Smashley's Best Music of 2012

This marks the 6th year in which I've decided to compile my favorite music of the year in one place and each year, I get a little dorkier about it. What started as a MySpace bulletin/blog post has morphed into an excursion that basically kicks off around January. It's gotten so dorky, in fact, that not only did I make a spreadsheet, but I even went so far as to count down my top 100 songs via Facebook/Twitter since mid-November. It's safe to say, when December rolls around, I probably look forward to this more than Christmas.

All that said, I'm just a girl who happens to have a job in music who also happens to like it (for some people, that's mutually exclusive.) As the years go on, I am more and more influenced by my work, but more often than not my choices reflect something uniquely Ashley while remaining timeless, which is really all we can ask them to do. This year, more than any of them, I feel there is the biggest thread that weaves through each of these. From now on, when anyone asks me what kind of music I listen to, I can probably just point them here.

Without further a-do, here are my Top 10 albums of 2012, followed by the Top 100 songs. As per usual, my album choices will be summed up in 140 characters or less and will let the music do the rest of the talking.

Please enjoy.
-Smashley

Top Albums of 2012

(Top to bottom awesome. In particular order of course.)
Listen to all of them here.

10) Family of the Year - Loma Vista

In 140 characters or less: Glad I gave this joyful band a 2nd chance. This particular song is the cutest ever. If I could print a shirt with all the lyrics, I would.


9) The Lumineers - The Lumineers 
In 140 characters or less: It was love at first Daytrotter stream and charming enough to convert the masses, too. One of the most sincere live performances I've seen.


8) Bad Books - II
In 140 characters or less: This ultimate bromance has struck gold again, as two excellent songwriters backed by a tight support band create SERIOUS harmonies & hooks


7) Dry the River - Shallow Bed 
In 140 characters or less: Mumford & Sons' moodier & less banjo-y younger brothers. The knee-jerk reaction people get when they hear this band is why I work in music.
 

6) Fun. - Some Nights 
In 140 characters or less: It only took 10 years for the rest of the world to finally hear what made The Format so special. A gigantic triumph in jangle pop.
 

5) Desert Noises - I Won't See You EP
In 140 characters or less: In just 3 songs, they managed to out-do most full albums released in 2012. Hoping for a breakthrough for music's best kept secret in 2013
   

4) Good Old War - Come Back as Rain 
In 140 characters or less: Immaculate harmonies and joyous, brilliant pop choruses make this their strongest effort to date. So beautiful & unmistakably Good Old War.
 

3) Kopecky Family Band - Kids Raising Kids
In 140 characters or less: Calling this band right now as the next dark horse. A debut effort that outshines some seasoned vets and is downright refreshing.
  
Bonus: "Change" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ew9TMJHH7V4 
This song is much different than the rest of the album, but unbelievably captivating. If you're a music supervisor, it should be in your movie.

 2) Lord Huron - Lonesome Dreams
In 140 characters or less: An 11th hour discovery and first-listen obsession. Stunning, soaring, smart and so exciting that this is just their first album.


1) The Rocketboys - Build Anyway
In 140 characters or less: No buzz, blogs or pretension. Just stumbling on them when The Echo sound guy played "Bloodless," between sets. Nothing short of awe inspiring.

Top 100 Songs

(In somewhat particular order, but mostly towards the end.)

Listen to all of them here.

#100: Waters - "For the One" 

#99: Admiral Fallow - "Brother"

#98 : Bowerbirds - "Overcome with Light" 

#97 : Carly Rae Jepsen - "Beautiful" 

#96: Little Green Cars - "The John Wayne"

#95: Hudson Taylor - "Battles"

#94: The Helio Sequence - "October"

#93 : Imagine Dragons - "Demons"

#92: Typhoon - "Common Sentiment" 

#91 : The Tallest Man on Earth - "There's No Leaving Now" 

#90: Yellow Ostrich - "Stay at Home" 

#89 : Torche - "Kicking" 

#88: Bahamas - "Lost in the Light" 

#87: Matchbox Twenty - "I Will" 

#86 : Conner Youngblood - "The Warpath" 

#85 : Margot and the Nuclear So & So's - "A Journalist Falls in Love with Deathrow Inmate #16" 

#84: Matt Pryor - "Your New Favorite" 

#83: A Lull - "Summer Dress"

#82: Brandi Carlile - "That Wasn't Me" 

