Turns out that I missed these dusty halls of music and joy. The mothership still has all the knobs and buttons so I fired up the motor and found some goodness to share.
It’s near the end of 2011 and while we were away, please know that we had it turned up loud. It’s Cazador’s “ELEVEN’S AWESOMEST” that’s in no particular order (and also not 11). Whatever. Here we go.
BON IVER. Holy shit, Justin Vernon…your falsetto’s the truth. It wasn’t good or great. Twas better. One complaint: Why wasn’t it longer? Too short.
Manchester Orchestra did some Simple Math. Atlanta’s own (awww, Jaawwwjaa), Simple Math rocked this observer to the core. Delicious. It’s still not too late.
HIP HOP! Kanye West and Jay-Z aren’t exactly unheard of, but these guys banged out some awesome with Watch the Throne. We won’t even attempt to post a video on this here blog cuz Jay-Z can haz lawyaz n’ they don’t wanna bit of embeddin’. So if you haven’t seen it, I think this might be the best video of the year. That Maybach went Mad Max + Aziz Ansari. Whaaaaa? THIS, however, is my favorite track on the album cause it’s all schizophrenic and doesn’t know what it wants to do…other than bang (2:10 mark = mood swang).
From hip hop to bluegrass. Really? Only here. Seryn might be the best band no one’s heard of on this here list. And their album This Is Where We Are was seriously amazing. Cover to cover. The perfect backdrop to a life changing occasion? Check.
Bombay Bicycle Club hit us with the super poppy, catchy thing and then switched it up. A Different Kind of Fix wasn’t what we thought it would be, but it was good and we’re glad to know it.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. is an odd name…and while reluctant to give the odd name a fair chance, It’s a Corporate World was grand.
Perhaps you need a little more rockabilly in your scene. Perhaps you want to find a little known band that has lots of albums and plenty to get familiar with. And maybe you love bands from Missouri. If any of these are true, keep reading. If all of these things are true, stop reading and MAKE IT LOUDER. Ha Ha Tonka played my favorite public radio station’s 25th birthday party. The station marketed wisely and, at the same time, I found a band. Winners all around. Death of a Decade is worth checking out.
ECLECTIC WARNING! Here we move across the spectrum of genre. J. Cole has been written about around here before. He also released a tremendous mixtape in 2010. However, his first major label release was dope. Taupe dope. Cole world, indeed. Cole World – The Sideline Story could have been a huge collection of underwhelming. He wouldn’t have been the first person to use up the goodies on the mix tape. That was not the case.
Last, but certainly not least. No lyrics, just sounds…and oh my, the sounds. Explosions in the Sky made your life better this year because they gave it a soundtrack that matters. It’s only six songs long, but they’re seamless and amazing…all of them. Take Care, Take Care, Take Care takes care. Believe.
HONORABLE MENTIONS (i.e. just an excuse for us to stop typing and utilize the videos by themselves)
We’ve improperly labeled this. Nothing here is lacking. It’s just a matter of preference and degrees. There’s goodness here. Thank goodness.
Before the post ends, sincere thanks to all the loyal readers that managed to keep in touch even when our posts went silent. Big year that was scary, busy, incredible, tiring and never to be forgotten or repeated, 2011 is nearly gone. INLE is not, though. New stuff might not be happening as often as we’d all like, but this little corner of the internet has been great for reasons far beyond jokes and music. Happy New Year, kids.
It's Not Loud Enough 
Welcome back, INLE!