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Biggest Disappointment
Weezer
Make Believe
As Rivers Cuomo has in the past demonstrated himself to be one of the smartest and most clever songwriters in pop music, it's not completely
unreasonable for Weezer fans to hold onto the desperate hope that \Make
Believe"" is some kind of joke. Maybe years from now the band will
reveal that if you play it backwards you'll hear a message explaining
that the expression on everyone's face was priceless and the album can
of course be returned for a full refund. Until that day however, ""Make
Believe"" will stand out as ample reason to legally wrest creative
control of Weezer from itself.
The Green Album and Maladroit were indisputably flawed but each had
its charms. Green was lyrically light but its stripped-down songs
sounded like instructional lectures in writing catchy pop singles.
Maladroit's hair-metal pretensions sounded like the work of a band
with a considerably lower IQ but at least it had its moments.
""Make Believe"" is just bad. The album starts off with ""Beverly Hills,""
not only a shoe-in for the worst song Weezer's ever written but also a
definite contender for the worst song Weezer could possibly write. The
awful tackiness of the wah-wah guitar solos is matched only by the
hypocrisy of a man who once confessed unapologetically to wading through groupies lamenting his own lack of celebrity. The rest of the album is lyrically remedial, uninteresting, competitively unoriginal and for the most part, completely unremarkable, with the exception of ""We Are All on Drugs,"" which somehow puts the title of ""worst Weezer song"" in contention. Cuomo sings lines like ""I want to confiscate your drugs"" with what sounds like complete earnest and the second half of the chorus, ""We are all on drugs/Give me some of that stuff"" is the most unintentionally funny lyric of the year. Actually, it's too funny. It
has to be a joke.
Please.
'Matt Hunziker
Best Flashback Album
The Raveonettes
Pretty in Black
In the past year, bands have harkened back to the days of new wave and post punk and brought these genres back in 2005, as is seen in many of the albums released. Not for The Raveonettes. Instead, they have gone in another direction from their contemporaries, bringing listeners back to the days of early rock 'n' roll, the early 1960s.
Pretty in Black, the anticipated follow-up to Chain Gang of Love, saw
The Raveonettes departing from their original sound, but they are still
able to maintain what they built in their debut. They turned off the
distortion, and, surprisingly, turned to acoustic guitars, finding
themselves with delicate melodies sounding similar to those produced in the 60s.
The Raveonettes' sophomore album not only tries to bring listeners to
the 1960s, but it goes further and actually brings the 60s to listeners.
The Raveonettes cover 'My Boyfriend's Back' by The Angels and
reintroduce the song to the 21st century. Also, they recruit
Ronnie Spector, a 60s icon, to sing on 'Ode to L. A.' The record even
starts out with the scratchy sounds of a record player. The entire album seems to be inspired by Buddy Holly as well as other artists during the time period.
Their interpretation and execution of early '60s pop is so
amazing that one could mistake them for a band that lived and played
during the decade. Because they went against the norm and flashed back to a decade of rock 'n' roll roots and do so convincingly, but uniquely with a modern twist, The Raveonettes win the award for
best flashback. They not only do it successfully, but also Pretty in
Black shows The Raveonettes at their finest.
'Beth Wick
Guiltiest Pleasure
Fall Out Boy
From Under The Cork Tree
Fall Out Boy certainly did not attempt to reinvent the pop-punk wheel with their latest album. The 'clever' song titles, heart-on-sleeve subject matter and self-lacerating lyrics have all been employed by their emo brethren before. From all outward appearances, 'From Under the Cork Tree' should have been destined just as background music for a Hot Topic store near you. And the album's grousing about popularity and the group's credibility in 'the scene' will be a snooze to anyone over the age of 13. However, these Chicago natives wrapped their tales of teenage angst in melodies as sharp as their vintage outfits.
Perhaps it is Patrick Stumph's vocals, which seem to have a great deal more soul and muscle than the average teen screamer. And bassist Pete Wentz gives Stumph some relatively sardonic lyrics to wrap his pipes around. But the real irresistible thing was the album's seemingly endless supply of syrupy melodies, handclaps and 'whoa whoas'. The multi-tracked vocals in the chorus of 'Sugar, We're Goin' Down' sound better each time you hear them, like the world's best barbershop quartet is lifting the melody up. The handclap chorus of 'A Little Less Sixteen Candles'?? will remind you why you used to like power pop. Overall, Fall Out Boy's artistic merit is a non-issue. Their appeal is their accessibility. Just put on their CD and 'dance, dance.'
'Ryan Raab
Best Dance Album
Annie
Anniemal
Dance music is a genre typically suited to making great singles, not great albums, but when that rare album of dance music comes out that is a stunner start to finish, needless to say - it's dancin' time. This year Annie ' a dance-pop queen from Norway - started the party with her debut album Anniemal, a smart collection of bubblegum pop, club beats, 80s samples and underground electronic-leanings.
Anniemal's grooves are deep enough to win over any booty on the dance floor, and it's production is varied enough to keep the attentive at-home listener engaged. It is music that engages the mind and the body in a way unheard of since Madonna's Ray of Light, but unlike that record, which was wrought with introspective lyrics, Anniemal is all frothy, high-energy fun.
And there's nary a bad track: 'Chewing Gum' finds Annie describing her love 'em and leave 'em strategy in this ridiculously enjoyable single, 'Heartbeat' is soft, ultra-melodic ode to a lovely stranger on the dancefloor, and 'Greatest Hit' is the best negotiation between 1983 and 2005 imaginable.
Great dance albums are a phenomena occurring roughly every three years, but considering how good Anniemal is, the wait for the next one won't be hard.
'Joe Lynch
