2011: A Banner Year for Critically Acclaimed Yet Unlistenable Music

2011 was perhaps the best year ever for music that was adored by critics yet unlistenable to laypeople.

The other day, the Village Voice published its annual Pazz & Jop Critics Poll, which surveys hundreds of music critics around the country to create something more or less like a consensus of the the best records of the year. Usually, an undeniable instant classic like The Clash's London Calling, Nirvana's Nevermind or Bob Dylan's Time Out of Mind rises to the top.

This year the surprise #1 record of 2011 was whokill, by a shift key-challenged artiste called tUnE-yArDs (seen above). I’d heard the name but knew nothing of the music, and now I know why - it is tUnE-lEsS. 


According to the Voice poll, his/her/their/its song "Bizness" was the 12th best song of the year. To me it sounds like an unholy alliance betwen Adam and the Ants, Joan Armatrading and a crystal meth addict.

Over at the indie-snob mecca Pitchfork, the best record of the year was the self-titled sophomore album by the Minneapolis singer-songwriter and Kanye West pal Bon Iver. 


I thought tUnE-yArDs' reckless use of upper and lower case type was pretentious, until I found out that Bon Iver is supposed to be pronounced in French, ala bonjour, as opposed to the American way like Bon Jovi. Translated loosely from French, "Bon Iver" means "don't bother."


Bon Iver's record was celebrated by millennial hipsters for dredging up the sonic palette of 80s dreck like Toto and Bruce Hornsby without irony in songs like "Beth/Rest." Which begs the question, if Bon Iver's watered-down merde is an album for the ages, then why isn't Peter Cetera in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?

As they are with so many trends, Radiohead was way ahead of the curve in 2011, releasing The King of Limbs, their most unlistenable record to date. Rather than rehash the details, I'll simply refer you to Rock Turtleneck's Onion-esque April 1 post entitled "Radiohead Brilliantly Experiments with Sucking on New LP. " 


To the band's credit, that live versions of this material have been far superior, this version of "Little by Little" being a case in point. This was also the case with their albums Kid A and Amnesiac.





Radiohead are the greatest band since R.E.M., so I'm sure they'll bounce back with something fantastic in the near future. tUnE-yArDs and Bon Iver? Don't hold your breath.


Buy them on iTunes if you dare:
tUnE-yArDs, whokill
Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Radiohead, The King of Limbs