JB’s BEST of 2011
Drummer, composer, tastemaker, father, avid vinyl collector, Greenville resident and leader in sweater fashion. Former Fruitbat, Rocket Number Nine Zoom Zoom Up, and current Heavy Love and North Main Rambler.

1 BEIRUT – The Rip Tide
Is this perfection?!? The songs (concentrated pop), the arrangements (dense with ideas but devoid of clutter) and the language (original by way of saturated world folk study) lead me to believe so. After exploring eccentric musics and challenging himself, he found his audience on his own terms. The last few records were great but on this one he found his voice in all it’s uniqueness and delivered a highly polished record that will be celebrated (at least in my home) for many years to come.

2 GIRLS – Father, Son, Holy Ghost
They’re stepping out on an epic adventure so expect the unexpected. He’s still singing mostly about girls (this would include his mom) but their sonic pallet has expanded and they use these tools in effective ways.

3 TORO Y MOI – Underneath the Pine
It doesn’t hurt that he is from South Carolina but he is doing something new. It’s pop music and dance music. Doing them both well, at the same time is the rub. No, I don’t think the Bee Gees did.

4 TUNE-YARDS – Whokill
Musically gifted, socially connected and full of perspective, she may be the perfect communicator. And with a voice that can charge, prod, soothe, hurt and love she connects with the listener in a pure and intense way.

5 DESTROYER – Kaputt
I admit that I stay one step behind Destroyer. Every record he makes I’m pissed that it doesn’t sound like the previous one. Kaputt is no different. I guess this one sounds like a cocaine fueled roller rink.

6 ST. VINCENT – Strange Mercy
Ballsy progressive guitar rock from protestant over-achieving chick. Think Sufjan but less fussy.

7 PANDA BEAR – Tomboy
I’m obsessed with this record. Kind of like when I was obsessed with Coltrane’s Ascension or Shoenberg’s piano music. In a way it sounds random and hopeless but there is a tangible sense of humanity that proves telling. How or why did they choose their path?

8 BON IVER – Bon Iver
He’s too good for the Grammy’s but just good enough to peddle whiskey. Whatever, but the record is great. Just ask anybody.

9 ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER – Last Summer
The girl half of Fiery Furnaces makes a solo record and it’s just weird enough. Touted as an accessible pop record but c’mon. She’s “watching Footloose with the biggest bottle of vodka in the world”. I recommend buying this record before you preview it. If you give it a loving home, it’ll cozy up to you.

10 CHAD VANGAALEN – Diaper Island
If you were to replace the southern rock aspect of Band of Horses with DIY post-punk you would be on Diaper Island.

11 CASS McCOMBS – Wit’s End
The first track is worth the price of admission; he’s a white Bill Withers! The rest is beautiful but requires a bit more patience and understanding.

12 BILL CALLAHAN – Apocalypse
At the end of the world there will only be cockroaches and Bill Callahan. For real, fifteen solid LPs and still going strong. Dang.

13 ANTLERS – Burst Apart
A perfect storm of electro-pop, smooth-rock and falsetto laden lounge music. Dangerously close to background music, the songs are strong enough to pull you into the Starbuck ready arrangements. Once your there, you might as well get a latte and enjoy yourself.

14 REAL ESTATE – Days
Is it ok to call them soft rock? Do you like America or Bread? Ok, what about James Taylor? Well even so, you might like Real Estate. It just feels so damn good.

15 JUNIOR BOYS – It’s All True
It’s electro-pop, which really tells you nothing about their craft. There’s footage online of them singing these songs just with Fender Rhodes and it’s still great. In this format they could do the singer songwriter circuit but really it’s better with the programming. Yell Judas if you like.

16 FLEET FOXES – Helplessness Blues
These guys are going to be around for awhile. There is nothing here not to like. Great songs, beautiful harmonies and unfortunately their sound is unique. Top shelf.

17 DEERHOOF – Deerhoof vs. Evil
Really not all that different from every other Deerhoof record. Challenging polyrhythms, impossible sounds, and big hooks from these outsider art prog rockers.

18 WILD FLAG – Wild Flag
It’s not four girls having a pillow fight but it comes close. These indie rock vets sound like they are having fun making catchy, post Pretenders, high gain, pop nuggets.

19 DAS RACIST – Relax
Oddball rappers that are destroying convention. Are they ironic? Maybe, but more than anything else they are reminding us that it’s 2011 and Jay-Z is tired.

20 THE DECEMBERISTS – The King is Dead
For those scoring at home this would be their sixth long player. Since most of his high brow literary chops are lost on these ears it comes across as more or less the same. Even so, it’s one of the year’s best. I’ll have to admit that after the first listen I tossed it in the “to be filed stack” but upon revisits it reveals some real charmers.

—John Byce