The list was pretty much determined by how prevalent an album was to keep my attention and stay in rotation throughout the year, personal connections to the songs, lyrics used, terms of musical experimentation, overall album playcount 2011, etc… Don’t judge me!
2011 Honorable mentions:
- ASAP Rocky – Live. Love. ASAP. (can’t believe I almost forgot this one)
- James Blake – ST
- TV On The Radio – 9 Types of Light
- Death Cab – Codes and Keys
- Bibio – Mind Bokeh
- Toro Y Moi – Underneath the Pine (almost made the cut)
- Friendly Fires – Pala
- Kendrick Lamar – Section 88
- The Antlers – Burst Apart
- Destroyer – Kaputt
- Wild Beasts – Smother (should have prolly made the cut)
- St. Vincent – Strange Mercy
- Washed Out – Within and Without
- Thurston Moore – Demolished Thoughts (reminds me of sea change)
- Dale Earnheart Jr Jr – It’s A Corporate World
- Roots – The Undun
- Raphael Saddiq – Stone Rollin
- TKOL FTB
- Handsome Furs – Sound Kapitol
- M83 – hurry up we’re dreaming
- Prefuse 73 – The Only She Chapters
- Ghost Poet – PBJ…
2011 end of year best of list…..
- SBTRKT – SBTRKT
Pretty much the only album I really got into this year that I enjoyed from start to finish and can play through without having too skip around much. That run from Trials of the Past to Never Never is just a solid patch of electronic music with emotional lyrics… This probably isn’t going to be an album you see on most other people’s lists, but I sort of enjoy being really into something that not many others are able to notice. Felt incredibly connected to this album this summer. “Something Goes Right” is pretty much my anthem for 2011. - Bon Iver – ST
I thought this album was the most progressive thing I’ve heard all year… Much of the material on this isn’t necessarily as listener friendly as stuff was on the original debut, and the lyrics are a little bit wonky… but when you really sit down to listen to this thing with good headphones on you realize there is some really complex shit going on in the production and a ton of different syncopations going on for each song (just means playing off the back beat). Also enjoy concept art albums; each song on this album is supposed to represent a location. The transition from Perth to Minnosota, WI is amazing. - DJ Shadow – The Less You Know, The Better
Sort of disappointed by how little exposure this thing received. This album took me a few spins to really appreciate, but after I got my head around the album a and sifted through the filler, I personally think it has some of DJ Shadow’s best work on it… Stay the Course through to Enemy Lines is incredibile, then it not to mention the isolated gems Scale it Back and Riding Through the Universe. Are you kidding me!? Good stuff. Not sure why this didn’t catch on by the masses, but I tend to go against the grain on what most people think. - Bill Callahan – Apocalypse
Best lyrics you’ll hear all year. “In conclusion, leaving is easy – when there’s somewhere you need to be.” - Jay-Z and Kanye – Watch The Throne
Killer production, lyrics, style, phatty original beats, collaborating artists + non mainstream douchy rap music without Kanye being so whiny. Win Win. - Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
Decent indie folk music. - Modeselektor – Monkeytown
Really caught off guard by this German duo’s work, the album has some weird music on it, but I love it so. Blue Clouds and Shipwreck are very niicze. - Tennis – Cape Dory
Amongst the dross and dribble I listen to on a daily basis, I found this album to be really refreshing and have that sense of innocence that I don’t really come across often. Don’t think I could listen to this kind of thing forever, but for this year I quite enjoyed it at times. A lot of people pick on this dorky couple and the music they make… as rightfully so. - Thundercat – The Golden Age of the Apocalypse
Bring the FUNK. - Radiohead – The King of Limbs
I’ve listened to this album so much trying to get into it that it would be strange not to include it on this list… Hard to describe the way I feel about it, some times I love it, some times I hate it. I guess I’ve got to be in the right mood for it, but when it works it really works. Bloom, Separator, and Lotus Flower are legit. The rest… eh.
Great albums I got into this year (not released in 2011)
- RJD2 – Since We Last Spoke
- Neil Young – On The Beach
- Explosions in the Sky – All of the Sudden, I Miss Everyone
- Nine Inch Nails – 36 Ghosts
- Kid Cudi – MOTM II – The Legend of Mr. Rager
- Broken Social Scene – Feel Good Lost
- Fiona Apple – When The Pawn Hits The Conflict, He Thinks Like A King
- Death Cab – Narrow Stairs
- Brand New – Your Favorite Weapon
- Mel Gibson and the Pants – Sea Vs Shining Sea
- Mogwai – Special Moves