2011 Albums of the Year: 20-11

Getting closer to the number one album in my list of 2011 Albums of the Year. Here are numbers 20-11:

20. WU LYF - Go Tell Fire To The Mountain

In this Internet age where you can find out basically everything about anything or anyone, it is a bit refreshing when something maintains a bit of mystery. WU LYF (or World Unite/Lucifer Youth Foundation) is a gang of Mancunians who don't have a Facebook/MySpace/Bandcamp/Twitter/Tumblr page, and not much is known about them other than their live shows are practically legendary (selling out before the band had even properly released any music), they famously ignored phone calls from famous producers to work with them, and have refused to work with major labels, choosing instead to record the album in an abandoned church and self-releasing the record on their own. Whether all of this behavior is truly meant to be a way of life, or just a PR stunt, remains to be seen, but, as I am fond of saying, at the end, all that matters is the music. Go Tell Fire To The Mountain doesn't reinvent the wheel per se, as some UK critics have pontificated, but is a stirring collection of songs drawing from many disparate sources (early U2, Sigur Ros, post-punk, post-rock, etc.), but bound together by a rich solemnity and vocalist Ellery Roberts' bizarre warble, which will either intoxicate you or make you run for the hills.

19. Iceage - New Brigade

Danish punk/post-punkers Iceage draw from Wire's precise minimalism and Joy Division's icy, cathartic despair. In a spare 25 minutes, New Brigade's 12 songs never overstay their welcome, quickly getting to the point, never containing a superfluous note. While they are really not bringing anything new to the table in terms of sound, what makes this band special is the energy they bring. It brings to mind The Strokes' Is This It? in terms of pure swagger and attitude. The band's live shows are apparently extremely aggressive affairs, the audience members referred to as "victims" and photos of the aftermath of gigs are usually posted to the band's website.

18. Chad VanGaalen - Diaper Island

In addition to his solo output, Chad VanGaalen is probably best known as the producer for Women's last two albums. He records out of his home studio and infuses a homespun, earthy quality to his records, yet always throws in some curve balls, like weird synth freakouts, and use of quirky instrumentation. Diaper Island, his fourth full length, and his most fully formed, is such a shockingly well-produced record, it provokes audio equivalents of a double-take. While there is still a homey quality to the production values, the record as a whole is musch more clear and concise. VanGaalen records primarily in a low-fi, late 80s early 90s alt-rock manner, evoking artists as diverse as Pavement, Miracle Legion, Grizzly Bear, and early post-punk Cure. The album veers back and forth from gorgeous, almost country-folk ballads, and raucous guitar raveups; linked by his wry lyrics.

17. Craft Spells - Idle Labors

Craft Spells' debut album Idle Labor travels in the same territory as 80s revivalists/chillwave acts such as Twin Shadow, Memory Tapes, and Toro Y Moi. The songs all feature delightfully tinny drum machines, echoing/chiming guitars, and soaring synths, borrowing from forbearers such as New Order, The Smiths, and Echo and the Bunnymen. I don't think it is just coincidence that the album cover blatantly recalls Power, Corruption, and Lies. When they hit their heights, as on lead song "For The Ages," with its gorgeous interlocking guitars and synths, and on "Scandinavian Crush," and its sing-song melody, you get the sense that the sky is the limit for this band. This album will take awhile to grow on you, but once it does, it is impossible to get out of your head.

16. When Saints Go Machine - Konkylie

Every once in awhile, a band or artist comes around with that spark of trying something different and challenging, but working in the realm of pop music. Danish quartet When Saints Go Machine, led by otherworldly vocalist Nicholas Vonsild, don't necessarily sound like Depeche Mode, other than the fact both primarily use synthesizers, however, they share the same restless creativity Depeche Mode enjoyed during their mid-80s tenure. It is actually quite difficult to describe the band's sound. Imagine a cross between the heavily treated electro-pop of The Knife and Fever Ray, the fluttering, archly fey vocals of Antony Hegarty, and the house music stylings of Hercules and Love Affair, and you might get slightly close to their sound. Instead of spending time trying to spot the influence, it is better to just allow the waves of quirky synth-pop wash over you. Word of caution, however, you will either love Vonsild's voice or will hate it.

