To whom it may concern, these are quite a few records that we, the ladies and gentlemen of CTD and saki have thoroughly enjoyed this year. These lists very in format - some are ordered, some are not... whatever. We hope you can nod in agreement to some of these, or even better, find a few albums that you hadn't heard before, and subsequently decided to buy.
We have also gathered a veritable gaggle of lists from some of our friends in the music industry in Chicago and around the world, which you can check out here.
Adam Hirzel, saki manager:
In arbitrary order... kind of. Read a few more words about my 2012 picks here!
1. Chromatics - Kill For Love (Italians Do It Better)
2. Naomi Punk - Feeling (Coupleskate, Captured Tracks)
3. Ty Segall and White Fence - Hair/Ty Segall Band - Slaughterhouse/Ty Segall - Twins [a 3-way tie for anything Ty Segall did in 2012] (Drag City, In The Red)
4. Ed Schrader’s Music Beat - Jazz Mind (Load)
5. Boomgates - Double Natural (Bedroom Suck)
6. Jessica Pratt - S/T (Birth)
7. Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid M.A.A.D. City (Aftermath)
8. The Orwells - Remember When (Autumn Tone)
9. Lands and Peoples - Pop Guilt (Analog Edition)
10. Violence Conjugale - S/T (Born Bad)
11. Mind Spiders - Meltdown (Dirtnap)
12. The Men - Open Your Heart (Sacred Bones)
13. Bobby Womack - Bravest Man In The Universe (XL)
14. Zelienople - The World Is A House On Fire (Type)
15. Michael Kiwanuka - Home Again (Interscope)
16. Laura Gibson - La Grande (Barsuk/Jealous Butcher)
17. Disappears - Pre Language (Kranky)
18. Crusaders of Love - Take It Easy... But Take It (FDH)
19. Flying Lotus - Until The Quiet Comes (Warp)
20. Sun Araw, M. Geddes Gengres and The Congoes - Icon Give Thank (RVNG, Intl.)
21. Mount Eerie - Ocean Roar/Clear Moon [essentially one record, and a return to form for Mount Eerie/Microphones] (P.W. Elverum & Sun)
22. Dirty Projectors - Swing Lo Magellan (Domino)
23. Holograms - S/T (Captured Tracks)
24. Ombre - Believe You Me (Asthmatic Kitty)
25. Teen - In Limbo (Carpark)
26. Miguel - Kaleidoscope Dream (RCA)
27. Oddisee - People Hear What They See/Rock Creek Park (Mello Music Group)
28. Lee Fields - Faithful Man (Truth and Soul)
29. Mac DeMarco - 2 (Captured Tracks)
30. Swans - Seer (Young God)
31. Cross Record - Be Good (Lay Flat)
32. Can - Lost Tapes (Mute)
33. Orca Team - Restraint (HHBTM)
Reissues:
Exploding Hearts - Shattered (Dirtnap)
Annette Peacock - I’m The One (Light In The Attic)
Michael Chapman - Rainmaker (Light In The Attic)
Wendy Rene - After Laughter... (Light In the Attic)
Cleaners From Venus - Midnight Cleaners/On Any Normal Monday/Blow Away Your Troubles (Captured Tracks)
Doug Jerebine is... Jesse Harper (Drag City)
Ann Peebles - I Can't Stand The Rain (Fat Possum)
Comps:
Personal Space: Electronic Soul 1974-1984 (Chocolate Industries, Numero Group)
Eccentric Soul Omnibus (Numero Group)
Adam Reach, CTD exclusives liaison/author of Reach-Rants/most likely to wear a Slayer shirt to his mom's church:
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion / Meat And Bone (Mom & Pop)
Loincloth / Iron Balls of Steel (Southern Lord)
Martyr Privates / Bless b/w Native Son (Bon Voyage)
