For me 2005 was a great year for music (and other things). I saw some great shows back in Chapel Hill and Europe (but thats another list). I got to play a show at the Nightlight in July with some friends before I skipped town. I had a song on a compilation put out by my friend Brian Miller's label, broken fader cartel. I got to contribute some sounds and spoken word to the defunct Other Nature's shining masterpiece. The Tarheels won it all and I met Jerry Stackhouse at Linda's. All in all it was a good year, so here is my list of best albums of 2005:

1. Animal Collective - Feels (pawtracks)
2. Gang Gang Dance - God’s Money (the social registry)
3. Architecture in Helsinki - In Case We Die (Bar/None)
4. Nada Surf - The Weight is a Gift (Barzuk)
5. Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary (SUB POP)
6. Thuja - Pine Cone Temples (Strange Attractors)
7. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois (ASTHMATIC KITTY)
8. No-Neck Blues Band - Qvaris (5 Rue Christine)
9. The Books - Lost and Safe (TOMLAB)
10. The Skygreen Leopards - Life & Love in Sparrow’s Meadow (Jagjaguwar)
11. Greg Davis and Sebastien Roux – Paquet Surprise (CARPARK)
12. Decemberists - The Decemberists Present "Picaresque" (KILL ROCK STARS)
13. Of Montreal - The Sunlandic Twins (POLYVINYL)
14. Boards of Canada-The Campfire Headphase (WARP)
15. Beck – Guero (Geffen)
16. other nature – awakentime (self-released)
17. New Pornographers - Twin Cinema (MATADOR)
18. V/A the collective polycarbonate release (broken fader cartel)
19. Six Organs of Admittance - School of the Flower (DRAG CITY)
20. Why? - Elephant Eyelash (ANTICON)

integrity is the Word of the Year for 2005 according to the number of hits on Merriam Webster's Online Dictionary (which I personally abuse all the time) . I am not sure how to feel about this. It is a very respectable word and all that but I don't like there are so many people with a vague idea of what it means. Well they know now! THANKS 2005 you're the BEST, you taught the world what integrity means! Not quite.
Still narrowing down the top albums of 2005 for my entry into the wxyc masterlist. I made a smart playlist on itunes with only music from 2005 and put in on shuffle. Then on Gmail I can scan through the weekly wxyc emails (that are stored in their own label, so i don't have to look at them if i don't want to) of the top 100 records that got played that week and see what the others DJs liked. Computers are great for music dorks like me.

Mechanical Bird

extrapool 8/12/05
Originally uploaded by leni2250.

This is not the best photo for detail, but inside this glass dome there is a automated bird that moves its head and sings when the crank is turned. In the back there is a control for the pitch and speed. Truly awesome!