As GoldfishX has this year's 2006 videogame soundtracks covered, I thought I'd field the non-VGM one.  So then, what was your top non-VGM soundtrack/album releases of 2006?  Also, was there any music you discovered this year released before '06?

Be back with my own listing in a bit!

So are we talking about soundtracks that aren't VGM or any kind of music outside of VGM?

If it's the former will move this to the anime/film music forum, and hype up Superman Returns

Edit: I did read the description to be any albums, hence the below response. I'm afraid I don't have too much to add for non-VGM soundtracks.

This year was kind of unique, as I kind of made it a point to explore some stuff outside of VGM. I listened to a good number of bands, some stuck somewhat, some didn't, but the only one that really stuck was Iron Maiden. Exploring them has been almost educational, considering how much VGM I listen to that exhibits traits in their music. Plus I just enjoy the overall feel of their songs and Bruce Dickinson's vocals in general (definitely an acquired taste, although the same could be said for Kishimoto, his Japanese counterpart, which I like a great deal...Too many vocalists, I find too annoying to really follow a great deal). I would definitely call "The Prisoner", "2 Minutes to Midnight", "Hallowed By Thy Name", "Judas Be My Guide" and "Be Quick or Be Dead" among some of my favorites of all time...Oh, and "Flash of the Blade" is probably my favorite "arrangement" of Ys 2's "Protectors" ever. ;p I keep the Maiden CD's I own right next to my Falcom ones for good measure.

Others I discovered of note were Kenny Loggins and Joe Satriani (not a lot of favorites, but I did enjoy "Hordes of Locusts" and especially "Summer Song".)

As for THIS year, Hinoi's Super Euro Party is the hands-down winner. I discovered Hinoi from their Ichigo 100% songs and their solo album didn't disappoint. Disgustingly fun and energetic euro-dance songs (complete with all the broken Engrish you can handle)that are like crack. Not a lot of these types of songs win me over and there are a couple duds in the 16 tracks here, but the classics are some of the best of their kind I've heard.

Runner-up: IM's "A Matter of Life and Death" and primarily for "These Colors Don't Run". Fine album and one of IM's more melodically pleasing ones overall, but I do feel like a number of songs here are longer than they need to be, while not being as interesting as some of the "classics". Probably has to grow on me a bit more.

Well, I wouldn't be a movie music geek if I didn't mention the Two Towers Complete Recordings.

Top 5 2006:

1. Underoath - Define the Great Line
2. As Tall As Lions - As Tall As Lions
3. Incubus - Light Grenades
4. Justin Timberlake - FutureSex/LoveSound
5. The Mars Volta - Amputechture

Most anticipated of 2007:

Explosions in the Sky - All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone
Kaddisfly - Set Sail the Prairie
Circa Survive

A *real*  movie music geek would pimp the Elmer Bernstein Film Music Collection...

^_^

I got about 300 albums give or take this year, no idea what to choose...

-Joshua

I concede.

I loved "Changing of Times" and "They're Only Chasing Safety." I listened to some purevolume samples for Define... and I wasn't impressed. Perhaps I should give it more thought.

Here's a lengthy list of my best of 2006 that I posted at RPGFan originally:

Anathallo - Floating World - an indie band with lots of members doing unique things released their first FULL ALBUM (after being together for about 6 years) in the form of a "concept album." It's all based on a short story (and some poems) that come from various Japanese folk tales/legends. The packaging for the album is superb, and the entire story (Hanakasajijii) is put in the album for you to read. If you aren't in some state of awe by the end of your first listen, you probably weren't paying attention.

DragonForce - Inhuman Rampage - Neal also mentioned this one. It's a fantasy metal band, and if you haven't heard of them, you're way out of the loop. Personally, I liked 2004's "Sonic Firestorm" a little more, but this album is also great.

Copeland - Eat, Sleep, Repeat - The band's third full album was just released in November, and while it has virtually no resemblance to their first two albums (other than the sweet, smooth vocals), it has quickly become a favorite listen of mine. The lyrics are easily the worst thing about the album: contrived, cheap, and "softcore emo" (sort of like "emo lite") to be sure. But the music is darn sweet.

mewithoutYou - Brother, Sister - Another band's third full album, this one came in September. Vocalist/lyricist Aaron Weiss is probably one of the best lyricists alive (to my knowledge anyway). I'm not sure if this album is my favorite of the three (the second, "Catch For Us The Foxes," was solid gold from beginning to end) ... whatever it is, it certainly beat the pants off of most other albums this year.

