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(------------()--------------
(---------------()-----------   Aquarius Records
(-----------------()---------   2005 Staff Faves
(---------------()-----------   January 1 2006
(-------------()-------------


Beloved Customers and Friends :

It's New Year's Eve and what are we doing? Making "Top Ten" lists, of course... Actually most of 'em are bit longer than that... What can we say? We find it hard to control our music mania!

So, here are our lists. Pretty much every entry on a given list is a link that you can click to see our review of that particular item in a pop-up window, so you can read about (and, potentially, order...) 'em.

As always, we'd love to see, and share, your lists of 2005 favorites as well!! So please send 'em our way -- email your lists to store@aquariusrecords.org with the subject "2005 BEST OF LIST", any time before the end of January. We'll be posting all of the customer top tens we receive on the AQ website, and, as per tradition, one lucky list makin' AQ customer will be chosen at random to receive a $25 Aquarius Records gift certificate!

Happy New Year, and THANK YOU all for being such great customers!!
-- Allan Andee Jim Cup Jason Mischa Irwin Lauren Pam and Kerry

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ANDEE'S TOP 62 OF 2005

A list with very little respect for the rules of end of year list making (according to Allan). But these are the sounds that I spent the most time with this year, the records from which most songs for any or all mix tapes I made or thought about making this year, and the records I would absolutely insist everyone should own. The first ten are pretty solid in terms of list hierarchy, and were listened to pretty much daily, if not many times a day, the rest can be organized pretty much any which way. And by the time anyone reads this, I will undoubtedly think of 62 more that should have been included. So here goes:

1-10:

1. CHIODOS "All's Well That Ends Well" (Equal Vison)
2. NADA SURF "The Weight Is A Gift" (Barsuk)
3. FALL OUT BOY "From Under The Cork Tree" (Island)
4. MAXIMO PARK "A Certain Trigger" (Warp)
5. WOLD "L.O.T.M.P." (Profound Lore)
6. DEATHSPELL OMEGA "Kenose" (Ajna Offensive)
7. DISEMBOWELMENT "Discography" (Relapse) 3cd
8. OPEN HAND "You And Me" (Trustkill)
9. LET GO "s/t" (The Militia Group)
10. QUEENADREENA "The Butcher And The Butterfly" (One Little Indian)

11-62:

BLUT AUS NORD "The Work Which Transforms God / Thematic Emanation Of Archetypal Multiplicity" (Candlelight) 2cd
V/A "Children Of Nuggets" 4cd box
VENETIAN SNARES "Rossz Csillag Allat Szuletett" (Planet Mu)
BIRCHVILLE CAT MOTEL "Chi Vampires" (Celebrate Psi Phenomenon)
JAZZFINGER "The Well Of Used Dreams" (Classic English Womb)
DANGERDOOM "The Mouse And The Mask" (Epitaph)
SILVER SUN "Disappear Here" (Invisible Hands)
KISS THE ANUS OF A BLACK CAT "If The Sky Falls, We Shall Catch Larks" ((K-RAA-K))
EMIT "A Sword Of Death For The Prince" (Total Holocaust)
PSYCHIC PARAMOUNT, THE "Gamelan Into The Mink Supernatural" (No Quarter)
DEVILS REJECTS, THE "OST" (Universal) dualdisc
BANJO & SULLIVAN "The Ultimate Collection" (Universal)
DOUBLE LEOPARDS "Halve Maen" (Eclipse)
KONONO NO.1 "Congotronics" (Crammed Discs)
JESU "s/t" (Hydrahead)
FALLOUT BOY "Take This To Your Grave" (Fueled By Ramen)
JAN DUKES DE GREY "Mice And Rats In The Loft" (Breathless)
ANTLER "s/t" (Madoak / Tortuga)
ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS "I Am A Bird Now" (Secretly Canadian)
RIGOR SARDONICOUS "Principia Sardonica" (Paragon)
BLACK BONED ANGEL "Supereclipse" (20 Buck Spin)
HWYL NOFIO "Anatomy Of Distort" (self-released) cd-r
KILLWHITNEYDEAD "So Pretty So Plastic" (Tribunal) 2cd
TORCHE "s/t" (Robotic Empire)
V/A "Vertigo Mixed ...by Andy Votel" (Family Recordings)
FLESHPRESS "III" (Kult Of Nihilow)
LURKER OF CHALICE "s/t" (Total Holocaust)
URFAUST "Geist ist Teufel" (Goatawarex)
URFAUST "Verraterischer, nichtswurdiger Geist" (Goatowarex)
STARZ "s/t" (Ryko) cd 12.98
COMUS "Song To Comus: The Complete Collection" (Castle Music) 2cd
PLANET AIDS "Apokalyptik AIDS" (Goatowarex)
BUNKUR "Bludgeon" (Deserted Factory)
BLACK MOUNTAIN "s/t" (Jagjaguwar)
LUMSK "Asmund Fraegdegjevar" (Candlelight / Tabu)
ROSE, JACK "Kensington Blues" (VHF)
BENEATH THE LAKE "Silent Uprising" (Glass Throat)
RUINS OF BEVERAST, THE "Unlock The Shrine" (Van)
TENHORNEDBEAST "Woe To You, O Earth And Sea" (NOTHingness REcords) cd-r
MONARCH "s/t" (Throne) 2cd
RIGOR SARDONICOUS "Apocalypsis Damnare" (Paragon)
V/A "Crushing The Holy Trinity" (Northern Heritage) 3cd
MAKE A CHANGE... KILL YOURSELF "s/t" (Total Holocaust)
PORTAL "Seepia" (Profound Lore)
CORRUPTED "El Mundo Frio" (HG Fact)
COBRA VERDE "Copycat Killers" (Scat)
V/A "American Primitive Vol. II: Pre-War Revenants (1897 - 1939)" (Revenant) 2cd
TIERMES "Malahvia"
LESLIE, DESMOND "Music Of The Future" (Trunk)
EARTH "Hex; Or Printing In The Infernal Method" (Southern Lord)
GROWING "His Return" (Megablade)
SPEKTR "No Longer Human Senses" (Appease Me)

