the music that keeps me going.

In the spirit of all the end-of-year best-of lists, I have been thinking for a while now about the music that I just can't do without... not a top ten list, but a list of the albums that have affected me most powerfully... my own "best of" list, albums that have stood the test of time for me.




Good Dog Bad Dog - Over the Rhine (1996, reissued 2000)
A masterpiece, simply put. I could listen for hours at a time and never be any less affected by Karin's haunting voice. Songwriting has never been so honest and potent.



Sixpence None the Richer - Sixpence None the Richer (1997)
The triple-whammy, three-bleeding-into-one trinity of opening songs captivates me every time I listen to it... it's a damn shame that "Kiss Me" (though a wonderfully sweet pop song) ended up killing the band and overshadowing what is otherwise a very different feeling album. Remove "Kiss Me" and you have a very different masterpiece of poetic, wandering musings about faith, despair, hope, and hard reality.


This Beautiful Mess- Sixpence None the Richer (1995)
This cd got me through high school. I still connect to it deeply each time I listen to it.


It's Hard to Find a Friend - Pedro the Lion (1998, reissue 2001)
Dave Bazan made it okay for many of us frustrated young Christian burnouts to struggle out loud with our faith. see: "The Secret of the Easy Yoke"




Christ is My Hope/Birds of My Neighborhood - Innocence Mission (2000/1999)
It's got to be a tie between these two cds, both of which have some of my favorites songs by this underrated and understated band.




to be continued...