Music: Top 40 Albums of 2007 -- 40-35

35) Josh Ritter – The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter does nothing fancy -- just straight ahead well-written rock songs, an expansive success where so many other artists (like Ben Harper) have come up short.
Here’s Josh Ritter performing “Mind’s Eye” live:


36) The Cribs – Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever
Famous friend Alex (Franz Ferdinand) Kaparos produces and tuneful spike britpop follows. What's not predictable are the sheer excellence of the songs or a collaboration with Lee Renaldo of Sonic Youth doing his beat poet word association thing.
Here’s the “Men’s Needs” video:


37) Deerhunter – Cryptograms
Tangent happy experimentalists recall Swell Maps in disregard for song structure and fascination with off-putting textures. Moodily mesmerizing.
Here’s the video for “Strange Lights”:


38) Mary Weiss – Dangerous Game
Hot cougar Mary Weiss was lead singer for 60s girl group legends The Shangri-La's. Her voice is a little huskier but no less alluring on this fine collection of new songs. Here's the video for “Don’t Come Back”…cougar-licious!



39) Devin Tha Dude – Waitin’ To Inhale
Marijuana enthusiast Devin gets with some slinky low down tracks on his latest album. Surprising and hilarious rhymes combine with killer grooves.
Here’s the Video for “I Can’t Wait” preceded by a silly crank call :


40) El –P - I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead
EL-P is pissed at the dystopian universe -- so he raps about it. The music is twisty and complex and so are the tales he tells.

Here’s the video for “Flyentology”