Thursday, Februrary 4, 2009 » Blogger Bryan Allain created a completely ridiculous, completely subjective rating system for media � and I love it. The �Cannarf Rating System� is based solely on whether or not the media met expectations. Reviews are subjective by nature, so why not embrace it? (Note that I�ve adjusted Allain�s system just a little bit, because he has only used the rating system for books and movies.)
Here�s how it works: every book, movie or album is given a certain number of cannarfs depending on whether it met expectations or not. For example, if the album met prior expectations, it receives zero cannarfs. If it was better than expected, it can receive up to 10 cannarfs; if not, it can receive as low as -10.
Artist: The Avett Brothers
Album name: �I and Love and You� I�m glad it wasn�t called: �I and Only and Kind and Of and Like and You� Style(s) of music: Rock, indie, country, folk
How I feel about the album in Twitteresque 140 characters or fewer: I love how every song on the album has personality. You aren�t listening to just an indie album or just a rock album � there�s variety.
How I heard about the album: National Public Radio�s �All Songs Considered� program
Where I bought it: AmazonMP3.com
Best place to listen to the album: Walking back to the dorm after night class
Favorite lyrics taken completely out of context: �Keep your clothes on�
Favorite song and why: I love �Ten Thousand Words� because the Avett Brothers sing over each other to create chaos. (The song is about being flooded with mixed messages from peers and from the media.)
Least favorite song and why: I don�t like �January Wedding� because it�s too twangy.
Expectations going in: I heard the title track on NPR and fell in love with it. But when I previewed the rest of the album online, I wasn�t impressed. From the 30 seconds I heard, I thought every song was going to sound the same. (I call this Owl City syndrome � zing!)
Cannarf Rating: This album blew me away. I expected mediocrity, and instead found one of my favorite albums of the year (of 2009, that is). +6 cannarfs.