It’s well into 2012, and I have been too lazy on this, but I’m finally ready to post my best of 2011 mix. Hoo-ray? Hoo-cares? Who knows? but it’s something I’ve been doing every year for the past several and I enjoy it. I hope you enjoy it too, and what the hell, free music, right?

So how was 2011, musically? I made a commitment early in the year to try to listen to as much new music as possible, to make the year-end list the best it could be. Unfortunately, I think the more new music I listen to in a year, the harder it gets to go through it all and come up with a coherent and accurate picture of what my favorites were. I worked on this list through the last half of November and all of December, and spent most of January picking tracks for this list and fretting over whether this or that album really belonged on it.

But eventually I decided that second-guessing myself was a mug’s game, and here you go. My favorite albums of 2011.

Russian Circles is a Chicago-based band who plays heavy instrumental rock in the vein of Pelican, but with a more melodic feel. I’ve been following them for several albums, but I think this is the first time they’ve appeared on my year-end list. This album is interesting in that their sound has grown to incorporate some more extreme elements but also quieter interludes, and the songwriting is as good or better than on any of their previous albums. The song I’ve selected highlights their typical heavy and heavily layered yet melodic sound.
http://russiancirclesband.com/ 19. Deer Tick – Divine Providence
Song: Let’s All Go To The Bar (07:20-10:30)

Deer Tick are among a group of bands (like Blitzen Trapper) working a certain corner of Americana with a smirk and a stomp and an ironic mustache. They’re not typically my favorites, though I do enjoy listening to them. But this album is a bit more muscular than previous efforts, and makes it into my list almost entirely on the strength of the meathead anthem I’ve selected for this mix. Its simplistic call and response structure may not belie deep thoughts behind, but its frantic energy is a clear an homage to the Replacements as I’ve heard in years. And yes I’m probably a bit of a meathead, so the song itself appeals to me on an entirely unironic level.
http://www.deertickmusic.com/ 18. Charles Bradley – No Time For Dreaming
Song: No Time For Dreaming (10:30-13:19)

I was late getting into the whole Daptone thing. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings have been putting out some great records for a while now and were never on my radar until a friend of mine brought them up to me almost a year ago. See, I listen to a lot of new music but almost completely at random, whatever strikes my fancy on a given day. And I miss a lot that way, especially since I tend not to check a band out at all if I find the hype annoying. But after dropping the ball on SJ&tDK I was on the lookout for some good throwback R&B, and this Charles Bradley album came along at just the right time. Also a Daptone artist, his James Brown-inspired sound could have been recorded in 1970 and saved in a time capsule until now.
http://thecharlesbradley.com/ 17. Hunters – From Birth To Soil
Song: Engine of Deceit (13:19-18:11)

Hunters are another Chicago-based band (I do like to check out the local talent) that play a kind of groovy, almost stoner-like sludge metal informed by the intensity of death metal. Comparisons could run the gamut from High on Fire to Mastodon to Carcass with a line running back through Pantera to a heavy 70s Sabbath-style groove. I’ve elected to focus on the stoner/groove aspect with the song I’ve selected, but even there it takes a break to delve into pure sludge partway through the track.
http://www.huntersmetal.com/blog/ 16. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Here We Rest
Song: Never Could Believe (18:11-22:14)

Jason Isbell, formerly of Drive-By Truckers, still writes probably the best Truckers songs out there. Unfortunately, the band he’s playing with now, as good as they are, don’t quite have the same balls as DBT, so the songs don’t have the same raunchy immediacy that I think the boys would have given them, even if the songs’ subjects are as down & dirty as anything Isbell has written previously. But the songs themselves are of course still the strength here, with the focus on Southern characters and their troubles. Never Could Believe is a funky little honky tonk number with great interplay between the guitar and piano that I dig.
http://www.jasonisbell.com/ 15. Symphony of Science – Symphony of Science Bundle
Song: We Are All Connected (22:14-26:20)

OK, so I guess I’ve finally gotten around to cheating a little bit. I have certain rules with these year-end lists–no compilations, no rereleases, no EPs, just full-length albums initially released that year. Symphony of Science has been putting together these amazing songs out of autotuned snippets of voiceovers by some of the great minds in science (among others), sourcing them from science shows, lectures, etc., for a few years now, with accompanying youtube videos. But I believe this year is the first time they’ve released them as a downloadable MP3 album, which technically–technically–qualifies it for this list. I’ve selected a song containing some great quotes from some favorites of mine, including Carl Sagan and Neil deGrasse Tyson.
http://symphonyofscience.com/ 14. Larry And His Flask – All That We Know
Song: Blood Drunk (26:20-29:53)

