James Vest writesCHIRP Radio Best of 2011 (James Vest)

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members’ top albums of 2011. The next list is from James Vest.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members’ picks.)

1. Alexander – Alexander (Community Music)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   Alexander Ebert created an album so diverse, so uniquely ambitious, it was instantly written off as unfocused. Maybe CHIRP heard a bit of itself when it put Alexander into rotation–an album with a Kevin Ayers sensibility, unbound by genre, an explorer and a mirror of it’s own vision and influences. Armed with a Jeff Buckley vocal range, Ebert puts together an album bursting with musical curiosities waiting to be appreciated.
   
   Island Song: “Truth”
2. Timber Timbre – Creep On Creepin’ On (Arts & Crafts)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   If a young Elvis could have somehow been body swapped with Leonard Cohen, Elvis presumably would have ditched Rockabilly for Rhythm and Blues. Because such a situation isn’t possible, there’s Timber Timbre to put to rest what that scenario would have sounded like. The album is a haunted space–expansive, mysterious, and eerily exciting, making you want to cling to something you love.
   
   Island Song: “Woman”
3. Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges (Constellation)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   If I told you a bass saxophonist recorded an album with only one instrument, recording live in one take, you might say that sounds pretty weird. If that sounds weird, you need to hear this album. “I’ve never heard anything like it” is just the beginning of this dark, dynamic, blast of sound that is an experience to behold from being to end. Even with vocal guests, the sounds coming from Stetson’s sax draws the focus. A truly original work of art-amazing what can be expressed by one instrument.
   
   Island Song: “Judges”
4. Charles Bradley – No Time for Dreaming (Daptone)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   Charles Bradley isn’t “new soul trying to sound like old soul,” this screaming eagle is the very definition of old soul. From 40 years of hard knocks, Charles Bradley emerged singing songs of heartache and love of a man glad to be alive. Backed up by the equally brilliant Menahan Street Band, this album is as close as we can get to that timeless soul music of the ‘60s.
   
   Island Song: “Lovin’ You, Baby”
5. Maker & Joe Beats – Falcon By Design (Fieldwerk)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   Maker & Joe Beats have their own rich histories as Hip Hop producers, so playing back to back on this split release, they have a beat building foundation that doesn’t need an MC to stand tall. The album is a sightseeing tour from beginning to end, of urban strength and hustling feet, tightly flowing from riding the train to working out–a perfect soundtrack for Chicago.
   
   Island Song: “Blunted Lapdance”
6. Ty Segall – Goodbye Bread (Drag City)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   Goodbye Bread sounds like something John Lennon could have recorded if he had lead The Kingsmen instead of the Beatles. Segall plays all the instruments on this garage romp, that packs as much toe-tapping, pop sensibility as it does fuzzy guitars, that when mixed together will fill your winter with warm, psychedelic sunshine.
   
   Island Song: “You Make The Sun Fry”
7. Ikebe Shakedown – Ikebe Shakedown (Ubiquity)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   Both hailing from Brooklyn, it’s hard not to compare Ikebe Shakedown to the venerable Budos Band. Yet both house different ingredients into their Afrobeat-Soul kitchens. Ikebe Shakedown adds ‘70‘s cinematic soul and disco elements to a lively collection rhythm and horns that will have your body shaking long before the credits role.
   
   Island Song: “Tujunga”
8. tUnE-yArDs – W H O K I L L (4AD)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   As inventive as any album this year, Merrill Gerbus’ sound is a junkyard of Afro-Caribbean, R&B, Funk, and Modern Rock influences, though her voice maybe her music’s most unique quality. After her first album, BiRd-BrAiNs, found an audience despite being recorded on a digital voice recorder, Gerbus’ took advantage of her first studio-recorded release that turns tunes to treasure.
   
   Island Song: “Bizness”
9. Various Artists – Eccentric Soul: Nickel and Penny Labels (Numero Group)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   In the ‘60‘s and ‘70s, Chicago’s #1 Dusties DJ Richard Pegue helmed the Nickel and Penny labels writing, arranging and producing some of Chicago’s most beautiful soul records. Numero Group spent five years digging up and restoring these gems to soul museum quality, despite the death of Pergue during the process. From Bar-Kay gospel-funk instrumentals, to Motown Do-Wop clap-a-longs, to Funkadelic-Sly-Stone-love-fests, this is Numero at their best.
   
