2012 was a very good year for music. Despite a few largely upsetting trends (which, never fear, will be discussed at length), this year saw some of the strongest albums and artists in a long time. There were so many good albums that I needed to do a top 20 instead of a top 10, and even then I didn’t have room for everything. Albums by Andrew Bird, Aimee Mann, John Mayer, Scars on 45, Tenacious D, and Best Coast were all good, but didn’t make the final list. There were also a bunch of really bizarre albums, like Ke$ha’s Warrior (say what you will, but she sure isn’t getting boring, and there are a few really killer songs on this album) and Jack White’s Blunderbuss. Albums like Bruce Springsteen’s Wrecking Ball and Melody Gardot’s The Absence would likely have made it much farther up the list had I listened to them a few more times (Gardot’s album isn’t on the list, but it probably should be). All of these things will be discussed below, as will the pile of nonsense I don’t care for. But before sort any of that out, we should get a firm grip on…
The Ten Biggest Albums I Missed
I think it’s best to start this recap off with some perspective. While I do my best to listen to as many releases as possible, I can’t get them all. The following is a list of ten albums that I did not get a chance to listen to fully and thoughtfully enough to include in my recap. I hope I can get through some of these soon, but for now, they are left off.
- Clockwork Angels - Rush
- Bloom - Beach House
- Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1 - Lupe Fiasco
- Shields - Grizzly Bear (kinda: I heard the first part of this, not enough to make a judgement)
- Koloss - Meshuggah
- Eclipse - Veil of Maya
- Analog Man - Joe Walsh
- Lex Hives - The Hives
- King Animal - Soundgarden
- What We Saw From The Cheap Seats - Regina Spektor
With that in mind, here are just a few quick notes before we dive in:
Firstly, this was a pretty big year for metal music, and I know I didn’t listen to nearly enough of it. No reason or excuse, I just didn’t get to a lot of really great records and bands. I figure that there are enough excellent metal blogs out there (Lacerations of the Unknowing, Heavy Blog is Heavy, NCS, to name a few) that we’ll all survive.
The categories in this year-end-review are different than they were last year. Deal with it.
For the last couple of weeks, Allen Stone, Aimee Mann, and Ke$ha have been playing a three-way game of leap frog for the 19th and 20th spots on my top twenty list, and this is how they have shaken out for the time being. It’s hard to compare them apples to apples, but they’re all great albums.
I am working on a joint review of The Odious’s Joint Ventures with Asher Dunitz of the Lacerations of the Unknowing blog, which will be posted in installments on that site, then reposted here. Look out for that, and check out that blog for lots of good metal music.
Azealia Banks’s 1991 EP is an EP, not a full album, so I’m not including it in the full lists, but it’s really good and I gave it “Honorable Mention” on the final list. Think of it as a preemptive award for next year.
That’s it. Let’s do this.
The Ten Best Shows I Attended in 2012
10. Bon Iver at Coachella (Coachella, April 21st)
Bon Iver is Bon Iver. They are just as excellent live as they are on the album. The show was a huge production with loads of musicians in front of a huge crowd, and it totally worked. Listening to this on a hot, starry night at Coachella while lying on the grass and thinking about things was kind of an important moment for me.
9. Scars on 45 (The Troubadour, March 5th)
8. Alabama Shakes and Vintage Trouble (Portland Rose Festival, May 27th)
Alabama Shakes and Vintage Trouble are two of the absolute best live acts to emerge in 2012, and we got both of them on one stage. The two bands bring slightly different outlooks on rock and blues music and performance, but have the same outcome: loud, exuberant, dancey rock and roll. Also both are fronted by humans that are inexplicably attractive and who have completely angelic voices. See them immediately.
(Fun side note: this concert also included two other bands, who for scheduling reasons were playing after Alabama Shakes and Vintage Trouble. The first was a band none of us cared for, and the second was a band that none of us had heard of, so we left out front-and-center standing positions to grab some dinner and head home. Turns out that second band was Imagine Dragons.)
7. Lamb of God (Hollywood Palladium, October 31st)
I’ve been wanting to see Lamb of God since about 2008, when I first really got into metal music. They’ve been one of my favorite bands for a long time, and this year I finally got a chance to see them live. Especially meaningful in the wake of Randy Blithe’s Czech incarceration and legal proceedings, this show really blew me away. It certainly didn’t hurt that we were right up on the barricade in front of Willie Adler’s monitor during LOG’s set (I caught one of his guitar picks!). Having the show on Halloween also made things a little more interesting.
