list season: top 6 blogs of 2005.

ladies and gentlemen, this is a blog. blogs, which are short for "weblogs", are where people from all walks of life can make an online journal of whatever is on their mind. there are book blogs, photography blogs, but the most popular are music blogs. music blogs can do many different things. they can host rare or not-so-rare mp3's [something the armchair novelist doesn't do, because i'm too lazy to take them down if a record label demands that of me-- in which i probably would respond with an erect middle finger, anyway], aloof opinions about musicians and music in general [which is the foundation on which this particular blogs stands], a chance to feature a flavor-of-the-month, or an opportunity for a little-known band to get some moderate-to-major exposure. i just started regularly reading blogs in 2005, so here are my favorites, which should be expected:

6. brooklyn vegan-
this is one of the major players in the blog-o-sphere [i dislike that term, but nothing describes it better]. the vegan does live reviews, sometimes posts rare or brand-new mp3's, and provides links. everything a blog should do. i do have to say that i mostly go to brooklyn vegan only for its sidebar.

5. muzzle of bees-
in-depth live reviews. mp3's galore. the innovative "getting to know your blogger" features. solid writing. there are so many good things about this blog. including but not limited to the fact that ryan's sidebar is in alphabetical order. good for the armchair novelist, bad for you ain't no picasso [who really doesn't need that much help with traffic anyway].

4. chromewaves-
i read it religiously because of frank's GREAT links to what's going on. plus, the "sunday cleaning" feature is something i'm intensely jealous of not thinking of first.

3. largehearted boy-
i can't say enough good things about it. shorties, daily downloads, bittorrent bunch? godddamn. i go to lhb every day. sometimes twice, to make sure i didn't miss anything. i even went through the archives a couple months ago.

2. gorilla vs. bear-
chris has become one of the most popular bloggers on the web, and for good reason. he mixes up the news, reviews, and mp3's from indie favorites [such as his obsession, sufjan stevens] with pieces on little known bands who should get some decent exposure. i first heard about birdmonster from him, and now, they're poised to be the breakout band of 2006. it also doesn't hurt to have the most in-depth sidebar in the history of blogging.

1. clever titles are so last summer-
i know this sounds like total and complete bias [after all, bethanne IS a contributor to my own blog], but let me give you the reasons why bethanne has possibly the best blog in the world right now:

+coverage of the lansing music scene [where i've discovered some awesome bands such as those transatlantics and calliope], as well as mp3's by obscure bands [such as javelins and a very obscure project called fresh cherries from yakima].

+honest and witty commentary about shitty bands and rappers.

+a different theme almost every week. [last week- covers. this week- side projects. pardon the omaha bias.]

+former [or current?] obsession with my favorite songwriter, colin meloy.

+in-depth [bordering on obsessive-compulsive, which is a good thing when you're talking writing] live reviews.

+undoubtedly the hardest working blogger out there right now.