Almost Halfway Through 2011: Favorite Albums of the Year (So Far)

started last year's thread -- Halfway Through 2010: Favorite Albums of the Year (So Far) -- on june 14th. it wasn't really halfway through the year then, and it's not really halfway through the year now, but i don't want to wait, so it's close enough!

favorite albums of the year so far, y'all

i tried this a few years back and was beaten down for it.

anyways, if you start the thread than you need to name your favorite albums first.

britney spears
wild beasts
friendly fires

Lady Gaga - Born This Way
Jamie Woon - Moonwriting
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes

maybe...

tUnE-yArDs - whokill

curren$y - covert coup
lady gaga - born this way
katy b - on a mission
beyonce - 4
big krit - return of 4eva
jhene aiko - sailing souls
beth ditto - ep
schoolboy q - setbacks
cam'ron & vado - gunz n butta
lykke li - wounded rhymes
j*davey - evil christian cop
radiohead - king of limbs
kurt vile - smoke ring for my halo
squadda b - i smoke because i don't care about death
britney spears - femme fatale
frank ocean - nostalgia ultra
jennifer hudson - i remember me

oh and:

raphael saadiq - stone rollin

destroyer: kaputt
swahili: swahili*
in solitude: the world, the flesh, the devil
moritz von oswald trio: horizontal structures
thursday: no devolución
gang gang dance: eye contact
shabazz palaces: black up
katy b: on a mission
ulver: wars of the roses
beyonce: 4
clams casino: instrumentals
bill callahan: apocalypse

*these dudes are friends of mine; record is psychedelics and drumming if you are into that: http://swahili.bandcamp.com

still so much to listen to but yeah

Cut Copy - Zonoscope
Colin Stetson - Judges
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Holy Ghost!

Kate Bush
Gang Gang Dance
Black Devil Disco Club

Kogumaza - s/t
Clams Casino mixtape
Chain & the Gang - Music's Not For Everyone
Thee Oh Sees - Castlemania
Various Artists - ILx: The Sounds of Sciento_Ogy

Not heard the new David Thomas Broughton properly yet but I'm holding out hope it'll be good.

Wild Beasts-Smother
The Go Team-Rolling Blackouts
Gang Gang Dance-Eye Contact
Art Brut-Brilliant! Tragic!
Britney Spears-Femme Fatale
Lykke Li-Wounded Rhymes
TV On The Radio-Nine Types of Light
Cut Copy-Zonoscope

frank ocean - nostalgia/ultra
e40 - graveyard/overtime
young dro - equestrian dro
dj quik - book of david
tuneyards - whokill
tyler - goblin
bricksquad - bricksquad mafia
elzhi - elmatic
white denim - d
young buck - back on my buck shit v2
killer mike - pl3dge
p j harvey - let england shake
trae tha truth - 48 hours

Metal Mountains - Golden Trees
Peaking Lights - 936
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Mountains - Air Museum
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Trembling Bells - The Contant Pageant
Fabric - A Sort of Radiance
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Vijay Iyer - Tirtha

Iceage
Psychic Paramount
Katy B
Fucked Up
Kellies (haven't seen this mentioned on ILM but it's totally great - Argentinian postpunk/grrrl stylings w/ a big Delta 5, ESG type thing - Dennis Bovell at the controls)
Liturgy
American Heritage

probably some other ish I'm forgetting

PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise
Robag Wruhme - Thora Vukk
White Denim - D
Wolf + Lamb vs Soul Clap - DJ-Kicks
Katy B - On A Mission
James Blake - James Blake
Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
Bella Hardy - Songs Lost & Stolen
June Tabor - Ashore
Tamikrest - Toumastin
Trichotomy - The Gentle War
Cornershop - Cornershop & The Double 'O' Groove Of
The Pierces - You & I
Owiny Sigoma Band - Owiny Sigoma Band
Planningtorock - W
Le Trio Joubran - As Far
Vinicius Canturia & Bill Frisell - Lagrimas Mexicanas
Crystal Stilts - In Love With Oblivion
Lone - Echolocations EP
The Decembrists - The King Is Dead
Boxcutter - The Dissolve

Kellies (haven't seen this mentioned on ILM but it's totally great - Argentinian postpunk/grrrl stylings w/ a big Delta 5, ESG type thing - Dennis Bovell at the controls)

!

• PJH -- let england shake
• dirty beaches -- badlands
• ghost -- opus eponymous
• burial -- street halo EP
• lykke li -- wounded rhymes
• hollie cook -- milk & honey
• earth -- angels of darkness, demons of light

sorry, hollie cook's disc is self-titled.

Oh yeah, I've seen the name Kellies around but wasn't sure if it was gonna be another disappointing hype thing. Your description sounds good, though.

PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Junior Boys - It's All True
Colin Stetson - 'Warfare...'
The Caretaker - An Empty Bliss Beyond This World
Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure
Hatchback - Zeus & Apollo
The Sandwitches - Mrs Jones' Cookies
Belong - Common Era
Grouper - AIA: Alien Observer
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Destroyer - Kaputt
Shabazz Palaces - Black Up

Jennifer Hudson - I Remember Me
Death Grips - Ex Military
Britney - Femme Fatale
Shabazz Palaces - Black Up
GGD - Eye Contact
Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
2562 - Fever

Black Zone Myth Chant - Straight Cassette
Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges
Demian Johnston & Mink Stole - Trailed & Kept
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saint
Grouper - AIA
Peaking Lights - 936

Demian Johnston & Mink Stole - Trailed & Kept

I was very startled by this, but it turns out it's not actually the Mink Stole...

Death Grips - Exmilitary
The Unthanks - Last
Timber Timbre - Creep On Creepin' On
Okkervil River - I Am Very Far
Liturgy - Aesthetica
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Grails - Deep Politics
Junior Boys - It's All True
Aidan Moffatt/Bill Wells - Everything's Getting Older
Coma Cinema - Blue Suicide
Marissa Nadler - Marissa Nadler
KEN mode - Venerable

loving:

Colin Stetson
Grails
Destroyer
Gang Gang
Oneida
Death Grips
Braids

Giorgio Tuma 'in the morning we'll meet'

Top 14: 10 + 4 reissues. PJ missed it by a hair, and I guess I better listen to this Frank Ocean character.

Neil Diamond--The Bang Years: 1966-1968 (Legacy)
Monotonix--Not Yet (Drag City)
Steel Magnolia--Steel Magnolia (Big Machine)
Gucci Mane--The Return of Mr. Zone 6 (Warner Bros.)
Quintron--Sucre du Sauvage (Goner)
Lady Gaga--Born This Way (Interscope)
Various Artists--Nigeria 70 -- Sweet Times: Afro-Funk, Highlife & Juju from 1970s Lagos (Strut)
The Dirtbombs--Party Store (In the Red)
Various Artists--Fania Records 1964-1980: The Original Sound of Latin New York (Strut)
Charlotte Martin--Dancing on Needles (Test-Drive)
Bacilos--20 Grandes Exitos (Warner Music Latina)
Locussolus--Locussolus (International Feel)
Iron and Wine--Kiss Each Other Clean (4AD/Warner Bros.)
Group Doueh--Zayna Jumma (Sublime Frequencies)

Ford & Lopatin: Channel Pressure
Moritz von Oswald Trio: Horizontal Structures
Hyetal: Broadcast
Destroyer: Kaputt
Earth: Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light
Tyler: Goblin
Mist: House

Exciting year so far, and still so much to catch up on and so much more of it to go...

soulja boy - 1UP
the weeknd - house of balloons
sky ferreira - as if!
dj quik - the book of david
squadda b - i smoke because i don't care about death

Been way way out of it this year, but I can't see anything unshaking Destroyer from my tops of the year. It's like '79 Steely Dan delivering a new album to us.

Haven't heard much yet this year, but I'm liking the new Tune-yards and Destroyer.

