Wednesday, January 25, 2012

BEST MUSIC: 2011, With Music Players!


With 3 Music Players!


A N N A
C A L V I






ALL THE
REAL MUSIC!


Nevermind those suburban-angst
'Best Music' lists that taste like paste!


These tunes will break down your get down
and go through your breakthrough!


Shortcuts to Music Players:
BEST ALBUMS: 2011
COOL SONGS: 2011
BEST RE-ISSUES: 2011





B E S T
N E W
A L B U M S :
2 0 1 1




Indie Rock, Funk, Electro, Folk, Garage, HipHop, Soul, Grrrl, and the indefinable!

The Kills, "Blood Pressures"


BEST ALBUMS 2011
by Tym Stevens


This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.


This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.



tUnE-yArDs, "w h o k i l l"
Polymorphous polyrhythms.
Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner create pan-world beats out of tape loops and chants.

(See also: Fela, Talking Heads, The Slits, M.I.A., St. Vincent)

The Black Keys, "El Camino"
Blues with a new fuse.
Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney sound big, think big, play big.

(See also: The White Stripes, Gary Clark Jr, The Alabama Shakes, Black Pumas)

Charles Bradley, "No Time For Dreaming"
Gutbucket Soul.
What if James Brown kept making great Memphis Soul records?

(See also: O.V. Wright, Sharon Jones, Lee Fields)

Gillian Welch, "The Harrow and the Harvest"
Alt Folk.
Underneath Gillian Welch and David Rawling's raw americana lies a wry gaze.

(See also: Emmylou Harris, Roseanne Cash, Lera Lynn)


Anna Calvi, "Anna Calvi"
PostPunk Blues.
Cinematic guitar-scapes with an edge that could take your head off.

(See also: Ennio Morricone, David Bowie, PJ Harvey, St. Vincent)

Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi, "Rome"
Morricone moodscapes.
Channeling the sounds of '60s Italian soundtracks, with guest star roles from Jack White and Norah Jones.>

(See also: Portishead, Calibro 35, Adrian Younge)

Shabazz Palaces, "Black Up"
Avant-HipHop noize worlds.
Dense, abrasive, distorted, forward.

(See also: Rammellzee/Gettovetts, Public Enemy, Nephlim Modulation Systems, Flying Lotus)

Nikka Costa, "PRO*WHOA"
Prince's true foil.
The soul sister sways away from Stax funk toward Minneapolis techno-funk this time.

(See also: Sly Stone, Betty Davis, Prince, Lenny Kravitz)


Cults, "Cults"
Girl Group Indie Rawk.
Spector chorals with arena chords and hiphop stomp.

(See also: Shangri-La's, Beach House, Ting Tings, Sleigh Bells)

A.A. Bondy, "Believers"
Epic americana, beautiful and haunting.
The former frontman of Verbena trades grunge-punk for eerie folk dreams.

(See also: Vashti Bunyan, Leonard Cohen, Father John Misty)

Tom Waits, "Bad As Me"
Grizzled bar burners.
Roots music shot through with corrosion and mischief.

(See also: Howlin' Wolf, Bob Dylan, Captain Beefheart, Mark Lanegan)

Feist, "Metals"
Moody instrospective ballads with some clang.
Leslie Feist redefines herself with restless experimentation in mercurial tunes.

(See also: Joni Mitchell, Cat Power, Keren Ann, Angel Olsen)


Mayer Hawthorne, "How Do You Do"
Fresh-minted Soul.
Clean Soul production and Pop chops belie a barbed wit.

(See also: Motown, Philly Soul, Monophonics, St. Paul And The Broken Bones)

St. Vincent, "Strange Mercy"
Angular Pop.
Anni Clark is a mirror funhouse of striking images seen from skewed angles.

(See also: David Byrne, Beck, New Pornographers, Mitski)

Ty Segall, "Goodbye Bread"
Garage Punk.
A perpetual emotion machine blasting torrents of fuzz.

(See also: The Sonics, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Kills, Thee Oh Sees)

The Go! Team, "Rolling Blackouts"
Pep rally arena rock.
Like cheerleaders amping up a dance party at a rock stadium.

(See also: World Famous Supreme Team, Le Tigre, !!!)


EMA, "Past Life Martyred Saints"
Noize Folk.
Erika Michelle Anderson deals in folked-up mayhem.

(See also: Sonic Youth, Anna Oxygen, tUnE-yArDs)

MeShell Ndegeocello, "Weather"
Supple mood Soul.
Leaning to her melodic and moody side this time.

