20

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble [Planet Mu] 

A collaboration between breakcore artist Bong-Ra and one of his multi-instrumentalist friends, this is indeed Dark Jazz. Imagine I’m Not a Gun if they were really depressed. The musicianship is very strong here, and even when the electronics occasionally take over, they steer the music to a place it already should be going instead of detracting from the great instrumental work. This project lacks any of the farce that may characterize Bong-Ra’s other work, and is yet another example of breakcore artists pushing new boundaries into more serious endeavors. A real rival to the work of I’m Not a Gun.
 
Download: Lobby

19

I’m Not a Gun, We Think As Instruments  [City Centre Offices]

Third album from the collaboration of techno producer John Tejada and Japanese multi-instrumentalist Takeshi Nishimoto. If you’ve heard either of the previous two albums, this record will count as more of the same, but in the case of this duo, that’s an incredibly great thing. These two manage to create the perfect, jazz-influenced instrumental rock I wish more post-rockers could manage. An abundance of guitars and like instruments inhabit a world of live drums and minimal electronic effects to create the soundtrack for serene nature.

Download: Long Afternoon

18

Free Festival [Benbecula]

Free Festival is a collaboration between guitarist Brian Ellis and laptop artist Milieu. Both have been floating around the netlabel circuit for a while, and they decided to team up to create their own take on the increasingly popular organic electronic sound. Free Festival’s blend of acoustic guitar and experimental techno beats fits them somewhere in between Bibio and Boards of Canada, but luckingly, they don’t sound like copycats (like a Tycho, for example), but contemporaries. This album is an assured debut that deserves to be referenced along side those artists for RIYL’s, and a promising start from which both can launch solo careers (I believe both have solo debuts coming next year).

Download: Sidewalk Smiles

17

Nobody & Mystic Chords of Memory, Tree Colored See [Mush]

Psychadelic folk rock from hip-hop beatsmith DJ Nobody and folk rockers Mystic Chords of Memory that is the perfect summer soundtrack. The way these two projects coalesce on this record seems so natural. Nothing seems out of place, and every song is ethereal and brilliant. I was hesitant to even consider this electronic because the sounds all seem so organic and, well, folkish. I certainly wouldn’t throw the word hip-hop around to describe it. One could pick this record up, and it would be difficult to guess a hip-hop DJ was the one behind the scenes. This is not an attempt to square push hip-hop beats onto a folk singing duo. This is a folk rock record, a great one I might add, made by a hip-hop producer. Couldn’t say something like that ten years ago.

Download: Broaden A New Sound

16

Burial [Hyperdub]

The dubstep album everyone’s been talking about. This couldn’t be further away from club or DMZ material. It’s muddy; it’s cold; it’s headphone music. An original take on the emerging genre that works. Burial provides atmosphere over just pure bass, and this record along with what Boxcutter did with his debut album Oneiric will open the floodgates for crossover dubstep efforts. Worth the hype? Maybe not entirely. Worth a listen? Most definitely. Can’t wait to see his sound develop as dubstep continues to push new boundaries.

Download: U Hurt Me

15

Bonobo, Days To Come [Ninja Tune]

I couldn’t have been more excited for this record after adoring last year’s Live Sessions EP. I thought Simon Green’s live instrument renditions of some of his classic tracks just took them to a new level, and I wanted more, hoping this new album would give me that. Instead, Green’s gone in a different direction. Still jazzy, but a loungier, subtler version. Green’s found a vocal muse for this record in Bajka, and many of the songs rely on her delivery. Thankfully, it works. Green seems to have a delicate understanding for what makes a vocal track work, which is remarkable considering this is his first foray into vocal territory. Also appearing is label mate Fink, and even though I dislike his solo stuff, this track also work as Green delicately balances the beat over Fink’s reigned-in delivery. This maybe doesn’t deliver on the promise of Live Sessions, but it delivers in a new way if you’re willing to give his new style a chance.

Download: Nightlite

14

Tom Burbank, Famous First Words [Planet Mu]

Yet another new artist debuting on Mike Paradinas’s Planet Mu label, this time the territory is a strange mix of IDM, clip-hop, and some of the more urban styles of electronic the label has been drifting toward this year. Burbank’s skills on display are impeccable, and the way he layers his tracks and the album with different influences, going back and forth in mood and style, is remarkable for a debut. If you’re familiar with edIT’s Crying Over Pros for No Reason, imagine a more diverse and beat heavy version of that, and you’ll have an idea. Burbank almost seems to take edIT’s style on that record up a notch, into more impressive territory, and into more avenues of music. A really impressive debut that yet again shows Mike Paradinas’s nose for new talent.

Download: Stay One

13

Contriva, Separate Chambers [Morr Music]

In contrast to many of the albums on this list, especially indie-based, this album is, well, simple. There’s nothing particularly new or challenging. This is a simple, mostly instrumental, indie rock and pop record that is just everything it should be. Contriva has a lot of instrumental tracks on this record, but they never bore, and when the vocals do come in, they add a sense of refreshment that just makes this record beam and the user smile. I can’t think of a record that was more delightful this year.

Download: Before

12

Miwon, Pale Glitter [City Centre Offices]

Another hit for City Centre Offices. Miwon makes some sort of blend between electronic pop and techno that’s refreshing without being cheesy, tapworthy without eventually becoming monotonous. One of the things that struck me about the record is that it seems to recall very much a winter landscape (and was released, accordingly, in January), yet somehow eschews the depressing vibes of the season and seems to conjure, instead, smiles. Downright lovely music. Only disappointment is oddly enough the title track, which casually repeats a cold techno beat lacking the vibrance of most of the record, and going on for way too long. Other than that, this album is flawless.

Download: Brother Mole

11

Benoit Pioulard, Precis [Kranky]

Benoit, AKA Thomas Meluch, is a twenty-something from Michigan. Why the French pseudonym? He says it came to him in a dream. Whatever the name behind this music, it’s an accomplishment. Benoit on his debut balances a folk delivery and lyrics with electronic ambient chaos, creating a mystifying sound that could have been unearthed from an archive from 25 years ago. It sounds like you may have heard it before, but you haven’t. Benoit’s songs are reserved, yet chaotic, contemplative and emotional. A folk album in a year filled with folk albums that manages to sound unique and just stand out.

Download: Together & Down