Nathan Phillips

Nathan Phillips

Albums

1 tUnE-yArDs w h o k I l l (4AD): Merrill Garbus, the hero we need, stretches herself out with world-saving body music.

2 Das Racist Relax (Greedhead): Good jokes, bad jokes, non-jokes and immensely wry pop smarts.

3 Shabazz Palaces Black Up (Sub Pop): Digable Planets’ Butterfly returns under a new name with the most beautiful, overwhelmingly tricky hip-hop record in years.

4 Atlas Sound Parallax (4AD): Bradford Cox gets depressed again, crafts his best and most gorgeous music to date.

5 PJ Harvey Let England Shake (Island): Haunting hybrid of folk and menace exploring the consequences of war.

6 Cut Copy Zonoscope (Modular): “Some people cling to what they know, but I woke up; now it’s time to go.”

7 Wilco The Whole Love (Anti-) Wilco’s full embrace of dad-rock hits the perfect fucked-up emotional notes.

8 Destroyer Kaputt (Merge): Best ’80s soft rock throwback thus far, lyrically intelligent and lushly transformative.

9 The Mountain Goats All Eternals Deck (Merge): A great album of eloquent, heartfelt songs from John Darnielle; so what else is new?

10 Radiohead The King of Limbs (TBD): Understated beats rub up against balladry that stares into a blissful abyss; they’re the best they’ve ever been.

Nathan Phillips

SONGS

1 tUnE-yArDs “Doorstep”

2 Cut Copy “Take Me Over” 

3 Das Racist “Michael Jackson” 

4 Smith Westerns “Dance Away” 

5 Wilco “One Sunday Morning” 

6 PAPA “I Am the Lion King”

7 TV on the Radio “You” 

8 Big K.R.I.T. “Rotation

9 Big Black Delta “Huggin’ and Kissin'” 

10 Mozart Parties “Black Cloud” 

This article appears in Jan 4-10, 2012.