The best of 2004

thePULSE staff pick their favorite releases

Editor’s Note: As you can guess, the staff of an entertainment magazine is almost fetishy when comes to music, film, theatre or whatever else gives us our kicks. Rather than fight over one list, we each chose our top 5 CDs for the year. There’s plenty we had to overlook, so if you don’t see your favorite, it was probably one of our number sixes (I’m still feeling guilty about not including Panopticon by Boston metal band Isis!). Here’s some of our favorite albums of 2004.

January 2005 – Apostle of Hustle: folkloric feel Broken Social Scene band mates and other friends of the Ontario-based label Arts and Crafts help Andrew Whiteman’s obsession with Cuban guitar find expression in this dramatic, sensual pop album.

Franz Ferdinand: Franz Ferdinand German/ Scottish art rockers remind us that we can still dance to rock music with their infectious, hedonistic garage punk.

Adem: Homesongs British singer/songwriter Adem Illhan’s first release is a beautiful, sentimental collection of quiet, acoustic songs, nuanced by oft forgotten instruments like the harmonium, autoharp and banjolele.

Black Eyes: Cough The Washington D.C. hardcore outfit’s second and final release is brutal and discordant, featuring frenzied, rhythm-driven spoken-word songs that are punctuated by primordial yelps and free jazz saxophone.

The Album Leaf: in a safe place San Diego indie rocker Jimmy LaValle’s third release, recorded in collaboration with members of Sigur Rós at their studio in Iceland, is a gorgeously textured, melancholy electro-pop album, with sparse vocals and ample keys and strings.

–Sasha Hnatkovich, editor, thePULSE

Wilco: A Ghost is Born Wilco’s fifth release creates a landscape that meanders from headache and fear to ease and oohs and aahs. 

DJ Danger Mouse: The Grey Album Sampling Jay-Z’s Black Album and The Beatles’ White Album — this hybrid mash-up is innovative and fun, and so necessary.

Sonic Youth: Sonic Nurse Dark and brooding at times, funky and dance infected at others — after 23 years, Sonic Youth are still avant-garde masters of distortion and off-key noise.

Steve Earle: The Revolution Starts… Now Steve Earle is back with his strong, brash, rocking patriotism.

Zap Mama: Ancestry in Progress Play this stand-out collection of voices, hypnotic grooves and intertwined musical styles on repeat.

— Shahin Ismail-Beigi, freelance music writer

Nas: Illmatic: 10th Anniversary Platinum Edition Taking you back to the days when he was still “Nasty Nas,” this album includes a second disc with six bonus tracks — track 5, “On the Real,” is phenomenal.

DJ Nu-Mark: Hands On Better known for spinning alongside Cut Chemist in Jurassic 5, Nu-Mark’s first solo release is a mix of funky beats and beats with vocals — the second half features MCs rhyming in Japanese, French and German.

Eminem: Encore Keeping with the sound and feel of his Eminem Show release, Encore is a darker album about Em’s life, with some hilariously funny songs thrown in to lighten the mood.

Everlast: White Trash Beautiful His third solo release since the breakup of House of Pain, Everlast returns with a delicious blend of folk-country and hip-hop; his growling voice is raspier than ever and blends with the guitars and haunting samples with mesmerizing fluidity.

Mos Def: The New Danger Mos Def has finally graced his starving fans with a second album! In the five years since Black on Both Sides, his sound has “most definitely” changed, including heavier guitar riffs. The album is worth every penny for one track alone, “Close Edge,” which you may have heard on the Chappelle Show — Def raps while Chappelle drives around.

– Mike Ratkiewicz, freelance club writer

Massive Attack : Danny the Dog Original Motion Picture Soundtrack After being approached by film director Louis Leterrier to write the music to his 2005 movie Unleashed starring Jet Li, trip-hop pioneers Massive Attack created an instrumental soundtrack that captures both the fast-paced action and ambience of reflective sadness.

Johnny Winter: I’m a Blues Man Johnny Winter is one bad-ass bluesman. For over 30 years, he has been an integral part of the blues-rock world, and rightfully so — quite frankly, he shreds.

Dirty Dozen Brass Band: Funeral for a Friend This eulogy for founding member Anthony “Tuba Fats” Lacen is a tribute establishes a strong connection with the veteran performers’ Louisiana heritage — a necessity for any brass enthusiast.

Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra: Who Is This America? The newest release from Brooklyn’s Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra, whose members swell from 14 to 20 musicians and represent a broad cultural cross-section, varies from trance-tribal beats to simple yet hypnotic rhythms.

– Tony Scavone, Advertising account manager