Your Album of the Year 2012

[AnarchistFish]

It's not the end of the year yet, but by now very little new music is being released. Most online publications seem to be naming Frank Ocean or Kendrick Lamar for aoty, both of whose albums I enjoyed but found pretty overrated overall. Personally, I'm going for Death Grips - The Money Store, which has pretty much divided everyone who's listened to it into one group of people who love its energy and another group who think it's a pile of pseudo-hip hop shit.

Obviously then I'm in the former.


If we're counting EPs though, it's gotta go to dubstep king Burial's first EP of the year, Kindred. Fantastic piece of music on par with his genre classic, Untrue. Chaotic, dark, layered but ultimately strikes a balance with cohesion which makes it work as a single unit of music. Everything is perfectly executed, from it's chopped up and distant vocals to the twirling synths, trickling beats and crackles/cut outs that hint back to the human touch of vinyl.


So what is your favourite album of 2012?

 

[Able Seacat]

Mumford & Sons; Babel. I wouldn't have thought I would like something this 'folky' but I think this just sound great.

Spoiler

 

[TheRightToArmBears]

I have three...

Spoiler

Best Lamb of God album ever. It's like they got all of the best bits of their sound from each of their albums and shoved it into one. Most of all, Randy's voice sounds fucking amazing, it's pretty astoundingly awesome.

Spoiler

Probably a bit NSFW.

Best Every Time I Die album ever. Sounds a bit like New Junk Aesthetic did, but a bit heavier, and I think the songs are better.

Spoiler

Best Stone Sour album ever. Really love it, the first two albums aped Slipknot a little, and Audio Secrecy was a bit pop-rock in places. This is pretty much perfect, and the lyrics are probably the best lyrics Corey Taylor has ever written (which is saying a lot).

 

[AnarchistFish]

I have three...

Spoiler

Best Lamb of God album ever. It's like they got all of the best bits of their sound from each of their albums and shoved it into one. Most of all, Randy's voice sounds fucking amazing, it's pretty astoundingly awesome.

Spoiler

Probably a bit NSFW.

Best Every Time I Die album ever. Sounds a bit like New Junk Aesthetic did, but a bit heavier, and I think the songs are better.

gotta be honest, I didn't really like either of those albums

Haven't heard the new Stone Sour album, but their past work is ok.

 

[Toaster Hunter]

I'm going with Carolus Rex from Sabaton. Its a pretty ambitious project, a metal album about the Swedish empire from the Thirty Yeas War to the death of Charles XII.

 

[Mr.Mattress]

There are two for me:

Lonerism by Tame Impala:

and

Mary's Voice by The Music Tapes:

 

[Sarah Kerrigan]

The Afterman Ascension from Coheed & Cambria, and Neck of The Woods from Silversun pickups. Both are completely different but oh my god soooo goodddddd //dies

 

[Neuromancer]

Swans - The Seer [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seer_%28Swans_album%29]


The Swans started as a typical post-punk band. Their music was pretty darn good, but nothing especially great.

After a 16-year-long hiatus, they returned in 2010 with My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Father_Will_Guide_Me_up_a_Rope_to_the_Sky], taking a turn for experimental-avant garde-progressive rock. Back then, I was pleasantly surprised, and couldn't wait to listen to what they came up with next.

They delivered. The Seer is by far their best (and as many people might say, "weirdest") album. It's as if they took the basic formula of MFWGMuRttS and perfected it. I haven't found myself being completely immersed by a longer-than-10-minutes song in years. The whole album is a mix of beautiful sounds. However, it is truly hard to get for someone not used to this kind of music.

As such, I shall also mention another gem that came out this year, that being Coheed & Cambria's The Afterman: Ascension [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Afterman:_Ascension]


I did not particularly like Year of the Black Rainbow [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_of_the_Black_Rainbow]. After the very good No World for Tomorrow [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Apollo,_I%27m_Burning_Star_IV,_Volume_Two:_No_World_for_Tomorrow] and the grand From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Apollo,_I%27m_Burning_Star_IV,_Volume_One:_From_Fear_Through_the_Eyes_of_Madness], I was left kinda disappointed by the new direction the band was taking. As such, when I first heard of a new album coming out, I found myself worrying that it would be even worse.

Was I wrong. The Afterman: Ascension truly blew me away. The guitarwork is miles better than that of YotBR, the lyrics have regained the deepness they lacked for the majority of YotBR, and C&C seem to have found their groove back. I can't wait for The Afterman: Descension.

 

[VeryOddGamer]

Level 2 by Miracle of Sound. It totally counts.

 

[repeating integers]

Dammit, I haven't got all the 2012 albums I want yet! >:[

Well so far, it's definitely Faunts' "Left Here Alone". 4 songs, each of them astonishingly perfect. Cemented their reputation as my favourite band around right now.

Captcha: "empire state of mind".

 

[Humble Grapefruit]

Swans - The Seer [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seer_%28Swans_album%29]


The Swans started as a typical post-punk band. Their music was pretty darn good, but nothing especially great.

After a 16-year-long hiatus, they returned in 2010 with My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Father_Will_Guide_Me_up_a_Rope_to_the_Sky], taking a turn for experimental-avant garde-progressive rock. Back then, I was pleasantly surprised, and couldn't wait to listen to what they came up with next.

