TOP 10 ALBUMS
THE WEEKND House of Balloons (independent)
ADELE 21 (Columbia)
BOMBINO Agadez (Cumbancha)
ORCHESTRE POLY-RYTHMO DE COTONOU Cotonou Club (Strut)
PJ HARVEY Let England Shake (Island)
AFRICA HITECH 93 Million Miles (Warp)
KATY B On a Mission (Rinse)
VARIOUS Bangs & Works Vol 2: The Best of Chicago Footwork (Planet Mu)
RAPHAEL SAADIQ Stone Rollin’ (Sony)
ED ROBINSON Written in Stone (Push Broom Gang)
JAHDAN BLAKKAMOORE Babylon Nightmare (Lustre Kings)
BOTTOM 3 ALBUMS
LOU REED AND METALLICA Lulu (Warner)
DRAKE Take Care (Young Money/Cash Money)
JESSIE J Who You Are (Lava)
Best Song: Northern Cree, “Red Skin Girl” (A Tribe Called Red remix)
Worst Song: Tie: Beyoncé “Run the World (Girls)” and Specialist, “Street Hustle”
Best Show: A Tribe Called Red, le Belmont, Aug. 26
Worst Show: The B52s, Jazz Fest, July 4
I should have learned from the Stevie Wonder debacle that Grand événements are Grand pains. Forgetting that I was never a big fan of “Rock Lobster,” I wandered down to the Quartier des Spectacles and was reminded why the city needs to continue to support small venues and stop obsessing over noise abatement. After all, the defining musical moment of the year, for me, was hearing ATCR’s absolutely enormous remix of “Red Skin Girl” at le Belmont as part of the excellent Poirier-curated Karnival series. At that moment, it was more than clear to me that ATCR aren’t the next big thing—they ARE a big thing.
http://www.montrealmirror.com/wp/2011/12/22/heaven-’11/
