The best albums of 2011 thus far

Thank god Arcade Fire finally broke up. Joanna Newsom's electronic side project's EP is lukewarm at best. The new Radiohead record is the most revolutionary and groundbreaking thing they've released yet.

Soulja Boy's collabo with Ricardo Villalobos seems so predictable in retrospect. Fuckin love it.

.............................

ac/dc's "cock ring" breaks new ground in the boogie underground

Norway's Enslaved just put out their newest and best album to date. Another staggering achievement from these former Black Metal superstars!

:D

what a great thread.
i wish i could think of something biting to say, but i can't :(

Chinese Democracy

The Cure's new album, coming out in 2007 2008 2009 2010 2001

er.. 2011. you know what i mean

I've been busy with this new dance music thats all distorted basslines, and cheeky synths, and haircuts, but honestly it's not electroclash, fuck that! and honestly, it's not blog house, fuck that! Honestly, it's the hottest shit.

Steve Aoki RIP.

Jerry Jeff Walker unveils long-awaited collaboration with Dave Schuford, J. Mascis and Matt Valentine. Month-long "small club" tour ensues, tickets sell out in minutes.

SHuford? Schuford? i dunno.

just got back from seeing RATM play the Impeach McCain rally-- pretty dope.

you guys hear the bootleg that just leaked of mbv's instrumental studio sessions from 08/09? i can't fucking believe he refused to record vocals because they don't manufacture purple mic poppers anymore.

To the delight of their legion of fans, The Fall have so far made good on their promise to release a full studio album each and every month for a full calendar year.

Indeed this year it appears that there WILL be a Xmas for John Quays.

mbv reissues hailed as essentially pointless

Sufjan releases "Alaska, All I Ask-A!" chronicling the Exxon Valdez oil spill, and Sarah Palin's speech at the opening ceremony of a Walmart SuperCenter. Still no word on the remaining forty seven records.

R. Kelly's TP-4: Live from The Moon.

Michael Jackson, Live in Dubai.

Yo La Tengo, If You Were Us, You'd Be Sleeping

It's about time for a Pavement reunion tour/album, right?

Top 5 singles for week of 1/27 -- 2012

Does the new M.I.A. remind anyone of Gwen Stefani circa 2005?

Ever since every band addded a Beamz Music Performance System player on October 20th, 2008, every week has seen a musical revolution.

http://www.ubergizmo.com/photos/2008/3/beamz.jpg

Good to see SFA finally breaking through. They have been great for years, but their new album is perhaps their strongest yet, and it is a good thing to see they have now become a household name thanks to the critics all over the world agreeing that their album is album of the year.

Isn't that beamz system basically six liquor store entering door chimes with selectable effects?

http://a503.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/84/l_3630acadb89f047c3029f2a7b17ee196.jpg

Britney's black metal side project is evil, awesome shit.

ʇsǝʇ

I'm so fucking glad Green Velvet-style mid-90's house is making a comeback. Aren't you?

i didn't even notice, dude. I'm too wrapped up in the Liberian grind-soul scene

• bullet point

The new Celine Dion album scored 8.8 at Pitchfork :o

haha

let's face it though, none of these bigbeatclash tunes are as good as the bentley rhythm ace and lionrock classics they're taking inspiration from, are they?

http://a503.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/84/l_3630acadb89f047c3029f2a7b17ee196.jpg

Britney's black metal side project is evil, awesome shit.

HOOS clique iphones fool get ya steen on (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Saturday, October 18, 2008 11:41 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

But Varg's handbag house project was a relative disappointment.

The new Celine Dion album scored 8.8 at Pitchfork :o

So, what else would you expect? Surely her new producer, Nigel Godrich, has gotten the best out of her.

Chicago (the band) + the 5th dimension = milwaukee's very own KINGS GO FORTH

Are you talking about the 5th dimension as in the band or the cosmic plane?

Oh, the band of course. The female backing singers they've always needed. Nice to see Peter Cetera and Danny Seraphine back in the lineup too.

