I can’t believe it’s already mid-December and already time for top 10s of 2011. This year has been a complete blur. In putting this post together, I completely forgot about so much music that came out this year. I’m sure it’s no surprise that I’ve reformatted this list numerous times. I have left out some previous top 10 favorites (Digitalism, Washed Out, Korallreven, among others) as their records all kind of lost their spark for me.

Top honors this year goes to “Weathering” by Epic45. I absolutely adore this record! On first listen it was a bit of a leap for me to take it all in. I guess I was looking for more pop songs and an extension of “In All The Empty Houses” (2009), but instead “Weathering” was something entirely different. A record I had to digest slowly and really one that I spent a lot of time with throughout the year. It’s so rare these days, at least for me, to find an album that I can have such a relationship with. “Lesser Matters” by The Radio Dept. might have been the last time. I wouldn’t call the album a “grower,” but rather one you grow with.

As for the podcast, it may not be an absolutely accurate reflection of my top songs of 2011, but more so highlighting ones I still enjoy (aka that I’m not sick to death with). Oh and as usual Shelflife releases are exempt from my lists. You may notice two Ringo Deathstarr songs are included. Well… I just couldn’t decide between the two. I could have also included at least three Veronica Falls tracks, but I didn’t. Can anyone listen to “Midnight City” anymore without picturing this guy singing it? The SPC ECO track at the end just came out, but it seems an appropriate way to end this. Happy Holidays!

Top 10 releases of 2011
1. Epic45 – Weathering (Make Mine Music)
2. Real Estate – Days (Domino)
3. Ringo Deathstarr – Colour Trip (Club AC30 / Sonic Unyion)
4. The Wild Swans – The Coldest Winter for a Hundred Years (Occultation)
5. Veronica Falls – Veronica Falls (Slumberland / Bella Union)
6. Germany Germany – Adventures (self-released)
7. I Break Horses – Hearts (Bella Union)
8. Azure Blue – Rule of Thirds (Matineé Recordings / Hybris)
9. Hong Kong in the 60s – My Fantoms (Proper Songs)
10. The Feelies – Here Before (Bar None)

Top 5 EPs of 2011
1. Echo Lake – Young Silence (No Pain in Pop)
2. The Blessed Isles – Caroline (self-released)
3. RxGibbs – Bleu Celeste (self-released)
4. Beach Fossils – What a Pleasure (Captured Tracks)
5. Weekend – Red (Slumberland)

Podcast #5 – Top 20 songs of 2011
(in no particular order)
1. Veronica Falls – Bed Feeling
2. Real Estate – It’s Real
3. The Wild Swans – When Time Stood Still
4. The Feelies – Should Be Gone
5. The Blessed Isles – Caroline
6. Ringo Deathstarr – Kaleidoscope
7. Germany Germany – Take Your Time
8. Mood Rings – Promise Me Eternity
9. Still Corners – Cuckoo
10. Hong Kong In The 60s – You Can Take A Heart But You Cannot Make It Beat
11. Motorama – Empty Bed
12. I Break Horses – Hearts
13. Radioseven – Sunset
14. Sulk – Wishes
15. Azure Blue – The Catcher in the Rye
16. Epic45 – Summer Message
17. Echo Lake – Buried At Sea
18. Ringo Deathstarr – Other Things
19. M83 – Midnight City
20. SPC ECO – Ave Verum Corpus

Download

Listen to the Shelflife Records podcast: Subscribe using iTunes or subscribe to the feed.

The debut single “Two Rings” from the Ice Choir is officially released today in the UK/EUR through Yesboyicecream and in the US through Shelflife. Here’s the official video for the track directed by Ryan Louie.

Order here!

Days celebrated their very first US performance this last weekend at the NYC Popfest. The show was simply incredible. As a bonus, they were invited to do a live studio session and interview for Grey Skies at WNYU. Thanks Brian for setting that up. The entire session is available for download below. Enjoy!

Free Download

Burning Hearts debut the title track and video from their upcoming EP “Into The Wilderness”, out June 21 on Shelflife.

Preorder the EP now!

