Best Of 2011 part 4

Baron Zen & Tekblazer - "Elektrik Surgery"

Nice lo-fi crazyness. This is a good mix between the comedy garage rock style of the original Baron Zen album and the instrumental electronic sounding Rhythm Trax EP from a couple years back.

AraabMuzik - "Electronic Dream"

I'm gonna be honest. The first time I heard this, I thought it was cheesy as hell. It grew on me kinda fast, and I find myself listening to this a lot lately. If you're familar with his hip hop material, it's not that different, he just puts his style of drum programming over samples taken from really cheesy techno songs. This is a great car stereo album.

The Warlocks - "Enter At Your Own Skull"

This is an album of b-sides and demos by them, but it's a great album. They show some different sides of the band on this one that aren't apparent on their regular albums. They usually have a more sludgy sound, but some of these songs remind me of T.Rex type stuff.

Skratch Bastid - "The Entertainer"

A good Z-Trip style DJ mix, especially for a free download.

Zombi - "Escape Velocity"

Not to be confused with electronic solo artist 'Zomby', this is a synth based instrumental band fronted by a dude named Steve Moore from Pittsburgh. There must be something in the water there, because I end up straight LOVING certain music that comes from there.

Rapper Big Pooh - "Fat Boy Fresh Vol. 1- For Members Only"

2 dope solo albums in one year. He's come a long way since "The Listening".

Patton Oswalt - "Finest Hour"

He's not my favorite stand-up, but he always comes through with a strong set.

Toro Y Moi - "Freaking Out"

This is a more dancy side of the band. This EP seems like it was made for DJs. It's really too bad they were so weak live when they came here last year supporting this release.

Skream - "Freeizm History"

I actually have no idea when these songs were recorded, this just showed up as a free download at the end of the year. Not all of this stuff is the dubstep that he's known for, he delves into other sub-genres, and there's some new sounding stuff on here too. A little something for everyone.

Noah23 - "Fry Cook On Venus"

I don't know how, but I never heard of this dude until last year, but apparently he's been around in the underground for years now. He calls himself the "Canadian Based God" on one of the songs on here, if that gives you any indication of how humorous he is. Noah is just a really versitile MC, who seems like he could rap in any style and pull it off extremely well and sound at home within that style. I'll definitely be checking out his older stuff now.

Shigeto - "Full Circle Remixes"

An extension of his great 2010 album, just about all these remixes are super tight.

Count Bass D - "#FULLCOUNT"

Count Bass D is such a weird anomaly to the rap world. He was signed to a major label in the mid 90's and flopped because they didn't know how to market him or who to market him to. Even in the underground, I feel he's kinda looked over. He has a very simple laid back sounding rap style that some people call boring, but i'm never bored when I listen to him. His production style is very chopped up MPC preciseness, that other beatmakers can really appreciate, but I feel like all his finesse is lost on regular people.

Best of 2011 part 3

The Residents - "Coochie Brake"

The Residents (if you've never heard of them, look them up on Wikipedia) hit us with a barrage of releases in 2011, most of them revolved around the Talking Light Tour that they were on. This was one of them that was possibly developed after that tour, because they didn't do any of this material, as far as I can remember. Mostly instrumental, spooky, and ambient. I'm really liking the directions they're taking with the later part of their career.

Planet Asia & Madlib - "Cracks In The Vinyl"

As far as I know this was a free download. Planet Asia was always kinda boring to me, but I almost always love Madlib production and can never turn it down.

Vex Ruffin - "Crash Course EP"

Weird lo-fi garage rock, but not shitty at all. I don't know where Peanut Butter Wolf found him, but i'm glad he did. Fits right in on Stones Throw, sounds like a more focused Baron Zen or something.

Tokimonsta - "Creature Dreams"

This almost ended up in the disappointments list, due to how awesome her first full length was, but this EP is still good enough to be one of the year's highlights. I just don't like that there's a couple stabs at some super contemporary, satelite radio electronic station type stuff on here, but everyone's gotta make their $ somehow, and she's definitely poised to be one of the next big names in the music world.

Zackey Force Funk - "Criminal Wave"

I first found out about this dude through his guest appearance on Tobacco's awesome song "Lamborghini Meltdown". I hunted down some of his music, and this is one of the albums I found. How do you even categorize music like this? I just consider it "post-internet" music, because you never saw stuff like this back in the days before the internet got big, and that's not a bad thing. I love all these new sounds that are coming about from people making music in their own free time at home. A lot of true originality shines through when talented people are doing it, case in point with Zackey Force Funk. Your "regular" friends are gonna think this sounds like garbage, but real heads know that music like this is the future. Is it rap? Is it electronic? Is it pop? Is it comedy? Is it serious? Who cares? it's music and it sounds good and puts me in a good mood.

