My recommendations 2006:He Poos Clouds by Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy: He Poos Clouds
Tomlab 6/13/2006

Available at Emusic

Musicians that work alone, such as Final Fantasy's Owen Pallett, have the luxury of being able to write and record in their own peculiar way, without the compromise inherent in group settings. This isn't always a good thing; independence often leads to overindulgence, as Cex has shown, or to a lack of diversity, such as Kieran Hebden's most recent ouput as Four Tet. Pallett, on the other hand, seems to have the ability of self-restraint, too rare in indie musicians these days. He lets his lap pop/chamber pop compositions roam but knows when to rein them in. His best ideas are allowed to flourish but he doesn't do them to death. He Poos Clouds is humorous, strange and clearly the result of a singular vision, but not so insular as to be soulless. In fact, these songs are often quite poignant. As much as I enjoy this album, I think his next two or three albums will be increasingly better, as Pallett hones his ability to balance independence and empathy.