Music: Best Albums of the Year Series: 2011

[Saturated Fats]

1965: The Beatles - Rubber Soul
1966: The Beatles - Revolver
1967: The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
1969: The Beatles - Abbey Road
1970: Black Sabbath - Paranoid
1971: Led Zeppelin - IV
1973: Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
1975: Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
1977: Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
1979: Pink Floyd - The Wall
1980: AC/DC - Back in Black
1982: Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
1985: Tears for Fears - Songs from the Big Chair
1988: Metallica - ...And Justice for All
1989: Pixies - Doolittle
1991: Nirvana - Nevermind
1994: Nirvana - MTV Unplugged in New York
1996: (TIE) Soundgarden - Down on the Upside // Rage Against the Machine - Evil Empire
1998: (TIE) Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill // System of a Down - System of a Down
1999: Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication
2000: Radiohead - Kid A
2002: Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf
2004: (TIE) Madvillain - Madvillainy // The Killers - Hot Fuss // Green Day - American Idiot
2005: Coldplay - X & Y
2007: Radiohead - In Rainbows
2010: The National - High Violet
2014: Behemoth - The Satanist

1984: Metallica - Ride the Lightning (14 votes)

2nd Place: Van Halen - 1984 (12 votes)
3rd Place: Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain (11 votes)
4th Place (TIE): U2 - The Unforgettable Fire (10 votes)
4th Place (TIE): Iron Maiden - Powerslave

Not a surprise at all, but great to see so many votes spread across the board. From a total votes standpoint, 1984 was actually our most active/participated-in poll, which is cool to see. Bit surprised to see the lack of love for The Smiths, but maybe sadboi isn't the vibe on this board.

2011 is a monster year for popular music, and while the majority of my poll options are going to reflect that, it's also a fantastic year for independent music, or music from outside of traditional sources. I know that modern-era polls tend to get a lot less participation, but I think this one will be an outlier there.

9/30: 1972
10/03: 1992
10/05: 2001

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[ItsFineImFine]

I go back and forth a bit on this between three bands, The Joy Formidable, Hey Rosetta, and The Jezabels. I think I was most impressed with the Joy Formidable's debut at the time but it's a bit closer to the sort of standard indie which is enjoyable but doesn't attract you back as much.

So after about a decade, I'd say that it's The Jezabels' debut album which stands up the best over time. Also not sure why one of Coldplay's worst albums is on this poll.

 

[Saturated Fats]

I try to keep it real between stuff that's critically acclaimed and stuff that's popular, when it comes to the poll options. I 100% agree that Mylo Xyloto is... Not good. But Coldplay did just win the 2005 poll, so.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

1. Josh T. Pearson – Last of the Country Gentlemen
T2. Mountain Man – Grief
T2. Keiji Haino, Jim O'Rourke & Oren Ambarchi ‎– In A Flash Everything Comes Together As One There Is No Need For A Subject
-
4. Bob Drake – Bob's Drive-In
5. Causa Sui – Pewt'r Sessions 1 / Causa Sui – Pewt'r Sessions 2
6. Ni Hao! – Marvelous
7. Matana Roberts – Coin Coin Chapter One: Gens de couleur libres
8. Akita, Gustafsson & O'Rourke – One Bird Two Bird
9. Jeremiah Cymerman – Fire Sign
10. Ruins – Alone
11. Gay For Johnny Depp – What Doesn't Kill You, Eventually Kills You
12. The Caretaker – An Empty Bliss Beyond This World
13. Roy Anderson's PAK – Secret Curve
14. Tom Waits – Bad as Me
15. White Suns – Waking in the Reservoir

HMs
Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges / Colin Stetson – Those Who Didn't Run
Alice Cooper – Welcome 2 My Nightmare (kind of a return to form for Alice, you can put this one on nostalgia)
Giles Corey – Giles Corey
Ikue Mori, Mark Nauseef, Evan Parker & Bill Laswell – Near Nadir
OvO – Cor Cordium
Bill Callahan – Apocalypse
Megachurch – Megachurch 2: Judgment Day
Lento – Icon
Retox – Ugly Animals
John Zorn – Enigmata
The Book of Knots – Garden of Fainting Stars (love the last two songs – that's top 3 material)
Shabazz Palaces – Black Up
Prurient – Bermuda Drain
Julia Holter – Tragedy
Richmond Fontaine – The High Country
Papir – Stundum
Miossec – Chansons ordinaires
Ash Borer – Ash Borer


Curiosities:
James Ferraro – Far Side Virtual / James Ferraro (as BEBETUNE$) – Inhale C-4 $$$$$
John Zorn – A Dreamers Christmas (The Christmas Song by Mike Patton feels like a parallel universe where your wishes come true)
Soutaiseiriron – Tadashii Sōtaisei Riron
James Blake – James Blake
Unexpect – Fables of the Sleepless Empire
Gangpol & Mit – The 1000 Softcore Tourist People Club
Floex – Zorya
Paul Simon – So Beautiful or So What
Jessica Pavone – Army of Strangers
Oneohtrix Point Never – Replica
I Am a Lake of Burning Orchids – Innocence
Tom Morello – The Nightwatchman: 'World Wide Rebel Songs'
De Magia Veterum – The Divine Antithesis
Bill Orcutt – How the Thing Sings
Master Musicians of Bukkake – Totem Three
Seth Horvitz – Eight Studies for Automatic Piano
Natural Snow Buildings – Waves of the Random Sea / Natural Snow Buildings – Chants of Niflheim
Michel Potage – Occupé

