Albums of the Year?

[Carcass]

I'm surprised that no one's started this yet...

Here are the Quietus':

Angst Music For Sex People: A Top 40 For 2010

We've got reissues, mixes, compilations and lives going up on Monday.

It's been a good year from my point of view and we had to extend from a Top 30 to Top 40. It's the kind of period I like with no over-arching genre or aesthetic, meaning it's all up for grabs. Witch House, or whatever you want to call it, isn't strong enough or old enough to throw that much up but I do love the Salem album, even though it has become the focal point for much fierce criticism. There's not much hip hop but then I've not heard that much that I like other than Big Boi (and to a lesser degree Freddie Gibbs and Waka Flocka Flame).

Since compiling this chart I've come across one album that I certainly would have included if I'd heard it, by Voice Of The Seven Thunders.

The consensus albums elsewhere seem to be Kanye West (fucking awful but not as bad as the two previous) and Arcade Fire (pretty decent... much better than Neon Bible).

My extreme album of the year is The Body's And All The Waters Of The World Will Turn To Blood. Proper tooled up, suicide cult, waiting for the Rapture insanity.

The album that sounded the best initially but wore off after just a few listens was by Sleigh Bells.

And the two that I called wrong... Delphic (boring) and M.I.A. (thin)

[MsD]

Albums of the Year?

Loving that pun ...

More interesting than many year end review lists. I only have the Gil S-H and Fall albums, both great.

[Bored Of Education]

Albums of the Year?

Album of the year is, naturally, "Supply & Demand" by the Lone Sharks but, after that, it has got to be "Live at Ebbw Vale" by Thee Faction

[evilC]

Albums of the Year?

I'd meant to compile at least a top 10 albums - and possibly several other (sub) categories too. However, I've been confused and shit at the same time and haven't got around to it.

However, I can tell you that my top 3 albums of the year (and possibly the most predictable top 3 albums you'll ever see in your life) are:

1. Villa Nah - 'Origin'
2. Automelodi - 'Automelodi'
3. Solvent - 'Subject To Shift'

If I ever get around to finishing this, or any of the other little charts I'd planned, I will, of course, let you know.

[Fussbudget]

Albums of the Year?

I don't know if I'm incredibly fussy but there aren't many albums ever that I really enjoy listening to all the way through, I'd much rather we had a "Tracks of the year" or "Singles of the year" thread.

I could probably make a top 10 for this year if pushed but the only album that I've genuinely enjoyed in its totality is the third Scissor Sisters album, it's great and a complete surprise to me as their first album was only half decent and their second one was absolute pish.

[Tony C]

Albums of the Year?

Come December there is nothing that makes me feel more acutely aware of my adavancing years than the Quietus end of year list.

I've heard the Arcade Fire album and I accompanied a friend to a Besnard Lakes gig at a very small Manchester venue called Ruby Lounge a little while ago but other than that I'm really not up to speed.

I even gave up on The Fall after the desperately poor 'Imperial Wax Solvent' (not a widely held view, admittedly).

Really must try harder.

[Nico Rijnders]

Albums of the Year?

I have done a list of my favourite albums of the year, in rough order.

Vampire Weekend: Contra
Pantha du Prince: White Noise
Lindstrψm & Christabelle: Real Life is No Cool
Wu Tang vs. The Beatles: Enter the Magical Mystery Chamber
The Fall: Your Future, Our Clutter

Hot Chip: One Life Stand
Steve Mason: Boys Outside
Caribou: Swim
Janelle Monae: The Archandroid
Everything Everything: Man Alive
Belle and Sebastian: Write About Love
Robyn: Body Talk 1&2
LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening
Big Boi: Sir Luscious Left Foot...
John Grant: Queen of Denmark
The National: High Violet
Chromeo: Business Casual
Archie Bronson Outfit: Coconut
Big Boi: Sir Luscious Left Foot...
Teenage Fanclub: Shadows
Grinderman: Grinderman 2
Solar Bears: She Was Coloured In

I do like the Kanye West record, and I've never enjoyed any of his albums before, but I haven't included it I think it's mainly three or four big set piece tracks with a lot of filler, but that might change as I get to know it better.

[Stumpy Pepys]

Albums of the Year?

I just find it hard to take seriously a list that doesn't contain Queen of Denmark by John Grant. Miles ahead of anything else I've heard this year.

Edit: Also Nico Rijnders has included it on his list.

[steveeeeeeeee]

Albums of the Year?

