This was my best of 2012 list. I burned it onto a bunch of cd's and passed them out to friends as a sort of not quite Christmas companion to the Yuletide cd's the wife and I made.
I'm sure they made very lovely coasters.
Without further ado, your 2012 bitchin' mixtape:
Request Denied by El-P from Cancer 4 Cure
From the immensely talented rapper/producer you haven't heard of, this song was equal parts Public Enemy and Nine Inch Nails. El-P's dense rhymes and dark imagery were surpassed only by the hidden funk of his beats. Cancer 4 Cure was the sound of El smoking all the bath salts, sniffing all the glue and popping all the pills. And this little paranoid gem was only the opening of the floodgates.
Grown Up by Danny Brown
At times, Danny Brown evokes the worst of Old Dirty Bastard: self-destructive, obscene and unintelligible. Other moments, he evokes the best and this track is the pudding. Sentimental, fun and catchy, this song exemplifies everything that's great about hip-hop. Brown even goes with an old school beat to prove that when it comes kicking it, yes, he can.
Fatty Boom Boom by Die Antwoord from Ten$ion
Keeping it real for South Africa, Die Antwoord can best be described as audio graffiti: colorful, offensive and fun. Taken piecemeal, none of the components are nearly as impressive as the whole but this is Die Antwoord at their best. Ninja and Yolandi Vi$$er ride roughshod over each other's rhymes as DJ Hi-Tek melts his macbook into new sounds.
Bad Girls by M.I.A.
Serving as a stopgap between albums, this single arrived to continue the global block party vibe of M.I.A.'s last two efforts. The song starts out simply before burrowing into your brain for days on end as familiar Bollywood sounds twist into new shapes and M.I.A. recasts herself as part rebel without a cause, part femme fatale.
Push and Shove by No Doubt from Push and Shove
2012 found No Doubt returning to where the original skanksta's left off: the dancehall. Sticking to their sunshine of rocksteady roots and club beats, "Push and Shove" delivers all the requisite toasting and boasting for gwennabe's and two tones alike.
Soul Killing by the Ting Tings from Sounds from Nowheresville
Whereas their debut album was youthfully exuberant and funky, this song finds the Ting Tings in a grim mood. The guitar skanks with an ominous dread reminiscent of the Clash while lead singer Katie White toasts like Debbie Harry in a Rapture gone wrong. Had the rest of the album been this compelling, I wouldn't have been able to put it down.
The Baddest Man Alive by the Black Keys and the RZA from Man With the Iron Fists Soundtrack
Disguised as a soundtrack to the RZA's Man With the Iron Fists, this album still manages to be a predominantly Wu-Tang affair. Leading off with the Black Keys team-up of "Baddest Man Alive," RZA cartoonishly boasts his way through a litany of crass behavior that's more silly than ill. Still, there's a lot of old school fun to be found here and a damn good reason to have RZA man the boards for the Keys' next album if he's not too busy revitalizing the Clan.
Off to the Races by Lana Del Rey from Born to Die
The real problem with Del Rey's diseastrous SNL appearance last year was her choice of material. It was, to be succinct, boring. Neither of her lead off singles, not "Video Games" nor "Blue Jeans", display a true range of the dynamics that make her debut album such ridiculously and trashy fun. "Off to the Races," however, is a good primer as it has it all: big beats, lush orchestration, smouldering Lynchian torch singing and Biggie fatalism.
Settle Down by Kimbra from Vows
Never mind Gotye, the real find from last year's "Somebody I Used to Know" would have to be New Zealand's Kimbra. Leaning predominantly on vocal arrangements to shape out her song structures, she betrays a master's knowledge of vocal technique at a time when most would be happy to phone it in as a pop starlet. A little eccentric and incredibly talented, she follows in the footsteps of other female artists who chose craft over aesthetic from Bjork to Kate Bush.
Palm of Your Hand by Ingrid Michaelson from Human Again
Based on her first hit, "You and I," it would be easy to dismiss Michaelson as another coffeehouse diarist waiting for her big breakthrough on Grey's Anatomy. But from the beginning of 2006's Boys and Girls, she's shown a tendancy to break ranks, plug in and rock out with the best of the boys. Sure, there's the pop Ingrid and the ballad Ingrid, but I prefer the Ingrid who proves that bringing noise isn't just for the boys.
