Friday, December 28, 2012

Favorite Albums of 2012

This year, for me, was the year of "not downloading music illegally". I credit Spotify for this. This, and other streaming sites, have made checking out new music much simpler, cheaper, and less shifty.

I personally like sites like Spotify better than sites like Pandora because I enjoy discovering new music on my own terms. Also, I am an "album guy" and do not like that Pandora only lets you hear a few songs from the artist you chose and then starts flipping around to "related artists". I realize a lot of people like this radio-feel and discover bands that way. But, for me, I want to hear a whole album from front to back and I also research music enough on my own that I don't need a computer to guess at what I might like.

I also chilled on the vinyl a bit. Last year, I was obsessed and got a lot of great records. However, it is both expensive and takes up a lot of space. I have tried to pare down my collection to just the essentials. This will probably be a continued trend for me. However, I will still buy some of my favorites on vinyl. Perhaps I will wait until the end of each year and then just buy my top ten. Hm.

I think in the near-future I will lean towards paying for a streaming site. This way, my music is stored on a cloud and most every album in the world is assessable to me. IF I love an album, I can always buy it. But the monthly bill will easily be less than my current habit and, once I get a smart phone, I can still listen to my chosen playlists in the car or while exercising.

Finally, I have chosen a handful of music critique sites to filter out the many albums that come out each year. Pitchfork has always been my favorite but sometimes steers me wrong or does not spotlight certain albums. I have begun following Consequence of Sound and Stereogum, as well. I might add a few more in the mix but I check these every morning and don't want to spend too much time on music research. It has become important to me, though, to expand my critical horizon.

Okay, that's my report. Here's my fav's. I do the "top ten" thing just to make it more dramatic. Depending on my mood, this order shifts frequently.


TOP TEN ALBUMS 2012

10. Spirtitualized - Huh?
A sister album to their classic "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN..." in every respect. There is a hypnotizing effect to this album that is experienced when listened to from front to back. A true album; not a collection of songs to be cherry-picked.



09. Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music / El-P - Cure For Cancer
I like to jog and exercise to hardcore rap. There is a flow and usually an agressive undertone that helps me push myself. I love these two albums (both produced by El-P, both came out just weeks apart) and I have created a playlist using the best of both. So, I kinda see them as one big album. Good, old-skool rap!



08. Liars - WIXIW
If Radiohead's KID-A and AMNESIAC were a trilogy, this album could be the third in the series. The Liars vocalist doesn't have the range of Yorke but still sings with plenty of passion and energy and the music is cinematic, moody, and dance-inspiring.



07. Alt-J - An Awesome Wave
I got into this album just last month. Late in the game of top tens. However, it is already at #7 and climbing! The vocalist sounds like a nasely Elmer Fudd or Adam Sandler at his silliest but hits every note just right and his personality and style can not be ignored. This is Alt-J's first album and I think we are in for a long relationship together.



06. Cat Power - Sun
Never listened to Cat Power much before this. Chan Marshall "re-invents herself" with Sun and I am extremely happy with the results. I've read that she home-recorded the album and learned as she went. Some of the sounds are muddy, but the song-writing shines through. Electronica and Cat Power - who knew?



05. Animal Collective - Centipede Hz
This album is not accessible and is so dense with production that the songs almost get lost in the chaos. It's time signatures are complex and abrasive. Panda Bear takes a back seat, leaving Avey Tare to mostly fend for himself on vocals. I love Avey, but I confess that the absence of Panda's voice hurts - his smooth, Beach Boys-esque vocal style is what made A.C. a household name. But Animal Collective re-invent themselves with every album and it wouldn't be like them to pander to the audience. After some heavy rotation, the song-writing steps out from behind these flaws and Centipede Hz proves itself to be another great A.C. album. Most people won't be so patient, though.



04. Future of the Left - The Plot Against Common Sense
This is not an album's album. This is an album that you listen to, figure out what songs you like best, and then listen to those songs a million times. An extreme example of a great band that doesn't know how to differentiate between their own good and bad material. But, man, do I love their good stuff!! And if you see them live, look out!!



03. David Byrne & St Vincent - Love This Giant
Saw this team of two great musicians perform together at the Tower Theater in PA. Soooooo good! Horns, horns, horns! And the song-writing puts an ear-worm in every nook. I love David Byrne. Possibly my favorite musician. He has had some bad side projects (see Fatboy Slim) and some great ones (see Brian Eno). This will go down in rock history as a classic. Good job, Annie (St. Vincent), for keeping up with a true giant.



02. Micachu and the Shapes - Never
Okay, like Animal Collective's newest, this album is not accessible whatsoever. It is harsh, atonal, wobbly, muddy, and almost seems broken. Mica Levi (Micahu) makes a lot of her own instruments, uses strange recording techniques, and likes to include vacuums and other weird objects to help create her sound. It took me a lot of listens to even begin to appreciate this piece of work. My patience was born from a deep respect of her first album, JEWELLERY. Once the fog cleared, though, I fell in love. If this album came out last month, it may not even made this list.



01. Tindersticks - The Something Rain
The fact that I don't see this on critics' year-end lists blows me away! I had to double-check to make sure it came out this year. The first song on this album starts things off slow with a long-winded story about a confused lover or something. I often skip it. I wonder if that hurt the album for new listeners giving it a shot on Spotify and other streaming sites. Tindersticks has a huge back-catalogue of consistent work that I have been slowly working my way through. It is a band that I just found this year but will probably listen to the rest of my life.

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