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Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

Looks like I should have explained myself a little more. The statement I was trying to make is completely independent of the quality of the actual albums. I happen to think TV on the Radio is the best band of the last 10 years and respect the Fleet Foxes more than I like them, but that's not the point.

Over the last two years, there are plenty of examples of critics rewarding artists with high placements while admitting their album doesn't match up to their previous work. Arcade Fire, LCD Soundsystem, The National, and now Fleet Foxes are all huge indie artists that released albums most admitted were subpar to their previous work, yet the albums still were super-acclaimed. This must be, at least in part, because of the reputation and popularity of the artists.

What I want to know is why TV on the Radio isn't in this group. Their previous two albums had made the top five of their given years, yet Nine Types of Light barely even got attention. Even I don't think it's as good as their previous work, but that's not the point. My point, which Zorg seemed to get, was that most of the time big artists can be highly acclaimed even with a subpar album (look at Kanye and Jay-Z this year). Maybe this is because artists release fewer albums these days, maybe it's because some releases are so hyped that critics don't want to look foolish, or maybe it's some other reason. But I just wanted to know why TV on the Radio isn't 'cool' to like anymore.

As far as Nine Types of Light goes, I'll definitely disagree that the individual songs aren't memorable. Second Song, Will Do, and Repetition stand up with the band's best work. There is definitely something about the production that makes the album as a whole less memorable, and it's not a classic. But that doesn't mean TV on the Radio went from being one of the best artists in the world to being also-rans. Usually falls from grace happen when an artist releases a divisive work or something in a completely different style, like Sufjan Stevens last year.

I'm not trying to diss any of the bands I mentioned, I'm just trying to make a general point about today's music criticism that, for some reason, does not seem to apply to TVoTR.


@Zorg I think you are on the money about Eye Contact. Glass Jar is definitely the best song on there. I would like to see them either go to an album of longer songs or a shorter album with better flow like Saint Dympha. Eye Contact was a step backward for them IMO.


EDIT: Looks like my soliloquy got upstaged by the final results. I'm so glad 1 and 2 placed about 3-5. PJ Harvey really deserved this win; Let England Shake was my most played album of the year and only gets better with repeated listens.

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

sonofsamiam
Yeah, Passed Me By is great, though you gotta be in the proper mood. Companion We Stay Together is just as good, though for some reason I thought that was an EP and ineligible. Jackson voted for them together, which makes the most sense.
I enjoyed both EP's (or rather the Compilation) too but felt it was easier to round down my lists by excluding any EPs and Compilations altogether. Hence no entries like Triptych by Demdike Stare or Enough Thunder by James Blake either.

@ Dan M: Nice work so far. Will making sure to list the few releases on this that I (shamefully) never got around to listening to.

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

30 | Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi | Rome



Score: 96 points (4 votes)

Biggest Fans: SuperFurry (#1); Romain (#5)

Critics' Rank: #131

Genre: Progressive Pop

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29 | Wilco | The Whole Love



Score: 104 points (8 votes)

Biggest Fans: Brad (#4); Matski (#4); Rocky Raccoon (#5)

Critics' Rank: #15

Genre: Alt-Country, Alternative Rock

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28 | Battles | Gloss Drop



Score: 107 points (4 votes)

Biggest Fans: Michel (#1); Charlie Driggs (#2)

Critics' Rank: #53

Genre: Math Rock, Neo-Prog

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27 | Smith Westerns | Dye It Blonde



Score: 108 points (5 votes)

Biggest Fans: Ddiamondd(#1); Zorg (#4)

Critics' Rank: #97

Genre: Indie Rock, Power Pop

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26 | Matana Roberts | Coin Coin Chapter One: Gens de couleur libres



Score: 111 points (5 votes)

Biggest Fans: sonofsamiam (#1); schaefer.tk (#2)

Critics' Rank: #133

Genre: Avant-Garde Jazz

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25 | Nicolas Jaar | Space Is Only Noise



Score: 123 points (9 votes)

Biggest Fan: Mindrocker (#2)

Critics' Rank: #24

Genre: Left-Field House

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24 | The Decemberists | The King Is Dead



Score: 129 points (6 votes)

Biggest Fans: Vanillafire1000 (#2); Slick (#3)

