Monday, January 2, 2012

My Favorite Music of 2011

Oh 2011, we hardly knew ye. The older I get, the more quickly the years go by, and this past one was no exception. However, one thing that was vastly different about this year than the last few for me was that I was able to break my horrible addiction to listening to every last hour of the Howard Stern Show, which freed up a lot more time for music. I therefore feel much more confident about what records truly belong on this list, especially more so than last year. Having more time to listen also enabled me to rely less on just the math of the song ratings from my Ipod for the rankings. I still used the ratings as a basis to start the list, and then did a lot of shuffling based on feeling. For the record I should probably state that the main reason I do this write-up every year is to inform my close friends from high school and college about music they may have missed out on since I'm one of the few who doesn't have kids and actually is able to make time to check out some 150-ish albums a year. If you are someone outside of those circles who is taking the time to read this, then thanks for being an added bonus audience, but expect a lot of name-dropping of genres (some of them probably very questionable in accuracy and/or origin) and bands from long ago since I'm trying to make it as easy as possible for my core audience to pick out what they might dig. I should also forewarn you that my tastes run narrow but deep and are mostly limited to classic hip-hop and more modern punk rock and its many subgenres. This means you will see a lot of references to 90's/Midwest emo, beardcore (a lazy term I've been chastised for before that corresponds to punk/emo/rock with gravelly/raspy vocals which is often perpetrated by crusty dudes with beards), and boom-bap. If I were more html-savvy, I could probably skip the descriptions and make little icons of 80's boomboxes, a wicked wizard beard, and a sad face with nerd glasses and that would cover most of what I'm trying to convey. Maybe next year.

In most cases I tried to find full-album streams for each record, but sometimes couldn't do any better than an individual youtube link for each song. There are also quite a few for which the "listen" link is a youtube playlist. I'm not sure how linking those will work as far as which song it will start you out with, but I know that on Chrome when you are viewing a playlist the controls to skip between tracks are on the lower left part of the screen. In some cases, one-minute clips for each song from the album was the best I could do. Also, I don't know any better way to display the artwork than putting the files in a photobucket account and linking them from there. I apologize in advance if the artwork doesn't display because the daily traffic limit for the photbucket files has been exceeded. If anyone has any better suggestions that won't take forever to re-do them, I'm all ears.

And finally, before we start the show I must say that while I download (legally and maybe not so legally) as much music as anybody out there, I also spend a shit-ton of money to support the artists who make it by buying records, concert tickets, and merchandise. Lord knows I have way too many band t-shirts and hoodies for any self-respecting 32-year old. While I can't knock anyone else for initially getting their music for free (I'm not sure about you, but I can't judge the true quality of an album from a 128kbps stream), I ask that you follow in my footsteps in paying for whatever music you truly enjoy to whatever degree you can afford. Being a musician nowadays is as tough as it has ever been, so it's paramount that you support the ones you like however you can. But enough with the preaching, let's get on to the countdown! Those who are looking strictly for hip-hop should skip to the LP's sections. The only hip-hop EPs I can recall coming out in 2011 were a couple by The Regiment and Cesar Comanche which were good but failed to make the list and then Mobb Deep's "Black Cocaine" EP which was another embarrassment to their earlier works. Without further ado, let's roll!

EP's

15. Braid - Closer To Closed

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After breaking up in 1999 and doing some reunion shows in the mid-00's, one of the most influential bands of the emo genre returned in 2011 with this 4-song offering. They threw in a couple curveballs by having Chris Broach sing lead on "The Right Time" (in a distinctly Bob Nanna-like cadence) and covering some singer-songwriter I've never heard of named Jeff Hanson on "You Are The Reason", but the rest of it sounds fairly familiar enough to be recognized as Braid. Still, it definitely leans more in an indie-pop-rock direction than the emo/post-hardcore sound of their earlier incarnation. The highlight for me is the closer, "Universe Or Worse", thanks to Damon Atkinson's creativity on the drums really shining through with a particularly interesting rhythm.

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14. Reservoir - Into Endings

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I first found these guys' demo early in 2011 on the fantastic blog Circling The Drain and enjoyed their take on semi-beardy post-hardcore. This 7" is their first physical release and shows significant growth from the demo. All three tracks are solid, although none really stands out more than the others. The stuttered, mathy rhythm of the verses in the title track are a nice touch. I think most people who like Polar Bear Club and Daylight would like these guys.

