Taking On 2012: Top Albums (Q2 Quarterly Review)

We've gone through the songs, and that means it's time to start tackling the larger constructs that hold them all together. During my last quarterly review I was hesitant to call 2012 a great year for music at the time because, at that point, the releases were stretched fairly thin. Sure there were some gems, but even albums I thought would have staying power have faded away with what seems like an onslaught of top notch releases since the end of March.

There's quite a bit of ground to cover, so let us commence the counting down!

Taking On 2012: Top Tracks (Q2 Quarterly Review)

With June now completely passed we have reached the halfway point of the year, and as has become one of my favorite traditions it is time once again to track how all forms of culture have been this year. When March drew to a close it was already shaping up to be a great year for music (both individual tracks and albums), but it wasn't until I sat down to compose this list that I realized just how loaded 2012 has been...and it's only half finished!

Obviously this means there have been a number of tracks that have completely fallen off the list in favor of new entries, and when we meet again in October I reckon there may even be an entirely new batch of songs that have overtaken these based on some upcoming releases and past albums I haven't had a chance to get to yet. Part of that has to do with my stipulation that only one track from an artist is eligible, but even without that there's plenty of great music to discover.

So what's say we cut the chit chat and get in to the heft of the list? As usual, click the song titles to listen to them.

Taking On 2012: Top Tracks (Q1 Quarterly Review)

Where has the time gone? Down the critical drain, no doubt. And now that the time is no more it is time to begin the listing. Start the counting down. Organizing strategies. As it was written last year, it shall be written again. And again after that, until the future shuts us down and the electricity flows no more through these wires.

There has certainly been music this year, and some of it has even been pretty good. Of course some of it has been pretty bad too, but that's kind of the trade off, I imagine. But what's so great about music is, like a killer sammy from the local sub shop, you can pick and choose all the meats that make it in to the final product. And, naturally, kick the bad ones to the curb. I'm talking to you, mayonnaise!

So don't expect to find any mayo here, just straight up heaters. And you can even click on the links where possible to jam out on your own. I'm in your head.