as required. (best of 2012)

I don't know what to say, really. Just another life altering year. Became a father. Quit my job. Read many books and took many tests and wrote many papers. Said lots of quick prayers. Moved into a new apartment. Spent time with friends, old and new. Did not devote any time whatsoever to this here blog. But the year is coming to a close and now I am required to provide a list of what I consider to be the best 50 albums of 2012. This was a great year for rap music. I suggest to you that hip-hop is not yet dead. I said this last year, I wish that I had more time to write about each and every one of these 50, but I have diapers to change and bottles to prepare. Here is the run down, from the least favorite to the most adored. Enjoy.

50. Allah-Las - Allah-Las
49. Twin Shadow - Confess
48. JJ Doom - Key to the Cuffs
47. Bobby Womack - The Bravest Man in the Universe
46. Pond - Beard, Wives, Denim 

45. Exitmusic - Passage
44. Father John Misty - Fear Fun
43. Now, Now - Threads
42. Common - The Dreamer, The Believer
41. Nas - Life is Good

40. Alt-J - An Awesome Wave
39. Hospitality - Hospitality 
38. Mount Eerie - Ocean Roar
37. Menomena - Moms
36. Melody's Echo Chamber - Melody's Echo Chamber

35. The Mynabirds - Generals
34. Animal Collective - Centipede Hz 
33. Dirty Projectors - Swing Lo Magellan
32. Joey Bada$$ - 1999
31. Cody ChesnuTT - Landing on a Hundred

30. Lilacs and Champagne - Lilacs and Champagne
29. Aesop Rock - Skelethon
28. M. Ward - Wasteland Companion
27. Bowerbirds - The Clearing
26. First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar

25. Chairlift - Something
24. Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action at a Distance
23. Oh No - Ohnomite
22. Action Bronson - Blue Chips
21. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do

20. Flying Lotus - Until the Quiet Comes
19. Tennis - Young and Old
18. Lower Dens - Nootropics
17. Lambchop - Mr. M
16. Damien Jurado - Maraqopa

15. Bat For Lashes - The Haunted Man
14. Grizzly Bear - Shields
13. El-P - Cancer 4 Cure
12. Purity Ring - Shrines
11. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!

10. Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
 9. Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City
 8. Sharon Van Etten - Tramp
 7. DIIV - Oshin
 6. Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music

 5. Ty Segall Band - Slaughterhouse
 4. Andrew Bird - Break it Yourself
 3. Shearwater - Animal Joy
 2. Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
 1. Beach House - Bloom

the little things

I have purposely cut back on the variety of music I make available to myself this month. This means I have less choice, which means I spend less time thinking about the choice, which in the end means more time with the music and a greater satisfaction with my choice. If you haven't done so, you should read this book by Barry Schwartz. Don't worry if you have to read in small sections to avoid getting a headache. Dude is way smart.

I still can't help but feel as if I'm missing out on something though. They haven't stopped making new music, thankfully. It just keeps coming, whether I listen or not. How will I ever take it all in? How can I be sure that while I'm listening to the rather mediocre Blakroc I'm not missing the next big thing, my next favorite record? Joanna Newsom's new triple LP has been out for weeks now and I haven't heard one note of it because I've been giving myself other listening assignments. Is this why they say the grass is always greener? Are there ever times when the grass looks as green as it can get right under my feet?

My life has been a scandal for a bit more than a year now. I've had relationship trouble, financial trouble, family trouble, car trouble and troubles of the soul. When will my grass be green again? Will my grass be green again? What does this have to do with music? I touched on this last week, but when I can slow down and take notice of the little things I start to understand that without them, there are no big things. Sure, I could be listening to hundreds of other records but instead I've really come to love Jackson Browne, "Who Knows Who Cares" by Local Natives and about half of the Broken Bells album. That's not nothing. They shouldn't be overlooked by obsessing with what's next.

The same can be said with the rest of my life. While on the subway Tuesday evening I had the time and space to ponder why it was so hard for me to ask for help trying to get my car to start. Why did that feel so humiliating? Taking the time to notice that feeling, to process it, helped me move on to the next thing. Perhaps it's a bit of a stretch as a comparison, but I've spent a lot of time with the six albums I set aside the last two weeks. I know them now and don't really have to question whether I should spend more time with them. It's okay to move on to something else.

So, the next thing will be Teen Dream (2010) by Beach House, Goo (1990) by Sonic Youth and The Campfire Headphase (2005) by Boards of Canada.

