2011 Music Journals

[bloop]

You all know the drill by now. Expound at length elsewhere, but by all means link to it - give us the gist of what you thought of this year's music here.

The Best Of 2011

Buy It!
Let England Shake, PJ Harvey (9.5)
W H O K I L L, tUnE-yArDs (9.5)
Reverie, Joe Henry (9.5)
The Long Surrender, Over the Rhine (9.5)
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, M83 (9.5)
Father, Son, Holy Ghost, Girls (9.5)
David Comes to Life, Fucked Up (9.0)
Strange Mercy, St. Vincent (9.0)
The Harrow and the Harvest, Gillian Welch (9.0)
50 Words for Snow, Kate Bush (9.0)
Helplessness Blues, Fleet Foxes (9.0)
build a rocket, boys!, Elbow (9.0)
The King of Limbs, Radiohead (8.5)
Bad As Me, Tom Waits (8.5)
Weather, Meshell Ndegocello (8.5)
Learn and Burn, The Sheepdogs (8.5)
The Unfazed, Dolorean (8.5)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Tomboy, Panda Bear (8.5)
Goblin, Tyler the Creator (8.5)
James Blake, James Blake (8.5)
Bon Iver, Bon Iver, Bon Iver (8.5)
undun, The Roots (8.5)
Biophilia, Bjork (8.0)
Kaputt, Destroyer (8.0)
Burlap to Cashmere, Burlap to Cashmere (8.0)
Kiss Each Other Clean, Iron & Wine (8.0)
Nine Types of Light, TV on the Radio (8.0)
No Devolución, Thursday (8.0)
Yearbook EPs, Sleeping at Last (8.0)
Odd Soul, MuteMath (8.0)
The Whole Love, Wilco (8.0)
Several Shades of Why, J. Mascis (8.0)
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, Beastie Boys (8.0)
100 Lovers, Devotchka (8.0)
Barton Hollow, The Civil Wars (8.0)
The King is Dead, The Decemberists (8.0)
Of Man, Cool Hand Luke (8.0)
Burst Apart, The Antlers (8.0)


Try It
21, Adele (7.5)
I Am Very Far, Okkervil River (7.5)
Wasting Light, Foo Fighters (7.5)
Watch the Throne, Jay-Z & Kanye West (7.5)
In the Grace of Your Love, The Rapture (7.5)
Belong, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (7.5)
Demolished Thoughts, Thurston Moore (7.5)
Go Tell Fire to the Mountain, Wu Lyf (7.5)
Computers and Blues, The Streets (7.5)
Electric Hustle, Kraak and Smaak (7.5)
Stone Rollin', Raphael Saadiq (7.5)
Mylo Xyloto, Coldplay (7.5)
Better Day, Dolly Parton (7.5)
Tao of the Dead, ...And You Will You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead (7.5)
House of Balloons, The Weeknd (7.5)
Kmag Yoyo (& Other American Stories), Hayes Carll (7.5)
4, Beyonce (7.5)
Gloss Drop, Battles (7.5)
Dye It Blonde, Smith Westerns (7.5)
The Old Magic, Nick Lowe (7.5)
Suck It And See, Arctic Monkeys (7.5)
Angles, The Strokes (7.5)
Red Barked Tree, Wire (7.0)
So Beautiful or So What, Paul Simon (7.0)
Aesthetica, Liturgy (7.0)
Collapse Into Now, R.E.M. (7.0)
Cults, Cults (7.0)
Strange Negotiations, David Bazan (7.0)
The Rip Tide, Beirut (7.0)
Vice Verses, Switchfoot (7.0)
Ukelele Songs, Eddie Vedder (7.0)
Born This Way, Lady Gaga (7.0)
Zonoscope, Cut Copy (7.0)
The People's Key, Bright Eyes (7.0)
With Shivering Hearts We Wait, Blindside (7.0)
Valhalla Dancehall, British Sea Power (7.0)
Electronic Dream, Araab Musik (6.5)
Circuital, My Morning Jacket (6.5)
Different Gear Still Speeding, Beady Eye (6.5)
Sky Full of Holes, Fountains of Wayne (6.5)
Black Up, Shabazz Palaces (6.5)
For True, Trombone Shorty (6.5)
Green Naugahyde, Primus (6.5)
Heritage, Opeth (6.5)
Another Realm, Iona (6.5)
The Valley, Eisley (6.5)


Shrug It
Generation Indigo, Poly Styrene (6.0)
Tha Carter IV, Lil Wayne (6.0)
Credo, The Human League (5.5)
If Not Now, When?, Incubus (5.0)
I'm With You, Red Hot Chili Peppers (5.0)
Femme Fatale, Britney Spears (5.0)


F*ck It
I Will Praise You, Rebecca St. James (3.0)
Gold Cobra, Limp Bizkit (0.5)


Ongoing


Hey, You Cheated! (Live albums, broadcasts, covers, standards, mashups)
The King of Limbs From the Basement, Radiohead (9.5)
Let Them Talk, Hugh Laurie (8.0)
13 Chambers, Wugazi (7.5)
The King of Limbs Remixes, Radiohead remixed by Various Artists (6.5)


I Just Can't - Maybe I'll Revisit
A I A : Dream Loss and A I A : Alien Observer, Grouper


