The Year of the Rabbit: Things What I Liked in 2011, 50-26
Check out Fishtonian.com’s Spotify Playlist for The Best in The Year of the Rabbit.
50
Empros
Russian Circles
Instrumental outfit Russian Circles does a bang-up job conjuring an amalgam of epic sludge metal, post rock pacing and meticulous Prog arrangements in the fiery cauldron of doom known as Empros. Truly worthy of scoring a fierce Dungeons & Dragons campaign.
49
Conatus
Zola Jesus
In the past few years, there has been a grand resurgence of material with which I can soundtrack the oncoming Zombie Apocalypse that lives in my head. But nobody nails it quite like Zola Jesus. Nika Roza Danilova’s opera background informs the dark drama of her gothic, sullen anthems. A lateral move from 2010‘s top-of-the-heap EP. Good Goth for non-Goths, or perhaps just fans of Near Dark.
48
Eye Contact
Gang Gang Dance
When earth-bound people like myself have fun little daydreams about blasting off into space and floating around and eating space ice cream and being invited to dance parties with aliens and such, this is our soundtrack. “Hey, friendly pulsar! Excuse me Andromeda, coming through! This is awesome! Make me another space Mai Tai Gleep Glop!” What can I say? Gang Gang Dance is my Gleep Glop in an otherwise dreary terrestrial existence. Go take a rocket ride, Eye Contact-style.
47
The Wanting
Glenn Jones
In the wake of acoustic fingerstyle guitar “Takoma School” god John Fahey, there is his young-apprentice-turned elder-master Glenn Jones. I’ve been a huge fan since Jones’ Cul de Sac days (check out China Gate for a very different surfy-post-space rock side of his earlier work), and when he went on to experiment with Fahey, guitar megadorks like myself listened all wide-eyed as they journeyed together, each teachng the other. Now, with The Wanting, Jones offers the kind of mesmerizing acoustic guitar and banjo work that can only come with embracing the instrument for close to 45 years. With the passing of Fahey, and more recently Jack Rose and Bert Jansch, it’s comforting to know someone like Glenn Jones has taken up the reigns and is riding adventurously forward.
46
Portamento
The Drums
I’ll be damned if this record doesn’t contain some of the catchiest tunes of 2011. The straight-ahead rhythm, synth flourishes and super-fun theremin riffs on this record lend themselves to lead singer Jonathan Pierce’s high, whiney vocals, delivering them from probably-unbearable to perfect accompaniment. The Drums are poppy earworms personified, and their sophomore LP contains twice the sugary joneses of its predecessor. In fact, the only song that can compete with the addictiveness of “Money” is probably…
45
The Double Cross
Sloan
…”Unkind” from Sloan. These Canadian power-pop bruisers have been slugging it out for 20 years, and are still releasing gems. This record quenches the thirst of all those still foot-stomping to Big Star and early Cheap Trick. In my fantasy world, this is the record playing during last call at every bar in the country, whilst we all drink beers and fist pump. No wait, that’s Guided By Voices. Well, it’s up there on that list.
44
The Pl3dge
Killer Mike
The Pl3dge shouts to light the political/societal grievances of the “99%” that so many other Hip Hop artists are ignoring in favor of languishing in the “misery” of immense wealth. In doing so, he brings the Public Enemy vibe for 2011 while still maintaining playfulness and cockswagger by letting the great Ric Flair handle his boasting.
43
Magic Place
Julianna Barwick
When I discovered Julianna Barwick through the Free Music Archive’s Live Dublab “Sprout Session” (P.S. PLEASE check out the FMA’s treasure trove of free content), I was floored by the angelic otherwonder that filled my head. “Angelic” is a tired and overused adjective, but it applies to her music like no other word can. This record sounds like heaven caught on strange looping recording cylinders. Her introduction of instruments other than her own voice is sparing and not at all overpowering. Music to fall from a tall building in slow motion to.
42
Badlands
Dirty Beaches
Startling, jarring and haunted by dead greasers. “A Hundred Highways” is Little Peggy March’s “I Will Follow Him” hollowed out and reused in a rust sculpture, slowly enveloped by madness. A primordial Cramps vibe filtered through early Aerial Pink production, the record descends into horror by its closing, invoking the macabre playing on the tape recorder they lowered into the pit in House Of 1000 Corpses. Dirtysexycool.
41
No Time For Dreaming
Charles Bradley
Another home run for the always-outta-sight-dyn-O-mite label Daptone Records, Charles Bradley and the stellar Menahan Street Band deliver with a record that should NOT be lumped in with other “retro R&B”-labeled stuff. Daptone is working hard to remind everyone that the sounds and recording methods of the past aren’t just a throwback campaign but a way of life, a circuit running straight to The One. Bradley’s strained, soulful yawp takes over, reminding all who listen of the rough soul that once ruled the airwaves. The recent rerelease also contains covers of Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold” and Nirvana’s “Stay Away” that are not to be missed. Hardcore musicians/music nuts make sure to check out the instrumental release as well.
