Kill2012music
I just realized that haven't posted on this site in roughly a year. Between
grad classes and teaching college English, things have been pretty damn
busy. However, I was still fortunate enough to listen to some pretty
enjoyable music this year. There's nothing groundbreaking on this list
compared to most others I've seen here, but the opportunity to reflect
on the music that got me through 2012 is good enough for me. |
| 1 |  | Minus the Bear
Infinity Overhead
25. Not Minus the Bear's best by a long shot (though a slight improvement over
Omni), but there are still some tight grooves and great guitar riffs/tones on this
album. TOP TRACKS: Diamond Lightning, Lonely Gun |
| 2 |  | Take One Car
It's Going to be a Nice Day
24. I've been following these guys ever since my band played a show with them in
someone's living room in NJ. This album is a big step up from their debut, and the
progressive influence that compliments the band's post-hardcore sound adds a
certain extra layer of depth to the album. TOP TRACKS: The Ocean Song, Dear
Ronnie |
| 3 |  | High on Fire
De Vermis Mysteriis
23. Simply put, an album of pummeling stoner-metal jams and blistering riffs. What
really adds to De Vermis Mysteriis, however, is Kurt Ballou's nuanced production
job, which gives the band's sound a vitality it hasn't had in years. TOP TRACKS:
King of Days, Spiritual Rights |
| 4 |  | Flying Lotus
Until the Quiet Comes
22. I really haven't listened to this beast as much as I would have liked to, so it's
hard to really get a feel for how much I liked it or not. It feels less cohesive and
immediate than Cosmogramma, but there still are some really chill moments on
here. TOP TRACKS: DMT Song, Only if You Wanna |
| 5 |  | Ghost Mice
All We Got is Each Other
21. I've always kind of enjoyed this noisy, frantically out of tune style of folk punk.
But what really sets this album apart is its nakedly earnest exploration of mental
illness and the death of a friend. There's a certain urgency to this album that really
pulls me in. TOP TRACKS: Disconnected, Albany |
| 6 |  | The Men
Open Your Heart
20. The Men have some classic punk tracks on this album, but there is also a
certain level of experimentation here that sets it apart from other similar albums,
from the almost drone-like "Presence" to the bleak Americana influenced "Country
Song." What unites all of the songs though is a distinct snarling attitude that just
feels so damn exciting. TOP TRACKS: Open Your Heart, Ex-Dreams |
| 7 |  | Cloudkicker
Fade
19. Cloudkicker has achieved a nice balance here between the introspective
heaviness of Beacons and the ambient soundscapes of Let Yourself be Huge. Ben
Sharp has a great ear for sonic layers, and it really shows in a track like "Seattle"
where different musical motifs constantly build off of and compliment one another.
TOP TRACKS: Seattle, LA After Rain |
| 8 |  | Cloud Nothings
Attack on Memory
18. "Wasted Days" alone is worth the price of admission, but there are some other
good tracks here as well. It seems that the band is still trying to find a nice balance
between pop and grit, but show some real moments of brilliance in trying to do so.
TOP TRACKS: Wasted Days, Stay Useless |
| 9 |  | Sigur Ros
Valtari
17. This album doesn't come close to the brilliance of ( ) or Agaetis Byrjun,
potentially because the band's meticulously crafted climaxes just don't have the
same emotional resonance here than they do elsewhere (though I would argue that
the pounding climax in Varuo is amongst the band's best). But still, there are some
really beautiful moments on Valtari that are worth at least a cursory listen. TOP
TRACKS: Varou, Rembihbutur |
| 10 |  | Frank Ocean
Channel Orange
16. I don't necessarily see the same classic album here that many others have
raved about, but it's hard to deny that there are some really excellent moments
here. "Pyramids" is perhaps the best thing that's come out of the R&B world in quite
some time, but songs like "Bad Religion" show that Ocean isn't a one trick pony.
TOP TRACKS: Pyramids, Bad Religion |
| 11 |  | Andrew Bird
Break it Yourself
15. Andrew Bird's music has always reminded me of a mellow Spring day, and this
album is no exception. From the barnyard stomp of "Danse Caribe" to the
masterfully executed vintage power pop of "Eyeoneye," there is plenty of fantastic
tracks on this album, though it is rather front-loaded. TOP TRACKS: Danse Caribe,
Eyeoneye |
| 12 |  | The Gaslight Anthem
Handwritten
14. I know that a lot of people were not happy with Gaslight's move to a more
streamlined sound, but I find that this album more shows a band getting more
comfortable and assured with their music. Even with the move to a bigger label, the
band's penchant for youthful nostalgia still remains at the center of their music, and
a song like "Mae" feels no different to me than anything off of The '59 Sound. TOP
TRACKS: 45, Mae |
| 13 |  | Titus Andronicus
Local Business
13. I was expected a lot more from this album considering how much I enjoyed the
overblown bombast of The Monitor, but I have to give Titus credit for crafting a
collection of fine-tuned, straightforward rockers. While a track like "In a Big City" or
"Ecce Homo" still features some of the sillier lyrics that have permeated the band's
music over the years, but it also seems that Stickles is more comfortable with
holding a mirror up to himself and letting us more into his own fucked-up world.