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13. Turnover - Turnover

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I don't get too hopped up with pop-punk bands anymore, especially ones who don't really do much of anything special. Truth be told, there's no logical reason why I like this as much as I do while not enjoying This Time Next Year or Fireworks. Maybe it's because the vocals have more gruffness to them in spots (verse in "Solitude") than those bands, or maybe it's just the fact that it's incredibly catchy and well executed while staying minimally cheesy. Either way, the closing song, "Waiting", is my highlight here. It reminds me of Transit's best pop-punk jams.

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12. Dikembe - Chicago Bowls

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This kick-ass new band features a solid rhythm section that helps propel more traditional emo riffs into swaying, rocking tunes in the same manner as Weatherbox, early Kidcrash, or At The Drive-In (though much less spastic than the latter). Don't let goofy thematic song titles like "Luc Bongley", "Scottie Spliffen", and "Michael Jordank" fool you. This is some seriously good shit.

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11. Campaign - Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice!

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Despite having questionable taste in naming their releases (H1N1 and It Likes To Party being the previous two, and I assume they're sadly not referencing the only Beetlejuice worth mentioning), these guys always make my year-end lists with their consistently well-crafted beardcore punk rock. It seems to me this one was a bit faster and more aggressive than its predecessors. This definitely reminds me of earlier Small Brown Bike and some of Hot Water Music's faster tunes with some riffs reminiscent of Face To Face's self-titled. "Old Mess" is my favorite track here.

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10. Mer De Blanc - Mer De Blanc

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There's a very strong 90's midwest emo vibe going on here that produces four equally solid tracks from this new band I also found first on Circling The Drain. Some of this reminds me of Benton Falls and The Jazz June circa The Medicine.

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9. Transit - Promise Nothing

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I've been a huge fan of these guys since their first EP, and with every successive release they've managed to tweak their style noticeably while maintaining enough familiar elements to keep most fans along for the ride. This 7", a Record Store Day exclusive and their first release for the Rise Records label, is no different. It follows the more subdued moments from Keep This To Yourself (a natural path to tread after the mostly acoustic Something Left Behind) and maintains the earnestness they've always employed. I miss the more "rocking" moments from their previous material, as even the faster parts of "Take What You Can" owe more to American Football than any punk influence. But considering what this intends to be, it's very well-crafted and precisely executed. I couldn't see it clearly when it came out, but looking back now, this record served as a turn signal for the left turn into poppier, much more polished sounding territory that the subsequent full-length Listen And Forgive brought about later in the year.

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8. The Great Explainer - The Way Things Swell

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Much like Reservoir, this band employs a nice mix of beardy and clean dual vocals. And with this one, by beardy I mean "sounds like he gargles with glass between each line rather than between songs". Dude is raw and powerful, and the other guy gives a great contrast with the more nasally clean vocals. The overall feel of the music is more of the chugging post-hardcore variety a la Small Brown Bike's Dead Reckoning alternating with more groove-oriented moments. "Codeine...Bourbon" is my jam here.

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7. Daytrader - Last Days Of Rome

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This is a follow-up to one of the best debuts (a self-titled demo) of last year and it does not disappoint. These guys come as close to approximating Texas Is The Reason's and (early) Saves The Day's best moments as I've ever heard. I feel it's a bit top-heavy, with "Kill My Compass" and "Living" being totally kick-ass and "Grey-Colored Glasses" being a little underwhelming, but overall it's a highly enjoyable listen. The new track they had on a recent Run For Cover comp indicates the trajectory will continue upward.

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6. Ghost Ocean - Transparent Lines

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This one came to me completely out of left field as a "you ever even heard of these guys?" from my brother after some friend of his on facebook posted it. I suspect by this time next year they won't be such a well-kept secret thanks to this seven song collection of blended post-hardcore, 90's emo, and mid-tempo noodly punk rock with the occasional well-placed gang vocals. They're another band that doesn't push any boundaries, but they don't need to because they can construct familiar parts in an engaging, interesting way. A simple comparison would be Polar Bear Club meets Your Best Friend when they were in wailin' mode. "Same Old State" and "Strange Parody" are my favorite songs out of the seven.

