Tuesday, February 21, 2012

My Top 2011 Albums

Putting this list together seems to get more challenging every year. This year I decided to be  more thorough than usual and revisit each one of  the albums instead of mainly going by memory. Well, with 62 new albums for 2011 it took some time and here we are almost two months into the new year. Without further ado:

  1. The Decemberists - The King Is Dead / Long Live The King
  2. The Weeknd - House Of Balloons / Thursday / Echoes of Silence
  3. Adele - 21
  4. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
  5. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
  6. Jay-Z and Kanye West - Watch The Throne
  7. Tom Waits - Bad As Me
  8. James Blake - James Blake
  9. Bon Iver - Bon Iver
  10. Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes

Honorable Mention (alphabetical order):
  • 8in8 - Nighty Night
  • Amanda Palmer - Amanda Palmer Goes Under
  • Anna Calvi - Anna Calvi
  • Anna Järvinen - Anna Själv Tredje
  • Drake - Take Care
  • Feist - Metals
  • Florence And The Machine - Ceremonials
  • Jamie Woon - Mirrorwriting
  • Joan As Police Woman - The Deep Field
  • Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow
  • Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know
  • M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
  • R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now
  • Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
  • St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
  • The Antlers - Burst Apart
  • The Cave Singers - No Witch
  • The Kills - Blood Pressures
  • Tori Amos - Night Of Hunters
  • Twin Sister - In Heaven

Ok:
  • Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
  • Björk - Biophilia
  • Death Cab For Cutie - Codes And Keys
  • EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
  • Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
  • Jens Lekman - An Argument With Myself
  • Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
  • Kajsa Grytt - En Kvinna Under Påverkan
  • Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
  • Little Dragon - Ritual Union
  • Miss Li - Beats & Bruises
  • Panda Bear - Tomboy
  • Washed Out - Within And Without

Not worth the time:
  • Devotchka - 100 Lovers
  • Foster The People - Torches
  • Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
  • Jessie J - Who You Are
  • Marsha Ambrosius - Late Nights And Early Mornings
  • Okkervil River - I Am Very Far
  • Red Hot Chili Peppers - I'm With You
  • The Field - Looping State Of Mind
  • The Sounds - Something To Die For
  • Veronica Maggio - Satan I Gatan
  • Wild Beasts - Smother
  • Woods - Sun And Shade

WTF?:
  • Pitbull - Planet Pit

Finally, for those interested, links to the previous years: 2010, 2009 and 2008.