2011 End of the Year Wrap-Up: Top 10 WORST albums of 2011

Okay you've seen the Honorable Mentions list by now, well here's the ten bottom feeders of 2011. Now this list is a tad biased because I don't really care to listen to albums I know I'm not going to like. Most of these albums were projects I was selected to review for Okayplayer or the BG News over the past year.

So are these the worst releases of 2011? No. But they are the worst albums I listened to last year.


Tyler your album was pretty shitty, but not nearly as bad as these albums.

First of all here is my criteria/rating scale:
I have taken categories and gave each of the 127 giving them each a rating of 1-10, here are the categories

• Replay Value - How often did I feel compelled to go back and listen to this album throughout the year?
• Vocal Performance - For hip hop albums this included flows, rhyme schemes, cadences, etc. For rock albums melodies, quality of vocals, harmonies, etc.
• Production - How good were the beats/ music.
• Subject Matter - Lyrical content, song topics
• Songwriting - Ability to structure a good song, includes quality of choruses/hooks and bridges
• Cohesion - How well did the album flow? Did it sound like one piece of music, or just a bunch of random track?
• Originality - How original or creative was the album?
• Gut feeling - My initial instinct on what I thought the album should rand 1-10

In addition, I also added a "Fillers" category, which took off a negative point for every song I rated 2 or less stars in my iTunes.

I also had a category called "The Big 300" which awarded a bonus point to an album for every track that was picked as the best 300 songs of 2011.

10. Machine Gun Kelly	Rage Pack
09. G Huff & Vice	Where Do We Go From Here
08. Mac Lethal	North Korean BBQ
07. Y-Love	See Me
06. Game	Red Album
05. Childish Gambino	Camp
04. Lou Reed & Metallica	Lulu
03. Lupe Fiasco	Lasers
02. Wiz Khalifa	Rolling Papers
01. DJ Khaled	We the Best Forever

Tyler, the Creator's Goblin just missed the bottom 10 albums of the year, but I felt like he needed to be mentioned because: A. He had so much hype built around his album and it was a total bust. B. I actually paid for the album (unlike the rest of the albums/mixtapes on this list).

Most of these albums I expected to suck (ie: DJ Khaled, Game, Wiz), some I suspected would suck but was curious anyways (MGK, Childish Gambino, Lou Reed & Metallica), and there was one album that broke my heart so badly when I heard it, I didn't speak for weeks (Lupe Fiasco).

Now we here at BRL have been huge Lupe fans from the start, and when Lasers got pushed back time and time again, we totally supported him and rooted for him. Finally the album dropped, and it was pretty evident, Lupe's heart was not into it. Lupe promises to get back to his roots with his next LP, Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, but if the success of Lasers and his mediocre Friend of the People mixtape is any indication, the Lupe of old is long gone.

Rhymes: Grammy Nominations Reaction

It's that time of year again. The Grammys are back. Everyone's favorite award show that they pretend to not care about (well okay no one really cares about them, except Kanye)is back for the 54th time. Adele looks to be this year's big winner, but Kanye leads the way with 7 nods (despite the Album of the Year snub).

Bon Iver looks to follow in the footsteps of 2010 indie darlings Arcade Fire. Despite having one of the year's best albums, the Fleet Foxes only got a single nomination in the oft-ignored Best Folk Album category. Good to see the Foo Fighters getting their share of Grammy nods (look for them to possibly upset Adele in AOTY category).

So as we do every year we're gonna take you through each (important) category, on who SHOULD win and who WILL win:

ALBUM OF THE YEAR:

Who SHOULD Win: It's hard to imagine 21 not getting the Grammys most prestigious award, but how many times does this award go to the best album nominated (okay, Arcade Fire's win last year was like the first time this ever happened)? And just because the "Rolling in the Deep" songstress has sold the most albums in 2011, also doesn't mean this is a sure lock. But Adele should win this award because 21 is a phenomenal record, and has had the biggest impact in 2011.