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5. This Town Needs Guns - Adventure, Stamina, & Anger

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Ever since I saw this band's set at Bledfest 2010, I've been in love with their mathy, quirky style that takes the crazy finger-tapping guitar work of Minus The Bear to overdrive, pairs it with an equally adept rhythm section sporting a ridiculously talented drummer, and merges it with Kinsella-esque lower Midwest emo. Seriously, the shit this drummer does blows my mind. I swear his brain should be studied by science for its ability to effortlessly flow through jerky time signature changes (hence the term "mathy" for those heretofore uninformed). Sadly this is their last release with this singer, but I heard some live recordings with the new guy that would suggest he should be able to step in ably. The auxiliary percussion in the chorus in the title track seems a bit obtuse in the mix and unnecessary, but overall the song is good. I think the highlight is the b-side of the 7", "Mnspector Iorse" (sic).

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4. Such Gold - Split 7"s with Into It. Over It. & A Loss For Words

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Here's another band that consistently produces some of my favorite music year after year. Since I'm not very into IIOI (especially all the acoustic stuff) and don't care for AL4W at all, I cheated a little on the "rules" and figured four Such Gold songs equals 1 EP and considered them as a whole separate from the contributions of their counterparts. "Scoreboard" is the only song that doesn't float my boat much here, but "Minstrels" and "Backyard" slay enough to more than make up for it. To me they combine the best of pop-punk (trimming the cheese), hardcore, and post-hardcore with overflowing passion and energy. I'm glad that some jerkoff tough-guy maniac at a party didn't ultimately keep them from continuing to make music together. They're slated for their first full-length later this year on Razor & Tie Records. Can't wait.

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3. CSTVT - CSTVT

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Unfortunately there was a metal band with the same name, so the band formerly known as Castevet had to take all the vowels out of its name. Thankfully the vowels apparently had no effect on the quality of the music, as these are two of their best songs yet. The jerky rhythm at the beginning of “Houseboats” is pure joy. Since their last album The Echo & The Light, they’ve steadily resorted to beardcore vocals less and less, and the music has gotten more concise and upbeat. The quality has never dipped though, and I think people who may have been turned off by the gravelly vocals before may be more into this new stuff. They also had a new song off the Run For Cover comp that bodes well for the future.

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2. Gates – The Sun Will Rise And Lead Me Home

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This is a tough one to put into words. To start off, I’d say people who are enthralled with Explosions In The Sky and early Moving Mountains would be equally in love with this EP. It also reminds me of some of my favorite Elliott and Clarity-era Jimmy Eat World songs. If that doesn’t sell you, I don’t know what will. I suppose it may be worth noting to some that somebody in this band use to be in Lydia. I never had any real desire to listen to them, but I believe the sounds are fairly similar. The first two words that come to mind when I think of this EP are powerful and epic. Beautiful would probably be the third. Totally gay of me, right? I know. Deal with it. This shit rules, and is about 1 nanopoint behind #1.

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1. Polar Bear Club – The View, The Life

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Remember how I said that Transit 7” was a turn signal for their next album? Well, this fucker right here was like Babe Ruth stepping up to the plate and pointing over the center field upper deck considering the full-length that followed. It’s probably a little fanboy-ish to even rank this considering that 2/3 of it are on the album, but the only non-album track, “Close Knit”, stands out enough that it warrants placement here. Had it been included on the album, it would’ve been one of the best 5 songs, and here it’s packaged with another two of the best songs. I’ll get into why I love the album more later, but suffice it to say that I ranked all three of these songs 5/5 stars. Somehow these guys seem to blend everything that I’ve loved about beardcore, emo, and post-hardcore from the past 15 years and put it all together in a catchy, always engaging fashion.

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LP's

25. Basement – I Wish I Could Stay Here

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I slept on these guys for way too long, but once I woke up I found another young band doing the punky post-hardcore with gravelly vocals thing admirably. They could probably be called a poor man’s Title Fight, but I wouldn’t necessarily consider that a bad thing. The title track is probably the song that stood out to me most on this one. Regrettably I haven’t been able to give this one a ton of spins to get more familiar with it.

