1. Dum Dum Girls – “Wrong Feels Right”

2. Wavves – “Horse Shoes”

3. Wye Oak – “The Alter”

4. Rural Alberta Advantage – “Stamp”

5. the Fresh and Onlys – “Do You Believe in Destiny?” [MP3, Right Click + Save As]

6. Here We Go Magic – “Hands in the Sky” [MP3, Right Click + Save As]

7. Jessica Lea Mayfield – “Grown Man”

8. The Mountain Goats – “Beautiful Gas Mask”

9. R.E.M. – “UBerlin”

10. Radiohead – “Separator”

11. TV on the Radio – “Will Do”

12. Thao and Mirah – “Eleven [ft. tUnE-yaRds]“ [MP3, Right Click + Save As]

13. Ponytail – “Easy Peasy” [MP3, Right Click + Save As]

14. The Dodos – “Don’t Stop“

15. La Sera – “Sleeptalking”

16. My Morning Jacket – “Butch Cassidy (Live)”

17. Deerhunter – “Hazel St.”

18. Beach House – “Walk in the Park”

19. Grizzly Bear – “Ready Able”

20. The Weakerthans – “Civil Twilight”

21. White Rabbits – “Percussion Gun”

22. The Walkmen – “Thinking of a Dream I Had”

15. Arcade Fire – The Suburbs
Over the course of three albums, Arcade Fire have become titans not just of the indie scene, but of music in general. Their third record finds the band exploring new territories musically, with solid results. Taking on the theme of urban sprawl, The Suburbs is a powerful album full that finds the band getting loud (“Empty Room”), getting quiet (“Wasted Hours”) and offering their trademark churning, building, rock songs (“Ready to Start”), creating a winning combination. (M)

14. Marnie Stern – Marnie Stern
Marnie Stern decided to choose a simpler name for her 2010 release than her second album (This Is It and I Am It and You Are It and So Is That and He Is It and She Is It and It Is It and That Is That) but that is just about the only thing that is simpler. On songs like “For Ash” and “Nothing Left,” Stern improbably bridges the gap between metal, jittery post-punk, and Animal Collective spazziness. And yet all of it is in service of a record that deftly depicts mental turmoil and depression in an engaging and exciting new way. (J)

13. The National – High Violet
After the triumph of Boxer, the National returned with another record that gets better and better with every listen. As the band has gotten older and wiser, so has their music, with lead singer Matt Berninger offering ruminations on married life and being a father as the Dessner Twins combine on the bubbling melodies below. If there was any question that the band would loose steam, High Violet more than dispelled that notion. (M)

12. Sufjan Stevens – The Age of Adz
When Sufjan released All Delighted People EP, it was a bit of misdirection, pointing at what seemed to be a continuation and slight expansion on his trademark sound, which only made The Age of Adz all the more surprising. Loaded with apocalyptic imagery and electronic instrumentation, Adz is a world away from the gentle orchestral music that Sufjan is known for. The record is dense and difficult, but immensely rewarding for the listener willing to invest some time. (J)

11. Robyn – Body Talk
It’s hard to believe that in the late 90’s, Robyn was being promoted in the States as a version of Brittney Spears and the other pop princesses of the time. It’s now clear however that Robyn was going to take that crown, just a little later. The three body talk mini albums are pop perfection, full of dancable, catchy, fun songs that become ingrained in you head, not just for days, but weeks at time. Hopefully Robyn won’t take another five years to give us a follow up, and we get more great songs like “Dancing on My Own” or “Hang With Me” soon. (M)

10. Best Coast – Crazy For You
There weren’t many records this year that were more straightforward than Crazy For You – a celebration of cats, beaches, weed, and boys. But its beauty is in its highly listenable simplicity, as Bethany Cosentino and company presented just enough variations on those themes to keep Crazy for You catchy and interesting. From “Boyfriend” to “When I’m With You,” Crazy for You was the obvious choice for soundtrack of the summer. (J)

9. Wolf Parade – Expo 86
On their first two records, Wolf Parade has had songs by Spencer Krug and songs by Dan Boeckner, but Expo 86 finds the two frontmen joining forces and crafting their most complete album yet. Expo 86 is the band’s best record to date, one that is relentless and incredibly fun to listen to. The band announced it was going on an indefinite hiatus to focus on their side projects, so until they return, but it’s a good thing we got an album this good first. (M)

