2011 was a good year. I also listened to a lot of new stuff, so something good out of 140 albums had to come out! A quick list (in alphabetical order) of what I liked the most:

Austra - Feel It Break: a dark version of Karin Dreijer, with a great voice and haunting, complex choruses.

Autre Ne Veut - Body EP: Incredible music, synth-soul or something like that, from this new band. Outstanding male vocals, looking forward to hear anything these guys will put out.

Blood Orange - Coastal Grooves: a weird, fascinating mix of 80s pop, funk and indie. For sure one of the newest sounds I heard.

Brent Cash - How Strange It Seems: a last minute recommendation, I cannot do much but pass it along, especially if you like Divine Comedy and orchestral pop.

Cat’s Eyes - Cold Cave: nice indie pop surprise (male-female duo), that reminds the best moments of I Monster.

Cold Cave - Cherish The Light Years: not as good as the debut, but pretty awesome still. Emo-synth.

The Drums - Portamento: great, mature records from this Brooklyn guys that sound like a happy, garage version of the Joy Division. Don’t miss this record.

GusGus - Arabian Horse: a work that transcends the boundaries between house and techno, and probably the masterpiece of this great band

Jeremy Jay - Dream Diary: this guy has been releasing good dreamy pop tunes for a while now, and this is particularly sophisticated version.

John Maus - We Must Become The Pitiless Censors of Ourselves: John Maus is a genius, I love his lo-fi synth stye, his creepy crooning and his crazy lyrics.

Metronomy - The English Riviera: hands-down the best pop record of the year. If only the world knew.

Sandro Perri - Impossible Spaces: a unique, experimental indie record from this obscure canadian composer. Never heard anything like that.

Soft Powers - Outlandish Scandals: I don’t usually like this post-rockish sounds, but this album is so good that just blew me away. Kind of like Broken Social Scene.

Toro Y Moi - Underneath The Pine: I didn’t even like Toro Y Moi before this record, outstanding hypnagogic indie.

Widowspeak - Widowspeak: a great debut from this Brooklyn band, that picks up where Beach House and The XX left off last year. 

If you don’t have patience for whole albums, here’s a playlist with all the good songs that this year gave to us.

Complete list of records I’ve listened to:

1,2,3 - New Heaven

Acid House Kings - Music Sounds Better With You

Adventure - Lesser Known

André & Gildas - Kitsuné Parisien

The Antlers - Burst Apart

Apparat - The Devil’s Walk

Archers Of Loaf - Icky Mettle (Reissue)

Austra - Feel It Break

Autre Ne Veut - Body EP

The Babies - s/t

The Beach Boys - The Smile Sessions

Beirut - The Rip Tide

Bibio - Mind Bokeh

Big Spider’s Back - Memory Man

Black Devil Disco Club - Circus

Blood Orange- Coastal Grooves

Blouse - Blouse

Bon Iver - s/t

Brunori Sas - Poveri Cristi

Kate Bush - 50 Words For Snow

Anna Calvi - s/t

Martial Canterel - You Today

Brent Cash - How Strange It Seems

Cassettes Won’t Listen - EVISPACEY

Cat’s Eyes - s/t

Cass McCombs - Wit’s End

Cass McCombs - Humor Risk

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Hysterical

Class Actress - Rapproacher

Cold Cave - Cherish The Light Years

Com Truise - Galactic Melt

The Cool Kids - When Fish Ride Bicycles

Cornershop - Cornershop & The Double Groove “O”

Cults - s/t

Cut Copy - Zonoscope

Daedalus - Bespoke

Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - Rome

Death In Vegas - Trans-Love Energies

Dente - Io Tra Di Noi

Destroyer - Kaputt

Dirty Beaches - Badlands

DJ Shadow - The Less You Know, The Better

Dream Diary - You Are The Beat

The Drums - Portamento

The Horrors - Skying

How To Dress Well - Just Once EP

Jane & Jeff Hudson - Flesh (Reissue)

The Human League - Credo

EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints

Dominik Eulberg - Diorama

Lupe Fiasco - Lasers

The Field - Looping State Of Mind

Fitness Forever - Con Fitness Forever En La Playa

Fleet Foxes - Helplnessness Blues

Ford & Lopatin - Channel Pressure

Foster The People - Torches

John Foxx & The Maths - Interplay

Gang Gang  Dance - Eye Contact

Gardens & Villa - s/t

Gazelle Twin - The Entire City

Jef Gilson - s/t

Givers - In Light

Grouper - AIA : Alien Observer

Grouplove - s/t

GusGus - Arabian Horse

I Break Horses - Hearts

Marketa Irglova - Anar

Nicolas Jaar-  Space Is Only Noise

Jay Z - Watch The Throne

Jenniferever - Silesia

Jeremy Jay - Dream diary

The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar

Junior Boys - It’s All True

Philip Laurent - Hot-Bip

Little Dragon - Ritual Union

Lonely Dear - Hall Music

The Lonely Island - Turtleneck & Chain

Low - C’mon

John Maus - We Must Become The Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves

Megafaun - s/t

Memory Tapes - Player Piano

Stephin Merritt - Obscurities

Metronomy - The English Riviera

Mirrors - Lights And Offerings

Moonface - Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I’d Hoped

Mux Mool - Drum EP 2

Nouvelle Vague - The Singers

Nurses - Dracula

Connan Mockasin - Forever Dolphin Love

Oneohtrix Point Never - Replica

Pale Sketcher - Seventh Heaven EP

Peaking Lights - 936

Pendentif - EP

Sandro Perri - Impossible Spaces

Jeff Phelps - Magnetic Eyes

Planningtorock - W

The Rapture - In The Grace Of Your Love

R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now

The Sandwitches - Mrs. Jones Cookies

S.C.U.M. - Again Into Eyes

Soft Powers - Outlandish Scandals

Sepalcure - s/t

Mike Simonetti - Capricorn Rising

Sleep ~ Over - Forever

Snowman - ABSENCE

Soft Metals - s/t

The Sound of Arrows - Voyage

Staccato Du Mal - Sin Destino

The Strokes - Angles

Tarwater - Inside The Ships

Sebastien Tellier - Love Songs

Thee Oh Sees - Castlemania

Timber Timbre - Creep On Creepin’ On

Toro Y Moi - Underneath The Pine

Tune-Yards - WHOKILL

Tunnels - The Blackout

Twin Sister - Bad Street

Ty Segall - Ty Rex

Vladislav Delay Quartet - s/t

Washed Out - Within And Without

Ben Westbeech - There’s More To Life Than This

When Saints  Go Machine - Konkylie

William Elliott Whitmore - Field Songs

Widowspeak - s/t

Wilco - The Whole Love

Wild Beasts - Smother

The Wombats - The Wombats proudly present…This Modern Glitch

Robag Wruhme - Thora Vukk

WU LYF - Go Tell Fire To The Mountain

Wye Oak - Civilian

Xeno & Oaklander - Sets & Lights

YACHT - Shangri-La

Yelle - Safari Disco Club

VVAA - Istanbul 70: Psych Disco Folk Edits by Baris K Vol 1

VVAA- Horse Meat Disco III

VVAA - Kitsuné Maison Compilation Vol 11

VVAA - Back And 4th

VVAA - We Were So Turned On: A Tribute To David Bowie

VVAA - Johnny Boy Would Love this… A Tribute To John Martyn