6. The Shins at Coachella (Coachella, April 21st)
From a professionalism and musical precision standpoint, The Shins were absolutely the highlight of Coachella. They sounded as good as or better than they sound on the record, which is a really incredible feat, especially for a band playing such spacey indie-rock at such a huge festival. They played a really wonderful set of songs, but more than anything, they seemed really friendly and genuinely glad to be spending their weekend at the festival. It was just a really good show.
5. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (The Fonda Theater, October 27th)
The most energetic show of the year. I have never left a show more sweaty and exhausted, and I’ve been to some pretty ridiculous shows. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis know how to put on a show. One of the best live events of 2012, and probably 2013.
4. LP (The Troubadour, November 5th)
LP is one of the most talented up-and-coming artists. I say up-and-coming like she hasn’t been singing and performing for many years, which of course she has, but now she’s finally breaking into the mainstream, and she will be releasing a full-length LP (haha LP puns GET IT?) in 2013. Her live show is something of a of a miracle. It’s hard to put into words how moving this concert was, so I’ll leave it here: look out for LP and her album in2013, and do not pass up an opportunity to see her perform.
3. Ben Howard (The Fonda Theater, October 6th)
Any other year and this would have been number 1 by a mile. But this isn’t any other year, this is 2012 god damn it. Ben Howard’s album Every Kingdom was really great, but his live performance was absolutely stunning. Between his unbelievably backing band, his easy-going stage presence, and his emotionally moving songs, Ben Howard puts on an unforgettable show. The openers at this show were also very much above-average.
2. Florence + The Machine at Coachella (Coachella, April 22nd)
If Florence Welch ran for Queen, I would vote for her. She and the rest of the band bring Ceremonials to life on the stage, and seeing her from twenty feet back on the final night of Coachella was just about the pinnacle of live music.
1. Gary Clark Jr. (The Troubadour, November 15th)
Gary Clark Jr. is one of the best guitar players working today. His album Blak and Blu is a phenomenal exposition of the breadth and depth of his rock and roll knowledge. He was on fire at Coachella. Of course, I knew all of these things walking into the Troubadour for his show, but somehow I still walked out dumbfounded. ZZ Ward opened the show, which made things awesome right from the beginning (seeing her again at the Troub in February), but GCJ really blew everyone away. Even people like me who have been following him for a couple of years now were blown away by this set. And this wasn’t a fluke night, he does this all the time. Find the album, get to a show, and join team Gary.
Best Album Artwork
Not doing a list here, just telling you who wins. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis get “Runner-Up” status for packaging their phenomenal album with 19 beautiful (and sometimes hilarious) postcards (one for each song on the album) and a sheet of fake gold foil, and for wrapping it all up in a glorious gator-skin box. Fiona Apple wins the category because literally every panel on the CD jacket and every page in the album booklet could (and should) be installed in an art gallery, and because she drew and wrote everything herself.
Winner: Fiona Apple
Runner-Up: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Five Best Music Videos
I think this is the first time I’ve ever decided on a tie for number 1, but it kind of has to be. The two winners were both responsible for, or heavily involved in, great cultural phenomena, and both videos are perfectly matched to their incredibly thoughtful and intelligent songs. “Gangnam Style” is one of the most brilliant (and catchy) critiques of “western” music and culture and its place in “eastern” society to ever have been made, and that’s not to mention how amazing the video is and how massive it has become. “Same Love” is the strongest and most pointed message of support mainstream hip hop has ever given to the battle for LGBTQ+ equality, and remains the only music video to ever move me to tears. (On the other hand, “Labrador” is the only music video to ever make me cry due to laughter. Actually that’s probably not true, but it’s still one of the funniest videos I’ve ever seen.)