#81: Brian Lopez - "Montjuic" 

#80: Islands - "Hallways"

#79: Glen Hansard - "Love Don't Keep Me Waiting"

#78: Benjamin Gibbard - "Lily" 

#77: Rocky Votolato - "Little Spring"
#76: Ben Kweller - "Mean to Me" 
#75: This Century - "Skeletons"

#74: Fanfarlo - "Shiny Things"

#73: Passenger - "Let Her Go"

#72: Jack White - "Sixteen Saltines" 

#71: Nicki Minaj - "Beez in the Trap" 

#70: Right Away Great Captain - "I Am Aware" 

#69: Quiet Corral - "City Steep" 

#68: Dr. Dog - "Over Here, Over There" 

#67: alt-J - "Breezeblocks" 

#66: Act As If - "Oh My My

#65: Jay William Henderson - "The Sun Will Burn Our Eyes" 

#64: Two Door Cinema Club - "Sleep Alone"

#63: Night Beds - "Even if We Try" 

#62: Andrew Bird - "Eyeoneye"

#61: Josh Ritter - "Why"

#60: Michael Kiwanuka - "I'm Getting Ready"

#59: Bruno Mars - "Young Girls" 

#58: Ladylike - "Cinema Kiss" 

#57: Ivan & Alyosha - "Running For Cover"

#56: Sam Means - "Will You Hang Around" 

#55: Stepdad - "My Leather, My Fur, My Nails"

#54: Great Lake Swimmers - "Easy Come, Easy Go"

#53: Vinyl Thief - "Faces" 

#52: Roll the Tanks - "Goodnight Jimmy Lee"

#51: Hit the Lights - "Earthquake" 

#50: M. Ward - "Primitive Girl"

#49: Miniature Tigers - "Boomerang" 

#48: Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars - "Safe and Sound"

#47: The Mowglis - "San Francisco" 

#46: Jukebox the Ghost - "Oh Emily"

#45: Princeton - "Florida"

#44: John Mayer - "Queen of California"

#43: Morning Parade - "Headlights"

#42: Dinosaur Feathers - "Certain Times" 

#41: Geographer - "The Myth of Youth" 

#40: Of Monsters and Men - "Your Bones"

#39: Civil Twilight - "Every Walk That I've Ever Taken Has Been in Your Direction"

#38: Gospel Claws - "Hambone" 

#37: The Wanted - "Glad You Came" 

#36: Rufus Wainwright - "Out of the Game"

#35: Silversun Pickups - "Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)"

#34: Gold Fields - "Moves" 

#33: Maroon 5 ft. Rozzi Crane - "Come Away to the Water"

#32: Electric Guest - "American Daydream"

#31: Dead Sara - "Weatherman"

#30: Local Natives - "Breakers"

#29: Green Day - "Oh Love"

#28: The Avett Brothers - "Live and Die" 

#27: The Secret Sisters - "Tomorrow Will Be Kinder"

#26: Neon Trees - "Everybody Talks" 

#25: Release the Sunbird - "I Will Walk" 

#24: Damien Jurado - "Museum of Flight"

#23: Fort Atlantic - "No One Will Know" 

#22: Band of Horses - "Knock Knock"

#21: One Direction - "What Makes You Beautiful" 

#20: Husky - "History's Door" 

#19: Walk the Moon - "Shiver, Shiver"

#18: Robert Francis - "Eighteen"

#17: Cory Chisel & the Wandering Sons - "Seventeen"

#16: John K. Samson - "When I Write My Masters Thesis"

#15: Passion Pit - "Carried Away"

#14: The Fray - "Be Still"

#13: Maroon 5 ft. Wiz Khalifa - "Payphone"

#12: Father John Misty - "Only Son of the Ladiesman"

#11: Amos Lee - "The Darkness"

#10: James Vincent McMorrow - "Sparrow & the Wolf" 

#9: The Shins  - "It's Only Life"

#8: Sara Bareilles - "Bright Lights and Cityscapes" 

#7: Reubens Accomplice - "Field Science" 

#6: Nada Surf - "The Moon is Calling" 

#5: Ed Sheeran - "The A Team" 

#4: Delta Spirit - "California"

#3: Mumford & Sons - "Lover of the Light"

#2: Japandroids - "The House that Heaven Built"

#1: Ben Howard - "Old Pine" 

'Til 2013!