Best

What better way to start 2007 than with a picture of my family looking great from 2006 (as least my stepson and wife do, I look like I'm pregnant and wearing a dress). This was from our West Virginia trip in August, standing before the New River Gorge Bridge. It looks like it could be our album cover.

If 2006 was anything about music, it was how overwhelming it was to listen to everything. A couple of posts down I linked to lists of different best-ofs, and it has gotten truly dizzying. The big consensus winners, TV on the Radio and the Hold Steady, were good enough, but it just seems like I've still got so much stuff to listen to that I haven't even tackled yet. I've found that the anachronistically-titled "mixtapes" have been a guiding light, like a good radio station. This fellow in particular usually puts up some of the best.

This Monday, we're back on the year, with our own 2006 picks, as I've done every year for 17 years now. Since I'm only a half hour show, I have time for the top five (you know what number one is by now), but just for posterity's sake, here's some honorable mentions/top-6-10 in no order:

Scritti Politti, White Bread, Black Beer; Tom Waits, Orphans (I'm not sure if this is considered a "new" release, compilation, reissue, box set?); Hot Chip, The Warning; Yo La Tengo, I'm Not Afraid of You and I can't Say the Title on the air; Lily Allen, Alright, Still.

As for the rest, tune in Monday and find out, I'll put them up here next week.

There's been some labels this year that have really made me take notice as well. I always love the stuff from the Toronto area labels, Arts & Crafts and Paper Bag, though they both seemed a little quieter this year. (Update: actually looking back, Paper Bag did have some awesome stuff like Tokyo Police Club and Under Byen, and Uncut...and the underrated See You On the Moon CD). Light in the Attic out of Seattle has been doing a great reissue program; their Jamaica to Toronto series has been one of the year's best surprises. But top honors go to Constellation out of Montreal, consistently uncompromising and beautifully packaged as well, with exciting stuff from Carla Bozulich, Lullabye Arkestra, Sandro Perri.... If they were a magazine, I'd subscribe to them.

There's a bunch of stuff for 2007 that I'm waiting for, and three of the most awaited I've already heard: Explosions in the Sky (their best yet); Do Make Say Think (outstanding, the next release from Constellation too), and Low (superb, though I suspect it'll piss more than a few fans off yet again). I'm looking forward to hearing the whole Of Montreal record as well, and should have the new Kristin Hersh any second.

No playlists yet, since I'm waiting to see what's accumulated at the station in my absence. There will be a special show devoted to three bands/artists that broke up in 2006: Rainer Maria, the Reputation, and of course most lamented Sleater-Kinney. Oh, and two other announcements: the 18th anniversary show on Mar. 5, and I'll be co-hosting with media star Jennifer V on New Wave Wednesday on Jan. 31, which I haven't done in too long a time.

As always, more later, sooner I hope. Peace.