Favorite Movies of 2011

The Academy gets their say on Sunday, but these are the real best films of 2011.


01 Weekend


02 A Separation


03 Drive


04 Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy


05 Hugo


06 Bridesmaids


07 Bill Cunningham New York


08 Moneyball


09 The Descendants


10 Warrior

Honorable Mention: War Horse, Take Shelter, The Tree of Life, Senna

Favorite Albums of 2011

Tomorrow night the Grammys will announce their picks for the best in music, but I'm going to beat them to the punch. These are the real best albums of the last year.


1. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming

2. The Antlers - Burst Apart

3. Active Child - You Are All I See


4. The Black Keys - El Camino


5. The Belle Brigade - The Belle Brigade


6. Bahamas - Pink Strat


7. Real Estate - Days


8. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues


9. Feist - Metals


10. Washed Out - Within and Without

Honorable Mentions:
Gardens & Villa - Gardens & Villa; Portugal. The Man - In the Mountain, In the Cloud; Chad VanGaalen - Diaper Island; Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes; Bon Iver - Bon Iver

This is what I ate #7

Ox Tail Risotto, originally uploaded by savemejebus.

Honestly, look at that picture and tell me that isn't the sexiest thing that has appeared in this blog--other than a picture of me, of course. That there is an ox tail risotto from Mo-Chica, the Peruvian restaurant in Mercado la Paloma. I may have found my choice for my last meal in the off chance I'm about to be executed.

This was my second trip to Mo-Chica. The last time was with Marisela, but we were disappointed that they were out of ceviche, the dish Jonathan Gold and others rave about. That was two months ago. My experience then was very good, but perhaps I expected too much. I wasn't disappointed but I thought the food would be even better than it was. I know, high expectations.

I got it in my head to go to the First Fridays concert at the Natural History Museum. The Tallest Man on Earth, a new favorite of mine, and Gamble House--among the members is a neighbor of FJ's I met at one of his parties--were playing. I had to eat dinner anyway, so I hatched a plan to check out Mo-Chica again before the show.

Thankfully they had the ceviche tonight. And it was terrific. I liked that it wasn't overwhelmed by acid and the chunks of fish were meaty. It's definitely a good dish.

I had arrived at Mo-Chica not hungry, but knowing me, I knew I would still everything that was presented to me. For the entree I debated a long while between getting the special of the day, a cods served with peas, or something meatier. I noticed that the big menu above the counter had an entree that wasn't in the paper menu given to me--an ox tail risotto. Kare Kare is one of my favorite Filipino dishes and the thought of ox tail made me long for a taste. I'd give this dish a try and see how it compares to one of my Mom's best dishes.

I hate to say it, but this ox tail was phenomenal. Hopefully I will never have to be in the position to choose between this dish and my Mom's kare kare. Feelings will get hurt. The ox tail risotto is the most satisfying dish I've had in long while.

The ox tail was braised so well. I'm sure they cooked it for hours and miraculously did not lose the flavor. The meat literally rolled off the bone, clean and easy. With kare kare sometimes I have had to use my teeth to get every last bit of meat off the bone. No such problem here. And the meat was soft and buttery. It really did melt in my mouth. The barley risotto was a nice complement. I expected this dish to be heavy but instead the effect was light yet satisfying. I can't wait to order this again.

To wash it all down, I ordered a cebada, a barley tea with ginger and herbs.

So satisfied and pleased was I with my meal that I wasn't even disappointed when I got to the Natural History Museum and found out that the concert was sold out. Instead I shrugged and went off still craving more ox tail.

Mo-Chica is advertising a tasting menu on May 27. I may have to see what that is about.

