Half Gone 2011?

[Davey]

What's good this year? Any hot rave recs that haven't been talked up all over the place yet? Seems like some high quality releases this year, but I haven't been really knocked out by anything. Can't think of one that I've had to play over and over for days and days in the first half.

I have been listening some to the new Gillian Welch, and that one is very good, but isn't one that I''ll usually listen all the way through, or repeat. Kinda spare and depressing.

And the new Brian Eno is fun as I reported previously, but with a collection of vocalists and styles, it doesn't have a very unified sound. I like it a lot, though.

I was a little disappointed in the new Antlers. Nice to hear them expanding their sound, but I also miss the sound of Hospice. And the CD is way too loud and compressed.

The James Blake we have talked about, and it's a good one. The Lucinda Williams is very good, but to be honest, I didn't find the spark in that one. Some good songs to be sure.

And the new Bon Iver is really good, if you like the Bon Iver sound, and don't mind all the hype that surprisingly is following this new one around. I do like it a lot, but don't think I've hit repeat for it yet.

That Joan as Police Woman is fun and cute, both the woman and the music, but kind of lightweight and not a style that I tend toward.

I've listened a lot to the Murcof La Sangre Iluminada, but it's generally as an ambient backdrop, kind of like the Tindersticks Claire Denis scores that we had a thread on a couple months ago. The Murcof is pretty powerful, commissioned as the soundtrack to a Mexican movie of the same name, it's like a series of intense little viginettes, and very recommended for ambient/electronica fans. Some of it does really harken back to the early days of Eno, and it's one of the only I could imagine showing up on my 2014 playlist. The Murcof would be the highlight of the year so far for me. Don't know anything about the film.

Still listen to PJ Harvey's Let England Shake, and still like it a lot, but not 100%. I currently have it packaged on a CDR for my car with her Is This Desire (minus a couple songs from Desire for the fit), and frankly I wind up listening to Desire more. For me, Desire has some of her most amazing music, but unfortunately also has some of her worst. Cut it in half and call it a EP, and I may call it my favorite PJ Harvey.

And so it goes... love the new one from the Feelies, which pretty much sounds just like the old ones from the Feelies, just not quite as memorable. A lot of fun while it's playing, but I often forget to play it. Could say the same about a few other big releases too (Iron & Wine, Decemberists, Elbow, etc). Hopefully I'm just getting a little jaded and the new music isn't really getting that predictable. What's got you going on repeat from this year?