Happy birthday, Young Eliot!

Today, we celebrate the man, the myth, the legend, the Eliot Johnson. Today, he turns 22 years old. If you see that tall, blonde, perpetually band-shirt-clad knucklehead, be sure to wish him a happy birthday.

Young Eliot blogs for Paste

This is Young Eliot. Many of you probably already know him. He poses for silly photographs. He changes light bulbs. He gets haircuts. He exaggerates for effect. He argues with Warren (a lot). He goes to school. He does a lot of things, really. But we're blogging about him now to point out a list he did for Paste magazine's local site, Paste:Local Atlanta. It's called "Top 5 ways Atlanta bands are different from other bands" and you can read it right here.

The DCD Lost & Found returns!

It's been a while since we've done a lost and found post, so we probably had it coming. Suffice it to say, if the glasses Young Eliot is wearing in the photo above belong to you, make haste to Decatur CD and pick them up. They're on the counter near the cash register, and if you don't claim them soon (they've been here for well over a week now), we might be forced to put them on Michael Bublé. He's a big fan of eyewear, so act fast!

Eliot's top five Kiwi records of 2007

Eliot has a bit of a thing for New Zealand and its music. After hearing The Dead C, he knew he and the Kiwis would be a match made in heaven. And after receiving the Flying Nun 25th Anniversary box set for Christmas 2006, an obsession began. Here are his favorite New Zealand records of 2007:

1. Pumice – Pebbles
2. The Terminals – Last Days of the Sun
3. Birchville Cat Motel – Astro Catastrophes
4. The Dead C – Future Artists
5. David Kilgour – The Far Now

(Editor's note: Although Young Eliot is far too good for such pedestrian ventures as TELEVISION, it should be noted that New Zealand comedy duo Flight of the Conchords made quite a splash this year both critically and comercially. If you haven't seen the show, we stock the DVD. If you'd like a sampling of their hilarious music, we stock the EP. Also, the guys have a full-length album in the works that's set to drop on Sub Pop in spring 2008.)

Eliot's top 10 Japanese psych records of 2007

Above: Acid Mothers Temple

Leave it to our very own long-haired lover of crazy rock 'n' roll to deliver a list of the very finest of 2007's Japanese psychedelic albums. We encourage you to open your mind and tune in to any of the following:

1. Sachiko M – Salon De Sachiko
2. Astro – Astral Orange Sunshine
3. Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso UFO – Nam Myo Ho Ren Gye Ko
4. Otomo Yoshihide – The Prisoner
5. Ghost – In Stormy Nights
6. Sachiko - Kunado
7. Boris w/Michio Kurihara – Rainbow
8. Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso UFO – Crystal Rainbow Pyramid
9. LSD March - Constellation of Tragedy
10. Boredoms – Super Roots Vol. 9

Eliot, Austin and Kerry's favorite odds 'n' sods, reissues and box sets from the foul, twisted year of twenty ought seven

This is probably the least scientifically put together list of them all. Eliot, Austin and Kerry basically threw their picks into a pile, shuffled them around and then waited to see what fell out of the hat first. Very great stuff, though. Have a look:

1. Sonic Youth – Daydream Nation
2. Sandy Denny – Live at the BBC
3. Joy Division - Closer/Unknown Pleasures
4. Albert Ayler & Don Cherry – The Hilversum Session
5. Lisa Germano – Lullaby for Liquid Pig
6. The Sly & the Family Stone catalog/box set
7. Just about anything the Numero Group put out this year
8. Pylon - Gyrate Plus
9. Betty Davis - Betty Davis/They Say I'm Different
10. The Art of Field Recording box set
11. The Modern Lovers - s/t
12. Ornette Coleman – Live at the Hillcrest Club
13. The Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
14. Townes Van Zandt - various
15. Magazine - Real Life
16. Sun Ra – Strange Strings
17. Leonard Cohen - various
18. Michio Kurihara – Sunset Notes
19. Magnolia Electric Co. - Sojourner box set
20. The King Khan & BBQ Show

Top six Eliot Vs. Warren argument albums of 2007

More than a few customers have witnessed the stubborn glory of an argument between Eliot and Warren. These two have gone to the mat over the worth of Ozzie Smith, the alleged guilt/non-guilt of Michael Vick and various other sports issues.