8. Big Boi – Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty
After a troubled history and numerous delays, Big Boi finally unleashed Sir Lucious Left Foot on the world and it was glorious. From the bass-rattling of “Daddy Fat Sax” and “Shutterbugg” to conspicuous consumption of “Shine Blockas” to the melancholy “Be Still,” Sir Lucious Left Foot was worth the wait. (J)

7. Superchunk – Majesty Shredding
Majesty Shredding comes after a nine year studio hiatus from Superchunk, but it sounds like they’ve hardly missed a beat. The record is full of energy and insanely catchy songs, and ranks among the band’s best. Songs like “Digging for Something” showcase Superchunk at their rockiest, while other tracks like “Fractures in Plaster” and “Rosemarie” show a maturity they gained in their years off. Listening to Majesty Shredding makes us awfully happy to have Superchunk back. (M)

6. The Walkmen – Lisbon
The Walkmen are quickly getting into the musical Twilight Zone where every record they put out is so good that it is kind of boring to talk about how great The Walkmen are. Nonetheless, Lisbon may be among their best, from the light jangle of “Juveniles” to the forlorn funeral march of “Stranded” to the blister of “Angela Surf City.” The Walkmen are a more focused band right now who are currently going through their prime, churning out great release after great release, and Lisbon follows perfectly in that series. (J)

5. Beach House – Teen Dream
Teen Dream is a record that finds Beach House growing as songwriters, adding a lush arrangements to their dreamy (no pun intended) sound. The songs on Teen Dream are far more expansive than on their last record, Devotion, with standout tracks “Walk in the Park,” “Norway,” and “Used to Be” offering a great amount of depth and variation in the band’s signature sound. Victoria Legrand’s voice floats above Alex Scally’s surprisingly bright guitar work on a record that is the sound of late, lonely nights. (M)

4. Titus Andronicus – The Monitor
It takes a mix of confidence and foolishness to attempt an hour-plus punk rock concept album about the Civil War, but it takes true genius to pull it off. With The Monitor, Titus Andronicus somehow made a record that feels both sprawling and tight, sweeping and intimate, by filtering the Civil War through modern college turmoil (or perhaps vice versa). From “A More Perfect Union” to “The Battle for Hampton Roads,” The Monitor is a record of soaring, triumphant, fist-pumping rock, concept be damned. (J)

3. Deerhunter – Halcyon Digest
On record number three, Bradford Cox and company seamlessly integrated the ambient rock of Cryptograms and the sprawling rock songs of Microcastle. The combination finds the band at their best, with a record that ebbs and flows, finding the right places to offer homage to the sounds that influenced them and the places to showcase their own. Both Cox and Lockett Pundt have crafted their best album to date with Halcyon Digest, a record that will undoubtedly prove to be influential for years to come. (M)

2. Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Kanye West, the genius behind the famous Twitter account @kanyewest, decided to branch out into music this year too! All kidding aside, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is an explosive pop record that manages to be sophistacted and complex but catchy and accessible. Certainly there are the singles – the straight-up nasty “Monster,” the soaring “Power,” and TUiW’s song of the year “Runaway” – but the album never slows down or stops to catch its breath. Many athletes famously use personal slights – real or imagined – to fuel their competitive fire. In 2010, it seems like Kanye worked the same way, molding all his turmoil and drama into one incredible record. (J)

1. LCD Soundsytem – This is Happening
With This is Happening, James Murphy and his band became the undisputed champions of their genre. As Kanye examined his self destructive tendencies, Murphy continued to examine his own status as an aging hipster, but not without giving up his goofy side, a struggle he characterizes in “Pow Pow” as having “advantages to both.” The album plays out as such, with tracks full of sincerity like “I Can Change” and “Home,” but also songs like “Drunk Girls,” where the title speaks for itself. Either way, This is Happening is a top notch record musically, with so many catchy hooks its practically impossible not to want to listen to over and over. (M)

15. Local Natives – “Sun Hands”
Local Natives have all the sophistication and worldliness of Grizzly Bear without the austerity. There’s no better example of that than “Sun Hands,” an energetic, wide-eyed indie anthem with all the pastoral trappings and Talking Heads influences that you need to Make It on a blog in 2010. And yet Local Natives is more than the sum of their parts, and “Sun Hands” is a catchy song that is hard to get out of your head once it takes up space there. (J)

