Albums of the year 2011

[gryffe]

Yes its still November, but Mojo are first out the traps were their list. Why can't they wait till December, for one thing having it this early excludes The Fall album?

 

Anyways, the album of the year in Mojo was PJ Harvey, which I like but it's not the best record this year imo.

 

Other notables of interest to folks on here probably include

 

 

Fleet Foxes - no3

White Denim - no6

Josh T Pearson - no7

Tom Waits - no9

Bon Iver - no16

My Morning Jacket - no20

Bill Callahan - no23

Drive By Truckers - no26

Wilco - no29

Nick Lowe -no31

Radiohead - no47

[gryffe]

PJ Harvey also got No1 Album of the year in Uncut magazine.

 

as for the rest....

 

 

Bill Callahan - no25

Drive By Truckers - no19

Wilco - no15

Tom Waits -no 13

Fleet Foxes - no12

Bon Iver - no9

Wild Beasts - no8

Radiohead - no7

Josh T Pearson - no5

White Denim - no4

[tinnitus photography]

who the hell is Josh T Pearson?

 

and is Mogwai too unfashionable to land on any of these lists? their record this year is super-excellent-awesomeness. i listened to it again today.

[opsopcopolis]

Where can I find the full list?

[Synthesizer Patel]

any chance of posting the rest of the lists?

 

josh t pearson was the lead singer of lift to experience, who made one fantastic album about 10 years ago, and then split up - then for the next 10 years some of us waited for what pearson would do next. it's a really good album, but not as good as lift to experience.

 

you decide which is better:

 

 

that was lift to experience, this is josh's new album:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njNo1UPXw3s

[gryffe]

Where can I find the full list?

 

In reply to your query, I'll post the same as I posted on the DBT website.

 

"That may be difficult, neither Uncut or Mojo are primarily "online" publications, although they do both have websites.

The Uncut website still has last months magazine cover displayed (the new issue has PJ Harvey on the cover) so its not up to date, I'm sure they will publish the list on there at some point. http://www.uncut.co.uk/

 

Mojos website does have the current issues cover displayed, but I can't see the album of the year list anywhere, although I haven't scoured the website

http://www.mojo4music.com/blog/

 

The website below is a fantastic source for album of the year polls, and both Mojo and Uncut listings for this year will appear at some point.

http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/

 

If I get time later I will type up some of the highlights from both magazines lists and post them here!!"

[gryffe]

who the hell is Josh T Pearson?

 

and is Mogwai too unfashionable to land on any of these lists? their record this year is super-excellent-awesomeness. i listened to it again today.

 

Josh T Pearson is one scary mofo.

The album is perhaps best described as stripped down country blues, with just Pearsons voice, acc guitar and sparse piano (only on a couple of tracks).

Its a very intense listen, one of those "headphones late at night albums". I have seen it compared to albums like Tonights The Night and Big Star Third in terms of darkness/bleakness of subject matter.

If you know both Mojo and Uncut magazines well, you will know that this album is right up both magazines alleys, so it's no surprise it polled so high.

[gryffe]

Josh T Pearson strikes again - no1 album in the Rough Trade List

 

http://www.roughtrade.com/site/content.lasso?page=AOY_2011_page2.html

 

And for a more detailed breakdown of the Rough Trade top 10

 

http://www.roughtrade.com/site/content.lasso?page=AOY_2011_page1.html

[DrNo]

That Josh T Pearson record is amazing. He's also much, much bigger in Europe than he is here. He bolted Texas for Berlin 5 or 6 years ago, and has sort of floated around Western Europe ever since from what I understand.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8CuwxE94F8&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL5C1995427A026821

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

I am REALLY liking this one. It's a Brian Fallon (Gaslight Anthem) side project and is as good as anything I've heard this year.

 

[gryffe]

http://www.americans...bums-of-2011/6/

 

Who said Wilco were bums!!! (check the hyperlink )

[Vacant Horizon]

http://www.americans...bums-of-2011/6/

 

Who said Wilco were bums!!! (check the hyperlink )

 

that's not a bad list. glad to see jason isbell on there. i liked that album. i'm also warming up to the fleet foxes. i'm surprised not to see jayhawks.

[Bula Matari]

I am REALLY liking this one. It's a Brian Fallon (Gaslight Anthem) side project and is as good as anything I've heard this year.

 

 

Is this for the Horrible Crowes record? (I am seeing the dreaded red x in a box.)

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

Is this for the Horrible Crowes record? (I am seeing the dreaded red x in a box.)

 

Yes...Yes it is.

 

[a-me-with-a-you]

This might be a remainder of adolescent taste talking, but I really liked the new The Rural Alberta Advantage album (the piano additions were especially likeable), the ambitious new Slow Club and I'm very surprised not to see more mentions of Okkervil River's daring 2011 release. I was also charmed by the swampy new Timber Timbre and the return to form for Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks.

 

I felt like 2011 was mainly the year of disappointing follow-ups for me including the new Blind Pilot, Emmy The Great and Woods (in terms of smaller indie artists) and the half-succesfull efforts by Wye Oak, Yuck, Iron & Wine, Laura Marling, Gillian Welch (shoot me!), Bon Iver (shoot me, if you've got rounds left), and the terrible releases by Blitzen Trapper, My Morning Jacket and Bright Eyes.