Larry And His Flask are an Oregon band playing the same kind of punk-rock breakneck bluegrass that seems to find its way onto my list every year in one form or another. These guys have energy and chops and a great sense for melody. The song I’ve selected has a bit of darkness to it, but tempered by a singalong chorus and a sense of fun.
http://www.larryandhisflask.com/ 13. Absu – Abzu
Song: Abraxus Connectus (29:53-33:44)

Absu’s Abzu, the second in a planned trilogy of records, is a psychotic onslaught of thrashy chaos. The opening 20 seconds or so may mislead you into thinking you are listening to a bad 80s hair metal throwback, but once the girlish wail subsides and the band gets to its business, the pummeling your gut takes from the lightspeed riffing will convince of the wrongness of that initial impression. I’ve selected the 3rd of six songs for this mix, and it represents this album at its best.
http://absu.bandzoogle.com 12. Tombs – Path of Totality
Song: To Cross The Land (33:44-39:37)

Tombs plays a depressive style of metal that definitely draws on the influences of Neurosis-style post-metal, but has its own blend of black metal and sludge and a half-dozen other subgenres as well. The sound can range from a patient sparsity to an enveloping shroud of downtuned guitars and blastbeats but the remarkable thing about the album is the emotionality of it–oppressive, paranoid, despairing, claustrophobic… I have to admit that I’m not a guy who can really pick out lyrics in most metal, especially with harsh vocals (can anybody? I guess so but it’s hard to believe sometimes)–the emotions I’m talking about, I’m getting strictly instrumentally. The song I’ve chosen builds slowly, starting with a repeated figure that builds in frantic intensity into a blastbeat-punctuated pronouncement of doom.
http://www.filledwithsecrets.com/ 11. Original Cast Recording – The Book Of Mormon
Song: Hasa Diga Eebowai (39:37-43:59)

Show tunes? Well, I do have a little bit of a theatrical background but I don’t keep up too much. This new musical though, from Matt and Trey of South Park fame, piqued my interest, as I do tend to enjoy a good laugh (even if I don’t watch too much South Park anymore) and they can always be counted on to raise a few eyebrows. This show is… it’s just so slick; the people they teamed up with to bring it to the stage really knew their Broadway musicals, and it shows. As profane and offensive as you might expect, this soundtrack shows a real love for musical theater, with homages to everything from the Lion King to Sound of Music to bad Bono-led celebrity charity albums and a real affection for its characters, no matter how goofily it portrays them. Regarding the song I’ve selected for this mix: odds are it will offend you, but there’s also a lot to be said for the way it upends the cheeriness of the Lion King’s Hakuna Matata in favor of a darker (but funnier) look at conditions in Africa and the way people react to them.
http://www.bookofmormonbroadway.com/home.php 10. Necrocomiccon – Hot Dog Cart Hunger
Song: Everybody Wants To Rule The World (43:59-46:36)

Necrocomiccon is a black metal band that plays black metal versions of pop songs from the 1980s. They are absolutely brilliant, and they’ve released an EP and another full-length since this album without a dud among them. I’ve selected their version of a classic Tears for Fears song; it’s amazing, so is the rest of the album, look them up on Facebook and check them out because they are a couple of geniuses.
https://www.facebook.com/Necrocomiccon 09. Yuck – Yuck
Song: Get Away (46:36-50:11)

Shortly after this album came out, I considered it a lock for the #1 spot on this list. Something about the Dinosaur Jr. guitar tone they use liberally (though if you listen to the whole album they do veer away from the Dino Jr. formula quite a bit, most notably on a Burt Bacharach inspired number that made me think of Butch & Sundance riding bicycles) just seems to grab directly onto my spinal cord and make me do its bidding. But I think I burned myself out on it early, and truth be told there’s not much else on the album as strong as this opening song. Still top 10 material though.
http://yuckband.blogspot.com/ 08. Low – C’mon
Song: Especially Me (50:11-55:37)

Low, though they’ve been around forever, first came to my attention with a fantastic (silly but fantastic, and it could hardly be otherwise) version of Toto’s song Africa that they did for the AV Club, and I checked out this album on the strength of that performance. Consistently mellow, and lyrically not always the strongest, still these 10 tunes present a solid wall of mesmerizing vocal harmonies. Probably the overall best song from the album (aside from the hypnotically repetitive Nothing But Heart) is the one I’ve chosen for this mix, which features Mimi’s enchanting vocals and the dreamlike sound that characterizes much of the album.
http://chairkickers.com/ 07. Elliott Brood – Days Into years
Song: Hold You (55:37-60:14)

