Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Wrap-up: Wigleaf in Twenty Ten

Last 2010 post @Wigleaf today: Nicolle Elizabeth's FOUR STORIES, with maybe her best-ever postcard.

Thanks again to Brian Evenson, for selecting the Top 50, and thanks to everyone on the following list for what I think has been our biggest and brutalist year:

Grace Andreacchi
Arlene Ang
Meakin Armstrong
Adrienne Bard
Kyle Beachy
Michael Bible
Ann Bogle
Eric Bosse
Mel Bosworth
Jessica Breheny
Randall Brown
Edmond Caldwell
Kim Chinquee
Ryder Collins
Dawn Corrigan
Sara Crowley
Stephen Dunn
Nicolle Elizabeth
David Erlewine
Nina Feng
Erin Fitzgerald
Tuere T.S. Ganges
Roxane Gay
Vanessa Gebbie
Greg Gerke
Barry Graham
Tawnysha Greene
Tina May Hall
Jim Heynen
Eric Higgins
Donora Hillard
Steve Himmer
Laura Hirneisen
Colleen Hollister
Tim Horvath
Jennifer A. Howard
Joe Kapitan
Matthew Kirkpatrick
Andrea Kneeland
Darby Larson
Sarah Layden
Charles Lennox
Lisa Lim
Sean Lovelace
Sarah Malone
Michael Martone
Susan McCarty
Natalie McNabb
Jen Michalski
Hans Michaud
Megan Milks
John Minichillo
Kyle Minor
Tirumal Mundargi
Thomas Mundt
Mark Neely
Cami Park
Gary Percesepe
Dan Piepenbring
Lloyd Phillips
Glen Pourciau
Dawn Raffel
Andrew Roe
Sophie Rosenblum
Matthew Salesses
Kevin Sampsell
Kathryn Scanlan
Evan Schaeffer
Peter Schwartz
Laura Ellen Scott
Chad Simpson
Andrea Slye
Lucas Southworth
Amber Sparks
Brooks Sterritt
Rose Sullivan
Jack Swenson
Chantel Louise Tattoli
Beth Thomas
Girija Tropp
J.A. Tyler
Anne Valente
Ben White
Bess Winter
Robley Wilson
Kate Wyer
Anne Valente
Donna D. Vitucci
xTx
Mercedes Yardley
Salvatore Zoida

Monday, December 27, 2010

COUNTDOWN: FIFTEEN BEST TRACKS OF 2010

15. All Saints Day, "You Can't Be Alone" (from S/T)

Bent-up, low-fi would-be anthem. I pretty much love this shit.

(free download @ One Track Mind)

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14. Kurt Vile, "Invisibility: Nonexistent" (from the SQUARE SHELLS ep)

Kurt Vile is easily the musician I'd most like to get stoned with.

(free download @ Hippies Are Dead)

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13. Japandroids, "Younger Us" (from the YOUNGER US 7")

Great song. Soundwise they channel The Replacements here, which makes frontman Brian King's unhealed nostalgia seem right.

(free download via Pitchfork)

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12. Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, "I Learned the Hard Way" (from I LEARNED THE HARD WAY)

Amy Winehouse might not have reminded you how great Motown was, but Sharon Jones will.

(free download @ Aquarium Drunkard)

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11. Japanther, "Spread So Thin" (from ROCK 'N ROLL ICE CREAM)

It hasn't ever taken that much to make a great pop song. Just oooo's and electricity.

(free download @ 5 Acts)

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10.(tie) The Black Keys, "Tighten Up" (from BROTHERS); Best Coast, "Boyfriend" (from CRAZY FOR YOU)

I hope The Black Keys never stop pretending that rock n' roll hasn't come and gone. Best Coast's CRAZY FOR YOU was one of my favorite albums of the year; this song was the most embarrassing for a grown heterosexual man to be caught singing.

(free download @ Passion of the Weiss; other free download @ Culture Bully)

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9. Doug Paisley, "End of the Day" (from CONSTANT COMPANION)

There were good wooden songs by Black Mountain and Blitzen Trapper in Twenty Ten. But this was the best. Dude's Canadian, may sort of remind you of Neil.

(video @ youtube)

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8. Gil Scott-Heron, "Me and the Devil" (from I'M NEW HERE)

Here's how happy I am to see Gil again:

Gil! Gil! Gil! Gil! Gil!

(free download via Stranger Dance)

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7. Perfume Genius, "Mr. Peterson" (from LEARNING)

A spare, churchly requiem. "He let me smoke weed in his truck." That line instantly puts it in my top ten. "He made me a tape of Joy Division." Or maybe that one.

(free download via Captain Obvious)

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6. The Arcade Fire, "Ready to Start" (from THE SUBURBS)

From a top-three album of the year. Lots of great songs on it; had a hard time choosing.

(free download via ListenBeforeYouBuy)

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5. Blair, "Hello Halo" (from DIE YOUNG)

Most underappreciated release of the year. Yeah, she's kind of nineties, but this song—thing of genius. "Don't know what I'm sayin, don't know what I'm sayin, don't know what I'm sayin, don't know what I'm sayin…Got a radio in my head…." Becomes a pop song about writing pop songs.

(free download via Das Kleinicum)

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4. Sleigh Bells, "Rill Rill" (from TREATS)

In-fect-ious.

Braces?

What about them? She's all about them.

(free download @ The Stark Online)

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3. Deerhunter, "Desire Lines" (from HALCYON DIGEST)

Who's better than Deerhunter?

Rhetorical question.

(free download @ Covert Curiosity)

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2. Kanye West, "Runaway" (from MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY)

Will probably always remember seeing the premiere of this at the close of this year's VMA's.

Drama from persona. What it's all about.

(video @ youtube)

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1. No Age, "Fever Dreaming" (from EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN)

Louder. Louder. Louder.

(free download @ Pitchfork)

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

My 2010 Best Of's @ The Big Other

Sometimes I wish it were called The Big Otter. My fingers would prefer typing that, it seems. The Big Otter.

I did a list of twelve. I wrote it kind of like a story, not really knowing what was going to be on it. But don't let me undermine it. This is a very important list.

(It's up w/ some others--by Norman Lock, K. Sparling, J. Iredell, and K. Sampsell)

Trailer for UNFINISHED

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

U5


The arrival of this has pre-empted all other reading.

It's, like, really good. Really.

It's not quite as long as the last one. I'm on page 100 or so, and I'm more aware this time: the pleasure is going to run out.

My story in it, "Dermatographism," is right now one of my own favorites of mine. One reason--and I was saying this to fellow contributor/rising star Luke Goebel the other day: I like the end of it more than the beginning. (Usually I like my beginnings the best.)

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Another Swell Pre-Order


This one, from Jaded Ibis, is going to be an amazing thing.

To finish an somebody's unfinished story--this would imply a hand-off, would imply, as a result, a story of halves, with a visible seam.

But you won't find one, a seam. Lily Hoang took my start--a story I'd called "Eight Ball"--and exploded it from the inside, put new stuff in the air. So then finishing it--this seemed, to both of us, more possible.

Can't wait to read the whole book, which includes Lily's 'finishings' of stories by Kate Bernheimer, Blake Butler, Beth Couture, Debra Di Blasi, Justin Dobbs, Trevor Dodge, Zach Dodson, Brian Evenson, Carol Guess, Elizabeth Hildreth, John Madera, Ryan Manning, Michael Martone, Kelcey Parker, Ted Pelton, Kathleen Rooney, Davis Schneiderman, Michael Stewart, and J.A. Tyler.