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24. face to face – Laugh Now, Laugh Later

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After not caring for their then-final album How To Ruin Everything, I didn’t expect to care much for anything face to face would put out post-reunion. Frankly, on the first couple listens this sounded like a weak rehash attempt thanks to my unfair bias. But I heard enough worth in it to continue listening here and there, and once I got familiar with it and gave it its own chance, I found it to be a familiarly rewarding listening experience. Sure, there’s nothing here that suggests they’re ready to acknowledge that Ignorance Is Bliss ever came out, but I did find elements that reminded me of the self-titled days like the bassline at the beginning of “Bombs Away”. In any case, if you were a fan at any point, I highly recommend giving this a fair shot. “All For Nothing” and “I Don’t Mind And You Don’t Matter” are good places to start.

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23. Hassaan Mackey & Apollo Brown – Daily Bread

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It’s a damn good thing the throwback boom-bap hip-hop on this album is way more enjoyable than the cover art. For those scoring at home, Hassaan is the MC and Apollo is the beatsmith. This is one of those very consistent efforts with as few bad spots as there are great spots. Still, I’d have to recommend “Higher”, “Mackey’s Lament”, and “Something” as good places to start. Apollo Brown is becoming a go-to guy for anyone in need of crisp kicks and snares with skillfully chopped samples. I’m proud to have him representing the Murder Mitten.

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22. Willie Evans Jr. – Introducin’

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This dude (formerly of the group Asamov, who released the killer And Now… in 2005) tends to stray from the traditional boom-bap more than most hip-hop artists I listen to, but a similar foundation is still present. I should probably warn that the first actual song (the title track) has a really annoying beat that affected the overall score of this otherwise delightful album. Don’t let that be your measuring stick. Instead, try making “Fisbawdup” the first track you check out.

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21. The Regiment – Panic Button

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This is more questionable cover art that betrays the well thought-out hip-hop that awaits the listener. It’s crazy how Detroit now seems to be the best at crafting the type of soulful classic hip-hop that New York created in the mid-90’s while New York artists are generally chasing whatever garbage is hot on the radio, whether it be down South booty-shakin’ crap or collaborating with the Biebs. The only drawbacks for me on this album are the R&B choruses on a couple tracks and the fact that the Apollo Brown beats are some of the most repetitive and least engaging ones. That’s OK, because it gives room for other producers Soulution and Newstalgia (haling from Gun Rule a.k.a. Grand Rapids a.k.a G-Rap) to shine. I love the intensity of their message about having a passion and a love for the music as their impetus for making it. “Clarity”, “Just Shine”, “Od School Vibe (Remix)”, and “Guns & Butter” are good places to start here.

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20. Balance And Composure - Separation

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These guys are another band growing by leaps and bounds with each release. Their side of the split 12” with Tigers Jaw was the first release of theirs that I liked front to back, so I was looking forward to this one, and it definitely delivered. While I think “Void” starts it off a little too slow and “Galena” reminds me of the worst 90’s alterna-rock had to offer, the rest of this is pretty damn good. It definitely has strong (good) 90’s alterna-rock influences and interweaves the 90’s Midwest emo sound with it (even with a little twang that usually makes my stomach turn). No other song touches the greatness of “I Tore You Apart In My Head”, which is a real shit-ripper.

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19. Bridge And Tunnel – Rebuilding Year

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Here’s another band that consistently puts out music I enjoy and has something to grace my list every year since their inception. This one doesn’t stray much from their previous efforts, mostly staying in the post-hardcore realm, but with considerably different subject matter from most bands treading in that territory. Their tone is much more centered around humanistic values and examining the way we as human beings suffer and survive in this unrelenting capitalist society. The closing track “Cooked Books” offers one of my favorite lines: “Life is the economy of emotional energy.” “Drill Instructor” also has some great commentary on the toll of the energy industry on the world, with line such as “Now we will be tomorrow’s fossil fuels/As out buried bodies decompose, simply waiting to be consumed”. This is heady shit. I almost have to listen to Turnover afterwards to even myself out. Opener “Synchronized Swimming” is also a highlight. Basically, this band is not very accessible to the average listener, but they make no apologies for it because they obviously believe in the urgency of the messages they’re conveying. Essentially, if you liked their older material, you should dig this too.

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18. Doppelgangaz – Lone Sharks

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This young duo from upstate NY came to my attention in 2010 with a debut full length and mostly instrumental/b-side sort of album that were both decent to good with lots of potential. With this album, they’re starting to realize that potential but leave plenty of room for growth as well. I love their tongue-in-cheek antisocial hooded-hobo gimmick and their propensity for clever lines about doing gross chicks, like rhyming “overactive sebaceous glands” with “use her face to grease the pan”. Fucking brilliant. Their beats are usually pretty sparse and in rare instances get bogged down in boringly repetitive simplicity, but there are more than enough good songs here as well as some gems like “Nexium” and “Dumpster Diving”. I have a feeling these guys will kick ass for years and make a bunch of great albums like People Under The Stairs (whose new album Highlighter didn’t quite make the cut).