Other Lives
Lykki Li
Givers
Panda Bear
Bon Iver
James Blake
Cults
Junior Boys

PJ Harvey
Wild Beasts
Patrick Wolf
Nicolas Jaar

Then a gap. Then:

Iron & Wine
Panda Bear
Bill Callahan
Mountain Goats
Radiohead
Robag Wruhme
Destroyer

Looking forward to St Vincent and Beirut.

1. Destroyer - Kaputt
2. Okkervil River - I Am Very Far
3. Selebrities - Delusions (to quote DavidM "they're like a female-fronted New Order")
4. Junior Boys - It's All True
5. Panda Bear - Tomboy
6. My Morning Jacket - Circuital
7. Cut Copy - Zonoscope
8. Friendly Fires - Pala
9. Peter Murphy - Ninth
10. The Cars - More Like This
11. Elbow - Build A Rocket Boys
12. Wild Beasts - Smother
13. Twilight Singers - Dynamite Steps
14. Radiohead - The King of Limbs
15. TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light

Also enjoying:

Beastie Boys
Joan As Policewoman
King Creosote and Jon Hopkins
British Sea Power

Demian Johnston & Mink Stole - Trailed & Kept

I was very startled by this, but it turns out it's not actually the Mink Stole...

― emil.y

Haha also my first thought. The first thing about the album that piqued my interest. Was a bit dissapointed when I found out it's not really her but it turns out it's a pretty decent drone/rock album... riyl: Luasa Raelon or Aidan Baker & Tim Hecker.

Matt Berry - Witchazel
TV On The Radio - Nine Types of Light
Paul Simon - So beautiful or so what
King Cresote & Jon Hopkins -Diamond Mine
Discodeine - FACT mix
kd Lang and the Siss Boom Bang
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Human League - Credo
Metronomy - English Riviera
Keren Ann - 101
Anna Calvi - Anna Calvi
Jenny Hval - Viscera
Acid House Kings - Music Feels Better With You
Ghostpoet - Ghostpoet
Johan Johannson - The Miner's Hymns
Sarah Nixey - Brave Tin Soldiers
Colin Steston - New History Warfare vol 2

The Ghostpoet album is actually called 'Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam', and the kd Lang album's 'Sing it Loud', just couldn't remember the titles.

xpost: These two are growing on me:

King Creosote & Jon Hopkins - Diamond Mine
Keren Ann - 101

Gave Sarah Nixey a listen and she sounded to me like late- Morcheeba. Interested in checking out Ghostpoet. Also had no idea the Acid House Kings were still together.

killer mike - pl3dge
evan caminiti - when california falls into the sea
mountain goats - all eternals deck
curren$y - covert coup
low - c'mon
destroyer - kaputt
dj quik - the book of david
e-40 - revenue retrievin' / graveyard

Accidentally posted this somewhere else:

When Saints Go Machine - Konkylie
I heard this for the first time yesterday and it didn't leave my iPhone playlist all day - must have listened to it on repeat about 5 times round.

Africa Hitech - 93 Million Miles
Mixed feelings about this album, but on the whole it's a decent encapsulation of where partisan dance seems to be/be going right now.

Frivolous - Meterology
Great fun. Upbeat house with a cheeky twist, but not at all in an annoying way.

Fucked Up - David Comes To Life
Perhaps a little impenetrabel at 78 minutes long, but it's still a notable record - one of, if not the only, hardcore punk concept albums.

Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure
Post-everything retro-futurism done properly.

Art Department - The Drawing Board
Deep deep vocal house. Dance music to chop onions to.

― The Boy Who Can Go Inside The TV (dog latin), Monday, 13 June 2011 09:21 (36 minutes ago)

Most mentioned above but these are ticking my boxes

Andy Stott-Passed me by
Alexander Tucker - Dorwtch
Ekoplekz-Fountain Hill
James Ferraro - Night dolls...
KSHE reissue
Virgo 4-Resurection
Todd terje- Ragysh
Rene Hell-Terminal Symphony

In no order:

DJ Quik – The Book of David
Destroyer – Kaputt
Britney Spears – Femme Fatale
Marsha Ambrosius – Late Nights and Early Mornings
Wire – Red Barked Tree
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Nicholas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Mountain Goats- All Eternals Deck
El DeBarge – Second Chance
Drive-By Truckers – Go-Go Boots
Paul Simon - So Beautiful Or So What
tune-YARDS – w h o k i l ll
Lady Gaga - Born This Way
Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin'

Forgot to add:

Mark McGuire - A Young Person's Guide To Mark McGuire

which is great.

My approximate top 20 so far, in approximate order (minus ones I haven't listened to yet -- Lady Gaga among them):

Randy Montana – Randy Montana (Mercury)
Cauldron – Burning Fortune (Earache)
Nazareth – Big Dogz (Eagle Rock Entertainment)
John Waite – Rough and Tumble (Frontiers/No Brakes)
Kultur Shock – Ministry Of Kultur (Kultur Shock)
Stealing Angels – Stealing Angels (Skyville)
Yaron Herman Trio – Follow The White Rabbit (ACT)
Thompson Square – Thompson Square (Stoney Creek)
The Dirtbombs – Party Store (In The Red)
Gutbucket – Flock (Cuneiform)
Garland Jeffreys – The King Of In Between (Luna Park)
Ghost – Opvs Eponymovs (Metal Blade/Rise Above)
Too Slim and the Tail Draggers – Shiver (Underworld)
Black Spiders – Sons Of The North (Dark Riders)
Britney Spears – Femme Fatale (Jive)
Carl Sims – Hell On My Hands (CDS)
Endangered Blood – Endangered Blood (Skirl)
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo – Cotonou Club (Strut)
James Carter – Caribbean Rhapsody (Emarcy/Decca)
Blame Sally – Speeding Ticket And A Valentine (Ninth Street Opus)

Top 5 2010 albums I didn't hear until 2011 (the top couple of which I might consider for a 2011 year-end list):

Carl Marshall – Love Who You Wanna Love (CDS)
The Band Perry – The Band Perry (Universal Republic)
Mel Waiters – I Ain’t Gone Do It (Waldoxy)
Gerod Rayborn – Call Before You Come!!! (Ecko/New Groove)
Kultur Shock – Integration (Kultur Shock)

Probably forgetting a few but...

Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
Implodes - Black Earth
Jenny Hval - Viscera
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Grouper - Alien Observer
Mountains - Air Museum
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Deaf Center - Owl Splinters
Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Horizontal Structures
Andy Stott - Passed Me By
Xander Harris - Urban Gothic
Arthur's Landing - Arthur's Landing
Zwischenwelt - Paranormale Aktivitat
Art Department - The Drawing Board
Rene Hell - The Terminal Symphony
Robag Wruhme - Thora Vukk
Lucy - Wordplay for Working Bees

I was left a bit cold by Arthur's Landing -NickB, what did you think?

Yeah tbh I thought the Arthur's Landing was utter tripe.

I was gonna ask about that Garland Jeffreys record.

Aw, Arthur's Landing is a fun record imo

I approve of the sentiment behind AL but I guess I'd just rather listen to original Arthur Russell.

my top ten so far, roughly

pj harvey - let england shake
EMA - past life martyred saints
katy b - on a mission
hauschka - salon des amateurs
when saints go machine - konkylie
austra - feel it break
k-s.h.e. - routes not roots (reissue)
tune-yards - whokill
clams casino - s/t mixtape
liturgy - aesthetica

Unmentioned above but worth checking:

Rainbow Arabia - Boys and Diamonds (aptly named faux-ethno electropop on Kompakt)

Ringo Deathstarr - Color Trip (MBV-alikes, but the album is holding up)

Metal Mountains - Golden Trees
Peaking Lights - 936
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Mountains - Air Museum
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Trembling Bells - The Contant Pageant
Fabric - A Sort of Radiance
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Vijay Iyer - Tirtha

― hipsters gonna hip (seandalai)

Love the Tim Hecker and Mountains albums, and think the new Panda Bear is pretty good. So clearly I need to check out everything else on this list.

Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
Implodes - Black Earth
Jenny Hval - Viscera
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Grouper - Alien Observer
Mountains - Air Museum
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Deaf Center - Owl Splinters
Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Horizontal Structures
Andy Stott - Passed Me By
Xander Harris - Urban Gothic
Arthur's Landing - Arthur's Landing
Zwischenwelt - Paranormale Aktivitat
Art Department - The Drawing Board
Rene Hell - The Terminal Symphony
Robag Wruhme - Thora Vukk
Lucy - Wordplay for Working Bees

― NickB

This list too.

For the record, my favorites of the year so far:

Low: C'mon
Mountains: Air Museum
Tim Hecker: Ravedeath, 1972
Rene Hell: The Terminal Symphony

Rene Hell: The Terminal Symphony

Currently waiting for this to arrive in the post.

co-sign on that Julianna Barwick album, just lovely! Peaking Lights is also quite good.

Peaking Lights - 936
Moon Duo - Mazes
Eternal Tapestry - Beyond the 4th Door
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
Sic Alps - Napa Asylum
Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
Skull Defekts - Peer Amid
Mark McGuire - A Young Person's Guide To...
Dirtbombs - Party Store
Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts
True Widow - AHATHHAFTCTTCOTE
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath 1972
Fleetwood Mac - Tusk

Glad to finally see that Skull Defekts record pop up on this thread. Lol @ Tusk.

Skull Defekts kinda blew me away live. Higgs is one wild cat.

R.E.M.

An occasional description wouldn't go amiss, when it comes to discerning one unheard-of album from the other 30 on this thread, I'm not quite sure what the value is of these endless lists.

Mutual backpatting iirc

Matt's totally correct. I doubt any of mine are unheard of, but...

PJ Harvey - modern English war folk poetry
Wild Beasts - subdued, sophisticated, sensual Talk Talk-ish British indie
Patrick Wolf - post-Kate Bush upbeat pop
Nicolas Jaar - minimal organic electr thing

Iron & Wine - trip through American music history, adding funk & soul to alt.country
Panda Bear - psychedelic groove pop, techno beach Boys repetition
Bill Callahan - minimal, meandering country songs
Mountain Goats - acoustic folk/pop with awesome lyrics
Radiohead - Oxford prog
Robag Wruhme - European electronic stuff with woozy kids vocals at points
Destroyer - Steely Dan with the indie talent gap on vocals

Beastie Boys - middle-aged fun-rap
Joan As Policewoman - elongated r'n'b bar band stuff
King Creosote and Jon Hopkins - Scottish mumbling and spacious string / electronic arrangements
British Sea Power - bustling indie

I'm glad that Robag Wruhme album is getting some love here, really beautiful stuff, way better than the last Pantha Du Prince.

Youngteam - Daydreamer
Girls Names - Dead To Me
Cults - Cults
Yuck - Yuck
Alela Diane - Alela Diane & Wild Divine
Wye Oak - The Knot
Ringo Deathstarr - Colour Trip
Gruff Rhys / Andy Votel - Hotel Shampoo
22-Pistepirko - Lime Green DeLorean
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
Selebrities - Delusions
My Morning Jacket - Circuital
Asobi Seksu - Florescence
Gatekeeper - Giza
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake

^Mostly shoegazey/indie tbh. Gatekeeper is like some late '80s 'industrial'/dance throwback.

The When Saints Go Machine album is absolutely amazing. This has been such a good yer for music but this is definitely top three.

ive definitely not given the tim hecker album enough love given he changed the way my 21 year old self thought about music. What ive spent all my time doing is listening to little atoms podcasts from resonance fm

I think the Wruhme is different enough to the PDP to not make sense in comparison to it; I get a very different feeling from it, and go to it for very different reasons.

EMA - Past Life Martyred Saint
The Mountain Goats - All Eternals Deck
Fucked Up - David Comes To Life
Lucinda Williams - Blessed
Christine Fellows - Femmes de Chez Nous
*Willie Wright - Telling The Truth
The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar

*yeah, it's a reissue, but it ain't like anyone heard it the first time around.

top 5 2011 LPs i've heard more than once and think are v good

Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact (laser fite at the OK Aviary, not quite perfect but significantly ahead of the other 4)
Young Galaxy – Shapeshifting (Lissvik's Midas touch results in very easy listening)
Egyptrixx – Bible Eyes (a fine balance between exhilarating and interesting, like Ikonika last year for me i guess)
PJ Harvey – Let England Shake (impressive as ever, tho i have never been a regular listener of her LPs, might be more into this towards the end of the year)
Jamie Woon - Mirrorwriting (lovely production which mostly upstages his average voice tho not feeling the acoustic stuff so much)

+ the Pacific! LP which only came out last Nov

not much love for the James Blake album, i see (or does ILM hate JB, i know Lex does). "the wilhelm scream" aside, i was dissapointed with it myself...

So far I like this compilation that La Lechera and Tracer Hand have been talking about:

Michi Sarmiento - Aqui Los Bravos! The Best of Michi Sarmiento y Su Combo Bravo 1967-77

kinda forgot the Blake album even existed really. listened again last night. half of it is OK, the other half unlistenable.

*Willie Wright - Telling The Truth

This is one of my favourite 2011 releases too, didn't mention it because of the rerelease technicality. It's such a great album for the summer, I was listening to it this morning.

Having hated the James Blake on first listen, I've come round to it in a major way - whereas I've cooled off a lot on the Jamie Woon, whose surface gloss is wearing increasingly thin.

bon iver - bon iver
explosions in the sky - take care, take care, take care
white denim - d
joy formidable - big roar
cults - cults
mogwai - hardcore will never die, but you will
braids - native speaker

the handful I have listened to most:

Destroyer - Kaputt
Go Team - Rolling Blackouts
Moon Duo - Mazes
Yuck - s/t
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring for My Halo
Cloud Nothings - s/t
Cut Copy - Zonoscope
Low - C'Mon

plus that kind of annoying Tennis album.

Good call on Yuck and, yeah, I keep flip-flopping on that Tennis record. One listen and I think its the most precious annoying thing ever, but with the next I really love it.

i better check out that Destroyer album, the one track i heard didnt do much for me but the steely dan comparisons are intriguing me

the steely dan comparisons aren't so accurate imo.

forgot about tennis, like that one too.

Oh yeah, the other thing I like this year is another compilation:

Various Artists - Acid Rumba - Spanish Gypsy Grooves 1969-1976

my faves:

Alvarius B - Baroque Primitiva (gentle Morricone worship, a James Bond tune, and some originals, very mellow)

Sir Richard Bishop - Graviton Polarity Generator LP (scary synth hell, not at ALL like his guitar albums)

Psychic TV - Stockholm/NY Scum/unreleased 4LP box (classic live show and some killer unreleased stuff from industrial legends)

The Ex - Catch My Shoe (post punk heroes (& heroine) make rock music again after a lengthy dalliance with Ethiopia)

Pakistani instrumentals 2LP on Sublime Frequencies (zany surfy spy fuzz action)

also been listening to Moon Duo, Kurt Vile, new Akron/Family, Battles, Panda Bear, Thurston Moore.

had no idea there was a new Quintron album, must investigate... also need to hear Metal Mountains, Grouper, Kellies.

Psychic TV - Stockholm/NY Scum/unreleased 4LP box (classic live show and some killer unreleased stuff from industrial legends)

Just curious, was the Stockholm one released at any point on vinyl as Real Live Swedish Show?

