This post was inspired by Dan’s secret blog. Go ahead. Look for it. It’s there somewhere! (Speaking of secret blogs, Nora feels that she may have made hers a bit too secret for anyone to see. Drop by and leave her a comment; it’d make her wag her tail.)

Not to rehash Dan’s post, but I really like his list.

1. I borrowed the A. C. Newman album, and it’s good, really good. 2. Who could argue with him about Belle and Sebastian’s Dear Catastrophe Waitress? No one. 3. I’d really like to hear the Nillson, Lennon, Moon, and Starr album. I can’t wait for Dan to get back from Bolivia. How did I not know about that record? 4. And of course, my favorite album right now is still The Shins: Chutes Too Narrow. My favorite quote from Dan? “What else can be said about an album that's so untouchably good? If that album fought God, it would probably win.”

Now here’s my list:

I just got Wilco’s new one: A Ghost is Born, and wasn’t sure about it at first. After a few listens however, I’m starting to like it. It’s a big departure from their last album: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. It’s a combination of their non-country pop sound and Buffalo Springfield era Neil Young guitar playing: lots of extended guitar solos with three or four notes repeating for minutes on end. I don’t usually get into the long hippie style jam thing, but there’s something different here, and it is a great contrast to their straight pop style, which is also a big part of the whole project. The crazy combination of sounds makes for a good complete album rather than just a collection of straight pop tunes. I’m not sure, but I think I’ll be listening to this one for quite a while.

After only two listens, I really like the new Sonic Youth: Sonic Nurse. The second track, "Unmade Bed", is really good stuff. This album kind of pushes the envelope for them; it is soft and layered, more mature sounding than their past albums. The songs are longer and less full of those gritty “Dirty Boots” hooks than usual. The fact that they are still innovating and changing is amazing. I mean, how much more ground do they need to break? They are one of the seminal bands of all time. They could remake the same album ten times, slap on new album art for each one, and still be way ahead of the curve for influencing rock, pop, and punk bands alike.

I’ve also rediscovered (for the ninetieth time) The Flaming Lips. I have long thought that The Soft Bulletin was one of the greatest albums ever, but lately I’ve been playing the crap out of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. When that album first came out, I thought it was ok, but nothing compared to The Soft Bulletin. Now I’m wondering how I could have dismissed it so easily. We even downloaded some exclusive remix stuff from I-tunes. I love those guys. Their music is so unpretentious and good-natured that it makes me giddy just listening to them. I want them to make a new album now! More distorted drums and bass please!

Ruby’s favorite is still Bonnie Prince Billy, but she’s moved from Greatest Palace Music to Master and Everyone. It’s a quiet album. She feels very comfortable when we listen to it, and it often rivals the blow dryer for sheer calming power. It works the same way for me. I had heard some of the Palace Brothers stuff years ago, but didn’t think much about Will Oldham until Justin made a mix disc with Johnny Cash’s cover of I See A Darkness. Good stuff.

It had been a few years since Ani and I had listened to much new music. Neither of us has ever been fond of top 40 radio drivel, and somehow the circles in which we ran had become less and lessinterested in music. It’s tough to keep up when I don’t hear new stuff at work or school like when I was a kid. This past year or so, we have both made a concerted effort to renew our love of music. With a lot of help from Dan’s MP3 player, Ani’s Ipod purchase, and Richard’s ordering power at Soundwave, we’ve managed to build and rebuild our collection substantially. I’m glad that Ruby will be surrounded with music rather than TV (except for movies and sports... she's gotta have her share of those). Sing Ruby, sing!