Category Archives: 2011

2011, 31 days of good, music

(31) Days of Good: Day 19

December 19, 2011 Concrete Opinions Leave a comment

I don’t really know much about brooklyn based, indie rockers We Are Augustines. I do know that I like what i’ve heard so far and I plan on giving them a proper listen. This track in particular is fantastic and it reminds me of one of my favorite bands (Stellastarr*), which I love.

♪ We Are Augustines – Chapel Song (from Rise Ye Sunken Ships)

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I’m not really sure why, but i’ve never really been a big fan of Conor Oberst and Bright Eyes. I honestly have no idea why, because based on my musical tastes, I really should be a fan. That all could be changing sooner than later. I completely overlooked Bright Eyes’ latest LP, The People’s Key, and didn’t give it the listen it deserves. However, I very recently heard (and fell in love with) “One For Me, One For You” and plan to reexamine my opinions on Mr. Oberst and Bright Eyes real soon.

♪ Bright Eyes – One For Me, One For You (from The People’s Key) [stream only]

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NY rockers, The Postelles, released one of my favorite debut LPs this year. It reminded a lot of the first time I heard The Strokes — fun, good old fashioned, rock’n’roll.

♪ The Postelles – White Night (from The Postelles)

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2011, 31 days of good, music

(31) Days of Good: Day 18

December 18, 2011 Concrete Opinions Leave a comment

About a week ago, Brendan did a day of hip hop (Day 11) and it got me thinking about my favorite hip hop tracks this past year. I’m actually a pretty big hip hop fan, just really picky when it comes to what hip hop artists and tracks I like. But honestly, if there’s solid production and beats, and I can skate/snowboard and/or dance to it, chances are I will like it. So without further ado, i’m pleased to present some of my favorite hip hop tracks of 2011.

I’ve never really considered myself a fan of The Roots. I don’t really have a reason not to be, other than I’ve never given them a proper listen. Now not much has changed, I still haven’t give them the listen they deserve, but I heard this track not too long ago and it was an instant favorite.

♪ The Roots – The OtherSide (feat. Bilal Oliver & Greg Porn) (from Undun) [stream only]

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2011 saw the release of Hoodie Allen’s third mixtape, Leap Year. Now I must say, I didn’t enjoy this one as much as 2010’s Pep Rally, but it was still a good outing and worth checking out if you’re a fan of alt-hip hop.

♪ Hoodie Allen – Dreams Up (from Leap Year)

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Philly hip hop duo Chiddy Bang released their third mixtape this year (and preview of their debut LP, Breakfast, due Feb. 2012). Similar to how I felt about Hoodie Allen’s Leap Year, I enjoyed Peanut Butter and Swelly, just not as much as previous releases. With that said, the entire mixtape is worth checking out as there are a handful of really good tracks.

♪ Chiddy Bang – Cameras (from Peanut Butter and Swelly)

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About a week, Lupe Fiasco dropped a brand new track — “American Terrorist III”. The track samples the Kavinsky & Lovefoxxx song “Nightcall”, which was featured on the soundtrack “Drive” and has turned into the remix/mashup sample of choice (I found Biggie and Childish Gambino remixes sampling it a mere 30 minutes ago). This track is rumored to be off of Fiasco’s forthcoming record, Food & Liquor Part 2. I hope that’s the case. Food & Liquor (part 1) is one of my favorite hip hop albums and this track is much more reminiscent of Fiasco’s earlier work (particularly “Kick, Push II” and “Daydreamin”…probably my favorite Fiasco tracks). I’m looking forward to what Lupe has in store for us.

♪ Lupe Fiasco – American Terrorist III (from Food & Liquor Part 2 ??)

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If you’ve followed this here blog in the slightest, you know that i’m a huge fan of actor/comedian/writer Donald Glover’s hip hop, alter ego Childish Gambino. After numerous mixtapes and EPs, Gambino released his debut LP this year. Camp ended up being #10 on my favorite albums of 2011, but I was also a big fan of the EP he dropped earlier this year, so i’m including one track from each. I don’t think you’ll mind much.

♪ Childish Gambino – Not Going Back (from EP)

♪ Childish Gambino – Heartbeat (from Camp)

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2011, 31 days of good, music

(31) Days of Good: Day 17

December 17, 2011 Bfay Leave a comment

The Weeknd was another one of this years most blogged about artists with the two mixtapes released in 2011. The first House of Balloons is one of my personal favorites. It is one of the few records that I can listen to start to finish.

♪ The Weeknd — High For This (from House of Ballons)

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Another artist who made a name for himself in the mixtape scene was the resident crooner for the Odd Future (OFWKTA) crew, Frank Ocean. Ocean exploded this last year, most notably with two features on Jay-Z and Kanye’s Watch the Throne record.

♪ Frank Ocean — Novacane (from Nostalgia)

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If those first two tracks weren’t lively enough for you, this should do the trick. It’s off the latest LP from the alt-hip hop duo, The Knux, and features vocals from some guy named Kid Cudi…maybe you’ve heard of him?

♪ The Knux – Run (feat. Kid Cudi) (from Eraser)

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2011, 31 days of good, music

(31) Days of Good: Day 16

December 16, 2011 Concrete Opinions Leave a comment

I started listening to NPR’s All Songs Considered quite religiously this last year and was subsequently introduced to a lot of good music. Here’re few of my favorite introductions this year.

“Little Scream is one person — her name is Laurel Sprengelmeyer. She’s originally from Iowa, now based in Montreal. She put out what I think is an absolutely captivating record. It’s got a lot of push and pull: It’s very powerful, very delicate, very dreamy and meditative, but also very poppy and catchy.” – Robin Hilton [source]

♪ Little Scream – Cannons (from The Golden Record)

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“[There was] a lot of electronica this year; I think the songs are getting better. The technology made the sounds really cool, and I think there was a lot more understanding of how to make these records more accessible.” – Bob Boilen [source]

♪ Apparat – Black Water (from The Devil’s Work)

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“The layers of the guitar are exactly what make this band hit all those sweet spots for me. There’s a beautiful wash that you get from the guitar, but then you also get lots of great melody. I went to see them at CMJ, and they were the first show that I couldn’t get into.” – Bob Boilen [source]

♪ Caveman – Old Friend (from CoCo Beware)

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“This is a record I particularly loved playing in the car. Each [song] takes a Sigur Rós song’s worth of build and compresses into a little bit more digestible three- and four-minute pop songs. This one starts slowly and just gets bigger and bigger and bigger.” – Stephen Thompson [source]

♪ Delay Trees – Gold (from Delay Trees)

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“It’s a look and a study, in song and in sound, of life in a small Scottish town. It doesn’t romanticize it — it paints sort of hard pictures of what life is like there and what people think.” – Bob Boilen [source] This last track is my favorite of the bunch — one of the most beautiful songs I heard all year.

♪ King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Bubble (from Diamond Mine) [stream only]

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2011, best of 2011, music

Top 10 Albums of 2011

December 15, 2011 Concrete Opinions 2 Comments

Here you go, my top 10 albums of 2011. The top 5 were actually really easy to settle on and went back and forth quite a bit with 6-10, which was somewhat of a surprise. But no going back now, my picks are official and floating around the world wide web for everyone to scrutinize. And speaking of scrutiny, I would love some feedback. Do you agree/disagree with my picks? What were your favorites this year? Heck, what were your least favorites? Leave a comment below and keep the conversation going.

[p.s. see how my final top 10 compared to my favorites back in July]

10. Childish Gambino//Camp