A note on the year-end lists:These lists have taken me ages to do, which is part of the reason they arrive so late, but the main reason is that I didn't want to cut out a large amount of December's releases like many high-profile publications tend to do. I've learned to listen to releases more thouroghly next time so that I don't have to spend as long trying to remember how much I like or dislike something all at the end. Needless to say many tracks, EP's and albums I initially dismissed I've fallen in love with now that I've returned to them, and others I praised highly (including on this blog) have fallen a little out of favour with me. Everything listed has been officially released between 1st January and 31st December 2011. I'll probably never be able to properly decide on the exact order of my favourites; this is just how they stand as of right now, but if I've listed something, it means I think it's worthy of your attention. And of course these aren't my only favourites of 2011: there are many albums in particular that haven't made the list, but check back thrrough my blog posts to see what they are. Feedback is always appreciated, so if you don't agree with something being here, if you think I've ranked something too high or low, or if something seems to be missing leave me some comments.Thanks to everyone that has helped me in this project, and my first year of music blogging, and to all the artists I've tagged and discussed thoughout the year, please support them by buying their music, going to their shows, etc. And spread the word. Josh
These are the rules I used to qualify my top 15 EP's of 2011:
Shorter than an album and longer than a single track. This goes without saying.
Basically, if a release goes under the name of EP (i.e. ends with "EP" or officially released as such), it qualifies. For example #2 is an EP even though it is only 2 tracks long.
Remix EP's qualify, although none have made it to the list.
A single and any number of B-sides are only EP's if they are released as such.
Free mixtapes are not EP's unless they are named so (e.g. #6).
And without further ado:
15. Colin Stetson - Those Who Didn't Run
14. Trash Talk - Awake
13. James Blake - Enough Thunder
12. Zomby - Nothing EP
11. Jens Lekman - An Argument With Myself
10. King Krule - King Krule
9. Kurt Vile - So Outta Reach
8. Dum Dum Girls - He Gets Me High
7. Toro Y Moi - Freaking Out EP
6. Black Milk and Danny Brown - Black and Brown EP
5. Burial - Street Halo EP
4. TV Girl - Benny and the Jetts
3. Clams Casino - Rainforest EP
The number of times I've peppered the tag "Clams Casino" throughout my too few blog posts surely testify to the reverance I have towards this guy. Released shortly after the Instrumental Mixtape, composed of the many beats made for Lil B, Soulja Boy, et al, Clams pursued the dense, cloudy production style in five solid new directions for the Rainforest EP. Released on Tri Angle Records, Rainforest fits right in with the beautiful, ethereal electronica of Holy Other and Balam Acab. And if you're unsure what my favourite track is, you might soon find out...
2. Nicolas Jaar - Don't Break My Love I reviewed this a few weeks ago. Read about it here. Instead I'll use this space to say how this EP has helped me rediscover Nicolas Jaar's debut album, Space Is Only Noise, after not quite "getting it" upon its release earlier in the year. Don't Break My Love is much more immedieate than its elder sibling; its two segnemts take their time to slowly build to form strange dancefloor manifestations. The kaleidoscopic shards that make up Space Is Only Noise work to form an organised whole. Don't Break My Love instead compresses the album's chopped vocal samples, feedback loops and clipped beats into utterly compelling modern electronica.
1. Hudson Mohawke - Satin Panthers
The most exciting EP of the year, Hudson Mohawke's Satin Panthers is brimming with more ideas than most full length albums you're likely to hear. A dizzying blend of past and future sounds bring a near-continuum of high after high; the enjoyment bought about by the number of things happening at once may only be rivalled by fellow Glaswegian Warp Records-signed Rustie (dream collaboration perhaps?), whose debut album Glass Swords was also released in 2011 (see below). HudMo seemingly accomplishes twice as much variety with Satin Panthers in less than half of Glass Swords' runtime. "Octan" starts things off with a 2-minute blast of rising and falling spacey synth textures, making room for "Thunder Bay", a rave/hip-hop mutation with strange synth-horn sounds. "Cbat" builds itself around a single chirpy phrase and grows as the drum patterns become more complex. On the other side, "All Your Love" couldn't sound more different: a highly-polished modern take of 90's rave and dancehall sped up way beyond what is necessary, and is just great fun. The final track "Thank You" serves as HudMo's victory lap, fusing everything incorporated so far: great drum programming, swirly, obnoxious synths and technicoloured Sega-esque charm. At less than 20 minutes, Satin Panthers is an essential sugar rush.
These are the rules I used to qualify my top 100 tracks of 2011:
One per artist. This is pretty much the only rule, and is also true for my albums list. The others just qualify this rule. Just so that I cangive the most coverage to artists I like really. Also makes it a bit simpler for me.
Collaborative tracks and tracks by single artists are allowed if the artists are equally billed. I'm talking about #51 and #29.
Feature spots are allowed an unlimited amount of times. Yes this list has a lot of Danny Brown. This isn't true for the artist for whom the track is mainly credited for however, it counts as their track.
Also these are single tracks, regardless of whether it counts as an official single or just an album track. EP's have a seperate list, just in case you didn't notice.