Sufjan Stevens - Songs For Christmas - This five disc box set contains EPs that Sufjan recorded personally each Christmas since '01 for friends and family. This year, he decided to release them all together in one box: and for $18, it's an excellent deal. The split of new, original, Sufjan-written songs and classic, overdone, unoriginal Christmas songs is about 50/50. And Sufjan spices the old songs up pretty nicely too. The album also comes with a 50 page book including some excellent essays and commentaries on the commercialization of the holiday season, as well as some short stories from Sufjan that help give a feel for why he actually dreads late December and struggles to reconcile his personal feelings about the holiday with all the cheap plastic mirth he finds around him. It was probably the perfect gift for the intellectual in your life, but you'd be a tad late giving it now!

Danielson - Ships - If I'm not mistaken, this puppy marked the 8th full album release from Danielson (if you count "Familie," "Brother," and "Tri-" as all the same "Danielson" entity). I've listened to most of those albums, and I own a few of them, but this was really something special. Pitchfork Media gave the album rave reviews, which is what sparked my interest. If you know nothing about the Danielson phenomenon, go here: http://www.danielsonmovie.com/ and read up.

That's it from me. If I had to pick a favorite, it'd be a toss-up with Anathallo and mewithoutYou. But I just love their styles in general...

Ramza

The latter, yes.  Apologies, I should've been more specific.

TOP FIVE ALBUMS OF 2006:

5) Mission: Impossible 3 - Giacchino started summer '06 with a flair of cool with M:I-3, which was a constant in my stereo for most of the season.  Its high-octane orchestra, combining modern instrumentation with key elements from the '70s original, effectively nails a sound that's closest to capturing the spirit of the original series.   The true highlight, of course, is the Vatican City musical sequence, essentially a 14-minute long orchestral homage to the M:I theme.  An orgastic feast for Schifrin fans, to be sure.

4) Best Trance Classics 100 - Brevity at its best.  One hundred various classical music themes, arranged in eurobeat, techno, and trance styles from some of the best artists in the genre.  The biggest surprise is how coherent the listening experience actually is, considering how many of the tracks barely top off a full minute; the sheer diversity is in itself a highly entertaining listen, and the megamix and editing is also first-rate work.  ADD-induced folks, take note: there's no way you can get bored with this one.

3) Machoman: Macho - Not to be confused with one Randy Savage, producer Robin Rex (Smile.dk) comes out with his latest Eurodance act, Machoman - and it's a doozy.  Rex's site couldn't have said it better: "Machoman’s music has “up-to-date attitude” with a powerful macho concept and great hit songs. Imagine the most crazy and self-confident man in the world writing his own words of his macho life and presenting it to us with 10 super macho songs."  For those in the eurodance know-how, think Captain Jack meets Aqua, but with exceptionally more tongue-in-cheek lyrics and an underlying over-the-top self-appreciative tone.  It's truly hilarious stuff that boasts strong, catchy melodies and incredible dance energy.  Machoman really jogs along that fine line at being unabashedly cheesy and subtely hip.

2) The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers Complete Recording - Very little needs to be said that hasn't already been said about The Fellowship of The Ring's Complete Recordings; based off of the Extended Edition, this is about as complete a score as one could ever hope for in The Two Towers.  For one thing, it's incredible to now be able to listen to the entirety of The Battle of Helm's Deep, but it's even better being able to track the musical progression that the trilogy has being heading along up to this point.  It's going to be a stunning experience to one day be able to pop in all three Complete Recording sets, sit back and listen to Shore's masterpiece in its entirety.

1) Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - I don't think a day's passed since I picked up the DMC soundtrack back on July 4th that I haven't listened to it with ravenous hunger.  Wanderer said it best in this thread: "This is junk music but it's so fantastically entertaining that I can't get enough of it."  It's seriously the most addicting soundtrack I've heard this year.  I'm glad Zimmer's taken up the torch for the series, and thankfully, he was able to successfully bridge that transition from the first film to the second.  Dead Man's Chest ends up being a thematically-powerful score, with the music palette seamlessly integrating both the old with the new.  Every single theme from the first film makes an appearance in a similar or more developed cue, while the new themes feel like a completely natural extension to the series.  Now that these films are officially deemed a trilogy, I look forward to the third and final score with great anticipation.

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BEST CD DISCOVERED THIS YEAR RELEASED BEFORE '06:

Tiffany: Dreams Never Die - After getting myself hooked with "I Think We're Alone Now" earlier this year, it was just a matter of time that I'd begin seeking out the rest of Tiffany's albums, mostly out of sheer curiosity - and that curiosity has been met with a mostly satisfying new music experience, and a learning one as I've followed Tiffany's 18+ year musical career. (Though yes, about 11 years of that laid dormant for a while.)

