Terça-feira 1 Jan 2013, 19h:43

Top 10 Albums of 2011

Before I get to my 2012 review, I'd like to revisit 2011 real quick. Having fully digested each and every album that I rated last year, I just want to provide a revised, more accurate Top 10 of 2011.

10. Toro Y Moi - Underneath the Pine
9. Washed Out - within without
8. Craft Spells - Idle Labor
7. Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
6. Yuck - Yuck
5. Kevin Devine - Between The Concrete And Clouds
4. Drake - Take Care
3. The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient
2. Destroyer - Kaputt
1. Real Estate - Days
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/4189%2BOXDexL._SL500_AA300_.jpg
Like Kevin Devine's Between the Concrete and Clouds, Days had the misfortune of a late 2011 release, and was just kind of shoe-horned in to the 15 slot of my list. I knew it was a good album at the time, but simply didn't have the time alone with it that I did with something like Destroyer or Drake, which I'd been on for most of the year. The first single, It's Real was an instant treat. And I had a good 2-3 months of constantly revisiting Wonder Years, but neither comes close to the pedestal upon which I have placed All The Same. Toss in Younger Than Yesterday, and you have the four songs I've played more than any others in 2012. These numbers don't even include vinyl spins…. Trust me, Days was not a stranger to my turn table.

Top 30 Albums of 2012

The same way I started this whole thing off, I plan to revise this again a year from now.

Going into December, I realized how little music from 2012 that I had really sat down with. Most of this can be attributed to 4 of my top 10 artists having releases this year. And back in June, I remember being disappointed with what seemed like a weak year, as I had very little new stuff on my plate. So, for the last month, I basically disciplined myself into only listening to 2012's releases in anticipation of this review. It felt daunting at first, as I lined up about 30-50 albums that I knew deserved a spin… on top of the ~35 I already had. But once I attacked the project, it quickly became what I knew it would- exposure to some fantastic music.

Honorable Mentions:

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Mature Themes
Chances are, this will be in my top 5 2012 albums when I write this review next year.
Grimes - Visions
Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action at a Distance

30. Ombre - Believe You Me
29. R. Kelly - Write Me Back
28. Minus The Tiger - Minus The Tiger
27. Purity Ring - Shrines
26. Jack White - Blunderbuss
25. Craft Spells - Gallery EP
24. Bad Books - Bad Books II
23. Chromatics - Kill For Love
22. Jessie Ware - Devotion
21. Big Boi - Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors
20. Poolside - Pacific Standard Time
19. Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music
18. Mac Demarco - 2
17. Minus The Bear - Infinity Overhead
16. Twin Shadow - Confess
15. Oberhofer - Time Capsules II
14. Dum Dum Girls - End of Daze EP
13. Nas - Life is Good
12. Miniature Tigers - Mia Pharaoh
11. Taylor Swift - Red
10. G.O.O.D. Music - Cruel Summer
9. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do
8. Tame Impala - Lonerism
7. Beach House - Bloom
6. Wild Nothing - Nocturne
5. DIIV - Oshin
4. Frank Ocean - channel ORANGE
3. Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
2. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d. city
1. Japandroids - Celebration Rock
http://www.folkwaysmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Japandroids-Celebration-Rock-300x300.jpg
Back when the track listing was released for this album, my anticipation was low. Eight songs? A cover song? A song we've already had for two years?
Then it surfaced, and my worries were wiped away halfway into the opening track, The Nights of Wine and Roses. If you follow my instagram account, you've certainly seen how much I've foamed at the mouth over this band and album all year long- from a concert ticket, to a cassette, and lyric doodles. This album did something I didn't realize raw rock & roll was still capable of: it validated. As i look towards turning 27 this year and embarking on a new career path, society tells me I should slow down and be a more responsible adult. Japandroids tell me "fuck that noise". Well, more specifically, they tell society they can all go to hell. They tell me that I need to continue to cherish the nights where I find myself fence-hopping and ankle deep in mud on a playground in South Boston at 3 am with a blunt in one hand and a broken bottle of whiskey in the other. We don't cry for those nights to arrive, we yell like hell to the heavens.

Top 25 Songs of 2012

This whole review thing for me is ever-evolving. Last year, I provided my 10 favorite tracks of the year. That simply will not do, and here I present you with 15 more.

25. David Byrne & St. Vincent - I Am An Ape
24. The Neil Young covers: Poolside - Harvest Moon & Chromatics - Into The Black
23. G.O.O.D. Music - New God Flow
22. Japandroids - The Nights of Wine and Roses
21. Killer Mike - Southern Fried
20. Wild Nothing - Only Heather
19. Cloud Nothings - Wasted Days
18. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Only In My Dreams
17. Big Boi - Mama Told Me
16. DIIV - Doused
15. Ombre - Weight Those Words
14. Mac Demarco - Ode to Viceroy
13. OFWGKTA - Forest Green
12. Jessie Ware - Night Light
11. Taylor Swift - State of Grace
10. Minus The Bear - Listing
9. Twin Shadow - Run My Heart
8. G.O.O.D. Music - Clique
7. Dum Dum Girls - Lord Knows
6. R. Kelly - Share My Love
5. Miniature Tigers - Easy As All That
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8Iz6UEIFo0
(okay, not the original, but watch anyway and love it/them)
4. Kendrick Lamar - Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBnDYdWlF0k
3. Beach House - Myth
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeVrFpQUrNc
2. Frank Ocean - Lost
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsCjM7Y5JNY
1. Japandroids - The House That Heaven Built
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRVCtbfuDqw