I have been listening to a lot of Will Oldham / Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy lately. A lot. Most of this time was spent pouring through the depths of youtube uncovering gem after gem. During this marathon discovery session I found a gorgeous track called ‘Would You?’ by Holly Throsby, with guest vocals by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy. It’s just about the most beautiful song I’ve heard in a long time, and can be found on Throsby’s 2009 release, A Loud Call.

Buy: Holly Throsby – A Loud Call

For the remainder of 2009 we will be featuring albums that meant a lot to us this decade. I have really enjoyed spending quality time with my record collection and not just what is new and current. One thing this collection will not be is all-encompassing. We will be deliberately leaving out some of the universal favorites (Kid A, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Funeral, etc) because you’ll see them everywhere, and the last thing we want to do is state the obvious.

Instead, this collection will very much an outlet for us to share/discuss our favorites over the past 10 years with a focus on albums that we feel have been overlooked in the lists we’ve seen roll out this far.

______________________________________________________

Andrew Bird | The Mysterious Production of Eggs (2005)

A true sign that an album is one of the best of the decade is that it’s still in steady rotation amongst your record collection. Some years your favorite albums stay stuck in time and you never really go back to them once January arrives. It’s not enough to say that Andrew Bird’s The Mysterious Production of Eggs one of my favorite albums of the decade, it’s far more than that for me. It’s one of my all-time favorite records. Arriving in 2005, a year ripe with many great releases, this album made me a full-fledged fan of Andrew Bird forever. The type of fan that gets excited about news of an upcoming album, that buys tickets in advance to shows when announced, and, on many occasions, spends even more at the merchandise table on the night of the show.

Being a fan of Andrew Bird means you’re never let down – both on record and in concert. While I’ve never since loved an album of Bird’s outright like The Mysterious Production of Eggs, I’ve always enjoyed the records that came after. Below, you’ll find a few songs that I highlighted as favorites, though I may as well have said front-to-back, because this album is truly supreme from beginning to end. These are the songs that always bring a smile to my face when I hear them. This is a record that I own several copies of on multiple formats. I’ve given this record as a gift and feel it is a safe recommendation to almost anyone. If you own this record I hope reading this makes you want to listen to it again. If you don’t own this record, I hope reading this makes you want to add it to your collection. It’s that good.

Best Live Show I Saw: High Noon Saloon, Madison (2006)
Best Tracks: “Fake Palindromes” “A Nervous Tic” “Skin” “Masterfade” & “Measuring Cups”

++
Buy: Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs

++ Keep up with our Best Albums of the Decade by bookmarking this page ++

Fans of Sunset Rubdown and Wolf Parade will want to check out Moonface, whose new Dreamland EP: marimba and shit-drums arrived mysteriously today via Santa aka @Jagjaguwar. The EP clocks in just over 20 minutes and is available as a pay-what-you-want, high quality (flac) digital download. Spencer Krug is a busy guy.

Download: Moonface :: Dreamland EP: marimba and shit-drums

There have been a number of just announced concerts that I’ve added to the Muzzle of Bees Shows Page. We are now housing all Madison, Milwaukee, and Chicago shows on a single show page. We’ve made sure to clearly denote what cities each show is taking place. It makes for a lot more manageable and updated schedule. We’re pretty excited about it, please make sure to bookmark it.

Just Announced:

1/26 – Langhorne Slim – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaukee
2/13 – .357 String Band – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaukee
2/13 – Cory Chisel + Dawes + Jason Boesel – Der Rathskeller, Madison
2/14 – Cory Chisel + Dawes + Jason Boesel – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaukee
2/19 – Cracker Unplugged – High Noon Saloon, Madison
2/20 – Sondre Lerche + JBM – The Frequency, Madison
2/21 – Sondre Lerche + JBM – Shank Hall, Milwaukee
2/24 – Alec Ounsworth (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah) – High Noon Saloon, Madison
2/28 – Laura Veirs – The Frequency, Madison
3/14 – Ted Leo and the Pharmacists – High Noon Saloon, Madison
3/16 – The Clientele – High Noon Saloon, Madison
3/16 – RJD2 – Majestic Theatre, Madison
3/18 – The Big Pink + A Place to Bury Strangers – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaukee
3/25 – Cowboy Junkies – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaukee
4/04 – David Bazan + Headlights – Pabst Theater, Madison
4/28 – Yeasayer – Majestic Theatre, Madison

For the remainder of 2009 we will be featuring albums that meant a lot to us this decade. I have really enjoyed spending quality time with my record collection and not just what is new and current. One thing this collection will not be is all-encompassing. We will be deliberately leaving out some of the universal favorites (Kid A, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Funeral, etc) because you’ll see them everywhere, and the last thing we want to do is state the obvious.

Instead, this collection will very much an outlet for us to share/discuss our favorites over the past 10 years with a focus on albums that we feel have been overlooked in the lists we’ve seen roll out this far.

______________________________________________________

Gillian Welch | Soul Journey (2003)

The first half of this decade found me growing roots as a fan of alt-country and Americana. It was the golden age of discovery with artists like Wilco, Ryan Adams, Steve Earle, and Drive-By Truckers leading the way with a steady output of brilliance. I followed and investigated each of them, tracing their influences and, in turn, uncovering the artists they influenced, developing my musical family tree along the way out of a handful of favorite artists. The one artist I came to enjoy before any of those was Gillian Welch, who I came to know thanks to the wonderful staff at B-Side Records in Madison.

You simply can’t go wrong with the catalog that Gillian Welch has assembled, though many (myself included) continue to wish/hope for a new release sooner than later, we are fortunate to have albums like Time (The Revelator) and, my favorite (her forth), Soul Journey to satiate us for another decade – they’re simply that great.

Gillian Welch hasn’t completely disappeared. You can catch her on tour with her long-time collaborator David Rawlings, who on a nightly basis hands the reigns over to Welch who gently to ushers jaws to the ground with songs like “Look at Miss Ohio” and “Wreaking Ball.” In our opinion, no legitimate collection of the decade’s best musical recordings is complete without giving accolades to Gillian Welch.

Best Live Show I Saw: Austin City Limits (2008) | Dave Rawlings Machine (2009)
Best Tracks: “Look at Miss Ohio” & “Wreaking Ball”
++
Buy: Soul Journey

++ Keep up with our Best Albums of the Decade by bookmarking this page ++

In September Langhorne Slim was in town staying with drummer Malachi DeLorenzo for a few days before heading out on tour supporting their fantastic new album, Be Set Free. We previously shared “Land of Dreams,” the first installment of our multiple part video series that we were fortunate to capture in between radio appearances and a performance at the Exclusive Co. This time through, we’ve got the title track, “Be Set Free.” Enjoy!

Previously: Muzzle of Bees Video: Langhorne Slim – “Land of Dreams”

Buy: Langhorne Slim – “Be Set Free”
Video/Edit: Erik Ljung