Chris Brokaw / Gambler's Ecstasy (12XU)
Dope Body / Natural History (Drag City)
Kim Phuc / Copsucker (Iron Lung)
High On Fire / De Vermis Mysteriis (E One)
Aluk Todolo / Occult Rock (Public Guilt)
Disappears / Pre Language (Kranky)
Metz / S/T (Sub Pop)
Old Baby / Misunderstanding Human Behavior (Hawthorne St)
Beak / >> (Invada)
Man or Astro-Man? / Analog Series Vol. 1 & 2 (Chunklet)
Van Halen / A Different Kind of Truth (Interscope)
Psychic Paramount / II (No Quarter)
Mission of Burma / Unsound (Fire)
Swans / The Seer (Young God)
Black Bananas / Rad Times Xpress IV (Drag City)
Calexico / Algiers (Anti)
Unwound / Live Leaves (Unwound)
Three Mile Pilot / Maps (Temporary Residence)
Spray Paint / Spock Fingers b/w Pink Puss (SS)
Black Breath / Sentenced To Life (Southern Lord)
Redd Kross / Researching The Blues (Merge)
Puffy Areolas / Dishonorable Discharge (Hozac)
Spacin' / Deep Thud (Richie)
Slices / Still Cruising (Iron Lung)
Carlton Melton / Pictures of Pictures (Agitated)
Circle / Manner (Hydra Head)
Om / Adviatic Songs (Drag City)
Moon Duo / Circles (Sacred Bones)
Tyvek / On Triple Beams (In The Red)
Joel Beeman, CTD head buyer/Weegee's Lounge bartender:
Codeine - When I See The Sun (Numero)
Zelienople - The World is a House on Fire (Type)
Landing - Landing (Geographic North)
Orcas - Orcas (Morr Music)
Swans - The Seer (Young God)
Dreamscape - The La Di Dah Recordings (Kranky)
Twinsistermoon - Bogyrealm Vessels (Handmade Birds)
Windy & Carl - We Will Always Be (Kranky)
Mount Eerie - Clear Moon (P.W. Elverum & Sun)
Evan Caminiti - Night Dust (Immune)
Mirroring - Foreign Body (Kranky)
En - Already Gone (Students of Decay)
Ed Post, CTD buyer/most likely to host a late night radio show playing mostly Cramps tracks
- The Men - Open Your Heart (Sacred Bones)
- Time Will Make A Change - V/A (Mississippi)
- Mind Spiders - Meltdown (Dirtnap)
- Gentleman Jesse - Leaving Atlanta (Douchemaster)
- Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light (Fat Possum)
- Neneh Cherry & The Thing - Cherry Thing (Smalltown Supersound)
- Audacity - Mellow Cruisers (Recess)
- Boomgates - Double Nature (Bedroom Suck)
- Orwells - Remember When (Autumn Tone)
- Metz - S/T (Sub Pop)
- Ty Segall - Twins (Drag City)
- Nude Beach - II (Other Music)
- Outer Minds - S/T (Southpaw)
- Rocking Horse - Yes It Is (Sing Sing)
- Ann Peebles - I Can't Stand The Rain (Fat Possum)
Erin Coleman, Carrot Top Records label manager/saki art coordinator/hedgehog farmer
Willis Earl Beal Acousmatic Sorcery (XL)
Foxygen Take the Kids Off Broadway (Jagjaguwar)
King Tuff King Tuff (Sub Pop)
Maps & Atlases Beware and Be Grateful (Barsuk)
Angel Olsen Half Way Home (Bathetic)
Orca Team Restraint (HHBTM)
Jessica Pratt Jessica Pratt (Birth Records)
Wendy Rene After Laughter Comes Tears: Complete Stax & Volt Singles + Rarities 1964-1965 (Light In The Attic)
Ty Segall Twins (Drag City)
TOPS Tender Opposites (Spindle Music)
Chelsea Wolfe Apokalypsis (Frenchkiss)
Caitlin Lavin, CTD head of sales/most likely to wear rainbow colored tights to work:
The Men - Open Your Heart (Sacred Bones)
Orca Team - Restraint (Happy Happy Birthday to Me)
Royal Headache - Royal Headache (What’s Yr Rupture?)
