given the recording industry the green light to go after individuals who link to material from their websites, blogs or MySpace pages that is protected by copyright.

…and there’s more…

Ms Heindl said that this could apply even if a person had embedded a copyright-infringing YouTube clip in their blog or MySpace page.

Basically, as we understand it, if I post a link on my site to an mp3 hosted on another person’s site, I can be sued. A lot of us Australian music bloggers have been emailing back and forth this evening deciding what to do next. Nothing? Form an army? Approach the labels? Hide? While not too many of us are linking/posting about major label artists all that often, it is still worrisome. I took down a YouTube clip of a Massive Attack video…that’s how stupid this is. Of course this might all blow over but for now I’m confused and frustrated. And since my blog is being hosted on space shared with my girlfriend which she has registered in her name, I’m not risking her getting sued because of anything I do here.

I don’t think things will change all that much on A Reminder but I have gone through my archives tonight just to make sure everything seems legit; I think my blog is compliant with the new Australian laws.

Geoff’s site is down at the moment as he adjusts to the new laws, SClub was down earlier today too. And Y Bother has put up his thoughts on the situation.

McSweeney’s put this piece up earlier this year called The Recording Industry Will Destroy You which seems extra pertinent today.

And Australia doublesucks today because Tapes ‘N Tapes had a bunch of stuff stolen from them in Perth. How very Vancouver of the people in Perth.