My Favorite Albums of 2010

[Derek]

Starting a little earlier this year since I won't be around for a couple weeks around New Years and, barring a surprise Panda Bear or Radiohead release, if it's not among the 250 albums I've heard from this year, then tough luck.

Even moreso than film, I find it difficult to judge the quality of an entire years music releases, but I can't help finding this year a tad underwhelming. Plenty of good, even really good albums, but only a few truly great ones. Still, I found enough to throw together my 30 favorites and out of an unwarranted sense of duty, I present the 4th annual countdown...

[Derek]

30

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/grinderman2.jpg

Grinderman- Grinderman 2

Nick Cave's grimiest album since The Birthday Party days, Grinderman II ups the anty on its predecessor with more noise, feedback and aggression. It's not exactly a great sing-along album, but every song is seemingly in a constant state of transition with new effects and hooks surfacing, disappearing and reappearing in completely unpredictable fashion. Cave uses this directionlessness in a most unsettling fashion, mixing melodies and discord to give the listener just enough to hold onto before breaking into oblivion.

Key Tracks:

wVUI-9LSdUo

hR0JUZER9_Q

YsUjo3P8FG8

[Derek]

29

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/doyeq.jpg

Doyeq- Eyelashes of Lanterns EP

I'm not usually a big fan of piano-based ambient music, but Doyeq's spare, melancholy compositions are so achingly beautiful and expertly rendered that my only real complaint about this EP is that it's not an LP. His use of upright bass is particularly striking, giving the whole affair a smooth feel that prevents its sad undertones from completely taking over. The title track is the clear highlight here, with the beat and piano repetition creating a mesmerizing backdrop for Doyeq's ideas to slowly unfurl over. This is an album where you feel the weight of every single note.

Key Tracks:

"Eyelashes of Lanterns", but the whole damn thing is here (http://www.archive.org/details/pass003_a).

[Derek]

28

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/fabulousd.jpg

Fabulous Diamonds- Fabulous Diamonds 2

Fabulous Diamond's latest doesn't waste any time alienating the listener right from the opening track. With its rough, pulsating synths and pseudo-tribal drum beats, the 12-minute ball-buster of an opener rides these notes a good 5-minutes with only few subtle additions before finally kicking it up a gear with haunting vocals and more complex drums. It's primal minimalism at its finest, at least in 2010, and while it demands a good deal of patience, the ass-kicking finale, that being the entire second half of the song really, is more than worth the wait. As an album, it's not for the feint of heart or those who shudder at the mere mention of "drone," but for those looking for a noisy, rowdy good time, this is 30 minutes you won't regret.

Key Tracks:

"I (http://www.sendspace.com/file/pnyvev)"

"II (http://hypem.com/track/1141035/Fabulous+Diamonds+-+2)"

RFmYgbJTnHs&playnext=1&list=PL8F75E0290FB59A52&index=22

[Winston*]

Have you seen this Grinderman video John Hillcoat directed, Derek? I think it's one of the weirdest I've ever seen.

NSFW

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xeeoap_grinderman-heathen-child_music

[Spinal]

... noise, feedback and aggression ... directionlessness ...



... piano-based ambient music ...




... 12-minute ball-buster ... primal minimalism ...


This thread is not for me, is it? :sad:

[D_Davis]

Woo hoo, Doyeq!

:)

[Derek]

Have you seen this Grinderman video John Hillcoat directed, Derek? I think it's one of the weirdest I've ever seen.

NSFW

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xeeoap_grinderman-heathen-child_music

:lol:

Wow, I haven't seen that before, but that is definitely out there.


This thread is not for me, is it? :sad:

There's a little something for everyone, I promise. Except country fans - can't help you there.


Woo hoo, Doyeq!

:)

I knew you'd like that. Unfortunately, my list has peaked way too early for you. ;)

[Derek]

27

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/AEM.jpg

Another Electronic Musician- States of Space

In a year of slim pickings in the minimal techno department, Another Electronic Musician delivers another almost completely overlooked album. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Pantha du Prince got some widespread recognition even if Black Noise pales in comparison to the masterful This Bliss, but with this and Five, AEM has proven himself one of the most confident and consistent artists in his field. Like Doyeq, AEM is patient and though much more beat-driven, creates a similar sonic space, allowing notes to hang and resonate. His tongue-in-cheek monicker continues to grow in irony as he provides more and more deeply engaging and lush material. With the weather starting to turn cold, States of Space's blend of smooth, chill rhthyms and mellow tones provides the perfect soundtrack.

Key Tracks: "Fnctnl (http://www.sendspace.com/file/ofrxh8)", "Fields & Axioms", "Memetic" (last 2 on his MySpace page (http://www.myspace.com/anotherelectronicmusician))

[D_Davis]

I knew you'd like that. Unfortunately, my list has peaked way too early for you. ;)

I always look forward to your lists. We have enough overlap in common that I almost always discover a few new things.

[D_Davis]

It was kind of a bad year for really killer minimal electronica. Part of that for me had to do with Electronica.RU's lack of releases. Last year this netlabel released the best minimal I've ever heard with a number of albums from Adverb and Doyeq. However, this year they didn't release anything worth while.

I heard a few things, though, that were good. Did you ever listen to the Gaston Arevalo albums? His older stuff is more minimal electronica, while his newer stuff is so minimal it's practically ambient, but I still think it's pretty amazing. He had two albums out on the Passage netlabel this year.

[Derek]

I heard a few things, though, that were good. Did you ever listen to the Gaston Arevalo albums? His older stuff is more minimal electronica, while his newer stuff is so minimal it's practically ambient, but I still think it's pretty amazing. He had two albums out on the Passage netlabel this year.

Yeah, I listened to the first one you recommended in your thread and liked it a lot. I should check out some of his other stuff.

[Acapelli]

haven't listened to anything on the list so far, but look forward to it regardless

[Derek]

26

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/roots.jpg

The Roots- How I Got Over

How Jimmy Fallon convinced The Roots to be his house band, I will never understand, but the jazz and funk touches they flavor their hip-hop with do make them the perfect candidates for the job. Essentially it's hip-hop for the masses, yet not the least bit diluted. A band stacked with talented musicians, The Roots once again bring their classy, smooth sound to an album that manages to highlight every instrument, even leaving room for the guest artists to shine, without overshadowing one another. The album's sequencing and pacing are pitch perfect, creating an ebb and flow from mellow to upbeat and melancholy to lively. And it doesn't hurt that the sampled the fuck out of JoNew on "Right On".

