Friday Funday: End of 2011 Rewind

The end of the year is hectic any way you slice it.  Holiday's, gatherings, travel, weather issues, family issues, health issues, everything always seems to crop up.  So with that RtBE wanted to highlight some of the end year posts we had in case you missed them.  So here is a quick end of 2011 RtBE Rewind:

We had 3 posts covering the Top Ten Best Albums of 2011, the first chatted about the just misses and unfortunately the flops of the year.  The second had 10-6 and the third talked about the top 5.  We weren't completely blown away by any this year, and as we mentioned none of these would have cracked the top 5 from 2010, maybe not even the top 7.   

We had a fun time catching and reviewing RtBE's good friends The Clay Pigeons as they did their 4th Annual Christmas Show, always a festive highlight.  Along those lines we also discussed our favorite live shows of the year, the crowning moment happened for free in a small bar by a big river...see magic can be found anywhere.

Our Norwegian Noise-Rock friends The Megaphonic Thrift reached out and gave us a sneak peak of a track from their upcoming album, and it is a fuzzy doozy.  We also hit up some of our favorite Dylan covers this month, but their are still more out there so look for that Monday feature to get rolling again sometime in 2012.

Thanks to all for reading and commenting.  Stay tuned for 2012, it is sure to be an exciting ride...whatever happens along the way.     

Year In Review 2011 - Top Ten Albums - Part 3 (5-1)

Another great year is finishing up for Rock The Body Electric and we wouldn't be a proper music blog if we didn't end the year with a "Best Of" list, so without further verbiage RtBE Presents it's third part of the Best of 2011 Top Ten Albums (5-1):

In the instance that RtBE has reviewed the album either on the site or somewhere else we will link to that review and just give a quick summation, just click on the name and title and you can read it.  RtBE worked with the Glide Team to give input on the their Top 20 so expect some overlap, but not a ton. Again the focus here is on full albums, not singles, but full releases you can slap on and listen to the all the way through.  

This was an odd year, there were lot of solid disks but few that rose to the level of all-time greatness, for instance if all of these albums were released in 2010, none of them would have cracked last years top 5.  Maybe the #1 this year would have kicked off Dr. Dog or Noun, but it would have been close

Without further hubbub click the read more link down there to see #5-#1 of the Top Ten Albums of 2011:

Year In Review 2011 - Top Ten Albums Part 2 (10-6)

Here is Part 2 of RtBE's Year in Review of 2011.  (Part 1 was here if you missed it) Today we venture into our Top Ten List of Best Albums for 2011.

In the instance that RtBE have reviewed the album either on the site or somewhere else we will link to that review, just click on the Band name and title to get there.  RTBE worked with the Glide Team to give input on the their Top 20 so expect some overlap, but not a ton. Again the focus here is on full albums, not singles, but full releases you can slap on and listen to the full way through.

After the jump you will see our list for numbers 10-6, this year there seemed to be a lot of great albums but not a ton of GREAT!!!!! ones, either way these are all excellent and worth your hard earned money and hard drive space, so without further ado Click that read more link.

RtBE - Favorite Live Shows of 2011

The live show is a slippery thing.  There are lots of variables at play most having little to do with the performance itself.  Does the venue have enough bathrooms?  Is it going to rain?  What day of the week is it on?  Did I have a shitty day at work before hand?  Did tickets cost waaay too much? All of this effects one's opinion of a live show before the band even tunes up and with reason, but when the stars align, there is no place RtBE would rather be then in the moment of magic occuring spontaneously from the stage.

Live Music Has No Equal.     

While we can't see every show that is out there we try our hardest to see as many as we can (and more then most) here at RtBE.  Sure there are a few left, we have Phish and a possible NYE show, but for now here is a listing of of the best concerts we were fortunate enough to have seen in 2011, and one show at the bottom that took the top prize as this RtBE's 2011 Show of the Year:

Year in Review 2011 - Top Ten Albums- Part 1 (The Just Misses & Let Downs)

Another great year is finishing up for Rock The Body Electric and we wouldn't be a proper music blog if we didn't end the year with a "Best Of" list, so without further verbiage RtBE Presents it's first part of the Best of 2011 Top Ten Albums (The Just Misses & Let Downs):

In the instance that RtBE has reviewed the album either on the site or somewhere else we will link to that review and just give a quick summation.  RtBE worked with the Glide Team to give input on the their Top 20 so expect some overlap, but not a ton. Again the focus here is on full albums, not singles, but full releases you can slap on and listen to the all the way through.    

Today we are going to focus on the "Just Misses" and unfortunately the "Let Downs" released this year.  Here's hoping you like them, but also feel free to voice your opinion in the comments.  Expect installment 2 (#10-6) soon, but for now click on the jump:

Glide Magazine's Top 20 Albums of 2011

Hey Every body, Glide Magazine has released their Top 20 Albums of 2011 list.  Click the link to see their full list.

 There is a good intro discussing how the album is almost a lost art form these days, and when a good one comes along it is a ray of sunshine really.  They are also one of the first websites to post their list, which is cool, but I fear may have missed at least one fantastic album that is not officially released yet...

RtBE had input into this list, and gave contributions, but our list of Best Albums of 2011 will be coming up later this month, and it is safe to say there will be lots of discrepancies...

Below are 10 tracks from the albums Glide designated in their top 20, we just picked a random 10 for you to get a sample.  Enjoy your weekend!

PJ Harvey "Words That Maketh Murder" from Let England Shake


The Antlers "Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out" from Burst Apart


Man Man "Knuckle Down" from Life Fantastic


The Kills "Baby Says" from Blood Pressures


Destroyer "Blue Eyes" from Kaputt


Wilco "The Art of Almost" from The Whole Love


tUnE-yArDs "Bizness" from whokill 


Yuck "Georgia" from Yuck


Wild Flag "Romance" from Wild Flag



Kurt Vile "Ghost Town" from Smoke Ring For My Halo