End-of-year Lists Galore

Allright, here they are then, the albums of the year 2012 as selected by the entire review team of the Free Jazz Collective. Each reviewer presented his (unfortunately not her) list of the ten best albums of the year. Based on the commonalities between those lists, we selected the top-10 that we all favoured.

The Free Jazz Collective Top-10 albums of 2012

1. Eve Risser, Benjamin Duboc & Edward Perraud - En Corps
2. Angles 8 - By Way Of Deception
3. The Thing With Barry Guy - Metal!
4. Aram Shelton Quartet - Everything for Somebody
5. Henry Threadgill Zooid – Tomorrow Sunny / The Revelry, Spp
6. Nicole Mitchell - Arc Of O
7. Mary Halvorson Quintet - Bending Bridges
8. Martin Küchen - Hellstorm
9. Levity - Afternoon Delights
10. Stian Westerhus - The Matriarch & The Wrong Kind Of Flower

Every contributor to the blog also made his own list of preferred albums.

Denti Alligator

1.             Eve Risser, Benjamin Duboc & Edward Perraud - En Corps

2.             Aaron Novik - Secret of Secrets

3.             Neneh Cherry & The Thing -  The Cherry Thing

4.             Bester Quartet -  Metamorphoses

5.             Charles Gayle - Streets

6.             Keith Rowe -  September

7.             Mats Gustafsson - Bengt

8.             David Krakauer -  Pruflas -  The Book of Angels Volume 18

9.             King Tears Bat Trip -  King Tears Bat Trip

10.          The Thing With Barry Guy -  Metal!

Paul Acquaro

1.             Mary Halvorson Quintet - Bending Bridges

2.             Elliot Sharp Trio - Aggregat

3.             9 Volt - Open Circuit

4.             Elephant9 with Reine Fiske - Atlantis

5.             Joe Morris, William Parker, Gerald Cleaver - Altitude

6.             Paul Dunmall & Tony Bianco - Thank You To John Coltrane

7.             Eivind Opsvik - Overseas IV

8.             Aych - As the Crow Flies

9.             Scorch Trio with Mars Williams - Made in Norway

10.          Tim Berne - Snake Oil

Tom Burris

1.             Eve Risser, Benjamin Duboc & Edward Perraud – En Corps 

2.             Nicole Mitchell – Arc of O 

3.             Jooklo Duo & Bill Nace – Scratch 

4.             Mary Halvorson Quintet - Bending Bridges 

5.             Henry Threadgill Zooid – Tomorrow Sunny / The Revelry, Spp 

6.             Rob Mazurek Pulsar Quartet – Stellar Pulsations 

7.             Sam Rivers, Dave Holland & Barry Altschul – Reunion: Live in New York 

8.             Hairy Bones – Snakelust 

9.             Noah Bernstein – Six 

10.          Ballister – Mechanisms 

Daniel Sorrelis

1.             Eve Risser, Benjamin Duboc & Edward Perraud - En Corps

2.             Eli Keszler - Catching Net

3.             Angles 8 - By Way of Deception: Live in Ljubjana

4.             Angharad Davies, Tisha Mukarji, Dimitria Lazaridou-Chatzigoga - Outwash

5.             Pedro Sousa & Hernâni Faustino - Falaise

6.             Martin Küchen - Hellstorm

7.             Way Out Northwest - The White Spot

8.             Mikołaj Trzaska, Ollie Brice, Mark Sanders - Riverloam Trio

9.             John Tilbury - For Tomasz Sikorski

10.          Henry Threadgill Zooid - Tomorrow Sunny/The Revelry, Spp.

Phil Coombs

1.             Angles 8 - By Way of Deception - Live in Ljubljana

2.             Nicole Mitchell - Arc of O

3.             Steve Lehman Trio - Dialect Fluorescent

4.             Daniel Erdmann - How to Catch a Cloud

5.             MMM Quartet - Live at Metz' Arsenal

6.             Emile Parisien - Chien Guepe

7.             Aram Shelton Quartet - Everything for Somebody

8.             Matthew Shipp Trio - Elastic Aspects

9.             Max Johnson Quartet

10.          Eve Risser - En Corps

Joe Higham

1.             John Butcher and Toshimaru Nakamura - Dusted Machinery

2.             Levity - Afternoon Delights

3.             Aram Shelton Quartet - Everything for Somebody

4.             Daniel Erdmann - How to Catch a Cloud

5.             Marc Ducret - Tower Vol. 4

6.             Eve Risser - En Corps

7.             Outhouse - Straw, Sticks + Bricks.

8.             Arts and Sciences - New You

9.             Kay Grant & Alex Ward - Fast Talk

10.          Fred Lonberg-Holm's Fast Citizens - Gather

Paolo Casertano

1.             Stian Westerhus - The Matriarch And The Wrong Kind Of Flowers

2.             Joe McPhee & Eli Keszler - Ithaca

3.             Nate Wooley/Peter Evans - Instrumental Vol. 1

4.             Colin Stetson & Mats Gustafsson - Stones

5.             The Thing with Barry Guy - Metal

6.             Steve Lehman Trio - Dialect Fluorescent 

7.             Martin Küchen - Hellstorm

8.             Peter Kolovos - Black Colors

9.             Paradoxical Frog - Union

10.          John Tilbury - For Tomasz Sikorski

Ananth Krishnan

1.             Thomas Heberer – Cookbook

2.             Angles 8 - By Way of Deception: Live in Ljubjana

3.             Levity - Afternoon Delights

4.             Trespass Trio - Bruder Beda

5.             Maya Homburger and Barry Guy - Tales of Enchantment

Stef Gijssels

1.             Eve Risser, Benjamin Duboc & Edward Perraud – En Corps

2.             RED Trio + Nate Wooley - Stem

3.             Mikołaj Trzaska Ircha Clarinet Quartet* ‎– Zikaron - Lefanay

4.             Thomas Heberer's Clarino - Cookbook (Red Toucan, 2012)

5.             Mathias Küchen - Hellstorm

6.             Wadada Leo Smith - Ten Freedom Summers

7.             Skogen - Ist Gefallen In Den Schnee

8.             Angles 8 - By Way of Deception: Live in Ljubjana

9.             Pretty Monsters

10.          Dark Poetry

Martin Schray

1.       Fire! - In the Mouth a Hand

2.       Peter Brötzmann's Chicago Tentet+1 - Walk, Sleep, Love

3.       Evan Parker's Electro Acoustic Ensemble -  Hasselt

4.       Stian Westerhus -  The Matriarch and the Wrong Kind of Flowers

5.       Hairy Bones - Snakelust

6.       Martin Küchen - Hellstorm

7.       Mats Gustafsson/Thurston Moore -  Play Some Fucking Stooges

8.       Colin Stetson/Mats Gustafsson - Stones

9.       Pao -  Pao

10.    Arts and Science  New You

.... and by the way, you can still vote for the HAPPY NEW EARS AWARD  for the most innovative listening experience of the year.