THE FORTY BEST RECORDS OF 2011:
Introduction.

I know, who the hell starts doing their ‘best of year’ round-ups in November? Some kind of freak, clearly. DECEMBER 1st is the start date. Everybody knows that.

Over the past few years though, it’s become increasingly clear that – sadly - I probably do more actual music writing in December than I do in total over the preceding 11 months, usually tripping over myself trying to get it all done in time, and bringing the whole thing into harbour* in garbled, first draft form around January 15th when nobody cares anymore, cos it’s next year already.

So to spread things out, ease my (ha) workload, hopefully encourage some better, more sensibly spaced content, I’m gonna start a bit early. I’d planned to start even earlier, but I got distracted. Inevitably I’ll hear some great stuff during the next few weeks that I’ll wish I’d been able to include, but… maybe I’ll do another post about those later, or something.

Some general notes before we get started:

If one thing has refined my new release record listening during 2011, it’s been the curse of the Disappointing Second Album. Seems that throughout this year, my flat has been echoing with the dread sound some of the brightest stars of the‘08/’09 Awesome Glut crashing against the rocks.** We all know that sinking feeling I’m sure – getting to side # 2 of a much-anticipated record, thinking “y’know, I don’t think I really even like this”.

I’ll name no names, but you get what I mean – if you notice any bands that I’ve championed over the past few years who are notable by their absence from the forthcoming list, well, there ya go. I’m sure you’d agree it would be dishonest of me to keep on delivering forced praise out of some misguided sense of loyalty when the music is just isn’t doing it for me, so I won’t.

It’s ok of course, it’s not a final judgement – second album can happen to anyone. Some bands turning in a lacklustre ‘ten-songs-we-had-to-write-quick’ effort, others just developing their music into a more elaborate, fully-realised style that I just don’t like as much as their scruffier early stuff because.. y’know, I’m fickle like that. In the case of the former, hopefully they can have a good think and really pull things together for the third go ‘round – we’ll still be listening. As to the latter, well, no hard feelings – it’s been good to know ya. I’ll still cherish your early stuff, and hope you have fun out there in the big wide world being Suede or Simple Minds or whatever.

Subsequent to that, you’ll probably notice that some of the reviews within my forthcoming top # 40 kinda read like bad reviews. This is a little odd, I’ll grant you, but the sad fact is that some of my favourite artists have brought out records this year which, whilst not without their qualities and points of interest, are somewhat underwhelming or confounding within said artist’s overall canon. So I still like ‘em enough for them to make the list, but a slip from, say, consistently being in my top # 5 to being placed about 30-something is something we need to examine, if ya see what I mean.

That sounds a bit cold, doesn’t it? It’s not a competition after all. “MUST TRY HARDER, Indie-Rock Band # 348234!” Maybe I’m getting too carried away with this numbered listing business? The numbers don’t really mean anything, after all – I only started it as a convenient framework within which to convey my relative enthusiasm for stuff, because listing things in alphabetical order seemed kinda lame.

Just because I’m not feelin’ something or other quite as much as I did two years ago, or don’t like the production on so-and-so’s record, that shouldn’t be taken as any objective critical judgement, lest you need reminding.

Anyway, negativity aside, the good news is that there’s been no shortage of records I’ve really liked this year – unexpected hits, new groups, old favourites making good – all the usual fab gear. Starting… soon? Next few days, honest.

*Gotta watch those seafaring metaphors, I just can’t let them be.
**SEE WHAT I MEAN?

Labels: announcements, best of 2011, the difficult second album