Here are my top 3 albums of the year, in no particular order.
Nero -‘Welcome Reality’
Nero, an electronic music act from London, England released their debut album this year on August 15th 2011 to much success. The album is filled with great dubstep beats and catchy tracks. Spin wrote, “Alana Watson gives Nero’s robotic skronk a rare injection of humanity, and the U.K. producers are smart enough to build most of their debut full-length around her husky voice, skipping the sampled spasticity of Skrillex in favor of Daft Punk’s melodic big beat, ’80s-inspired electro-pop, and stadium-sized mash-ups of squealing guitar and windy synths.”
Stanton Warriors – ‘The Warriors’
Stanton Warriors, a breakbeat duo from Bristol, England released their 7th album in March of 2011. In the mix wrote, “Dom and Mark have certainly crafted a solid offering of radio-friendly ‘songs’ on The Warriors, full of catchy hooks, vocals and clever musicality. Importantly, though, they haven’t cashed in their breakbeat credentials in the process. The beats and grooves are water-tight as always, but musically they’ve pushed themselves beyond simply crafting effective DJ tools. The different elements just interlock so cleverly, with the Stanton’s clever use of samples complimenting their songwriting, rather than being the groundwork on which the tunes are based. ”
Camo & Krooked – ‘Cross the Line’
Camo & Krooked are a Drum & Bass duo from Vienna, Austria. They released their second album, Cross The Line, on October 3rd 2011. Kmag wrote, “Following the success of 2010’s Above and Beyond, Austrian duo Camo & Krooked brought their second album to the table this year, the monumental Cross the Line. Aptly released on Hospital, their trademark mix of serene vocal-lead liquid, punchy electro, and filthy tear-out featured the likes of TC, Jenna G, Futurebound, and Ayah Marar to devastating effect.”