The Best Albums of 2012

Frank Ocean, at Coachella 2012
 

Lorraine Carpenter

Tame Impala, Lonerism (Modular)
Dum Dum Girls, End of Daze EP (Sub Pop)
Django Django, Django Django (Ribbon)
Frank Ocean, Channel Orange (Def Jam)
Divine Fits, A Thing Called Divine Fits (Merge)
Parlovr, Kook Soul (Dine Alone)
Grizzly Bear, Shields (Warp)
PS I Love You, Death Dreams (Paper Bag)
Grimes, Visions (Arbutus)
Stars, The North (Soft Revolution/ATO)

 

Johnson Cummins

Swans, The Seer (Young God)
Father John Misty, Fear Fun (Sub Pop)
godspeed you! black emperor, ‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend (Constellation)
Om, Advaitic Songs (Drag City)
Locrian & Mamiffer, Bless Them That Curse You (Sige/Utech)
Nadja, Dagdrom (Broken Spine)
Earth, Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II (Southern Lord)
Natural Snow Buildings, Night Coercion Into the Company of Witches (Ba Da Bing)
Spiritualized, Sweet Heart Sweet Light (Fat Possum)
Horseback, Half Blood (Relapse)
 

Lawrence Joseph

Anthony Braxton, Echo Echo Mirror House (NYC) 2011 (Braxton House)
Fo[u]r Alto, 4 Compositions by Frank Gratkowski (Leo)
Gordon Grdina’s Haram, Her Eyes Illuminate (Songlines)
Mary Halvorson Quintet, Bending Bridges (Firehouse 12)
Hafez Modirzadeh, Post-Chromodal Out! (Pi)
Simon Nabatov/Ernst Reijseger/Matthias Schubert, Square Down (Leo)
Miles Perkin Quartet, Objects in Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear (independent)
Le Quatuor de Jazz Libre du Québec, 1973 (Tenzier)
Ratchet Orchestra, Hemlock (Drip Audio)
Nate Wooley/Christian Weber/Paul Lytton, Six Feet Under (NoBusiness)
 

Erik Leijon

Royal Headache, Royal Headache (What’s Your Rupture?)
Grimes, Visions (Arbutus)
Django Django, Django Django (Ribbon)
Spaceghostpurrp, Mysterious Phonk: The Chronicles of SpaceGhostPurrp (4AD)
Twin Shadow, Confess (4AD)
Kendrick Lamar, Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City (Interscope)
Lorn, Ask the Dust (Ninja Tune)
Death Grips, The Money Store (Epic)
Parlovr, Kook Soul (Dine Alone)
Mac DeMarco, 2 (Captured Tracks)

 

Darcy MacDonald

Killer Mike, R.A.P. Music (Grind Time Official/Grand Hustle)
Big K.R.I.T., Live From the Underground (Def Jam)
Homeboy Sandman, First of a Living Breed (Stones Throw)
P.O.S., We Don’t Even Live Here (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
Roc Marciano, Reloaded (Decon)
Jai Nitai Lotus, Something You Feel (independent)
BadBadNotGood, BBNG2 (independent)
Frank Ocean, Channel Orange (Def Jam)
Brother Ali, Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
Loud Lary Ajust, Gullywood (independent)

Erin MacLeod

Frank Ocean, Channel Orange (Def Jam)
Jimmy Cliff, Rebirth (Universal)
Mr. Vegas, Sweet Jamaica (Mr. Vegas/VPAL)
Youssoupha, Noir Désir (EMI France)
Mokoomba, Rising Tide (Igloo)
Burial, Kindred (Hyperdub)
The Luyas, Animator (Paper Bag)
Debo Band, Debo Band (SubPop)
Staff Benda Bilili, Bouger le Monde (Crammed)
A Tribe Called Red, A Tribe Called Red (independent)