Let’s not forget the souvenir live album from the tour of the year: Depends Presents "Won’t Get Soiled Again – The Who’s Final Farewell and This Time We Mean It.”

Those tribue albums to Pete Doherty, Britney Spears and Amy Winehouse were a bit underwhelming to say the least, but I can understand the grief their fans felt over the loss.

But this Smiths reunion is really pathetic.

Dunno if it was more pathetic than the Stone Roses reunion though.

Hope were high after Led Zep debuted those surprising new songs at Bonnaroo last summer, but god does that album suck.

the music industry hasn't been the same since everyone got AIDS except Soulja Boy who is strangely immune

what did you guys think of Pussy Galore re-uniting for the album length cover of St. Elsewhere?

now that Kanye has been crowned king of 2010, all other music releases this year are officially irrelevant.

BRING ON 2011!!!11!!

Norway's Enslaved just put out their newest and best album to date. Another staggering achievement from these former Black Metal superstars!

This one was just a year off!

It's about time for a Pavement reunion tour/album, right?

lol

Wow I was JUST reading this yesterday thinking "hah wow some of this wasn't all lol after all"

cass mccombs - wit's end
spaceghostpurrp - blackland radio 66.6
gang gang dance - eye contact
ema - past life martyred saints
kurt vile - smoke ring for my halo
shackleton - fabric 55

these ones will prob end up in my top ten for the year

wow, i really had no idea that the katy b album was only released this past april

In no order (yet):

DJ Quik – The Book of David
Destroyer – Kaputt
Britney Spears – Femme Fatale
Marsha Ambrosius – Late Nights and Early Mornings
Wire – Red Barked Tree
Pistol Annies - Hell on Heels
Beyonce - 4
Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin'
Mountain Goats- All Eternals Deck
El DeBarge – Second Chance
Paul Simon - So Beautiful Or So What
Wild Flag - s/t
tune-YARDS – w h o k i l l
Shabazz Palaces - Black Up
Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra
Arctic Monkeys - Suck it and See it
Junior Boys - It's A ll True
Lady Gaga - Born This Way
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Nicholas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Drive-By Truckers – Go-Go Boots

Yes - Fly from Here

Forgot:

R. Kelly – Love Letter
Serengeti – Family and Friends

still need to listen to that quik record. this is pretty much in order:

Destroyer: Kaputt
Swahili: Swahili
Boy Better Know: Tropical 2
Moritz von Oswald Trio: Horizontal Structures
In Solitude: The World, The Flesh, The Devil
Legowelt: The Teac Life
Danny Brown: XXX
Thursday: No Devolución
Patrick Stump: Soul Punk
Corrupted: Garten Der Unbewusstheit
Sunny Sweeney: Concrete
Lil B: Angels Exodus
Thrice: Major/Minor
Saves the Day: Daybreak
Beyoncé: 4
PJ Harvey: Let England Shake
Dir en grey: DUM SPIRO SPERO
Lloyd: King of Hearts
August Burns Red: Leveler
Clams Casino: Instrumentals / Rainforest
Pistol Annies: Hell on Heels
BLOOD STAIN CHILD: Epsilon
Taking Back Sunday: Taking Back Sunday

consistently great records for me from this year:

ringo deathstarr / megaphonic thrift / selebrities / holy ghost! / soft metals / jerusalem & the starbaskets / mirrors / help stamp out loneliness / craft spells / royal headache / thomas tantrum / girls names / sand pebbles / slug guts / tennis / title tracks / woods / crystal stilts

2011 albums i'm yet to hear (or are yet to be out) that will probably end up in the list: blouse, big troubles, veronica falls, cannanes, spotlight kid

if a lowtide or seerauber jenny album come out this year (or an outrageous cherry one) they will top the list for sure based on the singles so far

oh fuck i meant to put in dust by roll the dice in there somewhere too, if i wasn't so busy lately i'd have started a thread on it

this album is good ^

surprised that lex didn't list lloyd

forgot about that Shabazz Palaces album; that's great too.