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JIM


The Record Of The Year:

Keith Berry, The Ear That Was Sold To A Fish (Crouton)

a bunch of records that were damn good:

Sophie Durand + Manu Holterbach, Verres Enharmoniques : Un (Cloudmirror)
Andrew Chalk, The River That Runs Into The Sand (Faraway Press)
Paavoharju, Yha Hamaraa (Fonal)
Maurizio Bianchi & Land Use, Psychoneurose (Manifold)
Die Unbekannten, Don't Tell Me Stories (Vinyl-On-Demand)
Kiss The Cat Of The Black Anus, If The Sky Falls, We Shall Catch Larks ((K-RAA-K))
Primitive Calculators, self-titled (Chapter Music)
Aeolian String Ensemble, Eclipse (Robot)
Sprung Aus Den Wolken, Early Recordings (Vinyl-On-Demand)
Veronica Lipgloss & The Evil Eyes, Witch's Dagger (GSL)
Loren Chasse, The Air In The Sand (Naturestrip)
Avarus, Ruskeatimantti (tUMULt)
Mirror, Still Valley (Three Poplars)
Steve Roden, Airforms (Line)
The Cure, 17 Seconds / Faith / Pornography reissues (Elektra)
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Worn Copy (Paw Tracks)
Fursaxa, Amulet (Last Visible Dog)
Christina Kubisch, Armonica (Bottrop-Boy)
various artists, Choubi Choubi (Sublime Frequencies)
BJ Nilsen & Stilluppsteypa, Vikinga Brennivin (Helen Scarsdale)
Omit, Tracer (Helen Scarsdale)

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CUP'S BAKER'S DOZEN OF 2005


PAAVOHARJU Yha Hamaraa (cd)
VASHTI BUNYAN Lookaftering (cd)
NEW PORNOGRAPHERS Twin Cinema (cd)
V/A IN-KRAUT: Hip Shaking Grooves Made In Germany 1966-1974 (cd)

GARY NUMAN Living Ornaments '79, '80, '81 (2cd reissues)
SLOAN Twice Removed (cd reissue)
YAMASUKI SINGERS Le Monde Fabuleux Des... (cd reissue)
JEAN-CLAUDE VANNIER L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches (cd reissue)

BRIAN WILSON Smile (2dvd)
DEVO Live 1980 (dvd)
THE NOMI SONG (Klaus Nomi documentary) (dvd)
BILL HICKS Live - Satirist, Social Critic, Stand-Up Comedian (dvd)
DANGER DIABOLIK (dvd)

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IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER, MISCHA'S BEST o' 2005


[sort-of].....some new, some re-issued, some just discovered:::

Aavikko - Back From The Futer
Colleen - Golden Morning Breaks
Paavoharju - Yha Hamaraa
V/A - Maan Matoset
Deerhoof - Runner's Four
Las Malas Amistades - Jardin Interior
Gang Gang Dance - God's Money
Yamasuki Singers - Le Monde Fabuleux Des Yamasuki
FM3 - Buddha Machine
Friends of Dean Martinez - Live at Club 2
Ennio Morricone - Crime & Dissonance
Vitalic - Ok Cowboy
Dreamies - s/t 2006
Electrelane - Axes
Gris Gris - For the Season
Cannibal Holocaust OST

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JASON's "Tops for 2005" List:


(In no particular order)...

