[Nac Faves] My Favorite Music of 2012
Posted on December 31, 2012 at 7:06 pm | 2 Comments
At this very moment I’m in Cincinnati, of all places, getting ready to welcome in 2013 by catching the (supposedly) final show of The Afghan Whigs reunion tour/victory lap, here in their hometown, with the amazing Scrawl opening up. And yes, I fully expect Scrawl to play “11:59 (It’s January)“. I mean, how could they not? One guarantee is Marcy Mays singing her awe-inspiring guest vocal on the Whig’s “My Curse”. Can’t imagine a more perfect way to kick-off what can only be a much-improved year. Right? Right.
Remember last year when I gratefully stated how above-average my 2011 was? Well, 2012 sure did even up the scales. Good riddance to this particular stretch of 365 days, I say. Sure, there were a few standout personal moments, a bunch of great shows, and a fair amount of very good music released. But overall? A big ball o’ blah.
To help put this year in the rearview, here’s my annual alphabetical list of my favorite full-length albums released in 2012, along with whatever artist/label-approved audio I could share. Listen up, click through, and check out anything you missed. This is the stuff that helped get me through.
Time permitting, I’ll be doing a quick follow-up post with a ZIP file of all the MP3s below, maybe some commentary on my faves, and a quick list of EPs and reissues. But right now, I’m heading over to Bogarts. Bring on a brand new year…
My favorite full-length albums of 2012…
Allo Darlin’ – “Europe”
[on Slumberland]
stream full “Europe” LP via Soundcloud
Arc In Round – “Arc In Round” (self-titled debut)
[on La Société Expéditionnaire]
[MP3] Arc In Round – “Hallowed“
stream more songs at Bandcamp
Beachwood Sparks – “The Tarnished Gold”
[on Sub Pop]
[MP3] Beachwood Sparks – “Sparks Fly Again“
Chris Brokaw – “Gambler’s Ecstacy”
[on 12XU]
[MP3] Chris Brokaw – “Danny Borracho“
stream another track at Soundcloud
DIIV – “Oshin”
[on Captured Tracks]
[MP3] DIIV – “Sometime“
Rebecca Gates & the Consortium – “The Float”
[on Parcematone]
Stream two songs at Soundcloud
Hallelujah the Hills – “No One Knows What Happens Next”
[on Discrete Pageantry Records]
[MP3] Hallelujah the Hills – “Get Me In A Room“
stream full LP at Bandcamp
Neil Halstead – “Palindrome Hunches”
[on Brushfire Records]
stream the full LP at Soundcloud
download a free tour EP at Noisetrade
The Karl Hendricks Trio – “The Adult Section”
[on Comedy Minus One]
[MP3] The Karl Hendricks Trio – “The Men’s Room At The Airport“
The James Rocket – “Launch”
[via Bandcamp]
[MP3] The James Rocket – “Paper Valentines
stream the entire LP at Bandcamp
Metz – “Metz” (self-titled debut)
[on Sub Pop]
[MP3] Metz – “Wet Blanket
stream earlier tracks at Bandcamp, including a Sparklehorse cover
Bob Mould – “Silver Age”
[on Merge Records]
stream the entire LP at Merge
Nada Surf – “The Stars Are Indifferent To Astrology”
[on Barsuk Records]
[MP3] Nada Surf – “When I Was Young“
stream more Nada Surf songs at Soundcloud
AC Newman – “Shut Down The Streets”
[on Matador Records]
[MP3] AC Newman – “I’m Not Talking“
stream another track at Soundcloud
Now, Now – “Threads”
[on Trans Records]
[MP3] Now, Now – “Thread
stream more tracks at Soundcloud
Pile – “Dripping”
[on Exploding In Sound]
[MP3] Pile – “Prom Song“
stream the full LP at Bandcamp
Pinback – “Information Retrieved”
[on Temporary Residence]
stream another track at Soundcloud
School of Seven Bells – “Ghostory”
[on Vagrant Records]
[MP3] School of Seven Bells – “The Night“
Sharon Van Etten – “Tramp”
[on Jagjaguwar]
[MP3] Sharon Van Etten – “Serpents“
Wild Nothing – “Nocturne”
[on Captured Tracks]
stream another track at Soundcloud
[Last Thursday’s Playlist] New Music Night VIII at River Gods
Posted on December 23, 2012 at 10:16 am | No Comments
Well, seeing as the world didn’t end, I suppose I should share up Thursday’s playlist from the eighth edition of New Music Night over at River Gods in Cambridge, MA. A lovely evening all-around, independent of the fine song selections made by myself and Mr. Jay Clicky Clicky. His playlists are right over here. And yes, there were holiday songs involved… but only a few. Unavoidable, really.