Favorite Albums of 2007

I had every intention of writing a detailed, thoughtfully considered piece on each of my favorite albums from 2007. With the first month of 2008 just about over, though, I have yet to write a single word, so it's time to face the facts: it's not going to happen. Rather than wait and post my thoughts in the middle of the year, I'll just go ahead with a short and simple list. With no further ado:

01
Armchair Apocrypha
Andrew Bird


02
Leaves in the River
Sea Wolf


03
Night Falls Over Kortedala
Jens Lekman


04
Sound of Silver
LCD Soundsystem


05
The Reminder
Feist


06
The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter


07
Ash Wednesday
Elvis Perkins


08
The Flying Club Cup
Beirut


09
Cease to Begin
Band of Horses


10
Random Spirit Lover
Sunset Rubdown

Favorite Songs from 2007: #1

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

01
"All My Friends" by LCD Soundsystem
Album: Sound of Silver



I've already written about why I love LCD Soundsystem's "All My Friends" so much, so let's just say that my feelings for it have not changed. Maybe it speaks to my age but like all good songs "All My Friends" affects me profoundly. It is an anthem for all aging hipsters. Furthermore, dance and electronic music isn't where you would normally go to find genuine feeling, but "All My Friends" not only makes you want to dance, it also makes you feel something true.

"All My Friends" Covered
John Cale - "All My Friends"
Franz Ferdinand - "All My Friends"

Favorite Songs from 2007: #2

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

02
"While You Were Sleeping" by Elvis Perkins
Album: Ash Wednesday



A song steeped in grief shouldn't be something you would play over and over again, but that's exactly what I did this year with Elvis Perkins's "While You Were Sleeping." A Song of the Week selection earlier in the year, "While You Were Sleeping" became a much-played song because of its cathartic power. It is a heartbreaking song, especially when you consider the losses Perkins suffered that very much informs the song. Perkins is the son of Anthony Perkins, who died from AIDS complications, and Berry Berenson, a photographer who died on one of the 9/11 planes.

Essentially a lullaby, "While You Were Sleeping's" impressionist lyrics don't explicitly address the deaths of Perkins's father and mother, but only someone who has endured such grief can possibly write a song so sad and heartwrenching yet also make it sound so sweet and redemptive:

While you were sleeping
You tossed, you turned
You rolled your eyes while the world burned
The heavens fell, the earth quaked
I thought you must be but you weren't awake

In the song, the idea of sleep is used as a comforting notion, the possibility that it was all a dream and that in sleep time somehow stops. As the song develops, though, and as the music rises, sleep begins to represent what is missed in life--the blink-and-you'll-miss nature of existence. I guess I listened to this song a lot this year because it is ultimately a reassuring song. I have not endured the kind of loss Perkins has experienced, but the song--and the rest of the album--isn't just for them. "While You Were Sleeping" suggests that we are resilient beings. The grief and sorrow won't completely go away, but somehow we find a way of muddling through. In Perkins's case, his art must have been a great source of comfort.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #3

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

03
"Turn On Me" by the Shins
Album: Wincing the Night Away



The Shins might have borrowed the opening of "Turn On Me" from "Then He Kissed Me," but the rest is classic Shins: perky tune backing up vague, muddled lyrics. The song doesn't lack for a hook. From the sweet, wistful chorus with its cute "Y-O-U" spellout to its driving guitarwork, "Turn On Me" has hooks to spare. But this isn't just any Shins song. It is one of their best--right up there with "New Slang" vying for perfection. The song's sunny sound belies the bitterness of the lyrics, which has become a signature of the Shins' work. Their songs--light, airy and effervescent--often bravely mask stories of heartbreak and regret. "Turn On Me" can serve as an anthem for the exasperated. Such a great song. Unfortunately the video is not so great.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #4

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

04
"Armchairs" by Andrew Bird
Album: Armchair Apocrypha



"Armchairs" takes its time to build up to its gorgeous, heartrending crescendo, but it is worth the wait. It is an absolute stunner of a song with some of the most beautifully elliptical lyrics of the year ("I dreamed you were a cosmonaut/Of the space between our chairs"). What does "time is a crooked bow" even mean? Is it referring to a violin bow, which crooked, would play dissonant music? "Armchairs," though, is the opposite of dissonant. It is a swirling, haunting song that in Andrew Bird terms is seemingly stripped of layers, but it is nonetheless meticulously arranged and produced. From the hollow knock of the piano to the chiming of the guitars, Bird's craftsmanship is in evidence. However, less present are Bird's trademark quirks, but few artists like Bird can craft such an open-hearted yet obtuse sounding epic love song.

