Favorite Songs of 2011 (part 3)

Frank Turner - "I Still Believe"


Fugiya & Miyagi - "16 Shades of Black and Blue"


The Horrible Crowes - "Behold the Hurricane"


Iron & Wine - "Walking Far From Home"


Katie Costello - "The Weirds"


Kurt Vile - "Ghost Town"


La Dispute - "King Park"


Low - "Especially Me" (they cut the song short by about a minute and a half in this video)


Manchester Orchestra - "Virgin"


Maria Taylor - "Masterplan"


Mastodon - "Black Tongue"


Mates of State - "Maracas"


Mogwai - "Rano Pano"

Favorite Songs of 2011 (part 2)

The Mountain Goats - "Damn these Vampires"


My Morning Jacket - "Circuital"


M83 - "Midnight City"


Noah and the Whale - "Just Before We Met"


Obits - "Shift Operator"


Okkervil River - "The Valley"


Patrick Wolf - "The City"


Portugal. The Man - "So American"


Rise Against - "Help is on the Way"


St. Vincent - "Strange Mercy"


Thurston Moore - "Benediction"


TV on the Radio - "Will Do"


Weedeater - "Long Gone"


WU LYF - "We Bros"

Favorite Albums of 2011 #29: "Go Tell Fire to the Mountain" by WU LYF

It wasn’t difficult to get past the “out there” factor on this album; the vocals were the only thing that took some getting used to. Barely a word can be distinguished without a lyric sheet. The vocalist moans his words spastically, akin to what I imagine a caveman might sound like if he had taken some powerful hallucinogenic drugs. My time with this album hasn’t taxed my mind with worries about words, I just listen in awe of the stunning waves of guitar reverb and synth tones. This isn’t about a message as much as vague emotions and massive sounds. It isn’t hard to find reverb in indie rock, but I like when it’s used this way. WU LYF create walls of noise (pretty noise) that feels like it moves in distinct patterns. I see vivid patterns of light and energy bouncing around in space (kind of like those visualizers most media players have where you can watch patterned colors move around the screen). Slow-motion firecrackers go off in my head when I listen to this album.


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29. WU LYF - Go Tell Fire to the Mountain
30. Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math

Favorite Songs of 2011 (part 1)

Alphabetical order by artist/band name:


Alkaline Trio - "We've Had Enough" (acoustic re-imagining of an eight-year old song)


The Antlers - "I Don't Want Love"


Bon Iver - "Calgary"


Boy & Bear - "Part-Time Believer"


Bright Eyes - "Shell Games"


Cass McCombs - "County Line"


Cut Copy - "Where I'm Going"


David Bazan - "Don't Change"


Death Cab for Cutie - "You Are a Tourist"


The Decemberists - "Don't Carry it All"


Dropkick Murphys - "Hang 'Em High"


The Felice Brothers - "Fire at the Pageant"


Fleet Foxes - "Helplessness Blues"

Favorite Albums of 2011 #30: "Simple Math" by Manchester Orchestra

I’d never bothered to listen to Manchester Orchestra before this year, even after I learned that, despite their name, they aren’t a 37-piece jam band. To give them a genre, this is indie pop, but it’s muscular, moody and adventurous. Some of the guitar tones are distorted to a point where they approach “threatening.” The singer, who often reminds me of My Morning Jacket (because I think Jim James could sound like this, not that he actually does), sometimes really belts it, shunning all of the constraint that often accompanies orchestral indie pop. Then there’s the intereting turns these songs take, most notably, the backing vocals on the track “Virgin.” It’s an interesting album and it will throw listeners for a loop if they expect something bubbly and sentimental or chamber pop 101. Ultimately, it comes down to interesting songs. Well-written pop still exists and it’s delightful, but can also be and moody, perhaps as a result, exciting.

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30. Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math

The Field - Looping State of Mind (2011)

Another hyped album, perhaps the most-hyped artist in an especially-hyped genre. The Field's ambient techno has been exciting hipster youth who just want to dance to an hour of beats and warm synth textures, and I get the draw of this kind of music, though I have trouble really connecting with electronic music that isn't especially dark, especially noisy or isn't just a catchy pop song thinly veiled by electronic sounds. Looping State of Mind is probably The Field's most compelling work, at least to my ears, however. While his last record, 2009's Yesterday and Today, went for a hazier, dreamy take on the style, this new record is a bit more dynamic. Some of the sounds border on grimy or ominous, and the final track, "Sweet Slow Baby" whittles the techno beat down to a muffled background. This type of music has the potential to be incredibly boring but The Field pushes enough of the right buttons, expands the boundaries just enough, the make it almost exciting and certainly interesting.

8.2 / 10

Patrick Wolf - Lupercalia (2011)

It took me a while to get around to listening to this, which is a shame because I've enjoyed his past work. Patrick Wolf is a rather theatrical baroque pop practitioner who incorporates electronic elements into his music, but pop structures and infectious melodies are a hallmark of his sound. As a result, it feels very accessible despite the dense and constant string instrumentation, sometimes over-sung vocals, and general emotional weight to his lyrics. He could come across as sappy and vain, and such complains are not without merit, but Lupercalia is his most consistent album. It is without a weak track, despite a short interlude in the middle, and has a nice balance of upbeat songs and ballads. Some of his past work has felt bogged down in electronics, but strings and his voice take the center stage here. At times he may have too much of a sappy balladeer feel, but that's who he is and he pulls it off tastefully. My one complaint is I would have preferred, maybe, one more upbeat song and one less slow one, but at the end of the day, this is the best thing he's recorded and I'll be listening to it for a long while.

8.0 / 10