John Lefsky Poop ’11

Posted By: JohnL January 31, 2012


One of the hardest years to pin down a top 20. It seems like every time I turned around, there was some new music to be heard: some by old standbys and a lot by new acts. A couple of labels seemed to stand out (Sacred Bones, Trouble In Mind). Looking at my list from last year, I noticed that not a lot has changed: a lot of power pop/punk throwbacks alongside the noisemakers and sadsack song-writers. The last couple of years, #1 choices jumped out; I don’t even know what my top choice is as I write this. I might just go with my gut and throw on whatever got the most spins.



cover of Cute Lepers - ADVENTURE TIME  Buy New or Used via amazon
1. Cute Lepers – ADVENTURE TIME. Fits nicely between my plays of the Buzzcocks and the Rezillos. Cotton candy with some ground glass.



cover of The Men - LEAVE HOME  Buy New or Used via amazon
2. The Men – LEAVE HOME. Some screaming borderline metal/noise, post-punk mishigas with a krautrock topping.



cover of The Ex - CATCH MY SHOE  Buy New or Used via amazon
3. The Ex – CATCH MY SHOE. First album with the new ranter. After overcoming my initial Sok-shock, Arnold de Boer fit right in. Still with the jagged guitars, jagged politics, elephant drums, some catchier-than-usual hooks and some blaring brass heralding doomsday.



cover of The Bon - STATIC ELECTRICITY  Lease MP3 via amazon
4. The Bon – STATIC ELECTRICITY. Leather Uppers off-shoot, all killer, no fluffernutter (I shouldn’t write this before I’ve had lunch), twin guitars, 60’s psych flute, cool Kinks cover.



cover of The Mekons - ANCIENT AND MODERN 1911-2011  Buy New or Used via amazon
5. The Mekons – ANCIENT AND MODERN 1911-2011. The Last Of England, through caustic, sad eyes. “We’ll cut the grass after the bombardment..” Raise a glass to decay.



cover of Ivan Julian - THE NAKED FLAME  Buy New or Used via amazon
6. Ivan Julian – THE NAKED FLAME. Former Voidoid first solo, really? Didn’t miss a beat, appearing like the last few decades never happened. passing time is noted with an ode to colleague Robert Quine, and a surprising, and effective, cover of Lucinda Williams’ “Broken Butterflies.”



cover of Mikal Cronin - MIKAL CRONIN  Buy New or Used via amazon
7. Mikal Cronin – MIKAL CRONIN. Lush on a budget. Sweet harmonies, melodies that would chart if this were 1967, some rough edges that keep the Brian Wilson/Beatles references from becoming cloying. “Again and Again” is the best pop
tune of 2011.



cover of Thee Oh Sees - CASTLEMANIA  Buy New or Used via amazon
8. Thee Oh Sees – CASTLEMANIA. Two albums this past year, both great. This one wins because of the nifty covers, including one by the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band. TOS play psych-garage like they are having fun and not concerned with re-writing the Nuggets recipe.



cover of Dexter Romweber Duo - IS THAT YOU IN THE BLUE?  Buy New or Used via amazon
9. Dexter Romweber Duo – IS THAT YOU IN THE BLUE? High drama and cigarette smoke garage-noir.



cover of Evangelista - ANIMAL TONGUE  Buy New or Used via amazon
10. Evangelista – ANIMAL TONGUE. Carla, Carla, Carla. Another gem, but this one takes awhile. Claustrophobic and bloody.



11. The Ettes – WICKED WILL     12. Total Control – HENGE BEAT     13. Live Ones – YER QUITE WELCOME     14. Ty Segall – MELTED     15. Bevis Frond – LEAVING OF LONDON     16. Mighty Fine – GET UP TO GET DOWN     17. Gillian Welch – THE HARROW AND THE HARVEST     18. Haunted House – BLUE GHOST     19. Howe Gelb – ALGERIAS     20. Amen Dunes – THROUGH DONKEY JAW



ALSO:
PJ Harvey – LET ENGLAND SHAKE     Half Man Half Biscuit – 90 BISODOL     Comet Gain – HOWL OF THE LONELY CROWD     Insomniacs – JUST ENJOY IT     Fucked Up – DAVID COMES TO LIFE     Master Musicians Of Bukkake – TOTEM 3     Richard Buckner – OUR BLOOD     Boston Spaceships – LET IT BEARD     Eleventh Dream Day – RIOT NOW     Sweet Clemintines – THOUGH IT WERE THE KISS OF DEATH     Sex Church – GROWING OVER     Kurt Vile – SMOKE RINGS FOR MY HALO     Stephen Malkmus – MIRROR TRAFFIC     Case Studies – THE WORLD IS JUST A SHAPE…     Obits – MOODY, STANDARD AND POOR     Metal Mountains – GOLDEN TREES     Shana Falana – IN THE LIGHT     Hayvanlar Alemi – GUARANA SUPERPOWER     Kid Congo – GORILLA ROSE     Sun Araw – ANCIENT ROMANS     Tinariwen – TASSILI     Twin Guns – SCENE OF THE CRIME

There’s more, but space is a place.



REISSUES, COMPS, ETC:
CQ – THE OUTSIDERS     Bunch o’ Giant Sand     Bloodloss – TRUTH IS MARCHING IN     Neil Diamond – BANG YEARS     Bunch o’ Jesus and Mary Chain     Nick Lowe – LABOUR OF LUST     Ty Segall – SINGLES 2007-10     Eddy Current Supression Ring – EDDY CURRENT SUPRESSION RING     Southern Culture On The Skids – ZOMBIEFIED     Archers Of Loaf – ICKY METTLE



SHOWS:
Yo La Tengo, The Mekons, Dave Alvin/Los Straitjackets, Barrance Whitfield/ Mighty Fines, Neko Case.



MOVIES:
Poetry. Moneyball. Meloncholia. Higher Ground, Attack The Block.



I’ll slap myself in the head for things I’ve forgotten, but the head Poopster just walked in and I wanna get this done. See ya.