2010 Magazine's Albums Of The Year Thread For Posting Lists and Discussion

lol

Well of course she didn't made it in the same degree as sat ke$ha or lady gaga but I did hear some of her songs on the radio this year frequently and I've heard my brother and his friends - who have a pretty mainstream taste and are my basis for what is becoming popular out there in the real world - playing her music on their gatherings. In any case she became more ubiquitious in my world than I expected her to be.

While I'm at it Janelle Monae and YahZarah also deserved more attention this year. I get Janelle Monae was pretty popular amongst critics this year but it didn't feel to me like her singles 'tightrope' or 'cold war' made as much a popular stirring as they wanted them to or at least not where I come from... come to think of it I don't think I heard anyone drop Janelle Monae out of my room this year.

Monae was the house band at the ESPY Awards, fwiw.

Monae needs to be more famous than she is imo

ESPYs also had waka doing live performances w/ a marching band, so someone there has good taste

To be reductive, uk funky is "underground" enough that it's likely only going to be on the radar of dance music publications with an emphasis on explicitly (or purportedly) progressive/forward-slanted aesthetics, but doesn't chime in sufficiently with the other signifiers associated with that aesthetic(s) so as to generate much critical enthusiasm.

uk funky producers also DON'T RELEASE THEIR MUSIC, c'mon tim you can't pretend that's not a factor at all!

sadly the priority placed on forward-thinking aesthetics is something i can't deny that other critics employ, but a) w/r/t dance music that's something that is, as you hint, totally tied up with what's always driven actual dancefloors, which have to renew themselves every few years anyway, b) it's far from the only reason stuff gets critical momentum - look at how much dance music (azari & iii, house of house) gets praise for being retro-nostalgic.

also funky is a pretty bad example given that it DID get a ton of critical hype for fitting into exactly that forward-thinking aesthetic you describe and the actual sound hasn't got any less ~innovative~ - it's just retreated into itself as a scene.

Nina Sky YAY!
Kelis YAY!
Amerie YAY!
Cassie YAY!
VS
La Roux NAY!
Lady Gaga NAY!
Ke$ha NAY!
Robyn NAY!

i agree with all of these btw.

^likes black girls

nina sky are latina, right?

and kelis and amerie are both half-asian...and i think cassie's mixed too.

oh i was just repeating an old gabbneb post

that wasn't to be taken seriously

uk funky producers also DON'T RELEASE THEIR MUSIC, c'mon tim you can't pretend that's not a factor at all!

This is less the fault of the producers and more an issue with a complete lack of commercial infrastructure to support funky. There are still no UK funky record labels with any real profile or identity that I'm aware of - certainly no one that's immediately associable with the scene. This is unthinkable for any dance genre over two years old. It's no coincidence that the UK labels with the most critical momentum right now (Hyperdub, Night Slugs, Hessle Audio) are also the ones who are best at promoting and branding themselves and have really strong visual identities. Also yeah, mostly being white people probably helps as well.

also funky is a pretty bad example given that it DID get a ton of critical hype for fitting into exactly that forward-thinking aesthetic you describe and the actual sound hasn't got any less ~innovative~ - it's just retreated into itself as a scene.

I don't think it got THAT much critical hype, but hype's a double-edged sword for reasons I'll get into later. Having a stupid genre name doesn't help, but it doesn't really fit that classic forward thinking narrative very well. You can see it in the disttust and confusion it elicits in yer Simon Reynoldses and whatnot. The scene is entirely about socafied beats and tribal bangers, with other elements including pop songs worked into that framework.

But it's NOT self-consciously forward looking in the way that eg techno is, it's closer to the glammer end of high street house. The producers aren't interested in sounding futuristic, they're not particularly interested in "sound design" and the actual sonics are often pretty rudimentary - it's closer to grime in its ramshackle, DIY ethos than it is to dubstep. These are all things that are actually offputting to a lot of critics. It's the same mindset that caused the Brit press to go mad over the "forward thinking" Timbaland/Neps/Missy/Aaliyah rnb of the early 00s while ignoring, say, Teedra Moses. There's also a long-standing fear within parts of the dance press of being seen to rep too hard for anything that might be seen as too chavvy - FACT 2010 is similar to Jockey Slut 1999-2000 in that regard.

