A Manhattan techno long-player on his favorite blips and bleeps of the year.

Best Artist
Some people that kept my attention this year: Daso, Dusty Kid, Samim, Chaim, Minilogue, Paul Ritch, Stefan Goldman, Matthew Dear.

Worst Artist
Mims. You could write a linguistics dissertation on everything wrong about “This is Why I’m Hot”. [He] does a great job of pandering to the Lowest Common Denominator. Then again, when did that Paris Hilton album come out?

Best Album
I’m a cranky old bastard, so it usually takes me a while to warm up to new music. My favorite album that I purchased in 2007 is Tago Mago by Can, which was released in 1971. As you can see, I have some catching up to do.

Worst Album
It’s only a 12″, but I really hate “Techno Vocals” by Marc Houle. It’s a joke, I know, but it’s a one-liner and gets tiresome almost instantly.

Best Single/12″
Samim’s “Heater” [on] Get Physical. It’s the best way to get Germans dancing to cumbia. It’s a very original and fun song, and way more interesting than all that minimal techno out there.

Best City and/or Scene
This cranky old man doesn’t go out much anymore. He stays in his dungeon and makes noise.

Best DJ
Me, motherfucker!

Best Music Trend
Tech-house has been making a silent comeback. I’d say half of what is supposed to be “minimal” is really just tech-house. And the rest is unfinished.

Worst Music Trend
The decreasing diversity in the more active musical scenes, and the increasing homogeneity of music, despite the greater access to new music many people have these days.

What will be big in 2008?
Thugfucker Records and Sodium Records, two labels I’ve been working for/with/etc., will be huge. Wait and see.

Biggest/best music-related beef of 2007
Serato vs. TraktorScratch.

Best Music Hardware
I’ve been doing some research into finally going to digital DJing. Serato seems to have the easiest interface and the most stable platform, though TraktorScratch has a much better-sounding A/D converter and more effects. I haven’t actually made the purchase yet, but I think I’m going with Serato.

Best Music Software
I’ve been very happy with the quality of the Spectrasonics plug-ins. They all sound great and bring an unexpected, natural feel to each song.

Best Shoe
I still dig my Vans.

Best style trend
Whoever convinced the hip-hop kids [to wear] long, skinny jeans and loud neon colors deserves a medal.

Worst style trend
Those ugly ’80s sunglasses are getting worse.

More Best of 2007
Switch: Artist of the Year
Sage Francis’ Top Five Albums of 2007
Best Artists of 2007
Best of 2007 by Cameron Bird
Best Albums of 2007
Best Singles of 2007
Best of 2007 by Busy P
Best Live Events of 2007
Best of 2007 by Dust La Rock
Best Visual Artists of 2007
Best of 2007 by Dirt Crew
Best Music Trends of 2007
Best Style of 2007
Best of 2007 by Mochipet
Best Music Technology of 2007