14. Broken Social Scene – “Forced to Love”
When the record came out in May, I wrote that “Forced to Love” is “the type of song that demands loud speakers on a sunny day,” a description that holds true even in the cold days of winter. It’s the standout track on Forgiveness Rock Record, one that has the band at their best, not only playing to the rafters, but over them. (M)

13. Wavves – “Post Acid”
Wavves mostly ditched the lo-fi in favor of a different quintessentially 1990s sound: the power-punk of Lookout Records. Like someone else you’ll be seeing a little higher on the list, Nathan Williams distilled his self-loathing and public meltdowns into some of the most infectious and catchy music of the year. On “Post Acid,” Williams turns in a ranging, stomping piece of SoCal punk with energy and hookiness to spare. Its hard to think of a song that earned an intro from John Norris more than “Post Acid.” (J)

12. The Morning Benders – “Excuses”
A lush, beautiful song that recalls the Wall of Sound, “Excuses” kicks off Big Echo in grand fashion. The crashing drums and wobbly strings, combined with the “la-la-las” make the song incredibly catchy, and one that won’t leave your head for days. (M)

11. Wye Oak – “Emmylou”
My Neighbor/My Creator, like a lot of EPs, expanded Wye Oak’s slowcore-leaning musical aesthetic, nowhere more so than on the infectious rocker “Emmylou.” The song reshapes the Wye Oak aesthetic, adding a punkish energy and a slight power-pop edge, while not losing their confessional, sharply lyrical style. Like other Wye Oak songs, “Emmylou” is pretty, but it isn’t nearly as fragile.

10. Best Coast – “Boyfriend”
Best Coast had a breakout year in 2010, and the lead off single from Crazy For You is about as catchy as they come. Bethany Cosentino shares her yearning for a boy, while also adding that he has a better girlfriend already that’s “prettier and skinnier.” It’s a charming track that’s just as fun to listen to one the hundredth time as it is on the first. (M)

9. Arcade Fire – “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)”
Even given the expanded sonic palate of The Suburbs, the album concluding Blondie/disco of “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)” comes as a bit of a surprise. The only song that features Regine on lead vocals, “Sprawl II” makes great use of her voice, setting it against a rising synth line that betrays a kind of innocence. “Sprawl II” summarizes the entire album, finding a measure of beauty in the “Dead shopping malls” that “rise like mountains beyond mountains” while still showing how stifling living there can be (“quit these pretentious things and just punch the clock”). (J)

8. Robyn – “Dancing On My Own”
One of the most infectious dance songs of 2010, “Dancing On My Own” displays a vulnerability not often found in the genre. Frequently aggressive in her songs, here Robyn has a sad side to her tone, offering up a song that is both moving and catchy as hell. It’s hard to listen to “Dancing On My Own” without hoping that all pop songs could be this good. (M)

7. Deerhunter – “Desire Lines”
On “Desire Lines” Bradford Cox digs deep into his library, merging everything from 1960s doo-wop to shoegaze to ambient noise to make an anthem to being bored and disappointed. With lyrics about outgrowing enthusiasm, “Desire Lines” feels like a great anthem for a time when a lot of us were struggling just to find jobs we didn’t want. And yet there’s a quality of serenity to the song, as if Cox is at peace with the notion of forever cycling through desire and disappointment. (J)

6. Superchunk – “Digging for Something”
After a nine year absence from the studio, Superchunk returned, with “Digging for Something” kicking off Majesty Shredding. It’s a swift and insanely catchy rocker, and it’s probably the year’s best rock song. With John Darnielle providing some back up vocals, “Digging for Something” is the type of song that you can listen to and start over right away.(M)

5. Big Boi – “Shutterbug”
Being the straight-man in a group is a difficult and unrewarding task. Ask Jason Bateman or Chico Marx. So it was easy to, if not overlook Big Boi, then at least expect a more straightforward album than you’d look for from Andre 3000. However Big Boi smashed that expectation, nowhere more so than the infectious bass-rattler “Shutterbugg.” Big Boi rattles off classic lyrics like machine gun bursts, climaxing in the catchy bridge and a command to “throw your deuce up in the sky for the shutterbugg.” (J)

