records of 2011. 23. Mark McGuire - Get Lost

23. MARK MCGUIRE - GET LOST

When we say a man playing his guitar through effects pedals, you say "Oh" but we say "Whoa." Last year saw the release of his stunning debut Living With Yourself and he's already released another archived collection, the sprawling A Young Person's Guide to Mark McGuire.

So, what's this one like? Well, it's still perfect music to lay down on your bed and close your eyes to. You say "Oh right" and we say "Whoa. High Hive!" This body of work stands taller as one whole work and has less variation than his first effort. However, the beautiful scenery is still apparent at every left, right and straight ahead, like the squiggly 20 minute hypnosis of Firefly Constellations.

There's mounds of ambient and sonic material out there. Some of the blogs and music websites like witchtalkmedia will filter through it for you. For me, this artist is the very best of them and for someone so young and prolific, let's hope there'll be a lot more lying-down to come.

GO HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7S6bt_xaWW4

top records of 2011 - 24. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

24. FLEET FOXES - HELPLESSNESS BLUES

I was walking to the immigration office in the grey, humid city and it was stiflingly humid and I was in a hurry and I hadn't slept very well the night before. I was pumped on coffee and I had to go and upset my stomach by eating a big Mac because I was in a hurry. I felt sick and I barely had any money in my pocket. I had to comprehend the idea of waiting in line for two hours at immigration. It really was a kind of fuck my life moment.

Nothing seemed to matter though - not that anything matters anyway - as this record came through my tinny headphones. Even through the loud, sweaty, constructive city, the melodies of these boys reigned over me as I burst out into song, becoming the seventh fleet fox in a golden instant.

This brand of Americana is so in love with everything that it brushes aside all troubles. It follows on from their self-titles debut a years ago and expands everything into an all-out, full-on masterclass of baroque folk. The craft and fun and utter melody that is on show here makes this triumph over coffee any day.

GO HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HHgedNNQco

records of 2011. 25. Jonas Reinhardt - Music For The Tactile Dome

25. JONAS REINHARDT - MUSIC FOR THE TACTILE DOME

There's this ace trend right now of otherworldly, space-age music and when it sounds as captive as this, we can consider ourselves lucky earthlings. There's no great need to generalize other than to introduce new listeners to the captivating, starry sound. It's not exactly a tight little music scene, as it's a vast universe out there.

I first started to pick up on it last year as the sounds of Emeralds and Oneohtrix Point Never received high critical acclaim and with Grouper earlier ths term releasing some killer sounds, it starts to get pretty addictive.

So, where do Jonas Reinhardt fit into all of this? Well, as the title track beams in, it feels like you're in for the journey of your dreams, as glittering synthesizers twinkle all around. It's mind-bendingly gorgeous stuff and the music that follows picks up and drops off the pace as we cruise around space. This differs from the aforementioned compatriots, as it feels like a solitary, focused space mission as opposed to revelling in zero gravity

GO HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWDuYefZvXM&feature=related

records of 2011. 26. Junior Boys - It's All True

26. JUNIOR BOYS - IT'S ALL TRUE

They drop album number four and the pressure is off because the media has come to expect sophsticated sophisto-pop from this Canadian duo. If you're not familiar, the acts name is apt because they employ a wholesome and cultivated take on pop music. It makes me want to wear a really nice coat because the sound is still quite wintry.

The great thing about the Junior Boys is that each album holds up really well. Only one or two tracks of theirs have truly blown my mind - "FM" and "In The Morning" are two of my favourite pop songs of all time - but still all four LP's are really concentrated instead of being watered down with piss like most pop music.

And. And, it's hardly drivetime. It's suave and confident without being too cocksure. With each album the production sounds even more iridescent, maybe because of technology improving since their 2004 debut "Last Exit" but that's not for me to say. What I do say is let's have another 6 of these beauties and then we can say the Junior Boys will have released 10 great albums.

LOLZ! LMFAO!

GO HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CFAatTMGfU&ob=av2e

top records of 2011 - 27. Beastie Boys - Hot Sauce Committee Part Two

27. BEASTIE BOYS - HOT SAUCE COMMITTEE PART TWO

"Too many many rappers out there / not enough MC's"

Nice to have them back as this is pure fire. Mix Master Mike has really cranked up the production and really paints a lot of colours on this banger. It's such a party album in true Beastie fashion.

I listened to this when tipsy on Gin & Tonic touching down in Taiwan on the flight back from London. It was nice to be back in my current city of choice - Taipei - while touching down on the runway, listening to "OK. Again, it's pure fire. Listen below.

Overall, the rhyming is cheesy and tight, just how we have liked it all these years. The turntablism is exemplary and when most rappers take themselves so seriously and act so vain, it's great to hear these guys return in such sparkling form, having a lot of fun in the process.

FIRE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArMGl-kCwng

top 50 records of 2011 - 28. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - Belong

28 - THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART - BELONG

Sugary sweet, but not sickly. This takes 90's indie pop and throws in extra sweeteners for good measure. If this was a dessert it could be:

Chocolate White Chocolate Cake	$39
Red Velvet Cake	$39
Chocolate Truffle	$41
Bailey's Irish Cream Cake	$41
Chocolate Caramel Cake	$41
Chocolate Raspberry Rhapsody Cake	$41
Chocolate Mint Dream Cake	$41
Chocolate Fudge Cake	$37
Java Del Sol Cake	$41
Bittersweet Hazelnut Cake	$41
Mexican Chocolate Cake	$41
Chocolate Velvet Torte	$32
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rl7-1aFa4E

top 50 records of 2011 - 29. Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean

29. IRON & WINE - KISS EACH OTHER CLEAN

It's nice to see an artist take a few risks every now and again. "Go on son. Roll a 6." Sam Beam felt that it was time to explore the sonic possibilities of his ever-expanding Iron & Wine sound and every album in from his hushed, four-track recorded debut "The Creek Drank The Cradle" had evolved more layers, but here it's as if the band has shed its skin and become a totally different beast.

Considering he previously was associated with folk and americana, it has to be said that here there's a stock radio-pop, a dash of funk and even a sprinkle of electric guitar as Beam rocks out in the sensational seven-minute closer "Your Fake Name Is Good Enough For Me" as he repeats things that "we become" over and over. These things include a hammer and nail, a disco ball and an ice-cream cone. Nice.

Whatever Iron & Wine has become, it's all because he's finally gone and taken the plunge and it's wholly worth diving in with him

GO HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBJHqU5_6jU