1. Caribou - Swim
2. MGMT - Congratulations

>

3. Paul Weller - Wake Up The Nation
4. These New Puritains - Hidden
5. Avi Buffalo - Avi Buffalo
6. The Drums - The Drums

They're only albums I've bought this year (the other half gave me the Weller one because nobody wanted it in her office and she knew I liked the title track from "Wake Up The Nation"). The Drums album is nothing special, it was on sale for £3 at HMV in Heathrow airport and seemed a bargain at the time.

[steveeeeeeeee]

Albums of the Year?

Stumpy Pepys wrote:

I just find it hard to take seriously a list that doesn't contain Queen of Denmark by John Grant. Miles ahead of anything else I've heard this year.

Edit: Also Nico Rijnders has included it on his list.

Thanks for the tip, never heard of it but I'll check that one out.

[evilC]

Albums of the Year?

evilC wrote:

...

1. Villa Nah - 'Origin'
2. Automelodi - 'Automelodi'
3. Solvent - 'Subject To Shift'

If I ever get around to finishing this, or any of the other little charts I'd planned, I will, of course, let you know.

Actually, I think I know what comes next:

4. The Black Dog - 'Music For Real Airports'

...which could easily swap places with Solvent, above.

After that, although I can't really sort them properly, the next 6 would possibly be:

Robyn - 'Body Talk Pt.1'
The Plantains - 'Career Retrospective'
Mandroid - 'Anti-Gravity Machines'
The Exaltics - '1000 Lights In The Sky Pt.1'
DMX Krew - 'The March To The Stars'
The Rorschach Garden - '42 Times Around The Sun'

...but I haven't heard so many albums this year that I wanted to that I really couldn't give a list that is anywhere near definitive.

[Tramp The Dirt Down]

Albums of the Year?

Black Light - Groove Armada

Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk

[Borracho]

Albums of the Year?

Top ten:

LCD Soundsystem -- This Is Happening
Flying Lotus -- Cosmogramma
Lindstrψm & Christabelle -- Real Life Is No Cool
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti -- Before Today
Oriol -- Night And Day
Neil Young -- Le Noise (I normally can't stand him)
Curren$y -- Pilot Talk
No Age -- Nouns
Jaga Jazzist -- One Armed Bandit
Brian Eno -- Small Craft On A Milk Sea

Also liked the Rφyksopp, Pierre Bensusan, Teenage Fanclub, Robert Plant and Gayngs albums.

Was bored shitless by Bryan Ferry, Grinderman, MGMT and that Jack White thing with the female singer, and thought that the Kanye West album was pretty awful.

[Tony C]

Albums of the Year?

I quite liked the Robert Plant and Neil Young albums, too.

I also enjoyed The National's 'High Violet' but it seems to have had a lukewarm reception (in as much as I haven't seen it in any year end lists to date either in the press or on here).

[Carcass]

Albums of the Year?

Hmm. After Kanye and Arcade Fire, The National is one of the consensus albums of the year, especially in the American press.

[evilC]

Albums of the Year?

Although I was looking forward to hearing 'High Violet', I have to add my shrug to any others out there. To me it felt like un-exceptional-ness crystallised. They just seem to be setting themselves up to be the next U2 or Coldplay.

[dalliance]

Albums of the Year?

The National album was something of a slow burner for me and was pretty decent, I think the disappointment came a little because they had stepped up notably in terms of quality from album to album previously and a lot of people were expecting this to be the one that really broke them. It's no real advancement of Boxer and the big hype around this album was rather unfounded.

I listened to the Robert Plant album the other day and quite liked it. The track Silver Riders was playing and I was thinking to myself that it sounded very like Low, though could not imagine that Robert Plant would even have heard of Low. Then the next track came on and was called Monkey, a cover version of Low's track from their 2005 masterpiece The Great Destroyer. I was most surprised, pleasantly.

I hope to post my top ten tomorrow, it's a tough one this year as while there has been plenty of good stuff, a bit like 2009 not too much has been a real standout.

[dalliance]

Albums of the Year?

Going from memory, between the NME, Uncut, Mojo and Q there were a diverse range of albums of the year. Arcade Fire in one, Joanna Newsome another, I think the NME plumped curiously for These New Puritans, although I see that features high up on the Quietus list too.

Nice to see the excellent Teeth Of The Sea's album Your Mercury get in their top ten too. I Like Trains making the list is nice to see too, it is an album full of excellent songs though the overall feeling is a but subdued with the much more pared down production veering away from the grandiose epics from their past. I liked their more shoegazey sound, especially with the particularly resonant voice of their lead singer, his voice feels a bit lost on the current record.

[most vaunted live]

Albums of the Year?

