Monday, October 30, 2006

The Best and The Worst!

We have an exercise here that we do every week where one person picks an album that they have not heard, purchases it, and makes every other daCapoite listen to it. We then have a group review of the album and express our deepest feelings about it to everyone.

This has been going on for about a year now, so I have compiled daCapo’s list of the best and the worst of ‘Albums Of the Week’ for 2005/06. Here they are, by staff member along with any comments they passed on to me. All of these discs are available for purchase from Apple’s iTunes, if you are interested. Finally, a full list of the year’s worth of albums of the week is at the bottom.

Kevin Aichele

TOP 3
1. John Mayer - Continum
2. Carolyn Dawn Johnson – Love and Negotiation
3. Sarah Slean – Day One

WORST 3
1. Chantal Kreviazuk – Ghost Stories
2. James Blunt – Back to Bedlam
3. Aphix Twin – Come To Daddy







Annalee Schellenberg

Top 3
1. Carrie Underwood – Some Hearts

"I love pop country"
2. Sarah Slean – Day One
"This is just overall a really great, catchy album"
3. Beck – Guero
"Okay, this is a good album, not actually my favorite album but instead of choosing yet another female singer I thought I would choose this album to try and present my musical taste as slightly more well-rounded. I did actually get hooked on this song-of-the-week."

Worst 3
1. Westernhagen – Nahaufnahme

"OLAAAAAF uuugh!"
2. Ladysmith Black Mambazo – Journey of Dreams "I just plain don't like this style of music, and this album goes on forever!"
3. Massive Attack – Collected
"I'll show you what's not massive.... this album"






Olaf Pyttlik

TOP 3
1. John Mayer – Continum
2. Cake – Comfort Eagle
3. Imogen Heap – Speak for Yourself

WORST 3
1. Carolyn Dawn Johnson – Love and Negotiation
2. Westernhagen – Nahaufnahme
3. Chantal Kreviazuk – Ghost Stories







Clint Skibitzky

Top 3
1. Hot Hot Heat – Elevator

This album has creative and original instrumentation mixed with hooky melodies and strong pop rhythms.
2. Camille – Le Fil
This is a wholly original production with a very unique sound construction. After listening to it once, I was not certain that I liked it, but I knew I had to hear it again.
3. Sarah Slean – Day One
Creative, catchy, melodic...

Worst 3
1. Carolyn Dawn Johnson – Love and Negotiation

"Every bad cliché both musically and lyrically...please SHUT UP!)
2. Miami Vice – Soundtrack
"This is the best selection of bad tracks by several well known artists I have heard in a while, with the exception of the Phil Collins cover"
3. Chantal Kreviazuk – Ghost Stories
"Ghost Stories indeed...the last track on this album is incredibly haunting, and NOT in a good way!"






Nolan Balzer

Top 3
1. Imogen Heap - Speak For Yourself

"Great Variety. arrangements and production. All round consistent flow and presentation."
2. Donald Fagen - Morph the Cat
"The classic oddball storytelling of Steely Dan with the best damn musicianship ever.
Sparse but funky production and crystal clean sound."
3 Sarah Slean - Day One
"Great song writing and arrangements without a low moment on the album. Always interesting and a tip of the hat to cabaret in a pop sensible manner."

Worst 3
1. Aphex Twin - Come To Daddy

"What the hell is this. Interesting if I wanted a soundtrack to losing mind.
2. Westernhagen – Nahaufnahme
"He should get over himself. I think he had a bunch of tunes no one else would take and he put them all on one album. When they sounded awful he decided to play trumpet on them. Unfortunately the sound worse now than they must have before the trumpet debacle. Bad decisions all over the place"
3. Chantal Kreviazuk – Ghost Stories
"Apparently she recorded this at home. Why am I not surprised?"






Date Artist Album Picked By
October 17, 20005 Aphix Twin Come To Daddy Nolan
October 24, 2005 Hot Hot Heat Elevator Clint
October 31, 2005 Enigma Love Sensuality Dev..Olaf
November 7, 2005 Jamie Warren Make Me Believe Annalee
November 14, 2005 Sarah Slean Day One Nolan
November 21, 2005 Ladysmith Black Mambazo Journey of Dreams Clint
November 28, 2005 Pink Floyd Dark Side of the MoonOlaf
December 5, 2005 Imogen Heap Speak for Yourself Annalee
December 12, 2005 Bruce Cockburn Speechless Nolan
December 19, 2005 Beck Guero Clint
January 2, 2006James Blunt Back to Bedlam Olaf
January 9, 2006 Madonna Confessions on a Da..Annalee
January 16, 2006 Fiona Apple Extraordinary MachineNolan
January 23, 2006 Tori Amos The Beekeeper Clint
January 30, 2006 Depeche Mode Playing the Angel Olaf
February 6, 2006 Paul Anka Rock Swings Annalee
February 27, 2006 Jason Falkner Can You Still Feel Nolan
March 6, 2006 The Be Good Tanyas Blue Horse Clint
March 13, 2006 Kanye West Late Registration Olaf
March 20, 2006 Carrie Underwood Some Hearts Annalee
March 27, 2006 Donald Fagen Morph the Cat Nolan
April 3, 2006 Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say..Clint
April 10, 2006 Westernhagen Nahaufnahme Olaf
May 15, 2006 P!nk I’m Not Dead Annalee
May 22, 2006 Van Hunt On the Jungle Floor Nolan
June 12, 2006 Train For Me, It’s You Clint
June 19, 2006 Massive Attack Collected Olaf
June 26, 2006 Dashboard Confessionals Dusk and Summer Annalee
July 3, 2006 Kean Under the Iron Sea Nolan
July 10, 2006 Camille Le Fil Clint
July 17, 2006 Cake Comfort Eagle Olaf
July 24, 2006 Carolyn Dawn Johnson Love and Negotiation Annalee
August 22, 2006 Esthero Wikkid Lel’Girrls Nolan
September 5, 2006 The Killers Hot Fuss Clint
September 12, 2006 John Mayer Continum Kevin
September 19, 2006 Miami Vice Soundtrack Olaf
September 29, 2006 Chantal Kreviazuk Ghost Stories Annalee
October 15, 2006 Joseph Arthur Nuclear Daydream Nolan

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