Top Ten Albums of 2007

With 2007 rapidly coming to a close its time to roll out the top ten discs of 2007. This year in music was filled with great new sounds. Give a read here and then give a listen to the discs you should already have in your collection!

1.) Icky Thump - The White Stripes
Jack and Meg White came out swinging with this blast of garage rock married to pure blues and soul. This disc solidified the "Stripes" as the best (and possibly only) stripped down rock act on the scene today. The disc tends to go all over the map with mariachi rhythms, bag pipes, sitar music and mandolins but make no mistake; the core of the disc is rock with a heavy dose of blues. "You Don't Know What Love Is" is blues rock at its best. "Conquest" spills into Latin rhythms and the title track is garage rock with a powerful edge! Sadly the duo canceled their tour in support of the disc. No one knows for sure if this spells the end of The White Stripes but the hope is that this is not the last we have heard from this vital rock duo.

2.) Back to Black - Amy Winehouse
Try, and I mean really try to forget about all of the drugged out, abusive, tabloid insanity this woman has created and focus on the amazing piece of music Winehouse has laid down on her second disc. Back to Black is a true tribute to real R&B. Sonically the production is pure 60's Motown and Winehouse is a powerful, soulful singer who does indeed have the blues. No one has been able to channel Aretha and Holliday so effortlessly in quite sometime and Winehouse does it all with a serious punk rock edge. The tune "Rehab" says it all in terms of her current issues but the true test for Amy comes when she lets her guard down and beautifully croons the ballad "Love is a Losing Game". When it comes to sweet, edgy soul music Amy Winehouse is indeed a winner. If she can keep from imploding all over herself we can only hope for bigger and better things in 2008.

3.) Graduation - Kanye West
It's easy to forget how talented Kanye West is even when he's the one telling (or yelling) you how talented he is. Although he may need a crash course in humility there is no denying that West created a hip-hop tour-de-force with Graduation. The electro-funk of "Stronger" (powered by Daft Punk) is undeniable and infectious. The laid back feel of "Good Morning" and even the defiant "Can't Tell Me Nothing" all cement West as a true player in the hip-hop game and further proves he is willing to push the boundaries of the genre. West even laments about how his mouth can sometimes get him into trouble. His humbleness only lasts for a brief second as he proclaims to be, "the fly Malcolm X, buy any jeans necessary".

4.) Echoes, Patience, Silence and Grace - Foo Fighters
David Grohl and his band have solidified their place in modern rock. With their latest disc The Foo Fighters are at the top of their game. "The Pretender" is vintage "Foo" as the band cranks out yet another powerful rocker to lead the disc off. After that the group veers all over the map without losing the essence of who they are as a band. The group hits the listener with a little bit of everything including a bluegrass instrumental (Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners), 70's glam rock (Long Road to Ruin), a piano ballad (Home) and even a nod to Paul McCartney and Wings (Statues). Grohl along with his partners in crime (Taylor Hawkins, Nate Mendel and Chris Shiflett) have become the elder statesmen of modern rock but have not lost any of the innocence, passion and fun they have had over the years, when it comes to making great records. Put this disc on and you will be struck by the patience and grace of the Foo Fighters.

5.) Finding Forever - Common
Many in the hip-hop world felt it was going to be a stretch for Common to out do his last disc Be. The two things folks did not count on was his friendship with Kanye West and the fact that Common is a true lyricist and artist in the genre. On Finding Forever, Common finds himself far above the hip-hop "blingers and cruck rock superstars". "Ladies and Gentlemen, the C-O-double-M-O-N" raps the Chicago native as he takes you on a tour of Chi-Town, the rap game and gives you his take on the state of affairs in Black America. West is a skilled producer and his production is a perfect compliment to the rapper's unique story telling style. Add Lilly Allen to the mix on the funky/funny tune "Drivin' Me Wild" and what you have is one of the most compelling rap discs of the year.