40
You Are All I See
Active Child
White-boy indie R&B that strangely delivers. This year heard quite a few indie acts indulging in the swerve that is sultry-smooth R&B, and this record often walks a fine line but ultimately pulls it off while adding Tangerine-Dreamy landscapes to the mix. (PBR&B indeed.) Standout track “Playing House,” recorded with fellow pale R&B enthusiast How To Dress Well, is hot as fuck, and may be the Between-The-Sheets-Freak Jawn of 2011.
39
Bon Iver
Bon Iver
Now here’s a guy… talk about setting critics against each other with bubbling frenzy over the “Ironic?” argument, among other things. While just about anybody who digs acoustic music and melancholy found his debut LP (sickly… cabin… yadda yadda yadda…) magnificent (including myself), Justin Vernon has surprised many with the eclectic path he has wandered since. His interesting work with Volcano Choir, “Guilty Pleasure”-embracing GAYNGS, and of course the Yeezy excursion, is a long way from For Emma. And as much as I loved that record, I’m thrilled it is. It’s great to listen to an artist dive into so many sounds like an excited kid. But while I originally found the new record brilliant, the luster has worn with repeated listens. Largely indecipherable lyrics (Shake and bake and stick with her?) and dated guitar effects take away from an otherwise lovely collection of tone poem feels. “Beth/Rest,” the most divisive song on the LP, attempts to elevate the 80s “Adult Contemporary” sound to high art but falls rather short. Vernon’s on his way to finding something very special, but he’s not quite there yet.
38
Return Of 4Eva
Big K.R.I.T.
Return Of 4Eva hails to the musical Hip Hop that made me fall in love in the first place. Not what I expected from the MC who dropped “Country Shit” last year. Laid back beats and rhymes that make me yearn for barbecues. Easily the most spins out of all the Hip Hop I dug on this year. And it’s FREE people. Check it out.
37
Instrumental Mixtape
Clams Casino
Free Mixtape
This ridiculous producer’s mixtape of previously used beats seems to glide along a glacier, emitting uncharacteristically tranquil energy. It becomes hard to imagine MCs rapping over these soundscapes while you become caught up in their hissing loops. Definitely evocative of DJ Shadow’s Entroducing. I hope this Jersey boy continues to put out work as his own in addition to laying tracks down for the likes of Lil B and Main Attrakionz.
36
Wounded Rhymes
Lykke Li
This Swedish chanteuse has taken all of the obvious 60s-Phil-Spector-Girl-Group sounds that have become so retro-chic these days and used them to put forth a solid record. Did she lay the twisted groundwork for Lana Del Ray? Perhaps, but she owns it, and when critics deride her broken English lines like “Like a shotgun needs an outcome” it’s the same as shitting on “You can syndicate any boat you row.” The album is a bit too dependent on that 60s formula, but near the end she crawls out from under that blanket on “I Know Places,” hopefully giving us a peek at where she’s headed.
35
Kaputt
Destroyer
Being a huge New Pornographers fan, I have tried several times to get into Dan Bejar’s Destroyer to no avail, perhaps for the same reason I don’t care for the Mountain Goats: I’m not reading a book, and I’m not the suave epitome of literary sophistication. But Kaputt makes me feel like I’m the most sophisticated motherfucker in the room (word). Destroyer took the rusty Adult Contemporary tools Vernon & Co. left lying around after the Bon Iver sessions, polished them to a glowing sheen and meticulously chiseled Kaputt. And when Bejar lays down his enigmatic, SNL-era-Robert-Downey-Jr. lyrics, it’s like you’re lost in one of Patrick Bateman’s fever dreams.
34
Hot Sauce Committee Part 2
Beastie Boys
It amazes me that these wiseasses have managed to age like a fine wine (Brass Monkey 1987 was a very good year). And on top of that, they bring youthful twentysomething swagger to this disc, along with irresistibly funky dance beats and even the rocking, fuzz-bass-heavy instrumentation that came in with Check Your Head. All I can think about when I hear this record is cardboard thrown down on a hot summer day and challenges being served. Speaking of which, the short film that Adam Yauch directed and released to coincide with this release, featuring a sequel to the events of “Fight For Your Right,” is perhaps the greatest thing I’ve ever seen. If you don’t watch it, I will dance battle you.
33
Rolling Blackouts
The Go! Team
One day I was wondering aloud, “What happened to The Go! Team? I miss those guys.” And sure enough they heard me, and put out a record in my honor. At least that’s what it sounds like. Nothing but joyous, cheerleading beats and horns at the pep rally of my life. Great guest spots too, and very fitting (especially Beth Constantino on album standout “Buy Nothing Day” and Deerhoof’s Satomi Matsuzaki on “Secretary Song”). If this record doesn’t make you feel good, congratulations; you’re dead inside.
