List your choices of the best albums of 2006 and let me know...

 

 

I'm starting to prepare to my list of "The best albums of 2006". I'm curious about your choice. If you're free, maybe you like to write it down and let me know your choices. You can left messages on my message board or email to: echen812@hotmail.com

 

Thanks!

 

 

Uncut
1. Modern Times by Bob Dylan 
2. White Bread Black Beer by Scritti Politti 
3. Avatar by Comets On Fire 
4. Ys by Joanna Newsom 
5. Living With War by Neil Young 
6. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys 
7. The Trials Of Van Occupanther by Midlake 
8. The Warning by Hot Chip 
9. The Avalanche by Sufjan Stevens 
10. The Eraser by Thom Yorke 

 

Stylus
1. Fishscale by Ghostface Killah 
2. The Warning by Hot Chip 
3. Silent Shout by The Knife
4. Return To Cookie Mountain by TV On The Radio 
5. Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse 
6. Orchestra Of Bubbles by Ellen Allien & Apparat 
7. Boys And Girls In America by The Hold Steady 
8. Dedication 2 by Lil' Wayne & DJ Drama 
9. So This Is Goodbye by Junior Boys 
10. Ys by Joanna Newsom 

 

Spin
1. Return To Cookie Mountain by TV On The Radio 
2. St. Elsewhere by Gnarls Barkley 
3. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys 
4. Fishscale by Ghostface Killah 
5. Welcome To The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance 
6. Ys by Joanna Newsom 
7. The Greatest by Cat Power
8. Okonokos by My Morning Jacket 
9. Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse 
10. The Information by Beck 

 

Q
1. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys 
2. Black Holes & Revelations by Muse 
3. Razorlight by Razorlight 
4. Stadium Arcadium by Red Hot Chili Peppers 
5. Sam's Town by The Killers 
6. Under The Iron Sea by Keane 
7. Modern Times by Bob Dylan 
8. Empire by Kasabian 
9. Ta-Dah by Scissor Sisters
10. St. Elsewhere by Gnarls Barkley

 

Rolling Stone 
1. Modern Times by Bob Dylan 
2. Stadium Arcadium by Red Hot Chili Peppers 
3. Rather Ripped by Sonic Youth 
4. Return To Cookie Mountain by TV On The Radio 
5. Fishscale by Ghostface Killah 
6. The Greatest by Cat Power
7. Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse 
8. Boys And Girls In America by The Hold Steady 
9. Blood Mountain by Mastodon 
10. Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards by Tom Waits

 

Prefix
1. Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse 
2. Return To Cookie Mountain by TV On The Radio 
3. Scale by Matthew Herbert 
4. Drum's Not Dead by Liars 
5. Ys by Joanna Newsom 
6. Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards by Tom Waits
7. Donuts by J Dilla 
8. Modern Times by Bob Dylan 
9. Fox Confessor Brings The Flood by Neko Case 
10. Doctor's Advocate by The Game 

 

Pitchfork
1. Silent Shout by The Knife
2. Return To Cookie Mountain by TV On The Radio 
3. Ys by Joanna Newsom 
4. Fishscale by Ghostface Killah 
5. Boys And Girls In America by The Hold Steady 
6. Drum's Not Dead by Liars 
7. Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse 
8. Yellow House by Grizzly Bear 
9. Pink by Boris 
10. The Drift by Scott Walker 

 

Observer Music Monthly 
1. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys 
2. Savane by Ali Farka Toure 
3. Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards by Tom Waits
4. Damaged by Lambchop 
5. Back To Black by Amy Winehouse
6. Modern Times by Bob Dylan 
7. Ys by Joanna Newsom 
8. Fishscale by Ghostface Killah 
9. Jarvis by Jarvis Cocker 
10. Alright, Still by Lily Allen 

 

 

The 30 Best-Reviewed Albums of the Year so far

list/Album/Artist/Year/Score

1 Savane by Ali Farka Toure  2006 94
2 Tropicalia: A Brazilian Revolution In Sound by Various Artists  2006 93
3 Modern Times by Bob Dylan  2006 88
4 Return To Cookie Mountain by TV On The Radio 2006 87
5 Fishscale by Ghostface Killah 2006 87
6 Destroyer's Rubies by Destroyer 2006 87
7 Boys And Girls In America by The Hold Steady 2006 86
8 The Town And The City by Los Lobos 2006 86
9 DFA Remixes: Chapter 1 by The DFA 2006 86
10 Estudando o Pagode by Tom Zé 2006 85
11 'Sno Angel Like You by Howe Gelb 2006 85
12 Taiga by OOIOO 2006 85
13 The Crane Wife by The Decemberists 2006 85
14 The Drift by Scott Walker 2006 84
15 I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass by Yo La Tengo 2006 84
16 Roots & Crowns by Califone 2006 84
17 Serena-Maneesh by Serena-Maneesh 2006 83
18 Black Cadillac by Rosanne Cash 2006 83
19 Fox Confessor Brings The Flood by Neko Case 2006 83
20 The Letting Go by Bonnie "Prince" Billy 2006 83
21 Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys 2006 82
22 Donuts by J Dilla aka Jay Dee 2006 82
23 Game Theory by The Roots 2006 82
24 Like Red On A Rose by Alan Jackson 2006 82
25 Blood Mountain by Mastodon 2006 82
26 Okonokos [Live] by My Morning Jacket 2006 82
27 Food & Liquor by Lupe Fiasco 2006 82
28 Morph The Cat by Donald Fagen 2006 82
29 Bang Bang Rock & Roll by Art Brut 2006 82
30 Through The Windowpane by Guillemots 2006 81

 

Apple's iTunes Music Store has renewed its contracts with the four major labels, and the computer company's download service will hold the pricing line at 99 cents per track.

