BRIAN'S BEST OF 2011

THE LIST

1. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming

I fell in love with this album shortly before I moved to Toronto, and listened to it so frequently that it became the soundtrack to that first summer. While most would dismiss this album as hipster frivolity, I implore those naysayers to listen to the album in its entirety. It is a beautifully melancholic journey that I will never grow tired of taking.

Standout Track: Soon, My Friend

2. Banner Pilot – Heart Beats Pacific

I sent Banner Pilot an e-mail once telling them that they should come to Toronto to do a show, and they sent me a sticker and t-shirt that was way too small for me. It was rad. This is easily my favourite release from these guys, and an album I still listen to frequently. I know pop-punk isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but this is how you do it right.

Standout Tracks: Spanish Reds, Intervention

3. True Widow - As High As The Highest Heavens And From The Center To The Circumference Of The Earth

This album takes everything I like about shoegaze, and mixes it with the one thing I like about stoner rock; the pacing. It’s also the only album on this list that I hadn’t heard before, which is as close to an endorsement as I’ve got in me.

Standout Track: Blooden Horse

4. Radiohead - The King Of Limbs

I had a difficult time giving this album the chance it deserved until I saw them perform the album live on Nigel Godrich’s From The Basement series. It’s incredible to see the process that goes into creating the individual elements of these songs. I’m always amazed when I’m convinced these guys are doing something electronically, only to discover I was mistaken.

Standout Tracks: Lotus Flower, Codex

5. Feist – Metals

This was the first Feist album that made me see her as an artist instead of a corporate bootlicker suckling at Apple’s teat. Also, my list desperately needed some Canadian representation.

Standout Tracks: A Commotion, Anti-Pioneer, Comfort Me

6. Iceage – New Brigade

An incredible first album that features a sound reminiscent of the SST-era punk bands from the 80’s. Also, the album is only 25 minutes long, which is punk as fuck.

Standout Track: Rotting Heights

7. Car Seat Headrest – Twin Fantasy

One of my favourite lo-fi releases. They re-recorded this album in 2018, but much like Streetlight Manifesto’s version of Keasbey Nights, it loses everything that made it special in the first place.

Standout Track: Sober To Death

8. Touché Amoré - Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me

Both an album and a band that I decided to listen to well after the fact. Not my favourite release of theirs, but a solid offering that knows when to fuck, and when to make love.

Standout Tracks: Art Official, Amends

9. Radical Face – The Family Tree: The Roots

Ben Cooper has a way of painting a picture with his lyrics that is seldom accomplished anymore. This album is the first in a trilogy of concept albums that looks at the fictional history of a family from the 1800’s, and the hardships they endured from generation to generation. While this is not my favourite of the three albums, it is a strong foundation for this ambitious project.

Standout Tracks: Kin, Mountains

10. The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – Belong

This album perfectly embodies the emotional rollercoaster of being young and in love for me. It’s also a great example of a band taking everything that was great about their first album and pushing it even further. These guys are essentially a twee pop version of The Cure, and that’s something I can fuck with.

Standout Tracks: Belong, Heart In Your Heartbreak

NOTABLE EP’S

1. Wavves – Life Sux
2. Good Night & Good Morning – S/T
3. Single Mothers – S/T

SONG OF THE YEAR

1. M83 – Midnight City

No brainer.