Rather than thinking of it as 2011 being halfway over, I prefer to see it as we're all halfway to my birthday {December 24th if it's not on your calendar already}. To celebrate, and take stock of this year's releases thus far, I've put together a mix of my favorite songs of 2011 {so far}.

This year has brought some predictably great albums from friends such as Mountain Goats, Okkervil River, BOAT, Matt & Kim, Telekinesis, Bright Eyes. I feel like I've been waiting for a fresh batch of songs from Brown Recluse for years. I love every note they play and having a two hearty releases in one year {Panoptic Mirror Maze and Evening Tapestry} makes me overjoyed.

Other bands, like When I Was 12 and Dangerous Ponies, I am thankful for crossing paths with for the first time this year.

And then there are the folks that have left me wanting more more more (I'm looking at you Oregon Bike Trails and Forbidden Friends)! Huge thanks to You Aint No Picasso for bringing Oregon Bike Trails to my attention. OBT fellow, singer/songwriter Zach Yudin, from Santa Monica, Ca., is quite the mysterious dude - only having a cassette tape release earlier this year (hand painted, limited to 50!) and a couple other MP3s swirling around the web.

Forbidden Friends, a side project by Thermals frontman Hutch Harris (with Michael Lerner of Telekinesis on drums and fellow Thermals Kathy Foster and Westin Glass backing him up), is still in the 7" only phase, and needless to say I'm counting down to a full album of FF stuff.

In short, I can't recommend the below songs and full releases enough. To help convince you of their brilliance, I made a virtual mix cd!

The tracklisting of my {hopefully very convincing} mix cd is:

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It's no secret I heart Matt & Kim... so much so that sometimes it's hard to explain why. I usually end up rambling about how nice and wonderful and lovey they are to everyone (and each other) and how they inspire me to be a kinder and much more fun person.

Their new video for "Block After Block" kinda illustrates why they rule (and makes me want to go run around NYC with a bunch of friends).

As Matt explains on their blog:

Another video where Kim is terrified that she is going to get arrested and I (lie) and tell her there is no way that will happen. One day this is going to bite me in the ass but it hasn’t happened yet. Block After Block is our adventure throughout New York City playing impromptu shows wherever we could.

Matt & Kim are on tour with the Thermals right now... my heart explodes thinking about being front row for that bill (which sadly wont happen anytime soon since both bands played Sasquatch last month).

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{This is part two of our opening day coverage of this year's Sasquatch! music festival at the Gorge -- click here to take a peek at part one!}

Our first full day at Sasquatch! kept rolling strong, with a big-guitar kick-ass set from Sharon van Etten, which shifted flawlessly over to an intimate solo performance from J. Mascis on the Yeti stage. The noise kept coming with the simultaneously loud/pretty sounds of Wye Oak, after which we changed gears to take on the upbeat, alt.indie.powerpop-ish party of Matt & Kim -- what a blast! The fading sun brought a powerful, dusky mainstage set from Bright Eyes, and we welcomed the night with an impressive (albeit late) performance from Robyn on the Bigfoot stage.

Closing out the night with a local flourish, hometown faves Death Cab for Cutie took us out well into the dark with a killer mainstage performance that spanned an impressive portion of their current and back catalog. Photos below!

Sharon van Etten:

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(photo: Laura Musselman)

A new EP by Chadwick, "Seattle's hazy electronic pop producer," just arrived in the inbox and the track, "Sunrise Fire" feels like a perfect mid-morning soundtrack for the promises of sunshine bestowed on today. To speak in analogies, "Sunrise Fire" pulls from the camps of early Ride / The Charlatans UK, and sounds as if it was remixed by speckled sunbeams and fizzy beverages (not to sound cloyingly hippy). Other tracks on the EP might wander into dreamscapes territory, but this lead song on the EP has a foot firmly (and lovingly) in early 90s brit-shoegazer-pop. {listen!}

Of course, if we want to talk about songs that are perfect for sunny afternoon frolicking, my pick will always be Hello Seahorse! - "Won't Say Anything" (video below) or "Good Ol' Fashion Rump Shaker" by Hood Internet (mixing Matt & Kim and Beastie Boys).

What songs will be your soundtrack for a sunny Wednesday?

The world is a buzz with Royal Wedding chatter... and I am all for it. I love talking about royal matchings, probably because of all my fond memories of the glory days when Damon {Albarn of Blur} and Justine {Frischmann of Elastica} ruled the Britpop scene.

These days I get to fantasize of the regal day to days of Ad-Rock and Kathleen Hanna {who brilliantly blend mainstream and indie success into one fantastic machine}.  And, of course, the cutest couple of all time award goes to Thurston Moore & Kim Gordon {followed closely by Matt & Kim in second place}.

Who are your favorite {indie-rock} royal couples past and present, local and national?

{Sasquatch photo by asclepius6 from the Imaginary Flickr Photo Pool}

Do you hear that?

It is the sound of folks feverishly tweeting and posting about the amazing #Sasquatch line-up just announced. After weeks (who are we kidding, months!) of mathematically calculating probabilities based on tour schedules and record release dates, we finally have a firm answer of who's going to be at the Gorge this Memorial Day weekend, as well as explanations as to why certain folks don't have a Seattle tour date in the next few months.

Not to sound like everyone else every other year, but this year's line-up has left me speechless. The Sasquatch folks have brought together the best of the best of the best (except Allo Darlin, which I'm guessing will be begged to participate next year) to celebrate their 10th Anniversary.  I mean Wilco, Bright Eyes, Matt & Kim, The Radio Dept., The Thermals, Stornoway, and The Young Evils!?!?!?  You're killing me!!!