4. Joanna Newsom – “Good Intentions Paving Co.”
With a nod from Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom offered up one of her catchiest and most accessible songs. Always a fan of long, flowing narrative, Newsom her crafts a song full of pop sensibility without giving up her unique sound in the process. If you’ve been hung up on Newsom and her love it or hate it voice before, be sure to give this track a try before writing her off. You won’t regret it. (M)

3. Beach House – “Walk in the Park”
For such a melancholy song, “Walk in the Park” is oddly soaring. That contrast, one that permeates Teen Dream, somehow makes “Walk in the Park” all the more heartbreaking. Depicting a shattering relationship with Beach House’s usual ambiguity (“the face that you saw at the door, isn’t looking at you anymore”), before switching to its equally wrenching conclusion. “Walk in the Park” is a beautiful, fragile, sad song and one of the best of the year. (J)

2. LCD Soundsystem – “I Can Change”
James Murphy hasn’t been shy about getting introspective in the past, but on “I Can Change,” he starts to question the idea of we change one another to be in love. “Love is a murderer” he cries in the song, offering a serious rumination on love in complete contrast to the goofier “Drunk Girls,” found previously on the record. Murphy has said there might not be any more LCD Soundsystem records, but if he keeps putting out singles like this, we’ll have more than enough great songs to keep us satisfied.

1. Kanye West – “Runaway”
What better way to summarize 2010 – a year that gave us The Decision and Rand Paul and the continued success of Jersey Shore – than with an infectious toast to douchebags, assholes, and scumbags. On “Runaway,” Kanye confronted his public persona, his award show escapades, and his outspokenness and generally agreed with the haters, while at the same time showing how that side of his personality is inseparable from his genius. From 35 minute music videos to moving paintings to epic SNL performances, Kanye reminded us all of his outsized ambition, and nowhere did he cash in on that more than our Song of the Year. (J)

Be sure to come back tomorrow as our Best of 2010 coverage wraps up with the 15 best albums of the year.

Pavement closes the festival

TUiW hit the 2010 Pitchfork Music Festival this past weekend, and for those that couldn’t make it out, here’s our blow by blow recap:

Friday
Arriving a little late at the festival, the first act I saw was Robyn, who brought a high energy set to the early evening of Day 1. Armed with a band that consisted of two keyboard/synth players and two drummers, Robyn started the dance party with chart-climbing single “Dancing On My Own,” but sadly left out her American breakthrough single, “Show Me Love.”

Broken Social Scene

Broken Social Scene followed, packing the stage as usual with 4-5 guitarists at once. The only downside of the set was Lisa Lobsinger, filling the role occasionally filed by Feist, Emily Haines, or Amy Millan. Lobsinger has a great voice, and “All to All” is one of my favorite tracks on Forgiveness Rock Record, but Lobsinger hardly swayed as she sang and brought little energy to the high energy band. Her bandmates however brought the fire, especially with closer “Meet Me in the Basement,” their instrumental “anthem” as Kevin Drew called it. Closing out the day were indie rock stallwarts Modest Mouse, who took to the stage with “Tiny Cities Made of Ashes” and largely played some of their deeper cuts alongside singles “Dashboard” and “Satellite Skin.” Issac Brock screamed and shared knowledge with the crowd, but it was during Modest Mouse that the first signs of Pitchfork’s poor stage setups started to show. Anyone to the side or too far past the sound tent had a hard time hearing any of the banter, and the music was garbled. All this aside though, the band put on a great show.

Saturday
Opening the day were Free Energy, the James Murphy-produced outfit that genuinely seemed overjoyed to be playing at the festival. The band bounced their way through the impossibly catchy “Free Energy” and “Bang Pop,” and most definitely won over a slew of new fans. Real Estate was a great early choice, with their gentle rocking floating through the oppressive heat before Delorean brought up the energy level with a frantic set that at times evoked M83, if M83 were huge U2 fans. They were followed by one of Saturday’s best acts, Titus Andronicus,