Bruce Langhorne - "The Hired Hand" (OST)
Nargaroth - "Prosatanica Shooting Angels"
"The Devil's Rejects" (DVD)
Black Boned Angel - "Supereclipse"
High On Fire - "Blessed Black Wings"
Darkest Hour - "Party Scars & Prison Bars" (DVD)
Richard Pryor - "Evolution/revolution: The Early Years" (R.I.P.)
Velvet Cacoon - "Northsuite"
Bill Morrison - "The Balloon Man"
Rusted Shut - "Rehab"
Grey Daturas - "Dead in the Woods"
Girth - "Living in Truth"
Sensational - "Speaks for Itself"
Iron Maiden - "The History of Iron Maiden Part I: The Early Years" (DVD)
Deathspell Omega - "Kenose"
Khold - "Krek"
Fall Out Boy - "From Under the Cork Tree"
Chris Cunningham - "Rubber Johnny" (DVD)
Gurdjieff - "Harmonic Development: Complete Harmonium Recordings 1948 - 1949"
(r) - "Under the Cables, Into the Wind"
Banjo & Sullivan - "The Ultimate Collection"
Lurker of Chalice - "Lurker of Chalice"
The Ramones - 'End of the Century: The Story of the Ramones" (DVD)
The Psychic Paramount - "Gamelan Into the Mink Supernatural"
Baroness - "Second"
Henrik Nordvargr Bjork - "Vitagen'"
Heathen Shame - "Speed the Parting Guest"
Spektr - "No Longer Human Senses"
Icky Boyfriends -"A Love Obscene"
Tiermes - "Malahvia"
Earth - "Hex: Or Printing in the Infernal Method"
Gorod - "Neurotripsicks"
Alice Cooper - "Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper" (DVD)
Leviathan - "Howl Mockery at the Cross"
Monarch - "Monarch"
Corrupted - "El Mundo Frio"
Warhammer 48K - "Uber Om"
The Flaming Lips - "Fearless Freaks" (DVD)
Hell Militia - "Canonization of the Foul Spirit"
Boris - "Pink"
"Made in SHeffield" (DVD)
Chiodos - "All's Well That Ends Well"
Negura Bunget - "Inarborat Kosmos" ep
Ondskapt - "Dodems Evangelium"
Stalwart - "Torment Nonplus"
"Revisisting Father & the Source Family" (DVD)
Wolves in the Throne Room - "Demo 2005"
Lee Miller - "The Futility of Ignorance"
FM3 Buddha Machine...
Bob Moog Vinyl Figurine...(R.I.P.)
Venom - "MMV" (Box Set)
Cursed - "Two"
Nada Surf - "The Weight Is A Gift"
Coheed & Cambria - "IV"

...and a few reissues/notables that kicked my ass in 2005:

Jean Claude Vannier - "L' Enfant Assassin des Mouches"
The Stooges - "Heavy Liquid" (Box Set)
Disembowelment - "Discography"
"Kathy McGinty"
Gary Numan - "Living Ornaments '79"
Watain - "Casus Luciferi"
Eduardo Bort - "Eduardo Bort"
Jacula - "In Cauda Semper Stat Venenum"
The Ex - 'Singles. Period. 1980 - 1990"
Nihilist - "1987 - 1989"
Maeror Tri - all the many reissues we saw this year...
The "(Fake) Sesame Chicken Lunch Special" from Jasmine Tea House...