The Alaskan tundra and the wild bears
I am returning to that nightmare

Life and death are given a different meaning
in grizzly kingdom above the treeline where the permafrost’s growing deeper
I could never climb those mountains, I could never be
sleeping safely under the same stars as timothy
Into the wilderness away from the lonelyness

You walked with the foxes dancing ’round your feet they followed you to the last sleep
You walked with the foxes dancing ’round your feet they followed you into your dreams
and they followed you… Into the wilderness away from the lonelyness

The animal with the strongest paw
mixed friends with prey – it’s nature’s law
I could never climb those mountains, I could never be
sleeping safely under the same stars as timothy
Into the wilderness away from the lonelyness

Download Burning Hearts – Into The Wilderness
[dewplayer:http://www.shelflife.com/mp3-bin/BH_wilderness.mp3]

We’re now carrying two new cds from Fastcut Records Japan. The excellent new Kuryakin album “A New Day” and the Suede Crocodiles compilation “Stop The Rain” (previously available on vinyl only from Accident Records). Both are $16 each and available right now in the Shelflife shop.

I recently discovered this hidden gem of a band. They hail from Russia, you may recognize them from their main project Motorama. They are quite tricky though, they offer the album for free from their website, if you can find it of course ;)

[dewplayer: http://www.shelflife.com/mp3-bin/ytro-sad.mp3]

I’m sure it’s no real surprise that Caribou is getting my top spot this year. It’s been on my highly recommended list ever since it came out in April. “Swim” is just brilliant and seeing them play it live twice this year just solidified my decision. I still joke with the idea that Daniel Snaith listened to a lot of Familjen records and decided to reinvent Swedish disco — but whatever really inspired him to go into this direction, I sincerely hope he continues.

As for the podcast, it was again definitely a challenge to pick 20 top songs, so I picked 25! There were also a lot of tracks that would have made the playlist six months ago (“I Just Want To See Your Face” by Serena Maneesh being one of them), but as usual I burn out on things quickly and at this moment in time, I can’t listen to them. I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Top 10 releases of 2010
1. Caribou – Swim (Merge)
2. The Radio Dept. – Clinging To A Scheme (Labrador)
3. Ceremony – Rocket Fire (Killer Pimp)
4. The European – In A Very Real Sense Now (Stolen)
5. The Chemical Brothers – Further (Astralwerks)
6. Blue Sky Black Death – Third Party (Fake Four)
7. Wild Nothing – Gemini (Captured Tracks)
8. Secret Shine – The Beginning and the End (self-released)
9. School of Seven Bells – Disconnect From Desire (Vagrant)
10. Bubblegum Leomonade – Sophomore Release (Matineé)

runners up:
The Cavalcade – Many Moons (Pebble)
The Depreciation Guild – Spirit Youth (Kanine)
A Sunny Day in Glasgow – Autumn, again (self-released)
Robyn – Body Talk (Cherrytree)
Germany Germany – Radiowave (THaF)
Phil Wilson – God Bless Jim Kennedy (Slumberland)
Allo Darlin’ – Allo Darlin’ (Fortuna Pop)
Benoît Piolard – Lasted (Kranky)

Podcast #4 – Top 25 songs of 2010
(in no particular order)
1. The Radio Dept. – This Time Around
2. Korallreven – The Truest Faith
3. Teen Daze – Four More Years
4. Silver Swans – Secrets
5. Wild Nothing – Golden Haze
6. Ceremony – Stars Fall
7. Secret Shine – No More Inside
8. Germany Germany – River
9. Familjen – När Planeterna Stannat
10. Blue Sky Black Death – Threads of Gold
11. Still Corners – Wish
12. Engineers – Subtober
13. Klaxons – Echoes
14. Bubblegum Lemonade – Caroline’s Radio
15. The Camerawalls (feat Sarah Gaugler) – The Sight of Love
16. The Chemical Brothers – Another Wold
17. Caribou – Found Out
18. The European – The Settler
19. Chiddy Bang – Pass Out
20. School Of Seven Bells – Babelonia
21. A Sunny Day in Glasgow – Fall In Love
22. Beach Fossils – Wide Awake
23. Girls Names – Graveyard
24. Foxes in Fiction – Ativan (Song for Erika)
25. Echodrone – Sway and Drown

Download

Listen to the Shelflife Records podcast: Subscribe using iTunes or subscribe to the feed.

p.s. As a rule I always exclude anything Shelflife from these lists.