Much like "Apartment Story" the romance of this song can be found in its references to enduring love. Armchair, perhaps a symbol of old age, references to 55 and 3/8 years, suggest an age old love. Then there are the T.S. Eliot like lines "as ancient sea slugs begin to crawl/Through the ragweed and barbed wire" which give the song an air of impenetrability. Regardless, you can simply close your eyes and get lost in the ebb and flow of Bird's effortless voice and music.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #5

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

05
"Apartment Story" by the National
Album: Boxer



The National's best songs are characterized by a weary narrative that captures the complex maneuverings involved in relationships. "Apartment Story" is a spectacular example. I can't decide if it's romantic or sad or both. Matt Berninger sings like he's talking, alternately bored and plaintive, over a steady groove that implies a relationship caught in a rut. From what I can gather, the song is about a couple, too old to be playing games yet too young to feel like an old couple, unsure of where they stand together. When Berninger sings, "So worry not/ All things are well/ We'll be alright," it is with more than a touch of doubt. That's where I'm unsure of whether it is romantic or just sad. I see romance in their struggle to make it work ("We'll stay inside till somebody finds us") but it's heartbreaking to sense futility in their efforts, as if they're trying to make it work because they can see no other options. It's an achingly beautiful song that exemplifies the National at their best.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #6

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

06
"Thrash Unreal" by Against Me!
Album: New Wave



Punk may have seen more relevant days, but one listen to Against Me's "Thrash Unreal" is proof that there is still life blood coursing through the genre. Against Me's sound is less coarse and tidier than that of past punk legends, but they are no mere pop punk fakes. Good Charlotte they are not. Against Me's brand of punk is catchy as heck but it is also clever and smart.

The immediate hook of "Thrash Unreal" is its infectious "bah bah bah" chorus, an anthemic statement of wayward liberation. If there is a musical expression for youthful rebellion, Against Me has found it in the chorus. What makes "Thrash Unreal" an even greater song, worth more than just a catchy chorus, is its compelling depiction of a woman grown way past the maximum age for youthful indulgence. Rather than make it a sad song about a sad prodigal daughter, though, Against Me imbues the story with a defiant spirit. "No mother ever dreams that they're daughter is gonna grow up to be a junkie," growls lead singer Tom Gabel,"No mother ever dreams that they're daughter is gonna grow up to sleep alone." The song does not glorify its subject's debauchery but the song marvels at a life lived on the edge and the energy it requires to do so. As it says, "Some people just aren't the type for marriage and family." "Thrash Unreal," its pleasures many and too damn irresistible, exemplifies the allure of the rock and roll lifestyle. Who can refuse a hit when it's this damn good?

Favorite Songs from 2007: #7

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

07
"Golden Inhibition Destroyer" by Warm in the Wake
Album: Gold Dust Trail EP



Like Keren Ann's "Lay Your Head Down," Warm in the Wake's "Golden Inhibition Destroyer" was a Song of the Week selection this year. The song's Southern rock sound is pleasant enough, big guitars and shuffling drums underscore cryptic lyrics. This would be enough for a decent, enjoyable song, but what takes "Golden Inhibition Destroyer" to the next level, what makes it a a song worthy of playing over and over again, occurs with a minute and a half remaining in the song, after the last lyric has been sung. At this point a piano solo begins as the drums roll a martial beat. The piano builds ever so gradually but soon it is colliding with the drums, rising then cascading to the verge of collapse. But it doesn't. It is an exercise in controlled breakdown. We never fear that the song will fall apart because what we heard before proved to us that Warm in the Wake knows its formula. Yet they also know it well enough to deviate from it and reveal what else is possible--ithin reason and without spiraling out of control. It is, I suppose, a "safe" song, but it is only so because Warm in the Wake know too well what they are doing as musicians that they don't leave a wreck of a song in the wake after all is done.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #8

