Rodan’s Favorites of 2011
… this is it.
We’ve entered music’s final year, as well as our own. At least if my tracking of the Mesoamerican calendar serves me. But assuming the world wasn’t created on August 11, 3114 B.C., we’ve got years and years of ear-filling frequencies yet to come. Just in case, though, we may as well review what could have been the last full musical year… for posterity’s sake, eh.. ?
Hit the jump for my full review of 2011.
It’s important to note that the content-heavy nature of this post (high resolution images and embedded audio) will cause the audio players to take a second to load. Rest assured, all the songs work, some are also downloadable. Onward!
Top Ten LPs
10. Atropolis – Atropolis // Dutty Artz / April 26 (buy / review)
Although “jungle bass” is a mostly silly term, Adam Patridge of the Cumba Mela crew was able to do justice to the words in his debut self-titled, Atropolis. The album blends the deeper frequencies of dubstep and garage with the tropical energy of south american music to beautiful effect. While this kind of hybrid-work can often end in disaster, Atropolis walks the tightrope with grace, creating music that appeals to ears across the Americas.
Note: this one takes the longest of all of them to load. Like 30 straight seconds. There’s no youtube video pero, stick it out if you have the patience.
9. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues // Subpop / May 3 (buy)
Fleet Foxes - Blue Spotted Tail
Listening to Helplessness Blues, you can’t help but shake the feeling that you should be harmonizing from the himalaya tops as you march on toward worlds unknown. The music has a timeless quality that speaks directly to the gut, resonating with the inner nomad that has been passed down over generations, though he sometimes goes unnoticed. With only their voices and a few sets of strings, Fleet Foxes remind us of the power of the human voice in harmony.
8. FaltyDL – You Stand Uncertain // Planet Mu / March 28 (buy)
You Stand Uncertain flirts with the sounds of house, garage and dubstep, but couldn’t be labeled as any of the three. FaltyDL has a style uniquely his own, peppering his music with unexpected rhythmic nuances that can feel almost uncomfortable at times. His percussion, which may come off as sporadic upon first listen, is highly meticulous and a welcome deviation from the 4/4 rhythmic standard. That said, “Voyager” is a bit of an outlier from this trend, but I included it because it’s my favorite, the groove just slides right off the high hat like butter. You Stand Uncertain is a breath of fresh air among New York producers trying to reinterpret sounds of the UK dance movement.
7. Salva – Complex Housing // Friends of Friends / February 8 (buy / review)
Salva should be disassociated with the beat movement and reassociated with the damn groovy beat movement. Dude gets your feet moving with his energetic kick-snare patterns and stuttering synth lines (not to mention, he’s from Chi town). Complex Housing is a pleasurable listen start to finish. It also has some considerable remixers on deck, most notably My Dry Wet Mess with his rework of “Blue.”
6. Cut Copy – Zonoscope // Modular Recordings / February 4 (buy / review)
Having seen Cut Copy live twice now, believe me when I say these guys can get a crowd going. Their 80/90′s throwback sound seems to have a mass appeal that can launch any group into jumping synchrony. In Ghost Colours was a hard act to follow up with hits like “Lights and Music” and “Hearts on Fire,” but Zonoscope came back with equal synth-pop force. A party soundtrack that is sure not to step on any toes, highlights include “Corner of the Sky” and “Pharaohs and Pyramids,” which, as MacGregor turned and said to me at Pitchfork this summer with his elbows in full swing, is a “straight warehouse banger.”
5. Federico Aubele – Berlin 13 // Eighteenth Street Lounge / March 22 (buy / review)
With the haunting chorus “sueño, Buenos Aires,” Federico Aubele had me enchanted from the title track. I knew the man could make sultry music, but Berlin 13 sees his typical tango style woven into a tapestry of heavier reggae dub tones, making some tracks fit for the dance floor as well as the seaside. Fellow artist and spouse, Natalia Clavier, sings harmonies up and down the track list, providing a nice complement to Aubele’s baritone. Quite possibly the classiest album of 2011.
