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You can waddle over to subdivnet.com for the whole bit… again, I just wanna say THANKS to any & all who’ve supported me in the slightest this past year. It feels amazing to have people give a shit about this music. Mucho appreciato…

Here’s a snippet of the recap, my musings on some of the sounds I enjoyed in 2011:

“Musically… The best records I heard PERIOD this year (dancefloor aside) were the Thundercat & Oneohtrix LPs (tied for my fave records of the year), apparently psych-jazz-funk & blissful drones are what do it for me. Also: Cluster, Alva Noto, Twin Shadow, Austra, Bruno Pronsato, Robert Wyatt, Kurt Vile, Roxy Music, Little Dragon, Bert Jansch (RIP).

As gross as it was to occasionally glance at the gory trainwreck that is dubstep’s devolution, it was pretty easy to ignore because motherfucker, there was ridiculous amount of dope dance music released this year. Still no new Aphex, but on the global tip, I was really encouraged by our community’s strong showing in the world of full length albums. Lord knows I’m a dude who likes to start at track 1 & let it ride. Underground dance music is a relentlessly fast-paced, single-driven machine, but 2011 saw a SHITLOAD of quality full length albums (and some comically bad flops as well). Instra:mental, Boxcutter (SLEPT ON), Machinedrum/Sepalcure, Salva, Africa Hitech, Kuedo, Modeselektor, FaltyDL, Egyptrixx, Zomby, Rustie & more (I’m forgetting) all contributed stand out full length players.

Some of this music I couldn’t even imagine outside of the album framework. I listened to FaltyDL’s You Stand Uncertain much more than other dance records this year, primarily because it was an album as a whole, with ebb & flow. There were pallet cleanser tunes, but there were tunes that also delivered the goods. In terms of a sit down listen, it did something which most dance full lengths fail to do for me – it made me forget I was listening to dance music. A tune like “The Pacifist” is built around restraint – there’s no drop – and MUSICALLY, its chords just wander around. It really reminds me of early Rephlex/Warp tunes, still adventurous will melody instead of looking for the perfect locked 4 bars to entrance a dancefloor with. His sound (heavily sample-based) is soooo his own… and it’s not pristine – there’s a lot of mess in the mix. Plus his hi-hat programming gives me erections.

Definitely interested to watch the 4/4 wave in 2012. I started off with electronic music listening to Speedy J – 4/4 & unconventional as fuck. Peeps like Andy Stott & Shed are constantly reminding us of the potency of that template when approached from another angle. There is a reason that house music doesn’t die – it is a fundamental form. With all the mad tempo games that have kept the last couple years stimulating, I think there are a lot of great ideas that will unfurl under the pinned pulse of kick drums over the next year. Don’t get me wrong, the 160 boom this year was amazing to watch, I couldn’t resist dipping in there as well.

Didn’t really connect with the cloud rap thing that much. There were some moments – A$AP’s “Peso” did it – but for the most part, I found myself trying hard to like something that seemed destined to fizzle into “… remember THAT dude…?” I just don’t know if anyone will really care about marginal rappers rhyming over Boards Of Canada biters in two years’ time. Agh, I’m old.

My friends make amazing music. Prison Garde finally unveiled his debut & showed what all our West Coast fuss was about. I want more music from Eames. Calamalka’s shit makes me feel like I make wonky for toddlers. And I reeeeally want Max Ulis to release a full length of his Boddika shit…”