B&C's favourite 2012 albums at the halfway point of the year

[bono_212]

In alphabetical order so as not to ruin the surprise later wink: )

Beach House - Bloom
The Big Pink - Future This
Chairlift - Something
Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
Errors - Have Some Faith in Magic
Grimes - Visions
Japandroids - Celebration Rock
Magnetic Fields - Love at the Bottom of the Sea
Metric - Synthetica
Perfume Genius - Put Your Back N 2 It
Shearwater - Animal Joy
Regina Spektor - What We Saw From the Cheap Seats
Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball
Sun Kil Moon - Among the Leaves
Twin Shadow - Confess

I can not wait for the second half of this year. So much good stuff coming up. A lot of these albums will likely be missing when it comes down to it.

 

[Salome]

favourites this year so far in no real order, but sort of grouped together:

* Leonard Cohen - Old Ideas
* Reigning Sound - Break Up ... Break Down
* Patti Smith - Banga

* The Shins - Port Of Morrow
* Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel

* Tindersticks -The Something Rain
* Lambchop -Mr. M
* Jack White - Blunderbuss

too early to decide:
* Joe Jackson - The Duke

surprisingly good, but not year end material (unless I change my mind):
* Garland Jeffreys - The King Of In Between
* The Beach Boys - That's Why God Made The Radio

and 2 2011 albums I finally started listening to and think are very good:
* Alela Diane - Alela Diane & Wild Divine
* Steve Earle - I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive

 

[Edge425]

Van Halen - A Different Kind Of Truth
Cranberries - Roses

 

[Joey788]

Top albums of the year

1. Metric - Synthetica
2. Sharon Van Etten - Serpents
3. Garbage - Not Your Kind of People
4. Sleigh Bells - Reign of Terror
5. Air - Le voyage dans la lune

Honorable Mentions

- Norah Jones: Little Broken Hearts
- Lissy Trullie: s/t
- Soko: I Thought I Was An Alien
- Andrew Bird: Break It Yourself
- Lower Dens: Nootropics
- Liars: WIXIW

Record I should love but for some reason, I can't get into it

- Beach House: Bloom

Most disappointing record of the year

- Silversun Pickups: Neck of the Woods

 

[u2popmofo]

5. Air - Le voyage dans la lune

I like this a lot too. Probably more than one or two of the things I listed, I just haven't listened to it in a while.

 

[Danny Boy]

5. Air - Le voyage dans la lune

I like this a lot too. Probably more than one or two of the things I listed, I just haven't listened to it in a while.

I enjoyed it, but certainly more of a film score than an album, if I'm allowed to make that differentiation.

 

[cobl04]

No. You are not.

 

[u2popmofo]

I agree with Cobbler.

 

[LemonMelon]

You are everything wrong with the world, Danny Boy.

 

[Danny Boy]

 

[LemonMelon]

Here come the waterworks...

I guess I forgive you.

 

[IWasBored]

It only takes half an hour to listen to, the Japandroids one.

Yeah but I'm somewhat against.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

All the stuff that stayed in my library and their current ranking (which will fluctuate)....

School of Seven Bells - Ghostory
Walkmen - Heaven
Frankie Rose - Interstellar
John Talabot - fin
Cloud Nothings - Attack On Memory
Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action At A Distance
Chromatics - Kill for Love
Sharon Van Etten - Tramp
Lambchop - Mr. M
Japandroids - Celebration Rock
Hot Chip - In Our Heads
Porcelain Raft - Strange Weekend
Lilacs & Champagne
DIIV - Oshin
Lana Del Rey - Born To Die
Beach Boys - That's Why God Made The Radio

Lotus Plaza needs to be re-evaluated since I have only had time to listen to it once but remember really loving it.

I've heard 99 new albums this year.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

Top albums of the year
2. Sharon Van Etten - Serpents

Lucky bastard. You're the only person that's heard that album.

 

[cobl04]

I've heard Tramp (I actually own it, too). There's some great tracks on it (Serpent rules, can easily see why you think that'd be the title) but it all sounds a bit same-y and she doesn't really ever elevate her voice about a monotonous mumble.

 

[Joey788]

Lucky bastard. You're the only person that's heard that album.

Whoops. That's what happens when I post half-asleep!

