As 2011 rolls to a slow wintery end, team Drift have gathered together before thelandscape becomes too blurred in the Christmas haze to argue, re appreciate andmethodically list the last twelve months in music.

The conclusion; what a wonderful time it is to be an independent record shop. Each Aprilwe have our own 'day' (Independent Record Store Day); a worldwide celebration of indierecord outlets with exclusive limited edition releases. The general awareness ofindependent music is at an all time high with constant media appraisal and the best footfall in memory. Secondarily we are in no small part responsible for the massive 40% salesrise nationwide in new vinyl sales. Amongst the statistics a new generation of music fansare finding their feet and doing so with the most enduring of all formats, very gratifying.Lastly when sitting down to compile our favourite one hundred albums of the year wehad a short list of over three hundred to whittle down. So high is the caliber that inessence we have been enjoying a new album almost every single day this last twelvemonths.

Over the next couple of pages we've voted and tallied up all those release, culminatingin the illustrious “Drift Record Shop Album of the Year” award... just don't jump to theback page... it's all about the journey.

100. How To Dress Well - 'Love Remains'99. Cloud Control - 'Bliss Release'98. Modeselektor - 'Monkeytown'97. Maria Minerva - 'Caberet Cixous'96. Jóhann Jóhannsson - 'The Miners' Hymns'95. Jeff The Brotherhood - 'We Are The Champions'94. Washed Out - 'Within And Without'93. Cass McCombs - 'Humor Risk'92. The Low Anthem - 'Smart Flesh'91. Amon Tobin - 'ISAM'90. Akron/Family - 'S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT'89. Barn Owl - 'Lost In The Glare'88. Africa Hitech - '93 Million Miles'87. Austin Peralta - 'Endless Planets'86. Luke Roberts - 'Big Bells And Dime Songs'85. Tyler, The Creator - 'Goblin'84. Ducktails - 'Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics'83. Com Truise - 'Galactic Melt'82. Laura Marling - 'A Creature I Don't Know'81. Lanterns On The Lake - 'Gracious Tide, Take Me Home'80. Iceage - 'New Brigade'79. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - 'Unknown Mortal Orchestra'78. Robert Stillman - 'Machine's Song'77. A Hawk and a Hacksaw - 'Cervantine'76. Tim Hecker - 'Ravedeath 1972'

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Hannah Drift

Album of the year: 13 & God - 'Own Your Ghost'. I always really like everything on Anit-Con, they put out stuff that is always so ambiguous and weird, and I think thiscollaboration is really well matched. The whole album seems to be in contrast with itself- kind of vulnerable and naive but with surprising wisdom! And a great mixture of cheerypop and melodrama which is always a good thing.

Best Artwork: Discodeine - S/TWorst Artwork: Planningtorock - W ("James Cameron does Beauty & The Beast")Best Packaging: Tasseomancy - UlalumeAlbum that makes me most excited: Tuneyards - WhokillFunniest album: Matt Berry - WitchazelBravest album: Metallica / Lou Reed – Lulu_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Matthew Drift

Record of the Year: Sigur Ros – 'Inni' - I was lucky enough to be invited to the premier of"Inni" at the Icelandic film festival in September. The evening was truly breathtaking, the

soundtrack beautiful, cinematic and brooding. The soundtrack and the film provide aclear insight into the bands intense characters and work ethic. One of the greatest bandsever have yet again not only failed to win me over, but have utterly knocked my feetfrom under me.

Other notable highlights One: Low - C'Mon - A classic song writers album, each track inisolation is a perfect hit record.

Other notable highlights Two: Beirut - Rip Tide - Reminiscent of his early works,romantic and direct.

Other notable highlights Three: Antlers - 'Burst Apart' - Incredible layers, amazingcompositions… they can bring the show live too, stadium sound in a 200 capacity room.

