2011 - the music I dug

I like lists and I like music. I also liked 2011, it had lots of good music. Here is a presentation of my favorite albums of 2011 for you to ignore, and for me to fondly look back on in a few years and reminisce. I can’t believe I spelled reminisce correctly the first try.

Toro Y Moi - Underneath the Pine

Chaz Bundick seems like a really good guy. I read that he originally recorded this album to sound more folky, but he thought it would sound too different from his previous album, so he re-recorded it. It’s upbeat and funky, has a good variety, some good highs and lows. I listened to this in my car so many times.

Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo

Kurt Vile has a timeless sound. This album would’ve sounded great and relevant in any other decade since the 60s, really. It’s honest and personal. The sound is consistent like a friend’s personality is consistent. His thoughts roam all over the place while still making sense. It makes you really want to pull for him.

Das Racist - Relax

If you heard Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell a couple years ago, you might have written Das Racist off as a One-Hit-Wonder-Showzen joke, but you’d be wrong. This album is a solid chunk of new-sounding hip hop from beginning to end. Nerdy, cultured, socially-aware, funny, and very on top of their game.

Metronomy - The English Riviera

Remember how great Night’s Out was? This album is more mature than their last one. It’s also kind of all over the place. More like a collection of singles than an album at first listen, but I’m starting to think that it tells a story in a disjointed sort of way.

Twin Sister - In Heaven

Just as I was finding out about Twin Sister, this gem shows up. I’m still trying to figure out their sound. It’s a concoction of the interesting personalities of each band member. It doesn’t seem like it should work, but it DOES! I got to see them play my favorite songs live and say hi to them while buying their goods, and they seemed really excited and passionate about their music while the culture around it starts to form. So fun to watch young bands come into their own. Stop is such an amazing track! And it certainly doesn’t hurt that they hired Jonny Negron to do their album art, his shit busts my nuts!

M83 - Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming

It will probably take me another year or so to feel this one out until I’m satisfied. Another band I got to see live this year, their music is always uplifting. Anthony Gonzalez’s hair was lookin spiffy, and he was really pumped.

The Drums - Portamento

These songs seriously sound like a catalog of my life since high school. I know what they’re talking about, or at least I think I do. Another album that I could NOT stop listening to this year. Still can’t. Smiths-surf? Is that fair to say?

Washed Out - Within and Without

This will be one of those albums that will have a strong nostalgic feeling, tightly wound up with the time and place when I listened to it the most. Standout track - You and I. Caroline Polachek from Chairlift takes that shit to another level! Her hushed stutters give me the chillwaves!

Drive OST

My Mom of all people invited me to go see Drive with her and my aunt (I’m sure they just wanted to see Ryan Gosling be all Ryan Gosling). Turns out, I enjoyed the film about 1000X more than they did. The music, especially, cut me open and filled me with feelings and stuff. I got pumped. I immediately went home after the movie to track down all of that synth goodness. On their own, each track is really good, but placed next to each other, they share a vision, a world that pulls you in. And, of course, Cliff Martinez owns all with his subtle score, once again.

Youth Lagoon - The Year of Hibernation

The album cover on this one is incredibly appropriate. Feels like that pinpoint moment in late childhood when you (if you’re lucky) become self-aware and realize how big the world is, and that you actually can have an impact on that huge world. I listened to an interview with Trevor Powers, he said he took his vocal recordings and played them through speakers in someone’s garage and then recorded that. It’s a great trick! Sounds amazing.

Real Estate - Days

One of those albums that I instantly loved and felt like I already knew. It gels well with my personality. I listen to it often when I’m drawing or just hanging out in my bubble that I call my office. It’s almost too comfortable for me, I find myself not really listening to the lyrics :\ Sorry Real Estate, I promise I’ll set aside some time to really listen.

Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost

My first taste of this album was watching the video for vomit, which was a killer first impression. Another album which I got to see performed live, they really blew me away. Girls put on my favorite show at funfunfunfest this year. Glorious use of backup singers!

I dig these too but have only heard them a few times, so I don’t have much to say about them yet.

Bjork - Biophilia

Atlas Sound - Parallax

St. Vincent - Strange Mercy