Alright, folks. This is the last one, I saved mine for last because FY this is my blog. Thanks to all of youse who read this every day, retweet us, correct our typos, argue with us on the internet, unfollow us, remove us from your RSS feeds and everything in between. We appreciate it all, would be nothing without you, etc.

2012 was swt. Hit the jump for all my favorite shit because I have too much free time at work.

Previous Year-End Lists: Sunbear’s Year-End Lists | Panda’s Year-End Lists | The Best Live Shows of 2012 | The Best of Television in 2012 | The Best of Sports on the Internet in 2012 | The Best Memes of 2012 | The Best Music Videos of 2012 | The Best Mixtapes of 2012

-grizzly

This list started out as 97 albums. I cut it to 50, ranked the top 30 and left 20 as honorable mentions. That being said:

30. River City Extension – Don’t Let The Sun Go Down on Your Anger
29. From Indian Lakes – Able Bodies
28. Fun. – Some Nights
27. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – The Heist
26. How to Dress Well – Total Loss
25. Big K.R.I.T. – Live from the Underground
24. Kanye West Presents: G.O.O.D. Music’s Cruel Summer
23. Code Orange Kids – Love is Love // Return to Dust
22. Bat for Lashes – The Haunted Man
21. R. Kelly – Write Me Back
20. Every Time I Die – Ex-Lives
19. Fiona Apple – The Idler Wheel…
18. Alabama Shakes – Boys & Girls
17. Schoolboy Q – Habits & Contradictions
16. The Gaslight Anthem – Handwritten
15. The Shins – Port of Morrow
14. Sharks – No Gods
13. Miguel – Kaleidoscope Dream
12. Big Boi – Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors
11. The Menzingers – On the Impossible Past

10. The Niceguys – James Kelley

I have a hard time not being biased with these fellas. They’re my friends, and I went to college with em. That doesn’t change the fact that these guys are on to something very special, and James Kelley continues the signs of greatness they showed on The Show. Yves is one of the best rappers around. The production on the record is bar none, and some of the hip-hop greats would be lucky to get these beats.

9. Make Do and Mend – Everything You Ever Loved

I hadn’t heard of MDAM prior to this year, and while I did go back and revisit the less-polished End Measured Mile, I took a huge liking to Everything. It’s very reminiscent of my days in elementary school, when I was heavy into grunge and the 90s alternative rock. And this one took me back pretty nicely.

8. Converge – All We Love We Leave Behind

Grow a pair and listen to Converge. I hate to use the word brutal, but Jacob Bannon’s soul-bearing lyrics leave you with few other words. It’s a gut-wrenching experience, but just listen to those geetars and drums wail.

7. Nas – Life is Good

Nasir Jones won his way back into the hearts of hip-hop purists everywhere with Life is Good, and for good reason. He was vulnerable, honest and finally found a way to pick an entire album of beats that work with each other. And wow, he hasn’t rapped as good as this since the late 90s.

6. Japandroids – Celebration Rock

Do you have beer? Do you have friends? Put your hands together, throw this record on, and remind yourself that tried and true rock and roll exists. It’s a beautiful thing.

5. Passion Pit – Gossamer

At the end of the day, I like sad music with a lot of feels. And Gossamer masks that sadness in synthy waves of happiness and pep. And man, it’s catchy as hell. Taco Bell used “Take A Walk” in a commercial, and that was cool too because Taco Bell is delicious.

4. Bloc Party – 4

I’m just glad to have Bloc Party back, doing what they’ve done best. Despite the distorted guitars on a handful of the songs, It’s more Weekend in the City, and that’s awesome because that has always been my favorite Bloc Party LP. And whose bright idea was it to have “Mean” and “Leaf Skeleton” as B-sides?

3. Deftones – Koi No Yokan

Deftones have been one of my favorite bands since I discovered the concept of melodic metal in middle school. They bring plenty of energy in a genre that can stale out pretty quickly, and Koi No Yokan is a beautiful addition to the genre. No filler, no bad songs. It’s the best Deftones album since White Pony, which is one of my favorite albums of all time.

2. Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City

The only reason this isn’t the album of the year was because of the lack of relatability for a guy from suburban Houston. Other than that, in the last five years, who has put out a better rap debut? This album has been pulling comparisons to Illmatic, and for good reasons. It’s a cinematic masterpiece, yet it’s a music long player. Go figure.

