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Arcade Fire - Neon Bible will be here, 6th March 2007

Official Top 20 Albums of 2006 [No. 20 - No. 11]

No.11



Artist: Damien Rice
Album: 9
Released: 3 November 2006
Country: Ireland
Producers: Damien Rice

Consider this, you just broke up with your girlfriend, and you were really upset, and you know you decided you need a friend to talk to about it so you can at least ease some of the pains off your shoulder.

So Damien Rice’s O is this great friend that listens to you and tell you everything is going to be fine while 9 is the exact opposite rub-it-in-your face friend that told you your girlfriend is better off without you.

9 is in fact a very tricky album because at the right moments, this album sounds just right – tailor made by god’s hand just for your mood, at other times, you just wish Mr. Rice would just stop being so dramatic about everything. 9 in overall is edgier and less accessible, darker and more intense that it’s predecessor – both lyrically and the emotions in which Damien Rice delivered yet still one that shows a lot of heart – from start to finish, 9 continues to flow – switching between gorgeous mellower moments to some rather devastating songs then suddenly bursting into full out powerful performances.

In any case, 9 is everything you could want from a follow up to an album like O. It irons out the obvious faults from the debut and delivers a consistently strong moving sets of songs that is refreshing and experimental but yet not sprawling way too far off.

Forget about all those pretencious emo bands out there. 9 is the album that can really challenge your mood. It’s rare to find an album that delivers so much genuine emotions and honesty and 9 seemed to have it all. Even in it’s darkest, quietest moments, 9 is an album that sounds momentous.

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No.12



Artist: People In Planes
Album: As Far As The Eyes Can See
Released: 28 March 2006
Country: UK
Producers: Sam Williams

Originality these days is way too overrated. I mean which band isn’t ripping off each other’s music and styles. Some bands are really good at it that no one notices and call them oh.my.god. this band is so totally original, while some other band, who is tying to make a decent album without being too vein were accused of plagiarism. People in Planes is one of the latter, being compared from Radiohead to Rob Thomas then to Nirvana, and which I personally think it’s pretty impressive. Despite all that, As Far As The Eye Can See is one the most surprisingly good album that I have listened to in 2006, not because they covered ranges from post-rock to grunge but the fact that the band could pull out some really really great rock hooks while not sounding too desperate. Worth mentioning is lead singer’s unique vocal – crisp clear and captivating – the way he take control of every track is amazing, and it just didn’t matter how the band looked like, and who they sound like, you’ll be glad that you’ve listen to this album because it’s just simply amazing.

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No.13

Artist: Asobi Seksu
Album: Citrus
Released: 30 May 2006
Country: USA
Producers: Chris Zane

Citrus is probably one of the best shoegazing album in recent year – the electric guitar overload, the minimalist noise landscape, the dizzying waves of sound and airy melodies – and captivating vocal works from front woman Yuki Chikudate made this album diverse and complicated as it is accessible. Despite it’s incredibly dense musical texture, it delivers a never-ending supply of incredibly catchy hooks that makes this album not only the best shoegaze album that came out in the last few years, but it also made Citrus great pop music.

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No.14



Artist: The Divine Comedy
Album: Victory For The Comic Muse
Released: 19 June 2006
Country: Ireland, UK

His vocal, oh.my.god. his vocals is just simply amazing. It captures the listener and let then dwell in his intelligent and literate, well crafted music. Yes, the 9th instalment from Neil Hannon and his band is incredibly enjoyable – orchestral-infused, theatrically tinged pop deliciousness, top to bottom – Victory For The Comic Muse is beautiful, tender, humorous and often witty.

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No.15



Artist: My Latest Novel
Album: Wolves
Released: 7 March 2006
Country: Scotland, UK

No bands can escape from being compared to their peers and their seniors. My Latest Novel has been dubbed the Scottish Arcade Fire and has been compared to Belle and Sebastian, which is slightly uncomforting. I do agree to a certain extent, maybe it’s the violin that happen to appear in every single song, maybe it’s their style as art-rockers, that draws the similarity with Arcade Fire. But, I mean you have to be good enough to pull this shit off, and I think My Latest Novel is fucking brilliant. There is something agonizing but beautiful at the same time about this album. It is intimate, and genuine, probably the most sincere record I’ve heard. Wolves is a very promising debut album.

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No.16


Artist: The Format
Album: Dog Problems
Released: 11 July 2006
Country: USA
Producers: Steven McDonald

This sophomore release by The Format will stuck in your head the first time you listen to it. It's hard to pin down this album to any genre; to say it's pop doesn't do it any justice because it's more than pop, it's a mere pop album with unique arrangements and perfectly executed tracks, that makes it enjoyable but unpretentious at the same time. If you're feeling emo, this song will brighten you up, because rarely, but once in a while, someone will make an album that makes you hear everything

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No.17



Artist: Girl Talk a.k.a. Gregg Gillis
Album: Night Ripper
Released: 09 May 2006
Country: USA

I find it funny when I am choosing some of my favourite albums of 2006, this one came across my mind several times. This time, Girl Talk (Gregg Gillis) have taken mash-ups to the next level, using a total of 100++ pop songs, each of which last about 20 seconds mixing it into a rather enjoyable long play and insanely entertaining

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No.18





Artist: Yo La Tengo
Album: I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass
Released: 12 September 2006
Country: USA
Producers: Roger Moutenot

A fine balance between talent and creativity, this album is diverse and sprawling and sometimes maybe even a little bloated, but it is beautiful and genuine. Most importantly, after 20 years, Yo La Tengo still manages to put up a brilliant record without compromising their roots.