---

LAUREN


(In alphabetical order):

1. Vashti Bunyan - Lookaftering
2. Burning Saviours s/t
3. Shirley Collins with Davy Graham - Folk Roots, New Routes, reissue
4. Lula Cortes e ze Ramalho - Paebiru, reissue
5. Early Man - Closing In
6. Josephine Foster- Hazel Eyes I will Lead You
7. Fresh Maggots - s/t, reissue
8. Fursaxa - Amulet
9. Gris Gris - For the Season
10. Gary Higgins - Red Hash, reissue
11. Randy Holden - Population II, reissue
12. Kemialliset Ystavat - Kellari Juniversumi
13. Lau Nau - Kuutarha
14. Leaf Hound - Growers of Mushroom, reissue
15. Marissa Nadler - The Saga of Mayflower May
16. Bjorn Olsson - The Lobster
17. Six Organs of Admittance - School of the Flower
18. Skygreen Leopards - Life and Love in Sparrow's Meadow
19. Witchcraft - Firewood
20. v/a Welsh Rare Beat comp

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ALLAN


35 alphabetically, among MANY that were awesome this year, approximately...

Tetuzi Akiyama "Route 13 To the Gates of Hell" (HEADZ / DAT-3)
Avarus "Ruskea Timantti" 2cd (tUMULt)
Bible Of The Devil "Brutality - Majesty - Eternity" (Scarey)
Bohren & Der Club Of Gore "Geisterfaust" (Wonder)
Eduardo Bort "s/t" (Fonomusic) REISSUE
George Brigman "Jungle Rot" (Bona Fide) REISSUE
Buried Civilizations "Tunnels To Other Chambers" (267 Lattajja / Jewelled Antler)
Burning Saviours "s/t" (I Hate Records)
John Carpenter "Escape From New York OST" (Silva Screen) REISSUE
Charlie & Esdor "s/t" (Mellotronen) sorta REISSUE
Classical M "Bad Guys: The Complete Collection" (Pacemaker/Lion Productions) sorta REISSUE
Comus "Song To Comus: The Complete Collection" 2cd (Sanctuary) REISSUE
Early Man "Closing In" (Matador)
Earthless "Sonic Prayer" (Gravity)
Roky Erickson "I Have Always Been Here Before" 2cd (Shout! Factory)
The 4 Levels Of Existence "s/t" (Lion Productions) REISSUE
Franciscan Hobbies "Walls Are Stuck" (Music Fellowship)
Girth "Living In Truth" (Hector Stentor)
Grand Magus "Wolf's Return" (Candlelight)
Grey Daturas "Dead In The Woods" (Crashing Jets)
The Happy Dragon-Band "s/t" (Radioactive) REISSUE
HE 6 "Go Go Sound '71 Vol. 1 & Vol. 2" (Beatball) REISSUE
Hyatari "The Light Carriers" (Codebreaker)
Inquisition "Magnificent Glorification Of Lucifer" (No Colours)
Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat "If The Sky Falls, We Shall Catch Larks" ((K-RAA-K))
Konono No.1 "Congotronics" (Crammed Discs)
Mace "Circulations" (Sub Rosa)
Of "The Quartz Pond" (Jewelled Antler)
The Psychic Paramount "Gamelan Into The Mink Supernatural" (No Quarter)
Slough Feg "Atavism" (Cruz del Sur)
Spektr "No Longer Human Senses (aka Et Fugit Interea)" (Appease Me)
Styx "The Complete Wooden Nickel Recordings" 2cd (Hip-O Records) REISSUE
various artists "Tibetan Buddhist Rites From The Monasteries Of Bhutan Vol. 1" 2cd (Sub Rosa) REISSUE
various artists "Vertigo Mixed ...by Andy Votel" (Family Recordings)
various artists "World Psychedelic Classics 3: Love's A Real Thing" (Luaka Bop)
Witchcraft "Firewood" (Candlelight)

of course, lots more stuff could or should be mentioned (such as Ilk, Lula Cortes E Ze Ramalho, P.H.O.B.O.S., Steven R. Smith, Drunk Horse, Ramases, Mitchell Akiyama, Nadja, 3/4HadBeenEliminated, Striborg, Lurker Of Chalice, Time Flys, "Welsh Rare Beat", Richard Youngs, "The In-Kraut", Sanhedolin, Nile, "Malpractice", Maeror Tri, Jean-Claude Vannier, Eric Malmberg, Pharaoh Overlord, Bruce Langhorne, Bjorn Olsson, Gary Higgins, Deathspell Omega, 1349, Musica Dispersa, Francisco, "Choubi Choubi!", Combat Astronomy, Residual Echoes, Earth, WOLD, Urfaust, Wolves In The Throne Room, Figure Of Merit, Kathy McGinty, Dreamies, Dungen, Sinistri, Jesu, etc. etc. etc.) and there's plenty I haven't even listened to yet that's probably great too!!