 

[Langdon Alger]

Foo Fighters - Wasting Light

 

[Ceremony]

Other -
In the Pit of the Stomach - We Were Promised Jetpacks
Simple Math - Manchester Orchestra
Hardcore Wil Never Die But You Will - Mogwai
Wasting Light - Foo Fighters
Boots Met My Face - Admiral Fallow

 

[Teemu]

M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l
The Mountain Goats – All Eternals Deck
The Antlers - Burst Apart
Foster the People - Torches
Destroyer - Kaputt
I'm From Barcelona - Forever Today
Lykki Li - Wounded Rhymes
Yuck - Yuck
Arctic Monkeys - Suck It and See
Battles - Gloss Drop

Had to cut like 10 albums lol. I definitely reserve the right to tinkle with this list later

 

[plank]

This is one of the weaker years of this century for me. Nice to see a Richmond Fontaine mention even if The High Country is way down on my list of favorite albums from them.

1. Revelator - Tedeschi Trucks Band
2. The Whole Love - Wilco
3. No One's Slate is Clean - Courtney Marie Andrews
4. The High Country - Richmond Fontaine
5. Strawberry - Wussy
6. El Camino - The Black Keys
7. Barn Doors and Concrete Floors - Israel Nash Gripka
8. Screws Get Loose - Those Darlins
9. Wasting Light - Foo Fighters
10. Ukulele Songs - Eddie Vedder
11. Blood Lust - Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats

 

[kihei]

A lost year for me; so much utterly forgettable music. I'm a huge Radiohead fan, but I wasn't even that crazy about King of Limbs. Only album I really liked was Revelator by Tedeschi Trucks Band.

 

[frisco]

Other:
REM-Collapse Into Now

My Best-Carey

 

[Mikeaveli]

1. The Beach Boys - Smile Sessions
2. Oneohtrix Point Never - Replica
3. Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972

 

[Azathoth]

Other
Obscura-Omnivium (really good technical death metal album)

Not a great year for metal.

 

[Saturated Fats]

2011 is a big pivot point in popular music. The aughts were very much a decade dominated by indie and alternative rock, with bands like Arcade Fire, Radiohead (not that they're indie), the National, Interpol, Killers, the White Stripes - ruling the zeitgeist. The 10's seemed to see critical consensus shift towards more of an embrace of indie pop and hip-hop, starting probably with Kanye and Drake, and then dovetailing to artists like Danny Brown, Kendrick, and Frank Ocean as the decade went on. If you look at Pitchfork's 2011 list, the top-10 is all indie/alt, with the exception of Drake at 8 and The Weeknd at 11. But pretty much every year after that sees hip-hop/pop music dominate. Just something I thought interesting with respect to music evolution.

Anyway, my best of the year are a Post-Hardcore album and two Indie Folk works, so - nuts to trends, I guess.

1. La Dispute - Wildlife
2. A.J.J. - Knife Man
3. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

4. Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972
5. Metronymy - The English Riviera
6. Danny Brown - XXX
7. Destroyer - Kaputt

8. Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
9. Bomb the Music Industry! - Vacation
10. Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes

HM: Ash Borer - Ash Borer; Jeremy Soule - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim OST; CunninLynguists - Oneirology; Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats - Blood Lust; Deafheaven - Roads to Judah

 

[Cas]

Hell - Human Remains
Hour of 13 - The Ritualist
In Solitude - The World. The Flesh. The Devil.
Lord Vicar - Signs of Osiris
Panopticon - Social Disservices
Portrait - Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae
Satan's Host - By the Hands of the Devil
Ulcerate - The Destroyer of All
Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats - Blood Lust
Yob - Atma

A lot of revivalist stuff in 2011, if you think of it in a certain way - Hell released the album they were unable to release in the mid-80's and sparked a short career in the limelight; Uncle Acid sounds like a combination of Piper at the Gates of Dawn-era Pink Floyd, John Lennon, and Black Sabbath; Portrait is Mercyful Fate-worship; Lord Vicar is Peter Vicar continuing his doomy career after Reverend Bizarre.

Satan's Host is pretty unusual - its the only black/power metal hybrid I am aware of, with Harry Conklin of Jag Panzer handling vocals.

I'm having a hard time deciding which is the best album of 2011, but for the moment I'm going to go with Lord Vicar - Signs of Osiris.

 

[Aladyyn]

Laura Stevenson - Sit Resist

Lenka Dusilová - Baromantika
Ghost Brigade - Until Fear No Longer Defines Us
The Moon and the Nightspirit - Mohalepte
Obscure Sphinx - Anaesthetic Inhalation Ritual
The Human Abstract - Digital Veil
Silent Stream of Godless Elegy - Návaz

 

[belair]

Bit of a sleeper year. Helplessness Blues was a good album but nothing truly groundbreaking.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

I guess there's just no winner here. Might as well give the prize to Josh T. Pearson and move on.