Meant to quote obv

no, that show's from 1989 and I never heard of it before! this one is from 1990 and was released on tape iirc co-billed with White Stains, around 80 minutes maybe? three long album sides. Or maybe this is a longer version of that one? the version of NY Scum Haters on this also has extra stuff not on the original LP (or CD reissue).

tim hecker
gang gang dance
lykke li
pj harvey
bon iver
primordial
grouper
bill callahan

oh and radiohead

I've been more into singles this year than albums, but right now, excluding obv. nepotistic choices:

Andy Stott
Planningtorock
Grouper
Active Child
Zombi

@sleeve you've convinced me to pick up Sir Richard Bishop and the Pakistani comp, I've heard bits and they both sounded awesome

PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
east river pipe - we live in rented rooms
death grips - exmilitary
the pains of being pure at heart - belong
cass mccombs - wits end
EMA - past life martyred saints

Deerhoof vs. evil
kurt vile-smoke ring for my halo

top 10:
holy ghost!
ringo deathstarr - colour trip
the megaphonic thrift - decay decoy
mirrors - lights and offerings
jerusalem & the starbaskets - dost
belong - common era
slug guts - howlin' gang
low - c'mon
craft spells - idle labor
girls names - dead to me

virgo four - ressurection
part wild horses mane on both sides - low fired clay escape
dj quik - book of david
jhene ahiko - sailing soul(s)
katy b - on a mission
krallice - diotima
todd terje - ragysh
soul clap vs wolf + lamb - dj kicks!
gatto fritto - gatto fritto
sei miguel + pedro gomes - turbina anthem
bridget hayden - a siren blares in an indiferent ocean
sightings - future accidents
jon brooks - music for dieter rams / thomas carnacki

reissues:

charlie nothing - inside / outside
queen - first 3 albuns

Gruff Rhys - Hotel Shampoo

The High Llamas - Talahomi Way

Okay, my list redone with descriptions, sorry for tl;dr:

Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place amazing album of looped and layered vocals, maybe a midpoint between the ambient stuff of Grouper, the pastoralism of Virginia Astley and some of the feel of communal celebration of African choral music
Implodes - Black Earth murky-sounding psych stuff on Kranky, like the Belong record this definitely owes a debt to Flying Saucer Attack, it's got that same distantness like you're hearing the music through some sort of audio gloom. Probably a bit more guitar-heavy though.
Jenny Hval - Viscera kind of folky singer-songwriter stuff but it also taps into a vein of vocal experimentation that makes me think of Laurie Anderson and Meredith Monk. Awesome production by Deathprod, gives it a whole other layer of sonic detail - I don't think I've heard a better sounding record this year
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact don't like this quite as much as the previous one (feels just a little less spontaneous to me) but still a great record
Grouper - Alien Observer have really come round on this after some initial disappointment, strange and lonely-sounding ambient songs that probably fooled me the first time round with their apparent simplicity
Mountains - Air Museum two guys twiddling away on acoustic guitars that they've then processed beyond recognition; sounds a bit more kosmische and a little less bucolic than their previous albums, kind of like a low-key Emeralds?
Panda Bear - Tomboy prefer this to his last one tbh
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972 huge brooding pieces on processed church organ, really cavernous at times
Deaf Center - Owl Splinters nervy soundtrackish stuff on Type Records, again lots of sonic detail on this, one to listen to in a darkened room with your back pressed firmly against the wall
Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Horizontal Structures the bass on this makes it seem a lot less abstract and a lot more accessible than their first one, bits of it are not unlike a dubby version of the Necks
Andy Stott - Passed Me By didn't totally connect with the Actress album from last year, this reminds me a bit of that but it's slower and bassier and all the more mesmerising and ominous for it
Xander Harris - Urban Gothic synth soundtrack for an imaginary straight-to-vhs horror flim but not quite as kitsch as that sounds cos there are some really sweet electro tunes on it eg 'End Credits'
Arthur's Landing - Arthur's Landing Arthur Russell tribute that seemingly everyone hates
Zwischenwelt - Paranormale Aktivitat Drexciya-related electronic project, lots of Germanic vocalising about various psychic phenomena which somehow manages to be more seductive than ridiculous
Rene Hell - The Terminal Symphony analogue synth fuckery with some lovely expansive passages floating up out of the debris
Robag Wruhme - Thora Vukk spacious and subtle stuff along the lines of Pantha du Prince or Lawrence
Lucy - Wordplay for Working Bees menacing but deft techno with something of the Pan Sonic about it

what a disaster for formatting

Based on list I'll definitely up Robag Wruhme, Zwischenwelt and Implodes, thanks!

I checked out the Robag Wruhme album thanks to this thread. It is indeed excellent

pick up, I mean xp

Did anyone link to this yet?

Dusted - 2011 Halftime Report

We mark the midway point of 2011 with a recap of our favorite albums of the year thus far.

is the ex record 2011? i thought it came out last fall.

mine:

sub rosa - no help for the mighty ones (profound lore)
moody doom metal with twin violins and a trio of women vocalists

cloud nothings - cloud nothings (wichita / carpark)
spazzy adenoidal lo-fi jangle-pop-punk with sharp, direct songwriting

the psychic paramount - ii (no quarter)
like if steve reich composed for a rock band that could see through time

wormrot - dirge (earache)
grindcore. grindcore.

bill callahan - apocalypse (drag city)
travels with bill

krallice - diotima (profound lore)
progressive (?) black metal with architectural dimensions and sober demeanor, the occasional solo

oliveros / radigue / wada / sun circle - attention patterns (important)
four sides, an airy, humane old performance by pauline oliveros and an old quiet, burbly synth exploration by elaine radigue, and new bagpipey droney recordings by yoshi wada (less intense) and sun circle (more intense, with ritual stomping)

stephan mathieu - remain (line)
an hour-long glowing red light

witch mountain - south of salem (mountastic)
bluesy groovy sludge-doom with witchy nancy (ann?) wilsonesque UTA PLOTKIN singing and ilx metal thread mainstay nate carson drumming patiently and aggressively

mitochondrion - parasignosis (profound lore)
bottomless pit of blackened death

tulbury & duch & davies - cornelius cardew works 1960-1970 (+3dB)
AMM member and pianist john tilbury, double bassist michael duch, and prepared harpist rhodri davies play some of cardew's indeterminate or improvised or up-to-performer compositions

miles davis - bitches brew live (columbia/legacy)
dates from 1969 and 1970, a small(ish) group (corea, holland, dejohnette at first, then adding moreira, jarrett, bartz) playing fast and tough

stephan mathieu - a static place (12k)
modestly segmented and measureable where 'remain' is expansive and boundless, with a similar but distinct sound palette, more variously colored and textured

Need to spend some more time with those Stephan Mathieu records. Apparently he's now working with Robert Hampson on a new incarnation of Main.

Jenny Hval - Viscera kind of folky singer-songwriter stuff but it also taps into a vein of vocal experimentation that makes me think of Laurie Anderson and Meredith Monk. Awesome production by Deathprod, gives it a whole other layer of sonic detail - I don't think I've heard a better sounding record this year

If it's produced by Deathprod I really ought to check this one out. His work on White Birch's albums is perfect.

◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝

the wire sez hval wrote a dissertation on KATE BUSH. the samples on the rune grammofon site are pretty good.

Haven't seen this one mentioned yet:
Jeniferever - Silesia
Gorgeous atmospheric postrock. It's about time that these guys get some recognition, because their last couple of albums have been amazing.

I haven't heard of a single one of those Dusted recommendations, this is a positive thing.

been digging that jeniferever album a lot

That High Llamas track is just the kind of brainless Smile pastiche that I like.

Surprisingly great year so far, it was tough to even get this down to a top 25. In no particular order:

Destroyer – Kaputt
Lykke Li – Wounded Rhymes
The Joy Formidable – The Big Roar
Lady Gaga – Born This Way
Moon Duo – Mazes
Smith Westerns – Dye It Blonde
E-40 – Overtime/Graveyard Shift
Gang Gang Dance – Eye Contact
The Gates of Slumber – The Wretch
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Belong
Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
Friendly Fires – Pala
Crystal Stilts – In Love with Oblivion
Yuck – Yuck
Krallice – Diotima
tUnE-yArDs – w h o k i l l
Nicolas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Zombi – Escape Velocity
Ringo Deathstarr – Colour Trip
Black Lips – Arabian Mountain
Fucked Up – David Comes to Life
KEN Mode – Venerable
Mars Classroom – The New Theory of Everything
Liturgy – Aesthetica
Battles – Gloss Drop

is the ex record 2011? i thought it came out last fall.

you know, I thought that was the case, but my LP says 2011... I think you might be right though.

