Tuesday, December 27 2011
The 75 Best Albums of 2011
The year's best albums feature sophomore sets from two of indie's finest artists, a hardcore punk opera masterpiece, career highlights from four amazing women in the top 10 alone, new forward-thinking R&B and hip-hop, an electronic Big Album that shoots for the moon, and so much more.
Monday, December 26 2011
The Best Metal of 2011
PopMatters’ staff of metal experts present their top picks from a year that offered a standout work of Christian “progressive death metalcore”, a philosophical treatise on “Transcendent Black Metal”, and one amazing debut.
Thursday, December 22 2011
The Best Electronic Music of 2011
Our electronic music enthusiasts pick highlights from a year when the genre ranged widely and wildly from ADD dance music to the last great pure dubstep record to an industrial cacophony that's a proper soundtrack to a world in turmoil.
Wednesday, December 21 2011
The Best Indie Rock of 2011
A “Best of Indie Rock” list, by definition, will be an eclectic bunch. And the process of culling through what the genre had to offer is a task this year -- the indie world has had a banner 2011.
Tuesday, December 20 2011
The Best Americana of 2011
If you ask a critic or music fan to define Americana, be prepared for an avalanche of diverse responses of opinion. Still, there remain some constant benchmarks, such as pedal steel, fiddle, acoustic guitars -- and good songwriting.
Friday, December 16 2011
The Best Women in Rock of 2011
In 2011, Tori Amos, Björk, and PJ Harvey turned the clock back to their mid-'90s heyday.
Thursday, December 15 2011
The Best Alternative Songwriters of 2011
Some of 2011's best songwriting came from artists whose work could be broadly defined as "alternative". Few of these artists fit the mold of the traditional singer-songwriter, creating music the blurs the lines defining genres.
Fug You: An Informal History of the Peace Eye Bookstore, the Fuck You Press, the Fugs…
This is an unapologetic and hilarious account of eight key years of "total assault on the culture", to quote William S. Burroughs.
The Best Pop-Punk of 2011
It’s true, pop-punk is not dead. Far from it. And now is the perfect time to celebrate some of the best albums from a year that helped put the genre back on the map.
Wednesday, December 14 2011
The Hidden Depths of Aquaman: The Geoff Johns Exclusive
Why has Aquaman, a longstanding mainstay of the DC Universe, never excelled in capturing the popular imagination? In an earnest conversation with Geoff Johns, New 52 writer of Aquaman and DC's Chief Creative Officer, PopMatters meets someone for the very first time -- Aquaman himself.
The 20 Worst Albums of 2011
These artists didn't just disappoint, they offered up the listening public albums of utter awfulness across the board. Some of the acts just need to hang it up already, while others have made some sorry mis-steps here along the path of otherwise decent careers.
The Most Disappointing Albums of 2011
The selections on this list aren't necessarily bad albums -- some actually happen to be among the most critically acclaimed of this year. In some cases, it's just that the albums weren't what fans were expecting, and in others, they were exactly what they were expecting.
Tuesday, December 13 2011
The Best Hip-Hop of 2011
Newcomers, giants, throwbacks, and collaborators -- 2011 was the year of diversity, in which rap fans were faced with enough variety to find whatever flavor of hip-hop they wanted.
The Book of Mormon: Contemporary Christian Album of 2011
Contemporary Christian Music could take a page or two out of The Book of Mormon.
Friday, December 9 2011
The Best Rhythm and Blues of 2011
It's an interesting time to be a fan of R&B. These are commendable examples of artists continuing to push R&B into the 21st century, while also respecting and exploring its roots.
This is a Call: The Life and Times of Dave Grohl
This definitive biography tells the epic story of a singular career that includes Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, and Them Crooked Vultures.
Thursday, December 8 2011
The Best Jazz of 2011
Jazz is ready to go just about anywhere these days, and our list this year travels a good distance from free playing to fusion, controlled singing to daring solo piano.
The Best Producers of 2011
Noah "40" Shebib, Doc McKinney, and Illangelo provide a welcome reminder that a talented rapper or a gifted singer isn’t all it takes to create memorable, moving hip-hop or R&B.
Wednesday, December 7 2011
And Action…: The Grant Morrison Exclusive, Act 2
In a time when the novelty of DC's company-wide reboot seems to push writers in the direction of a ground-up redesign of their characters, Grant Morrison does the unexpected with the original superhero. PopMatters presents Grant Morrison, and his thoughts on Action.
The Best Country Music of 2011
At first it seemed like an especially quiet year in country music, and in some ways it might have been. At the same time, country is country: it rolls on.
