30

Hecq, 0000 [Hymen]

Here's a showcase of all aspects of IDM at its finest - intricately cut up, crispy beats and microscopic glitches layered over minimal reverberated soothing melodies that make my brain tingle in all the right places. The seventeen consecutively numbered tracks shun from attaching any special association or interpretation that comes with subjecting music to titles. Instead, Ben Lukas Boysten organizes his "collection of filtered impressions and tiny interludes" into a treasured and very private "digital-acoustic diary". The Berlin based producer strikes with confident and at times dark rhythms offering top notch production techniques. In this perfect soundtrack for the committed, Boysten offers us a shadowy glimpse into a slightly deranged mind. And when all of the specks settle down, the melancholic stillness of the music reveals an undeniable reflection of oneself.

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: 0004

29

Victor Bermon, Arriving at Night [Hefty]

Probably the most auspicious debut of 2007 for me, Victor Bermon exports his debut out of Australia via Chicago’s Hefty label, and it’s some of the best jazz-inspired electronic music I’ve heard in years. Every sound is accounted for here, and perfectly arranged to make the tracks as successful as possible. It’s tough to be build hype around a release this understated and, in a way, traditional, but make no mistake, this sound is timeless, not passé.

~ onecaseman

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Download: Farewell Lunch For Laura

28

Piano Magic, Part-Monster [Important]

A band that I find to be underrated, Part-Monster really should’ve been their breakout album. Described as ghost-rock, it’s not hard to hear their delicate sound while still being a band that can, and will, rock. The song that made me think this album would be a classic is “England's Always Better (As You're Pulling Away),” a depressing look at England’s somberness that starts out with just a few simple guitar notes, but as the song progresses, it turns into something more, with gorgeous droning horn lines as the singer recalls memories while being in England. Part-Monster is definitely an album that will age well.

~ Neveryan

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Download: England's Always Better (As You're Pulling Away)

27

Deepchord presents Echospace, The Coldest Season [Modern Love]

For my money, the best dub/techno album released in 2007; I’ve probably listened to this record 100 times in the last few months. Rod Modell’s instinct for electronic production has only become more refined over time, and with this album he has surpassed even his own previous peaks (‘DC12’ and ‘DC16’). Astonishingly deep, and it only grows more beautiful upon repeat listens; blissful chord progressions, massive echo, cavernous space.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Celestialis

26

Deerhunter, Cryptograms/Fluorescent Grey [Kranky]

Recorded in three separate sessions, this album and EP (combined as a double-vinyl release), combine to create one of the best rock albums of the year, if not the best. Deerhunter’s frontman and songwriter (a very prolific one at that; I’ve downloaded 90-100 mp3s posted on his blog in just the last five months), Bradford Cox, has deepened his lyrical content and managed to create one of the oddest and most affecting collections of songs I’ve heard in some time, with some beautiful ambient interludes thrown in for good measure.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Spring Hall Convert

25

Morgan Packard, Airships Fill the Sky [Anticipate]

Airships Fill the Sky, the debut from Morgan Packard, is an album that doesn't allow you to enter its territory, but makes you feel drawn to it. An ambient album with booming bass, it gives you the feeling of floating on a sailboat. This album was much anticipated after his collaboration with Ezekiel Honig, and it manages to surpass the expectations.

~ acidtongue

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Download: I Think I...

24

Bola, Kroungrine [Skam] 

This achingly beautiful album is a return to the greatness of ‘Soup’ and ‘Fyuti,’ Bola’s flawless early albums (‘Voile’ and ‘Gnayse,’ while very good, were nonetheless a step down in quality). ‘Kroungrine’ is a bit more playful and self-assured than Fitton’s previous work, with the orchestral touches of ‘Gnayse’ put to better use here. Not a weak track to be found; another great album from a relatively underrated musician.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Zoft Broiled Ed

23

Eluvium, Copia [Temporary Residence]

From the very first track, which greets you with orchestral woodwinds, we are immediately aware that this will be a novel stroll along the ambient boulevards of the modern classical landscape. Matthew Cooper entrusts his fifth full length release to his home label, Temporary Residence Limited, which has already treated the post-rock and shoegazer palettes with bands like Mono, Explosions In The Sky, and Tarentel. Residing in Portland, Cooper's compositions have often been placed amongst the likes of Brian Eno, Christian Fennesz, and (his personal favorite) Max Richter. The minor harmonic progression of strings, organ and piano (that replace previously chosen guitars), display Cooper's ability to drift among the choice of instrumentation and exercise his contemporary and classically trained ear. Copia is an album saturated with emotion; and its ability to transfer that complex mental state of feelings through music is what makes this album one of the top accomplishments of the year.

~ Headphone Commute 

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Download: Reciting The Airships

22

Pinch, Underwater Dancehall [Tectonic]

In a year where singles ruled the dubstep scene, Pinch made an album worth sitting through the whole thing. With guest singing and rapping by Juakali, Yolanda, and Rudy Lee, Pinch made an album that could very well have been a completely instrumental album (which is included as the second disc), but is more memorable and cohesive one than most dubstep albums. Using the trademark dark and deep sound, he has made every song ooze with bass while still bringing something new to the scene, which in this case are the guest rappers and singers. This should be the album where show goers rock out without their hands in their pockets.

~ Neveryan

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Download: Battered

21

Ben Frost, Theory of Machines [Bedroom Community]

I can only describe Theory of Machines as ambient hardcore. Australian born Ben Frost builds walls of noise that rise steadily and slowly, and come crashing down on command. Now residing in Reykjavik, Frost exploits all of the extreme properties of sound. Psychologically raw, punishing, and overdriven guitars, with reverberated pads and rhythms mutate into the white noise and back, sending chills that originate deep from within the ear canal and slide down to the toenails. Frost often made me scratch my ear canal and occasionally get up to check the monitors that sounded blown out, emitting graceful static. Coming from a rock background, and being a member of a band called School of Emotional Engineering, Frost is not particularly interested in electronic music, and rather relies heavily on dark minimalism and industrial noise to compose truly one of the most interesting and irreversible memory imprints of the year.

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: We Love You Michael Gira