I don’t think Beyonce is a lock for the Graun’s top five actually.
Like there’s an unexploded Adele-bomb in there still and given the rest of the list I wouldn’t be surprised to see something like the Girls album pop up in the top five. Obviously Let England Shake is a lock and Katy B is more likely to appear then Beyonce.
Actually I probably mean the Elbow album rather than the Girls album.
Elbow
Florence
Adele
PJ Harvey
Beyonce
Katy B
^ pick two that aren’t going to make it
Goblin will be top 4, surely?
Florence is out, so straight fite for two places between Adele, Elbow & Beyonce.
You know, I listened to the Florence album and the Austra album back to back and I’m a little nonplussed/bemused that people would ride hard for one and not the other since they are verging on identical aside from the guitar on Florence’s album.
Austra don’t make intolerably racist videos for a start?
well okay, there is that
Florence is pissing me off to a huge extreme with that actually, because I really fell hard for her album and then she completely fucked up one of the best songs on the album with that video
TBH, I had taken against FATM long before that but I can’t really give you any quantifiable reason why apart from, “I just took against her”—I could not even tell you what the missing ingredient is in Austra that make me take to them, either. I’m useless as a critic.
Actually I totally get why one would not go for her Lungs material; from what I’ve heard, there’s a lot of inappropriate bellowing happening throughout the album that gets reigned in a lot on Ceremonials, making it more effective when it does barrel into your ears.
LWE 30–21
30. EQD, Equalized#005-B
29. RNDM, Hideaway (Dub)
28. Tin Man, Nonneo (Donato Dozzy Remix)
27. Protect-U, World Music
26. Roman Flügel, Iron Curtain
25. Crystal Maze, Crystal Maze (Chicago Skyway Remix)
24. Martyn, Masks
23. Burial, Stolen Dog
22. The Citizen’s Band, West 42nd
21. Machinedrum, Come1
haha what the fuck is “Tiger & Woods”
house music ppl I believe
grady was hyping them to me a while back, which should give you an idea of what kinda music it is
tiger & woods is great
Yeah they sort of flit between house and nu-disco, they’ve released at least one free album this year that I’ve totally failed to listen to.
i think they’re pretty middle of the road as these producers go, none of their tracks hit for me like say the revenge or mark e or the better edit-creators or w/e, and ‘gin nation’ which is their big acclaimed single is way too close to the original — a track off one of my favorite albums — for me to feel like its earned its year end list spots personally.
there are a couple tracks of theres i think are v. good songs but ‘gin nation’ is too close to ‘dj tool’ for me to love it i guess
man, I was almost totally unmoved by that Rapture album, it is really surprising to me that it is appearing on so many lists
haha the fact that yr tim hecker write up also mentions deaf center (my album of the year!) made me incredibly happy
:)
o_O why is the Weeknd blurb three times as long as every other blurb
Because the album felt three times as long as every other one?
well its also for two albums
i remember when whiney used to rail against sites that made you click through 93404833 times per list
haha the fact that yr tim hecker write up also mentions stephan mathieu (a static place is one of my albums of the year!) made me incredibly happy
i remember when whiney used to rail against sites that made you click through 93404833 times per list
― degas-dirty monet (lex pretend), Monday, December 12, 2011 2:35 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Permalink
remember when lex pissed his pants because he’s a drooling idiot and we all pointed and laughed at him
Real talk tho, I think there’s a huge, huge, huge difference between a 50-entry list with 10 clickthroughs and a 50-entry list with 50 clickthroughs but YMMV \O_o/
what was the one page after the number one album? i didn’t click it. did i miss anything good?
A full-page color ad of whiney doing a handstand on his 50 albums.
planking on them actually
What’s your opinion on your #1, WGW? I’ve not heard it—Fucked Up have never struck me as the most interesting band in the world, but I’d be willing to give it a try. Or are you about to start your own ‘most regrettable Spin #1 albums’ thread?
I think it’s fairly well documented what SPIN’s most regrettable #1 was
That being said, Fucked Up is def on my P&J ballot, and is easily one of the best records I’ve heard all year in any genre
Okay, I’ll see if I can find some tracks about, then. Worth a go. Though I think this year might actually be pretty chock full of albums I’ve loved already.