1. “Gangnam Style” - PSY
1. “Same Love” - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (w/ Mary Lambert)
3. “Labrador” - Aimee Mann
4. “Thrift Shop” - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
5. “Baddest Man Alive” - The Black Keys/RZA
Last year’s list
This year I heard a lot of music that I really liked that was from 2011, and I’ve continued to listen to all of the albums on my 2011 top-ten list, so I thought it would be fun to revisit 2011 and remake last year’s top-ten list with my new discoveries and ideas in mind. Think of it as a more updated, but still impermanent snapshot of my musical musings. I’ve added a few new ones to the mix and reordered the whole list to reflect my current thoughts on 2011’s music. Albums by Lady Gaga and Portugal. The Man, while excellent, just haven’t had the lasting impact that some of these other have, so they’ve been bumped (for now). Here we go:
- Bon Iver - Bon Iver
- Ceremonials - Florence + The Machine
- Making Mirrors - Gotye
- We Are The Tide - Blind Pilot
- The King Is Dead - The Decemberists
- Vows - Kimbra
- 21 - Adele
- El Camino - The Black Keys
- Dust Bowl - Joe Bonamassa
- Torches - Foster The People
Runner-up: Every Kingdom - Ben Howard
Honorable Mention: + - Ed Sheeran
Also I wasn’t sure where to put this, so I’m putting it here. Of Monsters and Men released their debut album My Head is an Animal somewhat ambiguously for the purposes of year-end lists. The Icelandic album came out in September 2011 and the North American version in April 2012. Usually I go with the original release date in the artist’s home country, because I understand that America isn’t the center of the universe. But with this album, the two versions were actually really different, and I’ve only heard the North American cut. So while I can’t rank it among last year’s albums, I also don’t really feel like I can add it to this year’s lists. So I’ll settle it this way: My Head is an Animal is a truly fantastic album that could easily compete with or even displace some of the top ten albums from this year and last, and you should go listen to it.
Nine Things I Do Not Like and One Thing I Don’t Understand About Music in 2012
1. Taylor Swift
I dislike Taylor Swift and her music on principle. I find her and her inability to understand her role in perpetuating various stereotypes irritating, and I am absolutely fed up with how much attention is directed toward her personal life instead of her artistry. The low quality of her music is an afternote.
2. Hypnotic Nights - JEFF the Brotherhood
I tried. I really tried. Everything about this band should have had me on board 100% (two piece garage rock act that finally gets a big break? count me right in), but I just can’t do it. I saw them open for Best Coast in May (a show that was really un-fun, and which I blogged about in my mid-year report, and summarize below), and they sounded muddy and unenthusiastic and unprofessional. I didn’t want to write them off until I’d heard some studio material, and when I did hear some, I disliked it. The lyrics are boring, the performance is lackluster, and the music is just stock. I’m surprised at these things, given that Dan Auerbach produced, and that so many people whose opinions I trust raved about this band and album. But I’m sorry, I don’t like it. Maybe next time.
3. Babel - Mumford & Sons
The album is really just mediocre. It feels like a bunch of B-sides from Sigh No More. I can totally understand and get behind a band sticking with what works, but you have to keep the quality up, and this album simply did not do that for me. “I Will Wait” is a good song, and is also a carbon copy of both “Little Lion Man” and “The Cave.” The rest of the album comprises a bunch of less exciting variations on that. I was really hoping that Mumford & Sons would come out with a really compelling album that showcased their musical and artistic ability, and they did not. The illusion of an unlikely, gritty folk-rock band has been shattered, leaving us with another regular pop act. Nothing wrong with pop, but not what I had in mind, and not my favorite way to approach folk music.
4. Channel Orange - Frank Ocean
Nope. I do not get it. I think Channel Orange is a really medium album that isn’t that fun to listen to. I think Frank Ocean is a decent performer and a below-average lyricist. I think he and his album have exploded in popularity for reasons other than that album’s content. I think this is a bandwagon just like so many other bandwagons in popular culture, and while bandwagons aren’t innately terrible, this is one I’m not getting aboard.
5. Some Nights - fun.
I think that fun. is a talented band that writes interesting music, but man, I just can’t get behind this bandwagon either. “Some Nights” (song, not album) is pretty great, but poorly produced. That song has great potential as a raw, powerful, vocal-heavy track that draws on the band’s musical talent and the strategically imposed drum groove. As is, it’s a confusing, difficult, compressed pop mix. The rest of the album, while fluent and interesting, just feels a little too gimicky for me to really buy it. We’ll see where this band goes with their newfound attention, and I hope I can get right on board with the next album.
