Best Albums of 2011

[Music Head]

Did this last year, so why not
All of these best of lists start coming out now, even though the year is not over.
Stupid imo, but they're all afraid you'll look at someone else's list before theirs.
I will post a list when I come across one.
Some are genre specific, others are overall.
I will stick to the top 20 or 25 albums.
Feel free to post your own favorite site (sourcing it) or even your own list if you wish.
Please try and stick close to the format I have used.
Most sites you can't just copy and paste, you may have to type.
For any newbies, if you post in this thread and it is not what the thread specifies, it will be deleted.
thank you

[Music Head]

Will kick this off with a list specifically for my buddie SteveO.
He has expressed an interest in the metal genre, which I tend to be unknowledgable of.
This list is from a metal site called Decibel
It is their list of the top 20 metal albums of 2011.
I am not aware of any of these albums or even the bands except Opeth.
I'm sure the metal heads will be.

01 Tombs – Path Of Totality
02 Opeth – Heritage
03 Mastodon – The Hunter
04 In Solitude – The World. The Flesh. The Devil.
05 Brutal Truth – End Time
06 Hate Eternal – Phoenix Amongst The Ashes
07 YOB – Atma
08 40 Watt Sun – The Inside Room
09 Inquisition – Ominous Doctrines Of The Perpetual…….
10 Junius – Reports From The Threshold Of Death
11 Graveyard – Hisingen Blues
12 Primordial – Redemption At The Puritan’s Hand
13 Exhumed – All Guts, No Glory
14 False – False
15 Autopsy – Macabre Eternal
16 Revocation – Chaos Of Forms
17 Trap Them – Darker Handcraft
18 Obscura – Omnivium
19 Drugs Of Faith – Corroded
20 Subrosa – No Help For The Mighty Ones

[SteveO]

Thanks, Music Head ! I am totally unfamiliar with all of them except Heritage by Opeth which will be on my favorite list for this year along with a few others !!!! I have heard of some of the bands/albums listed but I haven't heard the record so I cannot pass judgement !

My abridged list for 2011....

Opeth - Heritage.......... This is the tenth studio album in 16 years by the Swedish metal prog rock group Opeth. Last year they released a live set from the Royal Albert Hall. Heritage embodies many styles of music...classical piano as an intro track, hard rock, progressive folk and rock, many styles here with no death growls. Lead man Mikael Akerfeldt cites his influences as Comus, Camel, Alice Cooper and Uriah Heep. This is definitely my favorite progressive rock/metal album this year !




Steve Wilson - Grace for Drowning........ Steven Wilson from London, England (there's a London, Canada also) released his second studio album this year. Grace for Drowning is a joyous blend of contemporary music...progressive and experimental rock. Wilson is the leader of the metalish group Porcupine Tree and has associations with Opeth. Eighty-five minutes of fabulous listening !



While Heaven Wept - Fear of Infinity....... This septet from Dale City, Virginia has been in business for over twenty years and this year was the first time I listened to them and I am glad I did ! Lead singer Tom Phillips takes us through an epic metal journey reminiscent of Iron Maiden. His vocals are clean displaying a vast vocal range. The tracks are joined together with each other that gives the album an operatic theme. No doom metal here...just great vocals and musicianship !



Helrunar - Sol ...... Now as expected here are the growls, death grunts, and screams of today's black metal ! This German group is also a first listen for me this year ! The darkness of the album is overpowered by the fast paced and uptempo music and over seventy minutes of music flies by quickly. How do these guys play so fast and without a break ????. A very good album of so called Viking metal ....never a dull moment !

Will kick this off with a list specifically for my buddie SteveO.<BR>He has expressed an interest in the metal genre, which I tend to be unknowledgable of.<BR>This list is from a metal site called Decibel<BR>It is their list of the top 20 metal albums of 2011.<BR>I am not aware of any of these albums or even the bands except Opeth.<BR>I'm sure the metal heads will be.<BR><BR>01 Tombs – Path Of Totality<BR>02 Opeth – Heritage<BR>03 Mastodon – The Hunter<BR>04 In Solitude – The World. The Flesh. The Devil.<BR>05 Brutal Truth – End Time<BR>06 Hate Eternal – Phoenix Amongst The Ashes<BR>07 YOB – Atma<BR>08 40 Watt Sun – The Inside Room<BR>09 Inquisition – Ominous Doctrines Of The Perpetual…….<BR>10 Junius – Reports From The Threshold Of Death<BR>11 Graveyard – Hisingen Blues<BR>12 Primordial – Redemption At The Puritan’s Hand<BR>13 Exhumed – All Guts, No Glory<BR>14 False – False<BR>15 Autopsy – Macabre Eternal<BR>16 Revocation – Chaos Of Forms<BR>17 Trap Them – Darker Handcraft<BR>18 Obscura – Omnivium<BR>19 Drugs Of Faith – Corroded<BR>20 Subrosa – No Help For The Mighty Ones

