Beach House: Bloom
Chromatics: Kill for Love
Killer Mike: R.A.P. Music
Allo Darlin': Europe
Heems: Nehru Jackets
TEN TRACKS
Cassie: King of Hearts (Richard X Remix Edit)
Usher: Climax
Lotus Plaza: Come Back
Saint Etienne: Tonight
Carly Rae Jepsen: Call Me Maybe
Arctic Monkeys: R U Mine?
Bruce Springsteen: We Take Care of Our Own
Danny Brown: Grown Up
Tanlines: All of Me
Sun Kil Moon: Sunshine in Chicago
These past six months have been like a waking dream. In November, my wife and I had our first child, so as any parent will understand, the line between waking and sleeping has been thin. But I've also been writing every morning for SPIN -- something I wouldn't even have imagined as a possibility when I was thumbing through the magazine's 1997 year-end list for CD recommendations back in high school. And, month after month, I've been putting together sprawling "best of 2012 so far" posts without ever hitting the "publish" button.
I decided maybe I should let that be a lesson to myself. Most times, when I do these lists, I err on the side of too much information. But we're all overloaded with information these days, and I'm definitely part of the problem. So as much as I'm dying to mention all the dozens of other albums, EPs, mixtapes, and tracks that have been killing me this year -- and I did manage to make it to a few shows, too! -- I'm going to leave it here for now: five full-length releases I can't imagine 2012 without, plus 10 songs I expect to keep in heavy rotation until the next time I do one of these lists.
I'll be DJing again at Vaudeville Mews' outdoor PBR Bar on Saturday from 9 p.m. until whenever, so come out if you'll be in the neighborhood. I'm sure I'll spin some of my other recent favorites, and I'll do my best to post a setlist here.
Until then, thanks for following along!
Posts
