Going out with a bang, part 2: Albums of 2012, 10-1

10. Tame Impala- Lonerism

""Apocalypse Dreams" starts off as a soulful ELO- esque '70s stomp before everything grows, twists and envelopes every aspect of the song and a gloriously layered synth wall reigns mightily halfway through. "Music To Walk Home By" is a sky- kissing mesh of bubbling electronics, a driving bass line and understated but reverb drenched guitar chords. Bearing all this in mind, it feels strange that the album's highlight, the astoundingly beautiful "Feels Like We're Only Going Backwards," propelled by a subtly funky bass rhythm and an almost moving chill- wavey keyboard melody is probably the most simplistic moment here."

9. Soap&Skin- Narrow

"At almost every turn, whether it's through the music or vocals, Plashg employs some kind of dramatic effect to make these dark, smothering piano- lead ballads much more than they be would usually. From the deranged to the grandiose to the hopeful, Plashg has her finger on a wealth of ways to showcase emotion through music, and often enough she taps into them in beautiful style."

8. Murder Construct- Results

I never got round to actually reviewing the new Murder Construct album, which is something I'm still kicking myself for. In summary then, this is an absolutely brutal exercise in destructively heavy but also groove and melody laden Grindcore. On "Results" the group found a place where they got the balance of Cattle Decapitation, Napalm Death and Cannibal Corpse just right, thus resulting (no pun intended) in the most full on blast of inconceivable Metal noise this year. Furious from start to finish, packed with blistering beats and crushing hooks, it's the Heavy Metal world's definition of onslaught in 2012.

7. Torche- Harmonicraft

"Members of such recesses may well turn their noses up at even the mention of "Harmonicraft", which is rich in sugary euphoria and consequetively grandiose hooks, something that will come as a mighty surprise to fans of their previous output. Nevertheless, it's brimming with full- throttle intensity, an undeniable pace and the same layers of dense production and thick distortion that metal, and notably Torche's music, usually relies on for sheer power. Whereas usually that same power is balanced out by interspersed moments of weirdness, on "Harmonicraft" it's balanced out by pop tendencies. And what a thrilling ride it is too."

6. Swans- The Seer

Never before have I encountered a record which is quite literalltoo large for words. No doubt you've heard about the absolutely monolithic "The Seer" from pretty much every respectable music publication, online or otherwise. At two hours in length it towers of the rest of 2012 like a huge demonic shadow, an imposing and terrifying sign of an apparent impending doom. Abrasive, destructive, insane, beautiful... "The Seer" encompasses all of these words and turns them into an almighty, torturous racket, and there will be no better soundtrack to the apocalypse in 3 days time.

5. Kendrick Lamar- Good Kid, M.A.A.D city

"...few can claim to be as bright or lyrically valuable as Kendrick Lamar. Lamar is a realist- he tells everything exactly like it is. He’s incredibly sharp musically too, always finding new ways to do things, new ways to make things sound. His seemingly effortless ability to match emotion with the most wonderfully paired production is what gives him so much space to pull off an absolute odyssey like “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.”"

4. Agalloch- Faustian Echoes

"Agalloch are certainly not ignorant to the power and space which modern Black Metal has been free to roam, and that's something that if it wasn't recognizable before is certainly recognizable on their new EP, "Faustian Echoes." Based on Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe's epic occult masterpiece "Faust", the record is a single, 21- minute long odyssey that explores all the recesses that Agalloch have always found time for in their Black Metal/ Neo- folk hybrid. Those things being melody, harshness, bleakness, acoustic interludes, blast beats, tremolo picking and wretched vocals, all of which find themselves in abundance here."

3. Perfume Genius- Put Your Back N2 It

""Put Your Back N2 It" is relentlessly intoxicating but almost always musically stunning. Aside from the heart- wrenching lyrics, the music here is just as profound and atmospheric, all adding to the intensity of the thing. Hadreas may need some serious love and support, and hopefully he'll get it. But at the same time, fingers crossed that it doesn't prevent him from churning out affecting works of wonder such as this."

2. Dragged Into Sunlight- Widowmaker

"Mysticism and darkness have always been cornerstone foundations of Heavy Metal, but it doesn’t often feel as real and as indicative and sobering as that of Liverpudlian quartet Dragged Into Sunlight. The fact that these guys are a four piece Doom/ Death metal band from Merseyside is just about all anybody really knows about them. They refuse to tell their names to interviewers, play live very rarely and only appear in the public eye dressed in balaclavas. It’s the kind of thing which certainly seems gimmicky, but at its base idea is actually quite reasonable. “We don’t feel like this band needs another identity. We’re just Dragged into Sunlight,” they recently told The Quietus. Furthermore, the band work up such a memorable collective identity with their music that it seems wrong to think of them in any other way."

Album of the year, No. 1: Death Grips- The Money Store

"Whereas "Ex-military" was an uncontrollable outburst of rage, Death Grips' debut signed effort sees them slip much more comfortably into their bloodthirsty world of brutality and darkness. It's still over- poweringly intense. It still finds ways to confound the senses and all ideas of what a hip- hop album should be like. But it's a much more measured effort, much for confident and comfortable within it's self- crafted world of modern day urban evil, and as a result, is much more consistent and wholesome. Anybody doubting Death Grips' credibility, talent, or that the world they so envisioned on "Exmilitary" even existed will soon be silenced; for this is a wholly convincing doctrine, made even more so by the more composed but cocksure air it carries about itself."

Top 20 albums of 2012:

1. Death Grips- The Money Store

2. Dragged Into Sunlight- Widowmaker

3. Perfume Genius- Put Your Back N2 It

4. Agalloch- Faustian Echoes

5. Kendrick Lamar- Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City

6. Swans- The Seer

7. Torche- Harmonicraft

8. Murder Construct- Results

9. Soap&Skin- Narrow

10. Tame Impala- Lonerism

11. The Walkmen- Heaven

12. Action Bronson- Blue Chips

13. Dirty Three- Toward The Low Sun

14. John Talabot- Fin

15. Portico Quartet- Portico Quartet

16. Cloud Nothings- Attack on Memory

17. Killer Mike- R.A.P. Music

18. Liars- WIXIW

19. Black Breath- Sentenced To Life

20. Pulled Apart By Horses- Tough Love

Some other honourable mentions you should check out: Loma Prieta- I.V., Tribes- Baby, Ratking- Wiki93, Milo- Milo Takes Baths, Kindness- World, You Need a Change of Mind, Andrew Bird- Break it Yourself, Earth- Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II

Until next year,

Love and peace, thanks and praise

Jack x