Time for another best music of 2006 list. Here are my nominations for the ten best albums of the year. I should also mention that there is a mix tape floating around on BetA with my favorite track from each of these albums. Just one of the many benefits of joining the group.

1. Rodrigo y Gabriela, by Rodrigo y Gabriela

2. Garden Ruin, by Calexico

3. The Crane Wife, by The Decemberists

4. Let’s Get Out Of This Country, by Camera Obscura

5. The Greatest, by Cat Power

6. Ben Kweller, by Ben Kweller

7. The Gulag Orkestar, by Beirut

8. We Are the Pipettes, by The Pipettes

9. Everything All The Time, by Band of Horses

10. Show Your Bones, by Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Honorable Mention
Magic Potion, by The Black Keys
The Life Pursuit, by Belle and Sebastian
The Information, by Beck
(Leaked tracks and singles), by The Shins (this was too good not to mention)

If you missed it, here are links to the best of 2005 and the best of 2004 according to me. Did I forget anything? Correct me in the comments…

I was thrilled to find out today that the new iTunes incorporated a formerly independent program called CoverFlow. I had played with CoverFlow’s beta release a while back and sincerely hoped that it would eventually become a part of iTunes. Cover Flow allows you to browse through your albums by cover art. It uses some slick animation to turn iTunes into a visual digital jukebox where you can scroll through the art by dragging your mouse. It is amazing to see artwork that you have never seen before because you downloaded it instead of purchasing a cd. Seeing the album art is so enjoyable that you will want to add artwork to all the music in my collection that lacks a thumbnail. Actually, that is one of the new features of iTunes - it automatically adds artwork to your files. Awesome! With the visual delight that the new iTunes has brought to me today, I can’t help but reflect on the role design has played in my music listening habits…

I have a 10 gig, third generation iPod and I recently ran the iPod updater. Very soon after, my iPod is out of commission.

Is it too late for a best of 2004 list? Here are the ten best albums of 2004 with links to album reviews from Sound Design, the music review section of Be A Design Group.

There is a fun new site called A Flock of Segers. The idea is you take 2 band names or movie titles and combine them into one super name. For example, No Doubt + Outkast = No Doubtkast. Half the fun is coming up with the names, and the other half is making an album cover or movie poster with the new name. There are some pretty funny combinations on the site. My favorite so far is "Yo Yo MaMas and the PaPas." Pretty funny stuff.

Video never really fulfilled its promise to kill the radio star, but maybe the iPod will. I haven't listened to the radio for probably 5 years. Actually I do listen to talk radio, but I can't handle the stations that play music. Between the constant advertising, the annoying DJ personalities, the repetition of flavor-of-the-month songs, and the shallow assortment of artists, I had to give up radio.