Top 33 Albums Of 2011: 33 - 31

I don't have a lot to say about the past twelve months' worth of music as a whole. It was overwhelming in capacity, underwhelming in quality. Still, there was a substantial amount of music I did (and continue to) thoroughly enjoy. What follows for the next several days is a large slab of that music.

It will appear as though I'm omitting a lot of good stuff, and I am, but only because I never got around to listening to it all. There was that Social Distortion album released in January, Cold War Kids, Get Up Kids (!!), another self-released Radiohead album (forgive me, Thom Yorke), Lykke Li (who I've grown quite fond of, but not fond enough apparently), Foo Fighters, Death Cab For Cutie, Britney Spears, etc. Goodness, it seems like I didn't listen to anything this year.

Anyway, here are my top thirty-three albums of 2011 fed to you in bite-sized chunks. Why thirty-three? No reason, honestly. I could say it was chosen as an homage to the 33⅓ rpm full-length record, but then I would be lying to your face.

33: The Sun Will Rise and Lead Me Home by Gates

I recently decided that 2001 was my favorite musical year. This was a decision based mostly on nostalgia, but the soundtrack to my life that year was exquisite. The Sun Will Rise, in all of its six-song'd glory, reminds me of those tracks. Maybe we would have called this "emo" back then (only after a six-hour argument over what does and does not constitute emoness). And maybe this is proof that rock music, in the stagnant state it is in, has not come so far in ten years. But Gates connects, and they hit all the right notes, and sometimes that's all I really ask for. The Sun Will Rise is for fans of Appleseed Cast, which should be everybody.

OH BY THE WAY, you can freely stream/download a digital copy of The Sun Will Rise over at their bandcamp site.
http://gates.bandcamp.com/album/the-sun-will-rise-and-lead-me-home


32: Fluorescence by Asobi Seksu

Speaking of sub-genres popular a semi-long while ago... shoegaze! There is something comforting about all of that chaotic fuzz and distortion, especially if the barely audible wispy vocals are sung by a female. And Asobi Seksu, once again, churns out the smaze. Fluorescence is reminiscent of late-80s/early-90s dreampop, and some songs are triumphant while others are seductive. Some are just genre-huggingly dreampoppy. But there is just enough pop and just enough rock (and maybe just a touch of weirdness) in each tune to keep things interesting.




31: Deerhoof Vs. Evil by Deerhoof

Hey, guys, Deerhoof is back! And they're glitchier than ever! D vs. E is the band's first full-length release since 2008 and, like everything they've recorded, the album is full of short, punchy, calculatedly insane music. Deerhoof is an acquired taste, and if you're checking them out for the first time this album may not be the way to go. But for longtime fans and/or those with an open mind, D vs. E is a whimsical adventure that will bend the way you approach music.

OH BY THE WAY, Polyvinyl Records is letting you download the entire album as a .zip file.
So get on that.