Out of Tiffany's six full length albums, "Dreams Never Die" -- the 1993 CD that was a collaborative effort between Tiffany and then-producer and songwriter George Tobin, released only in Asia, and then re-released by Tobin in 2005 here in the U.S -- is my absolute favorite.  (Even better was that the 2005 re-release contained six exclusive bonus tracks, previously unreleased works from Tiffany's earliest studio sessions.)  This is an absolute gem for Tiffany fans, and especially for myself, in light of the lukewarm New Inside and The Color of Silence.   Because it was specifically catered to the Asian market -- a market, which, at the time, was still big on her style of pop -- the personality of her older works still lingered.  It was just kicked up about three more levels.

Containing original songs and covers alike, undeniably, the lasting impression of producers John Duarte and Tobin is all over the album, along with the rest of the songwriters who did absolute wonders with these songs.  In my case, this CD feels extra special, because although it's been around since 1993, only hearing it now in 2006 makes this feel like a TRUE comeback for Tiffany; an album that has much of the great song writing of yesteryear, with the modern sensibilities of today's pop music.  It's really that good, and I thank Tobin for re-releasing the album.

I remember Tiffany! While I was finishing elementary school, she was pretty much the only thing my peers were listening to! Oh god. I feel nostalgic...

If you ever wanted to give her music a listen again, definitely go with "Dreams Never Die" - and make sure it's the 2005 release.  CD Baby sells it exclusively, and they've got samples of the entire album up.  "If Love Is Blind," "Ruthless," "Lookin' Through The Windows," and "I Don't Know What You Got" are particular stand-outs:

CD Baby - Dreams Never Die

Did you happen to hear about her upcoming stint on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club? I saw pictures of her recently and she looks far from unfit O_O According to Wikipedia, she'll also be releasing a new album to coincide with her TV appearance. It says she re-recorded "I Think We're Alone Now" for the new album, so it should be interesting to see how her more mature vocals will sound on the song.

Anyway, I've listed my top 10 dance albums elsewhere, so I'll mention my favorite non-dance, non-game albums instead:

3. We Love Yoshimune - Do Pachislot soundtracks count as game soundtracks? Well, even if they do, this 2-disc set also includes the soundtrack for the Yoshimune anime, making it doubly sublime.

2. The Beatles - Love - The Beatles given the remix treatment? AND it's nonstop? I'm there! Most of my exposure to The Beatles had been from listening with my mom to oldies stations, but I picked the CD up for her and was surprised by how fun the mashups are and how gorgeous the remastered tracks sound.

1. Celtic Woman - A Christmas Celebration - Think of Enya...meets Enya meets Enya meets Enya meets Vanessa Mae. This quartet (plus violinist) have fantastic, soothing voices (and harmonize very well), breathing new life into Christmas classics, including my all-time favorite, "O Holy Night." My favorite track from the album, however, is their swinging, big band rendition of "Let It Snow." I sort of wish they did the entire album in that style, but as it stands, it's still one of my favorite Christmas albums in recent memory

She looked great during her "Hit Me Baby One More Time" performance, two years ago.  She belted out "I Think We're Alone Now" with some decency, but as her 2005 "Dust Off And Dance" version proves, she can probably do absolute wonders with the song in a studio setting.

The new album is certainly news to me; can't wait for it!  You've also just inadvertently tipped me off on the recent Girls Aloud release, which I immediately placed an order for.  The thought of a disco-club version has me salivatin' already.

I can't submit 5 because i only bought two new releases in all of 2006. One of them was vgm (the estpolis reprint), and the other was AN CAFE - MAGNYA CARTA
http://www.jpophelp.com/cdscans/JPN-DAK … frontM.jpg

Futuresex / Lovesounds - Justin Timberlake

That's the only non-VGM CD released in '06 that I bought. And it's amazing.

Yeah, good stuff, and plenty of tracks I could dance to in the club (obiously)

Other albums I bought:

Kommunicator - Five Deez
Sangeet Sangam - L. Subramaniam & Ustad Rais Khan
GITS SAC SSS OST – Yoko Kanno
Ghetto Classics - Jaheim
Magnificent City – Aceyalone & RJD2
Surprise – Paul Simon
Souvenirs – Tosca

I sort of ranked them, but honestly, I totally loved all these albums. I didn't buy any vgm this year though. Others I discovered that were before 2006 are so many (as always), so I'll pass that.