My year-end list isn't actually "best-of," but rather a list of the albums released this year that I loved the most. I listened to a ton of music this year, and a lot of it was good. The following are the albums that resonated with me, that I kept coming back to, that I told all my friends to go buy, and that I wouldn't want to live without.
Port O'Brien, Threadbare. How much do I love this album? So much that I bought it on vinyl after paying for the digital version, just so I can have a physical copy of it. So much that I can't stop listening to it, even though it breaks my heart every time. I loved last year's All We Could Do Was Sing, especially the quieter songs like "Don't Take My Advice" and "In Vino Veritas." Threadbare is basically an album full of quiet, sad songs that document the loss of singer/songwriter Cambria Goodwin's brother. It's a cohesive song cycle that gives me hope that there is still life left in the album. Beautiful, beautifully sad, and essential.
Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest. I was reluctant to admit it at first, but this album is as great as everyone says it is. It is the perfect example of a lot of the music coming out this year: rooted in folk, and yet subverting the genre with odd song structures, delicately constructed songs, and gorgeous harmonies. It's not easily digestible, but each time I listen to it, I get something new out of it. Download the version of Michael McDonald singing "While You Wait For Others."
Thao and the Get Down, Stay Down, Know Better, Learn Faster. Upbeat, rocking songs about heartbreak and disappointment. Also one of the best live shows I saw this year, second only to Bon Iver.
Madlib, Tha Beat Konducta Vol. 5-6 and Oh No, Dr. No's Ethiopium. The Brothers Jackson drop two more solid hip hop instrumental albums, continuing label Stones Throw's streak as the number one label for innovative hip hop. Madlib's is a fitting eulogy to the late J Dilla, and Oh No's is a body rocking blend of hip hop and Ethiopian music. Madlib is quirkier, while Oh No plays it straight, but both are head-nodding, creative, and excellent soundtracks to whatever you're doing.
P.O.S., Never Better and Brother Ali, Us. These two albums, both on Rhymesayers, prove that hip hop still has a lot of juice left in it. P.O.S. combines rap and punk into a hybrid that manages to capture the excitement and energy of both genres. Brother Ali gets his grown man on, proving himself to be equal parts street preacher and battle rhymer over some of producer Ant's best work.
Sonic Youth, The Eternal. While I love early Sonic Youth, I had written them off in the early nineties as played out. Then their 2004 album Sonic Nurse convinced me that there was still worthwhile music left in the old farts. This year's The Eternal is not as innovative or essential as eighties masterpieces Daydream Nation or Sister, but it is full of the band's signature sound, done really, really well
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