Best of 2012
Pop Edition

Part three of the DFBM Best of 2012 listing. It's a bit longer, because it's not really bound to any genre. Ok, at the end it's pretty much a similar sound, but who cares. I am a narrow minded guy. Enjoy anyway...

20. Grimes - Visions

Stream

I avoided it at first and it took a while to jump on the hype. Two tracks are really really good the rest is just nice and didn't catch my attention. I thought it's more interesting that she thanked label mates Pop Winds to learn how to use sampler and stuff 

19. The Smoking Trees - Acetat

no player rendered Acetates

Classic sixties psych pop. Backwards, forwards, echo, phaser, reverb, weed.

18. Expwy - Bag of Waters

no player rendered Smoked and crossed up a fist into arms

I have a lot of fun listen to this. Noise Pop One Man Show from Canada.

17. Foxygen - Take the Kids Off Broadway

no player rendered Make It Known

Young guys worshipping Mick Jagger. Like MGMT or of Montreal, because they are able to adapt their musical idols really well. But for the coming album it's not enough anymore to sound like Mick Jagger. But this album is really fun to listen.

16. Horse Thieves - Horse Thieves

no player rendered Hard Times

Obscure Garage Country.

15. DIIV - Oshin

Stream Doused

Ok, it's a good album - I listen to it a lot - mainly to Doused because it just stands out.

14. Beach House - Bloom

DIY Video to Wishes

I think I liked Teen Dream a tiny bit more - but it's maybe hard to top that and meet the expectation of the people. So they used the same ingredients again. I listen to this album a lot anyway. Maybe for some personal reasons, it calmed me down.

13. Animal Flag - Everything Will Be Okay

no player rendered Everything Will Be Okay

Pretty enjoyable Indie Folk album.

12. Cold Pumas - Persistent Malaise

no player rendered Sherry Island

Motorik drumming and Post-Punk and lots of energy. 

11. Lumerians - Transmissions From The Telos Vol. IV

stream the album

Psychedelic Jams are mostly stoned improvisation for stoned people - or just for the musicians. Everyone who recorded music on drugs know how horrible it sounds the day after.
I don't know if the Lumerians were stoned on this recording session but it's no annoying freeform shit, just straight psychedelic garage rock. Instrumental of course.

10. MMOSS - Only Children

no player rendered Wander

Oops here is another psych rock gem by MMOSS. More early Pink Floyd influences. I am always a sucker for such music.

9. Erevan Tusk - Fortify Your Innocence

 Frostbitten

Whiny Indie Pop from France.

8. Jacco Gardner - Where Will You Go/Clear The Air EP

no player rendered Clear The Air

This guy know his roots. I fell in love with his former project The Skywalkers which was more minimal. This is rich Baroque Pop. Unfortunately I was not able to get a 7" because even if I wrote a pre-order to the label guy, he never responsed and there was no info about the release date (maybe via facebook) and when I asked what happend to the release it was sold out. But anyway. I spend the money to someone else.

7. The Walkmen - Heaven

Video to The Love you Love

Beside the first album I didn't know any music by The Walkmen and when Heaven was anounced the album cover wasn't appealing enough to get interested in. I have no idea idea why I took a listen anyway (maybe because it was just announced everywhere) and The Love you Love was such a strong title, with this driving beat and Hamilton Leihouser's intense vocals, I fell in love instantly. Maybe it's just the love I love, but beside that I found a lot of inspiration in the songs and I discovered The Walkmen backcatalogue as well and the music by The Walkmen was with me over the whole spring. Which was awesome and intense.

6. Motorama - Calendar

During the years

They are great. Calendar is not as strong as Alps, but still good post punk.

5. Black Marble - A Different Arrangement

no player rendered A Great Design

Sunny dark wave.

4. Sea Pinks - Freak Waves

no player rendered A Pattern Recognition no player rendered Following Wind no player rendered Shrinking Violet

Can't decide which track, so I choose all my favorites. Great surf pop from Belfast which is not the city I expect sunny beach pop from. But I guess the imagination of sunny beaches is much stronger than chilling lazy at a beach in California...

3. Girls Names - A Troubled See

Stream A Troubled See. This is just one track of a split 7" but together with the New Life EP it was easy to put it on this list

Post-Punk/Surf from Belfast... wait... yes, Sea Pinks is the drummer of Girls Names. Circle closed.

2. Chris Cohen - Overgrown Path

stream optimist high

Such a light, uplifting and relaxing album. I got lost in it.

1. Holograms - Holograms/ABC City EP

Swedens pride... The story about no money, stolen gear and unsure about getting a working visa for a US tour sounds pretty tough. But what means Punk today? Dancing pogo with an iPhone protection case? Writing reviews in shiny online-publications about a DIY counter culture from 30 years ago?
By the way - Holograms really sound like a band from 34 years ago. Fresh, angry and since I am born in the year of Punk (which I date to 1978) or at least in the year of the first KORG MS20, I put them on top for nostalgia reasons.

OK, that's all folks. 2012 was tough (personally) and exciting (personally and musically). I hope you'll find some inspiration here or somewhere else.

The blog is now 4 years old (starting at blogspot) and the label is getting 3 years old. I can't believe how unsuccessful and fun it is. So more years to come. Cheeeeers.