The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Deerhunter: "Cryptograms" & "Fluorescent Grey" EP

1.  I know it may not seem fair to give the top spot on the list to two records from the same band. Aside from the fact that Fluorescent Grey is included in the vinyl release for Cryptograms (a big hint that both are meant to be enjoyed in tandem), it's difficult for me to determine which of the two is better. Rather than choose one, I decided it would be best to reward Deerhunter for making two excellent works that are a cut above most everything else that was released this year.

Cryptograms, perhaps more than any other album I heard all year, makes a strong case for the vitality of the album format. In an age where digital distribution has impacted the way albums take form, it's becoming more and more rare to hear something that sounds like it should only be played in sequence and in its entirety. The reliance on ambient soundscapes and white noise to form bridges between songs (that is, those tracks that  include vocals and at least a vague allusion to lyrics) is reminiscent of 70's Krautrock, especially of the Neu! and Can variety (hold your horses, I am not putting them in THAT category just yet).

What's more, the order of the songs makes a statement about the album format, specifically the LP. Because most of the "accessible" tracks reside on the record's second half, it lends itself to maximum enjoyment if you listen to it on a turntable. The dichotomy between side one and side two cannot be be understated with experimental moments of hazy textures on the former and flirtations with, dare I say, pop ("Hazel St.", "Strange Lights") on the latter. It's almost like they were going for the inverse of Low here. Whatever the motivation, the result is a satisfying journey from free-form noise to noise pop.

The journey continues and ultimately climaxes on Fluorescent Grey, where we hear Deerhunter more focused than ever before. The title opening track begins with an ominous piano and a beat that signals to the listener that a big payoff is on the horizon. The buildup continues to grow as Bradford Cox murmurs "patiently patiently" until a wave of drowned guitars and delay-cloaked vocals bring the song to a triumphant close. On "Like New" we hear the band at their absolute best (at least, to date), as they basically take everything good about Cryptograms and condense it into a tiny, easy-to-swallow 2:13 pill. While on "Wash Off" they end the party with sonic outburst that recalls some of the aggression of their ear-splitting debut album.

In the end it is nearly impossible for me to think of Cryptograms and Fluorescent Grey as anything other than one cohesive piece of art divided into three acts. In order to fully enjoy and understand the climax/resolution you must first witness the setup and confrontation. In the case of these two records, I wouldn't have it any other way. 

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - The National: "Boxer"

2.  If I had to use one word to describe The National, it would be unassuming. It's easy to listen to the sad drone of Matt Berninger's vocals coupled with the violin and guitar strumming and dismiss the band as a bunch of whiney sad bastards, but that would be completely short-sighted. Time and time again The National have proven themselves as not only a far more dynamic band then at first glance, but also as one of the better rock bands this country has to offer.

If you think that is a bold statement then listen to Boxer and rethink your skepticism. Much like their previous three albums, Boxer grows on you. That's not to say you  need to give it 5-10 listens before it starts sounding good (you don't), but rather with each successive listen more of the album's subtle greatness reveals itself.

"Fake Empire" is a wonderful opener that puts the focus squarely on Berninger's storytelling ability while only giving us a glimpse of the band's rich sound in the final 30 seconds. From there things start to get really interesting as "Mistaken for Strangers" announces it's presence with an emphatic drumbeat that dominates the track without overpowering the rest of the band. Meanwhile, on "Squalor Victoria" the workman-like marching of the drums serves as a perfect backdrop for the moody sound of the violin. If you listen closely (that is, with full attention), nearly every melody on this record is beautiful and dramatic with each instrument working together in perfect disciplined harmony. There's plenty of detail that reveals itself to the patient listener, you just have to be open to finding it. It isn't a difficult thing to do, especially since the music is good enough to warrant exploration in the first place.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - A Place to Bury Strangers: "A Place to Bury Strangers"

3.  Making noise isn't the hardest thing to do. Any schmuck with an effects pedal can fashion themselves some grimey guitar sludge and call it "noise rock" or whatever suits their fancy, but only the most meticulous craftsmen have the talent to make real melodies from such cacophonous elements (please refer to Sheilds, Kevin in your textbooks for more information). One such savant is Oliver Ackerman, the frontman for New York trio A Place to Bury Strangers, who spends his days creating custom hand-wired effects pedals for many notable bands, including: Wilco, Spoon, TV on the Radio and Serena-Maneesh. Thankfully, Ackerman doesn't waste all his talent helping other bands sound good, as his band's self-titled debut proves the man is more than capable of producing his own flirtations with greatness.