6. good kid, m.A.A.d city - Kendrick Lamar
Okay, I listened to part of this album a good while ago when some friends were talking about Kendrick Lamar. I didn’t find it really inspiring, but I can’t say I was fully invested. Then I saw this on a whole bunch of year-end best lists, and figured I should try again. After several honest attempts, I still don’t care for it. The first track, “Sherane a.k.a Master Splinter’s Daughter," is pretty awesome, and it builds and climbs and I get really excited for the album to peak, and it just... doesn’t. Three songs, four songs down the track list and I’m getting bored and impatient while the lyrics derail, the production confuses, and the music flattens. I am willing to keep trying to love this album, because I’ve read a lot of great reviews, but for now, I am just not into it.
7. Kiss - Carly Rae Jepsen
I don’t totally know what I expected from this album, but yeah, no. “Call Me Maybe” is still the best song ever though.
8. Blunderbuss - Jack White (this is the thing I don’t understand)
Jack White, you are a great musician, a great producer, and an insane person. I do not understand your album. It seems like it might be good, but I really do not know. It has a few really good songs, a few okay songs, and a lot of really fucking weird songs. A lot of weird songs. I won’t ask too many questions, because if I do you might come kill me in the night, but I will just leave it at: “I only like a few parts of this album.” I am not sure I know what you’re doing. Do you know what you’re doing? Let me know.
9. 2012 Green Day
Kind of obligatory to put this up here, although I don’t really feel like it. ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, and ¡Tré! are not good albums. They’re okay. They have some decent tracks, but largely they’re boring. Honestly, though, that’s okay. Green Day has done so much incredible work in their career, and have run the gamut in terms of both musical influences/outcomes and band activities. A trilogy of albums comprising short, fun, pop and rock songs is exactly what this band needs to shake off the weight of their last two records (please don’t read “weight” as something negative here, those are great albums, it’s just “weight”) and find a new venture. I feel confident that Green Day has at least one more really stunning release bottled up, and I think this trio of albums will help them get to it. I also deeply hope that Billie Joe Armstrong is able to successfully sort out whatever personal issues he has had, substance-related or otherwise, and that he makes a triumphant return to the stage soon.
10. Best Coast
Okay, this isn’t really fair. Best Coast’s album is pretty good. Actually, all things considered, very good. It’s not very interesting or revolutionary, but it’s good, and I like to listen to it. But Best Coast sneaks onto this list because I need to have somewhere to talk about how disappointed I have been since the album’s release in the band’s performance and (un)professionalism. I saw them in May, and to keep things concise, the show was bad. It concluded in an encore (which clearly nobody in the band wanted to do) which itself concluded in Bethany throwing her guitar on the stage and storming off with her beer halfway through. Bobb had to cover for her ass, which he has since had to do several more times at various shows. I’m willing to forgive one bad evening, but it seems like this is happening more than once or twice on a tour, and just generally, Bethany doesn’t seem to hold her fans or audiences or bandmates in very high regard. That’s why Best Coast is on this list.
And now...
The Twenty Best Albums of 2012
20. Warrior - Ke$ha
19. Allen Stone - Allen Stone
18. The Sheepdogs - The Sheepdogs
17. Til The Casket Drops - ZZ Ward
16. Driving Towards the Daylight - Joe Bonamassa
15. Radio Music Society - Esperanza Spalding
14. Joint Ventures - The Odious
13. Gossamer - Passion Pit
12. Wrecking Ball - Bruce Springsteen
11. Four - Bloc Party
10. Resolution - Lamb of God
Read this review I published shortly after this album’s release, and the above description of LOG’s live show, and you’ll know enough to understand what this album is doing in my top ten.
9. Autotheism - The Faceless
This album has its ups and downs, and I think overall I like Akeldama a little better, but this album makes it up this far because when it’s up, it is really up. The front half of this album (pretty much the Autotheism suite) is a really incredible work of art. The performances are, as per usual, excellent, and while some songs (and production methods) stagnate, the album itself is a flying success.
8. Boys and Girls - Alabama Shakes
If I had made a “Best Debut Albums” category, this would have won it. It’s actually hard to believe that these guys have never put out an album before, given how polished and professional they sound here. But then again, they have been playing together for many years, honing their skills and processes all along the way. This debut is seriously on the level of Appetite for Destruction; these songs are road-tested and well-rehearsed. I can’t wait to hear more from this band because they are really just getting the ball rolling.
