After countless hours of record shopping, listening and headache-inducing contemplation, I present my picks for The Best Albums of 2012. As usual, I've invited a few of my trusted friends to share their favorites as well. Unfortunately, I was unable to listen to every single album that was released during 2012, so out of the ones that I've heard, these are my absolute favorites. I know that in a month I will discover an album that I missed and it'll deserve a place on here, but this list is immortalized at this point in time. I would love to hear your opinions and your own lists, so be sure to post feedback in the comments section all the way at the bottom. If you would like to purchase any of the albums / songs - please click on the album titles to be redirected.
Please enjoy and be sure to keep up on my daily postings by clicking LIKE over at the Life On This Planet Facebook Page. Happy Holidays. - Bret.
Bret Helm
Life On This Planet Blog / the band Audra
Please check out my video for a discussion on my picks, or keep scrolling.
Honorable Mentions:
Joey Ramone - ...Ya Know?
InDreama - s/t
Swans - The Seer
All India Radio - Red Shadow Landing
Grimes - Visions
Best Coast - The Only Place
Metric - Synthetica
My Baker's Dozen (Top 13):
11. Lightships - Electric Cable
10. Ringo Deathstarr - Mauve
09. Om - Advaitic Songs
08. A Place To Bury Strangers - Worship
07. Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light
06. Swans - The Seer
05. Purity Ring - Shrines
04. Title Fight - Floral Ring
03. Off! - s/t
02. Dinosaur Jr. - I Bet On Sky
01. Forgetters - s/t
My top spot goes to: Enslaved - Riitiir
The following 19 are in no particular order:
19. Swans - The Seer
18. Grave - Endless Procession Of Souls
17. Agalloch - Faustian Echoes
16. Killing Joke - MMXII
15. Rush - Clockwork Angels
14. Converge - All We Love We Leave Behind
13. Goatwhore - Blood For The Master
12. Gaza - No Absolutes In Human Suffering
11. Author & Punisher - Ursus Americanus
10. Pig Destroyer - Book Burner
09. Baroness - Yellow & Green
08. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!
07. Napalm Death - Utilitarian
06. Avishai Cohen - Triveni II
05. Torche - Harmonicraft
04. Manual - Awash
03. Neurosis - Honor Found In Decay
02. JK Flesh - Posthuman
01. Dead Can Dance - Anastasis
Jaymz Todd
Friend of the brothers Helm, avid music lover, and occasional graphic designer for Audra.
2012 was, for me, a year of complete and total nostalgia. Most of the albums that topped my list harken back to styles of music I absolutely adored in my teens, and lost sight of in my 20s. I purchased over 150 physical releases. Below are my top 50, then following is my 10 worse. I look forward to what others thought. Thanks and enjoy :)
50. Clinic - Free Reign
49. Trailer Trash Tracys - Ester
48. The Game - Jesus Piece
47. Divine Fits - A Thing Called Divine Fits
46. Murs and 9th Wonder - The Final Adventure
45. Eight and a Half - Eight and a Half
44. The Helio Sequence - Negotiations
43. Polica - Give You The Ghost
42. Widows - EP
41. Spiritualized - Sweet heart, sweet light.
40. Whirr - Pipe Dreams
39. Sharon Von Etten - Tramp
38. Ryan Leslie - Les is More
37. Violens - 'True'
36. The Walkmen - Heaven
35. Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid, m.A.A.d city
34. Sanitgold - Master of My Make-Believe
33. Lana Del Rey - Born to Die: Paradise Edition
32. Currency - The Stoned Immaculate
31. Bill Fay - Life is People
30. Animal Kingdom - The Looking Away
29. Chelsea Wolfe - Unknown Rooms: A Collection of Acoustic Songs
28. Ellie Goulding - Halcyon
27. Eras - Eras
26. The Dandy Warhols - This Machine
25. Big Boi - Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors
24. Lemonade - Diver
23. Japandroids / Celebration Rock
22. The Big Pink - Future This
21. Grizzly Bear - Shields
20. Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
19. The Invisible - Rispah
18. TRST - TRST
17. Moonface w/ Siinai - Heartbreaking Bravery
16. Chiddy Bang - Breakfast
15. Tribes - Baby
14. Bat for Lashes - The Haunted Man
13. Oddisee - People Hear What They See
12. The-Dream - 1977
11. Chromatics - Kill for Love
10. Diiv - OShin
09. The Soft Moon - Zeros
08. The Jealous Sound - A Gentle Reminder
07. Niki and the Dove - Instinct
06. Twin Shadow - Confess
05. SSION - Bent
04. Miguel - Kaleidoscope Dream
03. Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball
02. Wild Cub - Youth
01. Light Asylum - Light Asylum
Jesse Deitermann
7-inch 'record' collector / Cher Lloyd fan
10. The xx - Coexist
09. Paul Weller - Sonik Kicks
08. Father John Misty - Fear Fun
07. Diiv - Oshin
06. The Twilight Sad - No One Can Ever Know
05. The Maccabees - Given To The Wild
04. Sennen - Our Lost History
03. Beach House - Bloom
02. Wild Nothing - Nocturne
01. Lower Dens - Nootropics
Sarah Quarrie
Rad.
15. The Walkmen - Heaven
14. The xx - Coexist
13. Dirty Projectors - Swing Lo Magellen
12. Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal
11. Mumford & Sons - Babel
10. Divine Fits - A Thing Called the Divine Fits
09. POLIÇA - Give You the Ghost
08. alt-J - An Awesome Wave
07. Grimes - Visions
06. Purity Ring - Shrines
05. Diiv - Oshin
04. Japandroids - Celebration Rock
03. Alabama Shakes - Boys & Girls
02. Beach House - Bloom
01. Twin Shadow - Confess
Looking very much forward to in 2013:
Foxygen - We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic 1/22
Frightened Rabbit - Pedestrian Verse 2/05
Foals - Holy Fire 2/11
Atoms for Peace - Amok 2/18
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Push the Sky Away 2/18
Phosphorescent - Muchacho 3/13
The Knife - Shaking the Habitual 4/09
Depeche Mode - TBD
Low - TBD
My Bloody Valentine - TBD
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - TBD
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Thank you for reading! - Bret
Sweet lists guys. Now I'll have to check out the forgetters, lightships, the new killing joke (love them) and sennen albums. I keep forgetting about that soul savers record. I have to give it a few more spins. I think I got it when I got a bunch of other stuff, that I just kept forgetting to give its proper share. And.... I still need to find the dead can dance one. Damn. So much good stuff this year. Peace.
ReplyDeletePs. I think next time, I should limit my list to a smaller number. Haha , maybe?
Haha, Jaymz. I had to use a smaller font so your list would fit. :)
DeleteYeah, I have lots to check out from seeing everyone's lists - definitely give that Soulsavers record some due attention, and that DCD - get it! I think you'd dig the Lightships record - buy it on vinyl, like I said in the video it's a great pressing.
Thanks dawg.
It is getting extremely complicated in the rock field, let alone indie, to find music nowadays that isn't horrifically derivative to the point of every band sounding like everyone else. There is a lot of worthy candidates for the year 2012 though I must say.
ReplyDeleteDinosaur Jr. would definitely be at the top of my list for sure, if not the top! Then again, what can I say? When it comes to my choices in indie & rock, I have always been a little more old school as far as what appeals to me musically.