In the typical parlance of our time it is easy to describe APTBS's music as "shoegaze", since much of it owes a great debt to the Jesus and Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive, but such an arbitrary label would miss the entire picture. While the opener "Missing You", "Don't Think Lover" and "Breathe" all perfectly capture the sound of those aforementioned artists, APTBS also manages to incorporate influences from other pioneering noisemakers. On "She Dies" Ackerman and drummer Jay Space create a sound reminiscent of Pornography-era Cure, while on album closer "The Ocean" the resemblance to New Order circa Movement is uncanny. There's even a hint of pre-industrial Ministry found in their use of drum machines sprinkled throughout the album.

But these musical signatures would mean nothing if APTBS couldn't write a good song; which, it turns out, they can with quite aplomb.  "To Fix the Gash in Your Head" and "I Know I'll See You" might be two of the catchier songs you'll find on the same album all year. Both confirm what the rest of the album suggests, which is that ear-splitting noise is just as capable of producing beautiful melodies as anything else.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Working for a Nuclear Free City: "Businessmen and Ghosts"

4.  I must confess part of the reason I placed this album on the list was because I didn't have a blog last year where I could include this band's wonderful self-titled debut on a "20 Best Albums of 2006" list. Thankfully, in 2007 Working for a Nuclear Free City decided to repackage their debut as a double album for their first release in the US.

Now, I've used this space before to explain what makes WfaNFC so likeable, and on Businessmen and Ghosts they don't do anything to sway my faith. In fact, the inclusion of 11 additional songs not found on their UK-only debut merely reinforces the thought that their future is bright. One of those new tracks, "All American Taste", might be the most memorable highlight on the album's first disc. The combination of echoed strumming, machine-like drums and laser beam synths create a wonderful dance-y shoegaze groove that weaves in an out of frenetic and subtle moods.  This propensity to build up, draw down and build up again best manifests itself in "England", where WfaNC goes from dreamy chill-out to full on psychedelic space jam within five and half minutes, drawing upon seemingly every major British musical genre (Madchester, Paisley Underground, new wave, electronica, etc.) in the process.

Perhaps what makes Businessmen and Ghosts so special is that WfaNFC manages to sound forward-thinking while creating this music that owes so much to the historical canon of popular English music. It's definitely not an easy thing to accomplish, and the fact that this quartet from Manchester is able to do it here so flawlessly should warrant its own canonization.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - LCD Soundsystem: "Sound of Silver"

5.  James Murphy might be the busiest man in the music business (my apologies to Madlib). Between his duties as an accomplished DJ, co-owner of DFA Records and producing records as one half of DFA (along with Tim Goldsworthy) you'd think he wouldn't have the time to record his own material, but his output with LCD Soundsystem indicates that he hasn't spread himself too thin. After an excellent self-titled debut album you could forgive the man if it took him several years to fit the time to record the follow-up, yet he released two fantastic records in less than a year's time.

While 45:33 was a welcome addition to my record collection, it was the proper follow-up to LCD Soundsystem's self-titled debut that deserves the superlative praise. Sound of Silver builds on the foundation of the debut - with its scratchy guitars, dance-inspired rhythms and frenetic synth beats - but also finds Murphy growing as a songwriter. On "Someone Great" he waxes nostalgic about the demise of rave culture while interweaving allusions to a personal tragedy and on "All My Friends" he comes to grips with his own age and the "loss" of his friends to careers/relationships/family life. It's no coincidence that both of these songs are not only standouts on the album, but also two of the bests songs heard anywhere last year.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Radiohead: "In Rainbows"

6.  It's hard to separate the hype of In Rainbows from the substance. With so much already been written about the revolutionary impact of the album's viral marketing and distribution methods, it would be easy for many fans (especially the Radiohead faithful, who don't possess the most objective ears) to over-praise the music simply because they were rooting for the album to succeed.

First off, Radiohead is too accomplished of a band to need our charity. Second, they never claimed their decision to self-release In Rainbows as a pay-what-you-want digital download was anything more than a strategic move based more on convenience and less on protest. This was a simple case of a band who, having spent several months without being under contract, realized their notoriety afforded them the freedom to bring their music directly to the people without the need of promo tours, press junkets, MTV appearances or any of the other nonsense that goes into promoting a record. It doesn't work that way for everyone and it certainly isn't something Radiohead recommends to non-established artists.