Critics' Rank: #46

Genre: Folk Rock, Country Rock

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23 | Cults | Cults



Score: 132 points (4 votes)

Biggest Fans: Tim E (#1); Vanillafire 1000 (#1)

Critics' Rank: #69

Genre: Indie Rock, Twee Pop

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22 | Shabazz Palaces | Black Up



Score: 139 points (6 votes)

Biggest Fans: Otisredding (#2); Evan (#3); Mindrocker (#4); antonius (#5)

Critics' Rank: #16

Genre: Experimental Hip Hop

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21 | The Antlers | Burst Apart



Score: 139 points (8 votes)

Biggest Fans: Stephan (#2); SuperFurry (#3)

Critics' Rank: #30

Genre: Indie Rock, Dream Pop

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

Petri
Zorg
Andy Stott's album art and the genre definition of "Genre: Dub Techno, Dark Ambient" scares the hell outta me!

Yeah it does.
Great album cover, artist from genre that I'm fan of but listen to too little (actually I listened moderately much doom metal last year which is very close of dark ambient in many cases) and the biggest fan is Jackson.

Looks like I must check that album as soon as possible.


Great presentation and list so far. Having a relatively small group of voters can make for some cool results.

I voted for Passed Me By and We Stay Together as a package because that seemed to be the way most publications recognized them. Scary as hell is probably the best way to describe both of these releases--this is some of the slowest, heaviest electronic music out there. I think the cover goes very well with the music, which has a tribal, almost ritualistic feel to it. I'd recommend listening in your car or on a speaker system with good bass, as the bass on these albums is absolutely tremendous.

Only problem is there really isn't a standout track. "Execution" would be a good place to start, but my favorites are "Intermittent" and "Cracked." Really, you should just listen to Passed Me By as a whole since it's only 33 minutes long, then check out We Stay Together (which itself is only 37 minutes long) if you like what you hear.

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

New R&B is really just dance pop.

Great results so far. Would have liked Nicolas Jaar a bit higher, but pleased to see Ry Cooder make the top 20.

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

BillAdama
pleased to see Ry Cooder make the top 20.

Me too.

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20 | Ry Cooder | Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down



Score: 144 points (5 votes)

Biggest Fans: Dan M (#1); nicolas (#2)

Critics' Rank: #173

Genre: Roots Rock, Comtemporary Folk & Blues

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19 | TV on the Radio | Nine Types of Light



Score: 149 points (8 votes)

Biggest Fans: John (#2); Michel (#3); Rocky Raccoon (#4)

Critics' Rank: #61

Genre: Indie Rock, Art Rock

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18 | Kurt Vile | Smoke Ring for My Halo



Score: 151 points (6 votes)

Biggest Fans: Zorg (#1); Ddiamondd (#2); dr_Robert (#4)

Critics' Rank: #12

Genre: Alternative Singer/Songwriter, Psychedelic Folk

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17 | Lykke Li | Wounded Rhymes



Score: 156 points (7 votes)

Biggest Fans: Dan M (#2); dr_Robert (#3); Rocky Raccoon (#3); Spaz (#5)

Critics' Rank: #22

Genre: Indie Pop

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16 | The Black Keys | El Camino



Score: 173 points (11 votes)

Biggest Fans: Dan M (#3); Romain (#3); Gillingham (#4)

Critics' Rank: #38

Genre: Garage Rock, Blues Rock

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15 | The Pains of Being Pure at Heart | Belong



Score: 175 points (7 votes)

Biggest Fans: Slick (#1); Greg (#2); John (#3)

Critics' Rank: #87

Genre: Alternative/Indie Rock, Shoegaze

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14 | Gang Gang Dance | Eye Contact



Score: 179 points (9 votes)

Biggest Fans: BillAdama (#2); sonofsamiam (#2); Petri (#3); Ddiamondd (#5)

Critics' Rank: #35

Genre: Neo-Psychedelia, Alternative Dance

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13 | tUnE-yArDs | w h o k i l l



Score: 182 points (14 votes)

Biggest Fans: Jonah (#4); Otisredding (#4)

Critics' Rank: #10

Genre: Art Pop, Indie Pop

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12 | Fucked Up | David Comes to Life



Score: 187 points (10 votes)

Biggest Fans: Evan (#1); Ddiamondd (#4); Reed (#5)

Critics' Rank: #20

Genre: Post-Hardcore, Alternative Rock/Punk

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11 | The Roots | Undun



Score: 213 points (12 votes)

Biggest Fans: Charlie Driggs (#1); Dan M (#4); nicolas (#5); sonofsamiam (#5)

Critics' Rank: #73

Genre: Conscious Hip Hop, East Coast Hip Hop

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

Great placements for TV on the Radio and the Roots. Critics whiffed on those two albums.