My favorite releases of 2011 so far...

Albums:

Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saint
Grouper - AIA
Soft Kill - An Open Door
Metal Mother - Bonfire Diaries
Atoi - Waves of Past Relations
Strap On Halo - The Dead Don’t Lie
Esben and the Witch - Violet Cries
Arborea - Red Planet
Imaginary Cities - Temporary Resident
Chelsea Wolfe - Apocalypse
Crystal Stilts - In Love With Oblivion
Atrium Animae - Dies Irae
Seventh Harmonic - Garden of Dilmun
Demdike Stare - Triptych
Weyes Blood - The Outside Room
Metal Mountains - Golden Trees

EPs:
Warm Ghost - Uncut Diamond
Monica Richards - The Strange Familiar
Tropic of Cancer - The Sorrow of Two Blooms
Light Asylum - In Tension
Creep - Days
Grimes - Darkbloom

Seriously great year so far, and there's so much more I'm looking forward to!

stephan mathieu - a static place (12k)
modestly segmented and measureable where 'remain' is expansive and boundless, with a similar but distinct sound palette, more variously colored and textured

listening to remain right now, and it feels like the better of the two. i haven't listened to every mathieu record, but it seems like he mastered this sound (lush, humid, amorphous) with radioland. i bought a static place several months ago, and it doesn't really seem to settle, tonally, as it progresses.. remain feels more streamlined, tonally-centered, and has more interesting textures than a static place. but i'm listening to an mp3 of remain mono, thru a solid state guitar amp, so who knows?

been enjoying DALGLISH Benacah Drann Deachd, as it feels like a lost, later period autechre album, with more obvious melodies.

re: remain.. pretty monotonous, tho. too many italics. gimme some rafael toral

Atoi - Waves of Past Relations

I'd love to include this again in 2011, but it would only be on a technicality (Danish-only in 2010, other countries in 2011). It ended up being my #8 of last year. Maybe I should've saved it.

Not that there's any universal governing body for these things...

We'll see what happens come December.

those are the only two mathieu albums i know, so they might be fresher to me. i prefer 'remain' too.

the dalglish is good—though it's mostly sounded atmospheric and inoffensively abstract so far. i like the 10-20 album (from… 2008? 9?) and last year's string of eps (island, isthmus, etc.) also on highpoint lowlife, if you can find them. more forward propulsion and some leftover hints of a distant relationship to electro and techno than the dalglish.

thanks for the heads-up on 10-20.. sorta what i'm hungerin for lately

re: mathieu.. sorry for harpin' on the topic. his record with janek schaefer, called "hidden name," is real nice. sort of a lush, seamless jeck-type music

Eddie C - Parts Unknown
Gatto Fritto - Gatto Fritto
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Zomby - Dedication
Holy Ghost! - Holy Ghost!
Ghost - Opus Eponymous
Locussolus - Locussolus
Egyptrixx - Bible Eyes
Destroyer - Kaputt
Mark E - Stone Breaker
Hatchback - Zeus & Apollo
Zodiac Free Arts Club - Floating World
Wolf + Lamb & Soul Clap - DJ Kicks
Yuck - Yuck
Peaking Lights - 936
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Katy B - On A Mission

Yikes, this list is a lot longer than I thought it would be...

hidden name is wonderful! maybe my favorite mathieu (of those i've heard). i need to explore shaefer more; just recently got migration which is really lovely.

metal mountains
subtractivelad
julianna barwick
apache dropout
battles
moon duo
blood ceremony
marissa nadler
apex manor
circle
the feelies

new jesu and thurston moore, too. and david kilgour

great year for music so far

circle

Infektio?

yes, i love it. i'm a sucker for those guys

Me too, but I haven't heard that one yet. I've been keeping my eye out for the Aquarius email announcing that they have it.

it's not nwofhm, more krautrock instead, which i prefer. creepy a little, too, like jacula

Kind of feeling the new Pharoah Overlord more than Circle tbh.

haven't heard it. i'll have to check it out

Boris - Heavy Rocks
The 2nd disc of the Sebadoh "bakesale" reissue
Toro Y Moi
The Weeknd
Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Fucked Up
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
J Mascis
Yuck
Ringo Deathstarr
Radiohead

I'm dazzled by the semiotic trickle that flows down bmus's list.

nice catch

My website's half way top 40

Which, I guess, is similar to my own in a lot of respects.

Katy B, On a Mission
Lady Gaga, Born This Way
Beth Ditto, EP
KING, The Story (EP)

4 – Beyoncé
Blue Songs – Hercules and Love Affair
Dedication – Zomby
EP – Beth Ditto
James Blake – James Blake
Let England Shake – PJ Harvey
Nine Types of Light – TV On The Radio
On a Mission – Katy B
Raven in the Grave – The Raveonettes
Terra – Julian Lynch
The Light of the Sun – Jill Scott
Wounded Rhymes – Lykke Li

Hatchback's Zeus & Apollo has rocketed to near the top of my list in the past week... Also still digging Broadcast by Hyetal VERY much. The new thing on Mego with Jim O'Rourke and Oren Ambarchi is fantastic, too. The new EPs on Triangle by Clams Casino and Holy Other are really solid.

Blood Ceremony
Micachu vs. Kwake Bass
John Maus

Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass
It makes everything else redundant forever.

Various Artists - Pakistan Folk and Pop Instrumentals 1966-76

Favourite 10 so far:

Trouble Books & Mark McGuire - LP
Jürgen Müller - Science Of The Sea
Black Eagle Child - Pages On A Plane
Belong - Common Era
Grouper - A I A: Alien Observer
Peaking Lights - 936
Cave - Neverendless
Moon Duo - Mazes
Causa Sui - Pewt'r Sessions #1
Cankun - Jaguar Dance

My favourites so far:

Katy B - On a Mission
Britney Spears - Femme Fatale
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Lady Gaga - Born This Way
Nadia Oh - Colours
Hyetal - Broadcast
SNSD - Girls Generation
Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch The Throne
Funkystepz - Face Off EP

Pistol Annies - Hell on Heels
Veronica Falls - Veronica Falls
Emmylou Harris - Hard Bargain
Drive-By Truckers - Go-Go Boots
Jason Isbell - Here We Rest
Male Bonding - Endless Now
Britney - Femme Fatale
Oh Land - Oh Land
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
The Dirt Daubers - The Dirt Daubers
Austra - Feel it Break

Oh, and Sunny Sweeney - Concrete.

some favorites-

low, c'mon
jonwayne, bowers
liturgy, aesthetica
shlohmo, bad vibes
lapalux, many faces out of focus

Ty - Seagull - Goodbye Bread
The Psychic Paramount - ii
Wits End - Cass Mccombs
Blanck Mass - Blanck Mass
Omar s - It can be done, but only I can
Machinedrum - Room(s)
The Skull Defekts - Peer Amid
Afrikan Sciences - Means & Ways
Mikal Cronin - S/T.