(See also: Tanita Tikaram, Esperanza Spalding, Georgia Anne Muldrow)

Girls, "Father, Son, Holy Ghost"

Like "Abbey Road" performed by Pink Floyd.

(See also: Spiritualized, Radiohead)

PJ Harvey, "Let England Shake"
Protest folk ballads.
PJ is not having any more Colonialist war bull$h!t.

(See also: Patti Smith, Billy Bragg, Tracy Bonham)


Black Joe Lewis And The Honeybears, "Scandalous"
Bluesadelic.
Raw blues with Rock hues.

(See also: Elmore James, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Benjamin Booker)

Alela Diane And Wild Divine, "Alela Diane And Wild Divine"
Soulful Country.
The hook-up of solo singer with indie band is a double-win of hickory-smoked tunes.

(See also: Karen Dalton, Joan as Police Woman, Laura Marling)

The Love Me Nots, "The Demon And The Devotee"
Garage Rock.
Snarl guitar, pumping farfisa, mean rhythms, and the lash of Nicole Laurenne's roar.

(See also: The Pandoras, The Husbands, Gore Gore Girls)

Fitz And The Tantrums, "Pickin' Up The Pieces"
Sheeny Motown Pop.
Mid-'60s Soul with unabashed '80s gloss.

(See also: Smokey Robinson, ABC, Mayer Hawthorne)


Dum Dum Girls, "Only In Dreams"
Garage Rock goes dreamily lysergic.
Going from solo dubbing to a full band opens up Dee Dee's range and impact.

(See also: Pretenders, The Raveonettes, Tashaki Miyaki)

Sharon Jones And The Dap Kings, "Soul Time!"
Timeless Soul for Now People!
Leading the true Soul revival, both with her band and her label Daptone Records, Sharon Jones is in the pocket and firing bottle rockets.

(See also: Aretha Franklin, Hannah Williams, Eli "Paperboy" Reed)

The Like, "Release Me"
Beatlesque perfect.
Like another heaping helping of "Help!" to make you twist and yelp.

(See also: The British Invasion, The Feminine Complex, The Bangles)

The Kills, "Blood Pressures"
Barbwired bluze.
Banshee rage and serrated guitar that sticks in your head like daggers.

(See also: Pussy Galore, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Dead Weather)


Quality-Is-Timeless, dept.
,
(a.k.a., Great Returns By Iconic Artists)

"If it was good in the past, it's still good."
-Sly Stone, Woodstock, 1969

Sly Stone and George Clinton today


The latter part of the Music Player focuses on timeless acts making current music, with songs from the following albums, in the same order.


June and Jean Millington (of FANNY), "Play Like A Girl"
Classic hook rock.
Fanny were the first all-female rock band signed to a major label to make full albums. Here, the sisters prove quality is timeless.

(See also: Badfinger, Cradle, Bonnie Raitt)

Blondie, "Panic Of Girls"
Adventurous Pop.
Every handful of years, Blondie comes correct right on time.

(See also: Ramones, Transvision Vamp, Garbage)

The Cars, "Move Like This"
The Reunion.
Like a lost 1981 album, sounding exactly as good as it should.

(See also: Roxy Music, Split Enz, New Pornographers)

Gang of Four, "Content"
PostFunk.
Led by guitarist Andy Gill, the quartet pours more yet.

(See also: Defunkt, Tackhead, Erase Errata)


Wire, "Red Barked Tree"
PostPunk rethunk.
A bit familiar, but always pushing outward.

(See also: Neu!, Can, Elastica, Parquet Courts)

The Bangles, "Sweetheart Of The Sun"
Sunshine Jangle.
Beat tunes, sunny harmonies, warm songwriting.

(See also: The Beatles, Fanny, The Fleshtones, The Like)

Beastie Boys, "Hot Sauce Committee, Part Two"
Hot and saucy HipHop.
Thye've got an open mind so why don't you all come inside?

(See also: Funkadelic, Public Enemy, Kool Keith, Cibo Matto)

Poly Styrene, "Generation Indigo"
Dance Punk.
The front force for X-Ray Spex projects new innervisions.

(See also: Nina Hagen, LiliPUT, Gossip, FKA Twigs)


Booker T, "The Road From Memphis"
Memphis Soul redux.
The core of Booker T And The MG's charts new directions by new degrees.