TOP TRACKS: Still Life with Hot Deuce on Silver Platter, Upon Viewing Oregon's
Landscape with the Flood of Detrius |
| 14 |  | Aesop Rock
Skelethon
12. I'm probably in the minority with this one, but I found Skelethon more gripping
than Labor Days. Perhaps it's because the Aesop's abstract (though carefully
constructed) flow seems more human than in the past, as many of the songs take a
close look at death and loss. A track like "Ruby 81" is frantically gripping in its
depiction of a near-death experience, while "Gopher Guts" comes off as a damning
self-portrait that shows Aesop at his most vulnerable. Quite an achievement. TOP
TRACKS: Leisureforce, Cycles of Gehenna |
| 15 |  | mewithoutYou
Ten Stories
11. Aaron Weiss's storytelling skills reach an all-time high on this album with his
twisting tale of the plight of circus animals following a train crash. While this
concept may seem ridiculous on paper, Weiss infuses into it the same kind of
introspective theological and humanist questions that have made the band's works
so relatable to all walks of life despite their deeply religious undertones. TOP
TRACKS: Bear's Vision of St. Agnes, Grist for the Malady Mill |
| 16 |  | Converge
All We Love We Leave Behind
10. Converge return with another album filled with tightly tuned barn burners. It's
amazing how this band can still sound so intensely urgent after all of the years
they've been playing together, and they still stand out in a sea of generic "-core"
bands that have nothing to say. TOP TRACKS: Aimless Arrow, All We Love We
Leave Behind |
| 17 |  | The Menzingers
On the Impossible Past
9. I would have been surprised earlier in 2012 if someone had told me that this
would become my go-to punk album, but the band's ability to craft deeply-felt
nostalgic situations should even make The Gaslight Anthem blush. It's hard for me
not to hear a line like "It's not hard to fall for a waitress/when you both smoke the
same cigarettes" from "Gates" without being transported back to a world where
responsibility took a backseat to desire and impossible dreams. TOP TRACKS:
Gates, Sun Hotel |
| 18 |  | The Tallest Man on Eath
There's No Leaving Now
8. While not quite the achievement that The Wild Hunt was, Kristian Matsson's latest
offering still shows that the man has a great ear for crafting endearing folk music.
The album is more restrained than The Wild Hunt, for better or for worse, but when
you hear the intensity of Matsson's wailing voice over a hushed piano on the title
track, for example, it's hard not to be affected by this album's sheer beauty. TOP
TRACKS: There's No Leaving Now, To Just Grow Away |
| 19 |  | Godspeed You! Black Emperor
'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!
7. I was as surprised as anyone else when Godspeed suddenly announced that
they were dropping a new record this year, and it does not disappoint. A track like
"Mladic" reintroduces a certain dissonance that has been missing from post-rock
over the last few years, but for all of the bombast, there are also some slight rays
of light that shine through the dark cracks. TOP TRACKS: Mladic, We Drift Like
Worried Fire |
| 20 |  | Swans
The Seer
6. This is an exhausting listen, but a rewarding one. Swans have created a hell of a
record where light and dark, hope and fear, and beauty and chaos exist side by
side. There was hardly a record that felt more painfully human this year. TOP
TRACKS: Avatar, Song for a Warrior |
| 21 |  | Murder by Death
Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon
5. Easily the most underrated album this year, in my opinion. Murder by Death take
a huge leap from the mostly underwhelming Good Morning, Magpie with a mix of
drunken celebrations, mournful reveries, and good old folk stories. The
instrumentation has never been tighter, from the rousing accordion-heavy "I Came
Around" to the pounding rock of "Straight at the Sun." If you haven't heard this one
yet, I would highly recommend it. TOP TRACKS: Lost River, Ghost Fields |
| 22 | | Baroness
Yellow & Green
4. I'm bound to get some shit for putting this album so high, but what the hell, I
enjoyed it. Sure, there's a bit of filler, but the songs that hit do hit hard. "Eula" is
probably the best thing that the band has ever written, but the variation on the
album is also worth commending, from the campfire harmonies in "Twinkler" to the
pastoral riffing of "Mtns. (The Crown & Anchor)." Following the band's near-fatal bus
accident this year, the beauty of this album seems to me to be even more strongly
felt. TOP TRACKS: Eula, Take My Bones Away |
| 23 |  | The Mountain Goats
Transcendental Youth
3. My biggest sin this year was not getting this album sooner. As an introduction to
The Mountain Goats, this album absolutely floored me with its sheer beauty and
lyrical prowess. The horn arrangements add so much to the already stunning
compositions, but its John Darnielle's plain delivery of some of 2012's most
haunting lyrics that really sold the album for me. TOP TRACKS: Lakeside View
Apartments Suite, White Cedar |
| 24 |  | Grizzly Bear
Shields
2. My review of this album more eloquently describes my feeling about Shields, but
I can't reiterate how impressive the musical craftsmanship is here. I'm just glad
that the band has seemed to bridge craftsmanship with pathos here, which makes
the album feel so much more engaging than prior albums. TOP TRACKS: Yet Again,
A Simple Answer |
| 25 |  | Japandroids
Celebration Rock
1. In a year with some monumental artistic achievements, Japandroids took my top
spot because of how damn fun and relatable it is. I can't tell you how many car
rides that this album has provided the soundtrack for. Each song just feels so right
to me, and that's really the only way I can possible explain it. TOP TRACKS: The
House that Heaven Built, Fire's Highway |
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