6.) The New Wave - Against Me!
This year the band Against Me! found themselves up against a timeless issue in the world of punk rock. They released their disc The New Wave on a major label and had none-other than Butch Vig (Nirvana, Garbage) produce their major label debut. Their hard core fans balked and some even protested the idea of these premiere punk rockers on a major label. Behind the hoopla was the fact that the band put out a seriously angry punk rock album full of intensity, serious questions and tightly woven songs. With anthems like "White People for Peace", "Up the Cuts" and the scathing "Americans Abroad" the band did not hold back their questioning of authority and themselves. While some talked of sellout Against Me! asked people to "stop and take sometime to think" and they wanted to know the answer to the simple question "Are you restless like me?" Hopefully the "fans" who scoffed at the bands major label jump will have an answer to the bands question come election time.

7.) The Undisputed Truth - Brother Ali
Brother Ali is the latest to come out of the Rhymsayers camp of Minnesota. Most folks will stop at the fact that Ali is a white, albino, Muslim rapper but before this Brother, "from another mother" becomes a novelty act take a listen to the Undisputed Truth. Thanks to the production skills of Ant (Atmosphere) he has the "boom bap" to back up his lyrics and intricate rhyme style. Ali is serious and introspective. On one tune alone he can come at you with braggadocio for days, a political statement and then stop you in your hip-hop tracks as he explains how the love for his daughter kept him from taking his own life. He is confident, serious, brave and humble all at once. Brother Ali also knows how to not take himself too seriously as he spits a rhyme that claims "I'm like Howard Stern meets Howard Zinn." Hip-Hop could use a dose of the truth and Brother Ali has got it and them some!

8.) Libertad - Velvet Revolver
Velvet Revolver have weathered the storm of being tagged a supergroup, the on again off again sobriety of singer Scott Weiland and rumors of a full fledged Guns and Roses reunion to bring us their second full length disc, Libertad. The bands second disc finds them in peak form combining their old school Hollywood style of rock (Let it Roll, She Builds Quick Machines) with a touch of psychedelia and groove (Last Flight) for good measure. While the band gets caught up in their own clichés ("like transformers girl, I'm more than meets the eye") the group gets a pass because they invented these type of rock clichés in their previous bands. If the band can hold it together and keep pushing themselves musically, this supergroup might be on their way to becoming a superb group.

9.) Carry On - Chris Cornell
Chris Cornell came into his own with the band Soundgarden in the 90's and established himself as one of the voices of the so called grunge movement. He re-invented himself as an arena rock frontman with the "other" supergroup Audioslave. When that band dissolved Cornell decided to release a solo disc. Anyone looking for a mix of Garden and the Slave was probably disappointed because Cornell decided to turn the volume down to six instead of up to eleven and he also decided to try his luck as a more sensitive singer/songwriter. The results were varied but on such stand out tracks as "Poison Eye", "Arms Around Your Love" and "Killing Birds" Cornell let's his R&B side come into play making him sound like a rocked up Sam Cooke. Cornell also adds a cover of Michael Jackson's "Billy Jean" to his rock n' soul mix and proves that a 90's grunge rock star can bring some R&B to the table and make it work.

10.) Build a Nation - Bad Brains
This past year there were many rock reunions and one that may have slipped under the radar was the reuniting of DC's own Bad Brains. Bad Brains mix of punk, hardcore and reggae has influenced everyone from Nirvana to the Chili Peppers to Fishbone and Living Colour. On their reunion disc Build a Nation the group reaches the pinnacle of their game. H.R.'s vocals are echoed throughout the disc to give off a dreamlike effect while the band plays with an intensity and ferociousness that will make the emo crowd cringe! Thanks to the production work of Beastie Boy Adam Yauch (another huge fan) the group hits its mark on almost every track. Who knows how long the band will stay together? This much is clear. One of the classic bands of the punk/hardcored genre is back with a new disc and the time is right to build a nation with Bad Brains. Put the disc on and be prepared to yell Jah Rastafari as you dive into the pit.