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

08
"Lake Michigan" by Rogue Wave
Album: Asleep at Heaven's Gate



I'm a sucker for a catchy indie pop song, and Rogue Wave's "Lake Michigan" lit up the pleasure center in my brain. It sounds like something the Shins, former labelmates of theirs, would have concocted. The lyrics are inscrutable, but it's apparently about the damage being done to Lake Michigan with references to global warming and "sky is burning." The thought that this is actually a message song almost detracts from it, not because I'm anti-environment but that it is incongruous with the sound and feel of the song. I can imagine that irony is in play here but it doesn't go far enough in its reach for it to work as an ironic statement. Rather I'd prefer to enjoy the song's cascading guitars, handclaps and layered harmonies as a visceral experience. Yes, I know, it's akin to liking the Mona Lisa because of the frame around it, but really, the frame this song hangs in is that great.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #9

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

09
"Lay Your Head Down" by Keren Ann
Album: Keren Ann



Beguiled was what I was the first time I heard Keren Ann's "Lay Your Head Down," hands down the most alluring song of the year. With its guitar intro and hand claps, and most of all Keren Ann's seductive vocals, the song is an inviting experience. When she coos, "Lay your head down in my arms," you just want to take her up on the offer. Surprisingly the song runs for almost five minutes but it is as ephemeral as a cool summer breeze and just as refreshing. The production places Keren Ann's vocals at the forefront, echoing like a whisper through cupped hands. The strings and harmonica and the lively guitarwork and handclaps that form the spine of the song give the song a light, buoyant feel--like the softest pillow for your weary head. I keep wanting to describe this song as a lovely breeze wafting through the speakers because that's what it feels like when I hear it, a song that just makes me want to close my eyes and pretend that Keren Ann is singing in my ear.

Favorite Songs from 2007: #10

Lists have become super-sized. No one is content with just 10 any more. It has to be 20, 50, 100. Blame it on my generation's belief that they don't have to choose. They can have it all. I am guilty of it, too, so this year I have resolved to make choices. My lists will be kept to ten regardless of how painful it will be to leave off some deserving choices. Heck, I won't even mention the runners-up. Ten and I'm sticking to it. We start with songs.

10
"West Coast" by Coconut Records
Album: Nighttiming



Coconut Records is Jason Schwartzman, indie actor and scion of the Coppola filmmaking dynasty, who, through his stint as a drummer with Phantom Planet and now on his own, displays a talent for pop craftsmanship. "West Coast" can be described as a sequel of sorts to Phantom Planet's big hit, "California," which notoriously became the theme song to the show "The OC." There's the obviously similar subject matter and both share a winsome melancholy.

While "California" can be described as a song about arriving, the anticipation of a reunion, "West Coast" is a song about departing, leaving behind someone--perhaps forever. The beauty of "West Coast," though, is how triumphantly lonesome it all sounds. Rather than dwell on the sadness of parting, Schwartzman captures the catharsis that comes hand in hand with melancholy. Mostly he does it by pairing the lyrics to music that embodies the locale it refers to. Had the song not been titled "West Coast" it still would have been evident that it is a song very much about the sweet loneliness of living in LA, especially while in love. It has a summery, Beach Boys-inspired sound full of ooh-ahh harmonies and a swooping melody that sounds like a drive along a coastal highway. Then there's Schartzman's voice, mopy and sweet, which imbues the song's lyrics ("I miss you I'm going back home to the west coast/I wish you would have put yourself in my suitcase") with poignancy. He's a hopeful romantic, in love with the feeling of being in love. When the song reaches the glorious choral "ahhs" "West Coast" soars. Like the best pop songs, it sounds like how you wish felt all the time: so glad to be so unhappy in love.