TV on the Radio is the most puzzlingly overlooked album of the year to me. Sure it's not as good as Dear Science, but DS finished number 3 for 2008, and it's not that far off. The Fleet Foxes also put out an album that is universally considered not as good as their `08 effort, yet it was way more acclaimed. Why is TVotR not cool all of a sudden?

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

10 | St. Vincent | Strange Mercy



Score: 226 points (13 votes)

Biggest Fans: Moonbeam (#2); Reed (#2); Chris K (#3); BillAdama (#5)

Critics' Rank: #9

Genre: Art Pop, Indie Pop

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9 | M83 | Hurry Up, We're Dreaming



Score: 241 points (9 votes)

Biggest Fans: Greg (#1); musictoad (#1); Matski (#2); Moonbeam (#3); Chris K (#5)

Critics' Rank: #8

Genre: Synth Pop, Indie Electronic

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8 | Radiohead | The King of Limbs



Score: 250 points (14 votes)

Biggest Fans: Chris K (#4); Michel (#4); Gillingham (#5); Mindrocker (#5); Slick (#5)

Critics' Rank: #13

Genre: Electronic, Experimental Rock

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7 | James Blake | James Blake



Score: 267 points (10 votes)

Biggest Fans: Mindrocker (#1); antonius (#2); Nick (#2); Otisredding (#3); Charlie Driggs (#4)

Critics' Rank: #3

Genre: Indie Electronic, Dubstep

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6 | Destroyer | Kaputt



Score: 272 points (12 votes)

Biggest Fans: Reed (#1); Petri (#2); Zorg (#2); Jonah (#3); Nick (#3); Evan (#5)

Critics' Rank: #5

Genre: Sophisti-Pop, Art Pop

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

I'm surprised at the high placement of Destroyer, considering Destroyer's Rubies never placed that high and I think it's far better than Kaputt. Kaputt seems kind of like Destroyer-by-numbers.

Nine Types Of Light is a good album, but it's not top tier for me. It's not as consistent and doesn't hold up as well to repeated listening.

Good to see St Vincent in top 10, Tom Waits in top 5.

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

Jackson
Great placements for TV on the Radio and the Roots. Critics whiffed on those two albums.
The Fleet Foxes also put out an album that is universally considered not as good as their `08 effort, yet it was way more acclaimed. Why is TVotR not cool all of a sudden?


Just because the FF album isn't as good as theit previous doesn't mean it's a bad album
It's still an excellent album IMO. So it deserves good reviews. If I follow you then bands should be given just ONE acclaimed album ? That makes no sense.
And that Radiohead cover is definitely hideous. But should they shit on their covers people here would still love that (i'm kidding)

happy for Ry Cooder's placement, that all he could hope considering the number of people who probably didn't even listend to it. It's spot on the music I love with an expertise on roots music (the JLH imitation, but also the 2 first tracks). The myrics are so great. Looks like only the old guys seem to be concerned about what's happening in their country (see Waits' Hell Broke Luce). here again a nicolas provocation

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

I think the point Jackson is trying to make is that Nine Types of Light is always compared to Dear Science, and is therefore dismissed because critical opinion says it's less good. Similarly Helplessness Blues is always compared to Fleet Foxes, and most people agree that it's less good, but it doesn't suffer from the same level of dismissal that Nine Types of Light has suffered. The hype surrounding Dear Science was huge, but for some reason, Nine Types of Light seems to have passed by with no one noticing.

These results are great! The only one in the top 10 that I haven't heard properly is M83, but they verge on the annoying to me.

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

PJ Harvey lets AM shake. Great list and thanks Dan M!

Re: The 2011 Year-End Albums Poll - Results

Great job. Wonders records. Beautiful photo of our favorite female rocker. And big big big PJ Harvey.

Thanks Dan