On Heavy Rotation

What I've been listening to:

• Various Artists, A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector. A truly excellent album, Christmas or otherwise. The best album that you can only listen to in December. I've blogged about it before here. Darlene Love's "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" is almost as good as Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You."
  
• LCD Soundsystem, The Sound of Silver. One of the many albums I purchased at release, then ignored. A terrific "dance" album, reminiscent of Bowie, Lou Reed, and New Order. "Someone Great" or "All My Friends" (or both, perhaps) should have been on my list of the best songs of the decade.
• Hercules and Love Affair, Hercules and Love Affair. Another great dance album that doesn't play like a dance album. I think I made a mistake choosing "Hercules Theme" for my list and not "Blind." Oh well.
• Vampire Weekend, Vampire Weekend. I was late to this record. I think the Strokes' influence is a bit too pronounced. Still, I love the baroque instrumentation and song structures. The songs reveal their complexity with each subsequent play. Their new single, "Cousins," is also very good.
  
• Beck, Odelay. I played the hell out of this album from the beginning. The remastered version is worth purchasing, just for the sound of the album proper. I haven't given enough attention to the extra tracks. After all these years, the album still astounds.