Best Albums of 2012: A Weekend Review Special Edition

By Chris Moore:

 

The TOP TWENTY ALBUMS of 2012

 

I ask myself year to year why I continue to make “best music of the year” lists.  The only answer that I consistently return with is that watching the Grammys and reading Rolling Stone, I observe that the best music being made each year is not properly represented on the screen and in the pages of the mainstream.  Thus, this is my small gesture of thanks to those who, year in and year out, continue to entertain me as a listener, inspire me as a singer/songwriter, and enrich my experience as a human being.  Below, you’ll find my picks for the top twenty albums of 2012.  If you’ve missed any, I hope you’ll consider checking them out.  As always, I’d love to hear your feedback or additions you would make to this list, so please consider adding to the conversation below.  After all, what greater joy is there than engaging in debate and sharing in the admiration of our favorite music?   

 

1)  That’s Why God Made the Radio – The Beach Boys

2)  The Sound of the Life of the Mind – Ben Folds Five

3)  Tempest – Bob Dylan

4)  Magic Hour – Scissor Sisters

5)  Moms – Menomena

6)  The Idler Wheel… – Fiona Apple

7)  Glad All Over – The Wallflowers

8)  Safe Travels – Jukebox the Ghost

9)  Those Around Us – Jim Fusco

10) Go Fly A Kite – Ben Kweller

 

11) Harakiri – Serj Tankian

12) Ten Stories – mewithoutYou

13) King Animal – Soundgarden

14) Port of Morrow – The Shins

15) Blunderbuss – Jack White

16) Rize of the Fenix – Tenacious D

17) Rooms Filled With Light – Fanfarlo

18) II – Bad Books

19) The Next Logical Progression – Gift of Gab

20) Sounds from Nowheresville – The Ting Tings

 

Honorable Mention:

Old Ideas – Leonard Cohen

Clear Heart Full Eyes – Craig Finn

The Circle in the Square – Flobots

thefearofmissingout – thenewno2

Best Debuts of 2012: A Weekend Review Special Edition

By Chris Moore:

The BEST DEBUTS of 2012

 

Both of my favorite debuts this year weren’t true debuts, but rather they were solo debuts by artists well-established as the front men of bands: Jack White of the recently defunct White Stripes and Craig Finn of the Hold Steady, which is currently on hiatus.  Neither topped my year-end best albums list, but both were exciting nonetheless and suggest much promise for future solo efforts. 

 

Blunderbuss – Jack White

Clear Heart Full Eyes – Craig Finn

The Best Debuts of 2010

By Chris Moore:

Hello and welcome to yet another list in this Weekend Review special end-of-year series.  Today, the focus is on the top three debuts of the year.

Regarding the three newly formed bands recognized below, the decision of how best to order them was somewhat difficult.  However, in the end, it is Fistful of Mercy — comprised of Dhani Harrison (yes, George’s son), Ben Harper, and Joseph Arthur — that receives the honor of best debut.  Their album is strikingly well-defined for a first effort, the band quickly finding their collective voice amidst lush harmonies and subdued instrumentation.  One can only hope that there will be a follow-up album in the not-so-distant future.

Broken Bells is perhaps one of the most fascinating collaborations of recent years.  Brian Burton (aka Danger Mouse) and James Mercer (of the Shins) aren’t the most likely couple, but the combination of Burton’s hip hop/electronica background and Mercer’s indie pop/rock mentalities simply work.  The result — the self-titled Broken Bells — is a pensive yet poppy trip.

The third entry on this list is from a band fronted by Kevin Devine and supported by members of the Manchester Orchestra.  Bad Books is a dynamic release that runs the gamut from fully produced indie rock to stripped down solo acoustic performances.  The vocals are likewise well-arranged: simple and raw at times, full and multi-layered at others.

The honorable mention is Mumford & Sons’s Sigh No More, a band with an impressively interesting acoustic sound, and, although I find the album’s sound to be somewhat predictable after the first few tracks, there are strong songs and a strong overall sound that has been developed for this record.

And so, with this brief list, I leave you for the day, and I officially invite you back tomorrow for another!

The BEST DEBUTS of 2010

1)  As I Call You Down – Fistful of Mercy

2)  Broken Bells – Broken Bells

3)  Bad Books – Bad Books

Honorable MentionSigh No More – Mumford & Sons