Digesting
Deerhoof vs. Evil, Deerhoof
Old Friends, I Was a King
It's a Wonderful Life, Sparklehorse
The Magic Place, Julianna Barwick
Blessed, Lucinda Williams
Klatter, Boris with Merzbow
Wounded Rhymes, Lykke Li
Ravedeath, 1972, Tim Hecker
New Album, Boris
No Color, Dodos
Smoke Rings for My Halo, Kurt Vile
Toy, David Bowie
C'mon, Low
Blood Pressures, The Kills
Apocalypse, Bill Callahan
Do Whatever You Want All The Time, Ponytail
The Golden Record, Little Scream
Cannibal Courtship, Dengue Fever
Eye Contact, Gang Gang Dance
Go Go Boots, Drive-By Truckers
We Are Rising, Son Lux
The Mission Field, Blessid Union of Souls
Codes and Keys, Death Cab for Cutie
Simple Math, Manchester Orchestra
Heavy Rocks, Boris
We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves, John Maus
Move Like This, The Cars
Cameras in the Sky, Sam Phillips
The Light of the Sun, Jill Scott
Saudade, Mr. J. Madeiros
Here Before, The Feelies
The Story of Our Lives, The Violet Burning
Within and Without, Washed Out
Lenses Alien, Cymbals Eat Guitars
The Less You Know, the Better, DJ Shadow
Major...Minor, Thrice
Metals, Feist
Torches, Foster the People
Ghosts Upon the Earth, Gungor
Monkeytown, Modeselektor
Replica, Oneohtrix Point Never
Parallax, Atlas Sound
If, Bill Ryder-Jones
The Dreamer/The Believer, Common
Skying, The Horrors
Bright and Vivid, Kathryn Calder
Sepalcure, Sepalcure
Fallen Empires, Snow Patrol


F*ck It:
0.0: Not one redeeming characteristic (F)
0.5-1.5: Painful (F)
2.0-2.5: Terrible (F)
3.0-3.5: Poor  (F)
4.0-4.5: Nearing average (D)

Shrug It:
5.0: Average  (C-)
5.5: Slightly above average (C )
6.0: Pretty Good; serious flaws (C+)

Try It:
6.5: Solid; detracting problems (B-)
7.0: Good; well above average (B )
7.5: Impressive; few major reservations (B+)

Buy It!:
8.0: Excellent; repeated listens suggested (A-)
8.5: Exceptional; repeated listens demanded (A)
9.0-9.5: Great; Very few, if any, notable flaws (A+)
10.0: Essential; Among the best of all time (A++)

[Brenden]

Top Ten:
1. Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean - A
2. Over The Rhine - The Long Surrender - B+
3. The Decemberists - The King Is Dead - B+
4. Kat Maslich-Bode - The Road Of 6 - B
5. Wes Kirkpatrick - Naps & Nightmares - B
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

The Next Best:

Forget The Rest:

Bottom Ten:

Digesting:

[murlough23]

Top 20:
1. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues A
2. Mute Math - Odd Soul A
3. Burlap to Cashmere - Burlap to Cashmere A-
4. DeVotchKa - 100 Lovers A-
5. The Civil Wars - Barton Hollow A-
6. Blindside - With Shivering Hearts We Wait A-
7. Katie Herzig - The Waking Sleep A-
8. Kathryn Calder - Bright and Vivid A-
9. Jeremy Larson - They Reappear A-
10. Elbow - Build a Rocket Boys! B+
11. Gungor - Ghosts Upon the Earth B+
12. Cool Hand Luke - Of Man B
13. Falling Up - Your Sparkling Death Cometh B
14. Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver B
15. Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto B
16. The Echoing Green - In Scarlet and Vile B
17. Umphrey's McGee - Death By Stereo B
18. R.E.M. - Collapse into Now B
19. Death Cab For Cutie - Codes and Keys B
20. Over the Rhine - The Long Surrender B

Honorable Mention:
21. Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean B
22. Dia Frampton - Red B
23. Eleanor Friedberger - Last Summer B
24. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming B
25. Jonas Bjerre - Songs and Music from the Movie Skyscraper B
26. Gotye - Making Mirrors B
27. TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light B-
28. Lights - Siberia B-
29. Owl City - All Things Bright and Beautiful B-
30. Meg & Dia - Cocoon B-

The Rest:
Weird Al Yankovic - Alpocalypse B-
Björk - Biophilia B-
My Brightest Diamond - All Things Will Unwind B-
Iona - Another Realm C+
Deas Vail - Deas Vail C+
Wilco - The Whole Love C+
Ollabelle - Neon Blue Bird C+
Eisley - The Valley C+
Switchfoot - Vice Verses C+
Thrice - Major/Minor C+
Radiohead - The King of Limbs C+
My Morning Jacket - Circuital C+
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes C+
Various Artists - Seven Swans Reimagined C+
Steven Curtis Chapman - Re:Creation C
St. Vincent - Strange Mercy C
Evanescence - Evanescence C
Feist - Metals C
Kye Kye - Young Love C
Wild Flag - Wild Flag C
Peter Bradley Adams - Between Us C
Joseph Arthur - The Graduation Ceremony C
Joe Henry - Reverie C
Leeland - The Great Awakening C

Dishonorable Mention:
Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events C-
Incubus - If Not Now, When? C-
Drive-By Truckers - Go-Go Boots D+
Rebecca St. James - I Will Praise You D