Here we go:
100. Nas - "Nasty"
99. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - "Ffunny Frends"
98. Big Troubles - "Sad Girls"
97. Jens Lekman - "Waiting for Kirsten"
96. Zola Jesus - "Vessel"
95. Tom Waits - "Bad as Me"
94. Kreayshawn - "Gucci Gucci"
93. Thurston Moore - "Blood Never Lies"
92. Bon Iver - "Holocene"
91. Foster the People - "Pumped up Kicks"
90. A$AP Rocky - "Palace"
89. Little Dragon - "Nightlight"
88. Adele - "Someone Like You"
87. My Morning Jacket - "Circuital"
86. Terius Nash - "Wedding Crasher"
85. Washed Out - "Eyes Be Closed"
84. TV on the Radio - "You"
83. Atlas Sound - "Te Amo"
82. Azaelia Banks - "212"
81. Korallreven - "As Young As Yesterday"
80. Russian Circles - "Mlàdek"
79. Trash Talk - "Awake"
78. Kate Bush - "Wild Man"
77. Wilco - "I Might"
76. Mr. Muthafuckin eXquire - "The Last Huzzah feat. Despot, Das Racist, Danny Brown, EL-P"
75. Black Lips - "Spidey's Curse"
74. Jamie xx - "Far Nearer"
73. Youth Lagoon - "Afternoon"
72. Beastie Boys - "Make Some Noise"
71. The Antlers - "Parentheses"
70. Colin Stetson - "Judges"
69. Cut Copy - "Need You Now"
68. Beyoncé - "Countdown"
67. Tyler, the Creator - "Yonkers"
66. Lykke Li - "I Follow Rivers"
65. Jay-Z & Kanye West - "Murder to Excellence"
64. Africa Hitech - "Light the Way"
63. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "Heaven's Gonna Happen Now"
62. Drake - "Headlines"
61. Charli XCX - "Nuclear Seasons"
60. Metronomy - "The Bay"
59. Real Estate - "It's Real"
58. Fucked Up - "Turn the Season"
57. Dum Dum Girls - "Bedroom Eyes"
56. Jacques Greene - "Another Girl" 55. Burial - "Stolen Dog"
54. The Drums - "Money"
53. Toro Y Moi - "New Beat"
52. Kendrick Lamar - "Rigamortis Remix feat. Busta Rhymes"
51. Black Milk and Danny Brown - "Zap" 50. JEFF the Brotherhood - "Hey Friend"
49. King Krule - "The Noose of Jah City"
48. Josh T. Pearson - "Sweetheart I Ain't Your Christ"
47. Hudson Mohawke - "Thunder Bay"
46. Nicki Minaj - "Super Bass"
45. Girls - "Honey Bunny"
44. The Roots - "Make My feat. Big K.R.I.T."
43. Panda Bear - "Last Night at the Jetty"
42. The Go! Team - "Buy Nothing Day feat. Bethany Cosentino"
41. Julian Lynch - "Canopy" 40. Four Tet - "Pyramid"
39. Jai Paul - "BTSTU"
38. Gang Gang Dance - "Glass Jar"
37. Gotye - "Somebody That I Used to Know feat. Kimbra"
36. Shabazz Palaces - "Youlogy"
35. Radiohead - "Give Up the Ghost"
34. Oneohtrix Point Never - "Replica"
33. SBTRKT - "Pharaohs feat. Roses Gabor"
32. Twin Sister - "Kimmi in a Rice Field"
31. Chelsea Wolfe - "Mer" 30. Rustie - "Ultra Thizz"
29. Danny Brown - "Monopoly"
28. TV Girl - "Benny and the Jetts"
27. Nicolas Jaar - "Space Is Only Noise if You Can See"
26. Cass McCombs - "County Line"
25. PJ Harvey - "The Words That Maketh Murder"
24. Kurt Vile - "Jesus Fever"
23. Yuck - "Get Away"
22. St. Vincent - "Surgeon"
21. Feist - "The Bad in Each Other" 20. The War on Drugs - "Baby Missiles" 19. The Rapture - "How Deep is Your Love?"
18. The Field - "Is This Power"
17. Iceage - "You're Blessed"
16. tUnE-yArDs - "Bizness"
15. Austra - "The Beast"
14. Fleet Foxes - "Grown Ocean"
13. The Strokes - "Under Cover of Darkness"
12. Thee Oh Sees - "Stinking Cloud"
11. James Blake - "The Wilhelm Scream"
10. Destroyer - "Kaputt" "Wasting your days, chasing some girls - alright chasing cocaine, through the backrooms of the world all night", utters Dan Bejar's breathy voice. There are fewer opening lines that are both immediately striking and memorable, and place the listener straight into a certain part of musical history. The title track to Destroyer's Kaputt is a definite high point of the album, a 6-minute adventure through layers of saxophone and soft-rock guitar of early 80's radio. The atention to detail is fantastic: the synth patterns and the female backing vocals each help to create something wistful and forlorn.
9. The Horrors - "Still Life"
Less of a New Romantic revivalist throwback, more of an expertly crafted psychadelic gem. "Still Life" takes time to bring in its component instruments one at a time, beginning with backwards guitar, then drums, bass, keyboards and eventually erupts into colour when Faris Badwan's vocal leads the chorus. Eveything seems to be timed just right and on cue, and feels much too organic to be wooden. The catharsis of this chorus, joined by horns, seems well-earned for both the listener and the Horrors' frontman. "The moment that you want is coming if you give it time".
8. Death Grips - "Beware"
Even the opening interview segment from Charles Manson offers no warning for the terror in store. The opening track to Death Grips' debut album Exmilitary, "Beware" means exactly what you might think. If you can't take the sludgiest of beats (courtesy of Hella's Zach Hil), driving buried, monotonous guitar drones, underpinning MC Ride shouting a truly satanic mantra: "I close my eyes and seize it./ I clench my fists and beat it./ I light my torch and burn it./ I am the beast I worship", then you're not going to get on very well with the rest of the album. You have been warned...
7. Battles - "Ice Cream feat. Matias Aguayo"
Who would have thought that following last year's departure of vocalist and key member Tyondai Braxton, Battles would announce their return with one of the quirkiest pop tunes of 2011? "Ice Cream" is certainly different, even by Battles' standards. The jolly, cutesy, innocent keyboard lines and monstrous drumming of John Stanier that work throughout the band's second album Gloss Drop to create extended, intricate jams instead follow a typical verse-chorus structure, complete with guest vocalist Matias Aguayo's demented babblings.
6. Holy Ghost! - "Wait and See"
I've praised Holy Ghost! in the past for being an excellent singles band. "Wait and See" is what I meant by that. If the duo were under pressure by DFA Records to carry the mantle after the unfortunate departure of the much-loved LCD Soundsystem, it was because of their genuine talent to create meaningful, authentic synth-pop tunes that celebrate their influences as much as they indulge in them (and allow others to indulge). Even above the rest of the fantastic year Holy Ghost! had: working with Michael McDonald, covering Ministry, it's that hook that kills it every single time.
