ILM's Top 77 Tracks of 2012

it came out at like the very end of 2011, I think

. "let's take some of the most anthemic and relentless music of all time and make it a bloodless screensaver!"

Some of my favorite music sounds like bloodless screensavers. :D

why doesn't rock critics ever want to chill?

imagining so many 19th century british high society movies being soundtracked by that green man song right now

disappointed to find out todd terje rocks akg k81djs

thing is with norse i can accept to some extent when genre dudes with internalised balearic logics that are unknown to me are all over it but then to see man like j0rdan calling it a masterwork it's like... son really?

― r|t|c, Friday, January 25, 2013 5:44 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

haha yes, this

yes really

j0rdan stanned for "snooze" too iirc

that's not really the point, i'm curious about what in this track makes such an impression on a guy with a canvas imo just as blank as mine

('snooze' was way better than this btw)

i'll agree with that

i didn't stan for "snooze" but i was the first person to stan for "inspector norse" on ilm

i think the melodic build on "inspector norse" is incredible but i'm also inclined towards noodly synth stuff... it's almost like the balearic version of damn-funk track or something

er, dam-funk

all i'm sayin' is this top 3 feels like a party where the R&B crew and the teenpop crew brought their finest champagne and the dance crew brought some seltzer water

i get that, but i guess ive never thought of Norse as being ~of the dance crew~

i don't know. i mean, it's not a big blown out track or whatever, that's for sure. but what it wants to do it does extremely well.

To go back to Issue Generator for a second, I think one reason I was able to latch onto it so quickly is that it may have unconsciously reminded me of Sri Camel era Terry Riley. Not as accessible structurally, but the sound palate seems close, and even some of the form is not so different.

("Unconsciously," because I don't remember making that connection when I listened to it before, but I just listened to it now and it jumped out at me.)

well "call me maybe" isn't purely enjoyed by the teenpop crew either. i'm just saying, if we look at these lists as a yearly gathering of the genre tribes, i'm not so sure about some of the offerings. xp

i would look at pachanga boys more as the bobbins crew bringing their best to the party

but balearic inclined stuff is definitely more vodka & tonic than champagne but that's the appeal

http://i.imgur.com/xHoCRAh.jpg

i haven't listened to pachanga boys yet, will have to check that out

WARNING: IT HAS HEAVY SCREENSAVER VIBES

when my paper asked me to do a baltimore club year-end list AND a general 'dance' list i actually listened to a bunch of the spotify playlist for the ILM dance poll trying to find something, anything i could co-sign, and eventually said fuck it and did a list w/ "Gangnam Style" and Skrillex on it

that's some sad shit

http://i.imgur.com/ZfHxirY.gif

if i'd known further ahead of time i probably coulda dug deep. maybe i'll try to non-trollingly engage in this stuff more this year. that's obv not what i'm doing itt though.

plenty of dance singles never make it to spotify, i feel like more than any other genre?

My son just walked by while I was checking the Miguel song on youtube and he was like "why are you listening to bad music, dad?"

fp'd your son

Yeah Norse was a bit of a mystery: lots of people who liked the video plus the Inspector MORSE factor (esp given there was a "drugs" EP).

Maybe we could bring John Thaw from the dead to resolve it.

Either that or just lol democracy and go home.

Whereas Call me Maybe is totally an ILM #1.

http://i.imgur.com/ZfHxirY.gif

― ❏❐❑❒ (gr8080), Friday, January 25, 2013 7:34 PM (8 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

oh so todd terje is seapunk

#emergingvisualculture

http://youtu.be/jpd_Hdm2CTs

ships can u have a go on this as well for a lil experiment cos really i couldnt agree more about champagne & seltzer

haha this is just like irl where it's only until you've handed the earbud over that you fully realise they're not at all gonna see the big deal

lol

haha, the worst feeling

not hating on this tho

eh, I feel like if ILM just had to anoint a eurodisco track they could have done infinitely worse than "Inspector Norse" and this is much ado about nothing.

77. DAWN RICHARD "Pretty Wicked Things" -- not into it, big messy production just sort of bores me and i lose attention, maybe it sounds better with better speakers
75. CHROMATICS "Kill For Love" -- i swear i first heard this in 2011. not even that late in 2011. yeah... november 3rd. how was it eligible? i liked it then and i still like it, stand by my opinion that it's the only song here reminiscent of springsteen in any way. 7/10
75. ALUNAGEORGE "You Know You Like It" -- brit stuff that will never gel with me, just sort of pleasant. and i hate their name so much.
74. ANDRÉS "New For U" -- have put it on twice and both times forgot to listen to it
73. JAVIERA MENA "Luz de Piedra de Luna" -- i think with closer listening mena will click with me but i haven't given her the time. i think i might need to listen to the whole album with headphones in bed before i sleep. all of this seems counter-intuitive.
71. PULP "After You" -- no, stop it
71. G-DRAGON "Crayon" -- this is really great except for the chorus! :(
70. TY DOLLA $IGN "My Cabana" -- not into it sry
69. FUTURE "Same Damn Time" -- not as good as turn on the lights, not as good as its own intro
68. NICKI MINAJ FT. 2 CHAINZ "Beez in the Trap" -- haven't listened to it since it left the radio, my ears are having a renaissance with it. there is nothing about it that isn't 10/10 perfect. everything. nicki perfect, beat perfect, 2chainz perfect. it gives me chills.
67. NICKI MINAJ "Starships" -- i came around to it like everyone else but not as much as everyone else, maybe just 6/10. have no desire to ever click play on it.
66. DAWN RICHARD "Faith" -- much better than PWT, gorgeous and moving in a massive way. she does so much with low throaty notes, her delivery of "meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" is strange and wow. omg those drums
65. JAPANDROIDS "The House That Heaven Built" -- i love music that is really obsessed with the sounds they make but this would only be decent if it were half as long
64. GURU "Lapaz Toyota" -- this is gorgeous THANK YOU
63. DONKIE PUNCH & LORENZO "Snapbacks n Tattoos" -- this is pretty great too but not as much, 3:10 is p heavenly
62. NICK HANNAM & TOM GARNETT FT. TOM ZANETTI "You Want Me" -- also good but i need to listen to it when it isn't in the proximity of ^^^
61. TAME IMPALA "Feels Like Only We Go Backwards" -- oh god this is tame impala? i just want to listen to "nine in the afternoon" by panic at the disco

music obsessed with the sounds *it makes

how was it eligible?

