The 55 Best Albums of 2011 (12-22)

No song was more infectious this year than Foster the People's Pumped up Kids.  What started as a catchy indie rock diddy took off and became an international hit rocketing up the Billboard charts and propelling rock album sales.  Most people still don't know the song is about a school shooting.  Maybe that why despite its popular success, it's still retained its indie cred.  Hopefully this is a sign that there's still a place for rock music on the charts...or maybe it's opening the floodgates for a rock music revival.  One can only hope.

Send in your BEST OF LISTS!!!  I want your top 20 albums of the year...or as many as you would like to send.  Just stick them in the comment section or email them to me.  I will compile a list by New Year's and share it with you all.

Here are the 55 Best Songs of 2011 (12-22):

12.       War on Drugs - Slave Ambient (Baby Missiles)

13.       Bright Eyes - The People's Key

14.       Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math

15.       Middle Brother - Middle Brother (Portland)

16.       Wye Oak - Civilian

17.       Jeff the Brotherhood - We Are Champions

18.       Foster The People - Torches

19.       Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch The Throne

20.       Jason Isbell - Here We Rest

21.    VHS or Beta - Diamonds and Death

22.    Dawes - Nothing Is Wrong

Buy these albums and more from 2011...all for under $5...for a limited time!!!

The Unknown: Middle Brother - Live at the Paradise

With a slower music week, I decided to go back and hit a couple of releases from the past few weeks I may have missed.  First up is Deer Tick's new album out about two weeks ago.  When Middle Brother's new album came out a few weeks ago, I did a list for Deer Tick.  Now with a new Deer Tick album I figured it's only fair to do a Middle Brother post.  With only one album...can't do a best of...so I hope this concert is a decent substitute.

I am always intrigued by how bands with one album decide what songs to play in concert.  Why not just play their album from beginning to end?  What's the point of mixing it up in a different order?  Shouldn't the tracklist of songs on the album be the best order for the songs?  If not, then why put out the album with the songs in that order?  It's like watching a movie out of sequence on DVD versus the way it was shown in the theaters.  That would just be weird...yet with music that's normal.

Here is Middle Brother - Live at the Paradise March 3, 2011:

1.  Blue Eyes 
2.  Mom and Dad
3.  Thanks For Nothing
4.  Someday
5.  Daydreaming
6.  Blood and Guts
7.  Theater
8.  Me Me Me 
9.  Wilderness 
10.  Million Dollar Bill 
11.  Middle Brother
12.  Portland
13.  Twist and Shout

Buy Deer Tick's new album, Divine Providence, now!!

The 11 Best Side Project/Solo albums of 2011 (so far)

This week another project from the Dispatch family comes out.  Chad Urmston under the moniker Chadwick Stokes has a very strong solo release hitting the digital shelves.

Dispatch is a very interesting band considering their huge popularity on the east coast...while out on the west coast nobody even knows who they are.  It's rare to see a band whose popularity is regulated to a region of the country.  Even in today's digital world where everything should be equal, Dispatch still remains an east Coast legend while on the west coast they might as well be a unsigned act.  On the east coast they have a legion of die-hard dedicated fans and on the west coast they wouldn't even be on the guest list to their own concert.

This year, Chad isn't the only one branching out from his main band to go out on his own.  Here's a list of the best side projects and solo albums so far.

Here are the 11 Best Side Project/Solo albums of 2011 (so far):

1.  Middle Brother - Middle Brother (Dawes, Deer Tick, Delta Spirit) - Daydreaming live
2.  Radical Dads - Mega Rama (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah)
3.  David Lowery - The Palace Guards (Cracker)
4.  The Elected - Bury Me In My Rings (Rilo Kiley)
5.  Chadwick Stokes - Simmerkane II (State Radio, Dispatch)
6.  Panda Bear - Tomboy (Animal Collective)
7.  Eddie Vedder - Ukelele Songs (Pearl Jam)
8.  Fruit Tree Foundations - First Edition (Idlewild, Twilight Sad, Frightened Rabbit)
9.  Graham Wright - Shirts vs. Skins (Tokyo Police Club)
10.  Miracle Parade - Hark and Other Lost Transmissions (Everyday Visuals, Rilo Kiley)
11.  Alex Turner - Submarine EP (Arctic Monkeys)

Buy Chadwick Stokes - Simmerkane II now!