Compilations/EPs/Singles/Re-releases:
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - January EP A+
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - February EP A+
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - July EP A
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - June EP A-
The Hawk in Paris - His + Hers EP B+
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - May EP B+
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - September EP B+
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - March EP B+
R.E.M. - Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982–2011 B+
David Crowder Band - Oh For Joy B
Broken Bells - Meyrin Fields EP B
Jars of Clay - Reinvent, Remember, Replay EP B
Kat Maslich-Bode - The Road of 6 B-
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - August EP B-
Sleeping at Last - Yearbook - April EP C+
Anberlin - Live at the House of Blues Anaheim C
Justis Kao - It Happens When Side A C

Digesting:
After Edmund - Times Have Changed EP #1
Rachael Lampa - All We Need
Newsboys - God's Not Dead

Already Released, Need to Hear It:
Chevelle - Hats Off to the Bull
Sara Groves - Invisible Empires
Shaun Groves - Third World Symphony
Fernando Ortega - Come Down O Love Divine
Ben Shive - The Cymbal Crashing Clouds
Wavorly - The EP
Derek Webb - Feedback

Looking Back:
2010 Music Journal
2009 Music Journal
2008 Music Journal
2007 Music Journal
2006 Music Journal
2005 Music Journal
2004 Music Journal
2003 Music Journal
1991-2002 Music Journals

(Last Update: 5/23/12)

[plvarona]

Updated: 3/4/2012

(* denotes albums I have heard in their entirety, but do not own.)
Top 10 (So Far):
1. Burlap to Cashmere: self-titled (A)
2. Gungor: Ghosts Upon The Earth (A)
3. Cool Hand Luke: Of Man (A)
4. Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues (A)
5. Sleeping at Last: Yearbook EPs (A-) (Cumulative grade for entire project.)
6. Shaun Groves: Third World Symphony (A-)
7. Katie Herzig: The Waking Sleep (A-)
8. Mute Math: Odd Soul (A-)
9. Blindside: With Shivering Hearts We Wait (A-)
10. Josh Garrels: Love & War & The Sea In Between (A-)

The Next 10:
11. Deas Vail: self-titled (A-)
12. The Civil Wars: Barton Hollow (A-)
13. Over The Rhine: The Long Surrender (B+)
14. Flogging Molly: Speed of Darkness (B+)
15. Sara Groves: Invisible Empires (B+)
16. NEEDTOBREATHE: The Reckoning (B+)
17. Eisley: The Valley (B+)
18. Falling Up: Your Sparkling Death Cometh (B+)
19. Thrice: Major/Minor (B+)
20. Givers: In Light (B+)

Honorable Mention:
21. Ginny Owens: Get In, I'm Drivin' (*) (B+)
22. Alison Krauss & Union Station: Paper Airplane (B+)
23. Denison Witmer: The Ones Who Wait (B+)
24. The Decemberists: The King is Dead (B+)
25. Derek Webb: Feedback (B ) (Technically a 2010 release, but the physical CDs were released this year.)
26. downhere: On the Altar of Love (B )
27. Switchfoot: Vice Verses (B )
28. Steven Curtis Chapman: re:creation (B )
29. John Mark McMillan: Economy (B )
30. Coldplay: Mylo Xyloto (B )
31. Kye Kye: Young Love (*) (B )
32. Leigh Nash: Hymns and Sacred Songs (B )
33. Amos Lee: Mission Bell (B )
34. Ariel Abshire: Still So New (B )
35. Run Kid Run: Patterns (B ) (*)
36. Iron & Wine: Kiss Each Other Clean (B )
37. Generationals: Actor-Caster (B )

Mild Recommendations:
SHIROCK: Everything Burns (Deluxe Edition) (B-)
Hyland: Weights & Measures (*) (C+)
Heath McNease: The House Always Wins (*) (C+)

Nah:
Mat Kearney: Young Love (*) (C )
Rebecca St. James: I Will Praise You (*) (C )
Building 429: Listen to the Sound (*) (C-)
Brandon Heath: Leaving Eden (*) (C-)
Matt Wertz: Weights and Wings (*) (C-)
RED: Until We Have Faces (*) (D)

EP's, Live Albums, Greatest Hits, etc.
The Hawk in Paris: His and Hers EP (B+)
River James: self-titled EP (B+)
Deas Vail/Farewell Flight Split EP (B+)
Justin McRoberts: C EP (B+)
Lance Herring: Until The Sun Goes Out EP (B )
Wavorly: The EP (B )

Currently Digesting:
Matthew Perryman Jones: Until The Dawn Appears

Current Releases I Plan to Check Out:
Farewell Flight: Out For Blood
Justin McRoberts: MY(K) EPs
The Violet Burning: The Story of Our Lives

Current Releases That Somewhat Intrigue Me:
Abandon: Control
David Crowder Band: Oh For Joy
Trent Dabbs: Southerner
The Jayhawks: Mockingbird Time
Rachael Lampa: All We Need
My Brightest Diamond: All Things Will Unwind
Relient K: K is For Karaoke
Shawn McDonald: Closer
R.E.M.: Collapse Into Now
Derek Webb & Sandra McCracken: TN EP

Currently Releases I Will Check Out - if I am Feeling Particularly Masochistic
FM Static: My Brain Says Stop, But My Heart Says Go
Hawk Nelson: Crazy Love
Tenth Avenue North: Inside and In Between

Eagerly Anticipating:
---

Somewhat Anticipating:
---

Morbidly Anticipating:
(Trying not to think about it.)