5. Big K.R.I.T. - "Dreamin'"
One of Big K.R.I.T.'s main selling points is the way in which he breathes new life into classic southern hip-hop, in both his lyrics and production style. As a result many hailed his 2011 mixtape Return of 4Eva as an instant classic. With "Dreamin'" K.R.I.T. documents his rise to success with real earnesty and conviction; and in doing so shows a side to southern hip-hop that is rarely seen. Hidden under vinyl crackle is the most simplistic of beats,soulful vocals and guitar, yet the whole experience feels simultaneously cinematic and sincere, as K.R.I.T. addresses reputation, his religion and the measure of success.
4. Clams Casino - "Gorilla"
The final track of my third favourite EP of 2011, "Gorilla" sounds immense. Right from the beginning, a relentless march of cymbal crashes lead an army of deep, disembodied voices. Tension builds and falls as bass pulses carry the beat's momentum. Ultimately "Gorilla" may not be as different to some of the material on Clams' Instrumental Mixtape as other Rainforest tracks such as "Treetop" and "Natural" may be, but in other ways it's miles ahead: much too dense for a rapper or vocalist, it strikes a balance between the two releases, and sets a new standard for instrumental hip-hop.
3. Lana Del Rey - "Video Games"
It's really hard for me to come up with something to say that hasn't been written about this song, or to justify why I've placed it so highly, but I will try. None of the negative talk or the LDR hating can deny that we're in the transitional phase of a pop star being born. Regardless of any career decisions before or after Lizzy Grant's official debut single as Lana Del Rey, the song alone is a breathtaking, singular statement that we may only hope can be sustained throughout her debut album when it is released next month. "Video Games" is a beauty, that could exist during any point of the last 80 years.
2. The Weeknd - "House of Balloons/Glass Table Girls"
From the first (of three) mixtapes the Weeknd put of during 2011, there have been few tracks that have matched the qualiy of "House of Balloons/Glass Table Girls". Split into two halves, the focus of Abel Tesfaye's sharp lyricism brings the setting to within the party for a change, rather than before or after. The forced smiles for the decadence sex and drugs come through his aching voice, over the ironic "Happy House" sample. Through his storytelling and delivery, Tesfaye is able to make the most exciting of hedonistic temptations come across as grotesque.
1. M83 - "Midnight City"
After constantly revising the choices for the number one spot for the top 100 tracks of 2011, it became almost too obvious as to which track was going to win the crown. M83 have experimented with each album to portray Anthony Gonzalez's interpretation of a perfect pop song, and "Midnight City" is as close as he has ever come to manage the feat. Gonzalez claimed earlier this year that his new album Hurry Up, We're Dreaming was inspired to be the soundtrack to childhood, just as his previous album, 2008's Saturdays=Youth was an attempt to rekindle adolescence. As a result the track has both a fresh immediacy of an MGMT tune and evokes a worthy nostalgic quality through its shoegazey qualities; the kind of tune that could have appeared at any time in your life but is permanently lodged there after first listen. The lyrics are few, and not instantly noticeable: they paint a night time scene, a "ride in the dark" from a backseat vehicle, bringing back the magic to the simply mundane. The song closes with an unexpected but well-timed sax solo (and a closer look through this list shows that 2011 has had many of those), which only makes the fading out of the track more triumphant and euphoric. A new career high for M83; it's questionable whether anyone will be able to get this combination as right as this ever again.
These are the rules I used to qualify my top 50 albums of 2011:
One per artist, as in the tracks list. Fortunately there were quite a few this year who decided to release more than one album.
EP's do not count under any circumstances.
Official mixtapes qualify, provided they aren't classed as EP's.
Reissued albums, compilations and boxsets will also not be considered. Otherwise The SMiLE Sessions would probably be #1, and that hardly seems fair.
Live albums and live mixes do count, but I tend not to listen to them, hence why they aren't here. You'll have to find them elsewhere.
The top 10 albums on the list get an honourary 10/10 from me, now that the year's out.
It's time...
50. Holy Ghost! - Holy Ghost!
49. Thundercat - The Golden Age of Apocalypse
48. Russian Circles - Empros
47. Twin Sister - In Heaven
46. Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra
45. Radiohead - The King of Limbs
44. Africa Hitech - 93 Million Miles
43. Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts
42. Oneohtrix Point Never - Replica
41. The Antlers - Burst Apart
40. Chelsea Wolfe - Ἀποκάλυψις
39. Little Dragon - Ritual Union
38. Tom Waits - Bad as Me
37. Danny Brown - XXX
36. Atlas Sound - Parallax
35. Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges
34. Fucked Up - David Comes to Life
33. The Horrors - Skying
32. TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light
31. Rustie - Glass Swords
30. Julian Lynch - Terra
29. Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
28. Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
27. Clams Casino - Instrumental Mixtape
26. The Rapture - In the Grace of Your Love
25. Kendrick Lamar - Section.80
24. Beyoncé - 4
23. Shabazz Palaces - Black Up
22. Battles - Gloss Drop
21. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Belong
20. Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise
19. Big K.R.I.T. - Return of 4Eva
18. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
17. Balam Acab - WANDER / WONDER
16. Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
15. The Field - Looping State of Mind
14. Austra - Feel it Break
13. Iceage - New Brigade
12. Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring for My Halo
11. Thee Oh Sees - Castlemania
10. The Roots - undun
An extremely slick concept album documenting the life of fictional character Redford Stephens, the Roots' 13th studio album undun became 2011's last-minute surprise when it was released earlier in December. The Roots' usual blend of neo-soul hip-hop dominates the album, but every song hits its mark, and plays a valuable part to the bigger picture. Sufjan Stevens is enlisted to play out the incredibly moving coda, with his own "Redford". ?uestlove has called undun the album he has always wanted to make, and the best Roots album so far. From what's on offer it's really tough to disagree with him.
9. SBTRKT - SBTRKT
SBTRKT's debut plays out like a dedication to the last 20 years of UK bass music, filtered through his contemporary "post-dubstep" production style. Whether the music is flavoured with nods to early house ("Pharaohs"), or dark garage ("Right Thing to Do"), the roster of fantastic vocalists under SBTRKT's employment mean that every track feels right on the edge of modern British electronica and dance. Little Dragon's Yukimi Nagano, Roses Gabor and Jessie Ware form the female half of the album, but Sampha's high notes are the most infectious of all, perfectly married to SBTRKT's beats. An extremely strong debut set.