Titus Andronicus

who got the weekend’s first mosh pit going as they ripped through tracks from The Monitor and got the crowed to yell in unison “You’ll always be a loser!” from “The Future, Pt. 3.” The band got major props in my book for dedicating a song to a girl in attendance that they had heard had been in an accident and missed a prior show, a classy move. Unfortunately, the high of Titus Andronicus was followed with the low of Raekwon. Just after his DJ took the stage, technical problems hit, and the Wu Tang Clan member didn’t even hit the stage for another 10 minutes, where he was again slowed by technical glitches, that were followed up by a short, uninspired set that clearly had all of its energy drained from it. Over on the too small Balance Stage, the Smith Westerns put on a more than pleasant set in the shade that would have been better if the sound on the stage didn’t turn the vocals into an indecipherable mess. The smaller stage had a number of problems with, particularly that it was in a small space with limited ways in and out, but the poor sound system made it hard to hear anything if you weren’t positioned right at the sound tent. All of that was thrown out the window during Wolf Parade, who didn’t need banter to show they were clearly loving playing the festival. The band didn’t slow down at all, blasting songs from their superb Expo 86, as well as older cuts like “This Hearts On Fire” and “Soldier’s Grin.” The highlight however came with the monstrous “Kissing the Beehive” closing the set, sending the crowd into a tizzy. All of that excitement would then be immediately followed by the much dissed set by Panda Bear, which consisted mainly of Noah Lennox holding down a few keys on a synthesizer and yelping every now and then as crazy images played on the big screens. The epic scope of Person Pitch was nowhere to be found, and left me hoping that Tomboy sounds better on record than it did live. The night was closed with an epic set by LCD Soundsystem, helped in part by a crowd that was so ready to go nuts they started cheering when the giant disco ball was raised above the stage well before it started. Now, I’ve seen James Murphy and Co. a few times, but this was easily the best. Though the set lacked much of This Is Happening (only “Drunk Girls,” “Pow Pow,” and “I Can Change”), the crowd went absolutely nuts during a particularly pulsing rendition of our favorite song, “All My Friends.” Though few of the twentysomething hipsters can identify with a song about being an aging hipster, the song hit the right note, and created a frenzy of dancing and singing along that was a major highlight of the festival. Capping their set, the band played the chorus of “Empire State of Mind” before hitting the reprise of “New York I Love You, But You’re Bringing Me Down,” ending the day on a really high note.

Sunday

Best Coast

Kicking off my last day of the festival was Best Coast, a band was really excited to see. Bethany Cosentino led the trio through songs from the band’s early singles and EPs, before giving a taste of her forthcoming album Crazy For You, which sounded great. She also got in one of the best punchlines of the festival, joking, “You guys remember Woodstock in the 90s? This reminds me of that.” While Girls played a set that sounded pretty close to their record, Washed Out produced a great set of chillwave jams, but I personally had a hard time getting into a guy playing with his laptop, so it could have been better. Just as the sun went behind the clouds for a while, Beach House took the stage, bringing the soft sounds of Victoria Legrand’s voice and Alex Scally’s spiky guitar to a crowd that seemed more than happy to slowly nod their heads as they jammed along. Songs like “Walk in the Park” carry a little more power live, adding some extra punch to the Teen Dream tracks. Local Natives played to a huge crowd surrounding the tiny Balance Stage, bringing tracks from Gorilla Manor to life with their three part harmonies and thundering drums. Surfer Blood too played to a big crowd, bringing a little more rock with their now polished live act that didn’t disappoint. Next up came a phenomenal set by St. Vincent,

St. Vincent

who played all material from Actor with a tight backing band that brought the grandeur of the record into a smaller, but equally stunning sound. Annie Clark brought some of the best guitar work of the weekend to tracks like “Just the Same But Brand New” in a set that, while perhaps a bit too soft for its timeslot, was among the best of the weekend by far. Here We Go Magic impressed me quite a bit, bringing an energy I didn’t expect and getting the crowd moving through the hot afternoon. Everyone that wasn’t at Here We Go Magic was busy at Major Lazer, the Diplo-led crazy factory that featured Chinese dragons, ladder leaps, and a huge party. A Major Lazer show can really be described in so many ways, but its truthfully something that has to be seen for its total craziness be believed. Anyone that was wiped out by Major Lazer got a blast of the chillwave from Neon Indian, who brought a whole band together to groove through tacks like “Terminally Chill” for a big crowd. After Neon Indian, many people stuck around for noise duo Sleigh Bells, but with Neon Indian running over and technical delays, the band went on quite late, and apparently suffered through some sound issues, before finally breaking through and bringing the noise. Meanwhile, Big Boi led the crowd through songs from solo and Outkast repertoires, and even brought with him a crew of really awesome 10-and-under breakdancers. And then it was time for Pavement, the big draw of the weekend. With Drag City’s Rian Murphy offering a hilarious sequel to an act he used to do in Pavement’s heyday opening (highlighted by his claim that, “I’ve been listening to Pavement since 1991, so I’ve been waiting for this reunion for 20 years!”), the mood was frantic for the band, who shut down the festivals webcast under suspicious circumstances. The set was a little more uneven than their triumphant turn at Coachella, with songs like “Stop Breathin,” “Stereo,” and “The Hexx,” hitting perfectly, and others, such as “In The Mouth A Desert” and “Cut Your Hair” coming out sloppily. They still served as a fantastic closer for the weekend, which was laden with more bright spots than otherwise. Pitchfork puts on a great festival, with its small size, constant flow of sets, and high quality acts. If issues like the sound and size of the Balance Stage can get worked out, then there’s nothing to stop Pitchfork from being among the best festivals in the country.

