The Thirteenth Anuual GDA Record Of The Year Awards

1. Camera Obscura – Let’s Get Out Of The Country

Review

2. Guillemots – Through The Windowpane

Review

3. Love Is All – Nine Times That Same Song

Review

4. The Lovely Feathers – Hind Hind Legs

Poppy oddity that manages to cram more styles, hooks and coolness into each song than many bands manage over a whole career. Canadian.

5. The Hidden Cameras - Awoo

Second Canadian entry in the top ten, and another eclectic collection from Joel Gibb. It remains playful yet able to make you dance, sing or maybe start out of the window to its more plaintive moments.

6. Casiotone For The Painfully Alone – Etiquette

Often achingly beautiful combination of beats, emotional lyrics and a fragility that could move even the deadest of hearts.

7. Peter, Bjorn & John - Writer's Block

Rather spiffing indie rock from Sweden, which occasionally hits fantastic peaks. Quality music to accompany an afternoon looking at car number plates.

8. Giant Drag - Hearts & Unicorns

Full debut from potty mouth scary lady Annie Hardy (plus sulky drummer). Slightly hit and miss, but with far more of the former. Often lo-fi and occasionally mental, it’s one worth persevering with.

9. You Say Party! We Say Die! - Hit The Floor

Canadian. Rather fun dance-punk nonsense with a melodic edge. Canadian.

10. The Grates - Gravity Won't Get You High

2006 is a year where certain themes have inhabited the music I’ve listened to and liked. Canadians have popped up all over the place, but the other theme is quite nutty female singers. The Grates are probably the epitome of this latter point. I didn’t care much for them when I saw them support The Go! Team but seeing them at V subsequently made me revisit this album. Yeah, it’s odd, but the sweetness often hides a harder edge to the music.

11. James Dean Bradfield - The Great Western

Review

12. The Spinto Band - Nice And Nicely Done

Non-Canadian band of non-Canadians who managed to produce one of my favourite no-brainer albums of the year. When in a mood where I can’t be arsed being challenged by music (see 13) then this has helped. Er, that’s kind of meant to be a compliment.

13. Joanna Newsom - Ys

To say it’s a lady with a harp and a backing orchestra is probably the least helpful thing I could say to describe Joanna Newsom. Likely to be loathed as much as it is loved, it isn’t 3 minute pop songs.

14. Metric - Live It Out

Canadian! Some say this is a 2005 record but bollocks to that, it was released in the UK this year. Combining a vaguely threatening female singer and Canada, Metric were destined to appear in my 2006 top twenty.

15. Final Fantasy - He Poos Clouds

C! A! N! A! D! I! A! N!
For times when you’ve wanted to mope around the house and stare into mid-distance then the choice in 2006 has been between this and CFTPA. Chris, are you still reading my blog? This isn’t the series of computer games, it’s some bloke with a violin. You’d detest it.

16. Absentee - Schmotime

What is essentially a series of triffid pop songs is twisted somewhat by the vocals of Dan Michaelson. Living in the same vocal range as Tom Waits and Chris Rea, he often sounds like his vocals have been slowed down. Do you have to smoke a pipe from birth to get a voice like that?

17. Be Your Own Pet - s/t

Noisy punk rock with a female singer that makes Glenn a little frighted. Wizard!

18. Jarvis Cocker - Jarvis

Second solo-artist of the top twenty (see 11) who sounds re-invigorated by a solo project. Not the egotistical throwaway work of a musician who should know better (see: most solo albums) but a genuinely intriguing and worthwhile piece of work.

19. Thom Yorke The Eraser

See above. Can we have the greatest Radiohead album ever – and therefore THE best album ever - next Thom?

20. Hot Chip - The Warning

Dancey and atmospheric. Nice. Too long. Not Canadian.

Honourables :- The Pipettes, Yo La Tengo, Belle & Sebastian, Broken Social Scene, Destroyer, Grandaddy, Howling bells, Oneida, Sparklehorse, CSS, Sunset Rubdown, Muse & The Long Blondes.