[ewok20t3]

Full Length Studio Albums & EP's Over 30 Minutes Long
Five Stars (Perfection To My Ears)
1. Moving Mountains - Waves

Four Stars (Love It)
2. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
3. Weaver At The Loom - Before Now, Was Then
4. Canopy Climbers - Distances
5. Thursday - No Devolución
6. My Epic - Broken Voice EP
7. Thrice - Major/Minor
8. Mute Math - Odd Soul
9. Burlap To Cashmere - Burlap To Cashmere
10. Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
11. Life In Your Way - Kingdoms
12. Blindside - With Shivering Hearts We Wait
13. Hands - Give Me Rest
14. Explosions In The Sky - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
15. States - Room To Run
16. Junius - Reports From the Threshold of Death
17. Lights - Siberia
18. It Prevails - Stroma
19. Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math
20. Deas Vail - Self-Titled
Death Cab For Cutie - Codes and Keys
Hundredth - Let Go
Becoming The Archetype - Celestial Completion
City and Colour - Little Hell
Mansions - Dig Up The Dead

Three Stars (Like It)
****ed Up - David Comes To Life
Align In Time - Me & My Arrow
A.A. Bondy - Believers
A Hope For Home - In Abstraction
Last Winter - The Heart & The Broken COmpass
Mastodon - The Hunter
August Burns Red - Leveler
Balance and Composure - Separation
Radiohead - The King of Limbs
Prawn - You Can Just Leave It All
Bison - Quill
Counterparts - The Current Will Carry Us
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
The Dangerous Summer - War Paint
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Between The Buried and Me - The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues
Sleeping Giant - Kingdom Days In An Evil Age
La Dispute - Wildlife
Relient K - K Is For Karaoke Full Length
Saves The Day - Daybreak
Josh Garrels - Love & War & The Sea In Between
Foo Fighters - Wasting Light
Kanye West & Jay-Z - Watch The Throne
Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto
Jeniferever - Silesia
David Bazan - Strange Negotiations
Oh, Sleeper - Children of Fire
Rise Against - Endgame
Switchfoot - Vice Verses
Chevelle - Hats Off To The Bull
Larry & His Flask - All That We Know
Lydia - Paint It Golden
Maylene & The Sons of Disaster - Maylene and the Sons of Disaster: IV
Thomas Giles - Pulse
The Cinema - My Blood Is Full Of Airplanes
Eisley - The Valley
The Thomas Confession - Convolutions
Caravela - Coat of Arms

Two Stars (Indifferent/Dislike It)
Red Hot Chili Peppers - I'm With You
Jack's Mannequin - People and Things
Lady Gaga - Born This Way
The Devil Wears Prada - Dead Throne

One Star (Awful)
I Am Empire - Kings
Go Radio - Lucky Street
From Atlantique - Morning, Everywhere



COMPILATIONS, LIVE ALBUMS, SINGLES, MIX TAPES, AND EP'S UNDER 30 MINUTES
Five Stars (Perfection To My Ears)

Four Stars (Love It)
Anberlin - Live At House of Blues Anaheim
Deas Vail - For Shepherds & Kings EP

Three Stars (Like It)
Starfox - The Will To Create
Deas Vail and Farewell Flight - Split EP
Endeavor - Demo EP
River James - Self-Titled EP
The Appleseed Cast - Middle States EP
Gates - The Sun Will Rise and Lead Me Home EP
You Can't Explain Logic - No More Waiting Ep
Popcult - Popcult EP
Warm Speakers - Mezcal Noon EP
Wugazi - 13 Chambers
Southern - 11 Years
Savanna - The Ocean That Accepts All Rivers EP
Hawkboy - King Folly
††† - EP †
Dan Mariska - I Could Buy You Anything EP
Restore - Wanderer EP
Hawkboy - Self-Titled EP
Friends - Better Off Alone EP

Two Stars (Indifferent/Dislike It)
Ocean Is Theory - Future Fears EP
The Republic of Wolves - Cartographer EP
Transit - Something Left Behind EP
Ideas & Ideals - Missing Data EP

One Star(Awful)



Digesting:
Andy Zipf - Jealous Hands
Childish Gambino - Camp
The Ember Days - Emergency
Glass America - Darkly EP
Holding Onto Hope - Holding Onto Hope
Dia Frampton - Red




Already Out, Need To Hear:
Aaron Gillespie - Anthem Song
As I Lay Dying - Decas
The Attending - Are You Watching Closely?
Bjork - Biophilia
Emery - We Do What We Want
The Famine - The Architects of Guilt
For The Fallen Dreams - Back Burner
Glass America - Fathom
The Great Commission - Heavy Worship
Haste The Day - Hast The Day vs. Haste The Day
The Human Abstract - Digital Veil
IronWill - Unturned
Junius/Rosetta - Split EP
Lil' Wayne - Carter IV
Lovedrug - The Best of I Am Lovedrug
Metallica & Lou Reed - LuLu
O'Brother - Garden Window
Opeth - Heritage
Owl City - All Things Bright and Beautiful
Over The Ocean - Paper House Reissue
Over The Rhine - The Long Surrender
Overcome - The Great Campaign of Sabotage
Protest The Hero - Scurrilous
Sainthood Reps - Monoculture
Saving Grace - The King Is Coming
Sovereign Strength - The Prophecy
The Strokes - Angles
Times of Grace - The Hymn of A Broken Man
TV On The Radio - Nine Types Of Light
Various - Seven Swans Reimagined

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/ewok20t3/my_favorite_albums_of_2011

[Ian]

Don't pay attention to the scores, they just help me keep organized.