In no particular order.
Tame Impala – Innerspeaker
Dirtmusic - bko
Steve Mason – Boys Outside
Outrageous Cherry - Seemingly Solid Reality
Avi Buffalo - Avi Buffalo
Devo - Something for Everybody
Jσnsi - Go Live
Dean & Britta – 13 Most Beautiful: Songs For Andy Warhol’s Screen Tests
The Phantom Band – The Wants
Broken Records – Let Me Come Home
Crocodiles – Sleep Forever
Alasdair Roberts — Too Long In This Condition
Crash City Saints – Glow In The Dark Music

[dalliance]

Albums of the Year?

Haven't decided on an order yet but my top ten albums would be these:

Nice Nice. Extra Wow
Peter Broderick. How They Are
Broken Social Scene. Forgiveness Rock Record
The Besnard Lakes. The Besnard Lakes Are The Roaring Night
Arcade Fire. The Suburbs
LCD Soundsystem. This Is Happening
Liars. Sisterworld
Deerhunter. Halcyon Digest
Surf City. Kudos
Wavves. King Of The Beach

Honourable mentions also to...

Crocodiles. Sleep Forever
I Like Trains. He Who Saw The Deep
Meursault. All Creature Will Make Merry
Get Well Soon. Vexations
Kings Of Leon. Come Around Sundown
Black Cab. Call Signs
Micah P.Hinson. And The Pioneer Saboteurs
Radar Bros. The Illustrated Garden

[G-Man]

Albums of the Year?

Micah P. Hinson had a new album out? Damn, Must get it.

Anyway, here's my lot, past the top 2 in no particular order, and fully aware that I'll miss out on a coupole of essential albums. It is, of course, dominated by country/alt.country/"singer-songwriters" people.

Lloyd Cole - Broken Record
Brian Wilson - Reimagines Gershwin
Ryan Bingham & The Dead Horses - Junky Star
Mavis Staples - You Are Not Alone
Dylan LeBlanc - Paupers Fields
Ray Lamontagne and the Pariah Dogs - God Willin' And The Creek Don't Rise
Cee Lo Green - The Lady Killer
Bill Kirchen - Word To The Wise
Raul Malo - Sinners and Saints
Watson Twins - Talking To You Talking To Me
Lissie - Catching A Tiger
Carl Broemel - All Birds Say

Honorary mentions to Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Crowded House, Tift Merritt, Sahara Smith, Shelby Lynne, Plants & Animals and others whom I can't remember at the moment.

[Guest]

Albums of the Year?

Tried to put them in order, settled for alphabetical:

Blank Realm – Heatless Ark
Eddy Current Suppression Ring – Rush to Relax
The Fall – Your Future Our Clutter
Frankie Rose and the Outs – Frankie Rose and the Outs
Liars – Sisterworld
Moon Duo – Escape*
My Disco – Little Joy
No Age – Everything In Between
Retribution Gospel Choir – 2
Superchunk – Majesty Shredding

*strictly speaking an EP but too good to leave out

Worth a mention: LCD Soundsystem, White Woods, Grinderman, Melvins, Black Angels, Trumans Water, Meursault, Swans

[Amor de Cosmos]

Albums of the Year?

On the remote chance that anyone is interested in what a terminally hip 62-year-old has bought or stolen this year, here's a short list. I really have trouble with the whole albums/singles thing these days so I'm using collections and tracks as labels.

So, in no particular order, collection, defining track, and artist.

Feral Fire — Lonely is a Town — Glossary

52 Singles — Home is Where You Are — Ghost Shirt

Ghost Shirt intended to release a track a week in 2010, hence the title. They only made it to 26 but some of them are mighty fine including this one.

Dream Attic — Among the Gorse, Among the Grey — Richard Thompson

This bosses the live recording category.

Together — We End Up Together — The New Pornographers

Probably not their very best but as always tough, tight and instantly recognisable.

Silver Pony — Cassandra Wilson

I only got this a couple of weeks back and, as always, a single song hasn't moved ahead of the pack yet but, as always, it doesn't matter because they all do the job.

[sloper]

Albums of the Year?

In no particular order

Wonder - Lisa Mitchell

and something else.

[MsD]

Albums of the Year?

Excuse the "plugging my mates" bit, but I'm pleased as punch the Big Cheese's editor chose The Wolfmen's Married to the Eiffel Tower as album of the year .. especially as they haven't formally released it. I wish they'd stop dicking around with mixes, the first recordings were the best in my view.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs1205.snc4/155702_477204734565_137953694565_5571325_7294534_n .jpg