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

14 :: Sharon Van Etten - epic

glad to see this finally making into a couple lists, she's really great

the janelle monae blurb is *fantastic* and really serves to capture her appeal

otm great blurb

lex i'm really glad you voted for K. Michelle high in the Guardian.

I tried to get it in the lower regions of the FACT list but it wasnt really happening. havent seen it in any other lists :(

Nickelback are passionate about writing songs that are radio-ready enough to offend the least amount of people and make the most amount of money from shallow masses.

thanks for waking us up to the truth, bra

lex i'm really glad you voted for K. Michelle high in the Guardian.

I tried to get it in the lower regions of the FACT list but it wasnt really happening. havent seen it in any other lists :(

my attempts to make k. michelle happen this year may have been one of my hugest failures ever

The K Michelle mixtape has some terrific songs on it but the sound quality is kind of poor which makes for a frustrating listen. She could put out an amazing record when she gets round to recording a proper album.

Sad to see lack of The Books in most of these.

"he's passionate about his music" = "points for trying hard"

― lex diamonds (lex pretend), Friday, December 17, 2010 10:22 AM (51 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

seriously. don't any other critics deal with tiny talentless no-names who are SO SERIOUS about their music to the point that they realize how little the artist's enthusiasm and dedication really matters as far as separating the good from the bad?

I don't know, I like to listen to music that sounds enthusiastic.

pretty much every album i'd rep for this year sounds "enthusiastic" in its own way.

my attempts to make k. michelle happen this year may have been one of my hugest failures ever

at least her *fantastic* collab w/ r. kelly on his new album may heighten her profile a bit, no?

thing is, the overwhelming majority of the artists listed in this thread, regardless of how you feel about them, are really enthusiastic about their music and obsess over it every chance they get. that's the baseline of how most records of any value get made, not a virtue unto itself. Kanye's only kind of a standout in a genre where a lot of the biggest artists kind of cultivate a not-giving-a-shit image (but still work hard and make a ton of music).

"he's passionate about his music" = "points for trying hard"

― lex diamonds (lex pretend), Friday, December 17, 2010 10:22 AM (51 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

seriously. don't any other critics deal with tiny talentless no-names who are SO SERIOUS about their music to the point that they realize how little the artist's enthusiasm and dedication really matters as far as separating the good from the bad?

i have n-thusiasm about bbcode

Also, DJP, please relax gurl

dan's shortening dude's "kanye loves music" argument into something less ridiculous than it is.

Kanye West loves music. Only someone who loves music with every fiber of their being could put every fiber of every music they’ve ever loved into the music they make and have it make such ineffable sense. These six-minute bangers are haikus. Kanye West loved music better than any other artist this year and I loved his music better, too.

These six-minute bangers are haikus.

Eight syllables, doesn't fit the form.

Kanye West loves the music I love and his music possesses its communicants, wholly. Himself, included. Pinch yourself halfway through the orchestral El-P transmission that is “So Appalled” with all its invoked ciphers to make sure you’re awake, because Ye sure isn’t. Dude’s unconscious.

rofl

Pusha T’s surreal “invisibly set, the Rolex is faceless” on “Runaway” is the line of this young decade, cracking asunder its lush surroundings like some bolt of divine inspiration.

Now this is how you troll ILM.

Ladies and gentlemen, the gangsta Wilco (The Album) is here.

“Gorgeous,” for instance, is W.E.B. Du Bois-relentless in dropping knowledge, evidenced as much by Kanye’s torrential rapping as by the mere presence of Raekwon.

I really need to pay more attention to the writing of Chet Benz.

sorry, Chet Betz.

is that black milk record worth checking? i never even knew dude dropped anything this year. and even though i love tronic, i find it very hard to be enthusiastic about him

Anthony is right re: me abbreviating dude's argument; he goes to ridiculous extremes shortly thereafter which no one in their right mind would defend (aside from allowing for subjective reactions). The main point I agreed with is that if you don't think the album sounds like Kanye slaved over it or you don't find the amount of work he put into it impressive, no amount of listens will change your mind.