Key Tracks:

bvx6XhznaGY

EgUTLQdcC_o

VqfNBbtn5e4

[Derek]

25

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/BrokenSocialScene.jpg

Broken Social Scene- Forgiveness Rock Record

The worst thing I can say about Forgiveness Rock Record is that it sounds like it was made back in '05 with their previous, self-titled album. One almost gets the feeling that BSS have paid no attention to where music has head in the past five years, though while there's certainly a disappointing element to that idea, there's also something comforting about a band sticking to what they do well rather than trying to develop with the changing times. And really, once you get past that, Forgiveness Rock Record is still packed with their typically catchy hooks, explosive rock-outs and a quirky sweetness that is both charming and clever. Aside from the unfortunate addition of the synth in "Chase Scene", BSS come off as assured and earnest as ever and in a time when irony, pastiche and false nostalgia reign supreme in the music kingdom, the band provides a comforting sincerity with a plain ol' rock album.

Key Tracks:

Lb9WKJhqVWs

4fBXjj-7uLI

NQr4E2NEWz0

[endingcredits]

The new BSS has moments of rhythmic sparkle and that do indeed charm, but I felt the package deal was underwhelming and Texico Bitches sounds like one of the corn-bombs on WILCO's self-titled release from last year, which was a disaster. The other two tracks you posted are my favs on there, though. Two outta three isn't bad.

[Boner M]

Fabulous Diamonds! Great choice. They've got a bit of a bad rep here for their often lacklustre live shows, in addition to them inexplicably doing support slots for many high profile international indie bands, but they're one of the most interesting Aussie acts in yeaaaars.

[Derek]

24

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/AltarEagle.jpg

Altar Eagle - Mechanical Gardens

Unfamiliar as I was with Brad Rose's past work with The North Sea, the shocking transition from folk to electronic-based dream pop only surprised me in as much as its sound seems far too dense and rich to come from someone normally working in a such a different style. Mechanical Gardens covers a lot of turf in what is too oft-dismissed as a limited genre and what begins with an almost gooey sweetness (not maudlin, just great ear candy) near the beginning, particularly "Honey" and "You Lost Your Neon Haze" (two of the albums best tracks), turns decidedly dark with the self-effacing and downright disturbing "Monsters" and the genuinely weird, almost Knife-esque "Spy Movie". Eden Hemming's angelic voice shines on several track, but on several occasions, Gardens subverts the beauty by either burying it deep in the mix or playing it off Rose's more melancholy croonings. As a whole, Mechanical Gardens is a tough album to peg - it's a mood album for sure with bi-polar disorder, shifting from a dreamy, childlike naivete to nighmarish, ominous tones with little warning. With parts lush and drowning in ambience and others brooding and intense, Mechanical Gardens does enough to keep you on your toes, while still maintaining a consistent and unique tone.

Key Tracks:

"You Lost Your Neon Haze", "Honey", "Monsters" (Whole album streaming here (http://soundcloud.com/_type/sets/altar-eagle-mechanical-gardens))

[D_Davis]

That Altar Eagle sounds cool - checking it out.

[Derek]

Fabulous Diamonds! Great choice. They've got a bit of a bad rep here for their often lacklustre live shows, in addition to them inexplicably doing support slots for many high profile international indie bands, but they're one of the most interesting Aussie acts in yeaaaars.

That's a little disappointing to hear, though it's not exactly the kind of music that I'd expect to work as well live as it does through headphones.

Have you heard of The Devastations? Their last album, Yes, U, was pretty great. The one Snowman album I've heard was awesome as well, but that's about all I've got from your neck of the woods.

[D_Davis]

I'm digging the Altar Eagle. Reminds a lot of my friend's old project The Sirago 17 (only more electronic, less psych/garage), and of Alt-Ctrl-Sleep and Sugar Plant. Cool stuff. Like the drone-y organ tones.

[Derek]

I'm digging the Altar Eagle. Reminds a lot of my friend's old project The Sirago 17 (only more electronic, less psych/garage), and of Alt-Ctrl-Sleep and Sugar Plant. Cool stuff. Like the drone-y organ tones.

Nice! I figured you'd like parts of it, but perhaps not the drone-y aspects, so that's good to hear. I dug the last Alt-Ctrl-Sleep album, which I listened to on your reco. Haven't heard of Sugar Plant, but I'll check them out.

[Derek]

23

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/teebs.jpg

Teebs - Ardour

Recently signed to Flying Lotus's rapidly expanding Brainfeeder label, visual artist turned electronic musician Teebs shows off an arsenal of beats, glitches and ambience, combined with a heavy dose of hip hop influence and touches of jazz to create a fascinating sonic universe that is adventurous yet relaxing and always pushing forward yet allowing every little sound and special touch to be heard. Electronic music is finally moving towards the melting pot that was promised years ago when the democratization of music began and every amateur musician had access to the tools to make nearly anything they wanted and Teebs helps to push it even further, melding eclectic influences and various genres into something completely new and exciting. Ardour truly earns it's title through its emaculate production and carefully constructed sound collages that have the catchy quick-hitting rhythms of Dilla's Donuts, only delivered in a more toned-down ambient vessel. It's nearly impossible to pick favorite tracks as it plays far better as a continuous whole, but the three below at least give you an idea of the treat you're in for.

Key Tracks:

JQa_Fq5iutA

ZMoWLsqg-88&feature=related

rivlE_pucuA&feature=related

[D_Davis]

Nice! I figured you'd like parts of it, but perhaps not the drone-y aspects, so that's good to hear. I dug the last Alt-Ctrl-Sleep album, which I listened to on your reco. Haven't heard of Sugar Plant, but I'll check them out.

Sugar Plant is an old (late '90s, early '00s) Japanese pre-drone-post-gazer-pre-chillwave-pre-post-rock-alt-psych-electro-folk band (not to get too genre specific...).

You'll love them.

_h8tobEGd9s

[Boner M]

That's a little disappointing to hear, though it's not exactly the kind of music that I'd expect to work as well live as it does through headphones.

Have you heard of The Devastations? Their last album, Yes, U, was pretty great. The one Snowman album I've heard was awesome as well, but that's about all I've got from your neck of the woods.
Devastations are pretty good, haven't heard a full album. Snowman's two albums are cool too. They've got a new one out soon as well.

