¤ milky moon ¤

I do believe it's *that* time of year again, as I finalize my lists (lots of lists! lots of good things!) and reflect upon how very quickly (quickly, but not painlessly) 2011 passed (and how long it's been since I first heard that The Decemberists would be making a new album and it wouldn't suck) and, er, I don't quite know where I'm headed with this sentence anymore.

So, without further ado, here are my top 25. (I'm no good at writing reviews or anything.) Next to each is a genre, chosen simply from popular descriptions and what I'll file them under in my own head, and a rating, assigned according to my own personal system and adjusted accordingly over time as I become more and more partial to particular pieces. (Basically, anything in parentheses means absolutely nothing, but I like having it there.)

25. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming (dream pop/synth pop) [3.1/5]
24. Los Campesinos! - Hello Sadness (indie rock/indie pop) [3.1/5]
23. James Blake - James Blake (art pop/electronic) [3.2/5]
22. Laura Arkana Met Peter Broderick - Lentemuziek (singer-songwriter) [3.4/5]
21. Ane Brun - It All Starts With One (singer-songwriter/art pop) [3.4/5]

20. Kate Bush - 50 Words for Snow (art pop/ambient pop) [3.6/5]
29. Peggy Sue - Acrobats (indie folk/indie rock) [3.7/5]
18. Zola Jesus - Conatus (art pop) [3.8/5]
17. Entertainment for the Braindead - Berlin Kitchen Sessions (singer-songwriter/folk) [3.8/5]
16. Feist - Metals (indie pop/indie folk) [3.8/5]

15. Bright Eyes - The People's Key (indie rock) [3.9/5]
14. Cut Copy - Zonoscope (synth pop/indie pop) [4.1/5]
13. St. Vincent - Strange Mercy (art pop/indie pop) [4.2/5]
12. The Jezabels - Prisoner (indie pop/indie rock) [4.2/5]
11. Ebba Forsberg - Falling Folding Flipping Feeling (singer-songwriter/folk) [4.2/5]

10. Wye Oak - Civilian (indie rock) [4.3/5]
9. Gillian Welch - The Harrow & the Harvest (contemporary folk/americana) [4.3/5]
8. Björk - Biophilia (art pop/electronic) [4.3/5]
7. Tori Amos - Night of Hunters (classical/baroque pop) [4.5/5]
6. Eisley - The Valley (alternative rock/indie pop) [4.7/5]

5. Timber Timbre - Creep On Creepin' On (contemporary folk/blues) [4.8/5]
4. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake (alternative rock/singer-songwriter) [4.8/5]
3. The Decemberists - The King Is Dead (indie folk/country rock) [4.8/5]
2. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues (indie folk/baroque folk) [4.8/5]
1. My Brightest Diamond - All Things Will Unwind (baroque pop) [4.9/5]

☆☆☆ Future Islands - On the Water (synth pop) [5/5] ☆☆☆

I know it's sneaky, but this one goes above number one for me. It's fantastic-fantastic-fantastic, and though it may not rank above their album from last year, it certainly goes straight to the top in this list.

Share yours, if you'd like?

Not many for me this year.

Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Tori Amos - Night of Hunters
Charlotte Martin - Dancing on Needles

Wow, you listen to a lot of music. My favourites are the same as for the last two years, I think.

Here is a rough shot at my top 25 this year in no particular order:

Mara Carlyle - Floreat
Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know
Tinariwen - Tassili
Neil Young - A Treasure
Kate Bush - 50 Words for Snow
Toro Y Moi - Underneath The Pine
Ry Cooder - Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down
Lisa Hannigan - Passenger
Cut Copy - Zonoscope
Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - Rome
St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
Bonnie Prince Billy - Wolfroy Goes to Town
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings -Soul Time!
Wye Oak - Civilian
TV on the Radio - Nine Types Of Light
Gillian Welch - The Harrow & the Harvest
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
My Brightest Diamond - All Things Will Unwind
Wilco - The Whole Love
Jonathan Coulton - Artificial Heart
The Roots - Undun
The Field - Looping State Of Mind
The Decemberists - The King Is Dead
Thao & Mirah - Thao & Mirah
Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin
The Loom - Teeth

My favourites from this year are (in no particular order):

St Vincent - Strange Mercy
Vanessa Carlton - Rabbits on the Run
Mara Carlyle - Floreat
James Blake - James Blake
Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto
Feist - Metals
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake

The Mara Carlyle and the Vanessa Carlton albums were my absolute favourites though!