Now, on to the music. On their seven studio album Radiohead finds themselves in perhaps the most enviable position a band would want to be in - they are both critically and commercially successful while enjoying the freedom to create whatever music they damn  please. The experimentations with electronic beats and rhythms found throughout Kid A, Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief are still present on this record, but now it sounds like they've figured out how to incorporate them into more traditional rock arrangements.

Gone are avant garde electronic whirlwinds like "Ideoteque", "The Gloaming" or "Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors" and in their place are more subdued songs like "Nude," "House of Cards" and "All I Need," which proceed with deliberate melodies that are easy on the senses. That isn't to say that Johnny Greenwood has given up using electronic noise altogether (as album opener "15 Step" proves), rather he has learned how to pull back the reigns and put the focus back on the band as a four piece rock outfit.

In the past a song like "Reckoner" might have included syncopated synth beats behind Phil Selway's metallic drums, but now Greenwood allows him to take charge using nothing more than his cymbals and a snare. The result is a song that's heavy on melody and light on bells and whistles. As the rest of In Rainbows proves, this isn't the exception to the rule.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - "M.I.A.: Kala"

7. You'd think it would be nearly impossible for anyone to top a debut album as well received as Arular, but M.I.A. isn't just any old broad. With the stakes even higher for her follow-up M.IA. managed to beat the expectations on Kala; a record that in many ways is superior to her debut.

Whereas Arular sounded like it was shot out of a cannon with its overt political references set against a backdrop of grimy electro beats, Kala shows M.I.A. looking outward musically while singing about deeply personal themes. This is most likely a byproduct of her visa troubles in 2005-06 making it impossible for her to enter the US and record with Timbaland (among others). The troubles with the INS turned out to be a blessing in disguise as M.I.A. was forced to record with artists all over the musical (and geographic) map.

The sheer amount of genre-bending (Sri Lankan cinema samples, Aboriginal hip hop, dance hall, African hip hop, new wave, dub, afrobeat and so much more) found on this album is so staggering you'd think something this convoluted would surely fall flat on its face. Once again you'd be wrong as M.I.A. continually defies conventional wisdom on Kala by not only redefining the concept of the protest tune (who knew it could be so fun rejecting Anglo-dominated imperialism?), but turning the very notion of pop music on its head.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Various Artists: "After Dark"

8. 2007 was a wonderful year for Disco music thanks in large part to the output of a small Jersey-based label called Italians Do It Better. Now, I could've placed the debut albums from label mates Chromatics or Glass Candy on this list, both of which were deserving, but it was too hard to narrow it down so I decided the democratic thing would be to place this compilation on the list instead.

After Dark serves as an excellent primer to the recent revival of Italo-Disco, painting a picture of city life that makes the album's title fitting. The pulsing synth drone and haunting vocals of Chromatics' "Hands in the Dark" and "In the City" put you right in the middle of a cold and lonely night in any urban metropolis. Mirage's fantastic remix of Indeep's "Last Night a DJ Saved My Life" adds signature Italo synths, making the song sound as if it slipped itself a Quaalude during a trip to the bathroom.

There are many more gems throughout this compilation's 70-plus minutes, with each one providing a different take on the familiar Italo dreamy two-step beat. After 35 years and countless dance/electro trends that have come and gone, After Dark proves the staying power of Italo-Disco still has plenty of life left.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Kevin Drew: "Spirit If..."

9.  Broken Social Scene is quickly turning into the white indie rock version of the Wu Tang Clan. Think about it, each group is massive in size, each has siphoned off an ungodly amount of solo/side project material (Ghostface, Metric, Raekwon, Method Man, Feist, Do Make Say Think, Apostle of Hustle, etc., etc., etc.), and each "solo" project usually includes appearances from members of their respective collectives.

Spirit If... represents the first in a series of "Broken Social Scene Presents:" albums showcasing the solo talents of a different member of BSS. Of course, I use the term "solo" loosely as basically everyone from BSS makes at least one appearance on the record. This isn't a bad thing since I am always of the opinion the more the merrier when it come to BSS.

That isn't to say that Sprit If... is merely a BSS record repackaged as a solo effort. On the contrary, Kevin Drew's skills as a singer and songwriter are definitely the focal point here. Moments like "Safety Bricks", "Broke Me Up" and "Gang Bang Suicide" are some of the highlights of the album, giving us a glimpse of what Drew sounds like when he strips down the music to its most basic forms. Of course, the frenetic multi-layered anthems "Lucky Ones" and "Backed Out on the..." are pretty freaking great in their own right.