[Music Head]

from Best Ever Albums
at least I've heard of 12 of these

1) Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
2) Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
3) Bon Iver - Bon Iver
4) P.J. Harvey - Let England Shake
5) Beach Boys - The Smile Sessions
6) James Blake - James Blake
7) Yuck - Yuck
8) Destroyer - Kaputt
9) Strokes - Angles
10) Tune Yards - Whokill
11) Antlers - Burst Apart
12) St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
13) Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
14) Arctic Monkeys - Suck It And See
15) Foo Fighters - Wasting Light
16) Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
17) Kate Bush - Director's Cut
18) Adele - 21
19) Tv On The Radio - Nine Types Of Light
20) Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo

[Music Head]

thanks for your list SteveO, and your commentary
wanted to do album covers with mine, but it just takes too long

[SteveO]

[quote=Music Head]from Best Ever Albums

I have listened to the following nine albums on the list:

1) Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
3) Bon Iver - Bon Iver
4) P.J. Harvey - Let England Shake
9) Strokes - Angles
11) Antlers - Burst Apart
16) Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
17) Kate Bush - Director's Cut
18) Adele - 21
19) Tv On The Radio - Nine Types Of Light

My choices would be PJ Harvey, Adele, Peter Murphy - Ninth !!!!, Alice Cooper - Welcome 2 My Nightmare!!!! Antlers - Burst Apart !!!!! , TV on the Radio

[Music Head]

from Paste magazine

1) Bon Iver - Bon Iver
2) Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
3) My Morning Jacket - Circuital
4) Tune Yards - Whokill
5) Middle Brother - Middle Brother
6) Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - It's A Corporate World
7) Wilco - The Whole Love
8) Dawes - Nothing Is Wrong
9) M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
10) Decemberists - The King Is Dead
11) St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
12) Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
13) Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
14) Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
15) Adele - 21
16) Deer Tick - Divine Providence
17) Yuck - Yuck
18) Civil Wars - Barton Hollow
19) Wye Oak - Civilian
20) Cults - Cults

[Apostrophe(')]

Will kick this off with a list specifically for my buddie SteveO.
He has expressed an interest in the metal genre, which I tend to be unknowledgable of.
This list is from a metal site called Decibel
It is their list of the top 20 metal albums of 2011.
I am not aware of any of these albums or even the bands except Opeth.
I'm sure the metal heads will be.

01 Tombs – Path Of Totality
02 Opeth – Heritage
03 Mastodon – The Hunter
04 In Solitude – The World. The Flesh. The Devil.
05 Brutal Truth – End Time
06 Hate Eternal – Phoenix Amongst The Ashes
07 YOB – Atma
08 40 Watt Sun – The Inside Room
09 Inquisition – Ominous Doctrines Of The Perpetual…….
10 Junius – Reports From The Threshold Of Death
11 Graveyard – Hisingen Blues
12 Primordial – Redemption At The Puritan’s Hand
13 Exhumed – All Guts, No Glory
14 False – False
15 Autopsy – Macabre Eternal
16 Revocation – Chaos Of Forms
17 Trap Them – Darker Handcraft
18 Obscura – Omnivium
19 Drugs Of Faith – Corroded
20 Subrosa – No Help For The Mighty Ones

Yeah... this thread isn't for me. I haven't hear of a single on of those artists. Besides, it's so hard for me to be objective when it comes to modern music.

[evilB]

I knew 11 of the 20 metal. That is a serious listening list for me. Lots of new stuff to listen to.

And there a 6 new listens in the Paste magazine list. Nice thread Music Head!

[Lord Dweedle]

Eric Church - Cheif

Nickelback - Here and Now

Toby Keith - Clancys Tavern