Portland's Music Guru Paul Levins Top 21 Albums of 2011

OK, another year, another list.  This was a strange year for music.  Dubstep and chillwave invaded the Top 40 pop of the neon, feathered youth, the 90s nostalgia wave washed up all kinds of angsty memories, and everything got re-issued with bonus tracks.  Here's what I was listening to most last year, 21 heavy rotations and a stack of repeat listens.

1. The Decemberists - The King is Dead/Long Live the King (Jan. 18/Nov. 1)
Taking a step back from the proggy experiments of their last two albums, the songs here are shorter, their stories more concise, and their hooks more up-front.  The whole thing is infused with healthy dose of Americana, even going so far as to have bluegrass-folkie Gillian Welch sing backup on seven tracks.  November's follow-up EP is more of the same; both albums are fantastic.  Here's one from each: (http://youtu.be/xJpfK7l404I)(http://youtu.be/1tBHuczQecE)

2. Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean (Jan. 25)
This is supposed to be Sam Beam's "70s AM radio" album, and, as such, it's easily his most accessible.  The songs are catchy and beautiful, with more complex arrangements and fleshed-out production than anything he's done so far. (http://youtu.be/tUJl4dpIQgA)

3. Cut Copy - Zonoscope (Feb. 8)
I love this album, love it.  It's the danciest of the albums on this list, a perfect combination of New Order and Baltimora. (http://youtu.be/r2xovJyBo-0)

4. Adele - 21 (Feb. 22)
This was the biggest-selling album of the year, and it absolutely deserves to top that list.  It's a powerful, occasionally heartbreaking instant classic from a real virtuoso singer.  I can't imagine any of you missed "Rolling in the Deep" so check out the sweeping "Set Fire to the Rain"(http://youtu.be/dCLS_ztGOBk) and the arresting "Someone Like You"(http://youtu.be/hLQl3WQQoQ0)

5. Radiohead - The King of Limbs (Mar. 29)
This album was actually quite a let-down for me, especially following the fantastic In Rainbows.  It's just too sedate and doesn't present much to grab onto.  But I listened to it over and over throughout the year waiting for it to click (a concession I make for very few artists outside of Radiohead), and finally, somewhere around October, it did.  It's still not my favorite album of theirs, but it's far from without merit.  Here's the skittering "Morning Mister Magpie" (http://youtu.be/fa67ZAA2ZIc) and the soothing Give Up the Ghost (http://youtu.be/Akdxrqt9r5Y).

6. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Belong (Mar. 29)
This one, on the other hand, I dug right from the first spin.  It's a blurry mash of The Cure, My Bloody Valentine, and The Smashing Pumpkins that leaves me smiling and humming every time, even as I'm gazing down at my shoes. (http://youtu.be/VRZ9FRsnYyQ)

7. Jason Isbell - Here We Rest (Apr. 12)
Jason Isbell's new album offers up another handful of songs steeped in that distinctive Muscle Shoals not-quite-country Southern songwriting.  I believe Isbell to be my generation's greatest songwriter, and this new collection does nothing to dispel that notion.  I've seen the man play at least half a dozen times, so I can also say with some certainty that he's one of greatest unsung guitar players around as well. (http://youtu.be/zUedNbfQFSs)(http://youtu.be/x9iYAJ-wVKQ)

8. Paul Simon - So Beautiful or So What (Apr. 12)
This mid-April day brought an album from another "best of his generation" songwriter, and it's another fantastic collection, his best in years in my opinion.  The arrangements are varied and fun, and the lyrics are full of the spiritual meditation tempered with wry humor that fans of Simon have come to expect. (http://youtu.be/IJP9r_A9t_U)