Perhaps I should rethink applying the "solo" label so loosely to this album since its brilliance lies in how it showcases Drew in two distinct roles. That of the perfect frontman to one of rock music's most dynamic bands and also as a gifted songwriter who is equally at home sans the bells and whistles of his bandmates.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Caribou: "Andorra"

10.  I still refer to this artist as Manitoba, since I refuse to acknowledge "Handsome" Dick Manitoba is talented enough to lay claim to the name. In any event, the man now known as Caribou (Dan Snaith) continues to push the boundaries of psych-pop into uncharted waters with each successive release.

Of course, on Andorra Snaith provides his audience with further takes on the sound he's been building on since 2003's Up In Flames. That is, signature collages of Nuggets-era rhythms, chamber-pop vocal harmonies and electronic wizardry permeate throughout the album, but this time the music sounds more focused than it ever has been. For the first time ever Snaith lets each idea play out to its logical conclusion and steers away (mostly) from tangential interludes and extemporaneous noise.

The tighter structure of the songs compliments Snaith's vocals, which are far more prominent than in his first two records. Whereas previously his lyrics were concise and merely complimentary to the songs' melody, it now sounds like Snaith has something to say. Mostly, he's musing about the innocence of  love, which fits the kaleidoscope of sounds he creates as the backdrop perfectly. And just when you think he has no more tricks left up his sleeve, Snaith concludes Andorra with "Niobe", a nine minute opus of beautiful cacophonous electronic patchwork that is among the best material he has ever written.

Indeed, it is this penchant for constantly refining and experimenting with his signature sound that makes Caribou such a compelling artist to begin with. Andorra proves Snaith's lofty praise from critics is totally warranted and that others should take notice whenever he puts his mad genius skills to work.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Klaxons: "Myths of the Near Future"

11.  NME, Q and Mojo have written so much about the "Nu-Rave" movement (whatever the hell that means) that the inevitable wave of hype caused many people stateside to feel burned out on the genre before they heard any of the music. Surely this affected the reception of the anticipated debut album of Klaxons since it turned out (surprise!) not to be the transcendental marriage of dance and rock music the British press promised it would be.

Instead, Myths of the Near Future is simply a collection of tight pop hooks, dance-inspired rhythms and precision production (courtesy of Simian Mobile Disco's James Ford). There's  certainly nothing wrong with that and it would be foolish of any music fan to punish any band that failed to live up to unrealistic expectations they never placed on themselves in the first place. I, for one, prefer to focus on what I can observe with my own two ears. And my ears tell me Klaxons have a gift for creating pop music with an energy and pace that never seems to let up. We can sit here and criticize it for not being "revolutionary" all we want, or we can simply shut the hell up and give in to the fact that it is damn fun to listen to.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Spoon: "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga"

12.  Pop music has become a lost artform in recent years. Yeah, the music industry deserves a ton of blame for not adapting to the times and embracing digital distribution soon enough, but another component of their rapid demise has been their inability to recognize quality pop music when they see it. Fortunately for us there are labels like Merge Records who do the heavy lifting the major labels seem too disinterested to do themselves. 

Once again Merge bestowed upon the music listening public another pop music gem in the form of Spoon's sixth album Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Nonsensical album title aside, the Austin quartet builds upon their reputation as the most efficient band in rock music with 36 minutes of seamless guitar hooks, toe-tapping melodies and soulful lyrics. What's more, Britt Daniel and company continue to pay homage to the best moments of American musical history by incorporating Motown-inspired piano rhythms, jazzy brass accompaniment and R&B melodies into their songs almost as a reminder to the rest of us of what good pop music used to sound like. Luckily for us, those sounds aren't completely lost on the current generation.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Simian Mobile Disco: "Attack Decay Sustain Release"

13.  2007 might be remembered as the year of the "Daft Punk Generation."  With so many artists pumping new life into the club scene a reemergence of dance music into the mainstream became inevitable. Whether it was Digitalism, Justice or MSTRKRFT, the influence of Daft Punk was felt all over some of 2007's most talked-about records. Out of this bunch, my favorite was definitely Simian Mobile Disco.

Perhaps no and among this group had as much anticipation leading into their debut album, due mostly to a string of successful remix and production efforts for Bjork, Arctic Monkeys and Klaxons (among others), as well as infectious club singles that gave music fans a taste of the party that was to come. On Attack Decay Sustain Release SMD made good on the hype by delivering a slick 37 minutes of acid techno/house that reminds me of the 'glory days' of the mid 90's when it seemed like dance music had limitless possibilities.

