Office by Alex Penny
I am who I am, and I am nothing more.
The life and thoughts of a music obsessed, nerdy teenager who should have lived during the 1950's.
(via iwriteblogsnottragedies)
I’ll be the first to admit that I am great at procrastinating. As can be expected, I did not begin writing this list until about two days ago and it was at that moment that I realised that I’ve sort of fallen off bandwagon (I don’t even know if that’s the right word but it was the first thing that popped into my head) when it comes to music, even the stuff by bands/artists I really like. I had no idea when most albums were being released, who had released new music and so on. Needless to say, it proved rather difficult to actually work up the enthusiasm it required to listen (and re-listen) and mentally critique a decent number of albums so that my list wouldn’t appear so sparse. So here is my list that, for the first time in existence, is listed in order of preference!
Top Ten Albums of 2011:
Honourable Mentions (albums I liked but not enough to make my list, EPs and otherwise):
*I would like to point out that somehow I did not get around to listening to albums by the following artists (or I just forgot they released an album and it was too late to listen to all of them): Blink 182 (I don’t know how that happened, I even downloaded the leak), Madina Lake, Mayday Parade, Bright Eyes, Every Avenue, Sum 41, Yellowcard (again, I’m lazy but I did listen to the acoustic version and it was heavenly), Eisley, The Kills, The Maine (I sort of lost interest in their music), Cobra Starship (I was too scared it was going to suck so I decided to save myself the disappointment by not listening to it all) and You Me At Six (the guest vocalists kind of put me off so I didn’t listen to it for the same reason as Cobra).
So I’ll let everyone know now that I was too lazy to write detailed reviews/descriptions of my favourite albums of 2010 and instead, only wrote 8. They are not in order either because I couldn’t bring myself to properly rank them. and these 8 are not necessarily my top 8. Enjoy.
Fixed At Zero - VersaEmerge
This is basically my ultimate favourite album of the year and if you haven’t jumped on the VersaEmerge bandwagon as of yet, I’d highly recommend doing so. In a world where the industry is filled with pop-punk female-fronted bands, VersaEmerge is a refreshing change without being totally obscure. Sierra Kusterbeck’s vocals are not only strong, but she also has incredible range (and hits high notes without that painful girly high-pitched shrill that is heard so often from female vocalists). The lyrical content is at time mysterious, at times emotional, but always enjoyable. The music is just as good and there are moments when it could be mistaken for a movie score. Each song has a distinct sound and never give off the ‘same sound, different track’ vibe.
Enemy Of The World - Four Year Strong
While I’ve always adored Four Year Strong, this album is by far their best work to date. It’s an album that makes you want to sing along and mosh at the same tie and why wouldn’t you? With a sound that still resonates Rise Or Die Trying but with a more developed, well polished edge, almost anyone could enjoy this album.
My Best Friend Is You - Kate Nash
There is no album released this year by a female artist that displays lyrics as honest, relatable and gives off that ‘independent woman’ vibe quite like Kate Nash’s My Best Friend Is You does. In just 13 songs, Kate manages to cover a vast range of genres that most artists don’t even cover in their entire career. From female sing-a-longs about always being the friend and never the lover to grungy rock tracks complete with wailing and screams, My Best Friend Is You is sure to have something for everyone.
Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys - My Chemical Romance
I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve never been a huge My Chemical Romance fan (yet I still bought two of their previous albums and I do listen to them from time to time) and I had fairly low expectations for this album, but that changed the instant I hard Na Na Na. It was almost like I was listening to a completely different band but with a sense of familiarity that I found comforting. This is exactly how the entire album felt for me. and it was incredible. It was as if MCR had been renewed with a brand new energy and had left the emo stereotype they’d perfected so well. The lyrics are powerful, the music is hard-hitting and fun at the same tie and it almost feels like an album of anthems. Whether you’re a long time MCR fan or have never listened to them before, I’d definitely recommend this album to anyone.
Summer House - Gold Motel
While I was completely clueless as to the existence of Gold Motel for the better part of this year, this is an album that should definitely not be disregarded. The sound is effortless and breezy with a few melancholy tracks mixed in making it the perfect summer album. This album proves that Greta Salpeter really can do no wrong.
My Dinosaur Life - Motion City Soundtrack
From the opening track Worker Bee, it’s already obvious that My Dinosaur Life is Motion City Soundtrack’s greatest album of their career. The lyrical content is not only as brilliant as always, but the sound is noticeably more mature and refined. The lack of synth throughout the album is also welcomed with open arms. Each song is as strong as the one before it and there is never a dull moment, and how many artists can get away with admitting to falling asleep watching Veronica Mars in a song?
Evelyn Evelyn - Evelyn Evelyn
I can guarantee that you will not find a more obscure album released this year - and with good reason. This album tells the story of a fictional pair of conjoined twins named Eva and Lyn (who both became just Evelyn due to confusion over which twin was which) who are not only chronically shy but have gone through hell and back (having their mother die at childbirth, joining a circus as a freakshow act, being used as child prostitutes and much more) to get where they are now. The act consists of Amanda Palmer, Jason Webley, a ukulele, a piano, many mentions of the number 11, the guitar and accordion. The tracks range from sing-a-longs, country-esque, spoken tales of their childhood to a breathtakingly beautiful ukulele cover of Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart that brings on goosebumps. Although this album was love at first listen for me, it is definitely an acquired taste.
Light Me Up - The Pretty Reckless
Although the actress-turned-singer transformation is a total cliche and more often than not overlooked, The Pretty Reckless is one band that refuse to be ignored. Fronted by Taylor Momsen, Gossip Girl’s resident good girl gone bad -both onscreen and off - (and Courtney Love lookalike), I was a little skeptical before I heard Make Me Wanna Die late last year but was quickly surprised at the amount of talent she possessed as a singer. The album is filled with dark, provocative and lovelorn lyrics paired with even darker, heavier guitar work and there is not a single moment where Momsen’s voice is overshadowed by the instrumental element. The album isn’t all moody, grungy tracks however, it also features a chillingly tender acoustic love song that highlights Taylor’s unique voice and pitch range as well as the surprisingly casual track Nothing Left To Lose. While this album may not be for everyone, don’t be fooled by Taylor Momsen’s age and infamy as a demanding actress because the girl sure has talent.
Other favourite albums:
Hold Me Down - You Me At Six
The Upsides - The Wonder Years
High Violet - The National
I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart - Butch Walker (And The Black Widows)
Honourable Mentions:
Champ - Tokyo Police Club
Speak Now - Taylor Swift
Black And White - The Maine
Great Danger - The Audition
Biggest Disappointment of 2010:
Teenage Dream - Katy Perry