Have you heard Rowland S. Howard? A member of Bad Seeds/Birthday Party; he did a split with Devastations and has two solo albums which are both awesome and as good as anything Cave's done. Died of cancer last year; a very sad loss. From his first one, Teenage Snuff Film:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nh8npSl1LUc

[Derek]

22

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/psiloveyou.jpg

PS I Love You - Meet Me at the Muster Station

With Wolf Parade's recent notice of an "indefinite hiatus" and a new album that's yet another step down from Apologies to the Queen Mary, PS I Love You's existence just became all that more vital. Though while Paul Saulnier's wavering, idiosyncratic voice is eerily reminiscent of Krug's, the band's muscular guitars have a bit more of a garage punk attitude, less introspective with hard riffs that go right for the jugular and tracks that get in and get out so you can get on with your life. It's a simple formula, but done with such verve and passion that it's ultimately as endearing as it is addictive and Saulnier's personal yet playfully esoteric lyrics add a perfectly light-hearted touch to some pretty rockin' tunes.

Key Tracks:

_BdIkVhIitw

8_f-IMlwoa4&feature=related

SqszPw1zceE&feature=related

[Duncan]

Was really fortunate to just stumble upon PS I Love You as the openers for another band a couple months ago. Really impressed me live.

[Derek]

Was really fortunate to just stumble upon PS I Love You as the openers for another band a couple months ago. Really impressed me live.

Good to hear! I'll be sure to check them out when they come to town now. Was it just the two of them on stage or did they have someone on bass?

[Derek]

Devastations are pretty good, haven't heard a full album. Snowman's two albums are cool too. They've got a new one out soon as well.

Have you heard Rowland S. Howard? A member of Bad Seeds/Birthday Party; he did a split with Devastations and has two solo albums which are both awesome and as good as anything Cave's done. Died of cancer last year; a very sad loss. From his first one, Teenage Snuff Film

The video doesn't load on this page (try just putting the "Nh8npSl1LUc" between the brackets), but checked it out on youtube and loved it. Will definitely check out that album.

Ditto to Sugar Plant, Davis. Good stuff.

[Idioteque Stalker]

Teebs = :cool:

Love that sound (i.e. FlyLo). Thanks.

[SirNewt]

I'm with you on the BSS record. It's honestly as good an album as any they've done. Or at least it has as many good songs on it as either 'Broken Social Scene ' or 'You forgot it in People'. But still it's not hitting high rotation for me. Also I love 'Texico Bitches', even in all it hammyness. :)

[Duncan]

Good to hear! I'll be sure to check them out when they come to town now. Was it just the two of them on stage or did they have someone on bass?

Just the two of them.

[Derek]

21

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/beachfossils.jpg

Beach Fossils - Beach Fossils

Beach Fossils combination of laid-back surf rock and downtrodden post-punk filtered through an echo chamber is reminiscent of a cloudy day a the beach where time is endless yet nothing seems all that appealing. Sounds great, huh? Honestly, it's not a depressing album at all, but it is fueled by anxiety, heightened by the dissonance between each instrument and the vocals. Yet, there's a somber sweetness underlying every verse it's packed with fantastic hooks that make it weirdly catchy even if it's nothing you'll be humming on the car ride home.

Key Tracks:

xKURBmeWOO8

yoyTJQk4Les&feature=related

IVqoZ6U2iWw

[Derek]

20

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/eluvium.jpg

Eluvium - Similes

Eluvium's first two album's, Lambent Material and Talk Amongst the Trees, are among last decades finest ambient albums, offering a wealth of complex, layered soundscapes and wavering radiance. The more straightforward approach he took on 2007's Copia still made for some great stretches of music, but the production beared much less of his personal stamp. With this years Similes, I had my doubts when I heard it would feature his vocals, figuring this would be another step away from textured, languorous ambience. Thankfully, Similes moved precisely back to where I didn't expect it to go, with the low key vocals providing the songs with more structure, but also a deepened sense of mood. Eluvium manages to achieve a sort of melancholy transcendence, never quite overwhelmingly emotional, but always engaging and incredibly atmospheric. It's good to have him back.

Key Tracks:

lvAHrrtJgKc

VpVzxGtyN6c&feature=related

ytAxOw0zl_s

[Derek]

19

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/swans.jpg

Swans - My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky

Metal as a genre is something I don't generally gravitate towards and I'm not even particularly fond of Swans' own 1987 classic, Children of God, so I approached My Father Will Guide Me UP a Rope to the Sky with next to no expectations. From the bells that start the opening track, No Words/No Thoughts, one of the year's best songs, I could tell Swans were onto something different, certainly engaging metal tropes yet doing so within larger scope that incorporates everything from mandolins and acoustic guitar to pianos, bells and, of course, Michael Gira's near-monotone belting, which carries much more weight than the screamy vocals of recent, more highly touted metal albums. Of course, one of the reasons I like the album so much is precisely because it's not a typical metal album, verging on hard rock as often as pure metal, but why Swans hard-rockin' tunes get my blood boiling so much is ultimately a mystery to me.

Key Tracks:

ADeOg8qbNMc&feature=related

QHtWvpkMaHo

obi1EGDKXY4&feature=related

[D_Davis]

Yes. The new Swans album is awesome. Very, very awesome.

[Derek]

18

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/blackmilk.jpg

Black Milk - Album of the Year

Black Milk's provocative album title certainly pissed some people off, though its coy, dual reference to the events that he went through in 2009, particularly the death of a close friend. The album tackles dark times and themes yet is also playful and arrogant in its darkness - death and sex, sorrow and cockiness are often tightly wound together. With the careful touches of a producer, Milk's shining moments are less lyrical than in the hard beats, particularly a fondness for full drum kits that give a more fully fleshed out sound than most recent hip-hop albums. The occasional kitchen-sink approach to production (guitar, violins, etc. often thrown in the mix) could be criticized if it didn't work far more often than it did. As is, Black Milk's rough-edged follow-up to the more celebrated Tronic has me returning to it more than any other straight hip-hop release this year.

Key Tracks:

GHK5iR7OjgA

DQzhrlHuJek&feature=related

ZIcHJhdzO3o&feature=related

[Duncan]

Beach Fossils - Beach Fossils
Loving this album. Thanks for the rec.

[Acapelli]

yeah that beach fossils album rules

[Derek]

Loving this album. Thanks for the rec.


yeah that beach fossils album rules

Sweet, glad you guys like it!

