Best Albums of 2012 (so far part 2)

[MrWhippy]

12    Shovels and Rope   O Be Joyful

Cool to see mention of Shovels and Rope.  Just discovered them and am really enjoying the album.  Reminds me of an even more rootsy version of Honeyhoney.  By having this on your list, I'll spare you my derision regarding the Andrew Bird pick immediately following it. 

Shovels and Rope are opening for Lucero here in DC in March.  I don't know if they are doing a whole tour with them or not.

Regarding New Multitudes not making it on more lists, the show made it on my top show list, but I haven't gone back to the album enough to warrant putting it on my top albums list.

[BH]

That Andrew Bird album is one of his best ever Mr. Whippy!!!     You probably haven't even listened to it!   

Seriously, Lusitania is one of my top 10 songs of the year.

Andrew Bird & Annie Clark - Lusitania

[BH]

Another favorite track of 2012

Sun Kil Moon - Richard Callopy

A song for an old friend

[mahg33ta]

1    Jack White   Blunderbuss
2    Heartless Bastards   Arrow
3    Lumineers, The   Lumineers, The
4    Lord Huron   Lonesome Dreams
5    Farrar, Yames, Johnson, Parker   New Multitudes
6    Of Monsters and Men   My Head Is an Animal
7    Tallest Man On Earth   There's No Leaving Now
8    First Aid Kit   The Lion's Roar
9    Van Etten, Sharon   Tramp
10    Dr Dog   Be The Void
11    Alabama Shakes   Boys and Girls
12    Shovels and Rope   O Be Joyful
13    Bird, Andrew   Break It Yourself
14    Spirit Family Reunion   No Seperation
15    Trampled By Turtles   Stars and Satellites
16    Diamond Rugs   Diamond Rugs
17    Sollee, Ben   Half Made Man
18    Delta Spirit   Delta Spirit
19    Japandroids   Celebration Rock
20    Everest   Ownerless
21    Simone Felice   Simone Felice
22    Moon Taxi   Caberet
23    M Ward   Wasteland Companion
24    Avett Brothers   The Carpenter
25    Clark Jr, Gary   Blak and Blu

The most frustrating thing about top-10 lists is that you don't know what else the reviewer has heard/seen/been.   If something's not on the list, is it because they haven't heard it, or don't like it?

As a crusade against a personal pet peeve then:  here is everything else I listened to regularly and considered from my list.   For example, after a review of others lists, it seems I need to check out Father John Misty, Menomena, and Tame Impala.

Dr John   Locked Down
Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires   There Is A Bomb In Gilead
Imagine Dragons   Night Visions
Houndmouth   Houndmouth EP
Kingsley Flood   Colder Still
Calexio   Algiers
Johnson, Will   Scorpion
Bird, Andrew   Hands of Glory
My Morning Jacket   It Makes No Difference EP
Deer Tick   Tim (EP)
Bruce Springsteen   Wrecking Ball
Lucero   Women and Work
My Morning Jacket   Outta My System Remixez EP
Band of Horses   Mirage Rock
Misc Artists   Long Distance Salvation
Beach House   Bloom
Potter, Grace and the Nocturnals   The Lion The Beast The Beat
Civil Twilight   Holy Weather
Silversun Pickups   Neck of the Woods
Felice Brothers   God Bless You Amigo
Strand of Oaks   Dark Shores
Mumford and Sons   Babel
JEFF the Brotherhood   Hypnotic Nights
Good Old War   Come Back as Rain
Killers   Battle Born
Green Day   Uno
Brendan Benson   What Kind of World
Mayer, John   Born and Raised
No Doubt   Push and Shove
Apple, Fiona   The Idler Wheel is Wiser Than the Driver

[BH]

For sure mahg33ta.    I love this thread every year cause it gives me some things to explore!

Cant' find a better copy...

The New Multitudes "Angel's Blues" @ The Mayan Theater Los Angeles CA 3-7-12

[exist10z]

1. Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
2. Menomena - Moms
3. Grizzly Bear - Shields
4. Jack White - Blunderbuss
5. Father John Misty - Fear Fun
6. Beach House - Bloom
7. Dirty Projectors - Swing Low Magellan
8. Tame Impala - Lonerism
9. Purity Ring - Shrines
10. DIIV - Oshin

Honorable Mention: Passion Pit-Gossamer, Chromatics-Kill For Love, Lower Dens-Nootropics

Still need to check out: Japandroids and The xx

I realized that: Tennis - Young & Old and Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action At A Distance, were in 2012, both of these would either be on the list or at least honorable mention.

