Well, another year is drawing to a close. People are gearing up for the holidays and it’s almost time to start creating your New Year’s resolution list. But before we begin looking to the future, let’s employ a different kind of list to help us appreciate the past. You know what I’m talking about. Yep, a Top Ten list! Each day I’m going to publish a different editor’s Top 10 albums of 2010 list for you to praise, completely disagree with, or just outright ignore.
Today’s list comes from Brittles Rixon, who leads the Dying Scene effort “Deeown Unda” (that means Australia in American). You can check out her picks for the 10 Best Albums of 2010 right here.
The list business is fickle. I have trouble remembering the song that I listened to a minute ago let alone the albums I was spinning 11 months ago. That reminds me, I should really stop binge drinking next year. Anyway, there have been so many great releases by so many talented bands that to really decide the results I’d like to get them all together and have a riff off and/or a fight to the death type scenario go down in my living room, but since that wont be happening, here’s my list completely based on the mood I’m in right now.
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1. The Flatliners – “Cavalcade”
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I hate this band. It may be because I managed to catch them three times this year and every live set left me more impressed than the previous one. It might be because the guys are the nicest Canadians walking the planet. It might be because they continue to grow and move punk rock in a direction that it needs to go. It might be because structurally, Cavalcade is perfectly sound, perfectly executed and written with wisdom far beyond their years. I guess what I’m trying to say is, I love this band, I love this album.
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2. The Decline – “I’m Not Gonna Lie To You”
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This album makes me happy, particularly in my pants. It’s now my main rebuttal when I enter a heated debate about the state of Australian punk. I win every argument and it’s all because of my pushy nature and the awesomeness of this album.
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3. Smoke Or Fire – “The Speakeasy”
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A recent addition to my playlist but classic Smoke Or Fire. It’s got all the catchy hooks that you can expect from SoF. I think there comes a time for every long term listener where their appreciation of a bands music is overpowering and they could (probably) never do wrong. I’m at that point with this band. Smoke or Fire could release a cheesy Christmas album and I’d still think it was hot shit.
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4. The Gamits – “Parts”
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The Gamits made it in because I listen to this album a lot when I’m walking, usually to nowhere in particular but it’s a great album to charge along to. I think it’s the ‘whoas’. Who doesn’t love busting out a completely inappropriate whoa on the way to daily grind? Maybe it’s just me but this album is the best of 2010 to do it to.
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5. None More Black – “Icons”
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They’ve done it again and what they’ve done again is blistering. “I’m Warning You With Peace & Love” would be my top track of 2010. There, I said it!
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6. The Riot Before – “Rebellion”
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While I don’t think that this is the musical masterpiece that the band provided with “Fists Buried In Pockets”, it definitely stands on its own as one the more solid releases of 2010. Their evolution from Horseshoes & Hand Grenades to Rebellion is formidable.
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7. Mary Jane Kelly – “Like There’s No Tomorrow”
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These songs make me want to punch you. This is probably why my boss banned me from listening to it at work, along with my terrible attempts at air drumming. Just terrible.
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8. Lungs – “The Two Chief World Systems”
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If anyone out there is looking for proof that modern day punk music is more than out of tune singing to three chords than this album is it. It is enough to twist heads. Not an album to put on at the onset of a headache because it’ll make your ears bleed. Of all the albums I’ve listened to in 2010, this album requires the most concentration but the riffs per minute (RPM) meter is off the scale.
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9. Toe to Toe – “Arturo Gatti”
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I love how Toe to Toe keep trucking on year after year, never getting stale, never growing old. With Arturo Gatti they proved just why they are such an Australian powerhouse and why they’re so influential on many other great bands.
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10. Part Time Killer – “Fuck The World” EP
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It’s only 4 songs long but it’s fast from go to whoa and it never grows old. I notice something new or something I’d missed previously every time I listen.
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Honourable mentions go to:
Such Gold – “Pedestals”
The Wonder Years – “The Upsides”
Trash Talk – “Eyes & Nines”
Blacklist Royals – “Semperi Liberli”
The Gun Runners – “A Few Friends”
Anchors – “Bad Juju”
Bad Religion – “The Dissent of Man”
Stephen Egerton – “The Seven Degrees of Stephen Egerton”