Are you headed that way? Who are you most excited about (mine bolded below)? Anyone else you think is going to be added to the bill before we pack up our roadtrip munchies and head Quincy, WA way?

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It usually isn't in my nature to go against the John Roderick grain, but when it comes to end of year lists of favorites, I can't help myself. I have to gather all of my favorite songs into an MP3 scrapbook for my own current and future mental sanity.

Perusing the song stacks of the past year allows me to recall and file the past year before opening up my next year's calendar. Having an MP3 scrapbook gives me a one stop shop when, a year or even 15 days from now, I ask my-list-driven-self "What was 2010?" {because aren't all of our best memories tied to a song?}.

The answer to that question is below in the form of the playlist of my Imaginary Liz's Favorites Songs of 2010 mix:

1. Stornoway - Zorbing / Beachcomber's Windowsill
This is a solid album that is a soothing blend of a bashful Mumford & Sons, randy Features with a pinch of John Denver. This is the most rocking song on the album and the best Stornoway gateway drug, although I nearly featured "Long Distance Lullaby" on this record because I'm a sucker for love letters about late night phone calls. If I was the kind of girl that would have two songs by the same band on a single mixtape, "Long Distance Lullaby" would be a great way to end this year's wrap up.

2. Drums - Let's Go Surfing / The Drums
I'm a sucker for their Spector-esque take on the new wave of the retro reverb. I also love that igDana suggested that the chorus is actually, "Obama, I want to go shopping!"

3. Allo Darlin' - Kiss Your Lips / Allo Darlin'
It is far from hyperbolic to say this is my album of the year if not the decade. I can't recommend it highly enough. It's got the sweet coy of Heavenly, the foresight of Weezer (name checked in this song), and the jangle guitar of the Wedding Present. I've got several candles lit in hopes Allo Darlin returns to Seattle this year {they are set to play the San Francisco PopFest over Memorial Day weekend - which is just a hopskipjump away!}. They are getting a lot of attention from critics and record store fans far and wide, so I can only hope that Allo Darlin' is the future of sweetheart pop {and that sweetheart pop is the future of twee}.

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I've loved {in a mega-heart way} Matt & Kim since the first time I saw them food fight "Yea Yeah" style.  Since then their posse of adoring fans has steadily grown thanks to their live shows chock full of infectious enthusiasm and a lil nudity on MTV.

Sidewalks is their first album since the recent {deserved} M&K boom around the sphere and is a hotly anticipated mark to see which direction they take their brand of keyboard+drums+charisma.  Thanks to a few {legit} streams posted around the interwebs, we can all listen to the new effort before it's official release date of November 22, 2010 on the Fader label {OK, it released digitally on iTunes in October -- but I've been holding out for my own vinyl copy}.

To hear the new album, go to AOL Spinner, Myspace Music or MSN to listen to Sidewalks from start to finish.

I've made it up to the 4th track and I have to say I am beyond impressed.  It's an evolved version of their virtuous selves. The lyrics are developed and complex while the vocals are layered to offered a more full feel.

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You know those friends who can cheer you up no matter what mood you're in? The ones who's genuine love of you and everyone and everything is infectious and helps set everything right with the chemicals in your brain?

For me those 'friends' are not so much a couple on my holiday card list (it'd be a bit too stalker to add them to it, right?), but rather Matt & Kim, my favorite happy hip-electro-keys-punk-pop-indie-rad duo. The only thing that is helping me get through until the release of their third full-length album, Sidewalks, on November 2, 2010 (hear the brilliant new single) is counting down to their next visit to Seattle on September 28 at the Showbox.

If you want to go restore your faith in humanity with me, we've got a pair of tickets to giveaway to the show! To enter, email tig @ threeimaginarygirls.com with your name and the subject line MattAndKimAndAllOurFriends by Sunday, September 26 at noon. We'll notify the winner soon thereafter.

To confirm that they are as great as you (and I) think they are, here's a video of a recent show:

It's that time of year again... SXSW is upon us! I wasn't able to gather the necessary resources to head down there myself, so I'm looking forward to spending the next four days living vicariously through all of you headed Austin-ways.  I know that your hands (and days) will likely be full of free stuff (beer) and running into your band heros, but keep the twitters and flickr feeds full with your adventures!

I must admit, to protect myself from getting too depressed about missing this year's fest, I haven't kept extremely close tabs on who is playing where and when and what gift bags will be circulating. But, I have found two things that I'm particularly sad to miss this year.  If anyone hits these events, definitely report back (heck, whatever you see, feel free to report in!):

• 1. The world premiere screening of the film Strange Powers – Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields
• 2. The undeniable indie-pop fest going on at Waterloo Bicycles (so many bands I've wanted to see in one place!)
• 3. The special guest duets that sneak up on you... one in particular I've heard a rumor about is the teaming up of a Fratelli and Colin of Mull Historial Society. Billy Bragg is there this year and I *know* he's going to join someone on stage. I just know it!

May the YouTube powers be with everyone down there!

Needless to say, you SXSW-ers are going to have a great time. I guess I'll make up for all that I'll miss by looking back and trying to relive some of my favorite adventures of SXSWs past:

• 1. Matt & Kim interview, with legos and a dorky interviewer
• 2. Los Campesinos! interview, in a hot tub with an interviewer who shouldn't have worn a hoodie
• 3. Chasing down Running into Owen Wilson
• 4. The time Dana chased down ran into Amy Winehouse
• 5. Everything else I've seen / done at SXSW, especially the hootenanny

What are your favorite SXSW memories?

We're all at SXSW in our hearts!

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