[Derek]

17

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/yellow-swans.jpg

Yellow Swans - Going Places

Yellow Swans create the kind of cerebral music that latches onto every neuron in your brain, firing synapses that rattle around your head, shaking the core of your being. Going Places is not mood music, as much as a rush of blood to the head that spreads like a prairie fire, enrapturing and all-encompassing. There's no question at the end of the title and once the album starts, you're locked in waiting for the roller coaster to start but unable to escape the growing, pulsating, magical beast that comes alive about halfway through "Opt Out" - a beast that frightens and awes, a tidal wave of noise and ambiance that approaches, promising oblivion yet delivering in slow-motion while you stand on the edge of the beach gazing at the harbinger, thankful that you are able to see something so mesmerizing, waiting for it to wash you clean and remind you of the raw, visceral power music can have.

Key Tracks:

dmwyj4DvOO4

[Derek]

16

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/popwinds.jpg

The Pop Winds - The Turquoise

In parts, The Turquoise is Merriweather Post Pavilion with a sax, but I don't mean that as a complaint. There are sounds and brief stretches that are a whole lot like MPP, but more importantly they sound really good and somehow different and new. The Pop Winds didn't crib from the album or even build off it, but rather take a parallel trajectory that, while it never matches its predecessor, also never tries to simply copy the sound. The Turquoise is more chillwave that outright psychedelic pop, more languorous and smooth, especially with the saxophone, which is so perfectly integrated into their sound that you wonder why we've waited a good two decades to bring it back to pop music after the 80s abuse of it made us never want to hear one outside of jazz ever again. There is nothing particularly groundbreaking in their sound, yet it feels fresh, awash in soothing sounds and beats, yet hooks and great melodies are found in nearly every track. If every day were a lazy Sunday, this might just be the album of the year.

Key Tracks:

"Fools", "The Turquoise", "Met Some New Colors"

The whole album streams here (http://www.sixteensixteen.org/thepopwinds/albums/the-turquoise/).

[MacGuffin]

The Turquoise sounds great. I'll have to give it a listen.

[MacGuffin]

I only got to hear the first track and parts of the second, but it sounds great so far. You're right: the saxophone is very well-intergrated, much like on Ariel Pink's song "Hot Body Rub". I wish more music had saxophones. I wish more pop music sounded like it was from the late-70s, early-80s.

[D_Davis]

The sax is probably my least favorite instrument. It's just so hard to do it right, and not look and sound douche-bag-cool. I like it in ska, when it's limited to the upbeat, and when it is a baritone sax. I have no time for any sax smaller than a baritone.

Morphine got it right. I'll have to see if I dig it in this Turquoise album.

[MacGuffin]

Do you enjoy jazz music?

[D_Davis]

Do you enjoy jazz music?

Some.

[D_Davis]

But I should add....very, very little. Mainly the more experimental stuff like David Torn and Sextants era Herbie Hancock.

[endingcredits]

The sax is probably my least favorite instrument. It's just so hard to do it right, and not look and sound douche-bag-cool. I like it in ska, when it's limited to the upbeat, and when it is a baritone sax. I have no time for any sax smaller than a baritone.

Morphine got it right. I'll have to see if I dig it in this Turquoise album.
Morphine is one of my all time favs. Have you ever heard Mark Sandman's Sandbox?
9EcCVpGuYe0

[Derek]

15

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/weekend.jpg

Weekend - Sports

I'm as tired as anyone of the recent overflow of lo-fi albums using fuzz, filters and noise to mask shitty to mediocre songwriting, as if shoegaze and noise rock consist simply of two simple layers - one unimaginative and bland melody beneath feedback or drowned in echoes. It's gotten a pass for too long now, but fortunately there are bands like Weekend who come out of nowhere to remind us how to do it right. Something of a problem child birthed by No Age and A Place To Bury Strangers, Weekend come forth with a fully formed aesthetic - noise emanating from great, *gasp* catchy melodies and stretched out vocals that smear into the mess of sound, all backed by wonderfully pulsating bass lines that give Sports the momentum to just keep on going.

Key Tracks:

HNNdOPOTndI

VJk41jsE_YQ&feature=related

m5Tslp9Gj4Y&feature=related

[Idioteque Stalker]

Weekend > No Age

[Derek]

Weekend > No Age

Agreed, though I do like No Age.

[endingcredits]

Where can I acquire this album? I want it bad.

[Derek]

Where can I acquire this album? I want it bad.

Nice. Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-music&field-keywords=weekend&x=0&y=0) has it.

[Derek]

14

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/marniestern.jpg

Marnie Stern - Marnie Stern

Marnie Stern has always been able to shred with the best of them, but with her third, self-titled, she has really come into her own as a great songwriter, churning out addictive melodies and clever turns of phrase amidst her frenetic plucking. The album opener, "For Ash" is clearly the highlight - an emotionally charged and highly passionate that honors the passing of her ex-boyfriend while maintaining a fist-pumping enthusiasm that carries through the rest of the album. Yet, the remaining tracks are not all that far behind, each feeling fully formed and fleshed out, with the help of the best backing drums she's had to date. Stern hasn't shown she can hang with the boys, but that she's just flat-out better than most of them.

Key Tracks:

BwFVFvpgeoE

hIUTxmRnf8Q

ClAo-Nl2IDE

[Derek]

13

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/sleighbells.jpg

Sleigh Bells - Treats

I haven't quite come to terms with my love of Treats. I kept expecting its sweetness to sour and my enjoyment to eventually fade, but the fact is this album rocks my socks every time. Packing a meaty little punch at 32 minutes, it became my workout music of choice far more than any album this year and while its formula is simple, it's applied so joyfully into such addictive packages that I can't help but scarf it down even if it ruins my appetite. Their hipster-than-thou attitude is certainly a bit annoying, but from the boisterous, bouncing drums of "Riot Rhythm", the crunchy guiatars of "Infinity Guitars", the deliriously comical melancholy of snaps and acoustic guitar on "Rill Rill" or the balls-to-the-wall shredding on the two tracks that follow, Treats shows the duo not only have skills, but control over many sounds. They're not revolutionary, but they're sure as shit fun and there was no better pick-me-up album released this year.

Key Tracks:

ViBt55HRkXw

uLRnmQ-4Yp0

_ld-0na1mpI

[Acapelli]

fuckin love marnie stern

[Idioteque Stalker]

Sleigh Bells came across to me as gimmicky at first, but a friend somehow convinced me to buy the album and that shit has been in my car ever since. Like you, I'm still not sure how I'm not sick of it yet, especially considering how obnoxious their sound should be. Hell, it's kind of a miracle that anyone can ever make it all the way through the thing, but somehow they managed to squeeze a fair amount of variety into what should have been a painfully one-note record. Another strange thing: considering how confident and fully-formed Treats is, for some reason I'm still under the impression that they could actually get better.

