And now, the moment you've all been waiting for...ADHDJ's top ten songs and albums. Let's lay down some ground rules first. EPs will be included as albums, because they are a collection of more than three songs. And before we all get ornery, let's recall that we live in an Internet age where even two or more songs will try our attention span. Secondly, albums and songs can belong to the same artist, if needed, even if these lead to overlap. Without further ado....
ADHDJ's Top 10 Albums of 2011
10. Cults- "Cults"
Well, I couldn't exclude teh Cults, now could I? This record works as a cohesive whole on several levels; dealing generally with love, loss, and the overwhelming anxiety that comes with the process. "Know What I Mean" speaks to several friends of mine directly, and I've heard from several individuals that it is their favorite song of the year. "Go Outside" sounds warm and sunny but warns us that different priorities can mean the end of a friendship. The vocals on this record are truly beautiful, and this debut hints at even better things to come from this talented So-cal duo.
9. The Go! Team- "Rolling Blackouts"
This record was released at the beginning of the year, but its impact on my listening of 2011 was huge. I especially loved the track "Secretary Song" featuring Satomi of Deerhoof; surely the only other (good) song in which a typewriter was sampled since the Merchant Ivory classic "Typewriter, Tip Tip Tip." This record was complicated yet fun at once; with several samples colliding on tracks to create walls of sound. Loved this one, and haven't stopped listening to it since.
8. Papercuts- "Fading Parade"
A beautiful collection of songs from Jason Quever, in my opinion his best ones yet. "White are the Waves" sounds so good going down the cliffs to Sandy's Beach. A favorite on this for me was defintly "Do You Really Wanna Know?" a song in which a man confesses that he "just doesn't know right now" if he loves his girlfriend, but that "she doesn't look too bad in the grass in the sun." Lovely and real. A great record.
7. Shabazz Palaces- "Black Up"
While 2011 was hardly a great year for hip/hop (the way it was for R N'B), this album really stood out amongst the duds. Especially noteworthy is the "Avian Treatease" song, which is a sweet love song to the club darlings in the scene. The beats speak for themselves, and the flow is nothing less than extrordinary. I miss Diggable Planets, and was glad to see some of their members rapping in this collective, once again. I saw a humorous post about how this had to be on every hipster's top ten, and even that wasn't enough to deter it from mine(post-irony, no?)
6. Jens Lekman- "An Arguement with Myself EP"
While many people listened to this but once and concluded it a "throwaway" record, something of a transitory record between "Night Falls on Kortedala" and whatever comes next for Jens, I think this is a true gem of an EP. The beautiful "New Directions" as well as the title track shows new musical as well as lyrical turns for Jens, while still retaining his "truer-than-true-life" lyrics about everything going on in his world. The man still sings like an angel. Moving, humorous, and wonderful.
5. Unknown Mortal Orchestra- "Unknown Mortal Orchestra"
This Sydney pop legend crept into my top five somewhat unexpectedly for me....didn't think I'd actually like his new collection all that much. However, having hands-down the best bass riff of the year on "Thought Ballune" as well as the best low-fi beats on "How Can U Luv Me?" cemented the decision. This record is downright weird. I'm glad this former Aussie star decided to continue making music, because its only gotten so much better. The songs are cohesive and fit together in a 60s-esque way. Plus, its an awesome record to drive to. Looking forward to hearing more from him!
4. Bachelorette- "Bachelerotte" Another self-titled record coming out from down under (although this one's from New Zealand). Folks, Trish Keenan may have passed this year (saddest moment of 2011), but here is a worthy successor to the throne. This woman belts and croons to beats she herself made while studying Electronic Composition at university. These songs are beatiful and disembodied, strange and haunting. "Her Rotating Head" is a favorite of mine. I could not stop listening to this album. Give it a try?
3. Autre Ne Veut- "Body EP"
Autre Ne Veut understands the contradictions of R'N'B better than anyone else. Sickly, sensual, danceable...and its all too obvious that his music comes from a genuine love for the genre. Trust me, y'all, this man is a genius. Because of artists like him, Top Girls, and Drake, this truly has been an amazing year for R'N'B. "Sweetheart" was the perfect soundtrack to sadness, and it honestly uplifted me when I needed it. I put it at number three for now, but it could easily be my number one. I guarantee this man has more pop magic up his sleeve.
2. John Maus- "We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves" What can I say about this record that hasn't already been said? Its on most of my fellow DJs Top 10, and I can see why. Every way that this record is mixed is technically "wrong." I've dropped "Head for the Country" in the club, and have been amazed at the parts when the horns overwhelm the beats themselves! But there is method to Maus' madness: he wants us to listen to this record with a careful ear; discerning moments when even pop music can become noise. This, the best of his work thus far, deserves our sincere applause. "Hey Moon" and "Cop Killer" have been the soundtrack to many a quiet night in for me, and have inspired me to continue making electronic music. Plus, he's a PhD at the University of Hawaii....showing me that there may indeed be some life outside of academia. A personal favorite.