4. The Weeknd – House of Balloons // XO / March 21 (download)
Squeegie writer Nathan described the sounds on House of Balloons as “baby making music,” and I don’t think I could put it any better. Canadian native Abel Tesfaye surprised the world with his debut LP this March (he’s a year senior of the Squeegie staff); the album features R&B vocal croons laid over heavy bass lines and slow-motion hip-hop beats. Who could not be aroused? Most of the tracks on House of Balloons detail the adulterous odysseys of a female subject as the singer entices her with devil-on-the-shoulder whispers. Unfortunately, The Weeknd’s subsequent releases have fallen short of the original’s thunder, but this remains by far the best free album of 2011 (peep that half-way transition in “Glass Table Girls”).
3. Gil Scott Heron & Jamie XX – We’re New Here // XL Recordings / February 21 (buy / review)
The concept behind We’re New Here is refreshing. Lay the vocal stylings of the late spoken word artist Gil Scott-Heron over the skilled percussive arrangements of Jamie XX for a whole that is greater than its parts. Scott-Heron’s voice sounds like it was made for the album, his terse musings fitting smoothly into each dip and rise of the beat. Jamie XX really showcases his range in the album, exploring soundscapes of garage and hip-hop that were only hinted at in The xx. Hopefully Jamie will continue to explore his solo career in 2012, I think he was the hidden genius behind the success of The XX.
2. Mophono – Cut Form Crush // CB Records / February 19 (buy / review)
Cut Form Crush was perhaps 2011’s greatest surprise. Emerging out of almost total obscurity from the L.A. beat movement, the LP is entirely a breed of its own, a breed Mophono calls “Dirt Wave.” Massive acoustic percussion hits strut over some of the filthiest synthesizer noises I’ve ever heard while dusty vinyl samples texturize the background. Somehow Mophono makes every breath, every syncopation, every stutter feel perfectly placed. This may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it rubs me in that hard-to-reach spot somewhere deep in my gut.
1. Nicolas Jaar – Space Is Only Noise // Circus Company / February 14 (buy)
In terms of truly innovative music from 2011, Space Is Only Noise has got to take the cake. Nicolas Jaar is quite the individual. Only one year my senior, the guy has started his own label and released a groundbreaking album, all while studying comparative literature at Brown University. Jaar’s album is well-rounded and pensive, each song a complex collage of vocal samples, brooding chords and minimal percussion. This is what the world of electronic music needed this year, a return to something we can soundly call art without dispute from our elder generation. These arrangements are truly artistic and thought-provoking, and don’t fit as much on the dance floor as in your car’s subwoofer on a late night cruise. I can’t wait to see what this bright producer brings in 2012.
Top Five EPs
5. Hudson Mohawke – Satin Panthers // Warp / August 2 (buy)
I’ve always been hot and cold with Hudson Mohawke. Some of his tracks are spot on while others are overly cluttered and borderline cacophonous. When the guy does it right though, he smashes it out of the park. Satin Panthers is a club record start to finish. The infamous “Cbat” may have gained recognition through the Comedy Central series Workaholics, but for good reason: shit’s got some booty bumping bass. Some of his other tracks, like “Thunder Bay,” are reminiscent of the blaring, almost belligerently insistent beats of Rustie. Great soundtrack for a drunken good time.
4. Citymouth – Holodecker // Dropping Gems / March 29 (download)
Most everything that comes from the Dropping Gems crew is a gem. Holodecker is no exception. Citymouth has a way with transmitting beats from faraway constellations. With a pay-what-you-wish price tag, there’s no good reason you shouldn’t pick this one up.
3. Phantogram – Nightlife // Barsuk / November 1 (buy)
Phantogram made my top ten list in 2010 with Eyelid Movies and 2011 saw another great release from the trio, Nightlife. I actually saw them perform live at the Royale in Boston about a week after the release, which reopened my eyes to the brilliance of this group. The drummer stole the show, alternating hits between set and MPC to get the crowd going with hip-hop tinged rock beats. The keyboardist and guitarist faded in and out of blue and red, each singing in turn. Their indie rock, experimental hip-hop hybrid style comes into its own even more in Nightlife, as demonstrated by their live performance.
