Monthly Archives: December 2011

100

Somehow.

Let’s lay down what’s happening in 2012.

-We’ll start tagging shit better. We’ve been doing basically none, and that blows, so, that gets fixed.

-We will keep lovin’ y’all in the fan club.

-A whole bunch of ill shit is on it’s way out. Off the top of my head, there’s Big KRIT’s first album, Sharon Van Etten’s biggest, new Swans, that Cloud Nothings record, The Men already have a new album ready, that Mesita record looks to be totally crazy… 2012 is looking to be crazy for the first quarter at least.

-We don’t write enough? Well fuck that, son. We’re going to be more on top of shit this year. More song reviews, more album reviews, we’ll figure out how to do more podcast stuff, and a lot more C&A. There’s already some shit in the can for January.

-How about some new writers? At least one, at most three.

-Where’s Metal Sam? Fucking fired, that’s where Metal Sam is. But don’t worry, I got a replacement (thus “at least one.”)

-Music. That’s right, we’re going to put some damn music out.

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Best Songs of 2011



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I Just Want The Porridge, Sir: Our 2011 Album of the Year Special

Through multiple shifts in schedule, multiple diseases, a distressing amount of sobriety, and all sorts of wild shenanigans, it’s here. Listen as the FOWR staff bring themselves to intense physical discomfort to come up with a winner for the best album of 2011.


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Best Rap Album

I don’t know if you guys noticed, but rap was fucking crazy this year. I mean, look at some of the things that weren’t in contention: YC the Cynic’s humble schooling of the modern rap game, the sweeping G-Side symphony (especially iSLAND), Action Bronson & Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire’s New York throwbacks, ASAP Rocky’s genre-bending answer to the $3million dollar question, 13 & God’s intercontinental existential trip, the proliferation of Curren$y, and the mutated west coast rap of Main Attrakionz. There was serious talk about just extending the category to 12, but then we realized that even that wouldn’t be enough. So now we’re here, and here’s what we have:

-Death Grips and their broadcast from a world blackened heart
-Danny Brown’s shooting star lighting the sky
-The Roots dropping political posturing for a devastating allegory
-Shabazz Palaces at the brink of enlightenment
-Big KRIT’s pure country heart laid bare
-Tyler The Creator’s young man mind, committed to tape Continue reading

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Best Rock Album

Since this site’s values are based off of a specific album belonging absolutely to the rock genre, I find this award to be one of our most important and thought-out. That album I am talking about is Fun House by The Stooges, perhaps one of the greatest rock and roll albums ever made. Because of the progressiveness and bold attitude that Iggy Pop and The Stooges brought to the table in the year-fucking-1970, we believe he inspired the onslaught of punk music in that decade, and thus became part of the formation of punk music and rock and roll of today. In a sense, this is The Stooges Award. But not in any official sense, because, who are we? Continue reading

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Best Pop Album

While I am probably the fondest of the genre on FOWR, 2011 had stumped me stumped me to the point of questioning actual pop conventions that I thought were pop conventions that weren’t actually pop conventions. I wrote in my review of Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s self-titled album, about pop of our generation being primarily about reflection; the idea of breaking old ground in attempt to create new. Strangely, none of our nominees exemplified a gaping non-modern feel. It’s all very progressive and that’s what makes each album in contention nothing to trifle with. Continue reading

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Oh, by the way

“Exmilitary” by Death Grips is also in discussion for Best Album of 2011.

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John Vs. “Death Major” by 13 & God

[note: Colton didn't write a thing. I tried to get a replacement thing from someone else, but didn't get that either. So here, have this article about music that deserves more attention. FOWRies resume on Monday.]

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Best Electronic Album

Fermata Over Whole Rest is not the most impressive source for everything electronic music, but I have listened to enough albums this year to be able to sort out the stuff that was lame and the material that I found awesome and inspiring. James Blake put out his fantastic self-titled at the beginning of the year, a work that was the culmination of his solid production skill and the vocalist that he wanted to be. Thundercat rose out with his jazz-fusion powered debut, fresh off of working with Flying Lotus, the winner of last year’s “Best Electronic” Fowry. Tim Hecker put out what I believe to be one of the finest ambient albums I’ve had the pleasure of listening to in a long, long time. This however, goes to only one, and this is who we think that “one” is.

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Best Ineffable Album

Ineffable
1. adj. Incapable of being expressed; indescribable or unutterable

When we were picking out music to fill the normal awards, a few questions came up: “is Bill Callahan really pop? What about 13 & God in Electronic? Can we get away with putting Colin Stetson in rock?” Things like this. It was in a moment of sleep deprivation (or clarity) that the idea of the Best Ineffable Album was born- we needed a term that wasn’t “experimental” but still could clearly indicate that this was music that existed just outside of pop norms. Things like Callahan, 13 & God, and Stetson. Things like the absurd everything-fused highs of tUnE-yArDs. Things like the grim worlds detailed by Giles Corey and Jenny Hval. And what was the best of the ineffable? Continue reading

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