I think it’s fairly well documented what SPIN’s most regrettable #1 was
???
1991:
1. Teenage Fanclub—Bandwagonesque
“Your hard drive”
hahaha or that one
Oh shit, yeah. Bwahahahahaaaaa.
“Your hard drive”
― Number None, Monday, December 12, 2011
Their debut album was pretty slow iirc
Dunno it’s due for a reappraisal
Pitchfork Top 100 Tracks of 2011 (50–1)
50. Atlas Sound – Mona Lisa
49. Katy B – Broken Record
48. Kreayshawn – Gucci Gucci
47. Battles [ft. Matias Aguayo] – Ice Cream
46. Ty Segall – Goodbye Bread
45. Drake – Headlines
44. Nicolas Jaar – Space Is Only Noise If You Can See
43. Panda Bear – Last Night at the Jetty
42. Jay-Z & Kanye West – Otis
41. Frank Ocean- Novacane
40. Burial – Street Halo
39. Shabazz Palaces – Swerve...the reeping of all that is worthwhile (Noir not withstanding)
38. Purity Ring – Ungirthed
37. A$AP Rocky – Peso
36. Jamie xx – Far Nearer
35. Charli XCX – Stay Away
34. Cut Copy – Need You Now
33. AraabMuzik – Streetz Tonight
32. Cold Cave – The Great Pan Is Dead
31. The Field – Then It’s White
30. Clams Casino – Motivation
29. Jai Paul – BTSTU (Edit)
28. Danny Brown – Monopoly
27. The Rapture – How Deep Is Your Love?
26. Beyonce – 1 + 1
25. Soulja Boy – Zan With That Lean
24. Kurt Vile – Jesus Fever
23. Adele – Rolling in the Deep
22. Bill Callahan – Riding For the Feeling
21. Drake – Marvins Room
20. Gang Gang Dance – Glass Jar
19. Lana Del Rey – Video Games
18. St. Vincent – Cruel
17. Oneohtrix Point Never – Replica
16. Tyler, the Creator – Yonkers
15. The Weeknd – The Morning
14. Girls – Vomit
13. tUnE-yArDs – Bizness
12. Jay-Z/Kanye West – Niggas in Paris
11. James Blake – The Wilhelm Scream
10. DJ Khaled [ft. Drake, Rick Ross, and Lil Wayne] – I’m on One
9. Azealia Banks – 212
8. Cass McCombs – County Line
7. Beyonce – Countdown
6. Destroyer – Kaputt
5. Real Estate – It’s Real
4. Nicki Minaj – Super Bass
3. EMA – California
2. Bon Iver – Holocene
1. M83 – Midnight City
lol @ the punchline of the top 3 #icanteven
tim f, or anyone else who is attempting to put together a personal tracks of the year, how do you do it? doing an albums list is fun cuz it’s EASIER, mine is pretty much done. doing a tracks one, i’m just looking at this mass of 200+ amazing songs and flapping my hands cuz i don’t know how to start
apropos of little, because there isn’t a kate bush thread over here, people talk about the elton john song being the one that breaks the spell and they’re not wrong, but i think i actually resent the final track more—it’s so nothingy, but doesn’t have that sense of heaviness or mood that the first three songs do, and essentially means the second half of the album is near-useless for me.
I think the song itself is good enough to withstand Elton, just. But I just don’t believe his performance in it, he doesn’t actually sound like he gets the emotional weight of the song at all, so when he’s singing things like “I lost you in the London smog” he sounds like he’s having the time of his life, it’s just hammy in completely the wrong way.
Strangely I actually rather like Stephen Fry’s appearance on the album, because he doesn’t actually get in the way too much, it’s just like a kind of ambient sound.
I like 50 Words For Snow okay but I’d have expected a new Kate Bush album to be a lock for my top 10 (if Aerial were released tomorrow it’d be top three easily) but it isn’t really. Even the early piano-driven songs are a bit too repetitive to justify the length and relative sparseness. It works better as an ambient record in general actually. I do love ‘Misty’ though.