I did checkout Japandroids, meh, a little too pop/punk for me I think, but maybe I'll do a bit more research.  And I would add Sharon Van Etten's Tramp to my need to check out list, I like her a lot but have only heard a track or two off Tramp.

[MrWhippy]

That Andrew Bird album is one of his best ever Mr. Whippy!!!     You probably haven't even listened to it!   

You're right, I haven't listened to it, but I did sit through the his endless set of whistlesterbation  while waiting for MMJ at Forecastle.

[mahg33ta]

That Andrew Bird album is one of his best ever Mr. Whippy!!!     You probably haven't even listened to it!   

You're right, I haven't listened to it, but I did sit through the his endless set of whistlesterbation  while waiting for MMJ at Forecastle.

as your whistlerbation companion and someone who has listened to the album lots, I much prefer the album.   It's great Sun morning cooking in the kitchen music.   The dude is talented, I just don't care for the live show.

[Fully]

That Andrew Bird album is one of his best ever Mr. Whippy!!!     You probably haven't even listened to it!   

You're right, I haven't listened to it, but I did sit through the his endless set of whistlesterbation  while waiting for MMJ at Forecastle.

as your whistlerbation companion and someone who has listened to the album lots, I much prefer the album.   It's great Sun morning cooking in the kitchen music.   The dude is talented, I just don't care for the live show.

I still have night terrors about all of that whistlesterbation. I'll wake up and think it's over and dammit if I don't have an encore dream about it. It never ends. Maybe after some more sessions with my therapist I will be able to try a little "Sun morning cooking in the kitchen" sesh. But it won't happen until Jan. 6th at the very earliest.

[ManNamedTruth]

1. Heartless Bastards - Arrow
2. Dr. Dog - Be The Void
3. Father John Misty - Fear Fun
4. First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar
5. Alabama Shakes - Boys and Girls
6. Beach House - Bloom
7. Gary Clark Jr. - Blak and Blu
8. The Walkmen - Heaven
9. Jack White - Blunderbuss
10. The Lumineers

honoroable mentions - M. Ward, Sharon van Etten

albums I listened to once or twice on spotify and thought sounded good, but need more listens - Richard Hawley, Menomena, JD Mcpherson, Japandroids, Andrew Bird, Dr. John, Grizzly Bear - I'm sure I'm forgetting a few.

biggest disappointment - The Avett Brothers - Carpenter

[Hawkeye]

That Andrew Bird album is one of his best ever Mr. Whippy!!!     You probably haven't even listened to it!   

You're right, I haven't listened to it, but I did sit through the his endless set of whistlesterbation  while waiting for MMJ at Forecastle.

as your whistlerbation companion and someone who has listened to the album lots, I much prefer the album.   It's great Sun morning cooking in the kitchen music.   The dude is talented, I just don't care for the live show.

I still have night terrors about all of that whistlesterbation. I'll wake up and think it's over and dammit if I don't have an encore dream about it. It never ends. Maybe after some more sessions with my therapist I will be able to try a little "Sun morning cooking in the kitchen" sesh. But it won't happen until Jan. 6th at the very earliest.

I've seen him live 2-3 times now and I must say I agree.  I love his albums.  Love 'em.  Like you said, "Sunday morning cooking" music at its finest.  But the live show usually bores me...it's "good" in the sense that it's pretty music and he's really talented, but I usually end up nodding off...I REALLY want to see him play with a live band, just for a change.  I love his Bowl of Fire era stuff just as much as his new stuff, in a completely different way.  Everyone who's not a fan of his current stuff should check out The Swimming Hour and earlier stuff...give it a chance 

[headhunter]

I'm sure I bought at least 100 new albums this year but these were among my favorites:

Jason Isbell - Live From Alabama
Kathleen Edwards - Voyager
Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball
Sons Of Bill - Sirens
Bob Dylan - Tempest
New Multitudes
Gary Clark Jr. - Blak and Blu
John Hiatt - Mystic Pinball
Tedeschi Trucks Band - Everybody's Talking
Lucero - Women & Work
Alejandro Escovedo - Big Station


And a few that aren't really "new" but came out this year and for me were as good as it gets

Frank Turner - Last Minutes & Lost Evenings
Rodriguez - Searching For Sugarman
Grateful Dead - Live At Winterland 1971

[pawpaw]

This is probably going to be it for me for the year:

Quantic & Alice Russell – Look Around the Corner
Father John Misty – Fear Fun
Christian Loeffler – A Forest
Six Organs of Admittance – Ascent
Menahan Street Band – The Crossing
A.C. Newman - Shut Down the Streets
Tame Impala - Lonerism
Flying Lotus - Until The Quiet Comes
Mark Lanegan – Blues Funeral
Calexico – Algiers

Yep, I'm sticking with those, but here are some others that I really liked:

Voices from the Lake - S/T
High on Fire - De Vermis Mysteriis
Sugarman 3 - What The World Needs Now
Bowerbirds - The Clearing
Ricardo Villalobos - Dependent and Happy
John Talabot - fIN
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Psychedelic Pill
The Walkmen - Heaven
Lambchop - Mr. M
Quakers - S/T

[MrWhippy]

Alejandro Escovedo - Big Station

Thanks, Jeff, for reminding me that I need to check out Alejandro's new album.  This one seems to have flown under the radar, given that his last couple, particularly Real Animal, seemed to get a fair amount of press.