"Hustler" and "It's the Beat" are two of the best songs of the year. Period. The production quality of both is indicative of an attention to detail that only the greats of the genre (like Daft Punk, for example) can match. This goes on for the entire album like one awesome private DJ set. In the end, isn't that exactly what a dance record should do?

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Pharoahe Monch: "Desire"

14.  Hip Hop fans had to wait eight long years for Pharoahe Monch to release the follow-up to his landmark debut album Internal Affairs, luckily he rewarded our patience with a superb sophomore effort.

It seems like a man with the pedigree of Pharoahe Monch shouldn't need to prove himself, but the long layoff between albums surely had much to do with how hungry he sounds on Desire. Throughout its 47 minutes Pharoahe unleashes a barrage of expertly crafted metaphors with the speed and accuracy of a cruise missile. There's diatribes against the record industry (no doubt fueled by his battles with Rawkus Records and the labels that tried to woo him after they dissolved), lazy MC's ("Desire"), domestic violence ("Gun Draws") and even a homage to the poignancy of Public Enemy's politics ("Welcome to the Terrordome"). In all, it is a concise package that never relents in its power and persistence. With eight years since he was last in our collective consciousness, Pharoahe Monch makes sure he doesn't waste one second of our attention and reminds us that he's every bit the prolific MC he was when he instructed us to "Get the fuck up" in 1999. 

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - The Tuss: "Rushup Edge/Confederation Through"

15.  I am a sucker for someone who knows their way around a synthesizer and when it comes to synth mastery the rest of the world worships at the altar of Richard D. James, otherwise known as Aphex Twin. 

This year Mr. James tried to be coy by releasing two EP's through his Rephlex label under the moniker of The Tuss. Much like the Analord series, Rushup Edge and Confederation Through were released in limited quantities on white labels to little fanfare, which is probably the way James likes it. Had it been released under the Aphex Twin name then a whole different set of expectations would certainly come attached, perhaps making it impossible for the music to be judged objectively.

Even if this music wasn't created by the mad genius of Richard D. James I would still think it was brilliant simply because there's an attention to detail that is nothing short of impressive. Each EP weaves in and out of swirling atmospherics, psychedelic beats and good old fashioned electronic noise in a way that is absolutely seamless. I tend to place a high value on both the finished product and the tedious process that went into creating it in the first place. Like anything worth a shit, the journey is just as interesting as the final destination.

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The 20 best Albums of 2007 - Bruce Springsteen: "Magic"

16. This is list is taking way longer to complete than originally planned. With the holidays taking so much of my time, it's becoming harder to devote enough time to each entry and get through all 20 before the year is over. Today, I am forcing myself to be more brief with the write-ups  to each album.

Thankfully, I have said enough about Bruce Springsteen's latest effort already, so there is no need to add anything new. But I will say this. The world should be thankful that Bruce is still around giving voice to everyday Americans and their doubts/insecurities/frustrations with the country they love. It seems like such a simple concept, but most American rock bands fail miserably trying to pull this off simply because they are way too detached from the reality they are trying to describe.

A multi-millionaire like Springteen shouldn't be qualified to pull this off either, but rather than preach about people he read about from the comfort of his mansion, he travels to the heart of America and speaks with them in person. Part of me wants to reward him just for making such an effort to avoid pretension, but luckily the songs stand up on their own.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Arctic Monkeys: "Favourite Worst Nightmare"

17.  There's nothing more annoying in music journalism than reading the British music press. NME, Q and Mojo love to proclaim a certain band/artist as "the next big thing" one day and then step over each over trying to tear them down the next. Much like our tabloids build up the Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohans of the world just to make their inevitable falls from grace that much more dramatic (and therefore, lucrative), the Brits have turned this cynical cycle into an artform, making it easy for people like me to ignore them altogether. It is for this reason that I dismissed Arctic Monkeys for over a year before I ever gave them a chance.

As is usually the case, it took seeing them in person to finally sift through the bullshit and just listen to the music before I understood what all the fuss was about. Now, they may not be the most dynamic band in the world (Radiohead they are not), but they do have stage presence and they certainly are well skilled in the art of a good 'ol fashioned guitar hook. On Favourite Worst Nightmare there are hooks-a-plenty mixed with heavy rhythms and storytelling lyrics about working-class night owls and romances. Basically, a simple meat-and-potatoes approach to rock music that most bands fail miserably at trying to pull off.

