Albums of the year: 2012

[MX7]

So what good stuff has actually come out this year? I'm having real problems coming up with a list.

Deerhoof - Breakup Song - Brilliant, a great return to experimental form after the somewhat lackadaisical Deerhoof Vs Evil. All Sleigh Bells style skronk, thick distorted bass, and dense, fractured songwriting.

Shonen Knife - Pop Tune - Best band in the world, though their new album Pop Tune was kind of neither here nor there. I had to search the actual name of the album because I'd completely forgotten what it was called. Would be churlish not to stick it on the list though.

Orange Caramel - Lipstick - And only because HZT told me about it yesterday.

Fushitsusha - Hikari to Nazukeyo - Some good old fashioned kraut/noise rock.

Last Step - Sleep - Kind of boring, but ended up listening to it a whole bunch so there must be something to it. Still trying too hard to be AFX.

Martyrdöd - Paranoia - Not as raw as their earlier stuff, but I guess they're on Southern Lord now.

Squarepusher - Ufabulum - Sounded pretty awesome on first listen, quickly got tiring. The dubstep stuff is kind of cringe inducing.

Swans - The Seer - Everyone's going loopy over this. Can't see it myself.

Godspeed You Black Emperor - Don't Bend - Kind of technically not a new album, but still pretty cool to have new stuff again. Just wish I was still 16 so I could fully appreciate it.

Xiu Xiu - Always - Very good indeed. The Fuck The Police EP (which also came out this year...?) has a pretty definitive cover of Rhianna's 'Only Girl In The World'. Highly reccomended.

A couple of corkers, but all in all, 2012 seems like a bit of a damp squib. OR WAS IT?

What are your albums of the year for 2012, Shmups Forum?

[MJR]

I tried to listen to everything you listed there, only to find out that I hate everything you like. But music is purely a matter of taste, so I'm not saying they were shit!

I had only one favourite album this year; Death & Decay from Death Hawks, even though I can hardly claim it as favourite because it was the only new album I liked.

But please list whatever you think was best. I'd like to at least to try to listen to something new.

[Rob]

I'll go with these for 5:

Gaza - No Absolutes In Human Suffering -- got to have some angry metal.
Pig Destroyer - Book Burner
Josephine Foster - Blood Rushing
青葉市子 - うたびこ -- #1.
後藤まりこ - 299792458 -- Midori made listenable for an entire album.

[MX7]

I tried to listen to everything you listed there, only to find out that I hate everything you like.

Ha ha, awesome

@rob - Completely missed the new Pig Destroyer album And Gaza are are fucking awesome! I'm shit at recommending bands, but you may wish to check out a French sludge/HC/BM band called CELESTE.

Midori were never noisy enough for me, so I'll probably give her solo stuff a miss

[Rupert H]

you may wish to check out a French sludge/HC/BM band called CELESTE.

+1

[MX7]

You have any suggestions Rupert? I remember you saying Converge's new album is shit, so I haven't even bothered listening to it!

[Hagane]

Dark Roots of Earth - Testament
De Vermis Mysteriis - High on Fire

Haven't listened much music from 2012, newest stuff I'm listening to is mostly from 2011. Still have to check Yellow and Green (Baroness), and I like some themes from Flying Colors (Flying Colors) and Omerta (Adrenaline Mob), but I find those albums to be quite uneven overall.

[shmuppyLove]

I'm gonna go with

Grimes - Visions

[hzt]

that swans album everyone loves is fucking shit

[cools]

CLSM - Return To The Unexpected

[KAI]

Re：Birth II
Falcom Boss Zanmai
Ys Zanmai
Sekaiju no MeiQ 4 denshou no kyoshin Super Arrange Version
ROCKMAN 25th Anniversary ROCK Arrange Ver
ROCKMAN 25th Anniversary TECHNO Arrange Ver
ZONE OF THE ENDERS ReMIX EDITION
TEKARU MECHANICAL
BLADE OF JUSTICE
Ridge Racer - Planetary Sounds
Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4

Lot of casualties, but this was a good year.

[RGC]

Thanks fuckheads, now I feel really old. Not heard of a single artist listed above.

[Rupert H]

You have any suggestions Rupert? I remember you saying Converge's new album is shit, so I haven't even bothered listening to it!

The Contortionist - Intrinsic
Between the Buried and Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence
The Faceless - Autotheism
Portals - A Continuous Spectrum
Amogh Symphony - The Quantum Hack Code
The Algorithm - Polymorphic Code
Deafheaven - Roads to Judah
Exotic Animal Petting Zoo - Tree of Tongues

[Vyxx]

Diablo Swing Orchestra - Pandora's Piñata

[Herr Schatten]

Kreator - Phantom Antichrist

I didn't really expect them to release anything interesting anymore after they stopped moving forward following the ill-fated "Endorama" album and pretty much just kept rehashing their early days to please the fan base. The new album blew me away, though. It's every bit as good as the best records in their back catalogue, yet it introduces some subtle new facets to the sound that makes it interesting again.

[drboom]

Dark Roots of Earth - Testament
De Vermis Mysteriis - High on Fire

Yup - those for sure and:

Toxic Waste split EP - Toxic Holocaust/Municipal Waste
Demo 2012 - Iron Reagan

BTW - saw Testament on tour this year with Anthrax and Death Angel and they still thrash hard. Saw them back in 1988 and they were just as good this time around.

[mesh control]

that swans album everyone loves is fucking shit

They were great live, but I'd still rather listen to Holy Money or Cop.


Scott Walker - Bisch Bosch
Album of the year.

[drauch]

Damn, I didn't realize Scott Walker was still making music. Glad to see he just keeps getting weirder.