7. Blak and Blu - Gary Clark Jr.
Gary Clark Jr., as noted in the concert section above, is a truly world-class guitarist. What’s more, he is intimately familiar with so much of blues and rock and roll history. He can play like none other across a great range of styles, and this album shows it. It’s huge, it’s loud, it’s defiant, and it’s the first album from a dude who’s planning to stick around for a while.
6. Synthetica - Metric
Synthetica is a great example of an album that, song by song, is actually fairly mediocre. A few great songs, a few bleh songs, largely decent, etc.. The album makes it onto the list, however, because it is so much more than just the sum of its parts. It, like all Metric albums, has a strong message and central theme, phenomenal production, and a musical and conceptual fluidity that is consistently unmatched. Synthetica is a great album by a great band.
5. The 2nd Law - Muse
Most of what I just said about Synthetica can also be applied to The 2nd Law, the difference being that The 2nd Law is much stronger on a song-by-song basis. “Supremacy” and “Madness” are masterpiece-level works, as are both parts of “The 2nd Law” suite. The album brings together an incredible medley of genres, styles, and techniques to produce a one-of-a-kind listening experience. Muse is, without a question, back in the driver’s seat of pseudo-experimental psychedelic electro-rock. Now, they yet might be the only ones in the car, but still.
4. The Heist - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
An album that blew past my already sky-high expectations. I’ve been waiting for this for years, and the result is even better than I think anyone predicted. Macklemore is, of course, immensely talented, but it is the combination of that talent with his level-headed understanding of pop culture and his place in it that makes him really unique. His songs are powerful, personal, and political, which make every listen really exciting. Ryan Lewis’s beats and production are equally masterful, and the end result is an album that soars on all levels, and is a joy to listen to.
3. Port of Morrow - The Shins
I will be the first to admit that when this album came out in March, I was lukewarm on it. I liked it, but it didn’t thrill me. I called it “comfortable and expected.”
I’ve changed my mind.
This album absolutely thrills me. It’s one of those that gets better every time you listen to it because its genius is layered and thoughtful, something I’m not used to in mainstream music. But here we are. “The Rifle’s Spiral” is not only one of the best openings to an album I’ve ever heard, it’s one of the best songs of the year period. “Simple Song” and “September” were two of the most attended-to tracks in this album’s first published weeks, and they are two of the best, but even the deep cuts stay on-par: “40 Mark Strasse” and “No Way Down” might be my favorite tracks on the album. James Mercer’s lyrics are a rare blend of relatable emotion, compelling narrative, and critical commentary, and when sung in brilliant melodies over spotless production, they create one of the best albums of the year.
2. Oceania - The Smashing Pumpkins
This is my review and I’m sticking to it. It was #2 in my mid-year report, and it hasn’t been displaced.
1. The Idler Wheel is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw, and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More than Ropes Will Ever Do - Fiona Apple
I really don’t know what to say about this album. I was not prepared for it when it came out, and in a way, I’m still processing it. One of the most raw, emotional, overwhelming albums not only of this year, but of the last two or three years. Fiona Apple does things with her voice and instruments that I still don’t understand, and I’ve listened to this album a lot. Hers are probably the only lyrics that are roundly stronger than James Mercer’s, but other than that this album takes a kind of oppositional approach to music and recording than those taken by Mercer or Corgan. It’s not the polished marble of The Shins or The Smashing Pumpkins; it’s more like porous pumice-stone. It’s rough and difficult, there are weird holes in it, and it behaves in ways it shouldn’t, and through all of this it is absolutely, undoubtedly the best album of 2012.
***
So there you have it, the year 2012 as it pertains to music in my brain. It's been really excellent, and if 2013 comes even close to this level, we have another wonderful year in store. There are albums from Arcade Fire, Phoenix, Pearl Jam, The Black Keys, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Azealia Banks, LP, and The NowhereNauts to look forward to. I've actually heard The NowhereNauts's album, it's called Warned You and the eponymous single is out now. It's coming out in January and it's fantastic. Anyway, that's all I've got for 2012. It's been real. Thank you so much for reading the blog and listening to the radio show, and I'm looking forward to doing it all again in 2013. Stay classy.
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