Just as the criteria was for songs of the year, exactly can be said about albums of the year. When you talk about your favorite albums of 2011, you have to consider three measurements of criteria:
Replay Value: How many times did you play the album over?
Longevity: How long did the album last before you got sick of it?
Lyric Reciting: The more words you know the more it resonated with you.
While its obvious that lyrical content, subject matter, production, instrumentation and production value all have major contributions to what makes an album top any list. It’s these three criteria above that really put things into perspective after you have let these albums sink in over the course of a year.
Below are my personal favorite albums of 2011 that had the most spins, lyrics recited and emotional attachment gained from another good year of music. Hit the button below to see the list.
Blue Scholars – Cinemetropolis
(hip.hop)
If you listened to hip-hop in 2011 and had common sense then you would of listened to Cinemetropolis on a steady basis. The Seattle duo of Sabzi (beats) + Geo (raps) released an absolute gem in 2011. Sabzi’s beats surpassed another level on Cinemetropolis. Due to the legal headaches of using samples, Sabzi went 100% sample free on Cinemetropolis. The result from this change in production saw his synth melodies and drum breaks go 80′s Mike Tyson on us. Whether it’s socio-political anthems or wiki-pedia raps on marijuana, the Blue Scholars are one of the best hip-hop groups making music right now and Cinemetropolis is the example why.
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Blue Scholars – Cinemetropolis
Cunninlynguists – Oneirology
(hip.hop)
Oneirology was like a journey into the dream state of consciousness with its magnificent production and raps from Kno, Deacon and Natti. There was a definite expectation with Oneirology before its release date, and after a letting this album sink in 2011, it’s fair to say that Oneirology was musically and lyrically one of the best hip-hop albums in 2011.
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CunninLynguists – Get Ignorant
Jay-z & Kanye West – Watch The Throne
(hip.hop)
Sometimes music doesn’t need to have a message behind it. Sometimes we just want to hear braggadocious rappers go ‘HAM” over luxury rap beats, and with Watch The Throne, we got the best album for that in 2011. Kanye West was a big reason why Watch The Throne was such favorable listen in 2011.
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Jay-Z & Kanye West – Murder To Excellence
360 – Falling & Flying
(hip.hop.pop.electronic)
360′s debut is a liberating piece of music that is full of honesty with groundbreaking pop-sensibilities. On Falling & Flying, 360 linked up with the talented Aussie producer, Styalz Fuego, who has an incredible knack for creating beats that sink their teeth into reggae, electronic, rock, hip-hop & dub-step. The result from these two is a well orchestrated balanced attack that finds itself atop of the food chain in Australian music right now. 360 is most admirable for the truth and humor he uses his writing. One song he will be spilling the beans on some very personal things and on the next song he will be telling us how he wants to “brown eye the paparazzi” or even show you his room full of M-16 clips.
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360 – Boys Like You ft. Gossling
Foster The People – Torches
(electronic.indie.pop)
Foster The People took over pop music in 2011 with their debut, Torches. By now you have probably heard, ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ a million times on the radio. Every time it does comes on the radio, you don’t get too angry because it’s one of those songs that never gets annoying. They do a great job of making music that appeals to a wide variety of listeners. Torches was a solid album that was packed with lots of entertainment. From their catchy harmonizing vocals to their progressive instrumentation, Torches was definitely a hit in 2011.
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Foster The People – Waste
Looptroop Rockers – Professional Dreamers
(hip.hop)
Professional Dreamers was an album that was a career defining album for the Looptroop Rockers. After years of touring, making albums and growing as artists, they came full circle on their lives and transformed these dreams into new music. With the realization of becoming ‘professional dreamers’ their music took the form of their vision and thus became their most cohesive and consistent album to date. Their producer DJ Embee really took the reigns on Professional Dreamers with a sound that will forever be defined by this album.
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Looptroop Rockers – On Repeat
The Roots – Undun
(hip.hop)
The legendary Roots crew solidified themselves as indeed legendary in 2011 with the beautifully crafted concept album, “undun”. Undun carries itself through a consistency that never falters over the course of the entire album. Needless to say this album is a no-brainer for any hip-hop fan in 2011.
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The Roots – The OtherSide (feat. Bilal Oliver & Greg Porn)
Common – The Dreamer / The Believer
(hip.hop)
Common returned in 2011 with his ninth studio album with all the production provided by No I.D. The result was Common’s best work since ‘Be’. No I.D’s production on ‘The Dreamer / The Believer’ is the driving force behind the album, this led Common to match the emotion of the music and in turn he created an album filled with passion. Much like ‘undun’ you don’t have to worry about any filler on this one.
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Common – The Dreamer ft. Maya Angelou
Nujabes – Spiritual State
(hip.hop.jazz.soul.instrumental)
You will never go through another Sunday without Spirtual State and the relaxation that comes with this album. It is still really sad to listen to this album and know that Nujabes will never be around to make another album. However Nujabes will forever live on with his music and with this final album he goes out with one final masterpiece to leave us with . If I die unexpededly, please play this album at my funeral. Thanks.
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Nujabes – Far Fowls
Classified – Handshakes & Middle Fingers
(hip.hop)
Classified continues to improve album after album and with his latest, ‘Handshakes & Middle Fingers’, Classified created one of 2011′s best hip-hop albums. This album received heavy replay in April when it was released and by going over it again, it’s pretty damn clear that Handshakes & Middle Fingers deserves to be on this list.
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Classified – Maybe It’s Just Me Ft Brother Ali
cunninlynguists’ “get ignorant” TOO good!! some realness