Neneh Cherry & The Thing - Cherry Thing (Smalltown Supersound)
Terry Malts - Killing Time (Slumberland)
Michael Kiwanuka - Home Again (Interscope)
Japandroids - Celebration Rock (Polyvinyl)
The Orwells - Remember When (Autumn Tone)
Boomgates - Double Natural (Bedroom Suck)
Orcas - Orcas (Morr Music)
Favorite Reissues:
Ann Peebles - I Can't Stand The Rain (Fat Possum)
Cleaners From Venus - Midnight Cleaners (Captured Tracks)
Unrest - Perfect Teeth (Teenbeat)
At The Drive In - Vaya (Fearless)
Swell Maps - Jane From Occupied Europe (Secretly Canadian)
Wendy Rene - After Laughter Comes Tears: Complete Stax & Volt Singles + Rarities 1964-1965 (Light In The Attic)
Matt Byrne, CTD warehouse manager/saki events coordinator/Steamroller editor:
Boomgates - Double Natural (Bedroom Suck)
Clams Casino - Instrumental Mixtape 2 (Self Released)
Codeine - When I See The Sun (Numero)
Dirty Projectors - Swing Lo Magellan (Domino)
Father John Misty - Fear Fun (Sub Pop)
Lee Hazlewood - The LHI Years: Singles, Nudes, & Backsides (1968-71) (Light in the Attic)
Lambchop - Mr. M (Merge)
The Men - Open Your Heart (Sacred Bones)
The Orwells - Remember When (Autumn Tone)
Wendy Rene - After Laughter Comes Tears: Complete Stax & Volt Singles + Rarities 1964-1965 (Light in the Attic)
Ty Segall - Twins (Drag City) / Slaughterhouse (In The Red)
Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light (Fat Possum)
Sun Araw, M. Geddes Gengras, & The Congos - FRKWYS Vol. 9: Icon Give Thank (RVNG Intl.)
Tame Impala - Lonerism (Modular Recordings)
V/A - Personal Space Electronic Soul 1974 - 1984 (Chocolate Industries)
Karl Meier, saki manager/DJ Karl Meier:
ZELIENOPLE "The World Is A House On Fire" (Type)
DEMDIKE STARE "Elemental" (Modern Love)
CAN "The Lost Tapes" (Mute)
EVAN CAMINITI "Night Dust" (Immune)
SWANS "The Seer" (Young God)
METZ "S/T" (Sub Pop)
MIRRORING "Foreign Body" (Kranky)
GABRIEL SALOMAN "Adhere" (Miasmah)
A.R. KANE "Complete Singles Collection" (One Little Indian)
MICHAEL CHAPMAN "Rainmaker" (Light In The Attic)
V/A "So Click Heels" (Downwards)
SILENT SERVANT "Negative Fascinations" (Hospital)
LEE GAMBLE "Diversions '94-'96" (Pan)
RAIME "Quarter Turns Over A Living Line" (Blackest Ever Black)
V/A "Fac. Dance II" & "Only 4 U: The Sound of Cajmere/Cajual Records" (Strut)
Pat Beals, CTD sales
Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light (Fat Possum)
Woo - It's Cosy Inside (Drag City)
Ty Segall - Twins (Drag City)
Tame Impala - Lonerism (Modular)
The Men - Open Your Heart (Sacred Bones)
Swans - The Seer (Young God)
Lee Hazlewood - The LHI Years (Light in the Attic)
Dolphins Into The Future - Canto Arquipelago (Underwater Peoples)
Caretaker - Patience (After Sebald) (History Always Favours The Winners)
Jonny Greenwood - The Master OST (Nonesuch)Matt Irizarry, saki employee/resident live sound engineer
Baroness “Yellow and Green Albums”
Lymbyc system “Symbolyst”
Pinback “Information Retrieved”
Kendrick Lamar “Good Kid, m.A.A.d City”
Flying lotus “Until the Quiet Comes”
Alt J “An Awesome Wave”
Tame Impala “Lonerism”
Here We Go Magic “A Different Ship”
Mount Eerie “Clear Moon”
Metz “METZ”
Brook "there can be only one" Stokes, CTD general manager:
Most Beloved Record of 2012:
Vinnie the Intern:
Vinnie posted several Best Of lists on the saki blog previously. If you missed them, check them out here!
Top 5 Favorite Music Videos
Top 5 Albums
Top 50 Songs (50-41)
Top 50 Songs (40-31)
Top 50 Songs (30-21)
Top 50 Songs (20-11)
Top 50 Songs (10-1)
Thanks for all your hard work this year, Vinnie!
