Another Best of 2004 music list

I love lists and countdowns, whether they're stupid like most of the ones on VH1 and E! or even some sports rankings, like ESPN's 25th Anniversary rankings. Most of all, I love music lists, especially the end-of-year lists.

Since my years at WXYC, I've made my own end-of-year best of's. However, at the end of every year, I realize that there's so much music I've slept on, especially seeing other DJs' lists. So the lists I've made in the past never stay to be a true reflection of what I end up considering to be the best (or my favorite) releases of that year. This year it's even more pronounced for two reasons:

(1) I left XYC and Chapel Hill in June 2004. XYC has been the most valuable source of new releases (and music in general) for me for years, and with the exception of WFMU, there's not a better radio station in the world. (For those of you not in the know, listen online to both stations!) I still try to keep up as much as I can, reading reviews and releases online (and in some cases listening online). My favorite websites include: Aquarius Records, Forced Exposure, Eclipse Records, Dusted Magazine, Fake Jazz, and Foxy Digitalis. But it's still not the same as working at XYC.

(2) Perhaps even more significant than not working at XYC is that I have no job and no money to spend on records...only on food, (sometimes) alcohol, and (now sometimes) the girlfriend. The biggest reason I want and need money is to be able to buy music again at the frequency I want. I'm dying here, folks.

So here's what I got for my list of favorite releases of 2004. (FYI, I include what I deem worthy compilations (e.g., no label samplers) and reissues that aren't obvious and were nearly impossible to find before (i.e., no Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain or any Eno reissues).) Okay, so here's my fucking list as of right now:

1. V/A - Goodbye, Babylon box set (Dust-to-Digital) (technically released in Oct. 2003, but I didn't hear about it until 2004...besides I've seen this on others' 2004 lists)
2. Animal Collective - Sung Tongs (Fat Cat)
3. V/A - Ghana Soundz: Afro-beat, Funk and Fusion in 70's Ghana Vol. 2 (Soundway)
4. Amps for Christ - The People at Large (5 Rue Christine)
5. The Homosexuals - The Homosexuals CD (Recommended) and Astral Glamour (Messthetics)
6. Six Organ of Admittance - For Octovio Paz (Holy Mountain)
7. Arthur Russell - The World of Arthur Russell (Soul Jazz)
8. Madvillain - Madvillainy (Stone's Throw)
9. V/A - Bandwidth: Celebrating 10 Years of Internet Radio on WXYC-Chapel Hill (WXYC)
10. Kemialliset Ystavat - Alkuharka (Fonal)
11. Keith Hudson - Flesh of My Skin Blood of My Blood (Basic Replay)
12. Espers - S/T (Locust)
13. Ghostface - The Pretty Toney Album (Def Jam)
14. Black Dice - Miles of Smiles EP (DFA)
15. V/A - Thai Beat A Go-Go, Vol. 1 (Subliminal Sounds)
16. Jason Forrest - The Unrelenting Songs of the 1979 Post Disco Crash (Sonig)
17. Mahjongg - Machinegong EP (Cold Crush)
18. Boban Markovic Orkestar - Boban I Marko (Piranha)
19. Metal Urbain - Anarachy in Paris! (Acute)
20. Iron and Wine - Our Endless Numbered Days (Sub Pop)
21. Glenn Branca - Lesson No. 1 (Acute)
22. Konk - The Story of Konk (Soul Jazz)
23. Brian Wilson - Smile (Nonesuch)
24. Deerhoof - Milk Man (5 Rue Christine/Kill Rock Stars)
25. Lafayette Afro Rock Band - Soul Makossa (Hi & Fly)

Hon. Mention in alphabetical order:
Anything and everything from the Sublime Frequencies label
Bonnie "Prince" Billy - ...Sings Greatest Palace Music (Drag City)
Cold Sides - Perpetual Hypeness Machine EP (Freque NC)
Comets on Fire - Blue Cathedral (Sub Pop)
DNA - DNA on DNA (No More Records)
Danger Mouse - The Grey Album (self-released)
Ex-Girl - Endangered Species (Alternative Tentacles)
Fennesz - Venice (Touch)
Les Georges Leningrad - Sur les Traces de Black Eskimo (Alien8)
Noxagt - The Iron Point (Load)
Serge Gainsbourg - Aux Armes et Caetera (Sunnyside)
Snoop Dogg ft. Pharell - "Drop It Like It's Hot" single (Geffen)
Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans (Sounds Familyre)