Albums Of The Decade

My favourite albums of the past decade. It's really hard to rank albums and really every one is interchangeable because each has meant something special to me or been something of an obsession over the past decade at different times. It's also interesting to see since starting this blog how a lot of the albums on my end of year lists are now rarely listened to by me and some almost completely forgotten (I really don't think I've thought about Yuck, for instance, since 2011 but they are there on my list that year). These were chosen for a combination of most listens and the memories they bring back. I'm sure I've missed out some good ones though.

Best gigs of 2012

This year I seem to have been revisiting my youth as I saw more reunited bands than ever and my summer was like a big flashback to the early 90s. But it wasn't all nostalgia as I got to experience some great new bands too as well as a few legends I had never experienced before, like Mike Nesmith, who was back on these shores for a solo show for the first time in 38 years! I feel pretty lucky to have seen him, as different and quirky as his show was.  I also spent two days standing in the rain and mud in order to see Soundgarden and Bruce Springsteen, both of which were worth it but I don't know if I have it in me to do again. Still there's part of me that is sad that the Hard Rock Calling concerts will longer be taking place in Hyde Park, I definitely had some good times at those events over the years. Also sad was Cat Power cancelling her December show at the Roundhouse due to illness. I was really looking forward to that one but hopefully she'll be back next year to make up the dates. So anyway, with all that said, here's my list of my favourite shows this year:

10. Eddie Vedder at Hammersmith Apollo

9. Bat For Lashes at The Forum

8. Anaïs Mitchell at Camden Dingwalls

7. Bruce Springsteen at Hyde Park

6. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers at Royal Albert Hall

5. First Aid Kit at Shepherd's Bush Empire

4. Sharon Van Etten at the Scala

3. Wild Flag at the Electric Ballroom

2. Soundgarden at Hyde Park

1. Afghan Whigs at Koko

Wild Flag at the Electric Ballroom

Wild Flag

Peggy Sue

Electric Ballroom, February 1, 2012

Thinking back, one of the best things about the 90s was all the fantastic girl bands there were. I'm not talking about the Spice Girls, although they had their positive points too I admit, but mainly the grunge scene and the riot grrl movement. There were so many amazing women who played their own instruments, wrote their own songs and rocked as hard as the boys, to inspire and look up to. I actually feel very lucky in that respect. These women weren't just exceptions to the rule or the sole girl fronting a bunch of men, they were integral to the scene and were different and varied from L7 to Hole to Luscious Jackson to Belly. Now, while there are many wonderful female singer-songwriters, there seems to be a dearth of female rockers, especially those raised on punk music, so I guess it makes sense that probably the best girl group to come along in years, Wild Flag, is born out of the 90s, with members of Sleater-Kinney, Helium and The Minders.

My Favourite Albums Of 2011