(See also: Ray Charles, Stax Records, The Blues Brothers, Soulive)

Nick Lowe, "The Old Magic"
Perfect Pop with feel.
Power Pop upstart has gradually emarged as a songwriting statesman.

(See also: Dan Penn, Elvis Costello, Crowded House)

Jane's Addiction, "The Great Escape Artist"
Classic Indie-Rock.
Still reigning, still dreaming.

(See also: Led Zeppelin, Butthole Surfers, Blackwater Holylight)

Sly Stone, "I'm Back"
Funk God.
After a prolonged absence, Sly remakes his hits, plus a few new goodies.>

(See also: Sly And The Family Stone, Parliament/Funkadelic, Earth Wind And Fire, Prince)






C O O L
S O N G S :
2 0 1 1



THEESatisfaction


All the REAL MUSIC
beyond the box!


Nevermind Gloss Pop, Stepford Idols, Karaoke Choruses ("woh-oo-oh"), Ego Brats, Emo Prats, Plinky Folk, Brittle Bombast, Vegas Country, Smug Thug, Mope Noodling, De-mixed Throb, and Robot-o-Tune schlock! >

Here's the
D R E A M
J U K E B O X !

Extrude your mood
and lube your groove!



COOL SONGS 2011
by Tym Stevens

This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.

This jukebox is sequenced into groups of sound, instead of randomly.
All the songs elasticize their genres.
Get your groove on in this sonic order.:

Rockabilly! Beatlesque! Garage!
Psyche! Soul! Blues!
Country! World! Riot Grrrl!
Indie! Electro! Cinematic!
and Cover Songs!


The Black Keys; St. Vincent;
Charles Bradley; Ty Segall


7 hours of brain-boggling, hips-joggling music, featuring the following fine folks in this exact order!:

Rockabilly!
The Del Moroccos, Screamin' Rebel Angels, The Dark Shadows, and Tom Waits.

Surf / Beat / Garage!
Cults, Threesome, The Like, The Jayhawks, Miss Chain And The Broken Heels, Les BOF!, The Love Me Nots, Las Vinylators, The Tin-Up Motors, Wer Wie Was, The Ugly Beats, Ty Segall, Bass Drum of Death, Telekinesis, Hollywood Sinners, and Jack Of Heart.

Psychedelic / Classic Rock!
Mayer Hawthorne, Elks Skiffle Group, The Bon, Weyes Blood, thenewno2, Smith Westerns, Cerrone, Nicole Atkins, Beady Eye, Girls, Dum Dum Girls, White Denim, The Hook Up, Thee Ludds, Quintron, and Blood Ceremony.

Blues!
The Black Keys, Cassie Taylor, Black Joe Lewis And The Honeybears, Saidah Baba Talibah, and Raphael Saadiq.

Soul / Funk!
Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings, Booker T. Jones, JC Brooks And The Uptown Sound, Randa And The Soul Kingdom, The Bo-Keys, The Sweet Vandals, Komety, Charles Bradley, Graffiti6, Sly Stone, Adrian Younge, Slim Moore And The Mar-Kays, Lenny Kravitz, Nikka Costa, Fitz And The Tantrums, JR JR, Nicki Bluhm, Marques Toliver, and Buddy Miller + Ann McCrary.

Alt Songwriter!
Lynda Kay, The Civil Wars, Gillian Welch, A.A. Bondy, Emmylou Harris, Cass McCombs, Keren Ann, and Feist.

World-arama!
Markéta Irglová, Antibalas, Ikebe Shakedown, The Funk Ark, and Aṣa.

Riot Grrrl!
Poly Styrene, Thao And Mirah, The Go! Team, Those Darlins, The Coathangers, The She's, and PJ Harvey.

Alt Rock!
St. Vincent, The Kills, Arama Mara, The Raveonettes, The Cars, WILD FLAG, Kaiser Chiefs, Wire, The Bots, Gang Gang Dance, Matana Roberts, and Harriet Tubman.

Electro!
SBTRKT, The Cool Kids, Clutch Douglass, Liam Finn, JD Samson, Phantogram, POLIÇA, and Doomtree.

Cinerama!
Julianna Barwick, Chrysta Bell, Lana Del Rey, The Tremolo Beer Gut, Los Lobos, Jessica Lea Mayfield, Danger Mouse and Jack White, Anna Calvi, The Hillbilly Moon Explosion, Ramin Djawadi, and Adrian Younge.

Cover Versions!

List = Original By / Cover Artist
Songs are sequenced in the chronological order of the Originals.