And their live show kills. More punk than anything else. They only played for a little over 20 minutes and it was perfect.

[ledfloyd]

rill rill is one of my favorite songs of the year but aside from that i find sleigh bells rather obnoxious.

[Derek]

12

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/national.jpg

The National - High Violet

Coming off the success of 2007's also fantastic Boxer, I was certainly expecting The National to deliver another consistently engaging handful of somber, rain-soaked ballads and frustrated, repressed indie rock-outs. I was not expecting such a widespread embrace and mainstream acceptance, particularly when the band stayed true to their roots, with magnificent arrangements, subtle instrumental flourishes and dark, brooding lyrical touches. High Violet isn't so much a step forward from Boxer as a mining of the same territory that manages to breed some fascinating results. The band's sound remains intimate, yet on tracks like "England" and "Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks" seems more expansive than anything they've written before. And even with the more stadium-ready fist-pumping ballads like "Bloodbuzz, Ohio", The National still perform like a tightly controlled unit, allowing for a few explosive moments at the end, though, for the most part, like a pot just about to boil over but never knocking the lid off. As great as the highs of this album are, it's the longer stretches of restraint that make for its most impressive sections.

Key Tracks:

HEE0OGJUE-4&feature=related

w8-egj0y8Qs

4_yskRDrmqI&feature=related

[Derek]

11

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/emeralds.jpg

Emeralds - Does It Look Like I'm Here?

Pretty much the perfect blend of pop, ambient and drone, Emeralds' Does It Look Like I'm Here provides enough great hooks and riffs that the album functions as more than just background music, yet is also awash in ambience, particularly heavy synths which provide a dense backdrop for the more palatable rhythms to play atop of. The album's standout centerpiece, "Genetic", is the best example of this with its oceanic synth backing overlaid with gentle, though incredibly impressive and varied, guitarwork and repetitive, Tangerine Dream-esque synth riffs. It's a beautiful track that takes the best aspects of the genres it pulls from, leading to an expansive track that is also intimate and involving. A number of the remaining, shorter tracks are also fantastic, several even nodding to the underrated Alan Parsons Project as the band continues to push ambient/electronic music into the future without forgetting about its past.

Key Tracks:

38lsQKiIF7A

jrL-Uz22hOc&feature=related

yUPJofuMNtE&feature=related

tIShafLwA4M

[MacGuffin]

Yeah, it's gotta be their most accomplished to date.

[Derek]

10

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/sufjan.jpg

Sufjan Stevens - Age of Adz

Since 2005 and the explosion of Sufjan via his masterful, precocious Illinois album, many wondered if his 50 state project was actually a possibility. For a brief moment, it seemed as if Sufjan might just be able to pull off traveling around the country with an acoustic guitar, living in buses, writing idiosyncratic, layered tunes about famous towns and serial rapists alike. Of course, reality hit us eventually and the futility of such a task become self-evident and Sufjan began to doubt himself, feeling overwhelmed by external pressures to top one of the past decade's finest albums. With Age of Adz, he returns with a much more electronic bend, songs still layered in dense orchestral arrangements now accompanied by layers of complicated electronic beats and rhythms that flesh out a completely new sound that is still very much Sufjan. Comparisons to Kid A, and there are surprisingly many of them, are a bit silly, but the transformation of Radiohead from OK to Kid A isn't too far from Sufjan's own, embracing other genres and styles in an effort to grow as an artist. Not that Age of Adz doesn't have its growing pains - there are times when the album is almost too chaotic - but it's also clearly one of the most ambitious albums of the years. Songs like "Age of Adz" and "I Want to Be Well" are flat-out remarkable, blending the choral movements, acoustic guitars and flutes you'd expect on a Sufjan album with remarkably dark, self-effacing lyrics and flourishes of electronic textures. This is most definitely Sufjan pushing forward into a new, fully realized sound. He told us he's not fucking around.

Key Tracks:

028KfrPNpPs&feature=related

IO17WyaU2mE&feature=related

aTsDcjHj54M&feature=related

[Derek]

9

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/menomena.jpg

Menomena - Mines

One of the most underappreciated bands around, Menomena top their previous awesome effort, Friend or Foe, with an album that tackles their darker sides beneath the guise of upbeat, fun pop songs. The horn/piano combo they bring to the table is the best around, allowing for a variety and tones and moods, often conflicting within individual tracks, that they could otherwise not achieve. The juxtapositions of playfulness and melancholy, joy and self-doubt make for a complex irony that unlike so much modern music is steeped in sincerity. Now, that sincerity is shrouded in fear, depression, selfishness and relationship woes, but Mines is very confessionary, though evenmoreso, about confronting one's shortcomings. As the bands vocals and lyrics continue to improve and tackle these deeper themes, their musical craftsmanship grows equally. Mines is remarkably efficient, dense yet often almost minimalist in a Spoon or Walkmen kind of way, but for my money, more immediate and emotionally bare than than either of those bands. But whether its the lyrics or the music, Mines stands out as one of the years most unique and rewarding albums.

Key Tracks:

8x-cIeM8s5k

cGCG4umkkIE&feature=related

MWRNZDjEQ5U

[endingcredits]

Menomena!!!
I really like the track killemall. It shows their rhythmic dexterity in all its glory.

p7mZM93D7tw&feature=related

[Derek]

Menomena!!!
I really like the track killemall. It shows their rhythmic dexterity in all its glory.

p7mZM93D7tw&feature=related

Also a great song! Hard to pick just 3 from that album.

[Derek]

8

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/beachhouse.jpg

Beach House - Teen Dream

Neither of Beach House's last two albums particularly impressed me. Their laid back tone and simple song-writing left me confused about the hype surrounding them, so I approached Teen Dream with a good deal of reservations, despite the fantastic early year reviews. I'm at a loss as to what in particular makes this album THAT much better than their others, but it damn well is. Nearly every song digs its melancholy hooks into me, washing over with an emotional rejuvination, sadness and beauty intertwined in its delicate simplicities. There may not be much surface complexity to many of the tracks, even "Real Love" and "Silver Soul" are spare compositions, but the interplay between Alex Scally's slightly nasal crooning and Victoria Legrand's breathy feminine counterpoint makes for a number of surprisingly powerful crescendoes. Beach House's less-is-more approach is certainly nothing new, but the mileage they get out of it is impressive. There's not a dud amongst the 10 tracks on Teen Dream, each bringing something a little new in the same emotionally raw, tightly constructed form.

