Monday, December 31, 2012

[An Avenue]'s Best 101 Tracks of 2012

This isn't a beer post.  This post, it's not about beer.

What it is about, is beer's best mate, for there is nary a better time to consume heavily than in the supportive embrace of music.  Its a daily tradition at the offices of [AA] to consummate this bond between beer and tunes every night in large doses by regulation of the Canon Law of St. Augustine the Blessed.  And it gives us something to ruminate about besides the trillionth discussion on hops or farmhouse ales.

Then, at the end of the year, we try to make some ordinal sense of it all.

This is list season!  Oh, how its powers are untold!

Best of!  Top 10!  Editors choice!  Pee drinkers on the internet box offering humorously disturbing reader picks!  I don't care who you are, lists are just addictive by nature.  Our brains love organizational outcomes, neatly packaged next to ascending numerals and made to create order amidst chaos. Who amongst us doesn't love poring over the subjective opinions of total strangers in a manner that makes you fume and writhe when the author isn't even answering the fucking question correctly?

The answer is: none of us.

If somebody in my general proximity is in need of immediate or urgent assistance, they had better hope I didn't just start reading a list of rankings pertaining to just about anything -- food trailers, liberal arts colleges, Bollywood actors under 3 feet, whatever -- because it is an unnatural act to quit on a list before reaching  climax.  Lists are brain sex!  But because there is very little intimacy between the author and the reader, its like college brain sex!  The quickies of the literary world.

Unfortunately for you, pal, this list goes to 101 -- so I'm gonna take my time here and have you think about NBA scoring leaders since 1965.  I think it will be worth your time getting to know it, in an "Oh no, I love you" sort of way, especially because I don't patronize you by ranking anything to do with Jack White or Tame Impala, since I tend not to habituate with utter shit.

Sure, it might not be great, but there's a lot of it.

The 7th Annual [An Avenue] Best 101 (v. 2012) on Spotify

101  All Wash Out | Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
100  Seven Stars | Air
099  Apocalypse Dreams | Tame Impala
098  Do Ya Thing | Gorillaz ft Andre 3000 and James Murphy
097  Heavy Metal | White Rabbits
096  Let's Go | Matt & Kim
095  October | The Helio Sequence
094  Rembihnútur | Sigur Rós
093  Without You | Lana Del Rey
092  Breakdown | Gary Clark Jr.
091  Angels | The XX
090  Primitive Girl | M. Ward

089  Sisterly | Fang Island
088  The House that Heaven Built | Japandroids
087  Noir Blues to Tinnitus | Of Montreal
086  Old Friend | Sea Wolf
085  Fate | Young Man
084  What The Eyeballs Did | Atoms For Peace
083  Under the Westway | Blur
082  Serpents | Sharon Van Etten
081  How Long Have You Known? | DIIV
080  Youth Is Wasted On The Young |  Young Galaxy

079  Baby | Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
078  Fingers Never Bleed | Yeasayer
077  Friends of Friends | Hospitality
076  Spiteful Intervention | Of Montreal
075  Would That Not Be Nice | Divine Fits
074  Octopus | Bloc Party
073  Enjoy Yourself | The Dandy Warhols
072  Petoskey Stone | Dana Falconberry
071  Sweet Life | Frank Ocean
070  Madness | Muse

069  Ruin | Cat Power
068  Everything's Gonna Be Undone | Band of Horses
067  Pretty Girl From Michigan | The Avett Brothers
066  Desperation Breeds... | Andrew Bird
065  Beatcha | Dinosaur Feathers
064  Empty House | Delta Spirit
063  Stay Gold | The Big Pink
062  Deconstruction | Fanfarlo
061  Sleep Alone | Two Door Cinema Club
060  The One | Kanye West, Big Sean, 2 Chainz & Marsha Ambrosius

059  Let's Go Home | Best Coast
058  1904 | Tallest Man On Earth
057  Parted Ways | Heartless Bastards
056  Lazuli | Beach House
055  Ho Hey | The Lumineers
054  Rubbernecking | The Big Pink
053  Looking Through | Nada Surf
052  Ayla | The Maccabees
051  Sedna | Efterklang

049  Disparate Youth | Santigold
048  Silent My Song | Lykke Li
047  The Wave | Miike Snow
046  This Is Not A Song | Islands
045  I'll Be Alright | Passion Pit
044  Heartbreaker | The Walkmen
043  The Base | Paul Banks
043  Dance For You | Dirty Projectors
042  Applesauce | Animal Collective
041  Motion Sickness | Hot Chip
040  Genesis | Grimes

039  For A Fool | The Shins
038  Call Me Maybe | Carly Rae Jepsen
037  Give It Away | Andrew Bird
036  Flaggin A Ride | Divine Fits
035  I Will Wait | Mumford & Sons
034  Five Seconds | Twin Shadow
033  End Of The Line | Sleigh Bells
032  We Can't Be Beat | The Walkmen
031  Marathon | Heartless Bastards
030  California | Delta Spirit

029  Tuck the Darkness In | Bowerbirds
028  Lucky with Disease | Elbow
027  Nancy from Now On | Father John Misty
026  Lonely Love | Islands
025  Manhattan | Cat Power
024  Kill for Love | Chromatics
023  Brains | Lower Dens
022  Wild | Royal Teeth
021  All Of Me | Tanlines
020  Oblivion | Grimes

019  Take A Walk | Passion Pit
018  God Help This Divorce | Miike Snow
017  Fineshrine | Purity Ring
016  Everything is Embarrasing | Sky Ferreira
015  A Simple Answer | Grizzly Bear
014  Hold On | Alabama Shakes
013  Chum | Earl Sweatshirt
012  We Are Young (ft. Janelle Monae) | Fun.
011  Wild | Beach House

010  Time to Run | Lord Huron
009  Feathers | Fanfarlo
008  Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe | Kendrick Lamar
007  Love Out Of Lust | Lykke Li
006  Pique | Menomena
005  Danse Caribe | Andrew Bird
004  My Better Self  | Tennis
003  Heaven | The Walkmen
002  Impregnable Question | Dirty Projectors
001  Myth | Beach House