Now for your listening pleasure, the Tangled Up in Wires podcast. Yes, as part of an innovative new content delivery system, TUIW has decided to add a podcast. Now you can have the dulcet tones of our voices lull you to sleep, as we use yet another soapbox to mock Two and a Half Men share insightful thoughts into the most interesting corners of pop culture. On this podcast, Michael and Jonah discuss the 2009-10 TV season, look at why summer movies have been so disappointing so far, and talk about our favorite music of the year:

Tangled Up In Wires Podcast #1

Like it? Hate it? Vehemently disagree? Sound off in the comments below and enjoy the podcast!

Beach House

TUiW spent the past weekend in Indio, CA for this year’s Coachella festival. Here’s our recap of Saturday:

Beach House
When Beach House took the stage, they promised to “cool us off,” and they easily succeeded. Playing their dreamy pop in the middle of the day might not have seemed like the best of situations, but it was perfect, with the crowd gently swaying to tunes from their stellar Teen Dream, as well as favorites like the gorgeous “Gila.” Jay-Z was in the house watching (he reportedly saw The xx too) as the band did a cover of Gucci Mane’s “Lemonade,” which they passed off as a “work in progress.” One of the better sets of the weekend, Beach House started Saturday with a chill bang. (Just a note, we missed both Girls and Camera Obscura thanks to traffic and water lines. Thanks Coachella!)

The Raveonettes
With the rest of their band stuck in Europe due to the volcano in Iceland, the Raveonettes’ Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo played on as a duo. This didn’t stop them from bringing the noise as Wagner’s droning, fuzzy guitar riffs blared over Foo’s bass and steady drumming. Both admitted to being nervous and uncertain about playing just the two of them, but they hardly missed a beat, playing their blend of 50′s and 60′s rock run through a blender with the Jesus and Mary Chain. The Raveonettes were one of the great surprises of the weekend with their really phenomenal set.

Dirty Projectors
In the year since we last saw the Dirty Projectors, they became some of the bigger indie darlings of 2009, thanks in part to their funky hit “Stillness is the Move.” The band didn’t disappoint at Coachella, their syncopated guitar riffs and perfectly timed vocal harmonies intertwining effortlessly. The Dirty Projectors have garnered all sorts of praise and dislike for their unique sound, but regardless of what you think, they are a terrific live act. The set was also made better by the fact that we stood right next to Vincent Chase himself, Adrian Grenier (!).

MGMT
Congratulations bro! MGMT is already getting a lot of flack for their new, different record, but you have to give them credit for sticking to their guns and playing new songs with as much gusto as the older, much loved ones. While the crowed danced and sang along to hits “Time to Pretend” and “Electric Feel,” they mostly seemed bored during the Congratulations tracks, and genuinely disappointed that the band didn’t even play “Kids.” It’s going to be an uphill climb for MGMT.

Major Lazer
Major Lazer was probably the most ridiculous live show of the whole weekend. Their show quickly turned into a sort of rave, with the unhappy MGMT fans coming over to dance and party. A manic blend of hip-hop, trance, and electronica, Major Lazer is all about one thing: dancing.

Flying Lotus
Though he was sadly not joined by Thom Yorke (who appears on his new record), Flying Lotus put on a great set of chopped beats and hooks, and appeared to be having way more fun than your average dude at a laptop. Like Major Lazer, Flying Lotus is all about dancing, but with more emphasis on hip-hop than dance. Those disappointed by the absence of Yorke were treated to an awesome live remix of the Radiohead track “Reckoner,” which stood out in an all around stellar set.

