‘Tis the season for year-end lists and with the amount of great music put out this year, it was an incredibly difficult task to decide which 10 female-fronted albums were my favorites of 2011. Without further ado, or before I change my mind again, here are my picks in the order I could best write them into a story that makes a little bit of sense.
This year’s artists put out top shelf tracks and thankfully you don’t have to be 21 (Adele) to drink them all in. From dance-pop to punk to electronic that combines Philharmonics (Agnes Obel), 2011 was a stellar year for music.
For some of you, I realize it will be considered a Sin Sin Sin (Le Butcherettes) for me to have skipped over some of your favorite artists. I’m asking that you take a bit of Strange Mercy (St. Vincent) on me, knowing that my Jewish guilt will keep me up at night, tossing and turning over who I have chosen to sashay away.
Feel free to Talk That Talk (Rihanna) in the comments section below and raise your Wild Flag (Wild Flag) for any of the artists who added more pep in your step, made you fall in love or whose songs became the soundtrack to your life this year.
The Ritual Union (Little Dragon) of putting headphones to ears, closing our eyes and letting musicians take over our souls until we can almost Feel it Break (Austra) and blocking out the rest of the world is a much cheaper form of therapy more times than not.
Those times we are forced to occupy the same space with people WhoKill (tUnE-yArds) our spirits can be transformed with the press of a simple “play” button. We can push the a-holes away and decide to Rapprocher (Class Actress) all of the things that make us feel better.
Happy early New Year to you all. I can’t wait to discover new music with you in 2012.
To hear these albums on Spotify, head on over to my playlist, which also includes my Honorable MENtions.
Adele – Set Fire to the Rain (Rigby Bootleg) by RIGBY
Agnes Obel – Just So by PIASGermany
Le Butcherettes – New York by Cargo_Promo
St. Vincent – Cruel by Posh Magazine
Wild Flag – Romance by Wichita Recordings
01 BEAT AND THE PULSE by AUSTRA
Tune-Yards – Gangsta by The Recommender
What was your favorite album of 2011?