Zebra - Beach House

Disappearer - Sonic Youth

(If I could share a song it would be "Chromakey Democrat")

discovery

I have had one spectacular week of music discovery. Some days are better than others, but I've really been on a roll and I feel the need to share it with you. Here's how this works for me. I wake up in the morning, I get ready for work, I get in the car and I decide what kind of music I'm in the mood for. I then pull it up on the ipod and start my day. Sometimes that sparks a desire for something new. Every Tuesday I get on-line and check out the new releases. If I remember and have time, I usually take a glance at Pitchfork.com to see what they feel is worthy of a listen. More often than not, we disagree but it's still an adventure. I also like to stop in at R5Productions.com to see who's coming to town. If any of the shows sound interesting I'll go digging for that band's music on-line. There are also times when I just decide that I don't know enough about a particular artist and will make an effort to get to know their work better. So, here is what my exploring has uncovered this week...




Neil Young - Mirror Ball (1995)

Young is one of those that I really don't know much about and have never taken the time to get familiar with. After seeing him on Conan's Tonight Show farewell, I decided it was time to dig into his extensive discography. I regret having waited so long to do so. Last week I thoroughly enjoyed several of his records from the '70s (Neil Young, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, After The Gold Rush) and '92s Harvest Moon. This week I had Pearl Jam's "Glorified G" stuck in my head, went back to listen to '93s Vs and remembered they had recorded with Young on Mirror Ball. I like. A lot. The sailor sing-a-long on the opener "Song X" is great.

Song X - Neil Young

Retribution Gospel Choir - 2 (2010)

I love just about everything that Low has done. When I received R5's weekly email this week and saw Low front man Alan Sparhawk's name I got a little excited. I had no that idea Sparhawk has a new band. Actually it's the same band with a new drummer. Low's Steve Garrington is on bass. 2 is much louder and much livelier than anything Low ever did. At times, RGC is straight rocking it. It's interesting to hear Sparhawk's voice in this new environment. It's vaguely familiar and as R5's write up said, it's not too difficult to imagine how Low might have stripped down these songs and made them crawl. This is Low's less repressed younger brother, letting the heat flow. It's wicked good.

Your Bird - Retribution Gospel...

Cat Power - The Greatest (2006)

Ms. Chan Marshall is another artist whom I've always meant to spend more time with. After dabbling a bit this week, I think The Greatest is all I can stomach. Her records sort of feel a bit manic. On one she comes across as cold and shrill, on another she's warm and soft. This album seems to be her warmest and most comforting. It's pretty and calm. Her name and the album art could be deceiving. These are simple and quiet songs. One of my co-workers recommended it and calls it her "going to sleep" album. I don't know that anything particularly special is happening here, but it sure sounds nice.

The Greatest - Cat Power

Charlotte Gainsbourg - IRM (2010)

This one I'll need more time with to adequately describe. I read about it on Pitchfork (I'd strongly recommend reading their review if you have the time). When I saw that Beck wrote and produced it I decided I had to listen. After a couple passes, I'd have to say it's pretty great and probably just what you would expect - Beck's catchy song writing with a female voice to give it some beauty. Their duet on "Heaven Can Wait" is fantastic.

Heaven Can Wait - Charlotte Ga...

Destroyer - Destroyer's Rubies (2006)

Destroyer has a bit of a cult following and I have always felt like I should be a part of it but haven't really given them a fair chance. I kind of like '98s City of Daughters and enjoy portions of '08s Trouble In Dreams but have never really been sold. Facebook reminded me of Dan Bejar and company this week. I went looking for an album I haven't heard in the Destroyer catalog and found Rubies. Bejar's voice wears on me a bit, but this album uses it nicely, laying out just the right landscape for it.

Your Blood - Destroyer

Surfer Blood - Astro Coast (2010)

Another one discovered through Pitchfork, Surfer Blood make simple, '90s era rock music. Pitchfork likens them to Weezer and Built To Spill. What else do you need to know?

Floating Vibes - Surfer Blood

Handsome Furs - Face Control (2009)

I grabbed their debut Plague Park from a friend but never really spent much time with it. While I was checking out Beach House (see below) I decided to see what else was good with Sub Pop and I gave this sophomore effort a listen. I'm not sure what happened to this band, but they sound re-energized. Perhaps building on the success of lead singer Dan Boeckner's other band, Wolf Parade (who made a pretty good album in 2008 - At Mount Zoomer), this album seems more focused. It's broader and well written and well...just not as boring as their first.

All We Want, Baby, Is Everythi...

Beach House - Teen Dream (2010)

I will admit that, being from Baltimore, I am partial to artists from that area. I am puffed up with pride about Animal Collective. I'm starting to feel that way about Beach House. This is a brilliant album and you will see it on the year end best-of lists (including mine). Teen Dream is their Sub Pop debut and it does not disappoint. This is the same Beach House, their sound is still slow and a bit haunting but they are bigger and stronger and that's clear.

Better Times - Beach House

What a week, huh? I'll be digesting all of this for the next month or so, for sure.