It's December. I'm a music blogger. Do the math...it's end-of-year-list time. It was kinda hard to bring it down to only 20 albums this year. Having to leave records off the list makes me sad, but it's time to man up like a black metal kitten. Here are my 20 favorite albums of 2011. Sound the trumpets.
Alvarius B. - "Baroque Primitiva" - A lo-fi session from a member of Sun City Girls consisting primarily of Ennio Morricone covers that sound like they were recorded in a bathroom somewhere. It's really basic, but beautiful, raw, and honest. This is the kind of stuff dudes should play on their acoustic guitars to woo the ladies. Oh, if we only lived in a perfect world.
A$AP Rocky - "LiveLoveA$AP" - Mixtapes kicked me in the ass this year. One of the best comes from New York rapper A$AP Rocky. From his laid back flow to the production from Clams Casino on key tracks, it's easy to understand how this kid rose from a Youtube video to a record deal over the course of three months. Can't wait for a proper release.
The Caretaker - "An Empty Bliss Beyond This World" - Beautiful. Otherworldly. Leyland Kirby's concept behind this remarkable record is based on research with Alzheimer's patients where bits of memory could be retrieved based on music snips from said patients' pasts. The whole thing is a hypnotizing, haunting mix of distorted old big band jazz 78 recordings. The fact that this album exists is reason enough to give it a whirl.
Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - "Rome" - A concept album from producer extraordinaire Danger Mouse with Italian composer Daniele Luppi that pays homage to the old Spaghetti Western soundtracks made famous by the maestro Ennio Morricone with several of the original musicians on board, and also featuring vocals from Jack White and Norah Jones? Where do i sign up?
Death Grips - "Exmilitary" - Another mixtape, and the most recent thing on this list that i've discovered. It's insistence is that immediate. Aggressive raps over even more aggressive beats, and random samples throughout, and featuring the always awesome Zach Hill. I fucking love this album.
Destroyer - "Kaputt" - This is honestly the best thing that Destroyer has ever done. Ditching a lot of the old freak folk and moving full steam ahead with an almost Hall and Oates-like, smooth 80's jazz-pop/soft-rock thing seems to work. And that's awesome.
Xander Duell - "Experimental Tape No. 2, Vol. 1" - Unsure of how to actually describe this record, so i'll just let the label do it instead:"It’s going to take more than the space provided here to sum up the ideas and talent of NYC’s Xander Duell, who has fused decades’ worth of nuance into these thirteen songs. The implication in the title of this one is at least somewhat correct in that the experimental nature of Duell’s music rears its head in style and content atop songwriting that touches the emotional core without hesitation or regret. There is joy and sadness here, electronics and guitars, grandeur alongside the neon-lit sleaze. Calibrate your expectations appropriately on this one, but be prepared to have them shattered by this outsider work, in the spirit of Scott Walker’s numbered albums and the prime cut of ‘70s soft rock."
And it kicks ass too.
Fucked Up - "David Comes To Life" - These Canadian hardcore punk rock art kids have yet to disappoint, either through each subsequent release, or their amazing live shows. The new record is a rock opera about a young, factory-working punk in love, and it's amazing. Every band should have a big, fat, bald, naked, hairy guy sweating and screaming at you.
Gang Gang Dance - "Eye Contact" - Well, Gang Gang Dance finally went and did it. They made the best album of their career. This one pulls a little bit from all they've ever done, touching on the dance music, the world music, the hip-hop, and the prog weirdness to create a beautiful and cohesive work that puts the group into a genre unto themselves. Yeah. (All i could find was an edit of "Glass Jar.")
PJ Harvey - "Let England Shake" - Oh Polly Jean, how i long for you. And how you delivered with your best album in years, a bit of a concept album about war that feels like you've been hanging around Nick Cave. Hallelujah!
Julian Lynch - "Terra" - Julian Lynch is another one of those indie-wunderkinds who puts out consistently good jams every year, but goes unnoticed for the most part. On "Terra," he combines his indie folk leanings with a bit of prog rock, some jazz elements, and a vibe that makes the record feel like it's the soundtrack to some nostalgic trip that you never actually took.
John Maus - "We Must Become The Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves" - Honestly, there is absolutely no reason that a man on stage by himself, with only a mic and a sampler should be nearly as entertaining as John Maus is. But he is. He pours himself headfirst into his little pop masterpieces like a madman on speed, and that energy and love works its way onto every track of this awesome album that would have fit perfectly into a John Hughes film...the best John Hughes film. Bravo.
M83 - "Hurry Up, We're Dreaming." - Speaking of perfect music for a John Hughes movie, enter the latest opus from M83, a sprawling yet tight double album of 80's-hued dance-pop jams that beg you to look back at your childhood days and dream and rejoice for a little while. Midnight City by M83
Panda Bear - "Tomboy" - A perfect mix of Beach Boys-inspired harmonies, drone and reverb, and wistful vocals creates a dreamy vibe to just surf on for awhile. This is the music of dreams.
Peaking Lights - "936" - "936" is a scratchy mix of reggae, dub, psych-rock, and all around weirdness that sticks in your brain and squishes around in there like the best hallucinogenic drugs in the world. Coming down is not an option. You're one of us now.
Pure X - "Pleasure" - These Austin boys crafted the kind of album that was perfect for the 100+ degree days we had over the summer: music that kind of slows and melts in conjunction with your breathing and sweating. It's like a downer country or blues album with the reverb all the way up, echoing out into canyon, into the sweltering night.
Tyler The Creator - "Goblin" - So much press and hype on this album. At SXSW in March, the kids from Odd Future jumped from mid-bill to headliner in a matter of days. They are the hip hop collective equivalent of a punk rock band, all snot-nosed and middle fingers...a giant "fuck you" to everything and everybody, and Tyler is at it's center. This is the kind of stuff kids dig that pisses off their parents. Love it or hate it, it's kind of hard to ignore.
Washed Out - "Within And Without" - While i detest that label of "chill wave" and whoever spawned that stupid, fucking phrase, the style of music it attempts to describe can be pretty awesome when done right. Washed Out first surfaced a couple of years ago with a killer EP and some good singles. This year, they outdid themselves, transcending simple bedroom recordings to something grand and warm, like the best summer beach jams.
Weyes Blood - "The Outer Room" - This is one of those records that feels like you've just stumbled into and old and forgotten house. Cobwebs cover everything. Gloom hangs in the air like the dust. The melancholy atmosphere overwhelms. But, it's just all so beautiful, like you've discovered something precious that needs to be protected and held dear. Something like that. Haunting, psychedelic folk music for the modern man.
Hank Williams III - "Ghost To A Ghost/Guttertown" - A blistering mix of old-school country, punk rock, metal, folk, zydeco, ambient drone, and experimental tinkerings straight from the grandson of a country music originator and the son of someone who for years asked me if i was "ready for some football," Hank 3's double album (one of three different records released this year) is such genre-leaping, career-defining work, that it really does take multiple listens to grasp the whole thing. I realize that this whole list has been in alphabetical order, but this is my favorite album of 2011. I think it's a masterpiece.So there you go. Be back tomorrow for my favorite 52 songs of the year, that is if you're into that sort of thing.
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