1. Toro Y Moi- "Underneath the Pine" Well, there really was no competition to stand against this album. This collection of songs works as an album perhaps more than any other on this list. "Elise" and "New Beat" are standout tracks, but any of these could have been released as singles in their own right. Chaz made a believer out of me; I didn't want to like his jazzy/chillwave tones and almost hoped they would be dismissed as a fad. But the musical mastery on this record is truly amazing. He made me like funk again, when even Dam-Funk himself couldn't get me to start dancing. Plus, his live performance this year was easily the best show Honolulu has witnessed in ages. But more than that, the cross-genre talk of jazz, r'n'b, funk, and chillwave on this record easily represents 2011 as a whole. Dance On.
Top 10 Songs of 2011
A place to showcase songs that didn't quite fit into our top 10 albums section...but the artists can overlap, K? Deal with it.
10. Ellie Goulding-"Lights" (Shook Remix)
A surprising add to the top 10, thanks to DJ Zilla for introducing me to it. Elle's dulcet tones flow just right with the chilled-out remix here. Gorgeousness and gorgeousity.
9. Memory Tapes- "Wait in the Dark" (Jensen Sportag remix)
So, the win here really belongs to Jensen Sportag, good as this original song is. This song's paranoia make it seemingly impossible to turn into a club song, with its haunting refrain of "Too late," but damned if teh Sportag don't run with it so well. Awesome track.
8. CSS + Bobby Gillespie- "Hits Me Like A Rock"
Do you remember Primal Scream? I do. Wow, this song was the best dub-blast from the past ever. A dream collaboration... I have to speculate on how it occured. The rest of the CSS record I could take or leave, but this song was perfect. It even begins with the nostalgia-tinged "Been so long since I heard that song." Self-awareness and perfection. Loved it.
7. Abadabad- "Park Slope" (I'm Sorry)
The Makeout Beach split between Oahu's Stoner Showers (ps, who are you guys?) and Brooklyn's Jeremy Lee Givens proved fruitful indeed. Givens, having shed his folk linings and turned towards the ways of reverb, gives us a beautiful track about love and forgiveness here. Probably my most played song on the show this year...and it sounds so good on Oahu's calm shores.
6. Zomby and Panda Bear- "Things Fall Apart"
Finally, a song that made me start listening to dubstep. Noah Lennox helped. Zomby helped. Kinda feel like blowing an airhorn now. Good job, and that beat arpeggio is teh sex.
5. Penguin Prison- "Don't Fuck with My Money"
The album as itself has issues, but this single is simply brilliant. It is also hilarious. The best parts are the Michael Jackson-esque "No-oohs" punctured throughout. You can visualize the crotch-grabbing. Go with it.
4. Jay Z and Kanye West- "Niggaz in Paris"
Come on, you know you loved this song. It's popularity peaked towards the end of the year, but I remember hearing it in summer and laughing hysterically for the rest of the night. Kanye's laconic style has never been served better than the verse indicating that groupies of his may well want to get married in the Maaaalllllll. Careful, ladies.
3. Cults+ Superhuman Happiness- "Um Canto De Afoxe para o Bloco de Ile"
Wow, this track was addictive. Every DJ that I have introduced it to has thanked me on bended knee. Coming out of the "Red Hot and Rio" showcase, this track gave 2011 the Bossa Nova beat it truly deserved. A traditional Bossa Nova love song took on new meaning when Cults hit the mic. The remix by Juan Maclean has been on my club listing for months now. Amazing track, and one of the best of 2011.
2. Dominant Legs- "Already Know That It's Nice"
Again, perhaps I'm unduly influenced here, since I saw these guys in San Francisco by Popfest. But I have to stand by this decision; this song encapsulates the cuteness of young love and indiepop in a way that nothing else has in 2011. It could have been released in 1995, but it still has the feel of now: sugary sweetness down to the last drop. I like these guys much better than Girls, and am happy to go on the record with this.
1. DyE- "Fantasy"
Again, no real competition for this one. The beats are perfect. The vocals are perfect. The mix is perfect. The video, perfection. The song is sad and haunting, and hints at wasted dreams, but expresses them in a way that feels almost hopeful. I had never heard of DyE before this song came out, but I certainly hope the French producer does a lot more in 2012. Me oui!
Favorite track that didn't make it onto the top ten: Joe Goddard feat Valentina- "Gabriel." Beat to the top by Elle Goulding because it's hard to dance to sincerely hard house all year round...but its soulfull refain has been an earworm nontheless!
Fin.
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