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So, I've been looking over the last year of music.
Contrary to what mindless youtube comment section lurkers and those who suffer from the chronic disease of mass-thinking would have you believe; music is better than it's ever been.

Now more so than ever, there is such a great variety of music being released weekly. Whether you're a fan of metal, hip-hop, electro, jazz or whatever, there are talented artists creating great albums in every genre of music IN 2012.
Music is susceptible to evolution just like life itself (sorry Bible bashers, read a f/cking book, and not the one with the woman getting swallowed by a whale)
and therefore will continue to grow and evolve, with music that adapts to the times, trends and goes beyond what many thought was possible years before.

Who could have imagined back when Elvis was recording in the Sun Studios, during the days Martin Luther King was still having wet dreams and Frank Sinatra had just signed for Capitol Records that in less than 60 years, music could be generated on computers (whatever they are) comprising of electronic rhythmic patterns, that black men would be releasing political tirades on former presidents and that a group like Death Grips would even exist.

Now that there are more people on earth than ever before, it seems just that there should be more music available to cater to the ever expanding tastes of the growing population.
Music is more readily available than ever before, I've got through nearly 100 albums this year without paying for one.
One need only search for an artist, an album and include the term 'zip' or 'rar' and have a decent chance of acquiring the record they desired.
We have radio stations dedicated to particular brands of music, growing underground scenes the world over as well as an uprising of independent artists.
There is more music than ever before, and it's never been easier to acquire (well, perhaps it was last year. f.u. US government!)

Everywhere you go, there are people listening to music. And the fact that there is enough music out there to cater to the number of people who own music playing devices is a testament to the industry itself.

Now, onto my point. It angers me when people say 'music isn't as good as 60's,70's,80's,90's,2008 or insert whatever small-minded response you want in here, because it undoubtedly is.
It doesn't make for a fair comparison if one were to take the weakest element of music in 2012 and compare it to one of the greatest from another era and proclaim this as evidence.
Imagine if science worked in the same way.
We'd still be stuck in the dark ages when Galileo Galilei had the intelligence and testicular fortitude to come forward and against popular belief and the masses informed ignoramuses that the earth indeed revolved around the sun.
How could one say, music is inferior in 2012 and point the finger towards mainstream and reality TV show fodder whilst presenting a valid argument.
They couldn't. They are dumb.

The beauty of being on a music forum is that we can discuss good music, of today and yesteryear without being bombarded by ignorant and unfounded jargon about comparing the two.
Yes, there are bad artists in 2012, who just so happen to be popular but on the other hand, nobody can say there has ever been a flawless musical era where every artist in that period was special.
No, believe me or not, there were bad artists in the 60's, 70's, 80's, dammit even in the 1800's that were their eras equivalent of T-Pain, Muse or The Enemy.
It seems with time eloping, that those who draw these wildly inaccurate comparisons conveniently sweep musical abominations such as Styx, Pat Boone and the Insane Clown Posse under the carpet, but they all happened!

I could say, "music sucked in the 80's. You had Styx, in 2012 we have The Saddest Landscape"
Would people see this as an unfair and selective statement? Yes.
So, why contradict oneself and throw out statements such as;
"One Direction can't hold a candle to The Beatles"
(Top youtube comment on The Beatles track 'follow the sun')

Last time I checked, One Direction were not attempting to be The Beatles Version 2.0. (that role has already unsuccessfully been attempted by the Gallagher brothers)
They appeal to a completely different demographic and create a completely different type of music.
This is not a fair comparison.

For those who are not willing to look past the mainstream in order to disprove their own theories that music is inferior in modern times, I pity their ignorance and stupidity.
In fact, no I don't. It's self inflicted.
If one were to find that music is indeed rich with incredible artists in 2012, they need only open their ears and listen to what is out there other than popular music.

Here's a twist. I like 2012 popular music.
When at a club, a social event or even at work, when artists such as Lady Gaga, The Wanted or Calvin Harris come on. I don't mind.
I enjoy their music for what it is. Catchy and easy to listen to.
Can you imagine what would happen if Radiohead came on at your local night club for instance or if Converge began playing on Absolute Radio.
People wouldn't understand. They wouldn't get it.
That is why pop music exists. It's there not to be taken too seriously.
It's supposed to appeal to those of limited musical taste, those who want an inoffensive and catchy song to sing and dance along to.
One that can be played to anyone, anywhere and won't alienate anybody.
If you take it for what it is, it's hard to hate on.

So when wannabe hipsters who have grown up on pop music suddenly catch their first whiff of artists like Nirvana, Beatles, Rolling Stones or whoever is a poster boy for guitars and nostalgia, they say;
'wait, this Nirvana band are better than what I hear nowadays'
And then they turn on popular music, without fully understanding why.
They feel as if they have hatched onto an epiphany of sorts. As if there hadn't been many millions of likeminds before them who had also been 'enlightened'
In fact, this 'enlightenment' had ironically made them even more ignorant.

They pine for eras gone by, as if all music from that era was of the same level as the artist they have just discovered.
What if instead of Beatles or Nirvana, they had discovered Silversun Pickups 2012 album 'Neck of the Woods'.
They could then say;
'wait this Silversun Pickups album is better than Lady Gaga'
This is a more accurate statement. It involves no sweeping generalisations.

Yes, I understand music is subjective. But, this is my journal and these are my opinions. So I am of the opinion that one artist can be superior to another.

If people find that they like artists similar to the Beatles, there are artists playing similar music in 2012. That does not mean the 60's are better than 2012. They are not. The same music (and much better music) exists in 2012, just go and look for it in the same way you went looking for The Beatles.

Plus, in eras gone by, artists only scraped the tip of the iceberg in what music can be. Music in 2012 combines past influences with innovation and evolution to create new and dynamic sounds and forms of music.
We have much more technically competent artists in 2012 as well as much more creativity. There are whole hosts of niche conceptual artists that cater to every unique taste out there. So, how could any one person be unsatisfied with what is produced in 2012?

If worst comes to worst and you can't get over Beatlemania, you could always see a tribute act in Majorca in the summer of 2013.
Yup, the music is out there to cater to EVERYONE even if you don't have the bravery to escape the past and try new things.

So, on another note. I was looking back over the past year trying to structure my favourite albums into some sort of list, a pretty hard task I may add.
I looked over my 2011 list for inspiration on ranking records and I recalled what an incredible year of music, last year was.
And whilst I am still awaiting 2012 releases and waiting for certain albums to 'grow' on me, I thought I'd have a run-down of 2011.
Therefore, starting this week I will present my top 25 albums of 2011 and hopefully by the time I have completed said list, I can start with my 2012 list.

Regards.

MC.