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No.19



Artist: The Pipettes
Album: We Are The Pipettes
Released: 17 July 2006
Country: UK
Producers:

Fifties revivalists, retro specialists and girl power, this debut album from The Pipettes has made pop music sound interesting, and credible once more. Just a little over have an hour length, almost all the 14 tracks are delicious pop songs.

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No.20

Artist: Billy Talent
Album: Billy Talent II
Released: 27 June 2006
Country: Canada
Producers: Gavin Brown & Ian D’Sa





It’s hard to file a certain band under one genre these days mainly because there are just way too many genres these day, everyone is trying to come out with a new word for a certain kind of music, but what sets Billy Talent apart from all this other band is that you could easily file them under punk genre. Maybe too ignorant but to pull off a pure punk album is not easy and II is definitely a great effort from Billy Talent. From start to finish, Billy Talent blaze through the 50 minutes with powerful and passionate tracks but yet doing it ever so effortlessly.

I never really got the chance to bid you a proper goodbye.

I have a millions thoughts running in my head but I can't seemed to utter a single word to describe how I feel.

The words still haunts me and I am still finding it hard to digest the fact that you are gone, just like that. It's just scary how incredibly fragile life could be.

All I can say at the moment is that I'm so sorry.

At least your at a better place now.

The World Doesn't Revolve Around You.

There are a few things I desperately need to get off my chest before I even let it slip.

People can hate me for many reasons, and in fact it’s not that hard to hate me, mainly because I am not a very approachable person, or maybe I have a very bad temper, or even maybe I have a rather serious mood swings, oh wait maybe because I hate you for being an inconsiderate, shallow and selfish dickhead. Or maybe people can hate me because I can blow it in your face if any of you annoyed me so bad – because I am not that kind of person that is easily annoyed unless you step on the right button. Damn, because my patience bomb just blew up and it’s not pretty.

Well, the thing is, you all know me, or should I put it this way, people who know me long enough will know what kind of person I am. I am the kind of person who likes to take control over every thing that goes on in MY life. No, I will not control your life; I am just protective of my own. You treat me well – You will have a place in my heart. You treat me bad – You’ll never be seen again. It’s just the way it is for me.

I am a very sensitive person, and with VERY, I mean I can be more sensitive than your optical mouse – and yes I let every little things that people do directly or indirectly get to me, but usually very little of these little things ever really bother me because I can get past it rather quickly. But there are a certain things that I cannot tolerate and once it’s done, - it’s done. I am not handling out flyers about how to be my friend but sometimes I just wished that they knew better - no matter how close we are as friends, there has to be a degree of tolerance one can handle, and I think it’s safe for me to say I can tolerate a lot of things but when it happen – again and again it just took me in and changes everything, my trust, my respect – everything. It’s just never going to be the same again.

Fact is, the world doesn’t revolve around me, and it shouldn’t revolve around any of you either. And for that, don’t ever for one second; think that you are superior than any other just because you think you are - out there in the real world, you are nothing more than a mere little soul with so much insecurity that you have to take it on other people.

I can’t be fucked to elaborate all the shitty things that happened to me. All I wanted to say is – if there’s anything I’ve learnt thus far, it’s this; I cannot control how I feel. I cannot control what is going happen to me, and I cannot control all the situations that arise. I cannot control the lurid thoughts and doubts that people had on me, I cannot control anything in situations imposed by other people on me. No, I cannot control my life – not matter how hard I try to take things into my own hands. It doesn’t work this way.

And yet – I can control my thoughts. I control what and who my life contains, although sometimes I misjudge, but often I don’t. I can control how I tolerate misgivings – to a certain degree, or what I can do to get past. I can decide what truly matters and let go of the rest.

It’s funny how I always manage to convince myself to ignore these things. Maybe because I cared too much, and it ended up hurting me the most – and that is why I could never go back like nothing happened, fearing that it’s going to repeat itself. Maybe I was protective of myself, or maybe I just didn’t want to lose a friend – but it just never stops – it happened over and over again – I tried to maneuver past this but I couldn’t, and I don’t know how many time I have done it – but at the end it swallowed me whole. And now I am sitting here, not trying to make a point, but reflecting on what has been hard and awful to me, just letting it all out.

This time, I’m for real.

And I feel good about it.

Because life is just too short to not hate.

The Night Time Parking Spot Incident

My New Years Eve is royally ruined. Yeah because some fuckwits, namely Mr.CRV and Mr. Land Cruiser decided that they should get on each others nerve over a parking spot, and left everyone present with awkwardness – sitting around the table with drinks and no one bother to start a conversation, starring into anything at all as long as no one made eye contacts – eventually like a bunch of retarded strangers sitting on the same table trying hardest to avoid any conversations.

Yes, then, the two subject matter decided that they still love each other and made up over a thrilling Counter-Strike game, satisfied with themselves after having killed some computer bots.

And so everyone went home happy and content, like nothing happened, and that we just had the greatest New Years Eve. Ever.

The problem is really not about the glitch and make-up moments, because that’s what they do best. The problem is why start it and make it hard for people who is just trying to have a decent night out celebrating new year?

Anyways, thanks for making my new year such a wonderful oblivious experience.

Happy 2007 to everyone!!!