   Island Song: “Shadows”
10. The Beach Boys – The SMiLE Sessions (Capitol)
    BUY: Insound / iTunes
    The history of 1967‘s SMiLE is as big as the music itself: the legendary, heartbreaking backstory and the label of “most famous unreleased album of all time.” Add in bootlegs and individual song releases over the years and the 2004 resurrection and complete re-recording by Brian Wilson, and it would seem impossible for the actual album to offer anything new. Yet SMiLE’s ability to continue to surprise me every time I hear it, a timeless testament to the Brian Wilson’s unbelievable range and artistic depth, cut short. SMiLE was so far ahead of it’s time, it’s a fitting discovery in any century.
    
    Island Song: “Vega-Tables”

Patrick Seymour - Dizzy Spells writesCHIRP Radio Best of 2011 (Patrick Seymour)

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members’ top albums of 2011. The next list (in no particular order) is from Patrick Seymour.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members’ picks.)

• Iceage – New Brigade (Dias/What’s Your Rupture?)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Yes yes yes! This quartet from Copenhagen bang out 12 quick tunes a la Wire’s Pink Flag or early Joy Division. The hooks and melodies are there, but they are secondary to frantic guitar playing and full throttle drumming. An impressive debut from this young group, I’m stoked to see what’s next.
• Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges (Constellation)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Just one guy, a saxophone and a whole bunch of microphones. Stetson is able to fill up a whole lot of sonic room just with his saxophone (Laurie Anderson and Shara Worden lend some vocals) and without any overdubs. The multiple microphones capture percussive noises, ambient sounds, Stetson’s breathing and other miscellany providing additional textures. Making an albums worth of engaging solo saxophone pieces is a tough feat, but Colin Stetson certainly has on “Judges.”
• Psychic Paramount – II (No Quarter)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  This is some time travel music. Put on some headphones and hop on your bike (please bike responsibly), press play on this album and your normal 25 minute commute will now take about 10. This trio play bombastic instrumental music that doesn’t let up. One minute it is wandering and hazy then the drummer (total beast) steps on the gas and it is five blissful minutes of dive bombing guitars and helicopter bass playing. This is the music I wanted Acid Mothers Temple to play before I had heard Psychic Paramount.
• Starlicker – Double Demon (Delmark)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Local jazz trio Starlicker is made up of superstars Rob Mazurek on cornet, Jason Adasiewicz on vibes, and John Herndon playing drums. Everyone in the band is involved in about 10 other groups which makes it a wonder that this album got recorded in the first place. Adasiewicz is a remarkable talent providing an array of colors and tones while Mazurek steps in and out of the picture, leading when it is called for and holding off to let the other two shine.
• PJ Harvey – Let England Shake (Vagrant)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  PJ Harvey albums are exciting because each one is different from the last, so you are not quite sure what you are going to get. All the more impressive is the fact that she has continued to put out great music with each album and “Let England Shake” sits among her best work. The album which focuses on the conflicts of her homeland and the images she conjures are often grisly. The music compliments the lyrical content and prevents this from being a grim album, resulting in what can best be described as Harvey’s take on folk music.
• Hauschka – Salon des Amateurs (Fat Cat)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  I tuned into Volker Bertelmann aka Hauschka’s music last year for his fantastic “Foreign Landscapes” for which he paired his prepared piano with a 12 piece woodwind ensemble. On “Salon des Amateurs” Bertelmann chose a different route, pairing his piano playing with several percussionists (members of Mum and Calexico), strings, and electronic noises. Post-classical never sounded so catchy. Sounds bubble along and the music comes up just short of full on dance tunes.
• Charles Bradley – No Time for Dreaming (Daptone)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Making his debut at the ripe young age of 62 Charles Bradley has recorded a monster of an album. Backed by one of the best contemporary studio bands, the Menahan Street Band, “No Time for Dreaming” delivers 12 sharp funk/soul tracks. Akin to James Brown, Lee Fields, or the local group JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound, this is prime material for your soul dance party nights.
• Radiohead – The King of Limbs (Tiker Tape Ltd.)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  There is so much baggage and hype with Radiohead that I just leave them alone. I was drawn in after hearing a couple of tracks on “King of Limbs” and had to question my previous stance on the band. They recorded a concise album that moves even further away from the guitar albums of the 90s/early 2000s and into the realm of brooding electronic sounds and studio constructed music.
• Shawn Lee & The Ping Pong Orchestra – World of Funk (Ubiquity)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  This is one of those albums that is not an earth shattering great record, but it is really solid and a hell of a lot of fun to listen to. Shawn Lee, for this album takes a slew of instruments found commonly in the music of other cultures around the world and used them to record a globe trotting funk album. You are treated to sneaky grooves, Korean scatting, exotic sounds, and much more.
• Arrington de Dionyso’s Malaikat Dan Singa – Suara Naga (K)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  This gets my great weird album of the year award. Arrington de Dionyoso fronted the late blooming Beefheart inspired band Old Time Relijun before he started his Malaikat Dan Singa group, which further mines the territory of his old band. He sings in Indonesian over some heavy post-punk weirdness. The album title translates to dragon’s voice which gives you a clue to Dionyoso’s singing style. He also plays the bass saxophone which he wields with abandon. This record is in a league of its own, give it a shot.
• It has also been a great year for reissues. Here are my top 5…
  Skip James – Today! (Vanguard)
  Raincoats – Odyshape (We Three)
  El Rego – El Rego (Daptone)
  Vagrants – I Can’t Make a Friend (Light In The Attic)
  Beach Boys – Smile (Capitol)