I agree re the last track Lex, “nothingy” is precisely the word for it. I think this album’s just about the first 3 tracks for me.
I think Kate is actually more annoying than Stephen on the title track! I don’t mind weirdness from Kate obv but usually it’s in service of something at least arguably meaningful.
Aerial was my no. 2 for 2005, 50 Words is just inside or outside my top 10 depending on mood.
re tracks lists: there has been a lot of hand flapping going on. The reason I haven’t done numbering before is that I didn’t want to be locked in. Even now the ordering and the inclusions are changing a bit which will become more of a problem as I count down.
oh there’s nothing i dislike about the title track but at the same time there’s nothing about it which makes me keep playing the album after “misty”. “wild man” is just there as well. it’s kind of fallen to the bubble of my top 20 now :/
Don’t really do any actual ordering—is more like here’s 10 or 20 records I’m really into this year
i think i have to do numbering if only for tidiness purposes, rather than chucking a splurge of 200 songs on the internet
Good point! With a longer list numbering becomes more important. I try keep any kind of list relatively short though
capping the numbers leads to even more hands-flapping. which do i leave out? which to i keep in? aargh
why can’t i type? *do
if it’s a personal list rather than for a publication why not just post the whole lot? 200 amazing songs are 200 amazing songs. You don’t need to cut any unless its a ballot.
LWE 20–16
20. Levon Vincent, Man Or Mistress
19. Storm Queen, It Goes On
18. Kahn, Like We Used To
17. Juju & Jordash, Chelm Is Burning
16. Peverelist, Dance Til The Police Come
if it’s a personal list rather than for a publication why not just post the whole lot? 200 amazing songs are 200 amazing songs. You don’t need to cut any unless its a ballot.
― Minga Frump (Jimmy Riddle), Tuesday, 13 December 2011
Long lists make my eyes go funny
What is LWE?? Quite liking their list.
okay, ta
I adore “Dance Til The Police Come”.
I think this is the first Kate Bush album in ages I haven’t hated, precisely because it is so ~nothingy~—I like it better all ambient like that. Elton John didn’t even bother me so much because I didn’t know it was him until I looked up the credits.
RA Top 20 compilations of 2011
http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature.aspx?1424
20. Various Artists—Mosaic Vol. 1 [Exit]
19. Nicholas—Back on Track: Nu Groove [Needwant]
18. Various Artists—IOTDXI [R&S Records]
17. Marcel Dettmann—Conducted [Music Man]
16. Ata—Live at Robert Johnson Vol. 7 [Live at Robert Johnson]
15. Robag Wruhme—Wuppdeckmischmampflow [Kompakt]
14. Various Artists—Back & 4th [Hotflush]
13. Various Artists—Laid Compilation [Laid]
12. Lawrence—Timeless [Cocoon]
11. Prosumer—Panorama Bar 03 [Ostgut Ton]
10. Various Artists—116 & Rising [Hessle Audio]
09. Motor City Drum Ensemble—DJ-Kicks [!K7]
08. Jackmaster—Fabriclive 57 [fabric]
07. Wolf + Lamb vs. Soul Clap—DJ-Kicks [!K7]
06. Pearson Sound—Fabriclive 56 [fabric]
05. Marcel Fengler—Berghain 05 [Ostgut Ton]
04. Scuba—DJ-Kicks [!K7]
03. Dixon—Live at Robert Johnson Vol. 8 [Live at Robert Johnson]
02. Ben UFO—Rinse: 16 [Rinse]
01. Four Tet—Fabriclive 59 [Fabric]
I don’t have the Laid compilation but I’ve 3 or 4 tracks off that which are really good
Haven’t heard that Lawrence mix but tracklisting looks good (I love Life Aquatic, and Forever Monna of course!)
genuinely surprised that online podcasts and mixes haven’t completely killed off the official cd mix yet
beyoncé at #4 in the guardian list, fittingly :)
Just realized still not heard Bens mix yet either
it’s good but it ruins itself by ending with how to dress well (cf jackmaster ending his fabric mix with radiohead)
lol @ all the drake on that pitchfork list, the dombals have taken over the asylum
guardian comments are the absolute worst—can’t wait to see them cry more though when their precious M83/Wild Beasts/Elbow/Mastodon crap they’re predicting is sidelined for an all female top 3 (actually 4) :D
genuinely surprised that online podcasts and mixes haven’t completely killed off the official cd mix yet
I reckon mix CDs tend to have a bit more thought put into them? They’re the closest many DJs get to releasing an album.