RATED:

1. Nadia Oh - Colours
2. The Field - Looping State of Mind - 9.2
3. Pete Swanson - Man With Potential - 9.2
4. The Necks - Mindset - 9.1
5. Bruno Pronsato - Lovers Do - 9.2
Mitochondrion - Parasignosis - 9.1
Long Arm - Branches - 8.6
Lucy - Wordplay for Working Bees - 9.0
Over the Rhine - The Long Surrender - 9.0
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath 1972 - 8.9
Destroyer - Kaputt - 8.8
Rustie - Glass Swords - 8.7
Robag Wruhme - Thora Vukk - 8.6
Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure - 8.6
Andy Stott - Passed Me By/We Stay Together - 8.6
The Advisory Circle - As the Crow Flies - 8.6
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes - 8.6
Austin Peralta - Endless Planets - 8.6
Clive Tanaka - Jet Set Siempre - 8.6
Pinch & Shackleton - Pinch & Shackleton - 8.6
Stateless - Matilda - 8.6
James Ferraro - Far Side Virtual
Tom Waits - Bad as Me - 8.6
Balam Acab - Wander / Wonder - 8.5
Matthewdavid - Outmind - 8.5
BNJMN - Plastic World - 8.5
Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know - 8.5
Ayatollah - Fingerprints - 8.5
Cut Copy - Zonoscope - 8.4
Blues Control & Laraaji - FRKWYS Vol. 8 - 8.4
Cülo - Life is Vile… And so are We - 8.4
Instra:mental - Resolution 653 - 8.4
Tombs - Path of Totality - 8.4
Araabmuzik - Electronic Dream - 8.4
9th Wonder - The Wonder Years - 8.4
Kangding Ray - OR - 8.4
Sepalcure - Sepalcure - 8.4
JuJu - In Trance - 8.4
Floex - Zorya - 8.4
Perc - Wicker & Steel - 8.4
The Atlas Moth - An Ache for the Distance
Boris - New Album - 8.4
Fucked Up - David Comes to Life - 8.4
Kuedo - Severant - 8.4
Lights - Siberia - 8.3
The Heavy Eyes - Heavy Eyes - 8.3
The Weeknd - House of Balloons - 8.3
Sic Alps - Napa Asylum - 8.3
Kreng - Grimoire - 8.3
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues - 8.3
Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin' - 8.4
Sun Glitters - Everything Could be Fine - 8.3
Rome - Die Æsthetik der Herrschaftsfreiheit - 8.3
Anna Abreu - Rush - 8.3
Ben Frost & Daniel Bjarnason - Solaris - 8.3
Krallice - Diotima - 8.3
The Cosmic Dead - The Cosmic Dead - 8.2
Simon Scott - Bunny - 8.3
Leyland Kirby - Eager to Tear Apart the Stars - 8.3
Salva - Complex Housing - 8.3
Rwake - Rest - 8.3
Cyclo - Id - 8.2
John Tejada - Parabolas - 8.2
Emika - Emika - 8.2
The Caretaker - An Empty Bliss Beyond This World - 8.2
Cut Hands - Afro Noise I - 8.2
Taake - Noregs Vaapen - 8.2
Drake - Take Care - 8.2
Ufesas - Ufesas
Biosphere - N-Plants - 8.2
Tiago Sousa - Walden Pond's Monk - 8.2
Oh Land - Oh Land - 8.2
Mute Math - Odd Souls - 8.2
Tenhi - Saivo - 8.2
Lia Ices - Grown Unknown - 8.2
The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts - 8.2
A Winged Victory for the Sullen - A Winged Victory for the Sullen - 8.2
Jamie Woon - Mirrorwritting - 8.2
Pallers - The Sea of Memories - 8.2
Stereociti - Kawasaki - 8.2
Julia Holter - Tragedy - 8.2
Gretchen Parlato - The Lost and Found - 8.2
Eva & The Heartmaker - Dominoes - 8.2
Radiohead - The King of Limbs - 8.2
Morphosis - What Have We Learned - 8.2
Niggas with Guitars - Ethnic Frenzy - 8.2
The Brandt Brauer Frick Ensemble - Mr Machine - 8.2
Gatto Fritto - Gatto Fritto - 8.1
Stranded Horse - Humbling Tides - 8.1
Tom Trago - Iris - 8.1
Tune Yards - Who Kill - 8.1
Afrikan Sciences - Means & Ways - 8.0
Planetary Assault Systems - The Messenger - 8.0
Fabio Orsi - Stand Before Me, Oh My Soul - 8.0
Wilco - The Whole Love - 8.1
Shlomo - Bad Vibes - 8.0
Jill Scott - The Light of the Sun - 8.0
Clueless - Tordid Affairs - 8.0
Kendrick Lamar - Section.80 - 8.0
James Blake - James Blake - 8.0
G-Side - Cohesive - 8.0
Nocow - G5TAPE01: Ruins Tape - 7.9
Jacques Green - Another Girl - 7.9
Carbon Based Lifeforms - TwentyThree - 7.9
Lone - Echolations - 7.9
Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost - 7.9
Clams Casino - Instrumental Mixtape - 7.9
Teebs - Collections 01 - 7.9
Frivolous - Meteorology - 7.9
Starfucker - Reptillians - 7.9
Tristen - Charlatans at the Garden Gate - 7.9
Kontinent - Down with Candy - 7.8
Peter Bjorn & John - Gimme Some - 7.8
Cunninlynguists - Oneirology - 7.8
Johann Johannsson - The Miners' Hymns - 7.8
Cloudkicker - Let Yourself be Huge - 7.8
Fudge Fingers - Now About How - 7.8
Zwischenwelt - Paranormale Activitat - 7.8
LV - Routes - 7.8
Firefox AK - Color the Trees - 7.8
The Antlers - Burst Apart - 7.8
Sven Laux - Nostalgia - 7.8
Smith Westerns - Dye it Blonde - 7.8
Icicle - Under the Ice - 7.7
Cave Singers - No Witch - 7.7
Heinali - 67 Breaths - 7.7
Gruff Rhys - Hotel Shampoo - 7.7
M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming - 7.6
Beyonce - 4 - 7.6
Bibio - Mind Bokeh - 7.6
Deerhoof - Deerhoof vs Evil - 7.6
Abzu - Absu - 7.6
Tyler, The Creator - Goblin - 7.6
Robag Wruhme - Wuppdeckmischmanpflow - 7.6
Borden, Ferraro, Godin, Halo & Loptain - FRKWAYS Vol. 7 - 7.6
G-Side - Island - 7.6
Panda Bear - Tomboy - 7.5
Æthenor - En Form for Bla - 7.4
Tennis - Cape Dory - 7.4
Wild Beasts - Smother - 7.4
Isolee - Well Spent Youth - 7.4
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver - 7.4
Nicolas Jaar - Space is Only Noise - 7.4
Brokenchord - A Girl of 13 Summers - 7.3
Paul Frick - I Mean 12" - 7.3
Giant Peach - Glow Away Ghetto Way - 7.3
Lady Gaga - Born This Way - 7.2
Samiyam - Sam Baker's Album - 7.2
Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean - 7.2
Earth - Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light 1 - 7.2
Keith Fullerton Whitman / Alien Radio - Split - 7.1
The Strokes - Angles - 7.1
Death Cab for Cutie - Codes & Keys - 7.1
Juv - Juv - 7.1
Bright Eyes - The People's Key - 6.9
La Sera - La Sera - 6.9
813 - Dusty Bubbles - 6.7
Geotic - Mend - 6.7
Yuck - Yuck - 6.6
Misha Mishajashvili - 2011 - 6.5
Avril Lavigne - Goodbye Lullaby - 6.2
Fergus and Geronimo - Unlearn - 5.8
Moon Wiring Club - Somewhere A Fox is Getting Married - 5.5
Morgan Zarate - Hookid EP - 5.2
Ø - Heijastuva - 4.0
Mindy Gledhill - Anchor - 4.0
Matthew Friedberger - Solos #1: Napoléonette - 3.5
Gucci Mane - Gucci 2 Time Mixtape - 3.3
Dirty Beaches - Badlands - 1.5