Lots of listening links for your eyes and ears to follow below…
New Music Night mach VIII
at River Gods in Cambridge, MA
on Thursday, December 20th, 2012
* Boston-area-ish artist
set one / brad almanac / 9pm – 10pm
01. Beach Fossils – “Careless”
[ from the upcoming “Clash the Truth” LP, due 2/19/13 on Captured Tracks / MP3 ]
02. The Mary Onettes – “Evil Coast”
[ from the upcoming “Hit the Waves” LP, due 3/12/13 on Labrador / Soundcloud ]
03. Marnie Stern – “Year of the Glad”
[ from the upcoming “The Chronicles of Marnia” LP, due 3/19/13 on Kill Rock Stars / Soundcloud ]
04. Evens – “King of Kings”
[ from their just-released LP “The Odds”, out now on Dischord ]
05. Wax Idols – “Sound of a Void”
[ from the forthcoming “Discipline & Desire”, out 3/26/13 on Slumberland / Soundcloud ]
06. Parks – “Sweater Weather” *
[ debut “name your price” digital single / Bandcamp ]
07. Statistics – “Nineteen Ninety-Nine”
[ from their “Peninsula” LP, coming in March on Afternoon Records / Download / Soundcloud]
08. School of Seven Bells – “Secret Days”
[ from the new “Put Your Sad Down” EP, out on Vagrant / Soundcloud ]
09. Orange Blossom Flyover – “Near Beyond Alone” *
[ new self-released digital single / free download on Soundcloud ]
10. Ducktails – “Letter of Intent”
[ from the forthcoming “The Flower Lane” LP, due 1/29 on Domino / Soundcloud ]
11. Matt Pond – “Love To Get Used”
[ from “The Lives Inside the Lines In Your Hand” LP, coming 2/5 via BMG / Soundcloud ]
12. Amor De Dias – “Jean’s Waving”
[ from “The House at the Sea” LP, arriving 1/29 via Merge / Soundcloud ]
13. Zip-Tie Handcuffs – “Ode To Light” *
[ from their “In The Sky” LP, just released on Curve of the Earth Records / Soundcloud ]
14. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – “I Know My Life Is Wrong”
[ East River Pipe cover from their most-recent 7-inch, out on Slumberland ]
15. Boris – “Neu Years” (Asobi Seksu cover)
[ from a split 7-inch, self-released on Black Friday’s Record Store Day / Bandcamp ]
16. Strange Mangers – “Treffpunkt”
[ from their new EP, “A Rare Time”, released via Bandcamp ]
17. Flock of Dimes – “Curtain”
[ solo project from Jenn of Wye Oak / 7-inch on Merge / Soundcloud ]
set two / brad almanac / 11pm – midnight
18. John Roderick (The Long Winters) – “The Week In Between”
[ from the new “One Christmas At A Time” EP with Jonathan Coulton / Soundcloud ]
19. Johan Hedberg (of SKWBN) – “Some Kind of Christmas”
[ new Christmas song, offered as a free download from Labrador Records / MP3 ]
20. Mount Moriah – “Younger Days”
[ from their forthcoming LP, “Miracle Temple”, due out 2/26 on Merge / Soundcloud ]
21. Anders & Kendall – “We’re On Fire Babe”
[ from their upcoming “Wild Chorus” LP, arriving in February on Nine Mile Records / Video ]
22. Lilys – “Well Traveled is Protest”
[ from a new split 7-inch with Big Troubles on Speakertree Records / Soundcloud ]
23. MMOSS – “Another Dream”
[ from their new LP, “Only Children”, out now on Trouble In Mind / Soundcloud ]
24. Widowspeak – “The Dark Ages”
[ from the forthcoming “Almanac” LP, due out 1/22 on Captured Tracks / Soundcloud ]
25. Lady Lamb The Beekeeper – “Rooftop”
[ from the debut full-length, “Ripely Pine”, coming 2/19 on Ba Da Bing / Soundcloud ]
26. The Box Tiger – “Set Fire To Your Friends”
[ just-released digital single / “name your price” download on Bandcamp ]
27. Bent Shapes – “Panel of Experts” *
[ from their new flexi disc / Soundcloud ]
28. Allo Darlin’ – “Dear John”
[ from the 2012 wiaiwya-7777777 singles club / Bandcamp ]
29. Eux Autres – “What It Is”
[ from the 2012 wiaiwya-7777777 singles club / Bandcamp ]
30. Owl and Mouse – “Canvas Bag”
[ from a forthcoming split 7-inch with Black Tambourine via Hangover Lounge Records ]
31. Bloody Amateur – “Companions”
[ from the forthcoming self-titled LP, due out 3/5 on Teenbeat ]
32. Girls Names – “Hypnotic Regression”
[ from “The New Life” LP, out on 2/26 thanks to Slumberland / Soundcloud ]
33. Big Dipper – “Robert Pollard” *
[ from the long-awaited “Crashes On The Platinum Planet” LP, out on Almost Ready Records / Soundcloud ]
34. Frightened Rabbit – “The Woodpile”
[ from the forthcoming “Pedestrian Verse” LP, out 2/5 on Canvasback / Soundcloud ]
35. Yo La Tengo – “Before We Run”
[ from their next LP, “Fade”, arriving 1/15 on Matador / Video ]