Washed Out - Within and Without
The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient

My Top 25:

1 When Saints Go Machine - Konkylie
2 Jon Hopkins & King Creosote - Diamond Mine
2 Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure
3 Console - Herself
4 Panda Bear - Tomboy
5 Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
6 Art Department - The Drawing Board
7 Sully - Carrier
8 Africa Hitech - 93 Million Miles
9 Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise
10 St Vincent - Strange Mercy
11 John Maus - We Must Become The Pitiless Censors of Ourselves
12 EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
13 Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
14 Katy B - On A Mission
15 Yuck - Yuck
16 Fucked Up - David Comes To Life
17 Toddla T - Watch Me Dance
18 James Blake - James Blake
19 Balam Acab - Wander/Wonder
20 Zomby - Dedication
21 Chrissy Murderbot - Women's Studies
22 Ekoplekz - Memowrekz
23 Austra - Feel It Break
24 The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar
25 Moon Duo - Mazes

this thread + spotify + mediafire is a real joy
gonna really roll up my sleeves and explore over the next few weeks

I got almost nothing (stuck in the 60s this year, +/- Gaga, Beyonce and Britney) but I have to rep for Torontonian Lindi Ortega's Little Red Boots, I adore it.

Wow, she really sounds like Dolly on "Blue Bird." The title cut is a killer. Good stuff.

Yeah, Blue Bird and Little Lie are on especially high rotation right now for me! Glad you checked her out. She's just about to move to Nashville and I will be out of little local shows to catch her at :(

I got almost nothing (stuck in the 60s this year

i get this. i've been stuck in the 50s for months now, somewhat based on that ilx poll thread.

the six-hour flaming lips song

More later, but this shouldn't be overlooked (if you think you might like it, you probably will). A few, including the first two, don't hold my attention (so far), but the really compelling ones start soon enough, with "Under A Cloud" and (oh babe) "I'll Never Be Through With You"(this stream has the titles mixed up, but the real title is usually close to the hook, so no prob). Ones not holding my attention feature lead singing by Petersen, but she also sings several obvious keepers, and then there are thee harmonies (and Hoffs, o' course):
The Bangles--Sweetheart of the Sun http://music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/#/2

and o shit and o baby, just now stumbled across this latest delving of Various Artists (incl Van Dyke Parks, Ani DeFranco, Studs Terkel, Tom Morello, Madeleine Peyroux, Seeger & Trischka, Lou Reed, minus Metallica but plus Rob Wasserman's rolling bullseye bass, like all these tracks) deep into the music of words of Woody Guthrie, previously unheard. Even Jackson Browne sounds good here! Bottom of the page ( where I'll listen to some others too)
Note of Hope: A Celebration of Woody Guthrie http://music.msn.com/music/listeningbooth/?ocid=MUSSP-LB

fastest hour in a while, on a subway past Heaven (and Coney Island)

(all around Coney, actually)

Any awesome EP's or anything from bandcamp? I'm still going nuts over these 2...

http://ovlov.bandcamp.com/album/whats-so-great-about-the-city
http://grassisgreen.bandcamp.com/album/chibimoon

big fan of that ovlov EP.

We finally made it to halfway through the year.. what does everyone think so far?

Destroyer - Kaputt
Ghost - Opus Eponymous
DJ Quik – The Book of David
Black Francis - The Golem
tUNE-yArDS - whokill
Ulver - Wars of the Roses
???

Charalambides - Exile

my list is way different from how it was in june. off the top of my head:

destroyer: kaputt
swahili: swahili
boy better know: tropical 2
lou reed & metallica: lulu
moritz von oswald trio: horizontal structures
patrick stump: soul punk
in solitude: the world, the flesh, the devil
meshell ndegeocello: weather
legowelt: the teac life
nikkiya: speakher
omar-s: it can be done but only i can do it
thursday: no devolucion
danny brown: xxx
corrupted: garten der unbewusstheit
fireworks: gospel
beyonce: 4
laurel halo: hour logic
lil b: angels exodus
saves the day: daybreak
blink-182: neighborhoods
lloyd: king of hearts
my flag is on fire: europa song
dir en grey: dum spiro spero
august burns red: leveler
blood stain child: epsilon

something like that

Anstam - Dispel Dancing
Roly Porter - Aftertime
Blanck mass - ST
BNJM - Black Square
Mikal Cronin - ST
Ty Seagull - Goodbye Bread
The Psychic Paramount - ii
Wit's End and Humo(u)r Risk - Cass McCommbs.
Machinedrum - Room(s)

It would take something special to dislodge any of these from my top ten. And Pitchfork can lose the cloth ears. Slight praise for Humor Risk when it is on a higher level to most of the shite they recommend.

both tim hecker's this year are really great

last few months / top of my head :

boy better know - tropical 2
bill orcutt - how the thing sings
rangers - pan am stories
mark e - stone breaker
manuel mota - untitled / dias das cinzas
trey songz - anticipation 2
innercity - boy in forest trying to hotwire the earth

Charalambides - Exile
Charalambides - Exile
Charalambides - Exile
Charalambides - Exile

I don't know exactly how to go about it, but isn't there some way to make a collaborative playlist on Spotify, so people could just add their picks to it. I'd be thrilled to have that, if it could be done...

Beth Ditto - EP
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
Tune-Yards - Whokill
The Weeknd - House of Balloons

A lot of really strong albums this year, many of which didn't quite cohere into a magnificent whole for me. There are a few more albums I need to give some in depth listens to before I make my evaluation.

Just about a month before we begin the noms thread for the EOY 2011 trax/albums poll. EXCITING!

can't wait to be the only person to vote for everything in my top 20

If you vote "Cuckoo" in trax, I might have your back.

Metal Mountains - Golden Trees
Peaking Lights - 936
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Mountains - Air Museum
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact[
Trembling Bells - The Contant Pageant
Fabric - A Sort of Radiance
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Vijay Iyer - Tirtha

― hipsters gonna hip (seandalai), Sunday, June 12, 2011 2:19 PM (4 months ago) Bookmark

My list hasn't changed much; these albums also have a good shot at my top 10:

John Zorn - A Dreamers Christmas
Julianna Barwick and Ikue Mori - FRKWYS 6
Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
Kangding Ray - OR

Not quite the right thread for it, but I do have a Spotify playlist of my favourite 2011 tracks: http://open.spotify.com/user/seandalai/playlist/2JIAYt2YraBN9q0pUs5JT8

Just such an amazing year for music... Just so good.

This year has been the most extreme case ever for me of my typical "millions of amazing songs" / "dearth of amazing albums" quandary.

What albums would I like people?

assuming you've heard lloyd?

Wholeheartedly recommend the Julianna Barwick album (The Magic Place) if you haven't heard that yet.

I didn't think I was really into that many albums until I started making the list:

Katy B - On A Mission
Destroyer - Kaputt
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Art Department - The Drawing Board
Ghost - Opus Eponymous
Hatchback - Zeus & Apollo
Kitchen's Floor - Look Forward to Nothing
Jonas Reinhardt - Music For The Tactile Dome
Locussolus - Locussolus
Mark E - Stone Breaker
Motor City Drum Ensemble - DJ Kicks!
Zodiac Free Arts Club - Floating World

Yes, the Julianna Barwick album is brilliant.

Darn, that Barwick album isn't on Spotify, though her others are. I've never heard her before. Listening to "Florine" now...

Just about a month before we begin the noms thread for the EOY 2011 trax/albums poll. EXCITING!

I think at least a couple albums on my list will be from the last quarter of the year, so I haven't heard them all yet. (Wasn't really expecting to have a list this year, but even without a lot of effort I've found enough things I like for a short list, or will have by the end of the year.)

Gotta turn in a Top 10 to my main publication by tomorrow, which even at this late hour means paring it down from this:

Lindsey Buckingham, Seeds We Sow
Cannon Bros, Firecracker/Cloudglow
Dum Dum Girls, Only In Dreams
EMA, Past Life Martyred Saints
Emperor X, Western Teleport
Christine Fellows, Femmes De Chez Nous
Fucked Up, David Comes To Life
Emm Gryner, Northern Gospel
P.J. Harvey, Let England Shake
The Joy Formidable, The Big Roar
Tommy Keene, Behind The Parade
Laura Marling, A Creature I Don’t Know
The Mountain Goats, All Eternals Deck
Raphael Saadiq, Stone Rollin’
Laura Veirs, Tumble Bee
The Weeknd, House of Balloons
Wild Flag, Wild Flag
Lucinda Williams, Blessed
Withered Hand, Good Hands

Tommy Keene!

