The Best Albums of 2012 (12-22)

Merry Christmas to all.

Sometimes Christmas surprises you.  For years I've grown complacent with Christmas presents.  Not for others.  For others I go all out spending most of the year trying to figure out exactly what they want.  What I'm referring to is what is given to me.  I'm not bitching about peoples' generosity, everyone around me is very generous but sometimes their presents miss the mark and I spend most of the day smiling and thanking people for something I'm figuring out how I'm going to return.  This year something different happened.  I'm a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan...if you haven't noticed in my Billy Corgan manlove.  I've purchased all the reissues thus far.The Pumpkins reissues have been one of the best remaster/editions to come out in years.  Though it comes close to the "wall of sound" disaster that ruined Nevermind...it toes close enough to the line to respectfully keep the original sound intact.  Naturally, I admired the Mellon Collie box set from afar.  I thought the Pisces price tag of $40 was steep...but the Mellon Collie set weighs in at over $100.  Granted you get 5 discs worth of material...plus a DVD.  It was still far above what I could handle paying.  I joked with my brother about getting it for me...knowing fair well that he would never cough up the dough for it.  My brother would rather spend $100 on polishing the tires on his Maserati than ever think about doing something like this.  Granted, his tires do get dirty very easily.  I had begun plotting how I might be able to download the bonus tracks though the availability of them was very slim.  I had resigned the fact that this one would be the box set that would just get away.  Then, Christmas morning I unwrapped it.  The last present under the tree happened to be the one thing I wanted that I never thought I'd have.  Though it wasn't from my brother...it was a bit of a Christmas miracle.

A post about this SP set will be coming shortly...

Here are the Best Albums of 2012 (12-22):

12.  Jeff The Brotherhood - Hypnotic Nights 
13.  Chiddy Bang - Breakfast 
14.  Of Monsters and Men - My Head Is An Animal 
15.  Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
16.  The Raveonettes - Observator 
17.  Crystal Castles - III
18.  Craig Finn - Clear Heart Full Eyes 
19.  Japandroids - Celebration Rock 
20.  Van Halen - A Different Kind of Truth 
21.  The Lumineers - The Lumineers 
22.  Kendrick Lamar - good kid, maad city (Bonus Track)

Buy these albums and more now!!!

Free Music Fourth of July Weekend: The 11 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2012 so far

Rap and Hip-Hop still struggle to be taken seriously.  It sounds like a crazy statement like I'm completely out of touch with the pulse of the culture.  But it's true.  Rock has grown up and is finally being universally accepted as a relevant art form.  Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney and Bono are as respected and appreciated as much as stodgy elder statesmen and unlearned politicians.  Hip-Hop still has a way to go.  Jay-Z may own all the money in world...and may even have the ear of the President... but by most people he's still not revered as anything more than a rap mogul.  Rap may dominate the dance charts, the sales charts, and line the MP3 playlists of every teenager in America...but there's a giant part of country...who still thinks it's nothing more than a passing fad. They're wrong...but they're the ones who are still in charge.  It will change.  Eazy-E may have hung out with President Bush Sr. (but that was the exception...not the rule)  Rap will take over...and it will be them who are thumbing their noses at electronica music. Just you wait.  Until then...

Here are the 11 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2012...so far:

1. Schoolboy Q - Habits and Contradictions
2. Joey Bada$$ - 1999
3. El-P - Cancer 4 Cure
4. Killer Mike - R.A.P.
5. Chiddy Bang - Breakfast
6. Big K.R.I.T. - Live From The Underground/4Eva N A Day
7. Meek Mill - Dreamchasers 2
8. Plug 1 & Plug 2 - First Serve
9. Wiz Khalifa - Taylor Allderdice
10. Oh No - Ohnomite
11. Nicki Minaj - Roman Reloaded

It's 4th of July weekend...so enjoy the free mixtapes...all legally free.

Have a free mixtape that should be noticed??  Add it and let us all know.