But yeah, I don't think being "retreating into itself" is necessarily a problem here an neither do you given you've been repping for Chicago juke this year. Scenes need time to develop out of the limelight. You look at the parallel development of grime and dubstep - grime was forced into the critical light too soon, way before it was ready, and it was met with a mixture of overhype and suspicion followed by confusion, ridicule, fear and suspicion. It collapsed into itself for years and then had to totally reinvent itself and go full-on commercial to get anywhere. Dubstep was allowed to grow more organically out of the glare and managed to gain solid ground-level support and grow organically and is now succceeding on its own terms. The latter's a much better blueprint for funky really.

This is all off the point really - the Mixmags of this world cover commercial dance a lot more than the online press do. Although I'd bet any money that Kanye wins their albums poll.

Actually a quick look at the Mixmag site reveals big Swedish House Mafia/Deadmau5/Pascha banners and they've put fucking Calvin Harris and Will.i.am on the cover of late. I think it's safe to say they're comfortable with this stuff.

Dagbladet (Norway)

INTERNATIONAL :

1. Kanye West «My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy»
2. Big Boi «Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty»
3. Deerhunter «Halcyon Digest»
4. Robyn «Body Talk»
5. Janelle Monáe «The ArchAndroid»
6. Mary Gauthier «The Foundling»
7. AfroCubism «AfroCubism»
8. Best Coast «Crazy For You»
9. Håkan Hellström «2 steg från Paradise»
10. LCD Soundsystem «This Is Happening»
11. Deftones: «Diamond Eyes»
12. Dungen: «Skit i allt»
13. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti: «Before Today»
14. The Besnard Lakes: «Are the Roaring Night»
15. Twin Shadow: «Forget»
16. Jamey Johnson: «The Guitar Song»
17. Charlotte Gainsbourg: «IRM»
18. Caribou: «Swim»
19. John Mellencamp: «No Better Than This»
20. Mavis Staples: «You Are Not Alone»
21. Neil Young: «Le Noise»
22. Arcade Fire: «The Suburbs»
23. Matthew Dear: «Black City»
24. Zola Jesus: «Stridulum II»
25. Robert Plant: «Band of Joy»
26. Beach House: «Teen Dream»
27. Justin Townes Earle: «Harlem River Blues»
28. Los Lobos: «Tin Can Trust»
29. The-Dream: «Love King»
30. Iron Maiden: «The Final Frontier»

NORWAY :

1. Kvelertak «Kvelertak»
2. Susanne Sundfør «The Brothel»
3. Motorpsycho «Heavy Metal Fruit»
4. Lars Vaular «Helt om natten, helt om dagen»
5. Serena Maneesh «S-M No 2: Abyss In B Minor»
6. Thomas Dybdahl «Waiting For That One Clear Moment»
7. Ost & Kjex «Cajun Lunch»
8. Hellbillies «Leite etter lykka»
9. Odd Nordstoga «November»
10. Kråkesølv «Bomtur til jorda»
11. Röyksopp «Senior»
12. Shining «Blackjazz»
13. Karpe Diem «Aldri solgt en løgn»
14. Frida Ånnevik «Synlige hjerteslag»
15. Narum «Ælt som var søkk borte»
16. Lindstrøm & Christabelle «Real Life Is No Cool»
17. Casiokids «Topp stemning på lokal bar»
18. Bjørn Eidsvåg «Rundt neste sving»
19. Grande «You Are The Night»
20. Kenneth Ishak & The Freedom Machines «Kenneth Ishak & The Freedom Machines»
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ESPYs also had waka doing live performances w/ a marching band, so someone there has good taste

:D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dk-A21vtBJA

Minor lol at Lindstrøm & Christabelle being the 16th best Norwegian album of the year...who are Kvelertak?

GEIR TO THREAD.

Kvelertak are sort of somewhere between progressive metal and hardcore punk, sing in Norwegian have seen it pick up a few votes in metalheads lists.