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75. Thurston Moore - 'Demolished Thoughts'74. White Denim - 'D'73. Fucked Up - 'David Comes To Life'72. Kieran Hebden/Steve Reid/Mats Gustafsson - 'Live At The Southbank'71. Nathan Salsburg - 'Affirmed'70. The Middle East - 'I Want That You Are Always Happy'69. 13 & God - 'Own Your Ghost'68. Veronica Falls - 'Veronica Falls'67. Oneohtrix Point Never - 'Replica'66. Anstam - 'Dispel Dances'65. Zun Zun Egui - 'Katang'64. Austra - 'Feel It Break'63. Cashier No 9 - 'To The Death Of Fun'62. EMA - 'Past Life Martyred Saints'61. The Field - 'Looping State of Mind'60. Balam Acab - 'Wander/Wonder'59. Mogwai - 'Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will'58. Thank you - 'Golden Worry'57. Ghost Poet - 'Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam'56. Wild Beasts - 'Smother'55. Sun Araw - 'Ancient Romans'54. Dirty Beaches - 'Badlands'53. Walls - 'Coracle'52. Thundercat - 'The Golden Age Of Apocalypse'51. SBTRKT – 'SBTRKT'50. Hauschka - 'Salon Des Amateurs'49. Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx - 'We're New Here'48. Anna Calvi - 'Anna Calvi'47. Blitzen Trapper - 'American Goldwing'46. Bon Iver - 'Bon Iver'45. Samiyam - 'Sam Baker's Album'44. Beirut - 'The Rip Tide'43. White Hills - 'H-p1'42. Tom Vek - 'Leisure Seizure'41. Rustie - 'Glass Swords'40. The War On Drugs - 'Slave Ambient'

39. Björk - 'Biophilia'38. Toro Y Moi - 'Underneath The Pine'37. I Break Horses - 'Hearts'36. Martyn – 'Ghost People'35. Blanck Mass - 'Blanck Mass'34. John Maus - 'We Must Become The Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves'33. Joker - 'The Vision'32. Glenn Jones - 'The Wanting'31. Tom Waits - 'Bad As Me'30. Peaking Lights - '936'29. British Sea Power - 'Valhalla Dancehall'28. Planningtorock - 'W'27. Jeffrey Lewis - 'A Turn In The Dream-Songs'26. Gillian Welch - 'The Harrow & The Harvest'25. The Amazing - 'Gentle Stream'24. Dirty Projectors And Bjork - 'Mount Wittenburg Orca'23. Braids - 'Native Speaker'22. Woods – 'Sun & Shade'21. Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - 'Rome'20. Zomby – 'Dedication'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Luke Drift

Album of the year: Arboretum - “The Gathering”It normally takes me a while to get so hooked on an album, with this one it wasinstantaneous. Simultaneously bleak and hopeful. It's the perfect soundtrack to myescapades out on Dartmoor in my post modern Saxon outfit, searching for Agnosticdemons to slay. Go friends, don your helmet, get lost in that distortion pedal!

The most difficult choice for best album: Arboretum vs Glenn Jones. It came down tothe toss of a coin. I get dressed up to listen to both.

Best Artwork: Tycho, not just the album cover for Dive, but all the posters and tshirtsetc. The guy behind the music does the design work too. Go see at:www.tychomusic.com_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Jenny Drift

Album of the Year: “In no particular order, 2011 is a ten-way-tie between: Real Estate,Thundercat, tUnE-yArDs, Wooden Shjips, SBTRKT, Kurt Vile, Gil Scott-Heron and Jamiexx, Anna Calvi, Sigur Ros and Oneohtrix Point Never.”

Best Album Sleeves: Friendly Fires, Bon Iver, SBTRKT and A Hawk and a Hacksaw.

Least favourite album sleeves: PJ Harvey, Toro Y Moi, Carl Barat, Radiohead (somebodyleft a perfectly good picture out in the rain) and Josh T Pearson (Uncomfortable, likeyou have blundered in on a very intimate scene.)

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19.Metronomy - 'The English Riviera'The follow up to the critically acclaimed ‘Nights Out’.‘The English Riviera’ is a sonicprogression of epic proportions and affirms Metronomy as a rare British talent.

18. My Morning Jacket - 'Circuital'“I hate the phrase ‘going back to our roots’, but for this record we came home andmade it in Kentucky. And it just felt a lot like it did when we were first starting out.” -Jim James. One of our favourite all time bands on five star form.

17. Arbouretum - 'The Gathering'Fourth full length album and heavier than previous Arbouretum records... craftingfolklore and power chords. Perhaps the best thing they have ever recorded. 16. Stephen Malkmus - 'Mirror Traffic'Brand new album from Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, recorded in LA and produced bythe other indie-rock demi-god Beck. The sound of a band with a spring in their step.

15. Battles - 'Gloss Drop'New York six-legged rhythmic juggernaut Battles are one of the most exciting andrespected alternative bands of recent years and they return with their second album.Whizzes, bangs and pops... and Gary Numan was invited for the ride!

