recent tracks:

Lists

Although I am still intrigued by Andy's idea of the everything retrospective, I give you my list of most significant media offerings of 2006, from my primarily aesthetic* perspective:

New:
"Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley
"Emily" by Joanna Newsom
Springtime Can Kill You by Jolie Holland
"Love Me or Hate Me" by Lady Sovereign
Six Demon Bag by Man Man
The Science of Sleep

Old:
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
Full Tilt by Dervla Murphy
Funeral by Arcade Fire
Grizzly Man
"June" by RJD2
La Dolce Vita
Late Registration by Kanye West
"Leaving the Past" by Immortal Technique
"Make You Feel That Way" by Blackalicious
Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
"Song of the Open Road" by Walt Whitman

Honorable Mention:
[Limited to New]
"Crane Wife (Parts 1, 2, & 3)" by Decemberists
Little Miss Sunshine
The Loon by Tapes 'n Tapes
Me and You and Everyone We Know
Night Ripper by Girl Talk
Return to the Sea by Islands
Water**
"Your Kisses Are Wasted on Me" by The Pipettes

Tracks are listed where they stand out from albums; albums are listed where they work well as a whole. There are books and movies as well!

Man Man's Six Demon Bag wins the Max award for awesomeness. I've tried twice to describe the awesomeness of Man Man but am hoping that the award will capture some of the glory that my words cannot. Seriously, I can't stress their awesomeness enough.

Gnarls Barkley, Jolie Holland, and Joanna Newsom should come as no surprise; The Science of Sleep has continued to grow on me since I watched it (likewise Me and You and Everyone We Know, which might actually deserve a spot on the top list). Lady Sovereign might surprise everyone, but she's carved herself a permanent niche in my brain after a short time listening, and I love her clever lyrics and eminently likable personality. Plus the songs are ridiculously catchy.

*Perhaps an "academic perspective" list will come along sometime; more likely not.
**General release in USA April, 2006.

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I am officially halfway done with law school.