1. Frank Ocean – channel ORANGE

No other album that came out in 2012 was as emotionally charged as it was fearless. The “letter” had a lot to do with it, but him breaking down traditional boundaries and mindsets of the average R&B/Hip-Hop artist was just a sidebar. Channel ORANGE is an exciting and ambiguous coming of age listen for the aging and jaded music listener, much like myself. It resonated with me well, and as moody as the album is, I’ve been able to throw it on at any given time and enjoy the entire record. It feels like an album that has plenty of longevity and will see plenty of love in the coming years. Oh and “Pyramids” is pretty much the best song I’ve heard all year.

These are good albums, they just didn’t crack the top 30.

2 Chainz – Based on a T.R.U. Story
Ab-Soul – Control System
Allen Stone – Allen Stone
Beach House – Bloom
Birds in Row – You, Me & The Violence
Bobby Womack – The Bravest Man in the Universe
Chariot, The – One Wing
Coheed & Cambria – The Afterman: Ascension
Dikembe – Broad Shoulders
Empires – Garage Hymns
Flying Lotus – Until the Quiet Comes
Further Seems Forever – Penny Black
Jessie Ware – Devotion
Lupe Fiasco – Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album
P.O.S. – We Don’t Even Live Here
Purity Ring – Shrines
Torche – Harmonicraft
Usher – Looking 4 Myself
Vacationer – Gone
xx, The – Coexist

EPs are releases too!

10. Anthony Raneri – New Cathedrals
9. Diplo – Express Yourself
8. Solange Knowles – True
7. Crosses – Options
6. Currensy & Harry Fraud – Cigarette Boats
5. Alexisonfire – Death Letter
4. Moving Mountains – New Light
3. Skruncha-Roo – C’est La Vie
2. Shad – Melancholy and The Infinite Shadness
1. Gates – You Are All You Have Left to Fear

25 OF MY FAVORITE SONGS:

I tried to cherry pick the best songs of the year that didn’t show up on albums on my year-end lists, but some of ’em just couldn’t be left off.

ASAP Rocky – “Goldie”
A Wilhelm Scream – “Boat Builders”
Bad Rabbits – “We Can Roll”
Bear Colony – “Flask Retort”
Big Sean & Meek Mill – “Burn”
Danny Brown – “Grown Up”
Daphne Loves Derby – “Mare Infinitas”
Flying Lotus – “Between Friends” (featuring Earl Sweatshirt and Captain Murphy)
Frank Ocean – “Pyramids” ***
Future – “Same Damn Time”
Gorillaz – “Do Ya Thing” (featuring Andre 3000 and James Murphy)
J. Cole – “Miss America”
John Mayer – “Shadow Days”
Juicy J – “Bandz a Make Her Dance” (featuring 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne)
Kanye West – “White Dress” ***
Local Natives – “Breakers”
Motion City Soundtrack – “Anniversary”
Nick Greer – “Black Cadillac”
Portugal. The Man – “All Your Light” (RZA Remix)
Rick Ross – “Stay Schemin'” (featuring Drake and French Montana)
Rihanna – “Diamonds” Remix (featuring Kanye West)
The-Dream – “Dope Bitch” (featuring Pusha-T)
T.I. – “Sorry” (featuring Andre 3000)
Trinidad James – “All Gold Everything”
Underoath – “Sunburnt”

*** denotes my favorite songs

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT:

Motion City Soundtrack – Go – It was bad.

LIVE ALBUM:

Thrice – Anthology – Anyone who records a live album needs to get the full team behind this one. A live album has never sounded so clean and crisp.

COMEDY ALBUM:

Hannibal Burress – Animal Furnace – Masturbation Hoodies, y’all.

BIGGEST GUILTY PLEASURE:

Two-Way Tie that will make you stop reading weworemasks: Bruno Mars’ “Locked Out of Heaven” and Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe.” Sorry, guys.

BEST MOVIE:

Django Unchained – Ok, so I saw it in 2013, but it came out in 2012. Whatever, you’re not my real dad.

WORST MOVIE:

Thunderstruck – Yes, I watched it. But my real choice is Chronicle. That movie was awful and I want my 2 hours back. Even though it was 83 minutes long.

FAVORITE “FUCK YOU” MOMENT:

When Lebron James was the NBA MVP, earned a Championship, was the Finals MVP and won a Gold Medal in one year’s time. All those years of defending the guy – he righted that ship!

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Till next year, folks. Got even bigger and better things planned for 2013. Thanks for sticking by us and we hope to be around for another 5 years. May Based God shower blessings upon you and all your childrens.

xoxo,

grizzly.