Elliott Brood are a perennial favorite of mine, and this album features their “death country” sound with improved songwriting. I’ve had them on my year-end list before and don’t know how much new I can say about them. Hold You is a great thumbnail of their sound; if a song can be simultaneously plaintive and anthemic, this is it.
http://www.elliottbrood.ca/ 06. Fucked Up – David Comes To Life
Song: Life In Paper (60:14-64:50)

Fucked Up’s album David Comes To Life is an epic work that I admit, I haven’t fully been able to wrap my head around yet. But that’s not a knock on it–there’s a lot to come to grips with. Musically speaking, I’ve found it analogous to The Hold Steady in certain ways; instrumentally, you’ve got a style of music (in Hold Steady’s case it’s classic rock, in this case it’s indie punk) that I find enormously pleasing, when vocally I find both bands grating. But whereas I never really fully was able to reconcile Craig Finn’s drunken sneer with the bar band stylings of his cohort, I’ve come to appreciate the way Damian Abraham’s hardcore screaming works with the wall-of-noise guitars Fucked Up brings. The album’s epic length, daunting as it is, has presented another barrier to my understanding. But more and more, I find myself pleased with the prospect that I will probably still be wrestling with this album through the remainder of 2012.
http://www.myspace.com/epicsinminutes 05. Liturgy – Aesthethica
Song: Tragic Laurel (64:50-68:55)

It’s my understanding that Liturgy often faces the epithet of “Hipster Metal.” As if metal is a ghetto undergoing gentrification, and Liturgy are the skinny tattooed white kids rolling through on tall bikes and smoking American Spirits. I don’t know about that. I dig metal, and while it’s true that I tend to lean more toward certain types of metal, that flows from the way something sounds and how that affects me more than from the application of some outside aesthetic. I have a friend who absolutely hated this album. I know there have been multiple internet bitch fights about this album. I guess I cared enough to notice, but not to keep it from being my highest-rated metal album of the year. Because it’s just so damned interesting. I’ve tried to explain it using phrases such as “it’s like somebody took pieces from a puzzle labeled ‘black metal’ and ended up putting together a math rock album with them instead” but apart from being a clumsy simile it’s not quite right either. I’m not always the best at articulating what I like about music, and honestly I’m not a guy who always goes for the most challenging fare, but something about the way that they took black metal sounds and did something completely different with them appealed to me.
http://www.myspace.com/liturgynybm 04. The Red Hills – I’m A Nightmare
Song: News And Bombs (68:55-73:09)

Here is a random Bandcamp download that ended up captivating me for a good portion of 2011. It started with the song San Diego, and eventually the whole album just got under my skin. I can’t really find out too much about these guys other than that they are from Portland Oregon and are related to the (fantastically named) band I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch In The House. This is dark alt-country, touching on dark subjects, and without much to break that mood. But it’s compelling stuff.
http://www.theredhillspdx.com/ 03. Amerigo Gazaway – Fela Soul
Song: Stakes Is High (73:09-78:25)

Is this a cheat? I guess I’m not familiar enough with the original works to tell how involved the work was that went into these mashups. But the concept is great, and the outcome is even better, and this list is more about my favorite new music than the most technically accomplished. Fela Soul is a mashup of works by famed Afrobeat artist Fela Kuti with songs by De La Soul and related projects, and I’ve spun it compulsively enough this year to land it high on my list.
http://www.amerigomusic.com/ 02. White Denim – D
Song: Burnished (78:25-81:01)

I heard these guys on turntable.fm one day and immediately sought out this album. It’s indie rock with a jazzy/mathy sound and a bit of Southern flair (the band is from Austin if I’m not mistaken). Some songs are more straightforward, but the one I’ve chosen showcases their love of complexity, with shifting time signatures and noodly, intertwining dual guitars.
http://whitedenimmusic.com/ 01. The Joy Formidable – The Big Roar
Song: The Everchanging Spectrum Of A Lie (81:01-88:03)