Let's Go by Matt and Kim from Lightning
It's hard not to have a good time when it comes to Brooklyn's Matt and Kim but this song heaves equal parts sachharine and sentiment into the mix. Matt's vocal bridge of "Say what you want to say, make it mean everything" lends itself to heavy introspection before kicking you back in the ass with the shouts of "let's go!" Video yearbooks and graduation ceremonies, beware.
Happy Be Fine by Polica from Give You the Ghost
Haunting, elegiac and unforgettable, this was a standout track on what was my favorite album of the year. Built around atmospheric synth waves, rolling basslines, double drums and autotuned vocals, there's an initial eeriness to the band's sound that soon gives way to all too human emotions. None moreso than the wounded confusion of Channy Leaneagh when she sings "I need some time to think about my life without you."
Comeback Kid by Sleigh Bells from Reign of Terror
Possibly the funnest song of the year, this was thrilling in all the ways that kids love and parents don't. It's too fast, too loud and incredibly abrasive. To which I say so what. It's also got killer hooks and an infectious sense of fun. With all due respect to Reign of Terror, the moment that Sleigh Bells can make an album that marries this much pop smarts to this much industrial crunch, that will be a game changer.
Don't Leave Me (Ne Me Quitte Pas) by Regina Spektor from What We Saw from the Cheap Seats
Pretentiously unpretentious, Spektor has never shown any reservations about playing cute for cuteness' sake. Following a long line of songs full of whimsy and whee, Spektor adds in drum loops and horns here for a song that's unabashedly good natured and easy on the ears. Don't be alarmed if your mother finds this song charming.
Melancholy Sky by Goldfrapp from the Singles
Five albums in, Goldfrapp has proven to be an electronic chameleon in which they veer between orgiastic club singles and pastoral compositions worthy of Ennio Morricone. "Melancholy Sky" veers closer to the latter as this sad rumination of a ballad transforms into a lush orchestral anthem. Too often, Greatest Hits and/or Singles collections can be dubious affairs. But this song (and it's other unreleased sibling, "Yellow Halo") sound more like victory lap.
See and Don't See by the Afghan Whigs
Returning from the teenage wasteland of the alternative 90's, Greg Dulli's original glorious soul punk bastards reunited last year to dust off the old songs and see if they still worked. And while no original material surfaced, the group dropped a few covers on us in preparation for the festivities. This would be a tasteful and moving cover by any other means, but Dulli, even at his most sublime in the studio, rarely captures the pathos of the stage. What starts as a plaintive lover man wail here becomes a plea for exorcism in front of the audience.
Return of the Grievous Angel by Counting Crows from Underwater Magic (or What We Did on Our Summer Vacation)
Following up on last year's live celebration of August and Everything After, Counting Crows delivered a collection of their favorite songs to cover. Some (such as Bob Dylan's "You Ain't Going Nowhere") were fun if familiar old time stompers. Some (such as Travis' "Coming Around") were obscure choices waiting to be wrested from their creators' clutches. This choice, however, fit everything the Crows have done extremely well for the last decade and a half. It's part country, part rock, and all melancholy. Moving far beyond the sunny California country rock territory blazed by the Eagles, it revolves around the pained but soulful tenor of head Crow Adam Duritz, just like it should.
Honolulu Blues by Craig Finn from Clear Heart Full Eyes
Craig Finn's solo excursion into songwriting sounds a lot like, well... Craig Finn. The inimitable voice he brings to the Hold Steady is far from lost at sea here, much like Neil Young when he switches from Crazy Horse to the Stray Gators. "Honolulu Blues" finds Finn swaggering with a country fried blues stomp suitable to Skynard fans. Still, it's packed with enough sardonic mirth to fuel a Cohen Brothers' film marathon.
The Man That Time Forgot by Ed Harcourt from Back Into the Woods
Closing out the list this year, I decided to go with the preview song for Harcourt's 2013 release, Back Into the Woods. Armed with little more than a piano and recorded in less time than it takes for me to complete a work day, I expect this album to pop up again at the end of 2013. Hushed, tuneful and more than a little whistful, this is Harcourt at his best. So when he sings, "please don't remember me this way," it's not likely.