ringo deathstarr

― manatee is forever (electricsound), Monday, September 26, 2011 7:53 PM (4 hours ago) Bookmark

yes! i normally possess some prejudice against bands that wear their influences on their sleeve but i've honestly put in about 12hrs into this album, i bet. i'd compare it to "drive" (as in the movie) - vapid, shallow, cliche... but done with so much style that you don't care much anyway.

surprised that lex didn't list lloyd

it's not that good, is why!

best r&b of the year

How so? It has a few good tracks on it but it's not something I care about as an album and it's not even notable among Lloyd albums. Def not better than any of the r&b albums I already mentioned.

Plus it has that annoying post-fuck you joint on it, ugh

incidentally i still can't post new threads. what is WRONG with this board, idgi.

started a Rustie thread

My list off the top of my head, in no apparent order:

St Vincent - Strange Mercy
Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise
When Saints Go Machine - Konkylie
Fucked Up - David Comes To Life
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
Sully - Carrier
Zomby - Dedication
Africa Hitech - 93 Million Miles
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Balam Acab - Wander/Wonder
Ekoclef - Tapeswap Master V1 / Bass Clef -
E-40 - Revenue Retrievin' Overtime
Jon Hopkins & King Creosote - Diamond Mine
John Maus - We Must Become The Something Something Blahblahblah
The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar
Ekoplekz - Memowrekz
Moon Duo - Mazes
Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
James Blake - James Blake (It's grown on me)
Katy B - On A Mission
Toddla T - Watch Me Dance
Chrissy Murderbot - Women's Studies
Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
Austra - Feel It Break
Yuck - Yuck

two others i forgot:

• veronica falls -- veronica falls
• al quetz -- drums come from africa

Thought I'd posted on this thread before, apparently not. In no order and incomplete:

Panda Bear - Tomboy
Metal Mountains - Golden Trees
Peaking Lights - 936
Mountains - Air Museum
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
Julianna Barwick/Ikue Mori - FRKWYS 6
Fabric - A Sort of Radiance
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Kangding Ray - OR
Trembling Bells - The Constant Pageant
Laurel Halo - Hour Logic
Zomby - Dedication
Eleanoora Rosenholm - Hyväile minua pimeä tähti
Out of City - Galactica

Oh and Vijay Iyer - Tirtha

If we're counting EPs then also Fatima - Follow You. I'll stop now.

Nice list! Some amazing and pure sounds on the Barwick/Mori collab. It's a lot further out there than The Magic Place and was presumably knocked off in a fraction of the time, but in places it hits such great highs that sometimes I think I actually prefer it.

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

Nice list! Some amazing and pure sounds on the Barwick/Mori collab. It's a lot further out there than The Magic Place and was presumably knocked off in a fraction of the time, but in places it hits such great highs that sometimes I think I actually prefer it.

Agreed...on the one hand it's exactly what you'd expect from the collab - loopy vocals and background electronics - but the sounds are so beautiful and immersive it's hard to complain.

Outside this top 20, I sympathize with those of you who listed Vijay Iyer, DJ Quik, Beyonce, R Kelly, and R Saadiq.

Limp Bizkit -- Gold Cobra (Interscope)
Henri Pousseur--Parabolique d’Enfer (Sub Rosa)
Original Cast -- The Book of Mormon (Sh-K-Boom)
Monotonix--Not Yet (Drag City)
El Bebeto y su Banda Patria Chica -- Quiero Que Seas Tú (Disa)
Lady Gaga--Born This Way (Interscope)
Steel Magnolia--Steel Magnolia (Big Machine)
Cheer-Accident -- No Ifs, Ands or Dogs (Cuneiform)
Thi’sl -- Beautiful Monster (X-Hustler)
Burlap to Cashmere -- Burlap to Cashmere (Jive/Essential)
Quintron--Sucre du Sauvage (Goner)
The Dirtbombs--Party Store (In the Red)
Charlotte Martin--Dancing on Needles (Test-Drive)
PJ Harvey--Let England Shake (Vagrant/Island)
Locussolus--Locussolus (International Feel)
Iron and Wine--Kiss Each Other Clean (4AD/Warner Bros.)
Bragado -- De Pies a Cabeza (Discos Power)
Various Artists -- 101 Things To Do In Bongolia (Electric Cowbell)
Paul Simon--So Beautiful or So What (Hear)
Group Doueh--Zayna Jumma (Sublime Frequencies)

