A few favourite records from 2011

By Darragh|Blog, Brisbane, Music, Music Writing, Record review, Writing|8 Comments

The months of December and January breed lists. People love to bang on about what their favourite things of the year might be….and I’m no different. Being that I’m a sometimes music writer, it’s inevitable that I’d come to the party with a list of my favourite records from 2011. I may have missed the boat, considering its January and all, but nonetheless, they’re going on the Internet.

Some of these I mentioned in my contribution to Rave Magazines ‘best of’ in late December 2011 (which covered my top five). Some of these featured in my Best of Brisbane, written for Collapse Board.

Destroyer – Kaputt

I suppose you could call Dan Bejar’s critically acclaimed ninth record “chillwave”. It’s smooth, it’s got saxaphone’s all over it, and while it takes a bit to get used to, the entire thing is deceptively awesome.

Key tracks: Chinatown, Savage Night At The Opera.

Witch Hats – Pleasure Syndrome

My favourite Australian record of the year. The band, known for their aggressive bass driven rock lighten up a smidgen on their second record. The lyrics are still full of violence and brutality, but the song writing is tight and the themes engaging.

Key tracks: In the Mortuary, The Bounty, Hear Martin.

Read my review in Rave Magazine.

Royal Headache – Royal Headache

So much has already been written about the debut record from Sydney group Royal Headache. It won the Mess+Noise readers poll and it’s easy to understand why – these are rock songs you can dance to without having to think too much. I was a bit late to the party on this one, but it would have easily made my top five.

To me, it sounds like a bizarre melange of The Buzzcocks and Guided By Voices and occasionally a bit of the better tracks from The Strokes debut record.

Key tracks: Really in Love, Psychotic Episode.

Kitchen’s Floor – Look Forward to Nothing

I love a lot about this band. I love the self-deprecating lyrics, I love the way the songs are recorded, and I love that I can listen to the entire thing inside thirty minutes. This is my favourite Brisbane record of the year.

Key tracks: Regrets, Insects.

Read my review in Rave Magazine.

Wild Beasts – Smother

I’ve probably listened to this the most out of any on my list, partly because my girlfriend had it in her car and we never bothered to change the CD over. That fact in itself should tell you a lot about this record, it’s good enough to withstand countless listening.

Key tracks: Reach a Bit Further, Burning.

Read my review in Rave Magazine.

EMA – Past Life Martyred Saints

The debut record by ex-Gowns member Erika M. Anderson is a harrowing experience that makes some serious demands on the audience. It documents EMA battle with self-harm and drugs and…well you get the picture. I can thank fellow Rave writer Chad Parkhill for putting me on to this one.

While not on this record, I also recommend her cover of Nirvana’s ‘Endless Nameless’ as part of Spins tribute record – it’s probably the best Nirvana cover I’ve heard since The Mess Hall covered ‘Breed’.

Key tracks: The Grey Ship, Marked

The Keep On Dancins’ – The End of Everything

Local label Merenoise is home to a hell of a lot of awesome bands. The Keep On Dancins’ debut continues the quality I’ve come to expect from the label. It taps into the whole surf-rock thing with a touch of The Velvet Underground.

Key tracks: Houston, Summertime.

Chad VanGaalen – Diaper Island

I admire VanGaalen. He writes hundreds of songs and records them all himself and does all the artwork (including the amazing animation on his 2008 song Molten Light). Most of the time the songs are pretty good. Soft Airplane (2008) was my first introduction to the Canadian, Inside the Molecules being my favourite of that release. Diaper Island takes the best parts of Soft Airplanes and expands upon them. Rough production, Vangaalen’s nasal vocals, straightforward percussion, and his inclination for childlike imagery.

The record closer, Shave My Pussy is an interesting, possibly challenging, theme for a song. Difficult for me to understand, being male and all, I do like that VanGaalen attempts to think about the pressures of modern sexuality on young women. Whether he’s right or wrong, who knows, but it’s an interesting track nonetheless.

Key tracks: Burning Photographs, Freedom for a Policeman.

The Fauves – Japanese Machines

It’s strange that lots of people thing that older bands can’t cut it despite their experience. I didn’t expect to enjoy The Fauves tenth album, Japanese Engines, as much as I did. It’s powerpop, full of great little melodies and chiming guitars, but sad at its core – a sense of loss permeates through.

Key tracks: Flag of Convenience, The French

Read my review in Rave Magazine.

Stuff I missed

2011 was a super busy year for me in terms of music writing. I reviewed over 50 records, talked to a bunch of artists, and wrote a few special features. It pales in comparison to what normal music writers manage to do, but juggling this witha full time work has been challenging, sometimes overwhelming.

As a result, I’ll admit that I missed a lot of what I believe are good records – Real Estate, Dick Diver, Total Control, Twerps and Wilco, amongst many others. I realise they’re good and I look forward to digging into them soon.

If you’ve got recommendations, throw em in the comments.

Also, if you think I may have forgotten to include the Bon Iver record in my list. I haven’t because I think it sucks. QED.