Year-End Report: Top 50 Albums of 2011 10-1

It was quite the undertaking counting down my Top 50 Albums of 2011 but I came out unscathed. There is plenty to be excited about in the world of music; not just these albums, but also the fact that music sales are up for the first time since 2004. The times they are a-changin': digital sales finally beat out physical music sales for the first time. Additionally, vinyl sales are up a whopping 39%! I purchased a great deal of this Top 50 on vinyl and if you have a record player, there is nothing like it. Whatever your medium, I encourage you to purchase anything you have discovered here. I hope you've enjoyed the countdown so far. The Top 10 is an unpredictable list full of great albums you need to hear. Give everything a spin and let me know what you think! With further ado, I give you my favorite albums of 2011:

SXSW 2011 Recap: Day 3, March 17

Today, I was listening to the WTF podcast with Marc Maron from SXSW - which was seriously hilarious; I totally wish I was there - and I thought to myself, “Didn’t I start doing a recap of MY experience at SXSW?” Why yes I did. Then I realized it is now two months later and I haven’t finished the damn thing. There are still plenty of photos, videos, and stories I would still like to share with you few lucky readers. I know I left ya hanging but I’m still finishing it - wanna fight about it?

Anyway, my third day at SXSW was to be one of the most frustrating days of the festival. The morning was filled with incredible sets brought about by the Exploding in Sound showcase at Friends of Sound Records. However, the night was filled with epic fails as I tried to see big name acts. The whole experience was definitely a learning process of what to do and not to do during SXSW. This particular day did involve some of my more memorable and hilarious adventures as you will soon read.