Brute Heart - The Lonely Hunter

cannot say enough good things about this album

riyl: raincoats, slits (but it has its very own identity)

it should be mentioned here:

Robag Wruhme- Thora Vukk

DJ Quik, The Book of David
Beyonce, 4
Shabazz Palaces, Black Up
King, The Story EP
Boy Better Know, Tropical 2
Katy B, On a Mission
Kendrick Lamar, Section.80
Nguzunguzu, Timesup EP
E-40, Revenue Retrievin': Overtime Shift/Graveyard Shift
Camp Lo, 80 Blocks from Tiffany's
Azari & III
Thundercat, The Golden Days of Apocalypse
Danny Brown, XXX
Na'Tee - Guess Who's Coming 2 Dinner
The Dirtbombs, Party Store
Jhene Aiko, Sailing Soul
Fiend, Cool Is in Session
Nikkiya, Speak Her
Lady Gaga, Born This Way
Silkie, City Limits, Vol. 2
DJ Diamond, Flight Muzik
Big K.R.I.T., Return of 4eva
Curren$y, Weekend at Burnies
Spaceghostpurrp, Muney Jordan
Egyptrixx, Bible Eyes

DJ Quik
PJ Harvey
Deathgrips
Kurt Vile
Nicolas Jaar
Shabazz Palaces
Frank Ocean
Gang Gang Dance

so much like everyone else's list really. I am curious about the Kieran Hebden Fabriclive thing

Oh shit, I completely forgot Diddy Dirty Money, Love Love vs Hate Love, which should be pretty close to the top of my list.

you guys all really hate the Fleet Foxes, don't you?!

It's so delicious to hate them!

Iceage - New Brigade
Kellies - Kellies
Fucked Up - David Comes To Life
DJ Diamond - Flight Muzik
Wolves In The Throne Room - Black Cascade
Weekend Nachos - Worthless
Katy B - On A Mission
The Psychic Paramount - II
Dirtbombs - Party Store
Liturgy - Aesthethica
American Heritage - Sedentary
Class Actress - Rapprocher
Midnight - Satanic Royalty

Wolves In The Throne Room - Black Cascade Celestial Lineage

duh

you guys all really hate the Fleet Foxes, don't you?!

― Porto for Pyros (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Tuesday, September 27, 2011 2:21 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Who?

i don't hate them. but i need to be in the mood to appreciate them. better in cold-weather months, so i'll give them another listen in the fall.

fall 2020.

lol

Katy B
Tune-Yards
Julianna Barwick
Pistol Annies
Araabmuzik
Balam Acab
Dom

Waiting for new Johnny Foreigner, Los Campesinos!, Rustie...

Fleet fluxes.

fleet fuxors

feet fixers

could kiss dj mencap for listing weekend nachos

keep meaning to hear that midnight album but this year hasn't been much about current/rock music for me

ha well that one's easier than most to pretend to yourself that it's not remotely 'current'

how did i not listen to the new e-40 before now
remedying

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

out of the stuff i didnt list on the other thread...

Rival Schools
Cymbals Eat Guitars
Watch The Throne
Neon Indian
Metronomy
Iceage

and i'll mention Yuck and Ringo Deathstarr again as they're the only 2 that are locks for top 5 ATM

Grass Is Green
Ovlov
Milk Music
Broken Water
Pile
Disco Doom

Wolves In The Throne Room

I love the last three tracks on the Streets album and about a third of the Wells Moffat album.