Unlike Michael, I haven’t bought 80 albums this year. I’ve bought quite a lot, but not that much. And, when looking through the albums I got in 2012, it turns out only 6 of them were actually from 2012. In fact, most of the albums I bought this past year were from 2011. Go figure.

The good news though is that this low number makes my list much easier to compile. Here are the 6 albums I felt passionate enough to part with money for in 2012.

Two Door Cinema Club – Beacon

If you live anywhere in the UK or Ireland you’ll know Two Door Cinema Club as “that band who did the song on that advert on TV”. The vast majority of their debut album “Tourist History” has been used on adverts or soundtracks of some kind. It was pretty damned popular. It remains to be seen if they can keep this sort of form up. This second album is not quite as catchy but it shows that the idea of guitar based indie pop isn’t dead yet. A band to keep an eye on in the future.

The Shins – Port of Morrow

If I’m honest, I was a little disappointed with this. It’s not a bad album by any means but I feel they’ve stagnated a little bit as a band which is especially strange considering nearly the whole line-up has changed. For a band that really stood out as being dynamic and interesting they’ve become one with a collection of similar sounds and a bland feel. There are still some gems to be found, so hope is not lost but I’m hoping for something a bit different next time round if I’m to keep the faith.

The Hives – Lex Hives

If I had to pick a favourite of the year my gut decision would be this. If you’ve ever heard a song by The Hives then you know what they’re about. There is no messing around. No artsy fartsy self expression. Unless the expression is “We’re The Hives and we’re here to rock you”. Because that’s what they do. Every time. Without fail. They haven’t made a bad album yet and this just continues that streak. Bow down.

Play it at full volume or don’t play it at all.

Fionn Regan – The Bunkhouse Vol.I: Anchor Black Tattoo

I’m a bit of a folk singer/songwriter junkie. If there was a button that makes me go all gooey and useless, they’d be pushing it. Fionn Regan is one of the best in the world at it and if you haven’t gotten his debut album “The End Of History” then I’m not sure I could ever take you seriously on the subject. This is his fourth album but the first real spiritual successor in sound to that first one. A welcomed return.

Here is one of the songs from the album being played on a vinyl record on top a car in the countryside. It’s pretty much the only way to listen to it.

Ben Folds Five – The Sound of The Life of The Mind

C’mon folks, Ben Folds Five are back. Of course I was going to get that album. If I’m honest, it’s not their best album as it’s a little hit and miss but it definitely grows on you and has that vintage BFF sound that you’ve been longing for. And, if you haven’t seen this music video yet you’ve obviously been living under a rock the past year.

Brendan Benson – What Kind of World

Brendan Benson has always pinned his Beatles influence to his sleeve but thankfully he has also more recently started to expand and show that this doesn’t define him. With an approach to some bigger ballads and his time with the heavier Raconteurs under his belt, his musical palette is now much wider. Don’t worry, there is still all those catchy 3 minute pop numbers in there but it’s now not the whole album.

And thanks to modern technology you can listen to all those albums in full using Spotify. JUST CLICK THIS LINK TO SEE THE PLAYLIST.

Fionn Regan is a rare musical treasure. From Bray, Co. Wicklow in Ireland he is a magical sort of folk musician who manages to both breath new life into a well worn genre and also be the epitome of it at the same time.

His debut album The End of History was critically adored and for very good reason. Incredibly crafted guitar rhythms mixed with both dreamy lyrics and heartbreaking tones created a jackpot of songs. A Mercury Music Prize nomination raised no eyebrows when it was announced.

His second effort The Shadow of an Empire came after a long 4 years of recording, marked by a rocky relationship with American label Lost Highway Records. This resulted in a never-to-be-heard album being shelved indefinitely and Fionn being dropped. However, The Shadow of an Empire bears no marks of this trouble and while not as well received as his first album was a brave change of direction with more electric sounds and a harder edge (the edge that Lost Highway deemed unsuitable).

I was happy to see that this third installment comes just a year and half later and with Regan on record as saying it was recorded in one week, he obviously had a much easier time of things. But will it turn out to be as good as previous offerings? Let’s see as I review the album in live time. 1 play through, thoughts as I get them.

1) 100 Acres of Sycamore

Oooh, interesting. He hasn’t really used strings before. It’s a lovely arrangement too. I like what it does just before the two minute mark. A more ominous song than I was expecting.

2) Sow Mare Bitch Vixen

“Sow, mare, bitch, vixen, I’ve always had a thing for dangerous women”. Yeah. Just… yeah. I f**king love this guy. Beautiful song. Really good.

3) The Horses Are Asleep

There is a much richer sound on this album to anything he has done before. And there is a confidence there, too. It really is a growth musically. I’m very impressed so far.

4) The Lake District

This is a nice song but it doesn’t connect with me much. I think the pace might be a bit too slow and soft and could have used a bit more “umph” in places. Or, you know, maybe a chorus or something. Yeah, I think that’s my problem. No chorus.

5) Dogwood Blossom

Pass. Seriously. Snoozed right through it.

6) For a Nightingale

Thank god the noise level went up for this one. Much better. A lovely summery tune. Summery is a word, right? My spell-checker tells me so.

7) List of Distractions

I’m always sceptical of the use of echo on vocal tracks. I find it distracting. I understand this is a personal taste but at this point I’m looking for anything to talk about. We went from a very strong start to quite a mediocre middle. “List of Distractions” is an ironic song title at this stage of the album.

8) 1st Day of May

I’m struggling to say anything other than “another nice slow song”.

9) North Star Lover

Let me tell you now. If I was a teenager, I’d love this record. If I had just been dumped and wanted to wallow in my room, I’d bloody love this record. Mainly because this record couldn’t hurt or leave me, but also because it would be great for that state of mind. However, today, I’m stressed, over worked, in a stable relationship and watching the clock. Don’t get me wrong, it’s lovely and all but I really need it to slap me in the chops right now to get my attention and instead it’s nicely filling the silence in the background. So while it’s a great listening experience, it’s really hard to be excited by what I’m hearing.

10) Woodberry Cemetery

Shades of Simon & Garfunkel at the start of this. In other news, I’m getting sleepy you guys.

11) Vodka Sorrow

Jesus… zZzZzZzZz

12) Golden Light

And so it ends, not in a blaze of glory but in a whimper.

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I know I’m a being a douche bag here. I know this album is going to grow on me with repeat listening. There is enough quality that I can tell the song craftsmanship is top notch. But I also know that I just wasn’t in the frame of mind to listen to this type of record right now. And that’s the thing, I think 100 Acres of Sycamore is Fionn’s least accessible album. It lacks the charms of his first and the energy of his second and hangs around in a place called “nice”. There are some welcome additions to the set list, but overall the end result is so-so for me.