14. Wooden Shjips - 'West'While indebted to both the psych music of the ‘60s and mid-‘70s, electric Neil Young,and even the induced travels of Spacemen 3, Wooden Shjips’ music is modern and inevery way their own. 'West' is an epic journey to the edge and beyond.

13. PJ Harvey - 'Let England Shake'PJ Harvey’s eighth studio album was recorded in a 19th Century church in Dorset, on aclifftop overlooking the sea. It won the Mercury award... rightfully so!

12. Chad VanGaalen - 'Diaper Island'Chad VanGaalen emerges from his bunker in Calgary with a batch of songs, giving us awindow into the private world of this reclusive and enigmatic songwriter.

11. tUnE-yArDs - 'w h o k i l l'w h o k i l l, the sophomore album by Merrill Garbus' tUnE-yArDs, is a thrill for fans ofthe live shows that have left everyone stunned and amazed. It sounds like a patchworkquilt.

10. Josh T. Pearson - 'Last of the Country Gentlemen'Josh T. Pearson’s debut solo album is a collection of seven songs drawn from the lessonsof what he describes as “a rough year” - Highly Recommended._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Rupert Drift

“A lot of my record buys this year have been reissues, patching the musical holes. JimO'Rouke, Radio Department. Talk Talk and Mark Hollis LP's have been on heavy rotation,real life changers. Otherwise i'm all about distortion. Arboretum, Barn Owl, Wooden

Shjips, White Denim, Moon Duo, White Hills... ”

Album of the year: Chad VanGaalen - 'Diaper Island'Best solo: Jonathan Wilson - 'Desert Raven'Best duel solo: White Denim - 'Back at the Farm'Best cover art: Rustie – 'Glass Swords'Worst cover art: Adele - '21' (irony being that in real life she's quite pretty)Most in shop complaints whilst playing: Tyler, The Creator - 'Goblin'Best promo items: British Sea Power beer mats / Villagers desktop calender

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9. Low - 'C'mon'Without curtailing their artistry one iota, the trio have made one of their mostaccessible, affecting albums to date.Utterly brilliant.

8. P.G. Six – 'Starry Mind'The first pronunciations in four years from the tower of P.G, these songs are born onwaves of electricity, sounding fresh and clear as ever. Top top draw.

7. Radiohead – 'The King of Limbs'Lyrically the record harks back to 2001's "Amnesia", and indeed the heavy use ofelectronic instrumentation and distortion also recalls both "Amnesia" and "Kid A". Theremix album is superb also... One of the world's best bands at the top of their game.

6. Jonathan Wilson - 'Gentle Spirit'Warm, supple melodies etched in layers of stringed instruments and willowy organmotifs accompany his earnest, North Carolinian drawl as he tells tales of humane valueslost and found. Contemporary Californian valley, superb.

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Emmy Drift

“My top 10 have no order because I found it really hard to even narrow it down to 10!”

Album of the year: Its incredibly hard to depict my favourite album this year but afterthe passing of such a great musician I could hardly leave out jamie XX's remixed versionof we're new here. Its a wicked twist on the original album and a fitting tribute to such alegendary funky music maker. Compilation of the Year: FABRICLIVE 59: Four Tet - An album I have on repeat most days– definitely try and get a copy.Best live show: Metronomy, Dartington. I'm not quite sure if it was solely the site of JoeMount's beautiful Totnesian semi afro live in Dartington this September or the innovativebass lines and genuinely brilliant atmosphere that the band created but it was certainlya gig I will remember for a very long time - brilliant! Sound of my Summer: Jamie xx - 'far nearer' - just love those steal drums.Best EP - Eliphino - More Than Me it's truly delicious. What will 2012 sound like? I am thinking we'll be hearing some tasty new grooves fromour old friend Gold Panda and fingers crossed the illusive Burial... have a gander atMosca thinking big things are still too come HAPPY CHRISTMAS + NEW YEAR!!!!

5. Suuns - 'Zeroes, QC'A propulsive collusion between pop, post-punk and experimental rock - one that allowsthe group to musically shapeshift without losing any of the sense of tension and uneasethat runs throughout the record. Suuns possess a rare trait in rock music: restraint. It'sapparent in album opener 'Armed For Peace', which starts like a robot breaking down ina desert. The song's mechanic beat plods like ironshoed footsteps as the melody of awheezing synth mirrors the crackling sound of old transistors and circuitry being cookedin the sun. Been on repeat play for 11 months now, it's that good.