Saw Susanne Sundfør perform in Brighton this summer, she was excellent The Brother is a lot more adventurous then the previous two albums.

I guess the Norwegians know best themselves but I'm genuinely aggrieved that Arabrot aren't in that list. Likewise Shining.

Except they are.

Sorry.

idk if Arabrot have that much domestic game, didn't get that impression when I've spoke to them... I mean Dagbladet is like one of the biggest daily papers right? Surprised-ish at Lindstrom but this time last year half of us were going "wow this should be 2010's crossover pop hit blah etc" and look where that got it

Yeah, they're tiny aren't they? If it's any consolation I feel the same way when The News Of The World don't rep for Dethscalator in their end of year poll.

FACT Magazine's Top 20 Tracks of the year:

20: INJA HLUNGWANI - ‘N’WAGEZANI MY LOVE’
19: AUTRE NE VEUT - ‘NEW DEPTH’
18: ENDGAMES - ‘ECSTASY’ (JAM CITY REFIX)
17: BIG BOI - ‘SHUTTERBUGG’
16: ADDISON GROOVE - ‘FOOTCRAB’
15: DEADBOY - ‘OFFICIAL GIRL’
14: FOREST SWORDS - ‘MIARCHES’
13: THE-DREAM - ‘YAMAHA’
12: ERIK & FIEDEL - ‘NOUS SOMMES MMM’
11: MATTHEW DEAR - ‘SLOWDANCE’
10: DRAKE feat. THE-DREAM - ‘SHUT IT DOWN’
09: KINK - ‘EXISTENCE’
08: PANTHA DU PRINCE feat. PANDA BEAR - ‘STICK TO MY SIDE’
07: ACTRESS - ‘MAZE’
06: JAMES BLAKE - ‘CMYK’
05: KANYE WEST feat. PUSHA T - 'RUNAWAY’
04: MOSCA - ‘SQUARE ONE’
03: DJ ZINC feat. MS. DYNAMITE -‘WILE OUT’
02: RAMADANMAN - ‘GLUT’
01: TEENGIRL FANTASY -‘CHEATERS’

Full Top 100 List on website

The Midnight Magic/Jacques Renault record is a jam and the whole Permanent Vacation comp it comes from is ace.

didnt even realise there was a selected label works 2! why does no one tell me these things

Yamaha is too low, but respect for voting Wile Out so high. Whole list is a bit depressingly blokey and moody, although I find myself liking Ramadanman more and more and the Kink record at #9 is a straight-up banger.

Tim F I would strongly advise against reading the blurb for that Moscsa record!

(xpost Selected Label Works 2 is great but isn't quite up there with Vol. 1 but it does have Lauer's Delta NRG on it which is total hands-in-the-air awesomeness).

Also that Deadboy treatment of Official Girl... hasn't poor Cassie suffered enough?

fact 100 2010 spotify platlist. only 61/100, spotify's a bit rub

Kvelertak are sort of somewhere between progressive metal and hardcore punk, sing in Norwegian have seen it pick up a few votes in metalheads lists.

Decibel named that their #22 metal album of the year! And I thought their description sounded interesting: "...seamlessly synthesize the unlikely and disparate elements of refinery-burning garage rock, black metal, re-jigged Norwegian folk talkes sung in their native tongue and owls drawn by John Baizley." I thought #29, an EP by a Washington band called Christian Mistress, sounded potentially cool, too. But I'm getting real lazy when it comes to seeking out metal albums. Also I have no idea who John Baizley is.

I like both the Kvelertak and Christian Mistress; check out "Mjød" by the former and "Black Vigil" by the latter on youtube. Well worth the few minutes that will take.

Baizley is the singer from Baroness and he does the artwork for their albums, as well as tons of other bands - Torche, Darkest Hour, Kylesa, Black Tusk...

Oh, that guy! Duh. I like Baroness's album covers even more than their music (which is pretty good.)

Yeah, his stuff is great.

uk funky producers also DON'T RELEASE THEIR MUSIC, c'mon tim you can't pretend that's not a factor at all!