I guess that's what makes this sophomore effort from Arctic Monkeys so rewarding. After an avalanche of hype and accolades following their debut album they weren't tempted to overreach on the follow-up. Instead, they built on their solid foundation by sharpening their skills a bit and adding an extra layer of attitude to their sound. There's still plenty of time left before this act begins to turn stale, so it's nice to see a band resist temptation to reinvent the wheel well before they are ready to do so. In the meantime, we can reward them for crafting an album that exhibits there's still some life left in the tired and true "three chords and the truth" approach to rock music.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - !!!: "Myth Takes"

18. 2007 was the year !!! seemed to mature into a band that knows exactly what they are. Like so many artists that gained notoriety during the "Dance Punk" new wave of 2004, !!! got noticed via an infectious single ("Me and Guiliani Down by the School Yard") that made the rounds in hipster clubs across the country. That initial success gave way to a 'debut' album (actually, it was their second but most people have never heard their self-titled release) that sounded more like a collection of singles than one cohesive work, leaving some to think (including myself) that perhaps the band would fade away once the attention focused on Dance Punk shifted elsewhere.

Three years later they returned with a follow-up album that addressed all the weak points of Louden Up Now without compromising the singular element that makes !!! interesting in the first place. Mainly, that their sound can blow the woofers off any pair of speakers you have. Each song on Myth Takes stands on its own as dance party-worthy, yet they sound best when listened within the context of the album. There's a continuity in how every track flows into the next (especially "Must Be the Moon" and "A New Name"), where the party gets more raucous with each passing song.

The word raucous couldn't be more appropriate, since !!! are at their core a band who enjoy going absolutely ape shit every time they take the stage. We've always known that, but on Myth Takes they finally show they're more structured and deliberate than we gave them credit for.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Bjork: "Volta"

19. I must disclose that my opinion of this album is influenced by the fact that I heard 9 of the 10 songs for the first time at Bjork's  performance at Coachella. Since it was the end of the first night of the festival when she took the stage (clad in an outrageous outfit, amid an all-female Icelandic brass section, a stage lined with flags and sci-fi prop instruments), I was tired but nothing was stopping me from having a great time. Needless to say, this was musical theater of its own sort and it absolutely makes it impossible for me to judge these songs objectively in studio form. Fuck it, it's my list and I listened to this album a ton over the Summer to warrant its praise.

Like we have come to expect, Bjork did a complete musical 180 from the sound of Medulla. Whereas that one focused on the versatility of the human voice, Volta embraces technology wholeheartedly. There's a whole lot of melting seemingly disparate sounds, instruments and genres into a musical hodgepodge of songs that you'd think should sound way more overwrought than they are.  It's probably because Bjork always manages to wrap everything with a bow in a way that undeniably bears her imprint. From the studio to the stage, every minute detail has been planned and strategized to always point the focus back to that gifted voice. Dedication to the craft like that isn't exactly easy to find anymore.

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The 20 Best Albums of 2007 - Ghostface Killah: "Big Doe Rehab"

20.  For weeks (thanks to the new reality of album leaks) hardcore Wu-Tang Clan fans have been divided into two camps; those who like 8 Diagrams and those who don't. While there are a myriad of underlying reasons why the Wu's first album in six years came to be so divisive, there is a simpler explanation. Sometimes familiarity is a virtue.

With so many of the greats from the glory years of the 90's fading away, don't be surprised if fans aren't always receptive when a band dabbles in experimentation. RZA failed to recognize this when he crafted the music for 8 Diagrams, giving fuel to the idea that the Wu-Tang Clan has lost a step. Thankfully, Ghostface Killah is here to remind us that not all of the Killer Bees forgot what put them on the map.

Indeed, Ghostface follows up the exceptional Fishscale and less excellent (but still good) More Fish with Big Doe Rehab, another gem that plays to his strengths. Constant boasting about his gangster credentials. . .check. Hyperbolic drug references. . .check. Beats that blow the headphones off your ears.  . .check. The formula is simple, but Ghostface couldn't care less. He knows his limitations and isn't about to to mess with a good thing. And in all honesty, his lyrical delivery doesn't exactly lend itself to reinvention.

Sometimes we don't give enough credit to artists who recognize when they are out of their element. On Big Doe Rehab Ghostface elected to showcase his craft rather than redefine it. Perhaps a thank you is in order?

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