8. Destroyer - Kaputt
A very stylish album, Dan Bejar's Destroyer had a very clear artistic direction for Kaputt. Bejar is often likened to David Bowie; if this is the case Kaputt is Young Americans, a set of meticulously arranged, woodwind-orientated, poetic songs. The feeling of romanticism sweeps through the set, usually causing feelings of sadness and loss. Bejar takes the jazzier side to 80's soft rock with extended instrumental segments, bringing indie rock more "full circle" than ever before. But it's as a lyricist where Bejar excels, breaking your heart through his melted voice.
7. tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l
An album that is as philosophical as it is sonically chaotic is hard to come by, and harder still to take seriously. The second tUnE-yArDs LP w h o k i l l is able to manage however, with Merrill Garbus's world music-leaning rhythm and vocal loops expressing postmodern attitudes towards issues of gender, race and violence, and sometimes completely smashing into them. The whole experience is both exhilarating and confusing, and very hard to put down in terms of classification, but stands as a reflection of our modern times: colourful yet irritating, familiar yet deceptive. With w h o k i l l Garbus presents us with today's ever changing face of human nature, in its boldest form.
6. The Weeknd - House of Balloons
The fact that the remainder of 2011 following House of Balloons saw Drake trying his hardest to successfully imitate his protégéThe Weeknd's style speaks volumes of the the golden internet age of music discovery. The first Weeknd mixtape gathered the most hype in such a short space of time because of the conventions it seemed to break in bringing R&B a classier, more artistic end of a spectrum. And it was so fully formed right from the beginning to bring about this artistic change: fantastic production, a mysterious singer, and disturbing, masochistic tales that felt strangely relateable.
5. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake PJ Harvey has a reputation for reinventing herself with every album, and Let England Shake provides her listeners with one of her most consistent messages yet. An historical tribute to her home country, the album is a tight set of songs that serve as a particular temporal statement of the state of England in 2011, and in relation to the rest of the world. The choir of male voices, disillusioned bugles and the ethereal autoharp set the scene for the Great War storytelling, extended metaphors that serve as political foreshadowing to the backdrop of the events of 2011 and, what seems to be the unfortunate case, beyond.
4. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues There are no shortage of reasons as to why Fleet Foxes second album Helplessness Blues ought to be looked back upon as one of 2011's greats. A timeless set of songs that mature with every listen, Robin Pecknold's chamber-folk collective build upon their ambitious 2008 debut and offer a more varied sequel, stretching the boundaries of their unique blend of sounds. Pecknold questions the universe and one person's impact upon it; at times melancholic and others triumphant. Helplessness Blues is a whirlwind of emotions, and brings back into focus questions that have troubled the people of the earth for years.
3. St. Vincent - Strange Mercy Perhaps above all else, one thing Strange Mercy proves is that Annie Clark is one heck of a guitar player. The instrument often sounds ferocious as off -balance phrases bolt out from under her fingertips, and leads a swirling mixture of swelling strings and magical-sounding synths. This art-pop brew serves to demonstrate the extent of how far indie rock has travelled from its roots in hardcore punk and post-punk. Clark's vocals are ever-present, and in equal measures as firey as her guitar lines, and as breathtaking as the synthetic mix. The songs of Strange Mercy are at times unnerving, but always strong and truthful.
2. James Blake - James Blake As stale the hype for new artists may sometimes be, it's also refreshing for such an artist to meet and even surpass expectations their promising previous work was hinting towards. Following James Blake through 2010 to the start of 2011 was such an experience. Blake took an unexpected and ambitious turn when he released his self-titled debut: the amount of space on the album might force you to demand half your money back, if it wasn't for the fact that his tracks resemble traditional singer-songwriter tunes with a cavernous dubstep aesthetic much more than they do the work of an expert producer. Uniquely Blake is both.
1. Death Grips - Exmilitary
For many, 2011 in music began with the spotlight on a young MC called Tyler, the Creator and his collective Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, whose single "Yonkers" promised to bring forward a new interest in horrorcore and shock-rap. I choose to end 2011 with a sorely overlooked mixtape that did much more to genuinely shock and terrify than Tyler's disappointing Goblin had managed (though I will give it an honourable mention). Even at this stage there is little known about the Death Grips project, except it a collaboration of a rapper known as MC Ride and Zach Hill, who is most famous as the insanely technical drummer of the math-rock duo Hella. Ride has a voice similar in tone to the Wu-Tang Clan's RZA, except he chooses to shout and scream for virtually the entire album, almost to the point of parody and self-parody. The urgency with which he does so makes every lyric as compelling as the last; Exmilitary's lines run like a modern day Inferno or Paradise Lost, and are worth reading just by themself. Instrumentally it feels very much like the same beast; the body to Ride's tounge. Even more experimental than Shabazz Palaces debut album Black Up, which turned up later in the year, Exmilitary uses Hill's hardcore punk and industrial influences searingly. Many of the tracks use electronic noises also: traces of techno, jungle and IDM are spliced into the album's centre especially. And samples as diverse as Link Wray and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown fall somewhere in between, dropped unexpectedly into the stormiest of moments, perhaps as a part of its twisted humour. A unique and unflinching (and free) album, the scariest element of Exmilitary is its ability to makeits listener feel pumped, as if it's relentlessness is pounding through to the brain and controlling the body from within, to become the beast you worship...
This I threw together at the last minute, so no explnations given unfortunately. However a picture paints a thousand words, and these are moving pictures...
So I'm back. I've bought back a terrible cold with me, and cold sores on both lips, but I'm still in one piece. So I'm going to talk about three bands from each day that I saw entire sets from, and how they defined the festival experience for me. (All photos taken from the Reading + Leeds Festivals section of the BBC website, more of which can be found here.)
