Dr. John - Revolution

New track from the old master. Not quite his best stuff, but not too shabby. The backing band is kick-ass.

 

Best of 2011 Part 4

Hard to believe but we're already half way through the list. We have some really divergent stuff for you today, so let's get to 'er!

#12

DJ Cam

Seven

Laurent Daumail is our next contributor to the list, and does so with his latest solo effort. I'm a huge fan of the stuff he's done with his group, simply called the DJ Cam Quartet, and while this album doesn't stray too far from the lo-fi jazzy trip-hop style beats that he's known for, it offers a few more intricate and less loop-based jams that are an evolution from his previous material.

This is really a champion of chill-out tunes we're listening to, and this album is as intimate as you could ask for, pulling you in with some brilliant, soulful, almost haunting tracks while at other times just gently tugging with bright, fleeting artsy jazz rhythms. The only question now is when can we hear more?

Swim

California Dreamin'

Ghost

#11

Kraak & Smaak

Electric Hustle

After hearing the really crunchy sounding single "Dynamite" I figured the rest of the Dutch's trio's new album would be a similarly sounding house album. I'm happy to say I was proven wrong. I loved the single, but the album just had so many surprises and so many layers that any of my preconceptions were totally off-base.

This album has elements of soul, blues, jazz, R&B, but really at it's hard is a sort of synth-pop nu-funk awesomeness that should be listened to in its entirety. The whole thing just really makes you want to get up and boogie. They also tour as a live act to rave reviews and are now on my list of bands to see before the world blows up. Might have to make a little European tour to catch them.

Let's Go Back

Hold Back Love

Wasted With A Smile

#10

The Black Keys

El Camino

Into the top 10! This is an interesting selection for me, because I actually have mixed feelings about this album. With their follow up to last year's wildly successful "Brothers" album, Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney have put together another fine album of bluesy rock that anyone who liked last year's record would love as well. Starting with the single, "Lonely Boy", it's full of the same catchy hooks and nearly every song is a winner, but is that really a good thing?

For music aficionados this album just sounds like an extension, some left over songs from the same writing and recording process. In this essence I'm not as excited about it, but that doesn't mean it's not a very good album. In fact just about any other rock duo in the world would be ecstatic about releasing an album of this calibre, but we've come to expect so much from these guys that I was just hoping for something really different this time. That said it's still good enough to make my top 10, which maybe says something about how good these guys are.

Gold On The Ceiling

Dead And Gone

Mind Eraser

EP #4

Com Truise

Fairlight

Seth Haley really likes his synths, drum machines, and really likes 80's video games. Probably loves robots too because that's what I think of when I listen to his music. This EP was my first exposure to his weird audiotronic world, and I was impressed. Even though his choice of instrumentation is limited, there is emotion and versatility exposed in a strange robotic kind of way. Even though I was ultimately underwhelmed by his later LP release, this EP is definitely worth checking out.

Fairlight

Polyhurt

Beta Eyes

Tomorrow we move deeper into the top 10.

The Black Keys - Lonely Boy

The Black Keys are coming out with a new album soon, and here's the first single!

Best of 2010 Part 5

Off to Moncton soon as I'm done this, then back to Freddy Beach Thursday. Good times had by all, but time to get back to work. Got a lot done in 2010, but there's waaay more to come in 2011. Probably gonna have to drink more coffee. A lot more coffee.

On to Part 5... and into the top 10!

#9

Pretty Lights

Making Up A Changing Mind

Derek Smith is from Colorado. When he does a show, he calls himself Pretty Lights. Derek makes amazing music. So amazing that I'd never even heard of the guy until like six weeks ago, and now he's changed the way I look at the future of production. He's that good. Everyone I've since exposed him to has thought almost the same thing. "Whoa..."

This is the first of three EP's he released this year, and for my money it's the best. They're all awesome though, and the most awesome thing is... you can get them all absolutely free on his website. What? Free? Who does this guy think he is, Radiohead? Sure, you can make a donation. If you like what you hear and you can afford it, I encourage you to. If you can't or don't want to though, you can still get his stuff. All of it. This guy wins my musical inspiration of the year award by a country-style nautical mile.

Future Blind

Still Rockin'

I Can See It In Your Face

#8

The Black Keys

Brothers

The Black Keys are bringin' back the blues. The dirty, dirty blues. Sure, they sound like a rock band, a bit like the White Stripes, but deep down they're all about the blues. The dirty, dirty blues. There's only two of them. Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney. They've been around a little while, but they're relatively young and this is definitely their best work to date.

You've all heard Frank the Funkasaurus Rex sing "Tighten Up", and you were probably impressed. I can tell you with a considerable degree of certainty that the rest of the album is just as good. Could maybe do with a little more Frank though. This album is probably best heard on vinyl in your dirty, dirty bedroom. It'll make you laugh, it'll make you cry. It'll make you wonder why. Why? You've forgotten already have you? It's all about the blues. The dirty, dirty blues.

Everlasting Light

Howlin' For You

The Only One

#7

Caribou

Swim

Daniel Snaith is a brilliant producer who goes by the moniker Caribou. Mr. Snaith was born in London, Ontario, but now resides in London, England. Coincidence? Probably. He won the 2008 Polaris Prize, probably the most prestigious award in contemporary Canadian music, for his album "Andorra". This time around he was a finalist, but didn't win. Odd, because I think this album is noticeably better.

I posted the two singles from the album back in August, but there is so much depth in this album in only nine tracks that it's really something you have to play start to finish. It's almost like an electronic opera. Snaith isn't a particularly talented singer, and I'm not sure he's really figured out how to translate his music in the live arena to great effect just yet, but he's a brilliant orchestrator and his sound is very unique. He's another who's best is yet to come.

Hannibal

Kaili

Leave House

BONUS BEATS!

Hot Pink Delorean - Bee Eff Eff [Lazy Rich Remix]

Woooo electro madness. Off to Moncton, Part 6 tomorrow!

The Black Keys - Tighten Up

Any time there is a dinosaur singing the lead vocals to a song, I sit down and listen. The Black Keys are not dinosaurs, but somehow through the miracle of modern science, or technology, or some strange hand puppet thing, they have managed to figure out how to get this dinosaur to sing their entire song, on camera! If this doesn't deserve some kind of recognition, at least in the form of a meager blog post, I don't know what does. I mean... jebus... I just saw a new video from two horrifically useless media-driven stereotype top 40 craptacular rubbish catch-phrase "artists" that was a week old and had over 2 million views already. That's more than two times as many as this one. Sometimes I think I get it, and then there are days like today.

Dinosaur.