Thing is, music is even more contested between the duo. It's naturally a very subjective topic on its own, but these guys can find a way to argue about almost anything (even the age-old debate of cats vs. dogs). That being said, we won't go into the details of each of these albums. Just know that Eliot and Warren do not agree on any of them:

1. Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
2. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss – Raising Sand
3. Joanna Newsom – Ys Street Band EP
4. Scat Cat – Tikin’ Out Da Frame
5. Otomo Yoshihide – The Prisoner OST
6. Robert Wyatt - Comicopera

Eliot's top four 2007 records involving Mike Watt

This one is awfully pertinent considering the former Minutemen bassist just turned 50 yesterday. (Hazzah! Here's to 50 more years!) Eliot is a big fan, and Mike Watt's a busy man, so this list was pretty much a no-brainer. Bask in the glory of Watt's 2007 output (after all, you try and think of another legendary 50-year-old punk bass player who played on four albums this year):

1. Unknown Instructors – The Master’s Voice
2. Banyan – Live at Lucy’s
3. Kelly Clarkson – My December
4. “The Stooges” – The Weirdness

Young Eliot's top 40 (distributed/easily acquired) albums of 2007

Apparently, someone told Young Eliot that quantity is more important than quality, and that the really cool kids list a whole bunch of albums to prove their musical knowledge. We kid, we kid. Eliot is a fiend for the tunes, and as such, he listens to FAR too many albums every year. Have a look at all the stuff he's crazy about from 2007. And remember, Christmas is right around the corner:

1. Alejandro Jodorowsky, Ronald Frangapine, Don Cherry – The Holy Mountain Soundtrack
2. Akron/Family – Love is Simple
3. K-Rino – Book Number 7
4. Earthless – Rhythms from a Cosmic Sky
5. Don Cherry – Live at Café Montmartre
6. Nublu Orchestra Conducted by Butch Morris
7. Grachan Moncur III – Inner Cry Blues
8. The Busy Signals – s/t
9. Sir Richard Bishop – While My Guitar Violently Bleeds
10. MV & EE w/the Bummer Road – Green Blues
11. Charles Mingus & Eric Dolphy – Cornell 1964
12. Psychedelic Horseshit – Magic Flowers Drowned
13. Angels of Light – We Are Him
14. Pink Reason – Cleaning the Mirror
15. Times New Viking – The Paisley Reich
16. Meg Baird – Dear Companion
17. Sapat – Mortise & Tenon
18. Shellac – Excellent Italian Greyhound
19. The Fiery Furnaces – Widow City
20. Mark Sultan – The Sultanic Verses
21. Black Milk – Popular Demand
22. Mammatus – The Coast Explodes
23. Arve Henriksen – Strjon
24. The Time Flys – Rebels of Babylon
25. Super Furry Animals – Hey Venus!
26. Saturday Looks Good to Me – Fill Up the Room
27. Richard & Linda Thompson – In Concert, November 1975
28. Wooden Shjips – s/t
29. The Raspberries – Live on Sunset Strip
30. Supersilent 8
31. Magnolia Electric Co. – Sojourner
32. Dinosaur Jr. – Beyond
33. Magik Markers – Boss
34. Opsvik & Jennings – Commuter Anthems
35. Marissa Nadler – Songs III: Bird on Water
36. David Murray – Sacred Ground
37. Silver Daggers – New & High Ord
38. (tie) Linda Thompson – Versatile Heart
38. (tie) Richard Thompson – Sweet Warrior
38. (tie) Teddy Thompson – Up Front and Down Low