Friday The Antlers
Festival Republic Stage, 17:25
Foster the People played the Festival Republic stage just before the Antlers, the second-smallest stage of the arena, and the influx of people wanting to experience their particular brand of "pumped up kicks" was so great we were forced to turn back. I managed to sneak back here later however, and happily the Antlers' set was one of the most intimate I had at the festival, with an audience of just a few hundred. Opener "Corsicana" unfortunately lost some of its studio sheen, but the closing three songs "I Don't Want Love", "Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out" and "Putting the Dog to Sleep" more than made up the distance. I also saw the start of the new Mercury Music Prize favourite Anna Calvi's set just before I had to leave too. Needless to say, I wish I could have stayed. SBTRKT (DJ Set)
Dance Stage, 21:10
Hot new UK producer and masked marvel SBTRKT may have only released his debut album a couple of months ago, but festival organisers made the wise decision to give him second-headline slot on the one-day-only Dance Stage. He began with what can only be described as his remix of Radiohead's "Lotus Flower", that I reported a while ago. Now, I haven't been able to find supporting evidence for this anywhere, so you're going to have to take my word that he debuted it here and I will verify it assuming it sees the light of day soon. He also spun favourites from the likes of Jacques Greene and Hudson Mohawke, all in his signature "post-dubstep" style. The set finished with his signature hit "Wildfire", which surprisingly turned into a modest group sing-a-long, ending on a high. James Lavelle's mysterious UNKLE Sounds project was to follow, however despite being intrigued I left to go and see... The Horrors
Festival Republic Stage, 22:30
A late-night show of Horrors indeed. Faris Badwan's vocals ached over the hour-or-so set that took cues from all three of the Horrors' albums. Though putting these songs side-by-side may not have quite done the set justice in terms of consistency and continuity, it was nice to hear a retrospect of the band's progress up to this point. Although I can see myself in danger of being biased I do think that the tracks from their most recent album Skying translated the best into the small Festival Republic tent, the loud shoegazey guitarwork of Joshua Hayward resonated aggressively through "Endless Blue", adventurously through "I Can See Through You", and wistfully through "Still Life". A great way to see one of the most celebrated bands in the UK, and to end the first night of music Reading had to offer.
Saturday The National Main Stage, 18:45
Working our way towards one of the best vantage points of the Main Stage, we started the magnificent Saturday three-band run with the National. Their particularly broody and angsty performance was the necessary polar opposite to the crowd-pleasers earlier in the day like Seasick Steve and Madness. Their set was nicely balanced between their huger cathartic ballads ("Terrible Love", "Bloodbuzz Ohio") and softer, more horn-led tracks ("England", "Fake Empire"), and represented their previous two albums, Boxer and High Violet, especially well. Although not as well-known as the Strokes, the National have been working together for just as long, and their expertise showed as the sun set over the festival arena, ushering in the night of fine indie-based rock music to come.
Pulp
Main Stage, 20:15
"Are you ready?" read the backdrop screen, and again for what seemed like forever, until finally it read "Do you remember the first time?". Pulp had finally returned, and Jarvis Cocker made it clear to everyone that the gap between their first appearance at the festival in 1994 and 2011 would be bridged. Virtually every song from Different Class was played; but of course "Common People" was left for the grand finale. One of Britain's all-time great live bands were bound to attract the highest of expectations, but Pulp managed to easily meet and exceed what anyone could have expected, just as electrifying and more importantly relevant as the titular "first time". If you've never seen live footage of them before, I implore you to click here.
The Strokes
Main Stage, 22:15
If it wasn't clear before Pulp's set that the Strokes would have the most pressure to deliver their audience into the night, it certainly was afterwards. Julian Casablancas and co. threw as many great songs from their catalogue as quickly as possible to create a turbocharged run that ended with the heartfelt "Someday". Ironically it was down to "the Jarv" to pick the pace back up again, the Pulp frontman joining the stage to perform the Cars' classic "Just What I Needed". It was worth waiting for the encore; Is This It's "Hard to Explain" and "Take it or Leave it" ending just as the band had started, proving worthy headliners and reminding us which side of the Atlantic rock and roll really comes from.
Sunday
Friendly Fires
Main Stage, 17:20
The image of the bird of paradise which features on the cover of Friendly Fires' recent sophmore LP Pala seemed to be the perfect indicator of what was to come during the band's Main Stage stint. They played as passionately as singer Ed Macfarlane danced, and the audience participation was so much that almost everyone got onto their feet. The crowd size also grew significantly as the set went on. "Hawaiian Air" introduced Hawaiian dancers, and "Kiss of Life" crescendoed into a rapturous grand finale, Macfarlane reminding everyone "This is your last chance to dance". Colourful, inspiring and energetic, Friendly Fires certainly delivered, no less weary after their huge UK festival tour they've already journeyed this summer. This is why they're favourites.
Death From Above 1979
NME/Radio 1 Stage, 19:00
I had to be sure that my most anticipated band of the festival, the one I had been waiting all weekend for, would not disappoint, and they certainly didn't. Death From Above 1979 played an hour-long set featuring every song from their sole album and more, and from the extended "Turn it Out" intro Sebastien Grainger and Jesse Keeler didn't let up once, thrashing monstrously in the same spot I'd seen the equally as energetic Odd Future and Fucked Up perform earlier. One of the highlights of the whole festival was when the newly beach-blonde Grainger jumped up from his drum kit during "Romantic Rights" and grabbed the microphone, and sang screechier then I'd ever heard him before, before returning to send the sucker home. You get the feeling these guys have four balls each.
The Streets
NME/Radio 1 Stage, 20:20
In a choice between Elbow and the Streets, Mike Skinner's long-running garage pop project came out on top. For me they turned out to be the best surprise of the festival. Skinner and the fans became one as they hung onto his every word, as though wishing him well in his new endeavours beyond the soon-to-be terminated Streets. Key singles "Blinded by the Lights", "Dry Your Eyes" and "Going Through Hell" were met with the most joyous singing, and it was hard not to get emotional each time Skinner announced "I die here tonight". Little did I know this was to be the Streets final performance, and I was so enthralled that the next day after returning home I went out and got a copy of Original Pirate Material on CD to find out exactly what I had missed out on. Best of luck in the future, Mike.
Other artists I enjoyed full or partial sets of, but are not mentioned here included Mount Kimbie, Kirk Spencer, Simian Mobile Disco, Seasick Steve, OFWGKTA, Fucked Up, Frank Turner and Muse.