Jonny writesCHIRP Radio Best of 2011 (Jon Schechinger)

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members’ top albums of 2011. The next list is from Jon Schechinger.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members’ picks.)

(Albums listed chronologically by release date)

• Smith Westerns – Dye It Blonde (Fat Possum)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  I still want to know where they learned those glam rock ethics. I could only hope for more harmonies, a few new stompboxes, and please keep those amazing hooks. Time is on their side.

   

  
  Songs: “Still New” and “Smile”

• PJ Harvey – Let England Shake (Vagrant)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  This record still haunts me, so I won’t give it up. I was never into PJ until now. Better late than never.

   

  
  Songs: “The Last Living Rose” and “Hanging In The Wire”

• La Sera – La Sera (Hardly Art)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  How can we control fate so the next album blows us away? Another great debut LP. Very vinyl worthy.

   

  
  Songs: “Never Come Around” and “Devils Hearts Grow Gold”

• The Feelies – Here Before (Bar None)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  I cannot rave too much about this record without dissing a fair to significant amount of music released in the last five years. Boring or old? no, just good.

   

  
  Songs: “When You Know” and “Time Is Right”

• Cults – Cults (In the Name of)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  

   

  
  Songs: “Walk at Night” and “You Know What I Mean”
  
  
  
  
   

  and…
  
  
   

  The Poison Control Center – Stranger Ballet (Afternoon)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  
  
  Songs: “Porcelain Brain” and “Reoccurring Kind”
  
  
  
   

  Two of the most accessibly great pop records of the year released on the same day.

• Wild Flag – Wild Flag (Merge)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  As good as Sleater-Kinney? Yes.

   

  
  Songs: “Short Version” and “Electric Band”

• Veronica Falls – Veronica Falls (Slumberland)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Formulaic and catchy? No problem. Married types are unattainable. It’s okay.

   

  
  Songs: “Beachy Head” and “Veronica Falls”

• Dum Dum Girls – Only in Dreams (Sub Pop)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Ambition and song craft kick in the head. This is not selling out, but selling up. Shockingly grower of an album.

   

  
  Songs: “Heartbeat (Take It Away)” and “In My Head”

• Class Actress – Rapprocher (Carpark)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  A record that makes a case for the eighties retro sound and shockingly delivers.

   

  
  Songs: “Keep You” and “Weekend”

• Escort – Escort (Escort)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  Finally! They released an album!

   

  
  Songs: “Makeover” and “All That She Is”

Reissue:

• The Beach Boys – Smile (Capitol)
  BUY: Insound / iTunes
  

Honorable Mentions:

Belong, Blood Pressures, Sucre du Sauvage, Dirty Beaches, Strange Mercy, Mannequin Men. Where Are You?: Rage Against The Machine, Queens of the Stone Age, NOFX, Weezer, The Cure, The Smiths, XTC.