They delivered. The Seer is by far their best (and as many people might say, "weirdest") album. It's as if they took the basic formula of MFWGMuRttS and perfected it. I haven't found myself being completely immersed by a longer-than-10-minutes song in years. The whole album is a mix of beautiful sounds. However, it is truly hard to get for someone not used to this kind of music.

As such, I shall also mention another gem that came out this year, that being Coheed & Cambria's The Afterman: Ascension [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Afterman:_Ascension]


I did not particularly like Year of the Black Rainbow [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_of_the_Black_Rainbow]. After the very good No World for Tomorrow [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Apollo,_I%27m_Burning_Star_IV,_Volume_Two:_No_World_for_Tomorrow] and the grand From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Apollo,_I%27m_Burning_Star_IV,_Volume_One:_From_Fear_Through_the_Eyes_of_Madness], I was left kinda disappointed by the new direction the band was taking. As such, when I first heard of a new album coming out, I found myself worrying that it would be even worse.

Was I wrong. The Afterman: Ascension truly blew me away. The guitarwork is miles better than that of YotBR, the lyrics have regained the deepness they lacked for the majority of YotBR, and C&C seem to have found their groove back. I can't wait for The Afterman: Descension.

I was also a huge fan of The Afterman: Ascension. Very quality Coheed work. Although, my album of the year would have to be Night Visions by Imagine Dragons.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bn7eYibzmTs

P.S.-I'm terrible at embedding videos.

 

[AnarchistFish]

Swans - The Seer [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seer_%28Swans_album%29]


The Swans started as a typical post-punk band. Their music was pretty darn good, but nothing especially great.

After a 16-year-long hiatus, they returned in 2010 with My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Father_Will_Guide_Me_up_a_Rope_to_the_Sky], taking a turn for experimental-avant garde-progressive rock. Back then, I was pleasantly surprised, and couldn't wait to listen to what they came up with next.

They delivered. The Seer is by far their best (and as many people might say, "weirdest") album. It's as if they took the basic formula of MFWGMuRttS and perfected it. I haven't found myself being completely immersed by a longer-than-10-minutes song in years. The whole album is a mix of beautiful sounds. However, it is truly hard to get for someone not used to this kind of music.

I have a really low attention span for music but I've been slowly chipping away at this to get into it.

Dammit, I haven't got all the 2012 albums I want yet! >:[

Well so far, it's definitely Faunts' "Left Here Alone". 4 songs, each of them astonishingly perfect. Cemented their reputation as my favourite band around right now.

Captcha: "empire state of mind".

haha, coincidence, I'm actually listening to the title track right now. stunning song. unfortunately I found the rest of the EP a little boring :\

 

[shrekfan246]

Well, that's a difficult choice...

Disregarding individual songs, albums that I enjoy as a whole so far include:

Spoiler: Relatively long list.

Our Last Night - Age Of Ignorance
Siamese Fighting Fish - Breathe:See:Move
Showbread - Cancer
Wolves at the Gate - Captors
Foxy Shazam - The Church of Rock & Roll
Embrace The Tide - Distances
Belle Histoire - Dreamers
To Speak of Wolves - Find Your Worth, Come Home
Enter Shikari - A Flash Flood of Colour
Hands Like Houses - Ground Dweller
Austin Wintory - Journey OST
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Pamyu Pamyu Revolution
Between the Buried and Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence
From Atlantis - Pedestals
That's Outrageous! - Psycho
Dan Dankmeyer - Pure
Love, Robot - Rebuild|Rebirth
Art By Numbers - Reticence: The Musical
Through Arteries - This Is Just The Beginning...
Indirections - Through Transitions

For technical prowess, I'd have to give it to either Art By Numbers for Reticence: The Musical or Between The Buried And Me for The Parallax II: Future Sequence, with Dan Dankmeyer's Pure coming in as a runner-up.

For emotional response, Austin Wintory with the Journey soundtrack.

For most interesting and unique listenability, it would be a three-way tie between Siamese Fighting Fish's Breathe:See:Move, Showbread's Cancer, and Foxy Shazam's The Church of Rock & Roll.

 

[repeating integers]

haha, coincidence, I'm actually listening to the title track right now. stunning song. unfortunately I found the rest of the EP a little boring :\

...

(Just kidding, to each their own... but I could listen to that album on repeat for days)

 

[Trivun]

Hmmm, I bought Babel, but I haven't gotten around to listening to it yet. Not because I don't want to, I just haven't had the time or anything to listen to it all in one go. What I have heard from it is amazing though. However, my top album for the year can only be Metric's 'Synthetica':

Spoiler: Synthetica

 

[Boggelz]

Mumford & Sons; Babel. I wouldn't have thought I would like something this 'folky' but I think this just sound great.

Spoiler

Exactly what I came here to say, I love this album, still listening to today. Favourites on it are Babel and Lover of the Light

<youtube=nMJUbZrNnA8>

 

[revjor]

The new Grizzly Bear album Shields is fantastic.

 

[Total LOLige]

Feeder's Generation Freakshow hands down best album of the year.

Proof:

Spoiler