Also the best practical thing about listening to a commercially available mix = being able to identify tracks easily, rather than looking at an online tracklist and trying to work out whether you’re on the 10th, 11th or 12th tune because you like something.
I actually really dislike M83, I actually resent how lazy he is when it comes to going for BIG EMOTIONAL IMPACT.
lulz tell me about it—i was gonna actually comment but when it descended into arguing about the beatlezzzz it was like, what is the point. hilarious outrage though. that thing where FT said you should be prepared to ~take it outside~ for your #1 album? i kind of feel i want to do that with some of the commenters.
i don’t really have any idea what the non-PJH/Katy B album left to come is—really don’t think it’ll be adele because i genuinely can’t think of any guardian writer who actually loves her particular. racist florence’s album was released too late in the year surely?
xp i agree with you on identifying tracks, way prefer that—i think maybe too much effort can go into the commercially available ones though? certainly both ben ufo and jackmaster’s felt overstuffed, as if they were so excited at having finally been given the chance to do a Proper CD Mix that they tried to say too much. both have done many many superior free mixes over the past couple of years.
and the two best mixes i’ve heard this year—âme and nguzunguzu—were both notable for being pretty light-touch and loose.
i don’t really have any idea what the non-PJH/Katy B album left to come is—really don’t think it’ll be adele because i genuinely can’t think of any guardian writer who actually loves her particular. racist florence’s album was released too late in the year surely?
Elbow.
:(
could you imagine being the person who types out the pitchfork singles list into one list?
i take it all back about guardian commenters!
em2602
13 December 2011 2:23PM
As a teenage girl, and therefore considering myself part of Beyonce’s target audience (rather than the middle-aged men who come here to throw in their mindless and useless waffle about how the music is average but it’s fine because she looks good etc.) I really, really like this album. Part of me dies a little bit inside every single time that an artist that I like converts to the popular “dance” vibe of auto-tune and whatever the techno beats are called and it’s refreshing to see an artist who is still so relevant can still get sales doing the songs that she undoubtedly does best.
<3 <3 <3
25. Soulja Boy – Zan With That Lean
assume that is in no small part j0rdans doing
worst p4k top 10 tracks & general list ever imo
(zan with that lean aside)
could you imagine being the person who types out the pitchfork singles list into one list?
Yes.
my man
i think maybe too much effort can go into the commercially available ones though?
Absolutely agree with this—not really into mixes that try to ‘show a full range’ or educate or provide some kind of overview or worst of all..join the dots. Different things for different audiences of course and nothing wrong with those things per se but personally I just want to hear something that feels natural/organic and has a flow—think mixes become too tense or uptight when they don’t do this
i think the RA mixes list is the best thing posted so far
worst p4k top 10 tracks & general list ever imo
s0 much garbage such a shame on their house
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
lol I saw a really OTM comment in the guardian and then realised it was by tom ewing. figures.
the most irksome comment though is the one about the guardian needing a token black female in the list. like can you stop treating the straight white male experience as normative and universal FOR ONCE. anyway...
three good songs in the top 10 is a pretty good showing for pitchfork I think!
Different things for different audiences of course and nothing wrong with those things per se but personally I just want to hear something that feels natural/organic and has a flow—think mixes become too tense or uptight when they don’t do this
This is the fault of the DJ/artist in question rather than the format though?
Difficult to say—if someone does an online mix which is organic, and then a CD one which is edutainment or overview, is it the format? the DJ, the label? expectation? internalized pressure?
