Top Ten Albums

For those of you who don't know, I'm a huge fan of David Letterman. I was watching him the other night and I decided that my blog could use a little spice. And, of course, by 'spice' I mean a semi-regular Top Ten List just like the D-Train has. I guess mine will be a little more serious though, for the most part. Every now and then I might put up a silly one but usually it will consist of my honest opinions about the ten best things of a particular category. Unless there are numbers designated to the different items on the list the it will be assumed that the list is in no apparent order. This list is for the top ten albums (hence the title) but I won't include any bands from earlier decades because I think you all know that comparing The Doors to Blink 182 is like comparing Mountain Dew to Crab Juice. So, here it is, in no particular order, my top ten favorite albums that you've never heard...

- "Interventions and Lullabies" by The Format (its a band from Arizona who I saw play with mae a few years ago. awesome album. if you listen to it you have to be amazed with the way they can use a drum machine. absolutely brilliant cd.)

- "Destination: Beautiful" by Mae (debut album written by two guys from virginia who impressed their recording musicians so much that they quit their dream jobs to join the band. there is not a worthless song on the entire album. probably the most unique sounding band ive ever liked.)

- "MMHMM" by Relient K (all their albums are good but this (#4) is the greatest. every aspect of this project is spectacular from the writing to the message to the vocals and instrumentation. if you consider getting any of the albums on this list, this is the one to get. the lyrics alone are enough to make this album one of the greatest.)

- "Blueprints For the Blackmarket" by Anberlin (when i first heard of this band i was really skeptical but this album was more than enough to change my mind. they display a variety of different styles back to back and pull it off flawlessly. they're probably number one on my list of bands who im dying to see live.)

- "Lonely For the Last Time" by Seven Places (the best spiritual album of all time. its bands like this who make me love my relationship with God. they have a way of putting things into words that ive never heard before. stunning.)

- "Bleed American" by Jimmy Eat World (the middle is my least favorite song on this cd but people seem to like it just fine so you know its a knock out. i like the way jim does his vocals. he doesnt have the greatest voice but he has a style that makes you think he does.)

- "Leaving Through the Window" by Something Corporate (ill admit that there are a couple songs that i skip whenever i hear them come on but the good songs on the album more than make up for the filler. i have a thing for piano and this band incorporates it perfectly into rock music.)

- "Give Up" by The Postal Service (its probably a lot softer than most of you are used to but its a good cd. a lot of experimental electrosounds and clever lyrics and ideas used in the compilation. the same guy who sings for death cab for cutie does this band with some other guy. if you like death cab but you dont like slitting your wrists then you might like this album.)

- "Bleach" by Bleach (johns voice always reminds me of billy corgain and i have to apologize to evan but i definitely like bleach more than the smashing pumpkins. bleach is a legendary band in the eyes of the christian rock scene and were more than good enough to impress the mainstream but they were die hard christians and followed their faith till the end. the band broke up when the brother of two of the guys in the band was killed in iraq.)

- "Enema of the State" by Blink 182 (i dont care what you guys say, this was one of the greatest albums of the nineties. three guys with that much energy writing this entire album in less than a month and having it make the impact that it did is downright stellar. travis barker is the best punk drummer who ever lived and if you still dont think so you need to download some video and be corrected.)

Well, thats it. Again, it's only my opinion and I know opinions don't count for much. I just thought you'd like a little insight into the life and mind of Joel.

Fifth leg! Fifth leg!

Back in SJ

Well, I'm officially back in San Jose for the spring semester and I can't help thinking about the end of semester and how awesome summer vacation will be if I can find a place to work or find a way to get enough money that I won't have to work. We'll see though. Um... nothing exciting has happened recently, which is why I have the time to type now and tell everyone about it. Kind of funny though, I got here in SJ and got on the computer and there was a web address on the address bar called 'littleshavers.com' and I saw it and the first thing that came to mind was 'oh crap, someone's been checking out the kiddies!' so I took a chance and went to the site to see if my suspicions were well founded. Turns out it was a carving site that my grandpa goes to. But dang, it was quite an adventure. Yeah. Anyways.

Boring.

I guess I could do some awards or something that people might find worth looking at but the motivation is lacking. Go Seahawks! I'll talk to you guys later.