Key Tracks:

J3oSrsomUcw

iqA6Xh1rKmc

HeaHW-rUsUQ

[Derek]

7

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/JoNew.jpg

Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me

Unsurprisingly, Joanna Newsom's behemoth, triple album, Have One On Me, requires patience, not simply to make it through its 2+ hours of music, but to allow for the magic within it to slowly, often quietly, reveal itself. It wasn't until after I saw her in concert this year that I truly came to appreciate the craft and care that went into each and every track on this album. I had heard it at least a dozen times by then, but seeing it performed on stage by JoNew and a half-dozen or so other multi-instrumentalists made the vast array of interlocking parts that make up the album - snare taps, banjo solos, dulcimers, occasional claps and a ton of other minute touches that flesh out track after track after track. Three disks may seem excessive, but even the weaker tracks here are welcome additions that are more intricate and intimate than most singer/songwriter's best material. Newsom never tries to outdo Ys (how could/why would she?), instead piecing together an expansive range of clever, emotional songs that only further cement her as one of the best musicians working today.

Key Tracks:

STwVx6ynYjk

pMFPockMaKw&feature=related

6EHemagYSs8&feature=related

[endingcredits]

The rythmic breakdown on Baby Birch at around 6 minutes in is really slick; it just slips so naturally into that nasty, syncopated beat and layers itself into a thick firmament.

[Derek]

The rythmic breakdown on Baby Birch at around 6 minutes in is really slick; it just slips so naturally into that nasty, syncopated beat and layers itself into a thick firmament.

Yup, that's probably my favorite part of the whole album.

[Derek]

6

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/futureislands.jpg

Future Islands - In Evening Air

Lawrence Durell said that history is "an endless repetition of the wrong way of living". The innumerable break-up albums that have been made over the years seems to confirm this and while there is likely no topic that is more responsible for both great and shitty music alike than lost love, there is the occasional album that renders it potent, reminds us of, and sometimes even re-opens old wounds, the pain subsiding once the comfort of its universality sets in. Future Islands approach to the topic is not revelatory, nor are their lyrics anything we haven't heard or experienced ourselves, but In Evening Air is album of pure, raw emotion realized through simple, repetitive basslines, eerie synths and the elasticity of Samuel T. Herring's voice, which seems able to evoke every minute variance of pain, regret, anger, sadness and frustration as spirals through memories, desires and needs, stuck in a constant struggle between moving on and wallowing in misery. The post-punk tonations of the album are perfect in setting the somber mood, yet the quickening bass and offbeat synth rhythms have a propulsive effect that actually makes it pretty fun to listen to, even as its stream-of-consciousness delivery never releases us from its grasp, a circular pattern of reminscence that provides catharsis, only moments later sending us right back into the shit. Is memory ever escapable or do we simply move on because we must? Herring and Co. never provide us with an answer, but do give us plenty of evidence of the value of the question. To complete the circle, I'll end with an another Durell quote, a question as well as a statement - "Does not everything depend on our interpretation of the silence around us?"

Key Tracks:

R4gHaqw8Yzw

-3AmnRPImfk

9GhtZt2HYkM

[D_Davis]

I like the Beach House album - good stuff.

[Derek]

5

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/women.jpg

Women - Public Strain

Public Strain has both the most telling album title and cover of anything released this year. Reminiscent of a James Whistler painting, the dissolution of the figures on the cover, the snow not only threatening to consume them, but swallow the world whole, tells you anything you'd need to know about the music on Public Strain. It is founded on tension - melodies, voices, dueling rhythms stretching, pulling at one another, struggling to be heard, yet never failing to make their presence heard and felt. Women almost make it seem to easy and I'll admit, on my first listen, I was ready to pile this with the other recent good lo-fi albums that bury vocals into the mix, but the more I listened, the more it revealed itself as a remarkably complex work, structurally complex, dense, brimming with anxiety and emotion. The production here is actually quite remarkable, creating a palpable, almost otherworldly atmosphere where echoes, buzzes and ambience barely present in the background can take on a life of its own, where beautifully crafted beats and rhythms can appear and disappear, like apparitions who's only evidence of existence is in the residue they leave behind. There are many examples, but take "China Steps", a song that quickly builds to great heights, yet slowly burns out over the last 2 minutes. Most bands wouldn't waste nearly half of a great track, methodically grinding to a halt, but for most bands, seeing that as anything but a waste wouldn't be possible. Here, Women show a deep understanding of tempo and tone, always playing off one another in unique, surprising, even offputting ways and in doing so have left behind a truly wonderful album that makes a lot of bands producing similar music look downright lazy. Let's hope the break-up doesn't last long because music needs bands like this around.

Key Tracks:

BWNKffHRU3g&feature=related

-LElqwoBOJE

Ej4K4b9FMu4&feature=related

[Derek]

4

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/LCDSoundsystem.jpg

LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening

Is there really anything left to say about James Murphy? I mean, it's nearly 2011 and if you haven't made up your mind on whether the guys a genius or charlatan, you're RSVPing to the party a day late. "All I Want" dropped, along with many of our jaws, then "Drunk Girls" came out, almost as a slow pitch to haters giving them free reign to damn him as a novelty act. The fact is, the dude's always going to be divisive and that's fine, but I honestly have difficulty with dismissing This Is Happening as a mere riff on the Bowie/Eno/Byrne sound, when it's so immediately identifiable as Murphy and, despite "Drunk Girls", actually very mature, often overwhelmingly emotional. He's still a smartass, self-aware and self-effacing, but This Is Happening is probably as close to sincerity as he's gonna get and tracks like "All I Want" and "Home" are especially rich, traveling the same melancholy terrain as "Someone Great", rollicking through sadness, yet defeating it through its very mobility, upbeat in its sorrow. Of course, the album doesn't spend it's hour+ length simply repeating this tone, instead going from guilt-ridden fun ("Drunk Girls") to hyper-self-awareness ("Pow Pow") to tongue-in-cheek smackdown of the music industry ("You Wanted a Hit") to hilariously ironic tragedy ("I Can Change"), yet all somehow come together to form LCD's most cohesive and uniformly great album to date. And there's no better album this year for dancing off the blues, so for that alone, it's remained one of my favorites.