2. Sepalcure – Fleur // Hot Flush / January 31 (buy / review)
Sepalcure are a great example of a side project gone right. Machinedrum and Praveen teamed up to clarify what garage music meant in America and Fleur gives great definition to that term. Each track serves a unique purpose for the EP, some wistful sleepers, others club jams. ”No Think” is undoubtedly the takeaway track, with an insistent bell line flitting over low grumbling frequencies. A beautiful project, I hope to see a full-length from these two in 2012.
1. Ital Tek – Whit It Up // Atom River / July 4 (buy)
Ital Tek aka Alan Myson doesn’t cease to amaze me. He’s found the perfect balance of minimal dubstep bass tones and experimental hip-hop synthesizer work in his futuristic soundscapes. Some of his best work, I think, has been his collaborations with vocalists, such as “Restless Tundra” with the lovely Anneka on Midnight Colour. That said, Whip It Up features only beatwork and it may be my favorite release thus far. My favorite track has to be “Skyline,” the synthesizer sounds just slay me. Can’t wait to see what this gentleman cooks up in the new year.
Top Remix Album
Take – Only Mountain: The Remixes // Alpha Pup / February 22 (buy)
Take‘s Only Mountain was one of the best albums of the beat movement to come out of 2010, and 2011 saw a fine roster of cohorts giving Take’s originals the flip, including Shigeto, Free The Robots and Take himself. My favorite remix comes from the foxy female beatstress, Tokimonsta (who released her own EP, Creature Dreams, this year).
Top Compilation
Starship 27 – Vol. 2: Take Off // Animal Kingdom X (iN)Sect Records / March 29 (buy)
The second in a series of three elusive experimental hip-hop compilations, Starship 27 rocked my shit. Featuring names like Dam-Funk, B. Bravo and Dibia$e and a whole bunch more I’ve never heard of, it’s a wonder that this compilation hasn’t received more attention. Eric Lau‘s “8001″ is a good example of the kind of experimental beatwork on the compilation, a minimal sleeper for robots of the future to freestyle over. Keep your eye on J1, the DJ behind the whole project, apparently the trilogy’s secret will be revealed with the third installment later this year.
Top Five Originals
5. The Weeknd – Rolling Stone
4. Young Montana? – Sacre Cool
3. The Strokes – Machu Picchu
2. Groundislava – A Grass Day
1. The Weeknd – What You Need
Top Five Remixes
5. Shigeto – And We Gonna (Samiyam Chopsticks Remix)
4. Mount Kimbie – Carbonated (Peter Van Hoesen Remix)
3. Radiohead – Little by Little (Caribou Remix)
2. Gold Panda – Marriage (Star Slinger Remix)
1. Virgo Four – It’s a Crime (Caribou Remix)
Well, that about sums it up. Inevitably I’ve left out some good picks, which is where my fellow writers step in. Thank you for supporting our blog with your readership, you make this site something valuable and not just words wandering the void. I sense this project is coming to a close soon, as it has blossomed into something amazing over the last three years and that amazingness deserves a graceful close, before things get too stale. You haven’t heard the last of us, though. You can be sure of that.
It’s been good.
Sincerely,
Rodan
no others.
beatport
juno records
dj download
itunes
boomkat
bleep
I feel ur heart amd soul in all of this man. thats the most important part. in the short time ive followed ur blog ive really enjoyed reading your pespectives on all the music. thanks.
January 4th, 2012 at 17:54Great list. Sepalcure had a self-titled full-length LP at the end of 2011. Didn’t you hear it?
January 10th, 2012 at 21:34Shit, done slept on it. Downloading now, thanks for the tip!
January 11th, 2012 at 02:03