![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.shockya.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/Blunderbuss.jpg\" "\\"Blunderbuss\\"")
<\/a><\/p>\n 1. \u201cBlunderbuss\u201d \u2013 Jack White<\/strong> <\/p>\n All hail the king of traditional rock n\u2019 roll, Jack White, and his masterpiece, \u201cBlunderbuss\u201d. The 13 track album, which dropped on April 24 via Third Man Records, took the top prize by a landslide. Whether he is in The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather or beside a female band, I will remain a loyal and avid fan of Jack White simply because of his innate ability to tactfully adapt his immense musical skills to eclectic projects. As Cady Heron said in \u201cMean Girls\u201d, \u201cThe limit does not exist\u201d and these wise words of Lindsay Lohan are more than applicable to the career of Jack White. <\/p>\n The enigmatic aura that has continued to delightfully encompass White is at the forefront on \u201cBlunderbuss\u201d both instrumentally and lyrically. \u201cI want love to roll me over slowly, stick a knife inside me, and twist it all around,\u201d sings White on the opening verse of the album\u2019s lead single, \u201cLove Interruption\u201d. Who else could get away with comparing love to a brutal death and make the fairytale psychotically appealing? Well, certainly not Taylor Swift. <\/p>\n The love woes continue to dominate \u201cBlunderbuss\u201d with White\u2019s Grammy nominated track, \u201cFreedom at 21\u201d, the piano heavy songs, \u201cWeep Themselves to Sleep\u201d, \u201cTake Me With You When You Go\u201d and \u201cHypocritical Kiss\u201d and The White Stripes-esque and guitar riff dominated single, \u201cSixteen Saltines\u201d. Could \u201cBlunderbuss\u201d be influenced by White\u2019s 2011 divorce from Karen Elson? Your guess is as good as mine since White is the ultimate man of mystery. <\/p>\n Through an orchestra of instruments and controlled vocal range, White can dabble in blues, alternative, garage and even country rock and still churn out a cohesive album. I will always welcome his friends to the stage, but \u201cBlunderbuss\u201d has proven going solo in music and in love wears well on Jack White.<\/p>\n 2. \u201cAll The Little Lights\u201d \u2013 Passenger <\/strong><\/p>\n British singer and songwriter, Mike Rosenberg, put up a solid fight on the lyrical front for the number one position with his band\u2019s album, \u201cAll The Little Lights\u201d. Passenger formed in the 2000s and released their debut album, \u201cWicked Man\u2019s Rest\u201d in 2007. The quintet underwent several lineup changes over the years, but Rosenberg continued to independently drop three albums, \u201cWide Eyes Blind Love\u201d, \u201cFlight of the Crow\u201d and \u201cDivers and Submarines\u201d, under Passenger. In 2011, Rosenberg hooked up with Boy & Bear drummer, Tim Hart, jazz bassist, Cameron Undy and keyboardist of Katie Noonan & The Captain, Stu Hunter, to create Passenger\u2019s most recent project, \u201cAll The Little Lights\u201d, which dropped on February 28 via Black Crow Records.<\/p>\n The 16 track album veers away from the typical route of lamenting in love lost and instead focuses on loving life itself. \u201cDon\u2019t you cry for the lost, Smile for the living, Get what you need and give what you\u2019re given. Life\u2019s for the living so live it or you\u2019re better off dead,\u201d sings Rosenberg on the tune, \u201cLife\u2019s For The Living\u201d. The folkloric singer and wordsmith isn\u2019t the friend to come to when you need that shoulder to cry on; he is the one to smack you back into reality. The tracks, \u201cThe Wrong Direction\u201d, \u201cThings That Stop You Dreaming\u201d, \u201cKeep On Walking\u201d and \u201cPatient Love\u201d, also lyrically embody the inspirational bluntness that \u201cDebbie Downers\u201d everywhere need to tap into.