Rasputina's Rarities album, Great American Gingerbread
Slim Cessna's Auto Club's Unentitled
Voltaire's Riding a Black Unicorn....

Because I have to stay true to my roots.

In no order:

Balam Acab – Wander / Wonder
Kuedo – Severant
Shlohmo – Bad Vibes
Gang Gang Dance – Eye Contact
Panda Bear – Tomboy
BNJMN – Black Square
Tycho – Dive
Martyn – Ghost People
Rustie – Glass Swords
The Field – Looping State of Mind
Sully - Carrier
Shabazz Palaces – Black Up
Machinedrum – Room(s)
Andy Stott – Passed Me By
Peaking Lights - 936
Zomby – Dedication
SBTRKT - SBTRKT

FMo2011:
2010!

My top 8 of the year

8. Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place
7. St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
6. Bjork - Biophilia
5. Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
4. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
3. Tom Waits - Bad As Me
2. Tune-Yards - Whokill
1. The Beach Boys - Smile

I realize that last one is sort of cheating but it is my favorite so fuck it

Other ones I really really loved

EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Cults - Cults
WIld Flag - Wild Flag
Chad VanGaalen - Diaper Island
The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts
The Horrors - Skying

did is the second message board that i've peaked into the "best of 2011" thread... and NO ONE, on either site, has mentioned bon iver. did no one else love this??? shit

umm not gonna make a list, but two new albums by toronto groups i'll strongly recommend

weather station - all of it was mine
http://theweatherstation.bandcamp.com/a ... t-was-mine

loom - epyillion
http://loommusic.bandcamp.com/releases

both are such killer albums

I liked the Bon Iver and its in my top 50, I felt it was a bit overrated and didn't find myself going back to listen to it after the first couple times...maybe it is too melancholy and down generally for my vibe

As usual I didn't hear that many new albums this year, but here are some I liked (in order of preference):

1. Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
2. Sloan - The Double Cross
3. Nathalie Nordnes - NN
4. Juliana Hatfield - There Always Another Girl
5. Feist - Metals
6. Rachael Yamagata - Chesapeake

And this one isn't available in the US yet, but if the rest of the album is as good as the single, "Franky Knight" by Emilie Simon is sure to be pretty near the top of that list.

Is it sad I have never hear of the majority of these groups/ people?

In no particular order

R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now
Esben & The Witch - Violet Cries
Earth - Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light Vol. I
Alela Diane - Alela Diane & Wild Divine
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Anna Calvi - s/t

also the 20th anniversary edition of Nevermind, even if that's not a new record actually.

and Earth's Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light Vol. I gets the prize for the best artwork:

gotta throw some love towards local artists My Morning Jacket, Circuital as well

dwain

I have been seeing Tom Waits-Bad As Me on a lot of these lists(not singling u out here Lawn) and i am really having trouble with it. Don't get me wrong i am a huge Waits fan, but it is like he's wanked out on crack and in a formula phase...sorta like when Black Sabbath started cranking out albums that were mirror copies of each other(huge Sabbath fan too so don't get me wrong..it was just sorta startling when it started to happen"Oh Yeah"...).
Now Mule Variations was formulaic too but i finally got into the genius of it enough to get past it, maybe i just need some more repetition of Bad As Me to fall into synch...but it sure isn't happening so far
perhaps i am gaining too much age for grunge to seep in anymore or Swordfish Trombone spoiled me badly

dwain

Didn't make an end of year list for some reason...

My top 5 is some combination of Fleet Foxes ( ), Björk ( ), PJ Harvey ( ), Bill Callahan ( ) and St. Vincent ( ).

Special mentions to Radiohead, tUnE-yArDs, Wye Oak, Feist. Song of the year is a bit harder - maybe Strange Mercy, maybe Drover.

I've just realised that more than half of the women on my iPod made releases last year... Haha, they've synchronised albums...