Who WILL Win: With all that I said in the previous post, it still very well could be Adele who brings on the golden phonograph this year. But I am going to say that The Foo Fighter's Wasting Light album has a strong chance to pull the upset. It's no secret that the Grammys love a seasoned rock vet (which is why I'm surprised Paul Simon's critically acclaimed album didnt get a nod). I wouldn't be upset if either of these two deserving artists won this award.

RECORD OF THE YEAR:

Who SHOULD (and WILL) Win: Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" is a lock for this. I would even go as far to say that come 2019, "Rolling in the Deep" will find its way on the top of many best song of the decade list. It's "Hey Ya!" good. I also wouldn't be too upset if Mumford & Sons "The Cave"or Bon Iver's "Holocene" pulled an upset (which almost guaranteed won't happen).

SONG OF THE YEAR:

Who SHOULD (and WILL) Win: Again Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" will win this award, which is awarded to best songwriting for a song. I'd like it if Kanye won this award for "All of the Lights" but I think that should've gotten the Record of the Year nod, and Bon Iver got the Song of the Year nod.

BEST NEW ARTIST:

Who SHOULD Win: Bon Iver, even though Justin Vernon and crew have been releasing music under this name since 2007, the Grammys are late with everything. The very well might win this category but I have a feeling that...

Who WILL Win: The dubstepper Skrillex will win this. For folks who thought I was going to pick the obviously most popular Nicki Minaj, think again. Rappers never win this category (See: 50 Cent, Drake) even when they are the most popular new artist to come out. And for some reason music critics have this weird obsession with that noise people call dubstep.

BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE:

Who SHOULD (and WILL) win: I think Dave Grohl and company will take this one home, but it could go to essentially anyone nominated. "Down By the Water" by The Decemberists was one of my favorite songs of 2011, and Radiohead's "Lotus Flower" was the only track on their new album I played after March.

BEST ROCK SONG:

Since I don't really know the difference between this and performance and all the nominees are exactly the same (See: BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE).

BEST ROCK ALBUM:

Who SHOULD (and WILL) Win: Foo Fighters will continue their big night with their genre's biggest award. I could maybe see indie superstars Wilco pulling off an upset here, but I doubt it.

BEST ALTERNATIVE ALBUM:

Who SHOULD (and WILL) Win: It's another great year for this category. Bon Iver will most definitely take home the award that was given to The Black Keys last year. I think Death Cab's album is a close second (but definitely won't win) and My Morning Jacket was pretty great too (they might though). And you can never count out Radiohead, even though King of Limbs pretty much blew.

BEST RAP PERFORMANCE:

Who SHOULD Win: Kanye & Jay-Z's "Otis" is the only track on here that I wouldn't be upset if it were awarded. While "The Show Goes On" was a great single and one of the few tracks that got any burn on that coaster titled LASERS, he openly said that the labels forced him to write that song. And I think if we're going to start awarding labels for doing this, then they will continue to push bullshit music down our throats.

Who WILL Win: Oh, sweet Jesus. For as good of a job as the Grammys do with Rock and Alternative genres (which isn't great, but still pretty good), they still have no idea about rap music. I'm willing to bet Lupe Fiasco will win this award, and fans can kiss goodbye any hopes of him making another album like "Food & Liquor" or "The Cool" ever again.

BEST RAP/SUNG COLLABORATION:

Who SHOULD Win: This category is a little bit stronger. I'm going to go with Kanye's "All of the Lights," mainly because I hardly count "I'm On One" as a Rap/Sung track (I guess he sings, sort of, on the hook).

Who WILL Win: Dr. Dre and Marshall's bullshit single to that Detox album that will never be released will most likely win. But Kanye has a chance to win this, as does "I'm On One." I'd be happy if Drake or Kanye won this; anyone else will make me hurl my remote at my tv.

BEST RAP SONG:

Who SHOULD Win: Again, not sure what the difference between this and BEST RAP PERFORMANCE is, but I'm going with "Otis" to slight out "All of the Lights."

