{"id":868,"date":"2011-07-06T17:04:51","date_gmt":"2011-07-07T00:04:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/billchapin.net\/allthecitylights\/?p=868"},"modified":"2015-01-12T09:31:53","modified_gmt":"2015-01-12T17:31:53","slug":"halftime-report-my-favorite-15-tracks-of-2011-thus-far","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/billchapin.net\/allthecitylights\/2011\/07\/halftime-report-my-favorite-15-tracks-of-2011-thus-far\/","title":{"rendered":"Halftime Report: My favorite 15 tracks of 2011 thus far"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I've listened to this young lady's hit song more than any other released this year, and chances are you have, too. (By Jelmer de Haas via adele.tv)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hey, folks, 2011 is more than half over, which means it’s time for me to share the\u00a015 songs released this year that I’ve consistently enjoyed and listened to the most.<\/p>\n

Several of them have already been featured on this here blog with a Racking Up Plays<\/a> feature, in which case I’ve linked to those posts. And we’ll likely be visiting most of them again when December rolls around. That’s OK. They deserve it. Even the unstoppable mainstream hit that came in at No. 1. (I realize I may need to turn in my official Snobby Blogger membership card, but the iTunes play-count function doesn’t lie.)<\/p>\n

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(via Facebook)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

15. “Good Man,” Raphael Saadiq<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Oakland native and Tony! Toni! Ton\u00e9!<\/a> member released another solo album of old-school R&B, but this time it’s a lot grittier and guitar-driven. Saadiq said<\/a> this song was inspired by a friend of a friend who was falsely accused of domestic violence, not to mention downtempo, ’70s soul ballads.\u00a0 It also finds a way to rhyme “monogamous,” which is pretty impressive.<\/p>\n

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(via Myspace)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

14. “The Cult Song,” Shannon and the Clams<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

What’s not to like about the San Francisco band’s latest bout of bonkers garage rock? The aggressive reverb? The chanting of “OOGA BOOGA!” and “ONE OF US!”? The message? Surely we can all agree that cults are bad, mmmkay?<\/p>\n

[download<\/a> via\u00a0The Bay Bridged<\/a>]<\/p>\n

Performing at the 1-2-3-4 Go! Records Anniversary<\/a> show at 8:30 p.m. July 23 at Oakland Metro Operahouse<\/a>, 630 Third St. Tickets are $13 in advance, $15 day of show.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Okkervil River at the Fox Theater in Oakland<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

13. “The Valley,” Okkervil River<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Has folk-rock ever tipped so heavily toward the “rock” end of things than on the opening track to the Austin band’s sixth album? Between those cracking snare hits and Will Sheff’s ghastly lyrics about “the valley of the rock ‘n’ roll dead,” it’s like the song was made for devil horns and head banging.<\/p>\n

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(via Myspace)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

12. “Just For Show,” Atmosphere<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Minneapolis can make a legitimate claim to be the capital of independent hip hop given everything that Rhymesayers<\/a> and Doomtree<\/a> have been unleashing lately, and the enduring rap duo Atmosphere started it all. On this track, Ant offers up a slow reggae beat to support Slug’s portrait of a passive-aggressive relationship coming apart. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Performing<\/a> at 8 p.m. Aug. 25 at Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium<\/a>, 307 Church St. Tickets are $30.<\/em><\/p>\n

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(via lupefiasco.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

11. “All Black Everything,” Lupe Fiasco<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Chicago rapper offers a lesson in alternate history, describing an America in which the Atlantic slave trade never happened. Dreams of a color-blind world are wrapped around a woozy string sample and a bangin’ breakbeat. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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(via Partisan Records)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

10. “Thanks for Nothing,” Middle Brother<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Taylor Goldsmith (whose main gig is singing with folk-rock group L.A. folk-rock group Dawes<\/a>) contributed this acoustic track to the songwriting collaboration that is Middle Brother. In the fine tradition of sad laments about pretty girls, Goldsmith describes himself walking the streets of Nashville, offering bitter, ironic thanks to an English beauty that he can’t get off his mind. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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(by Autumn De Wilde via EMI)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

9. “June Hymn,” The Decemberists<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