<\/p>\n 3. \u201cThe Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do\u201d \u2013 Fiona Apple <\/strong><\/p>\n Only Fiona Apple can title an album, \u201cThe Idler Wheel is Wiser Than The Driver Of The Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do\u201d and get away with it unscathed. Since the release of her 1996 debut album, \u201cTidal\u201d, the pop rocker lost the edgy and vulnerable path she meticulously created with her Grammy winning song, \u201cCriminal\u201d. Her overly produced 2005 album, \u201cExtraordinary Machine\u201d, rid Apple of her outlandishly raw vocals and instrumentals, which are essential to magnifying her untamed persona. \u201cThe Idler Wheel\u2026\u201d, which dropped on June 19 via Epic Records, put Apple back on track, bringing her back to her \u201cTidal\u201d days with a more mature mindset. The singer and songwriter has a lot going on up in her head and \u201cThe Idler Wheel\u2026\u201d invites you in unrestrained. <\/p>\n 4. \u201cChannel Orange\u201d \u2013 Frank Ocean <\/strong><\/p>\n Appropriately following the innovative artist, Fiona Apple, R&B sensation, Frank Ocean, can refer to 2012 as his year. The \u201cBest New Artist\u201d Grammy nominee released his debut studio album, \u201cChannel Orange\u201d, on July 10th via Def Jam Recordings. The revolutionary 17 track album is a fearless and groundbreaking masterpiece for the R&B genre, which has become cluttered by an endless array of egomaniacs (cough, cough Chris Brown and his multiple personalities). Redefining the meaning of an R&B artist, Ocean took his personal demons by the reins on \u201cChannel Orange\u201d and proved therapeutic albums are worth the risk.<\/p>\n 5. \u201cThe Only Place\u201d \u2013 Best Coast <\/p>\n <\/strong>Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno of the California pop outfit, The Best Coast, are positively out of synch on their sophomore album \u201cThe Only Place\u201d, which dropped May 15 via Kemado Records\/Mexican Summer. Cosentino\u2019s unconventional vocal undertone charmingly clashes with the laidback and melodic instrumental sounds of \u201cThe Only Place\u201d. Best Coast does not pride themselves on their crafty ways with words. The idiosyncratic nature of the duo\u2019s music fit well with the lyrical simplicity and is more than enough to bring \u201cThe Only Place\u201d into the big leagues. <\/p>\n 6. \u201cCoexist\u201d \u2013 The xx<\/strong><\/p>\n The xx are sonically beautiful with the touch of one chord and the utter of a single note on the 11 track album, \u201cCoexist\u201d, which dropped September 10 via Young Turks. The trio, Madley Croft, Oliver Sim and Jamie Smith (aka Jamie xx), use the emptiness of a song to their advantage, which makes the outfit\u2019s music all the more magnetic. Yes, \u201cCoexist\u201d doesn\u2019t deviate far from their self-titled debut, but the XX are an anomaly in the music industry. <\/p>\n 7. \u201cKids Raising Kids\u201d – Kopecky Family Band<\/strong> <\/p>\n Besides having both female and male counterparts like The xx, Kopecky Family Band are stylistically in a category of their own with their deeply layered vocals mixed with folkloric and catchy tempos. The sextet, who released their debut full-length, \u201cKids Raising Kids\u201d on October 23, ideally showcase the power of consistently harmonizing through an album without sounding repetitive. The Nashville outfit uses their numbers wisely on \u201cKids Raising Kids\u201d. <\/p>\n 8. \u201cKR 51\u201d \u2013 Clare and The Reasons <\/strong> <\/p>\n 2012 is the year for gender mixed groups. Clare and The Reasons hit a haunting high note with their third album, \u201cKR 51\u201d. Clare Manchon\u2019s vocals are ethereally bewitching and when placed alongside quirky instrumental arrangements become further amplified. \u201cKR 51\u201d, which dropped July 10 via Frog Stand Records, is an album for the atypical ear. <\/p>\n 9. \u201cThe Haunted Man\u201d \u2013 Bat For Lashes<\/strong> <\/p>\n Natasha Khan exudes her effortless talent on her latest release, \u201cThe Haunted Man\u201d, which hit stores October 22. Her dynamic vocal range is successfully complemented by widely eclectic tempos, which can most narrowly define her album as experimental genius. <\/p>\n 10. \u201cBorn To Die\u201d \u2013 Lana Del Rey <\/strong><\/p>\n Simply put, Lana Del Rey\u2019s debut album, \u201cBorn To Die\u201d, could have climbed even higher on my list if this live SNL performance<\/a> never happened. A lengthy career in this industry is made possible with a controlled stage presence and Del Rey, you missed that mark majorly. <\/p>\n Honorable Mentions of 2012: <\/strong><\/p>\n 1. “Halycon”- Ellie Goulding<\/strong><\/p>\n 2. \u201cButter\u201d \u2013 Turbo Fruits<\/strong><\/p>\n 3. \u201cThe Glorious Dead\u201d \u2013 The Heavy <\/strong><\/p>\n 4. \u201cAnxiety\u201d \u2013 LadyHawke<\/strong><\/p>\n 5. \u201cLoveblood\u201d \u2013 King Charles <\/strong><\/p>\n Artist To Watch In 2013<\/strong>: Willy Moon<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n