Honestly: What’s the point? Oh well, I guess. If you literally have not listened to a stitch of one of one of the ones below, I feel like you probably should.

• Battles - Gloss Drop
• Beyoncé - 4
• Big K.R.I.T. - Return of 4eva
• Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
• Clams Casino - ALL OF IT
• Destroyer - Kaputt
• EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints
• Fucked Up - David Comes to Life
• G-Side - The ONE… COHESIVE
• Green Ova Undergrounds - The Shady Bambino Project
• James Blake - James Blake
• Kristmas - W2 Boy
• Lil B - Im Gay (I guess?)
• Panda Bear - Tomboy (Remember this??)
• PJ Harvey - Let England Shake (vide supra)
• Shabazz Palaces - Black Up
• The Strokes - Angles
• Tune-Yards - Whokill
• WU LYF - Go Tell Fire To The Mountain

Notes: It’s certainly true I’m getting older, but it also seems like every year sort of telescopes away from me even as I’m propelled through it. I barely remember Radiohead’s album. I remember watching the Thom Yorke dancing to “Single Ladies” video more than listening to King of Limbs, certainly. It seems like this year, I’ve started sloughing off my affinity for guitar rock. Maybe, but it’s also the case, I think, that there’s been less guitar music around of the sort I like. For instance, I kind of like Nat Baldwin’s album; he’s the bassist for Dirty Projectors. But there’s not a lot of bright, punchy (maple neck Telecasters) guitar rock that I’ve heard. (Related: The Group Doueh album is pretty cool, but I don’t know how many of their albums I strictly need.) I’m basically always going to like The Strokes, and I don’t care what you have to say about it. The big winners, this year, so far, have been the Huntsville rappers who are so far ahead of everyone else in maturity and message that it makes listening to flip (but pleasing) artists like Soulja Boy et al. kind of pointless. The same could be said about Shabazz Palaces, who are head and shoulders above most rap groups/artists. James Blake, Destroyer, and Bon Iver are the Neapolitan ice cream of indie music. If you know what I mean. (What do I mean? I’d like to know.) I like the Panda Bear album more than the Washed Out one. I almost had the AraabMUZIK album on here (hah—what’s the point of continuing on, even?) but I don’t know. It seems too much like a joke. There were some really crusty rockist albums from this year that I was like, nah. And Liturgy sucks.