#6
Gus Gus
Arabian Horse
Gus Gus is constantly evolving, both in sound and in membership. Hailing from Iceland they are an electronic ensemble who have been around for several years now and have always been on the "pretty cool" side of things, but this album was really a changing point for me. Whereas most electronic music these days is released in smaller EPs and full albums are scarce, this one is meant to be listened to as a whole composition rather than in singles.
It's essentially a tech-house album, but features lots of airy reverb and pulsating pads and beats that give it a trance-like feel. It's subtle, smooth, progressive and deep all at the same time. The production is superbly done and the vocals are just enough to keep it interesting without being overbearing. The mood overall is almost a searching, inquisitive tone, teetering effortlessly along positive and negative space. Devote an hour of your life to listening it straight through and you might find yourself in places you didn't expect. A musical journey well worth taking.
Over
Arabian Horse
Changes Come
#5
Red Fang
Murder The Mountains
I think it's kind of awesome when the most fun album of the year comes from a metal band out of Portland, Oregon. These guys look like four dudes who work at the bottle depot after their high school garage band careers didn't quite pan out. Their videos are super low budget (and hilarious), they have scruffy haircuts, are in their mid-30's at least, and they kick f'in ass. Seriously. They absolutely rock. A strange bit of trivia too, this album was produced by Chris Funk, a member of The Decemberists. Nice of him to make this album even better than his own.
Their sound is kind of like Mastodon, who they're opening up for on a European tour starting in mid-January, but with less screaming and kind of a southern rock tinge, though at times they are classic metal in a Black Sabbath vein. They really are something else. I haven't been this excited about a metal band in a long, long time so I'm more than happy to say that if you are into hard rock at all, this album is a must have. After that you'll probably buy a shirt, because they're so damn cool.
Wires
Dirt Wizard
The Undertow
#4
The Roots
Undun
This is back-to-back killer albums from The Roots, who's album "How I Got Over" was my choice for album of the year in 2010. Whereas last year it was a full eighty minute killer front to back, this time it's a thirty-eight minute concept album, delivered backwards from death to life about a street hustler. The critics are going crazy over it, and I'm just another member of the chorus this time.
Some prefer it over the last album, I'm not sure I feel the same way. It's a masterpiece, for sure, but it's just different. This one feels more like a sort of rap opera, there's completely different pacing and voices throughout and it just seems to move through time and space to bring you to the conclusion. Check out the accompanying short film that I posted a few weeks back and it might help explain. Then get this album. It solidifies this band as THE premier hip-hop act in the world right now, and one of my favorite acts, period.
Sleep
Make My
Tip The Scale
EP #2
Sweatshop Union
The Bill Murray EP
Anything with Bill Murray in it has to be awesome, doesn't it? These guys are reppin' the 604 out of Vancouver and seem to be getting better with each new release. This one, for me, is their best yet. Up until a week before I started this list this was tops on my EP list, and at twenty-three minutes of top notch hip-hop it's my favorite Canadian disc of the year. It'll probably be yours too after you listen to this.
Makeshift Kingdom
Bill Murray
John Lennon
Tomorrow we get to the big cheese, numero uno!
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