Also, DJP, please relax gurl

I have no idea what this is in reference to...?

the music crit pen name of Chester Bennington (xpost)

just noticed that Cokemachineglow put Yellow Swans at #16 on their year-end list, thats a great f'ing album

is that black milk record worth checking? i never even knew dude dropped anything this year. and even though i love tronic, i find it very hard to be enthusiastic about him

it doesnt really hold a candle to Tronic (which i love) -- haven't listened to it a lot, though

did anyone post the new york times critic lists

caramanica
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/arts/music/19caramanica.html?_r=1

pareles
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/arts/music/19pareles.html

raitliff
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/arts/music/19ratiliff.html

chinen
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/arts/music/19ratiliff.html

Also, DJP, please relax gurl

I have no idea what this is in reference to...?

― Tina Tina Cheneuse (DJP), Friday, December 17, 2010 11:58 AM (16 minutes ago) Bookmark

Any Owen + Lex synthesis. It's not gonna happen.

awww youd be a cute couple doe

lol

I recognize that intellectually

<3 you Lex
From across the room

Greg Kot:
http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/turn_it_up/2010/12/top-albums-of-2010.html

Jim DeRogatis:
http://www.wbez.org/blog/jim-derogatis/reasons-living-20-best-albums-2010

Spoiler: Both picked Janelle Monae as their #1 album.

huh that's kind of interesting, esp. considering they're both chicago-based and write for local sources

ie i'm surprised at least one of them didn't go for kanye.

but on the other hand it's not surprising because they both suck

Perhaps only West could turn all the hatred directed at him into a song as thrilling, surreal and anthemic as “Runaway,” the centerpiece of an album that turns contradictions into strengths, a mix of classical opulence, grimy beats, boldness and vulnerability.

rubbing my eyes...a critic cogently praising this album without implying this album is either a culmination of his or the earth's previous efforts and tweets. it happened.

4. Robyn, “Body Talk” (Interscope): In an era when big, buoyant pop is king, from Katy Perry to Black Eyed Peas, this Swedish singer trumps them all. “Body Talk” caps her trilogy of releases this year with an affirmation that pop can be both smart and danceable.

get that: smart AND danceable!

the other body talk blurb is just as bad

14. Robyn, “Body Talk Pt. 2” (Konichiwa)

Lady Gaga is an amusing novelty; Swedish dance-pop diva Robyn is the real deal, so energizing, empowering, and sexy in a non-pandering way that even the obligatory Snoop Dogg cameo (in the simultaneously angry and exuberant, buoyant and bitchy “U Should Know Better”) can’t derail things on the second installment of her “Body Talk” trilogy.

how was that snoop dogg cameo obligatory? does he have a long history of appearing on swedish pop records that i somehow overlooked? and i'm not even gonna touch that first statement.

jeez

the thing ppl seem to not get about Gaga is that she is both an amusing novelty AND the real deal

if robyn is smart, give me all of the sarah palins of pop

Kot's Monae blurb seared my eyelashes.

can anyone vouch for the besnard lakes album that graces both Kot and DeRogatis's lists? i liked the first one alright

I liked it well enough. A. Begrand's a fan too.

I would buy Robyn as a purveyor of big buoyant pop if Body Talk took more cues from "Dream On" and "With Every Heartbeat" and if Robyn had a bigger voice. Like, I didn't dig Body Talk Part One for any sense of grandness or unfettered joy; I liked it because it was all inward and nerdy, and (more crucially) I didn't actually like it enough to keep up with Parts Two and Three.

as much as i love what robyn's done this year its gotten to the point that i want her to stop appearing in these lists because these writers are killing me

Besnard Lakes: I guess you don't want my word for it but I love it to pieces. His voice is amazing and it's beautiful, considered use of shoegaze and classic rock, not just clinical copyism.