Music of 2011

As the end of 2011 approaches, "Best of Lists" are inescapable. While its enjoyable to sort through and compare your favorites with others, it can be so difficult reducing a year's worth of music into a simple list. With so many great artists, where to begin? After much listening and deliberation, the following is a collection of our favorite albums for the year.

	10. Foster the People, Torches  Upbeat, dance-worthy music. Standout song: "Pumped Up Kicks"
	9. The Cave Singers, No Witch Blues Americana making a comeback. Standout song: "Swim Club"
	8. The Kills, Blood Pressures Thick sexy beats. Standout song: "Satellite"
	7. Portugal. The Man, In the Mountain In the Cloud  Intellectual psychedelia group sing-a-longs that rock out live.   Standout song: "All Your Light (Times Like These)"
	6. Feist, Metals Pictorial soundscapes, adding vision to sound. Standout song: "How Come You  Never Go"
	5. St. Vincent, Strange Mercy Hard-edged in a pretty package. Standout song: "Cheerleader"
	4. The Dodos, No Color Purity found in a guitar and drum. Standout song: "Good"
	3. Fleet Foxes, Helplessness Blues Mother Earth approved instant classic. Standout song: "The Shrine / An Argument"
	2. TV on the Radio, Nine Types of Light Urban art rock poetry. Standout song: "Will Do"
	1. The Antlers, Burst Apart Epic transcendence. Standout song: "Parentheses"

In Rotation : Feist - Metals

Four years after the single "1 2 3 4" was showcased in an Apple commercial, propelling Feist to become one of 2007s biggest indie pop artists, her newly released follow-up album Metals brings a more matured perspective.  The cheery playfulness present in former albums has been paired back, replaced with an underlying heaviness and measured introspective thought.  The result is a visually stimulating album that creates atmospheric environments which Feist uses to give a sense of place and emotion within each lyrical vignette.

Notable Tracks:
3. "Caught a Long Wind"
4. "How Come You Never Go There"
9. "Undiscovered First"
11. "Comfort Me"

In addition to the original, check out Beck's remixed version of "How Come You Never Go There".



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In Rotation : The Antlers - Burst Apart

One of the year's brightest, but most underrated albums is The Antlers' Burst Apart.  Beginning to end, the album has a concise point of view. With its heady East Coast neuroses, there is an unnerving, yet intoxicating dream state quality to Burst Apart  that is ideal for 2AM listening sessions.  The record begins in a fragmented tone - searching for answers, not quite content in its state of being.  By the end, a transformation takes place, bringing a resolution and feeling of being at peace with itself.

Notable Tracks:
3. "Parenthesis"
4. "No Widows"
5. "Rolled Together"
6. "Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out"
10. "Putting the Dog to Sleep"

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In Rotation : Two Door Cinema Club - Tourist History

A fresh young band from Northern Ireland, Two Door Cinema Club, is introducing their energetic indie dance pop sound with the group's first full release, Tourist History.  The album is full of short, upbeat songs perfect for some lighthearted fun.  Akin to their UK counterparts such as The Wombats, Bloc Party, and Foals, they share the signature odd-timed drum beat prevalent in British/Irish music of the same genre, but differentiate themselves with a more concise blending between rhythm and lyrical syncopation.

Notable Tracks:
2. "Come Back Home"
3. "Undercover Martyn"
5. "This is the Life"
8. "What You Know"

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Blues Rock Setlist - Alabama Shakes, Band of Skulls, & The Black Keys

Bring on the power and soul that epitomizes the true foundation of rock n' roll.  With blues-infused heavy electric guitars, these few tracks are sure to enliven your ears.

Alabama Shakes "Hold On" - Alabama Shakes EP

With only a 4 song EP released, this new band has been attracting some good indie cred from the likes of NPR and KEXP. One listen and its easy to tell why, lead singer Brittany Howard has some major pipes. Howard transforms into a Southern rock, bluesy temptress in "Hold On," playing with the length and timing of her notes, stretching them to their limits before exploding in full power.



Band of Skulls "Sweet Sour" - Sweet Sour

Good things are sure to come musically in 2012 for Band of Skulls judging by an early preview of the title track "Sweet Sour."  With their album officially coming out in February, these English rockers are prime for a breakout following in the likes of The White Stripes and The Kills.



The Black Keys "Lonely Boy" - El Camino

The most recognizable of the three bands, The Black Keys had a monster of a year in 2010 with the inescapably brilliant album Brothers.  Just this past week, Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney released El Camino, the group's seventh studio album together. The first single "Lonely Boy" is fun, fast, and an instant hit from where they last left off.  You can visit their website for the full music video.

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In Rotation 2 : Foster the People - Torches

As far as breakout music goes for 2011, there's no denying the creative success that Foster the People have had with their debut album Torches.  While "Pumped Up Kicks" has definitely been and deserves to be the group's standout song, just about every track on Torches has the potential of being a hit single. Start to finish, the entire album is filled with lively songs and contagious beats that'll have you pumped up ready to go.  Though the exterior of the music is upbeat, many of their songs actually take on a darker tone lyrically.  Its this ability to infuse hip swaying music with topics extending past the dance floor that makes Foster the People one of the year's top new bands.

Notable Tracks:
1. "Helena Beat"
2. "Pumped Up Kicks"
3. "Call it What You Want"
7. "Houdini"

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In Rotation: Florence + the Machine - Ceremonials

Florence + the Machine exploded onto the scene with the debut album Lungs.  It seemed within such a short time F+M were seasoned veterans of powerhouse pop.  Coming off such a meteoric rise, it is often hard for an artist to turn around and deliver a second sensation.  However, the "sophomore slump" is not felt in the newly released Ceremonials.  Not to disappoint, F+M takes us on a follow-up journey of dramatic themed story telling.  Listening one can sense how much of her own self is put into each note, sung as if each song will be her last.  Where Lungs felt like a collection of various thoughts and themes, Ceremonials has a concentrated point of view of procession and ritual.  An ambitious album, F+M released a deluxe version offering additional tracks along with demo and acoustic version various tracks.  The acoustic versions are a welcomed lift to the heavy layering orchestral accompaniments, the parsing away of drums and bass lines highlight with even more emphasis her vocal abilities and core essence of the songwriting.

Notable Tracks:
1. "Only If for a Night"
3. "What the Water Gave Me"
5. "Breaking Down"
7. "No Light, No Light"
8. "Seven Devils"

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In Rotation 2 : TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light

Combining indie rock, dance, soul and everything in between, TV on the Radio is a band that I can always expect to go beyond the music and explore the artistic side of sound.  Their latest album, Nine Types of Light, delivers a wave of rhythms and vocal shifts.  At first listen, strong beats and up-tempo tracks like "Caffeinated Consciousness" and "New Cannonball Blues" appear to dominate the album with their bold nature.  But with every further listen, the true driving force is a stream of (on the surface) gentler, more subdued songs.   This is evident in "Forgotten" and "Will Do," where there is almost an uneasy romanticism that takes form through the creeping beats.  As true art always is, there are many layers to Nine Types of Light that keep unraveling the more its explored.

Notable Tracks:
5. "Killer Crane"
6. "Will Do"
8. "Repetition"
9. "Forgotten"
10. "Caffeinated Consciousness"

For even more artistic expansion, TV on the Radio released a full-length music video, filled with individual visual representations for each one of its songs and then tied together with a collection of ideas provoked from topics found within the record.

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