This Welsh band’s full-album debut is sort of a companion piece, in my mind anyway, to the previously-mentioned Yuck album. Where that album reprised the noisy early-90s sound of indie bands like Dinosaur Jr., this one incorporates the early 90s shoegazy sounds of a My Bloody Valentine, but with a bigger crunch and a louder thump and an urgency that demands my attention.
http://www.thejoyformidable.com/ ]]> http://radio.gen1.us/archives/894/feed 2 1:28:03 It’s well into 2012, and I have been too lazy on this, but I’m finally ready to post my best of 2011 mix. Hoo-ray? Hoo-cares? Who knows? but it’s something I’ve been doing every year for the past several and I enjoy it. I[...] It’s well into 2012, and I have been too lazy on this, but I’m finally ready to post my best of 2011 mix. Hoo-ray? Hoo-cares? Who knows? but it’s something I’ve been doing every year for the past several and I enjoy it. I hope you enjoy it too, and what the hell, free music, right? So how was 2011, musically? I made a commitment early in the year to try to listen to as much new music as possible, to make the year-end list the best it could be. Unfortunately, I think the more new music I listen to in a year, the harder it gets to go through it all and come up with a coherent and accurate picture of what my favorites were. I worked on this list through the last half of November and all of December, and spent most of January picking tracks for this list and fretting over whether this or that album really belonged on it. But eventually I decided that second-guessing myself was a mug’s game, and here you go. My favorite albums of 2011. 20. Russian Circles – Empros  Song: Mladek (00:00-07:20) Russian Circles is a Chicago-based band who plays heavy instrumental rock in the vein of Pelican, but with a more melodic feel. I’ve been following them for several albums, but I think this is the first time they’ve appeared on my year-end list. This album is interesting in that their sound has grown to incorporate some more extreme elements but also quieter interludes, and the songwriting is as good or better than on any of their previous albums. The song I’ve selected highlights their typical heavy and heavily layered yet melodic sound. http://russiancirclesband.com/ 19. Deer Tick – Divine Providence Song: Let’s All Go To The Bar (07:20-10:30) Deer Tick are among a group of bands (like Blitzen Trapper) working a certain corner of Americana with a smirk and a stomp and an ironic mustache. They’re not typically my favorites, though I do enjoy listening to them. But this album is a bit more muscular than previous efforts, and makes it into my list almost entirely on the strength of the meathead anthem I’ve selected for this mix. Its simplistic call and response structure may not belie deep thoughts behind, but its frantic energy is a clear an homage to the Replacements as I’ve heard in years. And yes I’m probably a bit of a meathead, so the song itself appeals to me on an entirely unironic level. http://www.deertickmusic.com/ 18. Charles Bradley – No Time For Dreaming Song: No Time For Dreaming (10:30-13:19) I was late getting into the whole Daptone thing. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings have been putting out some great records for a while now and were never on my radar until a friend of mine brought them up to me almost a year ago. See, I listen to a lot of new music but almost completely at random, whatever strikes my fancy on a given day. And I miss a lot that way, especially since I tend not to check a band out at all if I find the hype annoying. But after dropping the ball on SJ&tDK I was on the lookout for some good throwback R&B, and this Charles Bradley album came along at just the right time. Also a Daptone artist, his James Brown-inspired sound could have been recorded in 1970 and saved in a time capsule until now. http://thecharlesbradley.com/ 17. Hunters – From Birth To Soil Song: Engine of Deceit (13:19-18:11) Hunters are another Chicago-based band (I do like to check out the local talent) that play a kind of groovy, almost stoner-like sludge metal informed by the intensity of death metal. Comparisons could run the gamut from High on Fire to Mastodon to Carcass with a line running back through Pantera to a heavy 70s Sabbath-style groove. I’ve elected to focus on the stoner/groove aspect with the song I’ve selected, but even there it takes a break to delve into pure sludge partway through the track. http://www.huntersmetal.com/blog/ 16. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Here We Rest So[...] Uncategorized mrch0mp3rs yes no http://radio.gen1.us/archives/867 http://radio.gen1.us/archives/867#comments Fri, 16 Sep 2011 03:23:31 +0000 Kevin http://radio.gen1.us/?p=867  

Doktor Avalanche is the name of evolving electronic drum machines that have fueled the majestic Sisters of Mercy over the years. Dexterous name; distinct sound.

I can’t say with any certainly that Andrew Eldritch would approve of all the bands on this mix (probably not), but it’s a mix of songs with drum machines that I work to when in front of a computer. I know there are drum machines behind everyone from Prince to Wesley Willis, but when working I tend to play songs with a similar, electronic sound.  I tried to include different sounds and approaches here within that theme, and avoided a more dark/heavy electronic mix, though there is some of that on here. I also tried to include different bands so steered away from my all-time favorites as much as possible, purposefully leaving off Ministry, Skinny Puppy, Front 242, Front Line Assembly, KMFDM, Depeche Mode, etc., but cheated a bit by adding Revolting Cocks and Download.  I included another all-time favorite, the Sisters, on there because I like the name of the mix.