4. Fleet Foxes - 'Helplessness Blues'Recording for "Helplessness Blues" began in April 2010 at Dreamland Recording inWoodstock, NY and continued off and on through November of that same year back inSeattle at numerous studios, including Bear Creek, Reciprocal Recording and Avast.Drawing inspiration from folk/rock from about 1965 to 1973, and Van Morrison's "AstralWeeks" in particular, "Helplessness Blues" sees Fleet Foxes heighten and extendthemselves, adding instrumentation (clarinet, the music box, pedal steel guitar, lap steelguitar, Tibetan singing bowls, vibraphone, etc., along with more traditional bandinstrumentation), with a focus on clear, direct lyrics, and an emphasis on group vocalharmonies.

They've taken the concept of The difficult second album and crafted a piece of worknot only worthy of their groundbreaking debut, but in our opinion, one that will endurefor generations. Amazing.

3. Real Estate - 'Days''Days', is the much anticipated second album by New Jersey's Martin Courtney, MattMondanile and Alex Bleeker - known collectively as Real Estate. A gorgeously melancholy,autumnal suite of understated pop songs bringing to mind the subtle majesty of fellowNJ outfit The Feelies, Felt and early R.E.M, the group's first release for Domino is aperfect maturation of the promise suggested by their quietly adored eponymous debut in2009. Augmented exquisitely by bandmates Matt Mondanile and Alex Bleeker's intricate,gently psychedelic musicianship, singer Martin Courtney's economic yet vividly poeticimagery in exploring his obsessions (suburban youth, home, nature, loss) and yearningway with a hook establish 'Days' as a great coming-of-age chronicle and himself as a trulyimportant, distinctive voice in American songwriting today.

2. Kurt Vile - 'Smoke Ring For My Halo'Once compared to Leonard Cohen, Tom Petty, Psychic TV and Animal Collective in thesame review, Kurt can bring to mind anything from Suicide to Leo Kottke to My BloodyValentine, Bob Seger, Nick Drake and Eastern ragas. Still, he pieces together thesedisparate elements so seamlessly and unpretentiously that such reference points arerendered pointless by the singularity of his sound. Kurt Vile might belong to a longlineage of classic American songwriters, but he’s the only one who’s alive and in hisprime today.

This is the fourth time Kurt Vile has put an album’s worth of songs together and stuck aname on it, but in a sense "Smoke Ring For My Halo" is his first real album - everyflinching guitar arpeggio and vocal wander was made to be here, made with this recordin mind, to sit alongside another in situ and in sequence. It’s a record that is perfect forany given day during whatever season, to satisfy all moods in every possible scenario, bethat first thing in the morning or last thing at night; today, tomorrow or five years fromnow.

The Drift Record Shop 2011 Album of the Year

Bill Callahan – 'Apocalypse'

How many times have you walked into our shop this last year and heard Bill Callahan'srich baritone painting the vivid landscape of his patriotic and celebratory “America”?Certainly 'Apocalypse's most instantly grabbing and vital moment, America is in part alament on missing your homeland in the trials of touring and also an open love letter tothe cultural 'Army' of “Captain Kristofferson, Bucks Sergeant Newbury and SergeantCash” bastions and carriers of the great artistic flag. If you've browsed the racks, spenttime talking to us over the counter and especially if you've given us the smallencouragement we need to break it out on the stereo, America and in turn Apocalypsehas soundtracked much of 2011 for us.

Sparser perhaps in instrumentation then previous outings, but rich and totally full in it'spalette. Apocalypse is a complete and content body of work. Like a classic Americanmovie, the album tells a tale and flows across an epic cinematic landscape that is bothbaron and lush. From the very first moments through to the albums reluctantly epicclosing One Fine Morning; Apocalypse is perfect and totally captivating.

Unbelievably Apocalypse marks Bill Callahan's twenty-first year of releasing (both underhis own name and his previous Smog moniker) and you'd be excused for anticipating he'dbe entering a (well earned) period of delivering the tried and tested formula to hiswilling disciples. Perhaps this is what the 'Apocalypse' in the title relates to? It isotherwise the only incongruous thing about the album. What is the Apocolypse? For us,Bill Callahan is the Apocalypse. A musical statesman finally at ease with his role as an“entertainer” and delighting in the opportunity to turn auteur extraordinaire to arguablyhis widest audience to date.

A contemporary studio masterpiece. If tape is like meat, this record is the whole hog -no cuts.