John Barry / Messer Chups • Eddie Holland / The Moons • The Byrds / The Watson Twins • Sam And Dave / Isreal Hagan and Jack Penetrator • The Eyes / Les Fleurs de Bach • Shuggie Otis / Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings • Neil Young / Charles Bradley And The Menahan Street Band • Nazz / The Bangles • Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot / The Ghost Of A Saber Tooth Tiger • Os Mutantes / Alice Smith + Aloe Blacc • The Beat / The Muffs • Cybotron / The Dirtbombs • Pixies / Trampled By Turtles • Nirvana / PittyGoldfrapp / Suzi Quatro.






B E S T
R E I S S U E S :
2 0 1 1



Quality is timeless.



The Beach Boys, "SMiLE"


BEST REISSUES 2011
by Tym Stevens
This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.


1950s



"Let's Have a Party: Girls Gone Rockin', vol. 2" (1950s Rock'n'Roll women)>
Rock is a feeling, felt and expressed by everyone. Party out with Janis Martin, Etta James, LaVern Baker, Ruth Brown, Wanda Jackson, Brenda Lee, Laura Lee Perkins, Jean Chapel, and Jean Chapel, and many more who deserve the spotlight.


1960s



THE BEACH BOYS, "The SMiLE Sessions" (1967)>
Brian Wilson created a beautiful response to "Sgt. Pepper" and it never came out. Until now. Count your lucky blessings and soar in one of the most lustrous song cycles ever made.

JIM FORD, "Harlan County" (Country Funk!; 1969)>
Sly Stone's friend, and ambassodor of Country Funk.



1970s



MARVIN GAYE, "What's Going On" (1971)
This is one of the greatest albums ever made.

SUZI QUATRO, "Suzi Quatro" (1973)
The tightest, toughest album of the Queen of Glam Rock.

STONE COAL WHITE, "Stone Coal White" (rare Funk Rock band)
Funkadelic had unsung Funk Rock rivals who deserve limelight, such as Purple/Image, Stone Coal White, Black Murder, The Next Morning, and Mothers Finest.

"The Fame Studios Story: 1961-1973" (Muscle Shoals compilation)
Fame was the initial core of Muscle Shoals Soul, the Alabama counterpoint to Stax in Memphis. Everyone recorded there to bask in it, from Aretha to The Stones.

PINK FLOYD, "Wish You Were Here" (1974)
One of the best records in Rock history.

CRASS, The Remastered Albums (1977-84)
Punk was inherently political, but Anarcho-Punk bands like Crass went all the way, fighting for true revolution with every fibre.

THE ROLLING STONES, "Some Girls" (1978)
Punk also kicked many of its forefathers into making tougher, more daring albums, like this career highlight.


1980s



ESG, "Come Away With ESG" (1983)
Minimalist Funk, from the NYC Downtown vanguard.>>



1990s



TALK TALK, "Laughing Stock" (1991)
In their span, Talk Talk arced from New Wave to Psyche Soul to finally Floyd-esque Art Rock. This album is the apex of that.

U2, "Achtung, Baby" (1991)
The album where they ripped it up and started again.

NIRVANA, "Nevermind" (1991)
The seismic impact of this album in the early-'90s was a big as The Beatles and as shocking as The Sex Pistols. Win-win.

QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, "Queens Of The Stone Age" (1998)
The debut album from the Stoner Rockers.



© Tym Stevens





"A splendid time is guaranteed for all!"






See also:


· BEST MOVIES + TV: 2023
BEST MUSIC: 2023
BEST COMICS: 2023

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2022
BEST MUSIC: 2022
BEST COMICS: 2022

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2021
BEST MUSIC: 2021
BEST COMICS: 2021

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2020
BEST MUSIC: 2020
BEST COMICS: 2020

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2019
BEST MUSIC: 2019
BEST COMICS: 2019

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2018
BEST MUSIC: 2018
BEST COMICS: 2018

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2017
BEST MUSIC: 2017
BEST COMICS: 2017

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2016
BEST MUSIC: 2016
BEST COMICS: 2016

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2015
BEST MUSIC: 2015
BEST COMICS: 2015

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2014
BEST MUSIC: 2014
BEST COMICS: 2014

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2013
BEST MUSIC: 2013
BEST COMICS: 2013

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2012
BEST MUSIC: 2012
BEST COMICS: 2012

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2011
BEST COMICS: 2011

BEST MOVIES + TV: 2000-2010
BEST MUSIC: 2000-2010
BEST COMICS: 2000-2010


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