Un, deux, trois! Dis miroir noir

This will probably be my last post before that big celebration bout that bearded guy. I am rather exhausted having slept through 2 phonecalls and waking up a couple of hours later hugely confused and having to be sympathetic yet uplifting through text rather than calling since my family would not be pleased. I'm not entirely sure of everything I actually said but I do remember talking about hiding sweets in my bra to lure men. I don't know how that was supposed to be comforting.

Anyway here is Miss Kitty's top 5 albums of the year that she actually listened to before December.

5. Smashing Pumpkins - Zeitgeist Myspace Link

Yes it's only half of the band and yes it's no Mellon Collie but it's a good comeback album and I'm always happy to listen to more Smashing Pumpkins. They were one of the few decent bands I listened to when I was young and easily amused by girlbands. Had I bought more albums that were released this year this would have slipped down the list and I was actually going to write about Charlotte Gainsbourg's 5:55 but it came out this year in America and 2006 here and thus didn't qualify. That's The Way My Love Is and Doomsday Clock were the tracks that stood out for me and the last track has the word Pomp in it. Solid but could have been more.


4. Lavender Diamond - Imagine Our Love Myspace Link

I have to have at least one band here that nobody's probably heard of. I found them through a webcomic artist's blog. He saw them live and raved about how every man there fell in love with the singer, who is quite cute. Her voice is just as cute. These are songs to cuddle up warm to. Favourites are I'll Never Lie Again for it's sleepy piano, whispered lyrics (simple though they are) and the hints of a bigger sweeping string section that is never fully fleshed out. Open Your Heart granted is made up of a lot of "oh oh ohs" but the strings are gorgeous. It's a swayer.

3. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible Myspace Link

What can I say about Arcade Fire that hasn't already been said by more eloquent music journalists? They turn me on. Neon Bible is not better than Funeral but still it's fantastic. It's frantic, sweeping and a little bit epic. Intervention is perfection, especially good to shout along to dramatically while Antichrist Television Blues contains my absolute favourite lines: "I'm through being cute now I'm through being nice tell me oh Lord am I the antichrist?" The new version of No Cars Go is bigger and bolder. Neon Bible is an album to believe in. Their live set was almost religious so if you haven't listened to this band yet for the love of Win hurry up and convert!

2. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank Myspace Link

I've always been aware of Modest Mouse but never actively sought them out. Round about the time their latest album was coming out I amused myself with reading the online indie community repeat those dreaded words "sold out". I read rant after rant about how the band had lost its way with Good News for People Who Love Bad News and the news that Johnny Marr had joined the lineup split them in two. After finding the same fuss on more than one forum and hearing that James Mercer was also involved I had to check them out. Boy am I glad I did. Favourite tracks are Spitting Venom for "you were talking soda pop" and We've Got Everything for James Mercer and "Tony got all messed up spilt his lip chasing cheap perfume." Awesome album but not as awesome as James Mercer's own work which is my number

1. The Shins - Wincing the Night Away Myspace Link

Since I watched Garden State and Natalie Portman promised New Slang would change my life I have adored this band. It didn't but it helped. Wincing the Night Away is simply fantastic. I could say more but I would only rave like a squeeing fangirl and nobody wants that. Favourite tracks Australiawhich never fails to get me dancing and A Comet Appears.

So yeah, that's me done. Now that it's holiday time I might have a chance to write up the three or so stories I've got lying around my bedroom floor, see how that goes. Ideally I want to finish at least 25 good stories so I can start sending them off places in the new year, you know take an active role in my life for once instead of staying still and dreaming.