This isn't really true though. I sat down and worked out my top 60 or 70 uk funky tunes of the year last week and about two thirds to three quarters had been released. And, of course, of the remaining unreleased portion most do get released subsequently (hence "House Girls 1" ending up on Fact's list in 2010 not 2008).

Of course it would be rather churlish of me to expect obscure tunes that only I have trainspotted to be getting a lot of attention from people other than me.

Tim F I would strongly advise against reading the blurb for that Moscsa record!

I think I have pretty much numbed myself to this stuff now Matt, it's okay.

Ramadanman is great, yes. If Fact had to put a juke-inspired post-dubstep record at number 2 I'm glad it was "Glut" and not "Footcrab", the appeal of which is simply unfathomable to me.

"Footcrab"

even the name is terrible lol

Pre-eminent example of hearing a record talked about in such glowing terms and being genuinely keen to hear it, and then... If the tune didn't go "FOOTCRAB FOOTCRAB FOOTCRAB" throughout I would have assumed I'd gotten a hold of the wrong tune by mistake.

*shatters test pressing of first production, "Crotchcricket"*

different from their yearly top list. top 50 downloads of the year. most downloaded tracks, that is. although i don't know who downloaded them or where they downloaded them from.

http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2010/12/grab-xlr8rs-top-50-downloads-201

http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2010/12/grab-xlr8rs-top-downloads-2010-p

Holy crap that Kvelertak is great! Between all the Norwegian bands and the HaandBryggeriet Norwegian Porter and Norwegian Wood beer I've had this week, this 1/8 Norwegian is achieving frequent tumescence.

Music OMH

http://www.musicomh.com/music/features/2010-top-50-albums-intro_1110.htm

50. Gold Panda - Lucky Shiner
49. Bryan Ferry - Olympia
48. Liars - Sisterworld
47. Hot Chip - One Life Stand
46. Everything Everything - Man Alive
45. Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu Steps Ahead
44. Wild Nothing - Gemini
43. Villagers - Becoming A Jackal
42. Nedry - Condors
41. These New Puritans - Hidden
40. Allo Darlin' - Allo Darlin'
39. The Walkmen - Lisbon
38. Sleigh Bells - Treat
37. Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can
36. Titus Andronicus - The Monitor
35. The Irrepressibles - Mirror Mirror
34. Marnie Stern - Marnie Stern
33. Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
32. Phosphorescent - Here's To Taking It Easy
31. 65daysofstatic - We Were Exploding Anyway
30. Pantha Du Prince - Black Noise
29. Stornoway - Beachcomber's Windowsill
28. Bellowhead - Hedonism
27. Jaga Jazzist - One Armed Bandit
26. Gil Scott-Heron - I'm New Here
25. Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty
24. Best Coast - Crazy For You
23. Grinderman - Grinderman 2
22. Owen Pallett - Heartland
21. Menomena - Mines
20. Field Music - Field Music (Measure)
19. Surfer Blood - Astro Coast
18. Edwyn Collins - Losing Sleep
17. Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me
16. Vampire Weekend - Contra
15. Warpaint - The Fool
14. Jónsi - Go
13. Yeasayer - Odd Blood
12. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
11. Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
10. John Grant with Midlake - Queen Of Denmark
09. Four Tet - There Is Love In You
08. Foals - Total Life Forever
07. Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
06. LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
05. Beach House - Teen Dream
04. Caribou - Swim
03. Janelle Monáe - The ArchAndroid
02. Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
01. The National - High Violet

IIRC Nedry is nice enough but not something I imagined being on anyone's year-end list.

Not that I care, because I don't like them, but I thought that Of Montreal album was going to show up more. Did that get panned a lot?

it is kind of 'mad confusing' why ppl w/ the exact same taste as 100 other publications feel the need to publish a magazine at all.

to think i used to find jazz times / down beat duopoly redundent

redundant

more like Music SMH

is it actually worth checking out Deerhunter and The National? I've pretty much avoided them on GP.

I honestly couldn't think of a band less worth anyone's time than The National

pretty much all this points out is that lists by committee (ie lists made by combining a bunch of lists from individual critics) are inevitably going to be safe and boring (duh) and that the individual critic lists are going to be more interesting on their own because they allow for personal tastes/idiosyncracies