No track from The King is Dead is a better representation of the Portland group’s rediscovered appreciation for Americana, the joys of nature and simplicity. The folk ballad positively busts out all over in three-part harmony during the bridge, with David Rawlings<\/a> and Gillian Welch<\/a> joining Colin Meloy in a ravishing salute to midsummer.<\/p>\n

Performing at\u00a0Outside Lands<\/a>, Aug. 12-14, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Tickets are $199.50.<\/em><\/p>\n

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(via Suburban Noize Records)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

8. “Clap,” Saigon<\/a> [featuring Faith Evans<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you’re like me, you primarily knew New York rapper Saigon as the dude that Turtle started managing on Entourage<\/a><\/em> right before you stopped watching the show. In real life, Brian Daniel Carenard has been busy doing battle with the major-label beast, trying to get his debut album released. He finally was victorious, and this track proves the four-year wait was worth it. Brimming with Blueprint<\/a><\/em>-esque soul samples, a gospel choir and, yes, hand claps, the song is a triumphant call for peace, cooperation and action. It’s everything hip hop ought to be, and then some.<\/p>\n

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(via www.wyeoakmusic.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

7. “Civilian,” Wye Oak<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The title track from the Baltimore duo’s third full-length album is a fine example of the group’s brooding brand of plugged-in folk and Jenn Wasner’s haunting voice. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

[download<\/a> via Stereogum<\/a>, or stream the full album via Merge Records<\/a>]<\/p>\n

Performing at Outside Lands<\/a>, Aug. 12-14, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Tickets are $199.50.<\/em><\/p>\n

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(By Harper Smith via Blue Note Records)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

6. “Violin,” Amos Lee<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

With an ethereal assist Iron & Wine<\/a>‘s Sam Beam, Philadelphia singer Amos Lee has created an achingly beautiful slice of gentle acoustic soul\u2014the lamentations of a restless spirit calling out for God’s presence amid all the darker corners of the city.<\/p>\n

Performing at 8 p.m. Aug. 17 at the Fox Theater<\/a>, 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $32.50.<\/em><\/p>\n

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(by DL Anderson via www.mountain-goats.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

5. “Birth of Serpents,” The Mountain Goats<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

After 15 Mountain Goats albums, John Darnielle still knows how to bring some assured lyricism and breezy melodies to the table. This track is one of the best examples in recent memory, making the process of developing photographs (Did you know that people used to take photos using cameras containing strips of plastic coated with light-sensitive silver salts? It’s true!) seem positively mystical and mysterious. Also, there’s something about snakes.<\/p>\n

[stream the full album via Merge Records<\/a>]<\/p>\n

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The Downer Party at Bottom of the Hill<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

4. “Country Kids,” The Downer Party<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

For now, I really can’t get enough of this irreverent commentary on life and love in San Francisco, with its invitation to “throw yourself off the Transamerica Pyramid.” The local band steeps the song in the same attitude and distorted guitar that made ’90s alt-rock such angst-fueled fun. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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(via Merge Records)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

3. “Under the Gun,” Apex Manor<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Hey, NPR can inspire more than just sober reflection on the state of the U.S. economy. An online songwriting contest got Ross Flournoy of The Broken West out of his funk and writing some driving power-pop with a new Pasadena-based band. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

[free download<\/a> via apexmanor.com<\/a>]<\/p>\n

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(via Facebook)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

2. “L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.,” Noah and the Whale<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

I’m not the only person that thinks this song sounds like Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers circa 1985, but I like Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers circa 1985, so that’s fine by me. The English folk-rock band tells tales of rock ‘n’ roll survivors and starving artists, then spells out a carefree philosophy in the chorus. It’s not terribly deep, but it is terribly catchy. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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(by Jelmer de Haas via adele.tv)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1. “Rolling in the Deep,” Adele<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

This is one occasion where I can’t fault radio for playing a song to death, because I’ve been overplaying it myself. The British soul singer’s staggering success so far this year is proof that the music industry is still capable of putting out a single that everyone can get behind, from Muzak programmers to snobby bloggers to your mom. As long as Amy Winehouse is unable to fulfill our demand for female British interpretations of classic R&B, I’ll gladly accept Adele as a consolation prize. More blah blah blah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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