Reviler Best of 2011: Most Underrated
Snow is falling, people are spending money on crap they don’t need and you are starting to dread all of the time you will be spending with your in laws in the next couple weeks. Cheer up. It is also that wonderful time of year where music sites like yours truly pontificate even more than usual, although in a more orderly and concise manner than we normally do (numbered lists!). For the next week we will be presenting you with a plethora of lists covering our favorite (and least favorite) things from calender year 2011. Today we have one of our most popular lists, which takes look at artists and events we feel are over and underrated. Disagree? Let us know in the comment section. Tomorrow we will bring you our favorite local songs from 2011.
Jon
1. Anna Calvi
My mid-year underdog carries over into the end of year. Still think Calvi’ is getting the short end of the stick in the U.S. press
2. Blaze Foley – Clay Pigeons
Despite Blaze Foley being a legend this reissue of some of his collected works has received relatively little attention
3. Justice – Audio, Video, Disco
Judging by the lackluster Metacritic score most people didn’t love this record as much as I did
4. Carlos Paredes Reissues
The Portuguese master guitarist had two albums released in the U.S. for the first time ever this year (by Drag City) but to little to no fanfare whatsoever
5. Onra – Chinoiseries 2
OK, so part two wasn’t quite as good as the original but hey, there is still a lot to love about this unique sounding project
Runner Up (D. Charles Speer- Two Great albums this year but not a lot of love)
Ali Elabbady (Background Noise Crew, Egypto Knuckles)
STEVE SKAVNAK (@steveskavnak)
BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE’S FINAL SHOW – If it wasn’t for Kevin Drew’s Twitter meltdown (@KevinSelection), many fans wouldn’t have even known that the band that made collectives cool seemingly played their final show in Brazil in early November.
THE STREETS’ “COMPUTERS & BLUES” – Over the course of a decade, Mike Skinner made truly unique rap music that emphasized storytelling over glamour. He didn’t even have a US label to release his final record stateside.
SOUNDTOWN MUSIC FESTIVAL – At its height, the festival that morphed Float-Rite park into Somerset Amphitheatre only attracted about 6,000 fans (and that’s probably pushing it). Despite a solid lineup including the Flaming Lips, New Pornographers, Delta Spirit, Sims, Okkervil River and others, the massive grounds looked sadly desolate.
ME & MY ARROW – The best local band not nearly enough people are talking about. Start listening & start talking.
MIKE MICTLAN – P.O.S., Dessa and Sims get the large majority of the Doomtree spotlight, but Mike Mictlan is arguably the group’s most raw, introspective and inventive MC.
I second the Book of David. It probably won’t make it on any year-end lists, but it is one of the best rap albums of the year, especially on the production side of things. Good look.
The Book of David is a great album to me – if nothing else to show Quik’s production and how greatly underrated I feel it is. That man does some stuff with beats and boasts inventive and original production.
And his freestyle on Pitchfork.Tv’s Selector? Crazy good.
I’m starting to think in the time I wrote Me & My Arrow into my list to the time this was published, the band’s notoriety grew by leaps & bounds (thanks in large part to Astronautalis).