 

"We renewed our agreement with the major music companies, and we're pleased to continue offering iTunes customers music at 99 cents from our library of more than 3 million songs," an Apple spokesperson said. The company firmly declined further comment.

 

Apple's iTunes, which dominates download music sales with an estimated 80% market share, has been faced with complaints from the majors about its 99-cent pricing, which covers newly released music and back-catalog titles. Some label executives -- most notably WMG CEO Edgar Bronfman -- had agitated for variable pricing of Apple's downloads.

 

Apple CEO Steve Jobs shot back at one public forum last year that the labels' call for a different pricing structure was "greedy."

 

A spokesperson for EMI Music said the company does not comment on contractual matters. Sony BMG Music, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group did not return calls seeking comment.

 
One industry source noted that Apple has the ability to price its online music in whatever manner it sees fit, just as brick-and-mortar retailers set the price for CDs, and that the computer company's contracts with the majors address only the wholesale pricing of the labels' wares.

 

source:http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002426388

 

Global digital music sales figures are being officially reported for the first time today as part of IFPI's total world music sales statistics showing continuing growth in online and mobile music worldwide.

 

Record company trade revenues from digital sales globally nearly tripled in value, from $400 million to $US 1.1 billion in 2005. The total number of digital single tracks downloaded online or to mobile phones rose to 470 million units, up from 160 million in 2004. The US, Japan, UK, Germany and France are the top five digital markets. In general, countries with a greater percentage of digital sales are the strongest markets for music sales overall.

 

Digital sales are split roughly 50:50 between online and mobile at the global level, but there are big regional differences. In Japan and parts of continental Europe, mobile dominates the digital music market, while online sales are relatively stronger in markets such as the US, UK and Germany.

 

Master ringtones are currently the largest segment of the mobile market accounting for 87 per cent of mobile sales. However, new mobile formats such as full track downloads to mobile and music videos grew faster (180% increase in trade revenues) than master ringtones (120%).Most of the global online market comprises a-la-carte sales and is led by Apple's iTunes. Online a-la-carte downloads account for 86 per cent of online sales globally.

 

Overall recorded music sales (physical and digital) fell by three per cent in 2005. Global digital and physical sales totalled $US 21 billion in record companies' trade revenues. On a retail price basis, the global recorded music market is estimated to be worth $US 33 billion.

 

Singles sales (digital and physical) increased by more than 75 per cent globally in units in 2005. Singles are now largely a digital format, with digital singles (online downloads and full track downloads to mobile) accounting for three quarters of total singles sales, compared to 45 per cent in 2004.

 

Sales of physical formats fell by 6.7 per cent in value (record company trade revenues) and eight per cent in units. CD album sales were down six per cent in value and 3.4 per cent in units. DVD music video dropped by 4.3 per cent in value but remained flat in unit terms.

 

IFPI Chairman and CEO John Kennedy said: "The global music market is fast becoming a mixed economy in the way fans and consumers are buying their music. It is encouraging that the markets with the strongest digital sales are also generally the best performing markets overall. In Japan digital has already made up for the decline in physical sales, and other markets should go this way. Physical music sales declined again for a combination of reasons, including digital and physical piracy, competition from other entertainment products and the shift in consumer spending to online and mobile.

 

"In 2006 we expect to see continued growth online and more innovative mobile services attracting music fans into the legal digital market. All our member record companies are now aggressively licensing and marketing music in digital formats. IFPI will continue to promote this exciting new market, helping shape good copyright laws to support the market's growth and sustaining actions against music piracy."

IFPI sees China's actions against pirate disc plants as "a promising step"

The international recording industry today welcomed reports of stepped up action against pirate CD and DVD plants by the Chinese government and called for a sustained campaign of anti-piracy enforcement to control unacceptably high levels of piracy in China.

Reports from Beijing indicate that six CD and DVD plants have been shut down and production halted at eight other facilities. This follows stepped up requests from the US Government for the Chinese authorities to take meaningful steps to address the country's severe shortcomings in intellectual property enforcement.

China is a huge potential music market but has among the highest piracy levels in the world which are stunting the development of the indigenous Chinese industry and investment by the international community.

IFPI Chairman and CEO John Kennedy said: "I hope that the recent activity represents a promising signal that China is finally taking seriously the need to take meaningful enforcement action against piracy. These reports of concrete actions against disc plants represent a step in the right direction. To make a real difference, this must be the start of a sustained campaign rather than a sporadic offensive. There needs to be a continuous, consistent programme of enforcement, including inspections and closure of plants and criminal prosecution and deterrent penalties for pirates".

Notes to Editors

1. China has grown to become the second biggest legal market in Asia, but its piracy level is still among the highest in the world: over 85% of the units sold in the market are pirate. Legitimate sales of sound recordings stood at US$212 million in 2004), while pirate sales of sound recordings are estimated to be worth over US$400 million. Pressing capacity in China doubled from 2.4 billion units to 4.9 billion units in one year from 2003 to 2004.

2. These problems remain despite the fact that China joined the WTO in December 2001, and in so doing agreed to effectively enforce intellectual property rights. China is failing to live up to its international commitments

3. IFPI is the organisation that promotes the interests of the international recording industry worldwide. Its membership comprises over 1400 major and independent companies in more than 70 countries. It also has affiliated industry national groups in 48 countries. IFPI's mission is to fight music piracy; promote fair market access and good copyright laws; help develop the legal conditions and the technologies for the recording industry to prosper in the digital era; and to promote the value of music.

(IFPI)