32
For The Glory
Nacho Picasso
Nice, way-laid-back rap grooves like your Nana likes. This very generous, double-album length mixtape features half rap record and half instrumental versions that in no way disappoint on their own. Also winner of my own coveted Best Album Cover of 2011 and Best Artist Name of 2011 awards, For The Glory was co-produced by Raised by Wolves and Blue Sky Black Death, a production duo whose 2011 release Noir was equally impressive with its spacious, extra-terrestrial, M83-ish beats (and Stand By Me sampling).
31
Shangri-La
Yacht
A dance record for the end of the world, in true DFA fashion, much more so than that Britney Spears track my Good Ladywife keeps spinning. Also, a positive record about kooky dance-punkers starting a new world. For someone who got into LCD Soundsystem too depressingly late, records like these are a sigh of relief. And like LCD’s ultimate This Is Happening, contains a lot of sounds that remind me of the Revenge of the Nerds soundtrack, which is always a good thing. These guys also make me want Oingo Boingo back. Not sure I know what this means. Dance!
30
James Blake
James Blake
Critics batted many opinions back and forth about this young James Blake character and “OH! What’s to be done with this Jimmy Blake and his bleeps and bloops!” and so on. It seems to me the general consensus is scorn from many “Dub” lovers who feel he’s applying an open mic singer stench to the genre. However, as someone who has been exposed to very little Dub, I fell in love with the record’s glitchy mantras, and especially with Blake’s minimal lyrics as they were processed and looped, through equally sparse sound collages, to expose the raw emotional nerve of their subjects and moods. Blake made mostly electronic, instrumental music before this record, and said his apprehension and inexperience in lyric writing led him to these minimalist phrases, which shine as this album’s strength. When considered along with the rest of his catalogue, Blake’s adventurous experimentation (much like Bon Iver’s) becomes more obvious, and I hope to see him branch off into 1000 different directions as time unfolds.
29
Mikal Cronin
Mikal Cronin
Acoustic strumming (especially the 12-string lines), along with charming harmonies, Leiber-and-Stoller drum hits make this a garbled, psyched out, modern Everly Brothers record. Also, props for throwing saxophones and Jethro Tulling flutes into this lo-fi pop-punk affair. Winner of the “Where Did THIS Guy Come From?” award for 2011, it turns out he’s friend and sometimes-bandmate of fellow garage-punker breakout Ty Segall. And while I really dug Segall’s Goodbye Bread, I was far more impressed by Cronin’s artfully crafted tunes. The best of the basement jams, or music to be 16 to, or for cronies like myself, music to remember being 16 to.
28
Several Shades of Why
J Mascis
2011 turned out to be the year J Mascis finally nailed folk, and with the assistance of local-boy-done-good Kurt Vile to boot! That golden ol’ alternative spirit lives and breathes in these songs, like a much older, road-weary Jordan Catalano reflecting on all those Frozen Embryos. And despite the folky feel and all-acoustic output (transporting me to recording bedroom tunes into a busted karaoke machine at 16), Mascis sets aside time to actually shred on his steel-string. Seeing him live this year in support of the album at World Cafe was a highlight of a year that also bore TWO(!) Original Lineup GBV shows in Philly. To see the man slam a stompbox and acoustic-Maggotbrain a roomful of innocents in person was jaw-dropping.
27
Parallax
Atlas Sound
I’m a late arriver to the indie darling that is Atlas Sound/Deerhunter. Hearing all the hype surrounding Bradford Cox, I was leery of tuning in for fear I’d be frustrated yet again by those hipper-than-hip tastemakersandbreakers (I’m still struggling with the “What are those hep cats sayin’?” bubble surrounding Animal Collective). But when I gave in and checked out both Deerhunter’s Halcyon Digest and Atlas Sound’s treasure chest free release of Bedroom Databank, Vols. 1-4 last year, I was comforted by the fact that sometimes a band is popular simply because the music is that good. Cox has embraced his gift for writing lovely pop songs, and is prolific in output and scattershot in influences as Robert Pollard. But while Pollard’s proggy influences come out more rock-heavy, Cox transmits Pink Floyd’s post-Syd, pre-Dark Side mellow haze. Hey, give an awkward skinny dude a guitar and a tape recorder and lock him in his bedroom. Then wait for the goods.
26
Black Up
Shabazz Palaces
Bleep-Bloop Hip Hop has found its voice in Seattle, from an alumnus of the un-fucking-believable Digable Planets no less. And Ishmael “Butterfly” Butler manages to make futuristic robot beats jazzy. There’s a reason critics are fawning all over this record; it takes the futuristic reigns that have flowed throughout Hip Hop since Afrika Bambaataa injected Kraftwerk into breakbeats, brushes away the glitter of busier artists like Janelle Monae to reveal a sleek and curvaceous monolith, emitting sonics from a Solar Babies dystopia, that is if Solar Babies was 1000 times cooler than Jason Patric and Lucas Haas could ever hope to make it.
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