15. Hooray For Earth - True Loves

Sounding like a lot of bands, but commanding their own distinct sound, Hooray For Earth is rooted in the dense, lush synth-pop of the 80s, brought into a 2010s context. Each track on their debut True Loves is built on layer upon layer of gorgeous, warm synthesizers, almost tailor made to hit the cheap seats of a stadium, but intricate and emotional enough to entrance the most jaded bedsitter. Perfectly paced, with melodies like earworms, True Loves is chock full of endlessly catchy singles that get more infectious with each listen. Their self-titled debut album and subsequent EP Momo only hinted at what this band was capable of, and subsequent tours with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and work with Twin Shadow over the past year really honed their craft, creating a truly wonderful album.

14. Young Galaxy - Shapeshifting

Canadian synth-pop duo Young Galaxy (Stephen Ramsay and Catherine McCandless) were unknown to me before the release of Shapeshifting. Having released two albums on the Arts & Crafts imprint, I was assuming they would have a similar sound to that label's two most popular acts: Broken Social Scene and The Dears. Surfing through some clips on Youtube all I found were some pleasant, yet rather dull, dream pop-like songs, that didn't give me much hope for liking the new record. Apparently, switching labels and enlisting the help of enigmatic Swedish producer Dan Lissvik of Studio has completely sparked new life into the band. The band provided Lissvik with the finished tapes of the record and he, via Skype, helped polish and mold the tracks. Throughout the album you can hear the bones of the record and how Lissvik added his warm synthesizers, thick guitars, and hazy Tropicalia to the mix. The pairing of the two together is pure genius, and they have collaborated on one of the best adult-dance pop albums of the year.

13. Arrange - Plantation

The experience of listening to Plantation, the self-released debut album from Florida teenager Malcom Lacey, is akin to rummaging around a stuffed attic, coming across old photo albums, journals, and keepsakes, being washed over by the floods of memory: the triumphs and failures, the joy and sadness, the important and the mundane. It is also an album steeped in loneliness and sadness, Lacey's voice almost a monotone, afraid to let the emotion crack the surface, less the anger break free and overtake him. The restraint fits well with these gorgeously evocative ten tracks. Despite his youth, Lacey has an amazing ear for arrangement (no pun intended) and builds these songs in layers, never adding too much or making things too bare. Plantation is truly an album that must be experienced in one sitting, as the themes and melodies flow throughout the record and with each listen, you pick up more and more, it all fitting together like pieces of a puzzle.

12. Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes

Swedish indie pop princess Lykke Li's first album Youth Novels was a favorite of mine from 2008. Produced by Björn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John, the album highlighted Li's odd voice, setting it up against non-traditional instrumentation and song structures, yet sometimes the songs seemed to veer too close to twee territory. With Wounded Rhymes, Li, once again working with Björn, doesn't exactly reinvent herself as much as she beefs up. Her voice is stronger and meatier (though it can still be an acquired taste), and the songs, drawing from 60s girl groups, garage rock, and the wall of sound perfected by Phil Spector, are cavernous and heavy, every note dripping with decay and dirt. Drums are deep and pounding, guitars rich with reverb, and her voice settles so well into the mix, sometimes triple and quadruple tracked. The songwriting on Wounded Rhymes is more complex and varied than its predecessor. Li shows that she still can project fragility while also showing strength within herself.

11. St. Vincent - Strange Mercy

Diminutive, angelic looking singer Annie Clark, performing under the name St. Vincent, has released two albums of slightly subversive pop songs, Marry Me and Actor, which traffic in deceptively calm surfaces, with a dark undercurrent that is always surprising and thrilling. With the release of her third album Strange Mercy, Clark completely comes into her own. While her previous albums are quite wonderful, Marry Me could feel a little cloying at times, and Actor was almost too stuffed to the gills with embellishments that cluttered rather than enhanced the tracks. With Strange Mercy, Clark laser focuses the songs, highlighting her superb, innovative guitar playing, allowing only a few embellishments throughout, which actually add to the texture and or tone of the song to give it an extra kick. Clark still sticks to her trademark song writing style, singing tales of squeaky clean perfection always hiding dirt and grime in the background despite the characters' desperate attempts to keep up appearances.