Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — May 4 by Steve Holtje

Top 10 New Releases

Ancestor – Phase I: Silence (The Seventh Media) by Steve Holtje

Part of a trilogy, this is darkwave ambient music, quiet but with serrated edges on its drones. There’s nothing new agey about this ambient, which makes for uneasy listening with its buzzing and clanking amid the drones and a glacial pace of movement that oozes foreboding.

M83 – Saturdays=Youth (Mute) by Steve Holtje

Yeah, the chiming guitars and chord progression of “Graveyard Girl” keep threatening to turn into “Money Changes Everything,” but that fits well with the ‘80s love on display throughout – usually much more synthpop, of course.

Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — April 20 by Steve Holtje

Top 10 Buffalo Springfield Songs

This band’s last album came out 40 years ago. Therefore, I discovered Buffalo Springfield after it had broken up (I started listening to rock music in 1969, and only later backtracked to the Springfield from CSNY), but it was my favorite band growing up, by a wide margin, and still ranks in my top five.

Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — April 6 by Steve Holtje

Top Ten NY Mets

In honor of the start of the last season the Mets will play at Shea Stadium, I present my ten favorite Mets.

Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — March 30 by Steve Holtje

My first Top Ten of 2008 releases, even if half are reissues.

Black 47 - Iraq (United for Opportunity) by Steve Holtje

LARRY KIRWAN, the leader of Black 47, is no Toby Keith – he’s his diametrical opposite on the political spectrum – so this is no rah-rah “support our troops” tripe.

Bobby Hebb –That's All I Wanna Know (Tuition) by Steve Holtje

Hebb’s soft voice is as warm and charming as it was on “Sunny” back in ‘66, and the tasteful arrangements are smoothly authentic.

Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — March 9 by Steve Holtje

Best 2007 Soul & Funk Albums, part 2

Numbers 11-20, again mixing new releases and historical items, including various-artist compilations.

Dengue Fever - Venus on Earth (M80) by Steve Holtje

After listening to their great Escape from Dragon House practically every day for most of last summer, I wasn’t sure whether a new album could captivate as strongly, but after two plays this had its hooks in me.

Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — March 2 by Steve Holtje

Best 2007 Soul & Funk Albums, part 1

I said I was finished with best-of-2007 lists, but after a reader complained about a lack of soul coverage on the website, I had to put this together. It’s a mix of new releases and historical items, including various-artist compilations. More next week.

Various artists - Victrola Favorites: Artifacts from Bygone Days (Dust-to-Digital) by Steve Holtje

British Sea Power - Do You Like Rock Music? (Rough Trade) by Steve Holtje

The fact that their evolution over three albums and various EPs has avoided repetition will be mourned by some who want only the familiar, but refreshingly enables them from becoming outdated.

Steve Holtje’s Top Ten — February 3 by Steve Holtje

Non-music Top 10

Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark (New West) by Steve Holtje

The Truckers have long specialized in gritty portrayals of the New South’s sordid sides. A few titles such as “Daddy Needs a Drink,” “You and Your Crystal Meth,” and “A Ghost to Most” give an idea of the dirty soap operas that play out across this epic album, but the black humor – usually paired with a profound empathy – runs deep through most of the 19 songs.