08. Lily Allen - Alright, Still
In the battle of the British songstresses, I found Lily’s album the most enjoyable. Her ability to take a relationship or a situation and completely skewer it with some of the most hilariously bitter lyrics of the year makes Alright, Still the best choice among the anti-Valentine set. I enjoyed Amy Winehouse, but her problems are ones I can’t identify with. Having my heart broken and finally standing up for myself is something I can get behind. “Smile”, “Not Big”, and “Shame On You” are great dedications to the ones you hate. Lily Allen sees to the heart and rips it out to show you the pain as it bleeds on the ground, but in an entertaining way.

Favorite songs: “LDN”, “Friday Night”, “Alfie”

“LDN”

07. Jarvis Cocker - Jarvis
Even though Jarvis proclaimed his band Pulp defunct, he continues to write some of the most profound music about the state of the world and the state of the heart. He’s always been one to put life under a microscope, but his first solo album seems to zoom out a bit. There is the wake-up call “Running The World”, but this time Jarvis has concentrated on an examination of that feeling called love. He has even tried his hand at sampling. “Black Magic” makes heavy use of Tommy James and the Shondells’s “Crimson And Clover” to great effect. Here is a Brit who has no qualms about saying what he feels and those who enjoy great music should take the time to listen.

Favorite songs: “Don’t Let Him Waste Your Time”, “Black Magic”, “Running The World”

“Don’t Let Him Waste Your Time”

See the entire list on the 2007 page.

Tonight is Monkey’s Uncle’s annual holiday gift show. All the money we make will be donated to the Colorado Coalition For The Homeless because we like to give more than just the funny. The show starts at 7:30 pm at Jazz@Jack’s in the Denver Pavilions — only $6!

In the meantime, we updated our pre-show Holiday Mix which I finished last night. It has lots of little surprises mixed in with the music. You can see the track listing here. Please enjoy.

Monkey’s Uncle 2007 Holiday Mix - 1:16:53 (70.3MB)

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For a limited time you can download it or hear it on Web Pen Blog Radio.

Listening to: “Amateur (Live)” - Aimee Mann

10. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
Going for a harder-edge this time around, Icky Thump sounds like it could have been released in the 70’s on 8-track. The title track has the most intensity and most delicious guitar lick of anything I’ve heard this year. Yet with all this crunchy guitar, Jack and Meg haven’t forgotten rock’s roots and kept things very bluesy as well. In fact, two of the songs on the album have the word ‘blues’ in their title. They have also continued their genre-mixing and the track that stands out here is the Ennio Morricone-inspired remake, “Conquest” — so much so that you expect Clint Eastwood’s Blondie character to show up in the video.

Favorite songs: “Icky Thump”, “Conquest”, “Little Cream Soda”

“Icky Thump”

09. Imperial Teen - The Hair The TV The Baby & The Band
When Imperial Teen released Seasick in 1996 to almost universal acclaim, you would think that their brand of 50’s-inspired girl/boy rock pop would be a hit. As much as wildfire success as eluded them, it hasn’t stopped them making some incredibly fun and catchy tunes. The title of this album comes from the history of what the four members did between albums, but that hiatus did nothing to detract from their ability to come up with simple ditties that stick in the head. Just give “Do It Better” a listen and you’ll see why. This is a must for anyone who loves good guitar pop.

Favorite songs: “Do It Better”, “One Two”, “Room With A View”

“Do It Better (Live)”

12. Siouxsie - Mantaray
There were several new albums by the matriarchs of pop music including Deborah Harry and Annie Lennox, but none were more interesting than the first solo album by the Queen of Goth herself, Siouxsie Sioux. Mantaray follows in the pop vein of the last few Banshees album, but being solo allows her to experiment with different sounds. “Here Comes That Day” could have been a James Bond theme while “About To Happen” could have been a huge hit in the ’80’s. While her peers are disappearing into adult-fare, Siouxsie is still playing around and having a blast.

Favorite songs: “Into A Swan”, “Here Comes That Day”, “Sea of Tranquility”

“Into A Swan”

11. The Chemical Brothers - We Are The Night
A return back to more basics for the boys, We Are The Night is a less heavy on guest stars and more focused on atmosphere much like their fourth album Come With Us. The tone is dark even with the hilarious “The Salmon Dance” with its nature lesson including how salmon die. This makes sense as ‘night’ is part of the title. An exception to this is the first single, “Do It Again”. Happy and bouncy, the song at times sounds too much like “Sexyback”, but that doesn’t detract from it’s overall groovitude. Nevertheless, the album is a great ‘headphones’ chill-out collection.

Favorite songs: “Do It Again”, “The Salmon Dance”, “Burst Generator”

“The Salmon Dance”