Com Truise - "Cyanide Sisters"

This was a huge year for him. This was the first of his 3 releases in 2011. Great 80's sounding, synth music, perfect for exercise, or anything else really. His music was a lot of my soundtrack to life last year. Puts me in a great mood.

Birdy Nam Nam - "Defiant Order"

I could do without the more poppy songs on this album, but I understand why they're there. The strong songs on this album to me are great though, and make up about 70% of the LP. I'm sure i'll be dropping a lot of these tracks in sets this year.

Rapper Big Pooh - "Dirty Pretty Things"

Lately it seems like i've been diggin everything that him and Phonte have been doing, whether it their solo albums or side projects, or group endeavors.

Sole - "Dispatches From The American Fall"

Who would have thought that Sole would become one of the best if not THE best political rapper of this era? Damn sure not me, I used to hate his vocals on every song he was on and  even considered him to be a song ruiner for the most part. He's either stepped up his writing, or eased back on the forced sounding abstractness, or maybe i've just gotten weirder as i've gotten older and can understand him more. This was a free download collection of mostly previously released songs, but it works great as a stand-alone LP of exactly what the title states.

Tycho - "Dive"

One of the best laid back, relaxing albums to come out in a long time. It's a testament to the broad appeal of this album, the different types of people who ask me what it is when it's playing. Just a really stellar effort, through and through.

The Residents - "Dolar Generar"

Just like the artwork says, pre-show music for the Taking Light Tour. Kinda reminds me of the score work Trent Reznor has been doing for films lately, but more sinister and deranged sounding.

Africa Hitech - "Do You Really Wanna Fight"

Dope single/EP released by the duo of Steve Spacek & Mark Pritchard. These guys are some of the best DJ's i've ever seen live.

Best Of 2011 part 2

Tim Heidecker - "Cainthology: Songs In The Key Of Cain"

Tim from Tim & Eric made this solo EP as some kinda fake homage to Herman Cain, i'm assuming as an offlandish way to ridicule him. In this alternate reality, Herman Cain is the new messiah, the son of God, here to save mankind by being elected President of the USA. Obviously, he's out of the race already, but that doesn't take away from how truly hilarious this album is. Keep on ridin the Cain Train.

Flako - "Carving Away The Clay"

In addition to the full length he put out last year, Flako gave us this little gold nugget of an EP. "Broken Toy" is the standout track, but the other songs on here are great as well.

AM & Shawn Lee - "Celestial Electric"

I don't know anything about AM, who is the vocalist on this album, but I should probably look into that. This collabo LP with multi-instrumentalist/one-man band Shawn Lee, is pretty great pop/rock.

Mexicans With Guns - "Ceremony"

I guess this dude DJ's in a Luchador mask. This is a varied, yet surprisingly tight LP. I can't wait to hear more material from him.

Ford & Lopatin - "Channel Pressure"

This is like a fake 80's album, but they pull it off well.

Amon Tobin - "Chaos Theory Remixed"

I don't play new video games anymore, so I don't know how these songs play out in the game, but most of these are remixes of songs from the first one done by other people I like. There's 2 new Amon Tobin songs on here and then the remixes are done by Daedelus, Lorn, King Cannibal, Eskmo, Kid Koala, and The Qemists.

Phonte - "Charity Starts At Home"

Phonte's first solo album does not disappoint. When I first heard him rap in 2003, I never thought he'd become one of the most consistent and versatile people in music, but here we are.

Awol One & Nathaniel Motte - "The Child Star"

Nathaniel Motte is one of the people in 3OH!3, a pop act I don't care for, but these beats, while commercial sounding, are still happy sounding and decent, and Awol One proves he can adapt to any production style and make it his own, still sounding comfortable over these beats that are way out of his normal sonic range. This isn't a stellar album by any means, but my preconceptions about what it would sound like vs. what it actually sounds like were way different.

M.E.D. - "Classic"

I never thought he was anything special, but he always seems to score great beats to rhyme over. More than half of this album was done by Madlib with the rest of the beats being rounded out by Alchemist, Oh No, Georgia Anne Muldrow, and Karriem Riggins.

Teebs - "Collections 01"

I feel like right now Teebs and Shlohmo have the market cornered for weird yet oddly compelling texturalized percussion within electronic music. One of the strongest releases of 2011 in any genre in my opinion, was made even better when it was re-released with a bonus disc almost as long as the album itself during December. A Must-hear album in my book.

Dodge & Fuski - "Come Again EP"

These guys are kind of on the lighter side of dubstep, in terms of not using as abrasive sounds as some of their contemporaries, but they are very hyper-edited, and all their songs are very tightly and precisely put together.

Puscifer - "Conditions Of My Parole"

I personally prefer this side project over Tool and A Perfect Circle at this point in history. I can't decide if I like this or the first one any more than each other, but I hope he continues to make Puscifer albums in the future.