As always, if you like a band, please download their songs and see their shows and otherwise support their efforts if you can. Enjoy!

1. TKM – Sub Swara
2. Flesh (Original) – A Split-Second
3. The Collapse – Flesh Field
4. Ghostwriter – RJD2
5. Dead End Streets (86 Mixxx) – Revolting Cocks
6. Phantasmata – CunninLynguists
7. Dial8 – Velvet Acid Christ
8. The Acension – Mnolo
9. Final Home (Piano Mix) – DJ Krush featuring Esthero
10. Transient – Glen Porter
11. Death Vest 09 – Enduser
12. The Great Divide – Die Krupps
13. Glory Box – Portishead
14. Human Crossing – Project Pitchfork
15. The Open Hand Avows – Daedelus
16. Firing Line – Noise Unit
17. Glassblower – Download
18. Poison Door – Sisters of Mercy
19. Narcisse – Martin Rev

As usual, my listening has been dominated by country/southern rock and metal, but there are a few digressions in there as well. Some pretty strange transitions but as a whole I think it flows pretty well. So give it a listen and let me know what you think! Below is a list of the artists, albums, and sample tracks along with a blurb giving my take on each album. I’m not announcing tracks during the mix (it’s already over 90 minutes) so you may want to follow along below.

But now, to the tunes!

20
Artist: Those Darlins
Album: Those Darlins
Track: Snaggle Tooth Mama
Those Darlins are a 3-piece all-girl band from Murfreesboro, TN (4-piece with the drummer) who, like so many of the bands I really like, bring punk rock energy and attitude to country music. They’re raucous, boozy and fun.

19
Artist: The Protomen
Album: Act II: The Father of Death
Track: The Hounds
The Protomen are a band that creates Megaman-themed rock operas. This makes them a novelty act superficially, but they treat their subject very seriously. I’ve read that they even refuse to break character for interviews. Their second album, Act II: The Father of Death, is far more epic and technically accomplished than the first, leaving behind the 8-bit sounds they used sparingly on their debut in favor of further exploring their straight-up Meatloaf-style bombast and early 80s arena rock sound. To give you an idea, one of their B-sides (not on either album) was an excellent cover of Robert Tepper’s “No Easy Way Out,” among the cheesiest of 80s rock anthems, theme from the movie Rocky IV.

18
Artist: The Mountain Goats
Album: The Life of the World to Come
Track: Genesis 3:23
Historically, the Mountain Goats is mostly just John Darnielle, writing great songs and recording them on a boombox. The last several albums have been professionally recorded with regular enough collaborators that they can be truly said to be a “band” now, but Darnielle’s songwriting ability hasn’t suffered. He may be the best songwriter working in music today. The latest album is 12 songs named after Bible verses but I wouldn’t call it overtly religious. In JD’s words, it’s “twelve hard lessons the Bible taught me, kind of,” so take that as you will.

17
Artist: Nahemah
Album: A New Constellation
Track: Follow Me
Nahemah is a progressive death metal band from Spain. I liked their last album quite a bit, and was excited to hear this one as well. It didn’t disappoint. When you hear “progressive death metal” you probably think of Opeth, and some comparison may be inevitable. These guys use a similar combination of harsh and clean vocals to Opeth, but they are less repetitive. Also less aggressive, leaning more toward the post-metal style of early Isis with progressive flourishes.

16
Artist: Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy
Album: Beware
Track: Beware Your Only Friend
What can I say? If Will Oldham (the man behind the ‘Prince’) releases an album, 9 times out of 10 it’ll end up on my list. Musically, the album is more lush than previous BPB albums, mostly a richly produced country and western sound. Lyrically, it veers from the disturbing to the tongue in cheek.

15
Artist: Portugal. The Man
Album: The Satanic Satanist
Track: People Say
I guess these guys are from Alaska, I don’t really know much about them. This album is indie rock/pop that’s a little bit spazzy, a little bit folky, a little bit soulful, and kind of all over the place. This song is the first track on the album and it’s a strong opener.

14
Artist: Russian Circles
Album: Geneva
Track: Malko
Russian Circles is a Chicago band and one of those bands that falls inbetween post rock and metal, sprawling instrumental music that ranges from quiet reflective passages to thunderous chugging metal riffs. After loving their first album (one of my great albums for staring out of train windows), I didn’t care too much for their second, but they’ve more than made up for it with this release.

