Truetone

My Favorite Records of 2011

These are not in any particular order, but rather in order of softest to loudest.

Last - The Unthanks

This whole album is stunning. This gem was hidden in this Metal Sucks Best of 2011 as Chosen by the Artists Themselves list. I immediately listened to the whole album beginning to end.

Helplessness Blues - Fleet Foxes

If you live in Minneapolis, this may not seem like a very original choice. This song got tons of play on The Current and in coffee shops around town. Perhaps it reflects my limited exposure to releases for the year, but this album definitely stands out for me.

The Harrow and the Harvest - Gillian Welch

I’ve been waiting 8 years for a new Gillian Welch release. She did not disappoint.

S/T - New Country Rehab

I happened to see these guys in Nashville at the Americana Music Festival this year. Their live performance completely blew me away. They were the most innovative band I saw there.

The King is Dead - The Decemberists

Again, a predictable choice coming from Minneapolis. That doesn’t diminish the fact that The Decemberists put out another solid release in 2011.

The Big Roar - The Joy Formidable

By now you’re thinking I’ve just pull most of these straight off The Current’s playlist. In truth, I first heard The Joy Formidable on the current, but the huge sound on this album really impressed me. The build-up in “Whirring” nothing short of epic. Remember when recordings had dynamics? This record’s got ‘em.

Hemisphere of Shadows - Danava

Here’s where I begin to diverge from Current-playlist bands. Straight up hard rock/metal. One of my favorite discoveries of the year.

Hisingen Blues - Graveyard

Rock. On.

Murder the Mountains - Red Fang

Red Fang (along w/ The Sword) renewed my interest in metal this year by proving that there are great metal bands out there that you can still see in clubs.

Tripper - Hella

Math rock. Zach Hill just blows me away on drums. I listened to this album obsessively for weeks.

S/T EP - BEAST!

It’s almost impossible to find information about this Stockholm, Sweden band. It took several Google searches to find the MySpace page above. I happened upon this EP as a “Related Artist” of another band I was listening to on Spotify. This EP rocks. Hard.

You can check out my Spotify playlist w/ tracks from each of the aforementioned albums.