A year with a new Tommy Keene album can never be a complete bummer. Unfortunately, I think that weird, extended new age-y instrumental thing that he stuck in the middle of Behind The Parade is gonna give other records on my list of contenders an edge over this one.

i think this has been a brilliant year. some of my favorites:

• pj harvey -- let england shake
• dirty beaches -- badlands
• lykke li -- wounded rhymes
• grimes -- geidi primes
• hollie cook -- hollie cook
• ghost -- opus eponymous
• destroyer -- kaputt
• peaking lights -- 936
• ema -- past life martyred saints
• dum dum girls -- only in dreams
• tinariwen -- tassili
• street gnar -- poking the world with a stick
• matana roberts -– coin coin ch. 1: gens de couleur libres
• xray eyeballs -- not nothing
• burial -- street halo
• veronica falls -- veronica falls
• john maus -- we must become the pitiless (whatever the rest is)
• katy b -- on a mission

man i'm going to have to add two things to my list:

fred falke: part iv (it's like basically a compilation of tracks he released last year but wuhhhhhhhh)
perfume: jpn (every single and b-side released last year and this year has somehow ended up on the record proper, so there are only 4 unheard tracks, and i bet they're just as fucking awesome as the singles)

oh also dj quik: the book of david (which i only properly listened to last night and WHOA way to make a classic groovy west coast rap record also sound like the future, quik, though i guess that's what you do)

This year has been the most extreme case ever for me of my typical "millions of amazing songs" / "dearth of amazing albums" quandary.

It's the exact opposite for me... I'm kinda bummed about this year's singles, but I think I might be able to list 50 albums I enjoyed in 2011, which hasn't been the case for me since at least 2006.

i feel like i've heard a LOT more albums than i normally would because of spotify but I haven't been keeping track of them very well.

Royal Headache - Royal Headache
Amen Dunes - Through Donkey Jaw
Battles - Gloss Drop
Low - C'Mon
Belong - Common Era
Slug Guts - Howlin' Gang
Kitchen's Floor - Look Forward to Nothing
Total Control - Henge Beat
Drive OST
Lindsey Buckingham - Seeds We Sow
Uncle Acid - Blood Lust
When Saints Go Machine - Konkylie
Human Eye - They Came from the Sky
Death Grips - Exmilitary

^now you're talkin

Death in Vegas and Go! Team are growing on me.

Also:

Ty Segall
Thee Oh Sees

Found them boring at first but have found myself playing their albums quite a lot this month.

The Lindsey Buckingham album is good then? Couldn't get into his last one.

Can't really compare as this is my first Buckingham solo experience outside of the credit sequences for National Lampoon's Vacation, and its still too new in my life for me to have had time to go back and explore the back catalogue yet. But yeah, it's lovely.

I don't get out much anymore, so thus far it's:

Comet Gain - Howl of the Lonely Crowd
The Fall - Ersatz G.B. (that didn't take long)
Fucked Up - David Comes To Life (easily #1)
Britney Spears - Femme Fatale
Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
The Voices Factory - Velvet Underground Tribute (actually 2010, but nobody bothered to tell me about it...like Slapp Happy cover a smattering of everything VU ever did, including Squeeze. Has had the most play of any album this year in terms of man-hours.)

And fuck everybody, I still like the Go4 album.

I prefer the Braids album to Julianna Barwick. Same sort of sound but it's got more interesting details imho.

Haven't heard that much by Braids but they've got more of a Dirty Projectors thing going on iirc. I don't actually mind that kind of African-ish indie guitar sound, but it feels very much part of a specific trend, whereas Barwick is just the vocal loops with minimal use of other sound sources and there's a definite *something* that she gains from that. She might come from a similar background, I don't really know, but it liberates her sound from this specific moment and makes me think of stuff like Le Mystere Des Voix Bulgares and Virginia Astley and Juana Molina and Enya and a whole bunch of other stuff instead. Still not sure what that *something* is btw, it's tempting to say 'purity' but eek, that's a dodgy word.

I get your point. Personally i think they both share a common ground with Panda Bear, but whereas Panda Bear samples this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPQjqZm6q0Q

making him closer to Juliana Barwick, Braids are more akin to the Guincho sort of loops... so yes Braids sound closer to afropop and the whole chillwave schtick than medieval choirs and 60s pop.

Both are great IMO.

So i'm listening to Braids and they don't sound like Dirty Projectors or Panda Bear, they sound exactly, and i mean exactly, like Animal Collective circa Feels. Quite nice though.

I think on one hand that's right - Feels was the first thing I thought of as well - but the tunes are also much more structured and loopy than Feels, even though the music is designed to sound like a band playing it's got a very jigsaw puzzle sensibility, which is where maybe the comparisons to Panda Bear and the first El Guincho album fit in.

BNJMN - Black Square

he's coming on like shake shakir with this

I've got a feeling my top 20 will be something like:

PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Mastodon - The Hunter
Arabrot - Solar Anus
Azari & III - Azari & III
Frank Ocean - Nostalgia Ultra
Yob - Atma
Uncle Acid & The Dead Beats - Blood Lust
Alex Tucker - Dorwytch
Fucked Up - David Comes Alive
Elzhi - Elmatic
Wolves In The Throne Room - Celestial Lineage
Cornershop - The Double 'O' Groove
Death Grips - ExMilitary
Battles - Gloss Drop
Rustie - Glass Swords
Walls - Coracle
Amebix - Sonic Mass
Obake - Obake
Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts
Liturgy - Aesthetica

In no order:

DJ Quik – The Book of David
Destroyer – Kaputt
Britney Spears – Femme Fatale
Serengeti - Family and Friends
Pistol Annies – Hell on Heels
Marsha Ambrosius – Late Nights and Early Mornings
Wire – Red Barked Tree
Frank Ocean – Nostalgia, Ultra
Beyonce – 4
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Nicholas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Mountain Goats- All Eternals Deck
El DeBarge – Second Chance
Drive-By Truckers – Go-Go Boots
Paul Simon - So Beautiful Or So What
tune-YARDS – w h o k i l ll
Bill Callahan – Apocalypse
Poly Styrene – Generation Indigo
Raphael Saadiq – Stone Rollin‘
Lady Gaga – Born This Way
Junior Boys – It’s All True
R. Kelly – Love Letter
Shabazz Palaces – Black Up
Arctic Monkeys – Suck It and See

What are Rolling Gun Sounds crew listening to? E-40 ? Danny Brown? mixtapes by ????

I've still got various African items and Southern soul ones in mind

Jah Youssouf & Bintou Coulibaly
Tamikrest
Carl Sims
still deciding on the rest

Another one I just got recently: The Advisory Circle - As the Crow Flies

My EOY list will probably something like this (not ranked, except the first one will probably be the first):

Boy Better Know - Tropical 2
Kimbra - Vows
Maria Rita - Elo
Miranda Lambert - Four the Record
Kate Bush - 50 Words for Snow
Various - Pakistan: Folk and Pop Instrumentals 1966-1976

Less certain:

Michael Stuart - Tributo A Louie Ramirez: Amanece y Sigue Caliente
Romeo Santos - Formula Vol.1 [Haven't actually even heard much of this]

Opeth - Heritage will definitely be in my top 10.

Still can't make up my mind re DJ Quik and Kendrick Lamar.

my albums list seems to be shaping up easily enough, bar a very boring internal debate about whether to count kandi's kandi koated, released last dec but too late for me to hear before doing my 2010 lists.

tracks on the other hand. hundreds. so many people made such good music this year!