Who WILL Win: It will probably go to Lupe or that Dr. Dre/Eminem mess. Either way I will be upset.

BEST RAP ALBUM:

Who SHOULD (and WILL) Win: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Period. This album was awarded PERFECT scores from MANY music publications. It somehow got snubbed in the AOTY category (but Rihanna, Bruno Mars and Gaga got nods?), but there's no way in hell people choose any of the other garbage (not including WTT) albums over Kanye's.

Rhymes: Japanese Cartoon - "In The Jaws of the Lords of Death" (Free Download)

Lupe Fiasco's punk-rock inspired side-project, Japanese Cartoon has finally released their debut album on-line for free. It's been about a year and half since I first heard "Heirplanes" which became a staple among my friends and I at the Rodge during my freshman year. While this project is long overdue, it certainly doesn't disappoint. "Gasp" is fantastic.

Lupe's fake-british accent singing will have to tide fans over for a while, as his completed (since early april) album, Lazers is sitting on the shelves at Atlantic Records (fuck you Atlantic for screwing up Lupe's career and turning B.o.B. is a corny pop star) with no release date in sight.

You can listen to and download the album below:
Japanese Cartoon - In the Jaws of The Lords of Death by Hypetrak

Rymes: Best Hip Hop Single of the Decade #20-11

#20 Devin the Dude - "What a Job (ft. Snoop Dogg and Andre 3000) [2007]

Devin and Snoop do their thing speaking of the behind the scenes shit that goes into making music. But my God does 3 stacks go off on that last verse. Verses from Benjamin Andre were few and far between towards the end of the decade, but all of them were absolutely spectacular as this one.

#19 Nas - "One Mic" [2001]

Few songs and videos are as powerful as Mr. Jones' 2nd single off of Stillmatic. This and "Hate me Now" were my introduction to the God Son emcee.

#18 Atmosphere - "Guarantees" [2008]

One of the best songs off of one of the best albums of the decade. Sean Daley doe shis damn thing speaking of blue collared struggles over amazing guitar playing by Nate Collis. ONe of my favorite atmosphere songs ever.
#17 Dilated Peoples - "This Way ft Kanye West" [2004]

Damn I miss backpack rap Kanye. This song was an introduction to one of my favorite west coast acts, Dilated Peoples and Evidence. One of my fav Kanye productions ever.

#16 Gangstarr - "Rite Where You Stand (ft Jadakiss)" [2003]

One of my fav Primo joints ever, 'kiss and Guru deliever incredible verses over my introduction to that gritty NY boom bap hip hop.

#15 SunN.Y. - "Soul of a Hustler" [2005]

Now this is an incredible song from an artist who i've never heard from again. He was signed to so so def in 05 but his album was never released, which is a damn shame becuase few emcees can hold down a 5 minute song with just straight spitting and no hook. This song is just as amazingly jaw dropping today as it was half a decade ago.

#14 Hi-Tek - "Music is for Life (ft Nas & Common)[2006]

Nas blacks out on one of hi-teks best beats ever. I prefer hi-teks original verse on this song that was on the demo version of the song, but Common is also excellent on this track.

#13 Lupe Fiasco - "Kick, Push" [2006]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gl83mI69nX4
Lupe's debut single was an instant classic, a smooth lush beat provided soundtrakk. Lupe's introduction to the world came at a perfect time, where D4L was dominating the airwaves and nas claim hip hop's demise, lupe brought lyricism back to the forefront of mainstream hip hop.

#12 Jay Electronica - "Exhibit C" [2009]

Similarly what Lupe did 3 years earlier, Jay Electhannekkuh has had the internet going insane during the final weeks of the decade. This being the newest single on the list, its difficult to place exactly where this song belongs in the list, but few songs that I can remember have had as much impact as this just blaze production.