If I were to make a playlist of the festival, it would look something like:
Moumt Kimbie - "Before I Move Off"
The Antlers - "I Don't Want Love"
SBTRKT ft. Little Dragon and Drake - "Wildfire RMX"
The Horrors - "Endless Blue"
Seasick Steve ft. John Paul Jones - "Walkin Man"
Mellowhype - "64"
The National - "Terrible Love"
Pulp - "Do You Remember the First Time?"
The Strokes - "Someday"
Fucked Up - "Queen of Hearts"
Frank Turner - "I Still Believe"
Friendly Fires - "Jump in the Pool"
Death From Above 1979 - "Pull Out"
The Streets - "Dry Your Eyes"
Muse - "New Born"
The Strokes ft. Jarvis Cocker - "Just What I Needed"
Watch clips/festival highlights of many of the artists at Reading Festival over at the Reading + Leeds Festivals section of the BBC website, here.
A list of songs from the past twelve months to get ready for the summer weeks ahead. These are the ones I'll mainly be spinning, though of course there are others from previous years that have become mainstays, just trying to be original. Great for any upcoming barbecues, or journeys to and from festivals. I'd give them a shuffle mind, as they'e largely come straight from memory, with no particular order to them. I might come back here to add more if I think of any. Sit back with a choice cool beverage and enjoy.
Cut Copy - "Take Me Over"
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "Heart in your Heartbreak"
Belle & Sebastian - "I Didn't See it Coming" (Richard X Remix)
Smith Westerns - "Weekend"
Washed Out - "Eyes Be Closed"
Nicki Minaj - "Super Bass"
TV on the Radio - "You"
Toro Y Moi - "New Beat"
Hercules & Love Affair - "My House"
Beastie Boys - "Make Some Noise"
Battles ft. Matias Aguayo - "Ice Cream"
Death Cab for Cutie - "You Are a Tourist"
Cults - "Go Outside"
My Morning Jacket - "Circuital"
Times New Viking - "No Room to Live"
Thee Oh Sees - "I Need Seed"
Unknown Mortal Orchestra - "Ffunny Frends"
Givers - "Ceiling of Plankton"
Gruff Rhys - "Honey All Over"
Pure X - "Dream Over"
Antlers - "I Don't Want Love"
Fleet Foxes - "Battery Kinzie"
Yuck - "Get Away"
Metronomy - "The Bay"
Foster The People - "Pumped Up Kicks"
Dom - "Living in America"
Anamanaguchi - "Airbrushed"
The Lonely Island ft. Akon - "I Just Had Sex"
Jamie xx - "Far Nearer"
Beastie Boys ft. Santigold - "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win" (Major Lazer Remix)
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - "Senator"
Sun Airway - "Wild Palms"
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - "Fright Night (Nevermore)" (Dâm-Funk Remix)
Duck Sauce - "Barbra Streissand"
Handsome Furs - "Bury Me Standing"
Black Lips - "New Direction"
Dum Dum Girls - "He Gets Me High"
Clams Casino - "Motivation"
Marissa Nadler - "The Sun Always Reminds Me of You"
Kurt Vile - "Jesus Fever"
Woods - "Pushing Onlys"
No Age - "Fever Dreaming"
Panda Bear - "Last Night at the Jetty"
Deerhunter - "Desire Lines"
The Horrors - "Still Life"
Ty Segall - "You Make the Sun Fry"
The War on Drugs - "Baby Missiles"
Frank Ocean - "Nature Feels"
Gunnar Bjerk - "Back Then"
Fucked Up - "Queen of Hearts"
Bibio - "K Is for Kelson"
Holy Ghost! - "Wait and See"
The Go! Team ft. Bethany Cosentino - "Buy Nothing Day"
Cold Cave - "The Great Pan Is Dead"
Gang Gang Dance - "Glass Jar"
Big K.R.I.T. ft. David Banner - "Sookie Now"
The Strokes - "Under Cover of Darkness"
The Rapture - "How Deep Is Your Love?"
Aloe Blacc - "I Need a Dollar"
PJ Harvey - "Written on the Forehead"
Justice - "Civilization"
YACHT - "Dystopia (The Earth Is on Fire)"
Sufjan Stevens - "Too Much"
Lykke Li - "I Follow Rivers" (Dave Sitek Remix)
Lupe Fiasco - "The Show Goes On"
Yeah, thought I ought to do something like this to make up for the inactivity over the last few months, not to mention the first couple of months before the blog started. Although I divided the albums into genres as to avoid direct ranking there is definitely some overlap to be had. If you consider yourself to be a fan of a particular genre, I highly recommend checking out each of the albums displayed under the relevant heading. Only albums and EP's from January to June 2011 have been included, and no decision is ever final, more of just an idea of what I think of right now (a few might be the result of being recently passed through my speakers, but hopefully I've eliminated a great deal of bias). I'm bound to have missed a few good ones, so this is a great chance to start leaving me comments. Also apologies if the images are a little small, its the best my creative skills could manage.