Key Tracks:

iDcOn5WZ7W0

OoA0cTC228M&feature=related

MLPeQ9U_f-0

[D_Davis]

Derek, did you ever hear:

http://www.allaboutjazz.com/coverart/2010/arp_thesoftwave_jk.jpg

Arp - The Soft Wave

I really expected it on your list for some reason. Seems like something you'd dig the hell out of.

[Derek]

Derek, did you ever hear:

Arp - The Soft Wave

I really expected it on your list for some reason. Seems like something you'd dig the hell out of.

No! I missed that one, but I would have listened to it if I knew about it. I loved their last album, In Light, which was pretty minimalist and krautrocky. I'll get this ASAP even if it's too late for the list.

Also glad to hear you're digging the Beach House. That's a nice surprise.

[D_Davis]

I really like Beach House. Although I think I like their first s/t album the most.

[Acapelli]

I really like Beach House. Although I think I like their first s/t album the most.
i thought i was the only one

one of my favorite albums

[Derek]

i thought i was the only one

one of my favorite albums

I guess I'll go back and give it another shot then.

[endingcredits]

I'm not crazy about LCD. I liked the London Sessions when I first heard it, though it hasn't had much play on my stereo. I put it on this afternoon really loud after hours of coding and dealing with insurance agents. It has nice groove... very energetic, fun, and funky.

[Milky Joe]

As far as Beach House goes, I still think Devotion is a fucking masterpiece. TD is too overblown, and the s/t isn't blown enough.

[Derek]

I'm not crazy about LCD.

I didn't like Sound of Silver at first, though I eventually came to love it. This one I loved right off the bat, but I get they're definitely not for everyone. Saw them live this summer and they put on a hell of a show.

[Derek]

As far as Beach House goes, I still think Devotion is a fucking masterpiece. TD is too overblown, and the s/t isn't blown enough.

I dunno, it's a pretty emotional album, but a bit too minimal to call overblown IMO (especially from someone who loves Neon Bible as much as you do ;)).

Honestly, I haven't listened to either of their first two album enough to say much. I just remember finding both of them quaint, somewhat pleasant and relatively forgettable at the time. TD never gets old.

[Derek]

3

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/Working-for-a-nuclear-free-city.jpg

Working for a Nuclear Free City - Jojo Burger Tempest

With Jojo Burger Tempest, Working for a Nuclear Free City showed that, if nothing else, they're not afraid of excess. With 17 tracks coming in just under 55 minutes, morphing in and out of at least a half-dozen discernable styles, they figured, hey, why not tack on a 33-minute track that does it all again. I mean, who doesn't love a double album these days? I imagine it is this excess which led to it never really catching on despite a few positive reviews in the indie-verse, yet it's also what makes this gargantuan, incohesive beast such a lovable mess. From post-rock and shoegaze to ambient and IDM, WFaNFC seem completely disinterested in conforming to the typical album format, instead focusing all of their energy and efforts into the crafting of each individual song, revealing themselves as a jack of all trades, who, even while every track isn't a home run, manage to succeed no matter what form they take on. It's undoubtedly a piecemeal approach, but what Jojo Burger Tempest loses in cohesiveness, it more than makes up with through the sheer, raw talent of each musician which is on display at every moment. There's not many artists who'd start off an album with a throw-back prog tune and follow it with an acoustic pop song and a Radiohead-esque, beat-driven instrumental track. Of course, there's a good reason for that, but these dudes somehow pull it off and I gotta love them for it.

Key Tracks:

"Faster Daniel, Faster (http://www.sendspace.com/file/9t409o)"

"Little Lenin (http://www.sendspace.com/file/d5wfcn)"

"Inokashira Park (http://hypem.com/track/1199842/Working+For+A+Nuclear+Free+Cit y+-+Inokashira+Park)"

...and a 4th since it's on youtube and gives a good idea of the kind of shapeshifting they can pull off (ie, the second half of this track):

GPzHUtNwbX0

[Derek]

2

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/liars.jpg

Liars - Sisterworld

Liars are a lot like Frank Booth, effectively worming their way into our collective subconscious, unearthing our most latent fears and darkest desires, the Id which cuts to the bone, giving us what we need even if we never knew we needed it. Sisterworld is their "LA record", but it's an alternate Los Angeles rather than the one we've been programmed to perceive over decades of movies and television, a festering underbelly beneath the false veneer Hollywood excess, plastic people, wealth and status symbols that, in reality, make up only a small part of the city. Sisterworld lives on the outskirts of the city, veering through dark alleyways where bums and freaks, murder and drugs, parties and madness all co-exist. Musically, Liars have always transformed from album to album, shedding their skin, born anew without any concern for what fans and critics alike might think of their new form. With Sisterworld, their fifth album, they seem to have evolved, incorporating the styles and tones from all their prior work and synthesizing them into a familiar, yet once again, different sound. The guitar shredding on the album's most terrifying tracks, "Scarecrows on a Killer Slant" and "I Can See An Outside World", Angus Andrew's even-creepier-than-usual vocal deliveries (and their typical atonal harmonizing) and the juxtapositions of methodically-paced build-ups with unexpected explosions of rage make for one of the bands most satisfying and uniform releases to date. I'm not sure I can say it surpasses Drum's Not Dead, but it's certainly in the same league as it.

Key Tracks:

kf7ZUaZ1b7s&playnext=1&list=PLA27E50078D43B596&index=3

8lPjTMBVYRc&feature=related

tWJwDgTauY0&feature=related

[Milky Joe]

I dunno, it's a pretty emotional album, but a bit too minimal to call overblown IMO (especially from someone who loves Neon Bible as much as you do ;)).

I don't know if I'd call it minimal at all. The production is wall-to-wall. There's just a ton of sound on it. (I'm not averse to this, of course, but with Neon Bible the overblownness is a little different, and more appropriate.) Devotion achieves the same effect in my mind (play it loud) but with more subtlety.

As for #1, Ariel Pink? Please God don't let it be The Suburbs.

[Derek]

I don't know if I'd call it minimal at all. The production is wall-to-wall. There's just a ton of sound on it. (I'm not averse to this, of course, but with Neon Bible the overblownness is a little different, and more appropriate.) Devotion achieves the same effect in my mind (play it loud) but with more subtlety.

Certainly not minimal in its production, but there's not a lot of tricks to make it sound like there's more than 2 people. I meant more minimal in that there's a lot of basic rhythms and repetition.