Best Of 2011 part 1

They Might Be Giants - "Album Raises New & Troubling Questions"

This is an album of b-sides and remixes and stuff taken from throughout their career, but it works great as a stand-alone album. I especially like the electronic tinged remixes. Great stuff.

Ital Tek - "Amnesty"

He definitely makes you want to give to charity with how good these 4 songs are. He seems to be emerging as one of my new favorite artists.

Black Lips - "Arabia Mountain"

I had my doubts about this one after I heard that Mark Ronson was producing it, but he did a good job transitioning their lo-fi loud sound into something more palatable for the masses, yet still satisfying for the longtime fans.

Hail Mary Mallon - "Are You Gonna Eat That?"

This is the duo of Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic. Rob Sonic really stepped it up on this one, in my opinion, and these guys just sound great together. Easily one of the strongest hip hop releases of the year.

Hecq - "Avenger"

Apparently this dude has been around for years and has changed his style up a few times, but this LP was my introduction to him. Nice, hard, and varied. I'll be checking out his older stuff to see what it's like for sure.

Tony Cook - "Back To Reality"

This album was recorded in 1983-84 and whatever idiotic record label he was signed to rejected it. Thanks to Stones Throw this album saw the light of day in 2011. They had Dam-Funk record some new vocals on one track with great results, otherwise this album was as-is, as far as I know. Great synth-funk to dance to.

Tom Waits - "Bad As Me"

Par for the course. Another great Tom Waits album to add to the collection.

Shlohmo - "Bad Vibes"

This guy has been one of my most listened to artists of the last couple years, and it was interesting to me that he threw everyone a curveball and made a REALLY mellow album for his first official full length. It still worked out great, even if it wasn't what people were expecting from him. I love his sound textures. Everything  is really clanky and clicky without sounding all glitchy.

The Book Of Mormon Original Soundtrack

Who would have thought this up 15 years ago that nowadays Trey Parker and Matt Stone would have a successful Broadway musical under their belt? I can't wait for this to go on tour because i'm dying to see how these hilarious songs play out in the theatrical production.

Jonwayne - "Bowser"

One of my most listened to albums of the year. Always puts me in a good mood. Nice 8 and 16 bit video game sounds being played on synths accompanied by some bumpin programming.

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble - "Bulletproof Brass"

I don't know anything about this band. This was a blind download that turned out to be pretty good.

The Elected - "Bury Me In My Rings"

Another band I know almost nothing about. Heard a song on shuffle and I liked it, so I listened to the whole album and liked it. It's rare that a random rock album grabs me like that.

2011's Disappointments part 4

Pimp C - "Still Pimping"

This might be a coincidence type thing for me. Either this was the year that my patience for lyrics this ignorant ran out, or they finally ran out of good Pimp C songs to release, and we're at the bottom of the barrel, much like "Until The End Of Time" was for 2Pac's post death releases.

Grieves - "Together/Apart"

After 2007's "Irreversible", and a couple really strong live performances I saw of his within the next 2 years after that, I figured he was poised to become one of the next "big things" in music. Simply put, this album is SO FUCKING BORING. I feel like I automatically get tired whenever I listen to it. Every song has the same evenness and blandness to the production, but I can't put the blame on Budo's shoulders because Grieves' lyrics are just emo for the sake of being emo or something. It doesn't even seem genuine like his older songs do when he gets emotional.

The Lonely Island - "Turtleneck & Chain"

I feel like they just rushed this one out to get another album out there. I loved the first album, but most of this either sounds retarded or forced, or both. There are a couple exceptions, ("Jack Sparrow" is seriously hilarious), but this is mostly lame and unfunny.

Joker - "The Vision"

How do you ruin a would-be decent LP? Put a bunch of British rappers on it.

Saul Williams - "Volcanic Sunlight"

Maybe I need to hear this some more. I only listened to it once, but it sounded like it was easily his weakest album so far, and nothing like the awesomeness both his self-titled album and "Niggy Tardust" were.

Jay-Z & Kanye West - "Watch The Throne"

For as many times I had people tell me I just HAD to listen to this album right away when it came out because they thought it was so dope, I must have shook my head and asked myself what those people are looking for in music at least 3 times as many while I was listening to this. I personally wasn't expecting much, so this is more about my disappointment in other people's taste. There's like 2 or 3 nice beats on here. They do nothing with them but masturbate lyrically. Then again a lot of people also liked that trash that was Kanye's last album too, and this is definitely better than that was. This is just a real ho-hum, regular ass rap album that people have blown out of proportion.

Tom Morello- "World Wide Rebel Songs"

Tom Morello needs to stop making these Nightwatchman albums. It's like he was listening to Bob Dylan one day and was like "that's easy, oy can do that" (said Monty Pyhon style)