Clarence Ewing: The Million Year Trip writesCHIRP Radio Best of 2011 (Clarence Ewing)

Throughout December CHIRP Radio presents its members' top albums of 2011. The next list is from Assistant Online Media Director Clarence Ewing.

(Click here to get the complete list of CHIRP Radio members' picks.)

1. tUnE-yArDs – W H O K I L L (4AD)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   I’m not the kind of person who stands on street corners loudly exclaiming “Holy S#%!” with my headphones on, yet that's just what I did when I first gave this album a listen while waiting for a bus. Merrill Garbus' melodic gymnastics and fiercely inventive technique (backed by Nate Brenner's sweet bass lines) are just brilliant.
2. Battles – Gloss Drop (Warp)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   They combine the blunt force of a punk band with the dexterity and precision of a chamber orchestra, genre-hopping all over the place to suit their needs. It's the most focused and confident experimental music or the most advanced pop music I've ever heard. Either way, it's fantastic.
3. White Hills – H-p1 (Thrill Jockey)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   A hot vortex of noise-rock that brings to mind jet engines, the drone of a billion computer servers, sports stadium entrance music, the static-y aftermath of bomb explosions, and political rallies, all mashed together and powered by anger and fear. No other album I've heard in the last decade so completely nails what the 21st century sounds like.
4. Panda Bear – Tomboy (Paw Tracks)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   I was prepared to be underwhelmed by this album when it was first released. The knock on Noah Lennox's follow up to his landmark album Person Pitch was that it’s “more of the same.” But sometimes that's a good thing, especially when it comes from a gifted musician who continues to sharpen his electro-ambient-avant-pop craft.
5. Julianna Barwick – The Magic Place (Asthmatic Kitty)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   If forests could sing, I suspect this is what we would hear.
6. Daedelus – Bespoke (Ninja Tune)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   A remarkable sampler of the bleeding edge of dance and electronic music from a group of today's brightest talents (including Milosh, Inara George, Baths, and Young Dad) whose common denominator is Alfred Darlington, an accomplished musician in his own right and one of those guys who knows everyone in the scene.
7. Blueprint – Adventures in Counter-Culture (Rhymesayers)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   A terrific offering from a gifted rapper who draws from many musical sources to express himself (everything from gangsta beats to club-ready dance tracks to New Wave retro to Coldplay-ish anthemic mainstream pop), tied together by an undercurrent of melancholy and world-weariness. It's not just a great musical journey but a vivid picture of an individual.
8. The Cool Kids – When Fish Ride Bicycles (Green Label Sound)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   When it comes to rap, artists need to either move forward into new territory, or go back to what made it so great to begin with. This album from Antoine "Sir Michael Rocks" Reed (Matteson, Illinois) and Evan "Chuck Inglish" Ingersoll (Mount Clemens, Michigan) takes the latter path, using stripped-down beats and vocal dexterity to breathe new life into an increasingly stale pop genre.
9. The Fleshtones – Brooklyn Sound Solution (Yep Roc)
   BUY: Insound / iTunes
   Remember a time when you could not play Rock unless you knew how to play Blues? The Fleshtones remember, and this legendary New York outfit serves up meat-and-potatoes glam-garage jams that pack more punch than most of today’s distortion-and-effects-laden alt-rock. And they make it sound effortless (after all, they've been doing it since 1976).
10. The Eternals – Approaching the Energy Field (Addenda / Submarine)
    BUY: Insound / iTunes
    The Eternals sound like what would happen if a funk band and an avant-garde jazz ensemble had a jam session one sunny afternoon in the ‘70s. Channeling the spirit of Sun Ra and Sly and the Family Stone, with political comment and poetry added for good measure, this is the modern example of how to do Fusion.

• And Some Outstanding Singles from 2011...
  "Beat and the Pulse" by Austra
  "Fast Challenges" by Chad Valley
  "Mop It Up" by Gauntlet Hair
  "As young As Yesterday" by Korallreven
  "Natural Causes" by Nite Jewel
  "Amor Fati" by Washed Out