Will Markwardt of the Absent Arch: Favorite Albums of the Decade
It seems as though making a top five of the decade list may be similar to taking a starving child out to dinner. Everything looks good, but damn kid, we’re not made of money! He will spend two hours drinking his chocolate milk until he finally decides on the macaroni and cheese, unfortunately not sure if that’s what he really wants. Gotta decide eventually though, happy hour for the grow-ups ends in 10 minutes. How ’bout if he finishes his plate, he gets dessert? Let’s eat!
Drinks – The Acorn Glory Hope Mountain: Have you ever listened to an album so unbelievably much that you braced yourself for the moment when you got so burnt out on it, it didn’t even seem like music anymore and you were just bored? Thought so, happens to us all. Funny thing about this album though, that never happened: I listened and listened, waiting for the day it would spoil and it never did. Rolf Klausener is such a smooth writer there is never a single moment on this record that makes you cringe, say “eh” or break the flow of head bobbing. The things they do with percussion are so subtle but add more to this album than anything else. His brilliant lyrics somehow fit themselves around melodies so smoothly it never sounds forced. Them Canadians know how to make ‘em. [Purchase]
Free bread – World’s End Girlfriend Dreams End Come True: I once almost spent the Japanese equivalent of $60 plus an enormous amount for shipping and handling on this album. My hesitations set in when not only was this the only site I could find this album for sale, but it was in Japanese and I spent half my time there closing pop-up adds. Highly questionable. I would later find it for much cheaper, on an English website, with no pop-ups within clicking distance. [Purchase]
World’s End Girlfriend is the one-man project of Katsuhiko Maeda. Armed with only a guitar and some ridiculous noise creating mechanisms and pedals, this guy will blow your face off and then put it back together again over the course of any of his six 25 minute epics. Dreams End Come True is the perfect example of what Maeda is capable of. It’s coordinated chaos amidst some of the coolest rhythmic decisions I’ve heard in quite a while. Ear piercing noise sharing a space with beautiful arrangements. I think the only album of his that ever made it to the states was a split record he did with Mono (Palmless Prayer/Mass Murder Refrain) which is average to say the least. Yet, Dreams End Come True is worth any amount of money you can throw at it, if it still exists for purchase on the interweb.
[Note: If anybody is going to Japan anytime soon, snag me a copy. Mine is pretty beat up.]
Appetizer – Sigur Rós ( ): I mean, c’mon! How do they do it? The “light at the end of the tunnel” album for my college years. This album continues to give me goose bumps and most likely always will. Nothing can come close to seeing Sigur Rós’ live and no show will ever top seeing them on tour supporting this album. ( ) is an experience everyone should have. Take some time out to sit down with a drink, lay back and throw this one on. Although I’m sure many of you have already. I will say no more. [Purchase]
First course – Sun Kil Moon Ghosts of the Great Highway: So many stories to go along with this album. Road trips, tragedies, relationships, break-ups, fuck ups, inspiration, motivation, restoration, life… as it goes. I had a daily ritual for years. A ritual that involved listening to this album every single day of my life. Whether it be at work, at home, in bed, driving, walking, drinking, reading, thinking, sneezing. It’s a cyclical album with a cyclical story for the cyclical life of anyone who’s willing to give it a chance. Absolute beauty in music form. One of the most relaxing and powerful albums I’ve ever heard. I called it the greatest album of all time, until I heard my final choice for top five albums of the decade. [Purchase]
Main course – Elephant Micah Hindu Windmills: Joe O’Connell is the greatest songwriter of our generation, period. No questions asked. Give the man his trophy. An underrated and generally unknown genius who resides from Indiana. An idol of mine for years and one who I can humbly say with a giddy stutter in my voice, have met and played a few shows with.
The first time I met Joe we did a show together at Augsburg College back in 2006. Which because of him, was the reason I would meet my now great friend and musical companion Will Garrison of Spirits of the Red City. Not only did that night secure what would become a great friendship and, in turn, the reason I’m still playing music, but it was also the night I would purchase the greatest album to ever grace my ears.
Hindu Windmills had just come out and I was lucky enough to get one of the last hand-made vinyl copies. The effortlessness in his voice, a sort of soft swoon that can float just above any instrument you throw at it, with a range that anyone would be envious of. His guitar arrangements that will leave you in awe. Meticulous alternate tunings and half-step drops. The way he twists his words around chords. Everything. Everything.
I’ve spent years trying to figure out how one man can write as perfect as he does. I could replace this album for any number of his others but this one definitely stands above the rest. The fact that he isn’t selling out theaters across the world is a sin.
Dessert (’cause I know the meal is over but I just need to tack on a few more pounds [honorable mentions]):
Super Furry Animals Rings Around the World [Purchase]
Rhys Chatham A Crimson Grail (For 400 Electric Guitars) [Purchase]
Guided By Voices Isolation Drills [Purchase]
Lucero That Much Further West [Purchase]
Elephant Micah And the Agrarian Malaise
Duo 505 Late [Purchase]