 

[BigMacPhisto]

Pitchfork Rundown January-June 2012



Best New Music (25 albums):

Actress - R.I.P.
Beach House - Bloom
Burial - Kindred EP
Chromatics - Kill For Love
Cloud Nothings - Attack On Memory
Death Grips - The Money Store
DIIV - Oshin
El-P - Cancer For Cure
Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel
Frankie Rose - Interstellar
Grimes - Visions
Japandroids - Celebration Rock
John Talabot - ƒIN
Julia Holter - Ekstasis
Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music
Lambchop - Mr. M
Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action At A Distance
The Men - Open Your Heart
Mount Eerie - Clear Moon
Pallbearer - Sorrow and Extinction
Perfume Genius - Put Your Back N 2 It
Schoolboy Q - Habits & Contradictions
The Shins - Port Of Morrow
Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light
Ty Segall Band - Slaughterhouse


Most Overlooked Releases (20 titles):


Ab-Soul - Control System
AlunaGeorge - You Know You Like It EP
Oren Ambarchi | Keiji Haino | Jim O'Rourke - Imikuzushi
Anaïs Mitchell - Young Man In America
Anhedonist - Netherwards
Beak> - >>
Blondes
The Congos/Sun Araw/M. Geddes Gengras - Icon Give Thank
Daniel Rossen - Silent Hour/Golden Mile EP
Daughn Gibson - All Hell
Hundred Waters
King Tuff
Laurel Halo - Quarantine
Le1f - Dark York
Lone - Galaxy Garden
Lower - Walk On Heads EP
Mouse on Mars - Parastrophics
Royal Headache
Symmetry - Themes From An Imaginary Film
Voices from the Lake

 

[bono_212]

Pitchfork called Beak > - >> overlooked? Doesn't it not come out til next tuesday?

 

[BigMacPhisto]

It's already on Spotify and I'm in the US. Says it was released in the UK on Monday. Pitchfork reviewed it last month....weird.

 

[nielsgov]

Friggin' pirates.

 

[Cute Irish Bono]

1. Walk the Moon - Walk the Moon

2. The Tallest Man On Earth - There's No Leaving Now

 

[bollox]

Sharon Van Etten - Tramp
Torche - Harmonicraft
Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music
Curren$y - The Stoned Immaculate
El-P - Cancer for Cure
Death Grips - The Money Store

Looking forward to:

Animal Collective
Cat Power
Bat for Lashes
Baroness
David Byrne/St Vincent

 

[bono_212]

It's already on Spotify and I'm in the US. Says it was released in the UK on Monday. Pitchfork reviewed it last month....weird.

It just seems weird to call it "overlooked". I've heard a TON of hype for it. It just leaked last week as far as I know. Not positive about that, but I didn't download it since it was coming out so soon.

 

[Padj]

Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel
Beach House - Bloom
Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action at a Distance
Hot Chip - In Our Heads
Cloud Nothings - Attack On Memory
Frankie Rose - Interstellar
Shearwater - Animal Joy
Sharon Van Etten - Tramp
DIIV - Oshin

 

[Catman]

Looking forward to:

Bat for Lashes

Whooaoaoaoaoaoaoa, I had no idea she's releasing a new album this year - thanks for the heads up!

 

[Cute Irish Bono]

1. Walk the Moon - Walk the Moon

2. The Tallest Man On Earth - There's No Leaving Now

I want to add

3. Lovedrug - Wild Blood

4. Animal Kingdom - The Looking Away

It has been a very slow year to me compared to last year at least.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

Forgot to add these to my list earlier:

Royal Headache
Saint Etienne - Words and Music By Saint Etienne

Also, really dig the latest Oren Ambarchi/Keiji Haino/Jim O'Rourke collaboration which is called Imikuzushi (and was recommended above by Pitchfork). Unlike typical noise rock offerings, this one has a propulsive back beat, phenomenal vocals and a lot more musicality behind it. Could even be a contender for my favorite album of the year, even.

 

[Cute Irish Bono]

Here's my edited final list:

1. Walk the Moon -Walk the Moon
2. The Tallest Man On Earth - There's No Leaving Now
3. Animal Kingdom - The Looking Away
4. Lovedrug - Wild Blood
5. The Rosie Taylor Project - Twin Beds
6. The Maccabess - Given into the Wild

Disappointments:

1. The Shins - Port of Morrow
2. Imperial Teens - Feel the Sound
3. Islands - A Sleep & A Forgetting
4. The Jealous Sound - A Gentle Reminder
5. The Big Pink - Picture This