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17. Malcolm And Martin – Life Doesn’t Frighten Me

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I can’t say I know much about this new duo, but the fact that their debut album is almost entirely produced by DJ Revolution (with “Movement Music” being the lone exception by way of Marco Polo production) certainly helped put them on my radar. This is just more solid, soulful, thoughtful, head-nodding 90’s inspired boom-bap. The aforementioned track, “Win Or Lose”, and “Bare Witness” are the cuts to check for here.

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16. Title Fight - Shed

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There’s not much I can say about this record that hasn’t been said before in the heaps of praise that abound all over the internet. I think it might have to do with the fact that not many people predicted they would come this raw after their penchant for cookie-cutter pop-punk earlier in their careers. Almost every band does the opposite. Start raw, meander towards pop. Call it “maturing”. Not these guys, and I commend them for it. Title Fight follows the trend of their previous release (The Last Thing You Forget 7”) in coming across much more serious and confident than on their older material. Walter Schreifels of the almighty Quicksand produced this, and it shows. Remember that No Division record he produced for that one band that used to wear some gnarly beards? This sounds totally kick ass sort of like that. One of the best moments is “Safe In Your Skin” where the speed slows to a crawl with some gorgeous borderline emo riffs. “27” and “Greenwich Mean Time” are other favorites of mine, but this is really one that should be listened to front to back.

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15. Small Brown Bike – Fell & Found

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Since the hugely influential (at least in terms of the bands I now listen to) Small Brown Bike returned from the grave, in the span of two 7”s they showed that they were definitely not going back to the rough, gravelly-voiced, beardy sound of their earlier years despite the original lineup being back together. The tone was more reminiscent of the less interesting parts of The River Bed, and I found myself only caring for one or two of the four songs. I wasn’t too stoked on this upon first listen either, but like the face to face album, it really grew on me. “Rescue Mission” is the only track I can really say stands out amongst the rest because it’s one of the more rocking songs, but there’s also not a single song that I don’t like. It’s definitely nice to have the Bike boys back.

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14. Action Bronson & Statik Selektah – Well Done

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If you don’t know already from my previous lists, Statik Selektah is probably my #2 favorite producer in hip-hop right now behind the son of God himself, DJ Premier. He occasionally makes me scratch my head with some shitty, cheesy, radio-ass beats, but on the next song he’ll blow my mind with something ridiculous. Strangely, for this album he doesn’t really do either. There’s not a song I don’t like, and all are at least good, but “No More Words” is the only one that’s an immediately noticeable banger. Still, consistency is key for me, and the head emcee of the record, Action Bronson, certainly displays plenty of it as well. I just started checking for this dude within the last few months, and pretty much everything he has done is quality (especially his self-released full length Dr. Lecter, which probably should’ve been on this list). He gets a little bit too close to Too Short material for me at times, but he’s also pretty clever and funny. I give him one more good album before he gets really popular and starts rhyming exclusively over terrible production. Let’s hope I’m wrong.

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13. Crash Of Rhinos - Distal

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Despite having just seven songs, I decided to consider this an album because it clocks in at about 40 minutes. I believe this serves as the first ever release from these British blokes. It’s filled with mathy, winding, intense, and angular 90’s emo/post-hardcore that recalls early Mock Orange and Frame And Canvas-era Braid. I also hear a little At The Drive-In and some of No Knife’s more accessible songs. Their drummer is out of this world and probably worth a once-through just to hear what he’s up to. He reminds me of Kevin Ratterman from Elliott (one of my favorite drummers of all time) in that he takes slower parts that other drummers would play simple stuff to, makes it complex, and still manages to still blend in within the context of the song. The whole of the band comes off that much better for it. The beginning of “Wide Awake” is a perfect example of what I mean. This is another of those albums that begs to be listened to all the way through for sure.