Here's one record that was on my best of the year list until a mediocre live show killed it for me:

Japandroids - Celebration Rock

[BH]

That Andrew Bird album is one of his best ever Mr. Whippy!!!     You probably haven't even listened to it!   

You're right, I haven't listened to it, but I did sit through the his endless set of whistlesterbation  while waiting for MMJ at Forecastle.

as your whistlerbation companion and someone who has listened to the album lots, I much prefer the album.   It's great Sun morning cooking in the kitchen music.   The dude is talented, I just don't care for the live show.

I still have night terrors about all of that whistlesterbation. I'll wake up and think it's over and dammit if I don't have an encore dream about it. It never ends. Maybe after some more sessions with my therapist I will be able to try a little "Sun morning cooking in the kitchen" sesh. But it won't happen until Jan. 6th at the very earliest.

I've seen him live 2-3 times now and I must say I agree.  I love his albums.  Love 'em.  Like you said, "Sunday morning cooking" music at its finest.  But the live show usually bores me...it's "good" in the sense that it's pretty music and he's really talented, but I usually end up nodding off...I REALLY want to see him play with a live band, just for a change.  I love his Bowl of Fire era stuff just as much as his new stuff, in a completely different way.  Everyone who's not a fan of his current stuff should check out The Swimming Hour and earlier stuff...give it a chance 

I will admit, I liked him live a lot better when it was just him and Dosh.   I wish everyone could see the DVD that came with the new album when he performs in a living room with just him and one other person.   His brilliance really comes alive in that setting IMO.

Good call Jeff on the new Kathleen Edwards.  I forgot about that one.   Great album.

For The Record (live) — Kathleen Edwards

[ralph]

Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Psychedelic Pill
Beachwood Sparks - The Tarnished Gold
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Americana
Lee Ranaldo - Between The Times & The Tides
Dinosaur Jr - I Bet On Sky
Hacienda - Shakedown
New Multitudes - New Multitudes

I didn't think anything would get close to Beachwood Sparks for most of the year. Its such a great great record. A perfect cross of The Flying Burrito Brothers mixed into 70's Beach Boys. Became pretty obsessed with it actually.

But Psychedelic Pill is the record I've been waiting for Crazy Horse to release for 20 years. An album where its all about the guitar solo and taking it to the limit. Probably goes to the top of the list for Ramada Inn alone. Got to be the best song Neil's written in a decade. And if Americana was just a toss off to get the Horse back up to full speed to be able make PP I reckon that's a pretty fucken great toss off...

[APR]

I'll to check out many of the above mentioned albums.

I was a fan of:

Pinback - Information Retreived
Soundgarden - King Animal
New Multitudes
Alberta Cross - Songs of Patience

[GO4IT]

I don't sample nearly as much as most of the posters here but two albums from this year that are solid top to bottom and will stand the test of time are New Multitudes and Father Misty's Fear Fun in my opinion.

Thanks all of you for posting your favorites - I find MMJ fans have great taste  :happy: and this is a great place to go to get suggestions on new bands and albums to listen to.

[BH]

I don't sample nearly as much as most of the posters here but two albums from this year that are solid top to bottom and will stand the test of time are New Multitudes and Father Misty's Fear Fun in my opinion.

Thanks all of you for posting your favorites - I find MMJ fans have great taste  :happy: and this is a great place to go to get suggestions on new bands and albums to listen to.

My top two as well I think.      Let's go get drinks and listen to them back to back!   

[GO4IT]

I don't sample nearly as much as most of the posters here but two albums from this year that are solid top to bottom and will stand the test of time are New Multitudes and Father Misty's Fear Fun in my opinion.

Thanks all of you for posting your favorites - I find MMJ fans have great taste  :happy: and this is a great place to go to get suggestions on new bands and albums to listen to.

My top two as well I think.      Let's go get drinks and listen to them back to back!   

Just saw this post.  Naturally, I was going down this path even before I saw your advice.

Almost through New Multitudes and then on to Father John.