9. tUnE-yArDs - W H O K I L L (Apr. 19)
Playing this album for the first time was the most exciting listen I had last year.  Frontwoman Merrill Garbus has created something unique to my ears and I am extremely grateful to her for that.  It's not a sound I can pin down or describe effectively; suffice it to say that she uses a looping machine and lots of percussion (and, here, a few backup players) to augment that strange powerhouse of a voice, creating something wonderful. (http://youtu.be/YQ1LI-NTa2s)(http://youtu.be/PGSMJAEx5o4)

10. Holy Ghost - Holy Ghost (Apr. 26)
Hey, check it out!  It's the return of 80s club music!  Fun live show too! (http://youtu.be/XcMK7nGq6oQ)

11. Foster the People - Torches (May 23)
This may as well serve as the distillation of the kind of indie music currently being embraced by the zeitgeist.  Sing about whatever you want, but give us a beat and a chorus to which we can sing along.  You might be sick of hearing "Pumped Up Kicks" at this point, but I'm just thrilled that this is the stuff that's getting overplayed nowadays (Remember what we were being subjected to 10 years ago?).  Luckily for the band, the rest of the album holds up just as well as the singles.  They may just have a future. (http://youtu.be/04TXoFI6CSM)

12. My Morning Jacket - Circuital (May 31)
It dawned on me around the time this came out that nearly all of my favorite artists had releases in 2011.  That's pretty great! So is this album; it's less experimental that their previous, Evil Urges, but no less exciting for it.  Check out the sprawling title track (http://youtu.be/ohE3Dm9H0_g) and the lovely "Slow, Slow Tune" (http://youtu.be/bFBsj-JVO2I)

13. Dawes - Nothing Is Wrong (Jun. 7)
I fell for Dawes in a big way this year, continually revisiting this album and last year's The Band-aping debut North Hills in equal measure.  The melodies and harmonies therein are sublime, but it's the emotionally affecting lyrics more than anything that dug their hooks into me.  The ninth track, "Million Dollar Bill," is probably the saddest love song I've ever heard. (http://youtu.be/Hf3co_Rz2hk)  And here's one from last year's album, in case you missed it. (http://youtu.be/FhcqavNAhfc)

14. Washed Out - Within and Without (Jun. 12)
Review here: (http://scotttuckermodernart.blogspot.com/2011/09/new-music-editor-paul-levins-covers.html)

15. Beyonce - 4 (Jun. 28)
Review here: (http://scotttuckermodernart.blogspot.com/2011/10/beyonce-vs-jay-z-kanye-by-blow-up-blog.html)

16. The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient (Aug. 16)
Hazy, psychedelic indie Americana shoegaze album.  Yeah, I think that just about covers it.  I know it came out at the end of the summer, but this is a terrific winter album. (http://youtu.be/LpuxG9OZXpE)(http://youtu.be/rMToQg0vSds)

17. Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost (Sep. 13)
This was one of the more popular 90s throwback albums released last year, and it's easy to see why.  The songs are accessible and varied.  It's a generally laid-back affair, but there are enough excursions into loud guitar freakout territory to stave off drowsiness.  There's also a healthy dose of early 60s songwriting, making the album something of a high-concept throwback, like The Beatles or Pink Floyd making indie rock music in the mid-90s. (http://youtu.be/ukWhGXCBM6Y)(http://youtu.be/LBYBNyMNySU)

18. Wilco - The Whole Love (Sep. 23)
Any new Wilco release is cause for a celebration, especially one like this, which finds the band once again in Yankee Hotel Foxtrot territory, experimenting with all the musical tools at their disposal and pulling out one classic tune after another. (http://youtu.be/yWP4bI37mCE)(http://youtu.be/wTqEB0MyGdY)

19. Puscifer - The Conditions of My Parole (Oct. 18)
This group seems to be a clearing house for all the songs left in Maynard James Keenan's head after all the Tool and A Perfect Circle songs have been swept out.  It's certainly the most musically varied and fun of his three groups, with pseudo-folk (http://youtu.be/kodDAZE8oew), heady synth-pop (http://youtu.be/Q7VV4AnbRVk), and whatever this is (http://youtu.be/h6F4I15kfvo) all occupying the same album.