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12. J-Live – S.P.T.A. (Said Person of That Ability)

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J-Live has always been an immensely talented MC to me, but his abilities as a producer (or beat chooser) often didn’t match up. I feel like a lot of his stuff since All Of The Above has been mediocre, but holy shit did he come back with a vengeance here. This is undoubtedly his best production since The Best Part, thanks in part to an assist from Marco Polo on killer cut “The Authentic”. “From Scratch” and “How I Feel (Part 3)” are also particularly strong.

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11. Nightlights – So It Goes

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These gruff sounding, heavily Latterman influenced dudes made my list last year with their debut EP Long Way Home. This subsequent full-length is a nice step up from the EP and contains ten solid-to-great songs worth shouting along to. With song titles like “Obviously You’re Not A Golfer” (that’s a Big Lebowski reference for those of you who are culturally disabled), you gotta know these are my kind of dudes. The strongest tracks are “That John Denver Is Full Of Shit”, “Laces Out, Dan”, and “Party Hardy Marty”. Sadly the singer just left the band last month, so this will probably be the last release for them.

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10. Moving Mountains - Waves

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I was initially hesitant to appreciate this album because it was not what I was hoping for. Gone were the expansive Elliot-esque emo epics (scorekeeper: +5 in alliteration) and in its place were shorter slow jams and more straight-ahead rockers. They trimmed the fat, but in the process cut off some of the best tasting meat right next to the fat. As a whole it grew on me over time though, and “My Life Is Like A Chase Dream”, “Parts In Different Places”, and “Where Two Bodies Lie” eventually became some of my favorites that they’ve done yet.

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9. Reks – Rhythmatic Eternal King Supreme

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What better way to lead off the defining album of a 10+ year career than with a sick, sinister sounding DJ Premier track? And how about ending it with one of Statik Selektah’s best tracks ever? Sounds like a winning formula. So that’s “25th Hour” and “Self Titled”, and beyond those, “This Is Me” and “Like A Star” also carry major weight. Top that off with a nice verse from the Chris Wollard of hip-hop, M.O.P.’s Lil’ Fame, on the nicotine addiction ode “Cigarettes”, and now you have the second best hip-hop release of the year. This dude can rhyme his ass off, son.

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8. Banner Pilot – Heart Beats Pacific

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Banner Pilot’s third full-length is more of the same, which is to say it more than kicks ass just like the other two. This is about as straight-ahead punk (’90s Bay Area pop-punk to be more precise) as I get these days, and apparently they sound a ton like Jawbreaker. I still wouldn’t know. I’ve never heard a Jawbreaker song that made me want to listen to another one and therefore I have no reference. All I know is I love me some Banner Pilot, especially 5-star leadoff track “Alchemy” and “Spanish Reds”. I’m not quite as enthralled with this as I was with Collapser, but it still has time to grow.

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7. Living With Lions – Holy Shit

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The title says it all. These wily Canucks managed to replace their singer (with the bass player from Misery Signals of all people) and proceed to record an album that trimmed all the fat and cheese from their previous effort Make Your Mark and then punch up the already good parts. This album is everything a well-crafted, fun, respectable pop-punk album should be. It probably helps that the vocals are more on the gruff side than most pop-punk. I consider “Maple Drive Is Still Alive”, “When We Were Young”, and “Wake Up” to be the highlights here.

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6. Pianos Become The Teeth – The Lack Long After

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This band’s second LP is a worthy follow-up and improvement upon its predecessor Old Pride, my #7 album of 2009. It’s undoubtedly the harshest stuff on this list, in both sound and subject matter. It’s mainly about the slow death of the singer’s father from multiple sclerosis and the surrounding events. The tone of the music and vocals matches the intensity and rawness of all the emotions such events might bring about. Having yet another awesome drummer certainly helps the intensity as well. This is old-school screamo, in the least black hair dye, neck tat, and eyeliner way I could possibly mean it. “I’ll Get By”, “Good Times”, and the last half of “Such Confidence” are particularly great moments in another album that needs to be listened to all the way through.

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5. Red City Radio – The Dangers Of Standing Still

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Get your fuckin’ beards out, boys, because tonight Red City Radio is gargling gravel and glass down in Oklahoma City in order to belt out some raucous punk rock tunes best suited for shouting along with a beer or whiskey in hand. This, their debut full-length, is pretty much their previous material perfected and ratcheted up a notch. “Drinking Yourself Into The Future”, “The Benefits of Motion”, “Spinning In Circles Is A Gateway Drug”, and “Never Bring A Cup of Water to a Gunfight” are all particularly strong cuts. Unfuckwitable.

