Happy Valentine’s Day. Here’s a long overdue gift for you all. Granted, this is the bottom of the barrel, but the end is the beginning is the end. Or something like that. This is especially for those of you here in New York who couldn’t get Arcade Fire tickets. If you’re seeing them this week, you’re not allowed to read this yet. Also, I hate you. Happy Valentine’s Day.

And so begins my noble experiment to see if I can generate interest for something that happened three and a half months ago. If nothing else, this should get some of you psyched for SXSW.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Top 60 Bands (Ryan Saw) At CMJ 2006

[part 1 of 6]

#51 Girl Talk – The worst display of people going nuts over something that wasn’t all that impressive since The Knife show two hours prior. Guess I just wasn’t in the mood to jump on stage and take my shirt off like most of the people there.

Girl Talk – excerpt (live at Mercury Lounge)

#52 Humanzi – This song speaks for itself.

Humanzi – Diet Pills and Magazines (live at Fader Lounge)

#53 The Knife – Silent Shout has merit. I enjoy listening to it when I’m in the right mood. But, I don’t go to shows to see two people pretend to play music while crappy projections try to distract you from watching two people pretend to play music. The low point of my week was wasting an hour going home to pick up my roommate’s tickets for this show because I was afraid I might not get in with my badge. I walked out after five songs and my roommate didn’t even get out of work before the show was over.

The Knife – Forest Families (live at Webster Hall)

#54 Rejectionist Front – I stopped into Arlene’s to use the bathroom and bumped into the lead singer of this group. He convinced me to stick around for their show and since I made up 10% of the crowd I didn’t have the heart to say no. They’ve been working to raise awareness about the situation in Darfur, which is quite noble, but I wan’t a fan of their music.

Rejectionist Front – [unknown] (live at Arlene’s Grocery)

#55 Oh No! Oh My! – Remember when these guys were poised to be the next big thing? I don’t.

Oh No! Oh My! – [unknown] (live at Fader Lounge)

#56 120 Days – The one full song of theirs I heard felt like it lasted for at least 119. Though I will say after listening to the album, that this song is disproportionately long and more boring compared to their other material. I’d give them another chance live.

120 Days – I’ve Lost My Vision (live at Mercury Lounge)

#57 O’death – These guys are really fun to watch. But on the listening end… well, I can only get into this kind of music about once every year or so and it takes a lot of moonshine to do it. They’re one of the more interesting and creative acts I’ve seen in a while, I’m just not a fan of their sound.

O’death – [unknown] (live at The Delancey)

#58 The Whigs – Nothing bad to say, just unimpressed.

The Whigs – [unknown] (Live at Mercury Lounge)

#59 Sandi Thom – The fact that this song was ever #1 in the U.K. lowers my opinion of all British people by a considerable amount. The bands that played after her (Archie Bronson Outfit, Forward Russia) helped to restore my confidence in the Brits. The best thing about this song is that both hippies and punks were alarmed that they might be confused with each other.

Sandi Thom – I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker (live at Mercury Lounge)

#60 Hello Stranger – I didn’t think their music could be as bad as their album cover.

I think it’s a tie, but judge for yourself:

Hello Stranger – [unknown] (live at Mercury Lounge)

Stay tuned, there’s much more to come. And trust me, it gets better.