13
Artist: Rimfrost
Album: Veraldar Nagli
Track: Mountains of Mana
I won’t beat about the bush; Rimfrost is straight-up Immortal worship. Which I can get behind.

12
Artist: Mumford & Sons
Album: Sigh No More
Track: Little Lion Man
Brits with banjos, these guys took the place in my heart this year that two years ago was firmly occupied by the Avett Brothers. Folk and bluegrass with fantastic harmonies.

11
Artist: Mantic Ritual
Album: Executioner
Track: Murdered to Death
Like the band Rimfrost in this countdown, this band exists largely as homage, in this case to “Kill ‘Em All” era Metallica. I’m a sucker for thrashy metal and this is a throwback that caught me at the right time and in the right mood. If you like 80s thrash, it’s definitely worth checking out.

10
Artist: Lucero
Album: 1372 Overton Park
Track: What are You Willing to Lose?
Lucero is a perennial favorite of mine. They started life as a country band started by a bunch of punk rock kids, but their music has moved over the years from country firmly into the rock genre. 2007′s Rebels, Rogues and Sworn Brothers added some piano to their basic drums/bass/guitars setup for a classic rock sound that pretty strongly brought the Boss to mind. This time around, they’ve added horns and evolved their sound further, bringing in a bluesy soulful sound that compliments the stomping rock they do best. But the elevator still goes all the way to the ground floor, as there are songs that wouldn’t feel out of place on some of their previous albums either.

9
Artist: Converge
Album: Axe to Fall
Track: Dark Horse
I saw these guys at the Dethklok/Mastodon show earlier this year and thought at the time they were a weird fit. After hearing the album, I don’t feel like they were as out of place as I initially thought. They’ve added some very thrashy elements to their hardcore sound (which, I realize, isn’t a stretch by any means) and their energy is undeniable.

8
Artist: Justin Townes Earle
Album: Midnight at the Movies
Track: Black Eyed Suzy
JTE made my list last year and though I personally like that album better than this year’s, he’s still one of the better artists working this corner of Americana. This time around he relies more on solid songwriting than mining the past of country/western music (and I think that’s what I liked so much about the previous album, the old-timey feel) but he still falls more comfortably within the old school of country music than anywhere else.

7
Artist: Propaghandi
Album: Supporting Caste
Track: Supporting Caste
My friend Jeb is a huge Propaghandi fan, and I’d never listened to them. He hyped this record so much though that I checked it out and I’m glad I did. Propaghandi’s a Canadian punk band, but this album ventures beyond punk: fast, angular, yes, melodic, thrashy in parts, some songs complex bordering on progressive.

6
Artist: Skeletonwitch
Album: Breathing the Fire
Track: Longing for Domination
Skeletonwitch is one of my favorite new bands. Their previous album, Beyond the Permafrost, was one of my favorites of 2007, and this one is a worthy followup. The sound is a little cleaner, more focused, but composed of the same basic parts: blistering thrash riffage, complimented by aspects of death metal and black metal, and with a melodic dual lead that brings to mind Iron Maiden and other greats of the NWOBHM.

5
Artist: Immortal
Album: All Shall Fall
Track: Norden on Fire
Immortal’s follow-up to one of the best metal albums of the decade, and an essential metal album by any measure, Sons of Northern Darkness, was going to face an uphill battle. How do you follow up a classic like SoND? if you expect a better album you’re sure to be disappointed, but All Shall Fall delivers on being another great record from Immortal, and that’s all I really wanted.

4
Artist: Scale the Summit
Album: Carving Desert Canyons
Track: The Great Plains
I’m not going to lie to you, this album is all about guitar wankery. That doesn’t float everyone’s boat, but this is some impressive progressive instrumental metal by some guys who know what they’re doing.

3
Artist: Crippled Black Phoenix
Album: 200 Tons of Bad Luck
Track: 444
Crippled Black Phoenix is a sort of post rock/doom metal supergroup, with members from Mogwai, Electric Wizard, and other bands. They weave a gloomy series of epic-length songs combining the expected doom and post-rock genres with some laid back dreamier Floydesque passages and more aggressive hardcore sounds as well.

2
Artist: Blut Aus Nord
Album: Memoria Vetusta II: Dialogue with the Stars
Track: The Alcove of Angels (Vipassana)
All year, I expected this to be my #1 album of the year. In this release, Blut Aus Nord combines some of the melodic shoegazy aspect of the current crop of French black metal with a basis in the harshness that is elemental to classic black metal, in an amazing way. Then, somewhere in the course of the album, some soaring soloing somberly swoops in and out like whalesong and you’re hooked.

