Favorite Album of 2011
M83 - Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming: A cut above the rest, the double album Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming by M83 tops my list, and plenty of others’ lists too. I haven’t really stopped listening to it since it came out in October, and although that short time frame does not assume the expectation of staying power, a few listens through and it’s all over. This work of art explores the boundaries of modern popular music. Anthony Gonzalez, the soft-spoken French mastermind along with his band M83 have encapsulated modern styles of music and blended them into a concoction served into two entirely full albums that could each stand alone if separated. To me, this music is the dreamscape that best describes what the past year has felt like in our world; sometimes epic and sometimes quiet, but always truthful. Self-expression and vulnerability were major themes of this year that I feel Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming has summarized brilliantly through music and lyric both.
Honorable Mention
Rustie - Glass Swords: Party album of the year for all the cool kids. Rustie is a producer from Glasgow, Scotland who entered onto my radar the later half of this year. Glass Swords is absolutely fantastic for a fan of new electronica and dance music. Rustie takes the synthesized sounds of yesterday’s electronic music like new-wave and forces them over newer style dance beats such as dubstep and house. Every song on this album screams highly intelligent production; meaning alien in nature. I’m whisked away into a future filled with endless crystal hallways, voluptuous fountains of nectar, and technicolor neon cityscapes that are only visible with the third eye.
Favorite Song of 2011
“I’m On One” by DJ Khaled featuring Drake, Rick Ross, and Lil Wayne: The phrase “living under a rock” would become dubious if you went anywhere publicly in 2011 without hearing this song in some context. This song, was in my opinion, the best song of this year. It is my favorite song of this year because of the now famous lyrics of the chorus sung by Drake:
“All I care about is money and the city that I’m from. I’m a sip until I feel it, I’m a smoke until it’s done. I don’t really give a fuck and my excuse is that I’m young, and I’m only only getting older, Somebody should’ve told you I’m on one.”
It’s not just me. Those lyrics mean something to all of us. And aside from that brilliant brainwash, it’s all of the songs’ remixes. It’s all of the times you heard it with your crew, or up in the club. It was the anthem of 2011, Until “Niggas in Paris” blew up. That shit cray.
Honorable Mention
“Take it Back” by Toddla T (Dillon Francis Remix): My favorite song to dance to this year was definitely this song. People can hate on Moombahton all they want, and I would respectfully listen and disagree with their arguments. But if your toes remain glued to the ground while listening to this song you will not get any sympathy from me on the dancefloor. Dillon Francis’ remix of Toddla T’s piano riff break house song captured my heart many times at parties this year. It was a favorite of many DJs freshly savvy in the ways of Moombahton, the invasive species of music in 2011.
Favorite Concert of 2011
Brother’s Past at Soundlab (04/09/2011): I traveled quite a bit to other places to see music this year, and alas my favorite concert of this year was not in Buffalo, but as this is buffaBLOG, so my choice for favorite concert in Buffalo this year was Brother’s Past at Soundlab this past April. I had seen BP upwards of 10 times prior to this show, so going in with low-expectations is always an advantage. But when one of your favorite bands plays an absolutely jaw-dropping concert in your favorite city in one of your favorite venues, it can be difficult to just brush-off. I remember texting a friend in NYC to tell her that they were covering National Anthem by Radiohead (a common cover they play) and looking up from my phone, I felt a pride come over me that Buffalo was on the map for this once-little band I got into many years ago.
Nice post! I'm surprised by some of your choices.