[sjewkestheloon]

I dig the following:

Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends
Casiokids - Aabenbaringen over aaskammen (2012 in the UK)
Swans - The Seer (I like it a lot, nice and dense but with clear composition)
Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Psychedelic Pill
of Montreal - Paralytic Stalks and Daughter of Cloud (avant-pop brilliance, not quite as good as Skelletal Lamping though)
Stealing Sheep - Into The Diamond Sun (Good album, better live though)

Not a great year by any means.

[MOSQUITO FIGHTER]

Shoegazing it up in 2012. Well, mostly.

Echodrome - Bon Voyage
Tamaryn - Tender New Signs (My pick for album of the year. I could put this on repeat for hours. Garden)
Airiel - Kid Games
Hammock - Departure Songs
Flying Lotus - Until the Quiet Comes (I'll probably give FlyLo second place)
iamamiwhoami - kin
Tame Impala - Lonerism
Rush - Clockwork Angels

[Octopod]

King Dude - Burning Daylight

[Acid King]

Stuff I've enjoyed this year...

Graveyard - Lights Out
Fight Amp - Birth Control
Author and Punisher - Ursus Americanus
Lord Mantis - Pervertor
Bong - Mana Yood Sushai
Corrosion of Conformity - s/t
The Catalyst - Voyager
Absvrdist - Illusory
Sons of OTIS - Seismic
The Graviators - Evil Deeds
Darsombra - Climax Community
Hell/Thou - split
Sofy Major/Uncle Touchy - split

Probably a bunch of other stuff I haven't got to hear fully yet (Witchcraft, Hour of 13, Nightstick) or have only given a few listens (Nadja, Ehnahre, Kowloon Walled City, Uncle Acid and the Dead Beats). I'm not a huge fan of Converge but I thought their new one was pretty good.

[genecyst]

neil young and crazy horse americana

[Acid_Rain]

Albums:
Synth Sense - Tomorrow's world
Shackleton - Music for the quiet hour
Mala - Mala in Cuba
Lorn - Ask the dust

Singles:
Kryptic Minds - Rule of language

[rapoon]

Beach House - Bloom
Japandroids - Celebration Rock
Purity Ring - Shrines
Andrew Bird - Break It Yourself / Hands Of Glory
Grizzly Bear - Shields

[xbl0x180]

Damn. I wish I had the time and money to get all that stuff. I think the last new album I bought was Asobi Seksu's from 2011. Everything else I've gotten is from years past... to try to catch up is an exercise in futility...

[szycag]

Scott Walker - Bish Bosch
When I first heard bits of this I thought it would be more stuff like the Drift (which was really good) but I couldn't have been more off. The Drift seems singular in focus on dread, but this one is all over the place from dread to fight or flight hysteria, and it just keeps swinging. Many more kinds of vocal delivery and way more varied instrumentation (I have to mention the farts.) If you want to scare the shit out of yourself take an evening and put this on some good headphones. 6:38 or so of Zercon goes absolutely mental. For a while I wanted him to do more stuff like Climate of Hunter and Nite Flights, but I'm more curious what he'll choose to follow this one up with. It's not suitable for everyone because it's not suitable for anyone, it's totally evil. If you're in the right frame of mind it's pretty entertaining too.
Lone - Galaxy Garden
I'm sick of a lot of electronic music coming out now that either pays little mind to melody or forgoes it completely. This album just shows a lot of that stuff up and reminds me why I like electronic music in the first place. The percussion is just as good. I liked this way more than the Squarepusher and Clark albums from this year, they were just OK.
Ceephax - Capsule in Space/Mediterranean Acid
This was better than that Squarepusher album too, I want more acid James Bond covers!
Knifeworld - Clairvoyant Fortnight EP
More than anything I'll remember this year as the year I discovered the Cardiacs, damn amazing band. This band has Kavus Torabi and Melanie Woods who are from the last Cardiacs line-up. It's less crazy, but you can hear the influence for sure on the chord progression. They've started recording more stuff, can't wait.
Lee Ranaldo - Between the Times and Tides
This should have happened a long time ago. Most of my favorite SY tracks are Lee ones and he deserved a good rock record that was just him. Just as good as the 2000's SY stuff... better?
Purity Ring - Shrines
So happy my fiancee likes this, hard to find new stuff we both like. The album is pretty samey but it's a nice sound, sidechainy drum machine beats with a great female vocalist. 4AD label of the year?
Bob Mould - Silver Age
Practically a new Sugar album! If Dave Grohl likes Husker Du so much, why doesn't any of the newer Foo Fighters sound as good as this?

Need to listen to this stuff more but it sounded good to me:

Ariel Pink - Mature Themes
Homeboy Sandman - First of a Living Breed
The Sea and Cake - Runner
Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music (I love "Reagan")
Mouse on Mars - WOW

[Marc]

Therapy? - A Brief Crack Of Light
Soundgarden - King Animal. Reunions normally suck balls, this is 13 tracks of how to do it right.

[psoslayer]

Kreator - Phantom Antichrist

I didn't really expect them to release anything interesting anymore after they stopped moving forward following the ill-fated "Endorama" album and pretty much just kept rehashing their early days to please the fan base. The new album blew me away, though. It's every bit as good as the best records in their back catalogue, yet it introduces some subtle new facets to the sound that makes it interesting again.

wow great video too... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojpQ3LCeQTY

[Furry Fox Jet Pilot]

Aborted- Global Flatline http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-drLnwBwX8E
As I Lay Dying- Awakened
Geoff Rickly- Mixtape 1
Lamb of God- Resolution
System Divide- Ephemera http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cphwskBdJYc