Paste just became the first big publication to come out with its top 50 albums of the year, and that means it also became the first publication to give its #1 spot to Bon Iver's Bon Iver, Bon Iver. We can probably expect to see that happening a whole lot in the weeks ahead. For the most part, the Paste list stays true to the magazine-turned-website's rootsy-indie sensibilities, throwing large amounts of love to stuff like Dawes and the Decemberists. And it's cool to see a year-end list that features relatively under-the-radar stuff like Wye Oak, Holy Ghost!, and the Joy Formidable. It's also nice to see an indie-identified publication going to bat for the most popular album of the year, Adele's 21, simply on the strength of it being a good album. But I'm sorry, the idea that Childish Gambino made a better rap album than Drake did is just laughable. Check below for the full list.
50 Frank Turner - England Keep My Bones
49 Mates Of State - Mountaintops
48 Drake - Take Care
47 Real Estate - Days
46 Holy Ghost! - Holy Ghost!
45 Those Darlins - Screws Get Loose
44 Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
43 The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar
42 Wild Flag - Wild Flag
41 James Blake - James Blake
40 Portugal. The Man - In The Mountain, In The Cloud
39 Gillian Welch - The Harrow And The Harvest
38 Over The Rhine - The Long Surrender
37 The War On Drugs - Slave Ambient
36 Mister Heavenly - Out Of Love
35 Childish Gambino - Camp
34 Seryn - This Is Where We Are
33 The Head And The Heart - The Head And The Heart
32 Ryan Adams - Ashes & Fire
31 Telekinesis - 12 Desperate Straight Lines
30 Tom Waits - Bad As Me
29 Feist - Metals
28 Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
27 Black Lips - Arabia Mountain
26 The Low Anthem - Smart Flesh
25 The Antlers - Burst Apart
24 TV On The Radio - Nine Types Of Light
23 The Belle Brigade - The Belle Brigade
22 The Black Keys - El Camino
21 Charles Bradley - No Time For Dreaming
20 Beirut - The Rip Tide
19 Cults - Cults
18 Wye Oak - Civilian
17 The Civil Wars - Barton Hollow
16 Yuck - Yuck
15 Deer Tick - Divine Providence
14 Adele - 21
13 Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
12 Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
11 St. Vincent - Strange Mercy
10 The Decemberists - The King Is Dead
09 M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
08 Dawes - Nothing Is Wrong
07 Wilco - The Whole Love
06 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - It's A Corporate World
05 Middle Brother - Middle Brother
04 tUnE-yArDs – w h o k i l l
03 My Morning Jacket - Circuital
02 Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
01 Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
(via Paste)
You can check out Stereogum's Top 50 Albums Of 2011 list here.