Pop
(l-r)Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes, Gruff Rhys - Hotel Shampoo, The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts,
Givers - In Light, tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l
Rock
(l-r) TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light, Fucked Up - David Comes to Life, Radiohead - The King of Limbs
Punk/Post-Punk
(l-r) Times New Viking - Dancer Equired, Iceage - New Brigade, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Belong,
Deerhoof - Deerhoof vs. Evil
Rap/Hip-Hop
(l-r) Death Grips - Exmilitary, Beastie Boys - Hot sauce Committee Pt.2, Big K.R.I.T. - Return of 4Eva,
Shabazz Palaces - Black Up, Tyler, the Creator - Goblin
Dance
(l-r) Cut Copy - Zonoscope, Junior Boys - It's All True, Metronomy - The English Riviera,
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
R&B
(l-r) The Weeknd - House of Balloons, Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra, Beyoncé - 4
Singer/Songwriter
(l-r) Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts, Julian Lynch - Terra, PJ Harvey - Let England Shake,
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
Electronic
(l-r) Burial - Street Halo EP, Prefuse 73 - The Only She Chapters, James Blake - James Blake,
Africa HiTech - 93 Million Miles, Panda Bear - Tomboy
(l-r) Thee Oh Sees - Castlemania, Black Lips - Arabia Mountain, Dum Dum Girls - He Gets Me High EP,
Unknown Mortal Orchestra - Unlnown Mortal Orchestra
Instrumental/Other
(l-r) Battles - Gloss Drop, Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges,
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead - Tao of the Dead,
Clams Casino - Instrumental Mixtape/Rainforest EP
Here are a few electronic, hip-hop and dance tracks I've been playing this month. Pretty broad for a playlist but I think it matches the quality of the music I feel the need to compile, much of which will feature on albums I'm really looking forward to hearing.. Although I'm bound to regret this later I've embedded a load of players linking to appropriate tracks, and many of these tracks are downloadable, in particular those with *asterisks. I'll let the music do the talking for me:
And just in case that multimedia onslaught is too much, here's the list again without any fancy distractions:
Nas - "Nasty"
Gold Panda - "MPB"
Jamie xx - "Far Nearer"
YACHT - "Utopia"
Thundercat - "Daylight"
Zomby - "A Devil Lay Here"
Balam Acab - "Oh, Why"
Ford & Lopatin - "Channel Pressure"
SBTKT - "Wildfire"
Clams Casino - "Treetop"
John Maus - "Head for the Country"
Washed Out - "Amor Fati"
Shabazz Palaces- "Swerve... The reeping of all that is worthwhile (Noir not withstanding)"
The Rapture - "How Deep Is Your Love?"
Sun Airway - "Wild Palms"
Brian Eno - "Pour it Out"
Apologies for any mistakes, or any number of things at could go wrong. Enjoy.
Yeah I'm doing this again. The 5 I didn't review last time are here along with a number of albums I haven't yet listened to, another retro, and four I felt ought to be included because of a certain feature I ran not too long ago. I found that the albums I have listened to since last month don't really fit into this feature, yet I still want to talk about some of them because of the fact a few were pretty good, so I'll think of a way to do that. Here's what we have for now:
Akron/Family - Akron/Family II (The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT)
Lupe Fiasco - Lasers
The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol.2: Judges
Bibio - Mind Bokeh
Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
Foo Fighters - Wasting Light
Holy Ghost! - Holy Ghost!
Lil B - Illusions of Grandeur
Low - C'mon
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Peter Bjorn and John - Gimme Some
TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light
[Retro Review] XTC - Drums and Wires
Once again it'll be one per day or as close as I can, and the choices are randomly drawn out of a hat. If for whatever reason an album becomes unavailable to me I'll change it for a different one and update asap. Any recommendations for next month? Leave them in the comments.
I'm giving myself both a hefty challenge and an opportunity to listen to some new music that I otherwise would've missed out on here. The Mini Review idea combines both a list of albums to check out each month (although I'm compensating for the last three) and a chance for me to give my honest opinion on them in just a few words, something which I haven't really done yet. From the list of 15 albums below (none of which I have properly given a listen to) I will choose 9 at random, literally out of a hat, and somehow get the obligatory retro review in as well to total 10; the other five may roll over to the next month, but we'll see. Starting Wednesday I will do my best to review one a day for ten days, and maybe choose an overall recommendation at the end based on my opinions. The random element also means I'll have to do a lot of background reading and listening in advance for some with relatively short notice. But I've gone on enough now. The 15 albums up for Mini Review are as follows:
Akron/Family - Akron/Family II (The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT)
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead - Tao of the Dead
Anna Calvi - Anna Calvi
Lupe Fiasco - Lasers
The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
(Retro Review) Madness - Wonderful
Mogwai - Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will
R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now
Gruff Rhys - Hotel Shampoo
Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol.2: Judges
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring for My Halo
Yuck - Yuck
So come back on Wednesday when I'll hopefully have the first Mini Review. Any reccomendations for next month's Mini Reviews are also appreciated, just leave them in the comments. But not the retro review - I have to have some creative freedom after all!
BTW I've been listening to both bigger and lesser-known albums this year, it's just these are ones I haven't managed to spend any time with. Shameful for a few of these I know, but at least now I'll be able to put things a little better. Also I'd like to be doing song, EP and album reviews in full in the near future, this isn't as far as it goes for me. And obviously I'll be coming up with more list ideas also.
Entirely different list from my previous one, this takes us through the officially announced albums which I am looking forward to most during the first half of this year, in order of release date.
Please note release dates are correct at time of writing but my be subject to change if the artist/label feels like it.
The Strokes - Angles
Highly anticipated fourth album from the band hailed as the saviours of rock and roll ten years ago, would you believe it. The Strokes’s reputation is not without merit though, they’re easily one of the great urban storytelling bands of our times, and it seems as if the wider music community will never be able to shake off the magical feeling that comes around the build up to an album release. New tracks "Under Cover of Darkness" and the recently-dropped "You’re So Right" seem to be a return to roots and an interesting new direction respectively ("I had some early R.E.M. vibes for a minute or two", says singer Julian Casablancas). I’ve got that magical feeling over this one, check out "Under Cover of Darkness" below and hopefully experience it for yourself.
Angles is released via Rough Trade on 21/3/11 in the UK and via RCA on 22/3/11 in the US.
Bibio - Mind Bokeh
Bibio is the name given to electronic producer and Boards of Canada protégé Stephen Wilkinson, whose from my neck of the woods actually, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, UK. His signature sound often encompasses guitar and piano amongst bleeps and hazy textures. His work often contains elements of 60’s folk-pop and jazz, and I was both surprised and delighted when I recently heard one of his songs "Lovers’ Carvings" on an ad for Amazon's Kindle, taken from his 2009 album Ambivalence Avenue. However Mind Bokeh’s opening track "Excuses" sounds so far removed from "Lovers’ Carvings" that I’m expecting the album to be quite the ride once it’s released.
Mind Bokeh is released via Warp on 29/3/11 in the US and 4/4/11 in the UK/ROW.
Holy Ghost! - Holy Ghost!
Signed to the legendary DFA Records, Holy Ghost! have already released a ton of singles and high-profile remixes, but we shouldn’t have to wait much longer for their debut album. Like their older brother labelmates LCD Soundsystem they produce New Wave and disco-sounding dance music, only more in keeping with those genres and groups of that time, such as the Human League and Soft Cell. Their 2010 Static on the Wire EP was well received, and produced gems such as "I Will Come Back", the video of which is a near-perfect update of New Order’s "Confusion". If that wasn’t enough to show you how great these guys are, take a listen to new album track “Do It Again” below, or download it here.
