Feature


29
Oct 09

Best Album of 2006 Poll

Best Albums of 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09

Alright guys, we’ve made it to 2006. You know the drill by now. Because we’re approaching the not too distant past, it’s becoming harder and harder to make these top 10 lists. I feel like most of these albums are fresh in my mind (in fact, I still listen to most of them today). As always, there will be some omissions you will probably not like at all, like Bloc Party’s absence in 2005 — pretty good album, but hardly came close to Top 10-dom. This year’s omissions feel extra painful because I love the albums left out almost as much as I love the Top 10 itself. Albums left out include works by Sunset Rubdown, Band of Horses, Neko Case, Liars, Beirut, Bob Dylan, The Thermals, among others. But let’s focus on the albums that “made the cut”.

A. The Knife – Silent Shout
B. TV on the Radio – Return To Cookie Mountain
C. The Hold Steady – Boys and Girls in America
D. Clipse – Hell Hath No Fury
E. Ghostface Killah – Fishscale
F. Gnarls Barkley – St. Elsewhere
G. Joanna Newsom – Ys
H. Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am That’s What I’m Not
I. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife
J. Grizzly Bear – Yellow House

Good luck finding your favorite, because we’re having the toughest time.


29
Oct 09

Chiddy Bang, ‘The Swelly Express’ Mixtape Premiere

Chiddy Bang, The Swelly Express Mixtape Premiere feature“The Swelly Express” is the true story of two college kids (Chidera Anamege and Xaphoon Jones) from Philly who rocked some parties at Drexel and quickly gained the attention of “the industry”.  The music and lyrics were inspired by many boring trips on the Chinatown bus (they have wifi now!) on the way to meet “big wigs” in NYC. After a bunch of nice dinners and some free drinks for these 2 underage kids, Chiddy Bang decided to make a mixtape. PMA is proud to present this mixtape with OnSMASH and Crooks & Castles.

The Swelly Express Tracklist: Continue reading →


25
Oct 09

Best Albums of the 2000s: 2005

Best Albums of the 2000s: 2005 feature Continue reading →


11
Oct 09

Best Album of 2005 Poll

Best Albums of 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09

A. M.I.A. – Arular
B. Kanye West – Late Registration
C. Antony & The Johnsons – I Am A Bird Now
D. Sufjan Stevens – Illinois
E. Animal Collective – Feels
F. LCD Soundsystem – LCD Soundsystem
G. Wolf Parade – Apologies To The Queen Mary
H. My Morning Jacket – Z
I. The New Pornographers – Twin Cinema
J. The White Stripes – Get Behind Me Satan


10
Oct 09

Best Albums of the 2000s: 2004

Reader’s Choice: Madvillain – Madvillainy Continue reading →


5
Oct 09

The Absolute Best Songs of 2009 (75% of it)

The Absolute Best Songs of 2009 (75% of it) feature Continue reading →


30
Sep 09

La Roux’s Elly Jackson Might Be Psychic

La Rouxs Elly Jackson Might Be Psychic feature

So, we’re (almost) pretty sure it’s not us, but Elly Jackson of La Roux fame seems to tend towards the short and sweet when asked a question. We guess she likes to keep it simple, and that’s cool, because we at least know we won’t be bored to tears with any long winded answers. You as the reader should be happy that not much of your time is going to be taken up reading this.

Also, we think she might be psychic. Just a little bit. She notes an eerie, unintentional prediction she made once that had us wondering. We know she’s a tease because a few of her short and sweet answers are a bit cheeky, as they say. Go ahead and take a look and see if you’re not even more intrigued than you were before going in over what this elusive and charismatic ginger pixie is all about.

Is she a fashion icon? A throwback to an era we dancing fiends find ourselves yearning to recapture in the music we listen to and the clothes we wear? Who’s she into and what does she do when she’s not on stage wowing us with her awesome? We tried to get these answers out of her and came out both grinning like idiots and scratching our heads. Read on: Continue reading →


27
Sep 09

Best Album of 2004 Poll

Best Albums of 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09

We’re finally closing the first half of the decade. So far, we’ve had to make some obvious, almost obligatory choices… as well as some that you may not have expected. Either way, Jeff and I are still relying on your votes and comments, and we thank you for sticking with us this long.

2004 was a crazy year for music. So crazy that I had to take an extra day to finalize this list. There was Kanye West’s debut album, arguably my personal favorite hip hop album ever. Arcade Fire also brought their Funeral that year too (and as you might know, that has been my favorite album of the last 10 years). Brian Wilson chose to finally release his SMiLE, 37 years in the making. I won’t go on… but hopefully you get the point.

As always, I looked through various year-end lists published by some of our favorite publications. The shortlist was created by looking through year-end lists by the Villiage Voice’s Pazz & Jop Poll, Pitchfork, Tiny Mix Tapes, Drowned By Sound, Stylus and PopMatters.

A. Kanye West: The College Dropout
B. Arcade Fire: Funeral
C. Animal Collective: Sung Tongs
D. Brian Wilson: SMiLE
E. Madvillian: Madvilliany
F. Franz Ferdinand: Franz Ferdinand
G. The Streets: A Grand Don’t Come For Free
H. Elliott Smith: From A Basement On The Hill
I. Modest Mouse: Good News For People Who Love Bad News
J. TV On The Radio: Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes


26
Sep 09

BEST ALBUMS OF THE 2000S: 2003

It’s not easy to pick the best album of a particular year. Music is the soundtrack to our lives, and it means different things to individuals depending on where they’re at when an album is released. Over the next few months I’m gonna tell you what albums we liked each year over the past ten years and I’ll also talk about your collective choice for best album each year. Anytime you narrow down entire years music down to 10 choices, you’re gonna miss some great music, and I know some of you think these types of articles are a waste of time. To you I say this:

  • Get over it. It’s my time I’m wasting. If you don’t wanna waste your time, don’t read. :)
  • PMA will still cover the latest music as it comes out, so you’re not missing anything there.
  • We see value in remembering great music from the past. Some of our readers may have missed these albums the first time around, so it’s still exposure to new music, even if it’s from 10 years ago.

I hope you enjoy this segment while it lasts, and get into the dialogue. We’ll probably nail some of your favorites and dreadfully miss others. Let us know what you think of the choices in the comments, and tell us what changes you’d make.

In the meantime, here are the picks for The Best Album of 2003. Enjoy! Continue reading →


18
Sep 09

Yes Giantess’ Jan Rosenfeld Wants You To Dance, Played with Little Boots in New York

Yes Giantess Jan Rosenfeld Wants You To Dance, Played with Little Boots in New York feature

PMA was at Little Boots’ Bowery show featuring Yes Giantess and The Plastiscines Wednesday. We got to talk to Jan Rosenfeld of Yes Giantess outside the venue standing in front of the JMZ Bowery station subway entrance. It was a short, five minute chat before the start of the show.

As you know, Yes Giantess (formerly just Giantess) are the four piece synthpop band from Boston that caught our attention after showing up in the pages of NME amid much praise. Jan’s the lead vocalist and songwriter of the group. We asked him to explain a few things about the band and he obliged. Below, we discuss everything from porn to Twitter. Jan enlightens us on the band’s influences, how they got hooked up with miss Boots herself, and their undying drive to get you kids dancing. Continue reading →