20. Childish Gambino - Camp (Nov. 15)
Actor/writer/comedian Donald Glover is also a damn fine rapper!  After releasing several mixtapes and an EP for free, he's finally decided he's ready to start asking for our money.  The good news is he's worth it.  While his previous efforts mostly aimed for laughs (albeit backed by serious skills), this album see's Glover tackling more serious topics while still exercising his sharp sense of humor.  All the music behind the rhymes is killer too!  For my money, it's the best hip-hop album of the year. (http://youtu.be/kZQFgXpG6LM)

21. The Black Keys - El Camino (Dec. 6)
The first time I heard this, it made me mad.  It's just too good; how is anyone supposed to follow this?  The songs on this album have more of a straight-forward rock sound than any of the previous blues-heavy releases from these guys, and it's just as good as anything that's come before.  Behold! (http://youtu.be/IttLxthqM7U)(http://youtu.be/0_JvY9xeVNM)

Runner-Up: The Steeldrivers
This is the group that I actually listened to more than any other in 2011.  They have two albums, 2008's self-titled debut and 2010's Reckless, both of which I heard for the first time last spring and both of which I listened to on repeat for the whole rest of the year.  These guys make bluegrass music, something I'm not usually drawn to, but the songs are excellent, singer Chris Stapleton's voice is awe-inducingly perfect for the style, and the playing is incredibly tight.  Here's one from each album, respectively, the Adele-covered "If It Hadn't Been For Love" (http://youtu.be/K4ehbMmPPaw) and "The Price" (http://youtu.be/xZrKTz8iUwU)

Other Albums I Really Dug Last Year
Amos Lee - Mission Bell
Brett Dennen - Loverboy
Cage the Elephant - Thank You Happy Birthday
Cold Cave - Cherish the Light Years
Foo Fighters - Wasting Light
Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math
The Streets - Computers and Blues (Supposedly, this is to be the last album from The Streets; also the accompanying online mixtape Cyberspace and Reds is worth tracking down)
TV on the Radio - Nine Types of Light
Bad Meets Evil - Hell: The Sequel (Once again, Eminem proves that he's not to be counted out.)
Big K.R.I.T. - Return of 4eva (Free download: http://hulkshare.com/ws8oczkeecgg)
Das Racist - Relax (This one you have to buy, but you can get their two previous mixtapes for free here: http://dasracist.net/music/)
Death Cab for Cutie - Codes and Keys
M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming (An appropriate title as this is my vote for the dreamiest album of the year.)
Middle Brother - Middle Brother (a supergroup of the frontmen from Dawes, Deer Tick, and Delta Spirit)
Mutemath - Odd Soul
Ryan Adams - Ashes and Fire
The Rapture - In the Grace of Your Love
Tom Waits - Bad as Me
Bright Eyes - The People's Key
Grouplove - Never Trust a Happy Song (From NPR: "Wild, thrilling, and above all joyful noise" Yup.)
Imelda May - Mayhem
Sissy Mena - Record Machine (http://music.sissymena.com/album/record-machine)
Dave Alvin - Eleven Eleven
Fucked Up - David Comes to Life (SCREAMING OUT THEIR CONCEPT!)
Justice - Audio, Video, Disco
Sleeper Agent - Celebrasion
Ha Ha Tonka - Death of a Decade
Cosmo Jarvis - Is the World Strange or Am I Strange?
Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra (Free Download: http://www.datpiff.com/Frank-Ocean-Nostalgia-Ultra-mixtape.210282.html)

I have compiled a Spotify playlist with a couple of tracks from nearly every album on this list.  I think the only way you can access the whole thing (93 tracks!) is to search for my name on Spotify.  Also, just like last year, many of these albums can be downloaded for $5 from Amazon through the end of the month.  And, as always, recommendations are appreciated.