Holy Ghost! is released via DFA on iTunes on 5/4/11 and CD/LP on 12/4/11.
TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light
Like the Strokes, TV on the Radio’s reputation and critical acclaim they gathered over the past decade serves them well as fans await their fifth LP Nine Types of Light. Tunde Adebimpe’s sonically rich and diverse indie rockers stunned both critics and listeners alike with their albums Return to Cookie Mountain and Dear Science, pushing the boundaries of experimentation within the genre to the limit. Adebimpe’s soulful high vocal register and David Sitek’s often raucous distorted guitar lay the foundations, but what follows from track to track is anyone’s guess. The band’s knowledge and range of influences make them truly unique, and new album track "Will Do" is a welcome introduction to the new album, potentially one of the sexiest songs we’ll get to hear this year, and yet another new exploration for the band.
Nine Types of Light is released via Interscope on 12/4/11.
Panda Bear - Tomboy
This album in particular has been a long time coming for many, owing to both the rise in popularity of Animal Collective (reaching it’s current pinnacle in 2009 with the release of Merriweather Post Pavilion), and the huge fanbase of Panda Bear’s previous solo record Person Pitch in 2006. Both albums are milestones in the independent music scene and will likely be remembered as two of our generations finest. Whether Panda Bear’s (or Noah Lennox’s) new album will be comparable to these is anybody’s guess, but music fans of a particular nature have their eyes firmly on this one, and have rabidly been lapping up the stream of 7" singles in anticipation already. Lennox is certainly capable of producing great things, but only when his singles are heard in the album’s context can we really know if Tomboy is another of these.
Tomboy is released via Paw Tracks on 12/4/11.
Explosions in the Sky - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
Post-rock instrumental Texans Explosions in the Sky create some of the most lush, emotive and grand music of their genre, drawing comparisons from Mogwai to Sigur Rós. They’re a band who seem to amaze and expand their audiences with each album, and this streak will likely continue when Take Care, Take Care, Take Care is released. The range of sounds gained from just drums and guitar are extraordinary in the hands of these guys, and the band are able to fashion album after album of tearjerkers and euphoric soundscapes often using just these. Personally I’m not the biggest post-rock fan but this music seems to work for me a lot better than most of this band’s contemporaries. Fans of the genre or those who like their rock a little more interesting will undoubtedly enjoy this once it’s released.
Take Care, Take Care, Take Care is released via Bella Union on 18/4/11 in the UK and 25/4/11 for the rest of Europe, and via Temporary Residence on 26/4/11 in the US.
Tyler, the Creator - Goblin
Cover for "Yonkers" single
Well any upcoming release from new hype vehicle Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, really. OFWGKTA are the hot topic of conversation right now for fans of underground hip-hop and the music blogosphere in general. The young LA-based collective have been hailed by some as the new Wu-Tang Clan, a statement undoubtedly with some weight behind it. Odd Future are nothing if not prolific: you can download several albums and mixtapes from each member over at their website if you’re into that sort of thing. Amongst the most prolific members of Odd Future, one that stands out most from the crowd is Tyler, the Creator or Wolf Haley, who wants everyone to believe he’s both a genius and a psychopath. The track "Yonkers" has gathered the most buzz to date, and will feature on Tyler’s second album Goblin, set for release sometime during April.I'll update once we get a better idea.
Goblin is released via XL Recordings circa 4/11.
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Chances are you’ve already listened to the songs on Fleet Foxes’ debut album, and if that’s the case you’ll likely want to open your wallet for when their follow-up arrives, Helplessness Blues. The band, led by Robin Pecknold combine traditional and English folk with Brian Wilson’s sense of melody and instrumentation to forge timeless tunes with the richest of harmonies. I will be interested as to whether the new album will be able to match up against the most gorgeous moments of the Sun Giant EP and Fleet Foxes, but the title track tells me that I don’t have much to worry about. Music like this exists out of time, place and fashion, and is something for all to enjoy.
Helplessness Blues is released via Bella Union on 2/5/11 in the UK and via Sub Pop on 3/5/11 in the US.
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
I can think of no better example of the underground sonic experimentations coming from New York right now than those of Gang Gang Dance. Still widely unknown but with the acknowledgement of their peers, and with the potential to release a game-changing album. Overshadowed by some, yet easily identifiable, they are able to synthesise the sounds around their scene and yet achieve uniqueness and gratitude from many of those willing to dig to find them: Percussive dance punk with world, electronic, art-rock and hip-hop textures. The first track to be released from their new album Eye Contact is the opener “Glass Jar”, an eleven minute sprawl that rewards those who are prepared to stick it out. Hopefully the rest of the album follows suit equally as well. I’ll say no more.
Eye Contact is released via 4AD on 9/5/11.
Battles - Gloss Drop
Cover Art TBC
In my opinion, Battles’ debut album Mirrored is a modern classic. It somehow manages to be both nerdy, mathy prog-rock, and yet it’s dynamic brilliance means that to those who are aware of it there is no other substitute for bedroom dancing and freaking out, it wins you over without having to put up too much of a fight. However the group have experienced recent setbacks; after the departure of singer/multi-instrumentalist Tyondai Braxton the remaining three members, each from other renowned bands, decided to scrap their material and work on their follow-up to Mirrored, Gloss Drop as a trio. Unfortunately no new songs have been released as of yet, however looking at the tracklist , the prospects of tracks with guest vocals from none other than synthpop legend Gary Numan and the wildly exciting frontman of Boredoms, Yamantaka Eye are enough to keep my appetite whetted, stretching the limits of what this band can deliver. I’ll end my list of my 10 most anticipated album releases of 2011 with the classic Battles song "Atlas", taken from Mirrored.
Gloss Drop is released via Warp on 7/6/11 in the US and 6/6/11 in the UK/ROW.
What albums are you looking forward to this year? I’ll be interested to see how these albums will compare to my expectations, what I’ll end up talking about at the end of the year, and how the releases of this year compare with 2010 and 2012.