No idea
Rock-A-Rolla Top 50 Albums
01 The Book Of Knots—Garden Of Fainting Stars (Ipecac)
02 Mogwai—Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will (Rock Action)
03 Earth—Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light 1 (Southern Lord)
04 Wolves In The Throne Room—Celestial Lineage (Southern Lord)
05 Boris—Attention Please (Sargent House)
06 Obake—Obake (Rarenoise)
07 Black Cobra—Invernal (Southern Lord)
08 Barn Owl—Lost In The Glare (Thrill Jockey)
09 Loss—Despond (Profound Lore)
10 Wooden Shjips—West (Thrill Jockey)
11 Mike Patton—The Solitude Of Prime Numbers (Ipecac)
12 Grails—Deep Politics (Temporary Residence Ltd)
13 Tombs—Path Of Totality (Relapse)
14 Alva Noto—Univrs (Raster-Noton)
15 Asva—Presences Of Absences (Important)
16 Enablers—Blown Realms And Stalled Explosions (Exile On Mainstream)
17 Hexvessel—Dawnbearer (Svart)
18 Today Is The Day—Pain Is A Warning (Black Market Activities/Good Fight Music)
19 Bloodiest—Descent (Relapse)
20 Killl—Killl (Fysisk Format)
21 Fire! With Jim O’ Rourke—Unreleased? (Rune Grammofon)
22 Boris—Heavy Rocks (Sargent House)
23 Remember Remember—The Quickening (Rock Action)
24 Hella—Tripper (Sargent House)
25 Årabrot—Solar Anus (Fysisk Format)
26 The Atlas Moth—An Ache For The Distance (Profound Lore)
27 Mamiffer—Mare Decendrii (Sige/Conspiracy)
28 Gridlink—Orphan (Hydra Head)
29 Explosions In The Sky—Take Care, Take Care, Take Care (Temporary Residence/Bella Union)
30 Circle—Infektio (Conspiracy)
31 YOB—Atma (Profound Lore)
32 Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones—Metamanoir (Denovali)
33 Blut Aus Nord—777: The Desanctification (Debemur Morto)
34 A Storm Of Light—As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us, Our Silver Memories Fade (Profound Lore)
39 Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraisoufo—The Ripper At The Heaven Gates Of Dark (Riot Season)
40 Amebix—Sonic Mass (Easy Action)
41 Mika Vainio—Life (...It Eats You Up) (Editions Mego)
42 Birds Of Passage—Winter Lady (Denovalii)
43 Rwake—Rest (Relapse)
44 Conquering Animal Sound—Kammerspiel (Gizeh)
45 Zombi—Escape Velocity (Relapse)
46 Terra Tenebrosa—The Tunnels (Trust No One)
47 Raoul Sinier—Guilty Cloaks (Ad Noiseam)
48 Ovo—Cor Cordium (Supernatural Cat)
49 Rising—To Solemn Ash (Exile On Mainstream)
50 Skullflower—Fucked on A Pile Of Corpses (Cold Spring)
For those in the U.S. who had trouble hunting down this magazine like me, Rock-A-Rolla is now available digitally for a reasonable price at http://rock-a-rolla.com/
Didn’t know so many teenage girls read The Guardian
EveChang
As another teenage girl I am delighted to see Beyoncé place so high. But I do wish Male Guardian writers/readers stopped patronising teenage girls. I love Elbow and Mastodon as much as Beyoncé and I hope they place too.
Perhaps as a teenage girl, who is as open to pop,metal,hiphop,grime,country or indie, guardian writers/readers should be open minded as teenage girls. It’s quite pathetic to see so called ‘critics’ dismissing entire genres of music.
hah i just got my rock-a-rolla magazine in
why wouldn’t teenagers i read the guardian! i read it when i was a teenager
Like I said on the other thread, teen girls are better music critics than most of you.
I like that Rock a Rolla list p well, though every album from their top 10 that I’ve heard is highly underwhelming (with the possible exception of Barn Owl)
Yeah, that Earth album was a snooze.
I liked it, though admittedly it was more of the same. The Wooden Shjips album is really good too, as is the WITTR record.