SINGLES/EPS:

Lana Del Rey - Video Games / Blue Jeans - 9.6
Actress - Harrier Attk / Gershwin - 9.2
Kahn - Like We Used To / Helter Skelter - 9.0
Burial - Street Halo EP - 8.9
Robag Wruhme - Donnerkuppel - 8.8
Long Arm - Organic - 8.8
Nick Hoppner - A Peck and a Pawn EP - 8.8
XXXY - Ordinary Things / You Always Start It - 8.7
Nest - Body Pilot - 8.7
Live Thugs - Explorations EP - 8.6
Palisade - So Waht 12"
Buno Pronsato - Anybody But You - 8.6
G.H. - Ground EP - 8.5
Sina. - From Love to Dust
Inc. - 3 - 8.5
Bicep - EP2 - 8.4
Lando Kal - Further / Time Out
Peverelist - Dance Til the Police Come / Fundamentals - 8.4
Vakula - Slavic Mythology - 8.3
Deadboy - Here - 8.3
Union - Time Leak EP
Miles - Facets EP - 8.3
Pangaea - Inna Daze - 8.2
Question - Interludes & Interpretations - 8.2
Débruit - Sis Sürpriz EP - 8.2
SBTRKT - Wildfire (Objekt Remix)
Florrie - Experiments EP - 8.1
Sepalcure - Fleur EP - 8.0
Braille - Braille EP - 8.0
Pangaea - Hex/Fatalist - 8.0
Downliners Sekt - Meet the Decline EP - 7.9
Recloose - Saturday Night Manifesto - 7.9
The Open Songbook - Study Series 05: Hintermass - 7.9
Bibio/Clark - Baskerville - 7.9
Big Business - Quadruple Single - 7.9
Swindle - Playground - 7.9
fLako - Carving Away the Clay - 7.9
Ossie - Taratula - 7.8
Chrissy Murderbot - Bussin Down
TRP - Cs EP
Mike Dehnert - Bricolage EP
Sleep ∞ Over - Casual Diamond - 8.0
Lurka - Return / Stabalizer - 7.8
SBTRKT - Living Like I Do - 7.8
Mark E - Day EP
Phaeleh - Falling - 7.6
Ossie - Set the Tone EP - 7.6
Blawan - Bohla EP - 7.6
SBTRKT - Wildfire - 7.5
Kahn - Azalea / Way Mi Defend - 7.5
Roman Lindau - Contraste EP - 7.5
Jonny Trunk - Study Series 06:  Animation and Interpretation VLS - 7.4
Sascha Rydell - Marmonner 12" - 7.3
Fatima - Follow You EP - 7.2
Heaven in Her Arms & Aussitôt Mort - Split - 7.0
Kevin McPhee - Get In With You - 7.0
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Thuggin' EP - 6.8
Emily King - The Seven EP - 6.6
Jessie and the Toy Boys - Show Me Your Tan Lines - 6.2
Addison Groove - Work It - 5.0
Lifelover - Sjukdom - 4.9
Eprom - Pipe Dream EP - 4.2