 

Bands that did finally win me over include The Drive-By Truckers (The Fireplace Poker is one hell of a darkly humorous parable), Thurston Moore (as a solo artist, including Beck as a secret weapon), A.A. Bondy and St. Vincent.

 

Without much doubt in my mind, Wilco and The Decemberists produced the best two albums this year, but the other spots in my top 10 are highly contestable.

[bleedorange]

I was a big fan of the Rural Alberta Advantage album, too. Although the Malkmus and Okkervil River didn't do a lot for me. To be honest, though, I'd forgotten about Okkervil River, so I might need to give it another listen.

 

I thought Wye Oak and St. Vincent were excellent, but was very disappointed in DBT and A.A. Bondy. Least favorite album by the Truckers by far.

[Vacant Horizon]

This might be a remainder of adolescent taste talking, but I really liked the new The Rural Alberta Advantage album (the piano additions were especially likeable), the ambitious new Slow Club and I'm very surprised not to see more mentions of Okkervil River's daring 2011 release. I was also charmed by the swampy new Timber Timbre and the return to form for Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks.

 

I felt like 2011 was mainly the year of disappointing follow-ups for me including the new Blind Pilot, Emmy The Great and Woods (in terms of smaller indie artists) and the half-succesfull efforts by Wye Oak, Yuck, Iron & Wine, Laura Marling, Gillian Welch (shoot me!), Bon Iver (shoot me, if you've got rounds left), and the terrible releases by Blitzen Trapper, My Morning Jacket and Bright Eyes.

 

Bands that did finally win me over include The Drive-By Truckers (The Fireplace Poker is one hell of a darkly humorous parable), Thurston Moore (as a solo artist, including Beck as a secret weapon), A.A. Bondy and St. Vincent.

 

Without much doubt in my mind, Wilco and The Decemberists produced the best two albums this year, but the other spots in my top 10 are highly contestable.

 

no shooting here. just curious about your thoughts on gillian welch album. i'm a big fan, but haven't picked it up yet.

[a-me-with-a-you]

no shooting here. just curious about your thoughts on gillian welch album. i'm a big fan, but haven't picked it up yet.

 

Well, just so happens I'm listening to it now, it's really good but the songs are more (too?) straightforward than she's ever been, the lyrical genius picks up her pen only every other song (ordinary lyrics in keeping with the straightforward theme) and Rawling's background coloring seems a little uninspired at times. If it's any comfort, most critics disagree with me and I find the songs that I like to be quite close to brilliant. This almost goes without saying, but her vocals are once again out of this world, so nothing to worry about there. My favorites are the slow burners The Way It Will Be (a throwback to "revelator") and Tennessee (I like it's mantra: beef steak when I'm working, whiskey when I'm dry, sweet heaven when I die).

 

Argh, I guess she's just one of those artists that's left to fight her back catalogue, maybe that's why she hasn't released squat in six years...douchebags with a keyboard like me .

[rareair]

i do not often listen to the new gillian welch album, but it sounded beautiful at the Ryman last weekend. Nothing uninspired about dave rawlings in person.

 

sat in front of robert plant who periodically groaned and/or growled his enjoyment as well.

[marino13]

i do not often listen to the new gillian welch album, but it sounded beautiful at the Ryman last weekend. Nothing uninspired about dave rawlings in person.

 

sat in front of robert plant who periodically groaned and/or growled his enjoyment as well.

 

You must be a VIP if you got better seats than Robert Plant. Was he really that into the music or was someone squeezing his lemon?

[rareair]

he seemed really into it.

 

he did however leave about 30 minutes early to go see Alabama Shakes.

[Moss]

I need to hear the new Black Keys before making a commitment but my tops so far are basically:

 

PJ Harvey

Fleet Foxes

Wilco

Decemberists

[Kim Bodnia]

For some reason this hasn't been a good music year for me. I know there are a lot of amazing records, but none has made a personal impact, say something that I'd still be listening 5 or 10 years from now.

 

Let's see, R.E.M. disappointed, Decemberists was (is) good but I'm finding hard to like anything other than Calamity Song, Wilco on the other hand made a stellar song, Sunday Morning.

 

Radiohead had a 5 on a personal scale of 10.

 

The Wilderness of Manitoba made a brilliant album, my music discovery of the year.

 

Special mention goes to the re-issue of Lifes Rich Pageant.

[nodep5]

1. Decemberists - Kind Is Dead (timeless songbook stuff here) 10 solids memorable,hummable beautifully written and constructed songs

2. Fleet Foxes- Helplessness Blues (beautiful in every way. indie folk with a vision like brian wilson, I mean really listen to the beauty of Montezuma, i mean really).

3. J. Mascis - Several Shades of Why (a great songwriter album from a musical hero) an album i return to more than almost any this year

4. & 5. tie between the new Gillian Welch and Ryan Adams- you can't go wrong with these two (enough said)

 

I'm sad that a Wilco record wasn't in my top 5, but for as much as I appreciate The Whole Love, it just didn't connect with me like Wilco usually does. that is just me

[Vacant Horizon]

i'm surprised Dawes and Jayhawks are on these lists. at the same time, these albums got a lot of buzz, but upon release the buzz really died down. i for one don't like the new jayhawks. seems like they tried a bit too hard. Dawes is just too slow of an album with two of the best songs in the last several years: Time Spent In Los Angeles, Fire Away.