#11 CunninLynguists - "Mexico" [2007]

This song is just a masterpiece. Off of one of the best albums of the decade, released as a digi-single, songs like these make me wonder why arent the 'Lynguists all over MTV and selling a million records. Its a damn shame, maybe in a different era, they would be the most acclaimed group of a generation, but in this decade, they are underground's special little secret.

Rhymes: Best Hip Hop Singles of the Decade (30-21)

#30 Lupe Fiasco - Hip Hop Saved My Life [2007]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3YV1hzALHs
While Lupe's first single (Super star) received more commercial success and his third single (Paris, Tokyo) recieved more critical acclaim from hip hop purists, but his second single off his second album is one of the best songs of the decade. Lupe tells a tale of an aspiring emcee trying to make it in the game, very inspirational.

#29 Scarface - On My Block [2002]

Off of 'face's classic 2002 album, the fix, the legendary Geto Boy emcee speaks on life in Houston Texas over those timeless keys.

#28 Eminem - Stan [2000]

Marshall Mathers' third single off of his arguably best album is my personal favorite Eminem single. Mr. Mathers' storytelling on this track is top notch, and his live performance of this song at the Grammy with Elton John is one of his most memorable moments of his career.

#27 Kidz in the Hall - Wheelz Fall Off ('06 til) [2006]

Off the duo's debut album, School was My Hustle this is one of the more obscure songs on this list, but this song is phenomenal. Double O's task of sampling a classic song (93 til Infinity) is often considered taboo, mainly because the song will rarely live up to the original, but this is not the case. Naledge drops some lyrical gems over the incredible soundscape laced by Double O.

#26 Dead Prez - Hip Hop [2000]

This incredible song was released at the beginning of the decade and was one of my first introductions to what is often called "Conscious Rap" but being a ten year old all i cared about was that crazy bass line.

#25 Blu & Exile - Blu Colla Workers [2007]

Amazing video and song, this is truly hip hop in its essence. I kept hearing people talking about Blu and how great his album was, I finally caved and for some reason this was the first song I listened to from the classic 2007 album, entirely produced by the MPC wizard, Exile, and I didnt listen to another song from the album for a couple weeks cuz I couldnt stop listening to this song.

#24 Common - The Corner [2005]

Often dubbed as Common's comeback single, his first release with Kanye West, few songs and albums giving me the feeling hearing them for the first time, that this song and Be did.

#23 Louis Logic - The Great Divide [2006]

Off of his sophomore album, Misery Loves Company, classic song and video.

#22 Beanie Sigel - Feel it in the Air [2005]

Beans' best song from his best album. I had this song on repeat for a lot of my freshman year in high school.

#21 Q-Tip - Gettin' Up [2008]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cG1tNxDWOQQ
This is how a legend comes back after 9 years of shelved albums and disappointment. This song is vintage ATCQ.

Rhymes: #8 Greatest Album of All Time: Radiohead "In Rainbows"

This album was released out of nowhere on October 10, 2007 digitally. Thom and the boys didn't inform the public that they had finished their first album in 4 years until a week before its release. And after that the internet went NUTS. Everywhere I looked I saw nothing but Radiohead this and Radiohead that. Up until that all I knew about Radiohead was that Kanye,Lupe,&Pharell rapped over a song by the lead singer of the band and they did a cameo on South Park.

But on October 12 (My birthday), that all changed. Curiousity got the best of me, I donwloaded the album for free, and it was...different. It was so unlike any music I had ever heard, it was short so I listened to it again, then again, then I finally got it. In Rainbows is the most beautiful album I've ever heard. It is a Pablo Picasso painting in form of a ten track album.

After loving In Rainbows, I went out and bought 2 other Radiohead albums that also appear on this list (Ok Computer and Kid A), and Thom and the boys became my favorite band.

Here's footage of my first ever concert...

Rhymes: Lupe Fisco's L.A.S.E.R.S. (Manifesto)

Lupe always does something interesting when it comes to his albums, no LupEND, but instead we get Lupe Fiasco's Lasers. We are not losers, we are lasers.