1
Artist: Baroness
Album: Blue Record
Track: War, Wisdom and Rhyme
Baroness is a band I’m still exploring, after having been introduced to them late in the year by a friend, but I was impressed enough by this album for it to shoot to the top of my list after only a few weeks of listening. It combines a sludgy metal with southern rock and acid/stoner rock in an engulfing wall of sound.

bonus
Artist: Ben Nichols
Album: The Last Pale Light in the West
Track: The Kid
This is a bonus song from an album that deserved a place somewhere in my best-of lists, but I couldn’t quite fit into either my 2008 or 2009 list. Ben Nichols is the lead singer of Lucero, and this, his first solo album, had an official release date in January of 2009, but because of a download available with preorders was all over the internet by September or October of 2008. I had considered it a 2009 release so left it off the 2008 list, but it seems like everyone else veered the other way. So here it is, belatedly, a great short concept album based on Cormac McCarthy’s novel Blood Meridian, combining Ben’s excellent songwriting with a more stripped-down country sound than what his band Lucero is playing these days.

[Kevin] Winter’s a great time for a mix of northwest bands. These mostly span Washington and Oregon. Not all songs are what they seem, so before you write something off, give it a listen.

I started off just trying to round up enough Pacific Northwest bands to make a mix, but I ended up with way too many original, insanely good songs and got turned on to a bunch of new bands in the process.  Hope you do too.

We Sing in Time - The Lonely Forest
Good Friend, Yr Hunger – Castanets
911 – Man Plus
Bananas – Blue Scholars
I Say Fever – Ramona Falls
I’m a F*cking Genius – Supersuckers
Black River Killer – Blitzen Trapper
Two Minutes – The Blows
Beep Beep – Big World Breaks (featuring Godspeed, Jerm, Lia Brown & Toni Hill)
You Only Believe Me When I’m Lying – Zoe Muth and the Lost High Rollers
Little Slickers – The Globes
Better Than Lies – Beehive
Now We Can See – The Thermals
Wall of a Song – The Whore Moans
Ward – Visqueen
Clear as Day – North Twin
Otherside – Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid – The Decemberists

If you like any of these bands be sure to support them by downloading their music or picking up a CD, and check them out when they tour near you.  Special thanks to KEXP in Seattle for great podcasts…check them out and support KEXP, their releases,  and/or the music you love.

[Kevin] This is a cover mix that looks heavier than it really is. Essentially, it\’s a rock / alternative / metal / country mix.

It started with my friend Don Heeter\’s \”Goofy Sh*t\” play list that was basically a list of covers he liked where the original had been redefined by the cover band putting their own spin on the song. The list started with Crowbar\’s recasting of Gary Wright\’s 1976 radio classic \”Dreamweaver\” as a cauldron of churning sludge that still sounds pleasing to the ears. If you listen to nothing else on this mix, check out Dreamweaver.

Heeter’s list also had \”The Ghost of Tom Joad,\” \”Orion\” (which is a great acoustic version of the Metallica original), \”Simple Man,\” \”Buick McKaine,\” and \”I Never Dreamed.\” One night while drinking we added \”I\’ve Got the Fire,\” \”Imagine,\” and \”Run Like Hell.\” Then to round it out I added the rest. Hope you enjoy it.

As always, if you like a song or a band, please support them by purchasing their CDs, LPs, mp3s, or DVDs, and by going to see them when they tour…

1. Dreamweaver — Crowbar, original by Gary Wright
2. Sounds of Silence – Ascension of the Watchers, original by Simon and Garfunkel
3. *Ghost of Tom Joad — Rage Against the Machine, original by Bruce Springsteen
4. Imagine — A Perfect Circle, original by John Lennon
5. I\’ve Got the Fire — Iron Maiden, original by Montrose
6. Orion — Rodrigo Y Gabriela, original by Metallica
7. Simple Man – Deftones, original by Lynyrd Skynyrd
8. Three Days — L7, original by Willie Nelson
9. Crossroads — Rush, original by Robert Johnson
10. Buick McKaine — Guns\’n\’Roses, original by T. Rex
11. Get a Grip (on Yourself) — Prong, original by The Stranglers
12. Run Like Hell — Kitty, original by Pink Floyd
13. Slip Kid — Anvil & Franky Perez, original by The Who
14. Evil Hearted You — The Pixies, original by The Yardbirds
15. Rated X — Neko Case, original by Loretta Lynn
16. I Never Dreamed — Black Label Society, original by Lynyrd Skynyrd