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4. Prawn – You Can Just Leave It All

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On the False Institutions EP of 2009, Prawn showed potential in the post-rock/emo vein of early Moving Mountains, but they were rough around the edges and the lyrics were a little obtuse at times. On this album they have corrected every previously noticeable flaw and have actually taken the torch (along with Gates) from Moving Mountains in this (sub-)sub-genre. There is also a healthy Explosions In The Sky influence here. This is another one to crank from front to back, with “At Dawn We Left”, “Get Down”, “Clever Hands”, and “Perfect Equilibrium” being my favorites.

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3. Spraynard – Funtitled

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I’ve heard other fans of these guys’ previous works say they weren’t too enthused with this record, but I feel quite the opposite. It’s definitely my favorite works of theirs so far. They’re another band that is heavily influenced by Latterman (including the goofy song titles), but just because they’re not terribly original doesn’t mean they can’t make a great record. It’s great for short attention spans, too, with most songs under the 3:00 mark. It’s generally jangly, upbeat, semi-gruff punk rock that will have you spilling beer in your beard as you sing along. I knew I liked this album, but was surprised when I added up all the great songs and it was one of the highest scores of anyone. I guess it make sense when you consider I seriously dig “I Care Not”, “The Denver Broncos vs. The Denver Broncos”, “Ah Gun”, “Quite Exciting, This Computer Magic”, and “Joe Gallagher’s Fantasy Fun Camp”.

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2. Elzhi - Elmatic

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How in the FUCK do you re-perfect perfection? Who in the hell would have the audacity to attempt to recreate an untouchable hip-hop classic, Nas’ debut Illmatic, regarded by many as the single greatest hip-hop album of all time? I’ve listened to this album (I refuse to call it a mixtape, as it’s marketed) plenty of times and I still can’t answer the first question, but god damn it the dude did it. The answer to the second is Detroit’s own Elzhi, one of the most gifted lyricists in the game today. And make no mistake, his backing band (yes, this is almost 100% live instrumentation) Will Sessions deserves a huge round of applause as well for absolutely nailing the instrumentals and bringing new life to them. The way Elzhi incorporates parts of Nas’ rhymes but uses them to tell different stories of his own is a huge part of what makes this so special. Royce The 5’9” playing AZ’s part in “Life’s A Bitch” is such a perfect fit, too. I really can’t say enough good things about this incredible album. Understand that I wouldn’t rate what’s essentially a cover album this high if it weren’t perfectly done. What makes the whole thing even better is that this is a free download (just google it, I’m tired).

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1. Polar Bear Club – Clash Battle Guilt Pride

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This is all that’s left, folks. It’s my favorite LP of the year by one of my favorite bands of all time. It’s an oft-used cliché, but the entire band is really hitting on all cylinders for pretty much the entire length of this thing. It always helps when the opener (“Pawner”) and closer (“3/4 Tango”) are two of the strongest cuts, but it really knocks you on your ass right out of the gate and doesn’t back off when “Killin’ It” and “Screams In Caves” follow “Pawner”. It’s debatably the best 1-2-3 punch I’ve ever heard an album lead off with. For those scoring at home, that’s three 5-star joints in a row. “My Best Days” and “I’ll Never Leave New York” are also among some of their best songs ever. I think lead vocalist Jimmy Stadt has really settled into using his voice in transitioning back and forth from gruff to more traditional singing, and it shows live as well. (Don’t miss them if they swing through your town.)This is exactly the album I was hoping for after not feeling Chasing Hamburg as much as I wanted to. It’s a return to dominance. In my not-so-humble opinion, I think they are the current masters of this blend of styles. For those not already in the know, their sound is influenced by bands like (the great once-bearded forefathers) Hot Water Music, Foo Fighters, Jimmy Eat World, Small Brown Bike, face to face, and many others that also influenced my tastes over the years. I only hope it pleases your ears as much it has mine.

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Thanks a ton for reading, kids. Come back again next year. Oh wait, I forgot the world is ending this year. Everybody immediately go grab all your credit cards and meet me at Wal-Mart so we can stock up on canned food and shotguns. There’s a certain security in holding a loaded shotgun in one hand and a can of Spaghettios with meatballs in the other. Franco-American for President 2012. Be excellent to each other.