Given we’re coming up to the end of June, I figured it should be time for this annual bit of anal-retentive album-crunching. A lot of fine records here , though not necessarily the 30 I might have envisaged at the start of 2011; as I’ve alluded to before, I feel like there have been a lot of eagerly-anticipated letdowns this year. I imagine I may have forgotten one or two I’ve liked, too (I’ve left out things like Date Palms and Purling Hiss, which I only found out about this year but which actually came out in 2010), but an interesting selection, hopefully. Arranged in alphabetical order, you’ll note. If you want to check up on these, plenty are on the Wild Mercury Sound Spotify playlist, for your delectation. Next up, of course, let’s see your Top Tens of the year. Send them in – in order if you can – and I’ll work out a chart in the next week or so. 1. Arbouretum – The Gathering (Thrill Jockey) 2. Julianna Barwick – The Magic Place (Asthmatic Kitty) 3. The Beastie Boys – Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (Capitol) 4. Bill Callahan – Apocalypse (Drag City) 5. Cornershop & Bubbley Kaur - Cornershop & Double ‘O’ Groove Of… (Ample Play) 6. Deep Magic – Lucid Thought (Circa) 7. Chris Forsyth – Paranoid Cat (Family Vineyard) 8. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues (Bella Union) 9. Gang Gang Dance – Eye Contact (4AD) 10. PJ Harvey – Let England Shake (Island) 11. Tim Hecker – Ravedeath, 1972 (Kranky) 12. Nicolas Jaar – Space Is Only Noise (Circus Company) 13. Jonny – Jonny (Turnstile) 14. Low – C’Mon (Sub Pop) 15. The Master Musicians Of Bukkake - Totem 3 (Important) 16. Metronomy – The English Riviera (Because) 17. Mountains – Air Museum (Thrill Jockey) 18. Panda Bear – Tomboy (Paw Tracks) 19. The People’s Temple – Sons Of Stone (Hozac) 20. Radiohead – The King Of Limbs (XL) 21. Raphael Saadiq – Stone Rollin’ (Columbia) 22. Six Organs Of Admittance – Asleep On The Floodplain (Drag City) 23. D Charles Speer & The Helix – Leaving The Commonwealth (Thrill Jockey) 24. Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol 2: Judges (Constellation) 25. Robert Stillman – Machine’s Song (OIB) 26. Kurt Vile – Smoke Ring For My Halo (Matador) 27. Gillian Welch – The Harrow And The Harvest (Acony) 28. Weyes Blood & The Dark Juices – The Outside Room (Not Not Fun) 29. White Denim – D (Downtown) 30. Whomadewho – Knee Deep (Kompakt)
Given we’re coming up to the end of June, I figured it should be time for this annual bit of anal-retentive album-crunching. A lot of fine records here , though not necessarily the 30 I might have envisaged at the start of 2011; as I’ve alluded to before, I feel like there have been a lot of eagerly-anticipated letdowns this year.
I imagine I may have forgotten one or two I’ve liked, too (I’ve left out things like Date Palms and Purling Hiss, which I only found out about this year but which actually came out in 2010), but an interesting selection, hopefully. Arranged in alphabetical order, you’ll note. If you want to check up on these, plenty are on the Wild Mercury Sound Spotify playlist, for your delectation.
Next up, of course, let’s see your Top Tens of the year. Send them in – in order if you can – and I’ll work out a chart in the next week or so.
1. Arbouretum – The Gathering (Thrill Jockey)
2. Julianna Barwick – The Magic Place (Asthmatic Kitty)
3. The Beastie Boys – Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (Capitol)
4. Bill Callahan – Apocalypse (Drag City)
5. Cornershop & Bubbley Kaur – Cornershop & Double ‘O’ Groove Of… (Ample Play)
6. Deep Magic – Lucid Thought (Circa)
7. Chris Forsyth – Paranoid Cat (Family Vineyard)
8. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues (Bella Union)
9. Gang Gang Dance – Eye Contact (4AD)
10. PJ Harvey – Let England Shake (Island)
11. Tim Hecker – Ravedeath, 1972 (Kranky)
12. Nicolas Jaar – Space Is Only Noise (Circus Company)
15. The Master Musicians Of Bukkake – Totem 3 (Important)
16. Metronomy – The English Riviera (Because)
17. Mountains – Air Museum (Thrill Jockey)
18. Panda Bear – Tomboy (Paw Tracks)
19. The People’s Temple – Sons Of Stone (Hozac)
20. Radiohead – The King Of Limbs (XL)
21. Raphael Saadiq – Stone Rollin’ (Columbia)
22. Six Organs Of Admittance – Asleep On The Floodplain (Drag City)
23. D Charles Speer & The Helix – Leaving The Commonwealth (Thrill Jockey)
24. Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol 2: Judges (Constellation)
25. Robert Stillman – Machine’s Song (OIB)
26. Kurt Vile – Smoke Ring For My Halo (Matador)
27. Gillian Welch – The Harrow And The Harvest (Acony)
28. Weyes Blood & The Dark Juices – The Outside Room (Not Not Fun)