and some DVD action:

Danger: Diabolik (Paramount)
Iron Maiden "The History Of Iron Maiden - Part 1: The Early Days" 2dvd (Sanctuary)
Thor "An-Thor-Ology" (Smog Veil)
Kazuki Tomokawa "Pistol - Shibuya Apia Live" (PSF)
v/a "The Dick Cavett Show: Rock Icons" 2dvd (Shout! Factory)
Yahowha 13 "Re-Visiting Father and the Source Family" (Swordfish)

best packaging:

Toshi Ichiyanagi "Opera from the Works of Tadanori Yokoo" 4cd box set (Bridge Inc.)

currently can't stop listening to, though it's not from 2005, but we got it recently:

Ostrogoth "Full Moon's Eyes/Ecstasy And Danger" cd (Mausoleum) REISSUE

---

IRWIN


reissue/old sounds unearthed:

Betty Davis-"This Is It!"
Bob Dylan-"Don't Look Back"
Burning Spear-"Creation Rebel: The Original Classic Recordings From Studio One"
David Axelrod-"The Edge: David Axelrod at Capitol 1966-70"
Henry Flynt-"Purified By The Fire"
Jean-Claude Vannier-"L'enfant Assasin Des Mouches"
John Fahey-"The Great Santa Barbara Oil Slick: Live at the Matrix"
Moondog-"The German Years 1977-1999"
OOIOO-"Green & Gold"
Sam Cooke-"Night Beat"
Spoils Of War-"II"
V/A-"Choubi Choubi: Folk & Pop Songs From Iraq"

new sounds released this year:

Antony & The Johnsons-"I Am A Bird Now"
Boredoms-"Seadrum/House of Sun"
Broadcast-"Tender Buttons"
Colleen-"Golden Morning Breaks"
Deerhoof-"The Runners Four" & "Green Cosmos"
Devendra Banhart-"Cripple Crow"
Earth-"Hex: Or Printing in the Infernal Method"
The Evens-s/t
Fiona Apple-"Extraordinary Machine"
Gang Gang Dance-"God's Money"
Harold Budd & Robin Guthrie-"Mysterious Skin"(OST)
Konono No.1-"Congotronics"
Kronos Quartet w/Asha Bhosle-"You've Stolen My Heart"
Las Malas Amistades-"Jardin Interior"
Jennifer Gentle-"Valende"
Marianne Faithfull-"Before the Poison"
Sam Prekop-"Who'se Your New Professor"
Sharon Jones & The Dapkings-"Naturally"
Sleater Kinney-"The Woods"
Sufjan Stevens-"Illinois"
Tenores Di Bitti-"Caminos de Pache"
Vashti Bunyan-"Lookaftering" & "Prospect Hummer"(w/Animal Collective)
The White Stripes-"Get Behind Me Satan"

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KERRY


Clientele - Strange Geometry
Ariel Pink - Worn Copy
Bill Fay - Time of the Last Persecution
Circle - Tulikoira (and the Forest
reissue toooo!) M.S. & B.P.B. - Superwolf
Aavikko - Back From The Futur
Dungen! All of it!
Unrest - Imperial f.f.r.r. reissue (is that cheating?)
Eduardo Bort!
Broadcast - Tender Buttons
Skygreen Leopards - Jehovah Surrender
Franciscan Hobbies - Walls Are Stuck
Steven R. Smith! All of it (him?)!
Xiu Xiu - La Foret
Whysp! All of it!


Indulgent extras:

The song that made my year: "Pennygold" by Lindy Stevens
Television that made my year: "Lost," "Extras" and "Nathan Barley"
Shows that made my year: Shows at Rob's greenhouse in Berkeley (Thuja/Yellow Swans/Spires That in the Sunset Rise/Fursaxa/etc).

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PAM'S TOP 10


LEVIATHAN Howl Mockery At The Cross
TWILIGHT s/t
LEVIATHAN A Silhouette In Splinters lp
BLACKDEATH / LEVIATHAN Split (both cd and picture disc)
LURKER OF CHALICE s/t
LEVIATHAN Demos - 2000 cassette
LEVIATHAN / AD HOMINEM / FUNERAL WINDS / ETERNITY Black Metal Against The World 7"
SUNNO))) Black One
XASTHUR / LEVIATHAN Split cd reissue

looking forward to:

LEVIATHAN Verrater 2cd impending reissue!