The Peryls' albums of 2012

What a year 2012 has been... and so on...

To be honest, you've heard all that stuff already, so as the year the Mayans didn't budget for approaches, here are the albums that we think sounded best in 2012.

We're also joined by guest reviewer Mary Hand of SoundsXP.

So... the 2012 Grammys Perrys go to...
 
 
Best use of 'Whoo' and  'Waah'

Alabama Shakes - Boys and Girls
(Reviewed by Liam Slade)

My favourite album of 2012 was ‘Boys and Girls’, the debut album by Alabama Shakes. Really talented musicians and an amazing singer in Brittany Howard, and they all look like they could be geography teachers, which to me is always a plus point. High point of the album for me is the coda of Be Mine - one of those great moments when a song suddenly ramps up a few gears; the guitars get crunchy, the drums get battered, and the singer goes ‘waah!’ and ‘whoo!’.

A couple of albums which I only just got round to hearing this year are ‘Marquee Moon’ by Television, and ‘In The Aeroplane Over The Sea’ by Neutral Milk Hotel, both of which I loved, and both of which apparently make me a hipster douchebag!

 
Best proving you can do it by yourself

Gaz Coombes – Here Come the Bombs
(Reviewed by John Wesley Nicholson)

Album of the year for me goes to Gaz Coombes Presents Here Come the Bombs... to give the full title. It’s the first solo record from Gaz since Supergrass and it sounds like he’s enjoying it from the first bleep to the last bloop. He plays everything on this record and the knack for curveball chord progressions and effortlessly catchy bits remains as strong as ever.

It’s definitely familiar but different too and it’s not just a one-man Supergrass impression. There’s an introspective feel to a lot of it, though the energy of his former band is still firing. Standout tracks are Simulator and Hot Fruit with that weird drum beat over another drum beat thing that turns your ears inside out.

Honourable mention goes to Bish Bosch from Scott Walker... a sublimely bonkers nightmare-in-audio by the man who releases a record once every baktun.


Best sounding a bit like Robert Smith either deliberately or by accident

Amanda Palmer and The Grand Theft Orchestra - Theatre Is Evil
(Reviewed by Kate Proudlove)

This album is brilliant and you need to buy it now.

I'm tempted to leave it at that but I suppose I'm supposed to tell you a bit about why it's brilliant. One of the many things I love about this album and Amanda Palmer’s work in general is the way she uses her voice (I'm a vocal coach, go figure).

It's not always a pretty sound and she does a pretty awesome impression of Robert Smith in places but it's always a true sound. By that I mean that it absolutely ties in with the emotion of what she is trying to convey. I don't think there are many artists around that put so much of themselves into a record but she has and I love her for it.


Special award for hummability

Maximo Park - The National Health
(Reviewed by Louise Carne)

‘Do I really need to give an introduction?’ Well yes, actually, you do, because this is Maximo Park’s comeback album. Given the title, I anticipated an album of social commentary, and although I have grown to like this album, sadly social commentary was not on the cards. The opening track, When I was Wild, draws us in with simple piano chords and warm cello lines (I love cello).

After this, we're thrown into a fast-paced-hook-packed-screaming-vocals-guitar solo title track, though I wasn’t overly keen on the spoken word call and response at the end of the track. Overall, I like this album, it’s energetic, hummable and it’s easy to sing along, and that’s what I call music (ha!).

The Muso's Choice Award

Tree - Wim Oudijk
(Reviewed by honoured guest blogger - Mary Hand of SoundsXP)

2012 found me searching for an album that stood out from the others and that album was the marvellous ‘Tree’ by Wim Oudijk. Starting an album dedicated to tree life with a chainsaw was nothing short of madness but there was nothing insane about this concept album. It really did sound like ‘Willy Wonka going for a ride in the yellow submarine in search of the Beach Boys’ (my words). I will never forget listening to this album with a perplexed expression and for that reason it wins my 2012 album of the year. Wim, you win!


So there you have it... that's what we listened to in 2012 and what it tells us overall about our musical tastes is anyone's guess.

Next year we look forward to new releases by Nick Cave and Adam Ant among others as well as our own new record.

See you there!