As for #1, Ariel Pink?

Nah. I love "Round and Round," but the rest of the album doesn't do a whole lot for me.


Please God don't let it be The Suburbs.

No no, worry not. I mean, I like the album, but it's definitely their weakest yet.

[Derek]

1

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j94/DSmith724/FlyingLotus.jpg

Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma

It's the first year of the new decade, so of course everyone is looking out for that first decade-defining album, the Kid A of the 10s that will cast its shadow over everything that follows, that opens the door, pointing in the direction that music can and should go. Cosmogramma is that album. If electronic music has gone through several growth spurts over the past 10 years, Cosmogramma is the fully matured man, muscular and prolific, not simply outdoing the competition, but doing things most artists never imagined, let alone imagined possible. If the past decade's increasingly hyper-specific, sub-sub-sub-genre taxonomies have worn your patience thin, Flying Lotus is here to help blow that shit up. This is no-barriers music, cunningly blending hip-hip, jazz, IDM, rock, chip-tune and ambient into a beat-driven melting pot that flows seamlessly from track to track, viscous sound that flows effortlessly and endlessly, each methodically placed beat and note with a fresh, new idea behind it. With every listen, my appreciation only continues to grow, its rich, imaginative sonic palette futuristic, sexy and full of life. This album has it all.

Key Tracks:

yYHypCyo7ZY

KvZmd1ceCLY

eLs02NXzlzM

[Boner M]

Good #1. Seeing him with Dâm Funk, Gaslamp Killer and Hudson Mohawke in a few weeks. Should be epic.

[Acapelli]

bleh, can't get into flying lotus at all

guess it's just not my thing

[D_Davis]

bleh, can't get into flying lotus at all

guess it's just not my thing

Me neither. I definitely don't see the brilliance that so many other people do. It all kind of sounds like pretty typical trip-hoppy stuff to me, and I've heard examples of the genre I like more from users at the IDM forums.

It's not bad, at all, but I'm not IN TO It.

However, Derek, your number 3 pick sounds awesome. Never even heard of these dudes, but I love that track you posted. Totally reminded me of old Ride. I'm going be checking these dudes out, for sure.

Good list, again, dude. Found some cool new stuff to dive into. Thanks for the good write-ups and suggestions.

[Derek]

However, Derek, your number 3 pick sounds awesome. Never even heard of these dudes, but I love that track you posted. Totally reminded me of old Ride. I'm going be checking these dudes out, for sure.

Yeah, when I first started getting into this album, I was thinking this is something you'd love as well. I'd never heard of them before this year, but their mastery over several different styles is really damn impressive. The bass work in particular is incredible. There are a few tracks above the youtube link (2 I posted to sendspace, 1 you can play at hype machine) too if you missed them, but I can safely say you should just get the whole thing. :)

[D_Davis]

Yeah, when I first started getting into this album, I was thinking this is something you'd love as well. I'd never heard of them before this year, but their mastery over several different styles is really damn impressive. The bass work in particular is incredible. There are a few tracks above the youtube link (2 I posted to sendspace, 1 you can play at hype machine) too if you missed them, but I can safely say you should just get the whole thing. :)

I probably will. Haven't heard anything quite like that in some time.

thanks for that!

[Acapelli]

Me neither. I definitely don't see the brilliance that so many other people do. It all kind of sounds like pretty typical trip-hoppy stuff to me, and I've heard examples of the genre I like more from users at the IDM forums.

It's not bad, at all, but I'm not IN TO It.
yeah, more than enough people whose opinion i respect (derek and boner here) absolutely love the guy, so i won't say he's bad, just don't get it

good job derek. can't say we share many favorites, but there's some stuff here that i do love (women, marnie stern, beach fossils) as well as really like (sufjan, bss, liars, sleigh bells)

as far as stuff i haven't listened to that i think i'll check out, the emeralds and weekend records seem like they might be up my alley

[Idioteque Stalker]

Cosmogramma is my favorite of the year as well. Instead of adding my two cents, I'll just say "ditto" to your commentary (hyperbole and all). It's an incredible work, an orchestral pastiche of disparate genres into something entirely new. So innovative, yet so damn listenable. Prediction: this decade's Since I Left You (Kid A, as you said, works as well). All of these critics are really underrating it on their year-end lists. This one will only ripen with age.

Awesome pick and commentary. Totally spot on.

I'll also be the third to claim Beach House's debut to be their best, followed closely by Devotion. Then newest one is quite good, but I'm still a little confused as to why it was so quickly called "the best Beach House record" by just about everyone. Granted, it was my favorite of the year for about 24 hours after a break-up. Sounds pretty perfect when you feel romantically hopeless. :rolleyes:

Seems like everybody forgot about Julian Lynch's Mare when they were compiling lists. It's probably my second favorite of the year. Are you a fan at all, Derek?

[Spaceman Spiff]

yeah, i've got to say i checked out those cosmogramma tracks (hadn't heard of the album or artist, and was not particularily blown away.)

I heard a couple of tracks here and there throughout this list. I liked a few pretty well. Not sure which ones they were though.

I'm bored.

You're right, by the way. Teen Dream is clearly the best. Also my favorite of the year by a bit, but again I haven't heard too much.

[Melville]

I've been listening to "Do the Astral Plane" on repeat. It's like The Avalanches met an Arab mystic and someone performing illegal operations in a back-alley.

[endingcredits]

It's like The Avalanches met an Arab mystic and someone performing illegal operations in a back-alley.

Throw in some Moroccan snake charmers, a little sexual extravagance, and a heaping portion of intravenous drug use and you've got yourself a good time, or at the very least a Burroughs novel.

[Ivan Drago]

This Is Happening is my favorite album of this year. I love almost every single song. I even find Throw to be awesome, especially while driving. The buildup and the bass guitar make that song.

[dreamdead]

Heading out on a 12 hour drive tomorrow to visit thefourthwall's family tomorrow, and so we've purchased Future Islands, Beach House, and a few others (Vampire Weekend's newest, an old Goldfrapp album, and Coaltar of the Deepers' No Thank You album). We love the single by FI that you had in your mid-year singles mix...

The Another Electronic Musician will hopefully happen at a later date. I think I like the single you included more than most of Panthu Du Prince's ...Bliss album. Does the album work as driving music for you, or is it too ambient?

Love this thread for recs, as I do every year. We've already grabbed up Sleigh Bells and LCD because of you...