[bloop]

I'm thinking this should be stickied, and 2010 destickied, just so it doesn't serve as a constant reminder that I couldn't keep up at all in 2010. 

[murlough23]

What bloop said a few weeks ago. Sticky, please!

[Josh]

Favorites as of 5/10:

1.   Over the Rhine, The Long Surrender
2.   Booker T. Jones, The Road from Memphis
3.   Raphael Saadiq, Stone Rollin'
4.   Hugh Laurie, Let Them Talk
5.   Paul Simon, So Beautiful or So What
6.   Devotchka, 100 Lovers
7.   Hayes Carll, KMAG YOYO
8.   Sam Phillips, Cameras in the Sky
9.   Beastie Boys, Hot Sauce Committee pt. 2
10.   Emmylou Harris, Hard Bargain

Honorable mentions: PJ Harvey, Buddy Miller, Man Man

[RedcoatJones]

Top Ten
1. Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean: 8
2. Lee "Scratch" Perry - Rise Again: 8
3. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues: 8
4. Alison Krauss and Union Station - Paper Airplane: 8
5. Lucinda Williams - Blessed: 8
6. Deerhoof - Deerhoof vs. Evil: 8
7. Yuck - Yuck: 8
8. Okkervil River - I Am Very Far: 8
9. Over the Rhine - The Long Surrender: 7

Compilations/EPs/Etc.
Robert Johnson - Centennial Collection: 9
Todd Snider - Live: The Storyteller: 7

Ratings Guide (stolen from Popmatters):
10 - The Best of the Best
9 - Very Nearly Perfect
8 - Excellent
7 - Damn Good
6 - Good
5 - Average
4 - Unexceptional
3 - Weak
2 - Seriously Flawed
1 - Terrible

[ajyouthguy]

I didn't realize I hadn't started one yet.  I've gotten a decent amount of music this year but a lot of it is past year's releases.  anyways, here's a start at least.

1. Of Man--Cool Hand Luke
2. Burlap to Cashmere--s/t
3. Vice Verses--Switchfoot
4. Love and War and the Sea in Between--Josh Garrels
5. Odd Soul--MuteMath
6. Barton Hollow--The Civil Wars
7. The Reckoning--Needtobreathe
8. The One You Need--Shane and Shane
9. Mylo Xyloto--Coldplay
10. Helplessness Blues--Fleet Foxes

Other stuff I enjoyed, in no particular order:

Young Love--Mat Kearney
Ghosts Upon the Earth--Gungor
Illogical Affair-- Joshua Rosen
With Shivering Hearts We Wait--Blindside
All Things Bright And Beautiful-- Owl City
Third World Symphony--Shaun Groves
The Valley--Eisley
Matthew Mayfield--Now You're Free
Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors--Chasing Someday
Graham Colton--Pacific Coast Eyes
Leigh Nash--Hymns and Sacred Songs
Over the Rhine--The Long Surrender
Robbie Seay Band--Rich and Poor
Daughtry--Break the Spell
Katie Herzig--The Waking Sleep
Zerbin--Of Fools and Gold
Phil Wickham--Response

John Mark McMillan--Economy
Gabe Dixon--One Spark
Jonathan Jones--Community Group
Downhere--On the Altar of Love
Ben Rector--Something Like This

[NinjaRob17]

Better late then never I suppose.

Love It
M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming (A-)
Destroyer - Kaputt (A-)
Becoming the Archetype - Celestial Completion (A-)
Gungor - Ghosts Upon the Earth (A-)

