Best Albums of 2011 - The Lists Begin

[Joey788]

So it begins. Publications have started dropping their end-of-year lists. I figure we could use this thread to compile all the official lists and maybe have a separate one later in the year for our own personal lists.

Here's what I found so far. Add as the days go by.

Paste Magazine

Q Magazine

Uncut Magazine


Rolling Stone

NPR

NME

MOJO

I'd have to say that NPR's list is my favorite so far. It doesn't numerically order the albums and it actually contains music from all genres, including classical and musical soundtracks. Least favorite is Rolling Stone's painfully predictable list.

 

[bono_212]

I know the Amazon MP3 store has their list out as well, oh boy!

Love end of the year list time.

 

[corianderstem]

Me, too. I love finding all the stuff I missed out on during the year.

 

[u2popmofo]

My wallet doesn't love end of year time.

Popmatters has been running daily genre specific lists. Pitchfork's done a few random ones as well.

 

[Zootomic]

Least favorite is Rolling Stone's painfully predictable list.

Painfully predictable is right. Adele at number 1? Really? Sorry, but I have had it up to my eyeballs with all the Adele worship this year. We all know she is going to walk away with all the major Grammys in a couple months because she is exactly the type of artist Grammy voters love, so can people please stop overhyping her now? Yes, she's a very good singer but she's not THAT great. People who think she has the most super-fantastic-amazeballs voice they have ever heard really need to expand their musical horizons. There are a lot of singers out there in all genres who are just as good or better than Adele. Plus, her album has a couple of good, catchy songs but overall is pretty average. Maybe with her next album critics will crawl out of her butt and actually be, you know, critical.

 

[LemonMelon]

Rolling In The Deep is a hot, hot song and no amount of radio play will cool it down.

21, however, is a one-note album, good for arranging things around the house but not worth close consideration.

 

[bono_212]

You had better not have looked at any of these lists, Travis!

 

[LemonMelon]

No worries; I care enough to look, but I have papers to polish up. Dunno why I'm here, must be the soothing blue background.

 

[u2popmofo]

I'm pretty sure none of these crappy lists would remotely sway your own, if that's why you're thinking of avoiding them.

 

[bono_212]

We have a thing about reading them together ...

 

[u2popmofo]

You'll have fun mocking all of these lists together then, they're pretty spotty.

 

[LemonMelon]

 

[BoMac]

We have a thing about reading them together ...

Awww

 

[bono_man2002]

Painfully predictable is right. Adele at number 1? Really? Sorry, but I have had it up to my eyeballs with all the Adele worship this year. We all know she is going to walk away with all the major Grammys in a couple months because she is exactly the type of artist Grammy voters love, so can people please stop overhyping her now? Yes, she's a very good singer but she's not THAT great. People who think she has the most super-fantastic-amazeballs voice they have ever heard really need to expand their musical horizons. There are a lot of singers out there in all genres who are just as good or better than Adele. Plus, her album has a couple of good, catchy songs but overall is pretty average. Maybe with her next album critics will crawl out of her butt and actually be, you know, critical.

People think Lady Gaga is "super-fantastic-amazeballs" too. Each to their own. Its not her fault the radio stations pick her up and play her songs about 5 times per hour. Alas, 21 is a pretty decent album. Rumuor Has It & Set Fire To The Rain are my standouts.

 

[cobl04]

When I listened to that album, I got three songs in and was really excited. I thought, shit I'm really gonna adore this record. But pretty much every song thereafter was run-of-the-mill.

Someone Like You is atrocious. And I'll stand fiercely by that.

 

[Zootomic]

People think Lady Gaga is "super-fantastic-amazeballs" too. Each to their own. Its not her fault the radio stations pick her up and play her songs about 5 times per hour. Alas, 21 is a pretty decent album. Rumuor Has It & Set Fire To The Rain are my standouts.

Yeah, but Gaga actually is amazeballs!

But, seriously, Gaga is a good contrast here. Yes, Gaga gets a lot of praise both from fans and critics, but she also receives an equal amount, if not more, of negativity from people who dislike her as well as from pretentious critics who think they're too good for her music. I recall one 'review' of Born This Way where the writer declared that Gaga did not deserve her success so he used the review space to list other artists who he deemed to be more deserving.

Adele, however, seems to get nothing but gushing praise. You said that 21 is pretty decent. But something that is pretty decent should not be getting the acclaim that 21 is getting and should not be the odds-on favorite for the album of the year Grammy. It is a good, average album that has become ridiculously overhyped and overrated.

 

[u2popmofo]

I don't think I've ever heard an Adele song. If I did, I didn't realize it.

 

[iron yuppie]

Well, a quick glance at Metacritic shows an average score of 76 for 21, which is strong but far from unanimous praise. It seems as though the British are more taken with her than Americans.

Personally, I like Adele but do not feel the need to hear an entire album from her. She clearly has talent as a vocalist, although, like Florence, she has a tendency to be overly-theatrical. In general, I am glad that the media has embraced a non-traditional female pop star in terms of body image and subject matter.

 

[bono_man2002]

Adele's fair share of haters actually comes from the Gaga fans or so it seems But I think the same whenever Pink releases a new album and all the singles sound like they all came off the last album, I don't understand the praise. Maybe its cause Adele is "new" on the scene...its only a matter of time before someone else comes on the overhyped train.

But even if Adele cleans up at the Grammys, do they actually mean anything these days?

 

[u2popmofo]

But even if Adele cleans up at the Grammys, do they actually mean anything these days?

I'm not sure what you mean by "these days", they never have.

 

[bono_man2002]

I'm not sure what you mean by "these days", they never have.

True that I suppose, I dunno I used to have some interest in who won what when I was younger, say 10 years ago. But nowdays if there are few artists I like performing, I'll watch snippets.

 

[cobl04]

P4k's best videos are up. No Lotus Flower and no Make Some Noise = FAIL

 

[phanan]

I think I've fallen a little behind this year with new releases. Haven't listened to anything new in a while...

 

[cobl04]

Start with Watch the Throne.

 

[u2popmofo]

He said "new".

 

[phanan]

Yeah, like the last month or so.

 

[LemonMelon]

Smoke Ring For My Halo is getting some serious love.

 

[cobl04]

Smoke Ring For My Halo is getting some serious love.

Reckon I'd dig? I listened to the most popular song on YouTube, whatever it was, and thinking "ehhh.."

 

[LemonMelon]

Well, it's hard to describe and I'm perhaps not the most objective, as I've heard it more than just about any other album this year, but it rocks pretty well. It's got a dusty, sort of Springsteenish feel on some songs (like the more upbeat tracks on Nebraska), while others have a dreamy Ariel Pink vibe. Definitely feels homemade, but it's got some swagger.

 

[u2popmofo]

The radio singles aren't exactly representative of the album, Cobbler (assuming you're referring to Jesus Fever or Baby's Arms).

Definitely one of my favorites of the year, he was fantastic live as well.

Reminds me, I need to buy his new EP.