Brevity is the soul of wit and it’s also the M.O. of this list. Here are my favourite albums of the year, in alphabetical order, described in five words or less:
Alt-j – An Awesome Wave: More like ‘An Awesome Debut’.
Bloc Party – Four: Their heart, it shows — always.
The Chevin – Borderland: Hot Hot Heat with hooks.
Crystal Castles – III: Child, I will hurt you.
Death Grips – The Money Store: I’ve seen footage, it grips.
Die Antwoord – Ten$ion: Batshit crazy, brilliant, reflective, 2012.
Donkeyboy – Caught In A Life: Norway, what a lovely gift.
Dragonette – Body Parts: Consistently catchy from Sorbara, company.
Dum Dum Girls – End of Daze (EP): Hooks for days. Mightily impressed.
Easy Star All-Stars – Thrillah: Such endlessly creative musical imaginations.
Ed Sheeran – +: The birth of a star.
Ellie Goulding – Halcyon: Most underrated pop record, 2012
Fang Island – Major: Torn asunder by energy uncontained.
Frank Ocean – Channel Orange: Singing from elsewhere, affecting here.
Gossip – A Joyful Noise: Their most consistent LP yet.
Green Day – Uno!: Kill the DJ? Dance first.
The Helio Sequence – Negotiations: A slow burner. Magnificence incarnate.
High Contrast – The Agony & The Ecstasy: High octane, frenetic, energy infused.
Hot Chip – In Our Heads: Always unique. Always on point.
John Frusciante – Letur-Lefr and PBX Funicular Intaglio Zone: An artist sharing his soul.
The Killers – Battle Born: Took a while. Got there.
The Maccabees – Given to The Wild: Underrated band. Strong, consistent record.
Marina & The Diamonds – Electra Heart: Small step back. Still enjoyable.
Maximo Park – The National Health: Front to back, just hits.
Metric – Synthetica: Every single time, they’re gold.
Mumford and Sons – Babel: Unique gifts enable connection, resonance.
Muse – The 2nd Law: Bad, bad, bad, bad men.
The Pun Is Sure 