Like It
Toro Y Moi - Underneath the Pine (B+)
Araab Musik - Electronic Dream (B+)
tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l (B+)
Burlap to Cashmere - Burlap to Cashmere (B+)
Washed Out - Within and Without (B+)
St. Vincent - Strange Mercy (B+)
Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972 (B+)
Mastodon - The Hunter (B+)
MuteMath - Odd Soul (B+)
Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow (B+)
Falling Up - Your Sparkling Death Cometh (B+)
Battles - Gloss Drop (B)
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues (B)
The Civil Wars - Barton Hollow (B)
Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost (B)
They Might Be Giants - Join Us (B)
Drake - Take Care (B)
Blindside - With Shivering Hearts We Wait (B)
Cool Hand Luke - Of Man (B)
Josh Garrels - Love & War & the Sea In Between (B)
Real Estate - Days (B)
The Antlers - Burst Apart (B)
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver (B)
Bomb the Music Industry! - Vacation (B)
James Blake - James Blake (B)
Blink-182 - Neighborhoods (B)
Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch the Throne (B)
The Black Keys - El Camino (B)
TV On the Radio - Nine Types of Light (B)
Atlas Sound - Parallax (B)
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes (B)
Cut Copy - Zonoscope (B)
Moving Mountains - Waves (B)
Andrew Jackson Jihad - Knife Man (B)
Fucked Up - David Comes to Life (B)
Elbow - Build a Rocket Boys! (B)
Bjork - Biophilia (B)
The Decemberists - The King Is Dead (B)
My Morning Jacket - Circuital (B)
Iceage - New Brigade (B)
Opeth - Heritage (B)
Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise (B-)
Septic Flesh - The Great Mass (B-)
Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact (B-)
The Field - Looping State of Mind (B-)
Thrice - Major/Minor (B-)
Bull of Heaven - 261: A Feeling for the Order Lying Behind the Appearance (B-)
Cults - Cults (B-)
Youth Lagoon - The Year of Hibernation (B-)
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring for My Halo (B-)
John Maus - We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves (B-)
Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde (B-)
R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now (B-)
Cass McCombs - Wit's End (B-)
Big K.R.I.T. - ReturnOf4Eva (B-)

OK With It
Panda Bear - Tomboy (C+)
ASAP Rocky - LiveLoveA$AP (C+)
EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints (C+)
Death Cab for Cutie - Codes and Keys (C+)
DeVotchKa - 100 Lovers (C+)
Shabazz Palaces - Black Up (C+)
Beastie Boys - Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (C+)
Radiohead - The King of Limbs (C+)
Arctic Monkeys - Suck It and See (C+)
Flogging Molly - Speed of Darkness (C+)
The Aquabats - Hi-Five Soup! (C+)
Angels and Airwaves - Love: Part II (C+)
WU LYF - Go Tell Fire to the Mountain (C+)
Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage (C)
August Burns Red - Leveler (C)
Emery - We Do What We Want (C)
Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto (C)
Oneohtrix Point Never - Replica (C)
Deas Vail - Deas Vail (C)
The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient (C)
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - Belong (C)
The Strokes - Angles (C)
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake (C)
Rise Against - Endgame (C)
Oh, Sleeper - Children of Fire (C)
Switchfoot - Vice Verses (C-)
The Devil Wears Prada - Dead Throne (C-)
Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (C-)
Chevelle - Hats Off to the Bull (C-)
Panic! At the Disco - Vices & Virtues (C-)

Dislike It
The Weeknd - House of Balloons (D+)
Childish Gambino - Camp (D+)
Julianna Barwick - The Magic Place (D+)
DJ Quik - The Book of David (D)
Sum 41 - Screaming Bloody Murder (D)
Maylene and the Sons of Disaster - IV (D-)

Hate It
Family Force 5 - III (F)

EPs, Live Albums, Cover Albums, Etc.
Trash Talk - Awake (A)
Surfer Blood - Tarot Classics (B+)
The White Panda - Pandamonium (B-)
Various Artists - Seven Swans Reimagined (C+)
Future of the Left - Polymers are Forever (C+)
Wugazi - 13 Chambers (C+)
Milkman - Algorithms (C)
Team Teamwork - Super Nintendo Sega Genesis (C)
Relient K - K Is For Karaoke (C)
Joshua Morse - Mega Man: The Robot Museum (C)

Digesting
Sleeping At Last - January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September
David Bowie - Toy
Robin Pecknold - Three Songs
The Hood Internet - The Mixtape Volume 5

[murlough23]

My yearly article detailing my favorites from 2011.

http://www.epinions.com/content_5591113860

(If you think year-end best-of lists should be a separate thread, feel free to split.)

[bloop]

I should do one of these things sometime, but they seem like a lot of work. No Dishonorable Mentions list is complete without Gold Cobra this year. 

[ewok20t3]

My yearly article detailing my favorites from 2011.

http://www.epinions.com/content_5591113860

(If you think year-end best-of lists should be a separate thread, feel free to split.)

I enjoyed reading that. I even looked back at some of your past year-end write up's while I was at it.

I agree with bloop, I'd love to do something like this, but it just seems like it would make my head hurt. 

[murlough23]

I should do one of these things sometime, but they seem like a lot of work.

They are a lot of work. I usually start the list in mid-December by copying and pasting from my Music Journal. The hard part is writing up the summaries. Most people have much smaller lists or don't go into as much detail, so for a normal sane person, explanations of the top 3-5 with some HM's would probably more than suffice. (Then again, bloop, you have a very long music journal and it'd be interesting to read your reasoning for the stuff you ranked most highly).

No Dishonorable Mentions list is complete without Gold Cobra this year. 

I usually make the disclaimer that this isn't the worst music that the entire industry saw in the whole year - it's just the duds I've run across personally. Only on rare occasions will there be something on there that I knew would be bad before I even listened to it (like Kutless). In general my "Dishonorable" list has gotten way shorter since I got off of Provident Records' mailing list (I no longer get free music to review from anyone, and I actually kind of prefer it that way, as I waste less time on generic CCM.) If anything shows up there, it was either morbid curiosity or a genuine bad surprise from an artist I previously enjoyed.

[Ian]

1. Nadia Oh - Colours
2. The Field - Looping State of Mind
3. Pete Swanson - Man With Potential
4. The Necks - Mindset
5. Bruno Pronsato - Lovers Do

incredible top 5 this year, wonder if 2012 can match it!