Anyway, Beach House is putting out a Record Store Day exclusive EP with two new songs and they played one of them (“The Arrangement”) on a session for Sirius/XM. What does it sound like? Check it below

I’m a huge fan of Daytrotter, a website that brings bands in for live sessions and then hosts free MP3s of their performances. Over the past couple of weeks they’ve had some great ones, so if you like or are interested in checking out Beach House or No Age, give it a look (especially since the No Age set conaints three unreleased songs!).

Beach House hasn’t really changed that much between 2006 and now. They’re still Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally. Their music is still hauntingly fuzzed keyboards and tangly guitars; the blueprint unchanged from their first two good-but-not-great records. But by making some slight changes, Beach House has crafted a total masterpiece. Sure, all their music is dreamy, but whereas Beach House and Devotion felt more like a dream you’re struggling to remember the next morning, Teen Dream is a vividly recreated memory. It’s melancholic, eerie, hypnotic. It’s the flooding house scene from the end of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

The highpoint of the record is the one-two punch of “Silver Soul” and “Norway” two absolutely gorgeous, sweeping songs connected by a heart-stopping sustained organ. “Silver Soul” takes its time, moving Legrand’s haunting, affected voice slightly higher in the mix than usual and letting her pretty much dominate the song. This is a wise choice since her always strong vocals are in a totally different plane here, wringing out every last bit of pathos simply by repeating “it is happening again,” while the keyboards, guitar and drums cascade around it. As for what’s on the other side of that organ…well, you’ve probably heard “Norway” by now and there’s not much I can add to it. The sweeping climax to “Silver Soul’s” gradual build, “Norway” is nothing less than a capital-A Anthem, one that felt like a timeless standard from the first time hearing it.

But what’s shocking about Teen Dream is just how good the rest of it is. Beach House diversified their sound just a little bit, adding pinches of jazz, soul, AOR, 80s pop, and 90s haze. They’ve also shaken the icicles off of their frosty formalism to make their most immediate album. Songs like “Walk in the Park” and “Used to Be” make perfect use of fuzzy keyboards and cheap drum machine to generate feelings of isolation, sorrow, and regret that are so powerful that what Legrand is singing almost doesn’t matter (how she sings it, though, is another thing entirely. Her voice tends to be what people talk about first and it’s just as husky and soulful as ever. But on Teen Dream she sounds more direct and emotionally raw than before. Take the heartbreaking conclusion to “Used to Be,” where she repeats “coming home, any day now” like she knows it’s a lie. It’s almost exhausting to listen to).

Taken collectively, the first five tracks on Teen Dream are mindblowingly good. Like, they’ll make you believe in God. But I don’t want to undersell the back half of the record because what it lacks in immediacy it more than makes up for in precision and attention to detail. “Near, yet so far,” Legrand sings on “Lover of Mine,” getting at the vague pangs of longing that really come to dominate the last part of Teen Dream. Even the shoegazey, surprisingly muscular “10 Mile Stereo” circles back to the theme of loss (and in a really pretty, ambiguous way: “Limbs parallel, we stood so long we fell”), and while “Real Love” reads as the most ambiguous song on paper, the album’s relatively stripped-down sound and Legrand’s voice don’t need any explanation. Its such a powerful song that I couldn’t believe there was still one more left, but “Take Care” brings the record home beautifully.

I’ve read the term “haunted house rock” to describe the Beach House sound and, while a little cute, that’s probably not too far off, but this record is way more Wuthering Heights than Paranormal Activity. There’s a Gothic melancholy and a sense of timelessness that fills every second of every song. I’ve really struggled with writing this review, because I can’t put the ways Teen Dream affects me into words. It is a minor miracle that needs to be heard to be believed. One of TUIW’s esteemed commenters pointed out that our pick for the best album of 09 was released in early January and set the bar so high, nothing else could compete. Well, I don’t mean to jump the gun, but it is happening again. It is happening again.

Jonah’s Score: 98
Mike’s Score: 82

Tangled Up in Wires Grade: A

P.S. You can download Norway for free here, and Amazon’s MP3 store is also giving it away. What are you waiting for?