ILM's Top 77 Albums of 2012

someone else add #21 to the playlist when it comes up, I have to bounce

TOO LOW

Honestly thought this one might do really really well this year after a solid showing in the 2011 poll.

i thought ekstasis was good (and voted for it) but it seemed kind of weird that this was her breakthrough when 2011's Tragedy was more accessible/song-based

Ooh, another one of mine. Where did Tragedy place in last year's poll?

xp re: talabot: i suppose so, my point is to me it seems very safe and MOR

coldplay comparisons to inflammatory to be meaningful

if you want to be dismissive some kind of jobbing indie rock would band would be a better analogy

― Tim F, Wednesday, January 30, 2013 2:12 PM Bookmark

Eh, that's probably more inflammatory at this point. Does anyone even still froth at the mouth about Coldplay in 2013? I mean ffs, one of the dance albums that's placed has a Coldplay cover and no one's crying foul.

That...is an album I listened to once and didn't really know what to make of.

going to see julia on sunday, cooled on ekstasis a bit having fallen in love with it early last year. still think i found room for it in my ballot.

i mean talabot is nice enough but it's basically like listening to dance music's version of coldplay

this sounds p good

holter is kinda enh, a bunch of unfulfilling answers to uninteresting questions. cool t-shirts tho

I keep confusing her with Holly Herndon, who I like both more and less.

Tragedy was more accessible/song-based

^ i thought the opposite of this tbh. ths wasn't quite the same sonic adventure as the debut, but it had lots of really catchy tunes on it instead

Tragedy was #35 last year.

Exstatis definitely more song-based. Also not as good

Yeah, I thought Tragedy was magnificent, this one not quite up there, but still lovely.

huh, maybe i'm having a massive memory fuckup (not for the first time). i remembered tragedy as being about a dozen songs long, but apparently it only has 6 songs.

holter at lest sounds interesting enough to continue listening after two songs. plus her music opens slowly.

Tried the Herndon album, couldn't get past the elephant sneezing.

I keep confusing her with Holly Herndon, who I like both more and less.

yeah i agree w/this - 'movement' the song is probably better than anything holters done but theres lots of bad music on the album as a whole.

the actual dance tracks on the Herndon album are good, the elephant sneezing stuff can take a hike

Going backwards for a minute: The Coldplay analogy makes some sense to me, they have a very distinct sound (unlike generic indie band #214) but have an unfortunate taste for the obvious and formulaic. I could understand Talabot being accused of the same things, even if I might disagree.

or what Lamp said xp

I felt Tragedy was less song-based and a lot more fragmented and scattershot, but somehow a lot more immediate than Ekstasis, which is very cohesive but a seems slightly too uniform in one sitting.

Going backwards for a minute: The Coldplay analogy makes some sense to me, they have a very distinct sound (unlike generic indie band #214) but have an unfortunate taste for the obvious and formulaic. I could understand Talabot being accused of the same things, even if I might disagree.
― questino (seandalai), Thursday, January 31, 2013 9:24 AM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

haha yay someone gets it

Eh, that's probably more inflammatory at this point. Does anyone even still froth at the mouth about Coldplay in 2013? I mean ffs, one of the dance albums that's placed has a Coldplay cover and no one's crying foul.

Yeah, I meant more that saying something is the "Coldplay of X" is a much larger statement than is warranted even if you're unimpressed by Talabot. The reasons people like or dislike Coldplay go well beyond "they're MOR and tuneful and anthemic".

Ah yeah, another record from 2012 I like!

Eh that's about the totality of my opinion towards Coldplay xp

Tragedy used a lot more field recordings/concrete sounds placed in a 'storytelling' fashion. This album is definitely a turn toward the accessible.

yay this has a track called Marienbad, shame its not doing enough on the pretentious front.

Then again this is something its detractors would say about the film. Saddened the tribute didn't include enough organ workouts.

saw holter do a drone set w/ some dude about a wk ago in a bar where no one wanted to see a drone set and she cleared the room, it was better than standup comedy

yeah i am seeing her at a "festival" - worried it could go badly

saw holter do a drone set w/ some dude about a wk ago in a bar where no one wanted to see a drone set and she cleared the room

Just to set the record straight I would've stayed in that room.

I did

love the julia holter. it never really blows me away but it's really good to have around.

monotony are you going to laneway?

been thinking about what else is to come and certainties aside, here's my list of iffy ones (they get more iffy as you go down the list):

leonard cohen?
cat power?
bruce?
bobby womack?
andy stott?
sharon van etten?
bob dylan?
baroness?
flylo?
death grips?
schoolboy q?
liars?
peaking lights?

I think Death Grips already showed up (or at least the money store did and i doubt people were into NLDW more than that)

schoolboy q and stott are strong chances i'd've thought but to be honest i don't really know

what about EPs - are things like Club Rez likely to place?

Most of those seem pretty unlikely at this stage, except Andy Stott which will probably show up, maybe Sharon Van Etten and Cat Power as well. Would expect Meek Mill to place over Schoolboy Q.

Re: EPs - if Inspector Norse topped the tracks poll then It's The Arps will place pretty damn high as well.

i'm seeing cat power tnite! (i hope she places...)

andy stott is just about the best at what it does, deserves to show up.

Last one for today...

http://i.imgur.com/J3caiyH.png

21. GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! (510 Points, 19 Votes) Spotify

Is this 1998?

Nick, out of your list I'd guess Andy Stott, Peaking Lights and Death Grips are the most likely. JF already gave away that Leonard didn't make it (which I wish he hadn't - even when it's "obvious" something didn't make it in it's always nice to have a little hope for a surprise).

this is the best GY!BE record.

I'd honestly forgotten there was a new GY!BE record until nominations time.

Still haven't heard it.

Schoolboy Q isn't iffy! Well apart from on ILX. I think Matt is right, he wont place at this stage of the game.

Oh God! what a boring album. I can't even stand their ridiculous album titles. Yuck!

I like this Mountain Goats record a good deal, and the standout tracks are amongst the high points of their catalog. However, it doesn't work that well as an album for me. I tend to skip around, dive in and out, and I haven't gotten hooked like I have with some of the prior albums.

^^^ this. I played All Eternals Deck last week and TY suffers in comparison.

Despite Godspeed ruling supreme for me back in the day, I didn't feel any need to give A!DB!A! more than a couple of listens.

lol

They have still never topped F♯ A♯ ∞ and Slow Riot... imo.