Jim DeRogatis

The 20 best albums of 2010

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 13, 2010

Dec. 13, 2010

I should perhaps have noted earlier that, as I have every year since I started compiling this year-end tally as an, um, professional critic, my primary concern was place as always on the albums that moved me most over the preceding 365 days—the records I found myself coming back to again and again for actual pleasure.

Finally, I’ve come to the Top 20 for 2010. Drum roll, please…

 20. The National, “High Violet” (4AD)

On their fifth album, the Ohio-to-Brooklyn transplants really connected with me for the first time. In the past, I’ve admired their corn-fed Midwestern rock more than I’ve loved it. Here, the injection of a hefty dose of dark atmospherics gives me the intrigue I’ve been missing in the past, while the rootsy sincerity is all the more powerful for the contrast.

 19. Neil Young, “Le Noise” (Reprise)

Sometimes, crotchety ol’ Neil’s experiments fail miserably, and sometimes they succeed beyond all expectations.

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A blizzard of live music to hit town this weekend

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 10, 2010

Dec. 10, 2010

Baby, it’s cold outside, and things are slowing down a bit in Chicago clubland as the holidays approach. But there still are plenty of good reasons to venture out this weekend.

Metro has a great weekend in store with three strong shows in a row. Tonight, the prolific Minneapolis art-rock collective Cloud Cult headlines over similarly inventive fellow travelers Dark Dark Dark and Ben Weaver starting at 9 p.m. Tickets are $16 in advance or $18 at the door.

On Saturday, everyone's favorite Clark Street institution (Metro, of course, not Wrigley) ups the tempo considerably for an invigorating night of pop-punk that kicks off with Boom Juice at 8 p.m., followed by the House That Gloria Vanderbilt, Noise by Numbers, 88 Fingers Louie, and in the inimitable Bollweevils.

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Reasons for Living: My 50 favorite albums of 2010, part three

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 9, 2010

Dec. 9, 2010

To the tune of the Andy Williams chestnut:

It’s the most wonderful time of the year

All the critics are listing

And everyone’s wishing

Their favorite albums appear

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

Here is the third installment of my countdown to the best album of 2010.

30. Drake, “Thank Me Later” (Universal/Motown)

Sure, he’s tabloid fodder and a teenybopper. He nevertheless delivers gripping and musically inventive raps about what he knows best: the intoxicating rush of fame, and the loneliness and alienation at the core of a life obsessed with it.

29.

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DeRo's Top 50 albums of 2010, part two

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 8, 2010

Dec. 8, 2010

To the tune of the Andy Williams chestnut:

It’s the most wonderful time of the year

All the critics are listing

And everyone’s wishing

Their favorite albums appear

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! 

Here is the second installment of my countdown to the best album of 2010.

40. Various artists, “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” sountrack (ABKCO)

A brilliant soundtrack to a great rock ’n’ roll movie, from the fake originals that Beck wrote for our heroes Sex Bob-Omb (“Garbage Truck” rules!), to the tracks from Broken Social Scene, Metric, Beachwood Sparks, and the Black Lips.

 

39.

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City festival chief responds to push for privatization

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 7, 2010

Dec. 7, 2010

The following is an unedited e-mail response from Megan McDonald, executive director of the Mayor's Office of Special Events, to yesterday's post, "Are a political power struggle and a sweetheart deal fueling the city's push to privatize the summer music festivals?"

Jim,

I have always said that the great thing about this country is that everyone is entitled to, and can voice, their opinion freely...even if it is unfounded, inaccurate or just a blatant misrepresentation of the truth. I guess that is what makes the job of a journalist so appealing to some. You can write something and people will read and believe it and it doesn't even have to be true, nor do you have to back up the story with actual research or input from the subject matter. Sounds lovely, were it not for the fact that it can be incredibly hurtful along the way. But you seem to be okay with that part.

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My favorite albums of 2010, part one

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 7, 2010

Dec. 7, 2010

To the tune of the Andy Williams chestnut:

It’s the most wonderful time of the year

All the critics are listing

And everyone’s wishing

Their favorite albums appear

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

Here is the first installment of my countdown to the best album of 2010.

50. Various artists, “Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse Present Dark Night of the Soul” (Capitol)

Delayed for more than a year, this busman’s holiday by Danger Mouse, Mark “Sparklehorse” Linkous, and director David Lynch doesn’t really do Linkous justice as one of his last statements to the world:  A big part of the appeal of Sparklehorse was the distinctive delivery of his songs.

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What's behind Chicago's push to privatize festivals?

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 6, 2010

Dec. 6, 2010

 

As reported by this blog on Nov. 22, with little fanfare or public discussion, the city has issued a request for proposals to privatize Chicago’s biggest free music celebrations—including Taste of Chicago, the Blues Festival, and the Jazz Festival—with responding bids due by the under-the-radar hour of 4 p.m. on Dec. 23.

What’s really going on?

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DeRogatis: Let live music heat you up this weekend

By: Jim DeRogatis | Dec. 3, 2010

Dec. 3, 2010

Winter may be setting in, but the challenges of going out in the face of the harsh weather only make for more enthusiastic crowds inside Chicago’s clubs, and there are plenty of reasons to venture forth iin the coming days, starting with the release party for the second full-length by the local group the 1900s.

With “Return of the Century,” issued early last month by Parasol, the band veerts away to some degree from the lush orchestral pop of its earlier album and EPs, the better to emphasize the exquisite harmonies and rich melodies of their folky pop songs. Local singers and songwriters Tristen and Tyler Jon Tyler get things rolling at 10 tonight at the Empty Bottle, and the cover is $10.

A lesser-known favorite of legendary producer Sam Phillips, Albert Austin “Sonny” Burgess is a god among rockabilly fans, and justifiably so. He takes the stage at the Abbey Pub tonight after opening sets by the Honeybees and Switzerland’s Mars Attacks starting at 8:30 p.m.

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