Are UK writers treating Last Train To Paris as 2011 or what? Didn't get a release here until late January.

x-post-
Both (Lamar and Quik) are so retro. Maybe I should just go with Watch the Throne and Drake! Ha.

xp i'm not, voted for it last year (albeit not in the #1 spot i realised it deserved towards the end of jan)

I face the same dilemma with R. Kelly's Love Letter, released in mid December.

Possible additions:

Various: Bangs & Works II
Rustie: Glass Swords
Author: Author
Machinedrum: Room(s)
The Rapture: In the Grace of Your Love
Tom Waits - Bad As Me
Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts

My Top 25:

1 When Saints Go Machine - Konkylie
2 Jon Hopkins & King Creosote - Diamond Mine
2 Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure
3 Console - Herself
4 Panda Bear - Tomboy
5 Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
6 Art Department - The Drawing Board
7 Sully - Carrier
8 Africa Hitech - 93 Million Miles
9 Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise
10 St Vincent - Strange Mercy
11 John Maus - We Must Become The Pitiless Censors of Ourselves
12 EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
13 Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
14 Katy B - On A Mission
15 Yuck - Yuck
16 Fucked Up - David Comes To Life
17 Toddla T - Watch Me Dance
18 James Blake - James Blake
19 Balam Acab - Wander/Wonder
20 Zomby - Dedication
21 Chrissy Murderbot - Women's Studies
22 Ekoplekz - Memowrekz
23 Austra - Feel It Break
24 The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar
25 Moon Duo - Mazes

Did you listen to the Walls album dog latin? Think you might enjoy it.

No, I haven't. I keep getting confused between them and Baths (who I don't like much). I'll check it, thanks Nick.

Gah. Had my list all neat and tidy and ready to go for when the Voice calls for it and then Take Care had to come out and throw a wrench into the whole thing. Fuckin' Drake, indeed.

I face the same dilemma with R. Kelly's Love Letter, released in mid December.

Not that you vote in our eoy poll, but it placed last year (I think). So did DDM.

of all the albums released in the last quarter that would have thrown a wrench into an EOY list (yelawolf, kate bush, mary j blige), you choose drake?

Not that you vote in our eoy poll,

I may have! I don't remember.

'Fraid so. I didn't quite see it coming, either.

Everyone posting here had better vote in this year's EOY! If you've already gone to the trouble of making a list, it can't be much effort to submit it a second time.

Actually I meant to post that on the List-Making Process-Discussion thread, but it holds here too.

So this is what I'm thinking atm:

1. Various Artists - Tropical 2
2. Dawn Richard - Prelude to 'A Tell-Tale Heart'
3. Destroyer - Kaputt
4. Blue Sky Black Death - Noir
5. Patrick Stump - Soul Punk
6. Braids - Native Speaker
7. Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow (this might move up or down)
8. Luomo - Plus
9. Pistol Annies - Pistol Annies
10. Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
11. P J Harvey - Let England Shake
12. Beyonce - 4
13. White Denim - D
14. Hatchback - Zeus & Apollo
15. V/A: Dave Nada - Blow Your Head 2
16. Various Artists - Ines
17. V/A: Ame - Primary Structures
18. Maria Minerva - Cabaret Cixous
19. High Wolf - Atlas Nation
20. Gus Gus - Arabian Horse
21. Nikkiya - Speakher
22. Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
23. Gucci Mane - Writing's On The Wall 2
24. Canyons - Keep Your Dreams
25. Various Artists - If This Is House I Want My Money Back Zwei

What am I obviously missing that I would love?

18. Maria Minerva - Cabaret Cixous

If you haven't heard Tallinn at Dawn, you should. "California Scheming" is one of my favorite tracks of the year and, over all, it's a better set of music (though Cabaret Cixous is quite fine).

this is prob my rough top 30. everything can still move up or down

Beyoncé - 4
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Katy B - On A Mission
Pistol Annies - Hell On Heels
Dawn Richard - The Prelude To A Tell Tale Heart
Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow
DJ Quik - The Book Of David
Nikkiya - SpeakHer
Boy Better Know - Tropical 2
Cher Lloyd - Sticks & Stones

Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know
Frivolous - Meteorology
Meshell Ndegéocello - Weather
Rustie - Glass Swords
Young Bleed - Preserved
Roll The Dice - In Dust
Sunny Sweeney - Concrete
Cousin Fik - Hacksaw Ben Thuggin
Angel Haze - Altered Ego

Yelawolf - Radioactive
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Tom Trago - Iris
Wiley - 100% Publishing
Hyetal - Broadcast
Gucci Mane - Writing's On The Wall 2
Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin'
Almunia - New Moon
Damu - Unity
Marsha Ambrosius - Late Nights & Early Mornings

so many little items have "bobbed to the surface" during the year that it's going to be hard to remember them all. i just heard songs from myths and street gnar, which reminded me about two albums i liked that i likely would have forgotten about entirely.

Approve of the DJ Quik, Damu, Wiley, Sunny Sweeney, Nikkiya and Katy B on yr list Lex (all just hovering outside on mine) - still need to hear Raphael, Yelawolf, Me'Shell, Cher Lloyd, Laura Marling and Roll The Dice.

Tim F, some nice leads (for me) on your list. (I'm still not sure to what extent my ears are changing and to what extent dance and electronic music are going in new directions.) Liking, to some extent, Blue Sky Black Death, Dave Nada (of course I know about moombahton but have never been very sold on it), and Maria Minerva.

(My openness to some of this music may have something to do with health-enforced isolation and downtime, plus nearly constant attention to political and economic issues, because some of it sounds like it could be a soundtrack to that.)

Unconditional Love:

Tom Trago - Iris
Hauschka - Salon Des Amateurs
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact

Love:

Escort - Escort (possibly about to shift to unconditional)
Isolee - Well Spent Youth
Luomo - Plus
Nicolas Jaar - Space is Only Noise
Jamie Woon - Mirrorwriting
Junior Boys - It's All True
Demdike Stare - Triptych (partly because it feels like it should be their 2010 entry)
Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure
Roman Fluegel - Fatty Folders
John Maus - We Must Become Pitiless Censors of Ourselves
Boof - Shhh, Dandelions At Play

Gimme some more time/the right mood

Grouper - Alien Observer/Dream Loss
Patrice & Friends - Cashmere Sheets
Kuedo - Severant
Oneohtrix Point Never - Replica
Portable - Into Infinity
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972

Approve of the DJ Quik, Damu, Wiley, Sunny Sweeney, Nikkiya and Katy B on yr list Lex (all just hovering outside on mine)

i was very surprised at katy b's absence!

Various Artists - If This Is House I Want My Money Back Zwei

Permanent Vacation Selected Label Works 3 is currently "out there" and while on first impressions I don't think it's as strong as last years effort it's still of the high standard you'd expect from the label.

Wow, Braids are great! Hadn't heard them before, thanks Tim!

PJ Harvey
Wild Beasts
Patrick Wolf
Tune-Yards
St Vincent
Destroyer
Nicolas Jaar
Laura Marling

These are all really big favourites. Then there's lots of stuff bubbling under like Robag Wruhme and Wilco and Iron and Wine and Panda Bear and Bill Callahan and Mountain Goats and Radiohead and Elbow and Joan as Policewoman and Atlas Sound and Walls and Gang Gang Dance and The Field and The Necks and Blanck Mass and Wire that is either old favourites doing stuff I'm still enjoying (if not blown away by) or else people just making really good, well crafted, pretty close to awesome music, or that I've only just got and want to get to know better. Plus there's Kate Bush, which I've not even heard yet.

Maria Rita's voice and phrasing are incredible. The material is good. The accompaniment can be a bit boilerplate at times, but it doesn't bother me. It saddens me slightly that she is so overlooked.

1. Cut Copy - Zonoscope
2. Colin Stetson - Judges
3. Washed Out - Within and Without
4. Friendly Fires - Pala
5. Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
6. Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
7. The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient
8. Dirty Beaches - Badlands
9. Wild Beasts - Smother
10. Holy Ghost!

being overlooked: kelly clarkson - stronger