It was on their album from 2012.

o ok

remember "jackin"

60. KEITH FULLERTON WHITMAN "Issue Generator (for Eliane Radigue)" – would love to hear KFW doing this or something like it live, will probably never listen to the whole thing again
59. HAIM "Forever" – this is nice but the guitar and her voice just get in each other’s ways and too many vamp weekend vibes. the remix is much much better
58. ANGEL HAZE "New York" – I like all the parts but it’s more a respect thing, for some reason it never gets my heart pumping
57. MUNGOLIAN JETSET "Toccata" – this is GORGEOUS slumps in the middle for me but starts great and comes back for a killer ending and those parts are GORGEOUS AND MAGIC. songs like these, I hate getting to a point where I’m waiting for payoff – wld prefer if the chillout went even more minimal and sparse so it sounded like its own part in the sequence rather than the last part of the first half.
56. JESSIE WARE "Running" – noooo doesn’t work for me. registers as quiet storm but doesn’t really excel for the reasons I like quiet storm. actually maybe I can just say “she is not sade, and that’s okay, but where is some sade.” remix is not any better.
55. JESSIE WARE "Wildest Moments" – first time hearing this one, like it much better. should listen to the album w/concentration cause her lyrics/character hasn’t become approachable for me yet
54. CHER LLOYD "Want U Back" – UNGH 10/10
53. HOT CHIP "Let Me Be Him" -- :/ sry love ready for the floor and one life stand but this isn’t it for me, better than the single we covered for jukebox tho. I just like them in full clear pop hooks mode.
52. GRIMES "Genesis" – oh I like this better than the first time I heard it but lacks the cohesion/clarity/direction of oblivion. sounds like she’s noodling though she noodles with v pretty sounds. when the piano sample hits around 2:00 it reminds me of lolgarageband nights. wish the snares were way quieter.
51. BURIAL "Kindred" – have never found any pleasure in burial, but I actually liked this fine until I got bored halfway and switched.
50. TWIN SHADOW "Five Seconds" – so sick of this sound but I like it when he sounds like peter gabriel and the parts where I can squint and convince myself it’s TVOTR
49. SANTIGOLD "Disparate Youth" – never worked for me
48. PURITY RING "Fineshrine” – this is pleasant but I’d never think of it as voteworthy. it weird me out when purity ring/grimes/elite gymnastics et al claim to be inspired by asian pop and then use these sounds/melodies that they play in like north american chinese/japanese restaurants/movie scenes and never in current asian pop. maybe I’m just hearing things
47. HAIM "Don't Save Me" – proclaimed my love at TSJ, like it more now, but I don’t think I’ll ever like a song by them nearly as much.
46. BRUNO MARS "Locked Out of Heaven” – have found myself with this in my head v often at random moments but especially in the shower
45. ALEX ANWANDTER "Como Puedes Vivir Contigo Mismo?" – oooh this is starting to make sense. love his falsetto. want to hear it on actual speakers but w/o too much bass because pretty sounds
44. SPIRITUALIZED "Hey Jane" – ugh no I want so much to hate this but I love his whole dumb shtick even if it hasn’t changed in almost two decades. guitar melody in the free jazz bullshit part sounds so nice. lyrics might be terrible, haven’t checked, oh yah they are
43. JOHN TALABOT FT. PIONAL "Destiny" – what is “pional” is this a sequel to burial ugh. my ears aren’t really cooperating with this but it doesn’t seem like a huge loss
42. NICKI MINAJ "Stupid Hoe" – YES INDEED YES my #2, perfect, LOOK BUBBLES, GO BACK TO YOUR HABITAT is the best anything of 2012. BUT worried – I’ve only ever listened to this song in my car very loud, and it sounds like the version on spotify is a bit different. maybe it’s my crappy car speakers but in the song I fell in love with, the bass drum hits are all equally loud and heart attacky, where in earbuds it sounds like they actually have different settings on the volume. let it be known that you’re not listening to this song right unless it is constantly making everything around you shake.

it’s 4 AM and I’m going to sleep rather than listen to 17 minutes of neneh cherry, will probably pick this up sunday or monday

eh, I feel like if ILM just had to anoint a eurodisco track they could have done infinitely worse than "Inspector Norse" and this is much ado about nothing.

― The Reverend, Friday, January 25, 2013 8:54 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

it's much ado about "Adorn," man. i thought you understood.

Adorn is great but let's not kid ourselves that it couldn't have been used over a mushy scene in OG Miami Vice. The only thing in an excellent top ten that couldn't be attacked on the grounds of "tastefulness", should you so wish, would be Gangnam Style.

tasteful/inoffensive is not really a good place to have taken this, and if i was the one that introduced either term into the discussion (don't really remember at this point) i apologize. i was just grasping at straws trying to figure out why anybody would love "Inspector Worse" so much.