*Grapes of Wrath (1940)

With much respect:

Many moons ago, Kristen (who is among my oldest friends) made the suggestion that I put my iTunes on random and just make a mix of the first load of songs that come up.  For reasons unclear (mostly laziness I suspect), I never got around to it until last week, where I specifically just threw the iPhone into a frenzy as I scrolled through my 32GB library and decided to hit shuffle, which resulted in the wonderful “Cruel to be Kind” by Nick Lowe.  I then pressed Genius to see what it’d recommend and the result was…. well, it was all over the place, but it actually sounded pretty good.  I didn’t change the order or anything.

So here you go.  My mix, based on what iTunes thinks I like with the random selection of Nick Lowe…

• Nick Lowe – Cruel to be Kind
• John Hiatt – Ethylene
• William Shatner – Ideal Woman
• Aimee Mann – Put Me On Top
• Hall & Oates – Did It In A Minute
• Sleep Out –  Three Towns
• Electronic – Getting Away With It
• The Dead Weather – Treat Me Like Your Mother
• Mexican Institute of Sound – Sinfonía Agridulce
• Prince – She’s Always In My Hair
• Saul Williams – The Ritual
• Jellyfish – The Glutton of Sympathy
• Santigold – Say Aha
• The Go! Team – Get It Together
• Prodigy – Memphis Bells
• Street Sweeper Social Club – Fight! Smash! Win!
• The Roots – No Great Pretender
• Squirrel Nut Zippers – It Ain’t You
• Astrud Gilberto – Light My Fire
• Tom Jones – Green, Green Grass of Home

Please… also let me know how my voice sounds.  I was so pissed off with my last show that I plunked down for a Blue Snowball and I think it’s a marked improvement.  You tell me…

I had the BEST time hanging out with my buddy Michael (@romacafe) the entire weekend.  I was so happy to hang out as much as we could with my old pal Dennis and even with twitter friend (and major huge Tool fan) Lisa (@kavka).  Everyday we seemed to make friends around us, despite inclement weather.

I hope you like this mix.  Santigold brought something more than an A-game with her this year.

• Depeche Mode – A Question of Time
• Souja Boy Tell ‘Em – Turn My Swag On
• Hold the Line – Major Lazer
• Brooklyn Go Hard – Jay Z
• Shove It – Santigold
• The ’59 Sound – The Gaslight Anthem
• Fitz and the Dizzyspells – Andrew Bird
• Wolf Like Me – TV On the Radio
• Everyday I Love You Less and Less – Kaiser Chiefs
• We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed – Los Campesinos!
• Little Secrets – Passion Pit
• This Tornado Loves You – Neko Case
• Jambi – Tool
• The General Specific – Band of Horses
• Creator – Santigold
• Unstoppable – Santigold
• Red F – Dan Deacon
• Vampires – Thievery Corporation

Move from feeling melancholy to . . .well. . . better

1. The Who – Melancholia
2. Neil Young – Birds
3. Patty Loveless – Sorrowful Angels
4. Bob Dylan – Simple Twist of Fate
5. Ray Charles – A Fool for you
6. The Doors – The Changeling
7. Rolling Stones – Rocks Off
8. Steve Earl – Galway Girl
9. The Grateful Dead – Scarlet Begonias
10. The Allman Brothers – Blue Sky
11. The Ramones – California Sun

My daughter rocks out to Whitesnake, more than she should..

It’s summertime.  At least it should be.  Here’s a simple mix of stuff I’m listening to that puts me in a summer mood for drives, barbecuing, hanging out…

1. Metric – Help I’m Alive
2. The Killers – Spaceman
3. N.A.S.A – Money (with David Bryne and Chuck D.)
4. Young MC – Got More Rhymes
5. De La Soul – A Roller Skating Jam Named ‘Saturdays’
6. Mos Def – Casa Bey
7. Choir of  Young Believers – Action/Reaction
8. Hunters & Collectors – When the River Runs Dry
9. Wilco – You Never Know
10. Friend – Doki
11. Chickenfoot – Oh Yeah
12. Bible of the Devil – Ol’ Girl
13. Hell City Glamours – Ready to Fall
14. Brian Wilson – Love and Mercy
15. Phoenix – Lisztomania
16. Grizzly Bear – Two Weeks
17. Passion Pit – Little Secrets