69 thoughts on “Open Mic: What’s The Best New Electronic Music Of 2012?”

  6. The albums I liked this year the most were:

    Actress – RIP
    BT – If The Stars Are Eternal Then So Are You And I
    Burial – Kindred
    One Thousand Lucky Cranes – One Thousand Lucky Cranes EP
    Voices From The Lake – Voices From The Lake
    Air – Le Voyage Dans La Lune
    Asa and Stumbleine – Your Secret EP
    Flying Lotus – Until The Quiet Comes
    Kashiwa Daisuke – RE:
    Grimes – Visions
    Held – Holy Other
    Four Tet – Pink

    1. I add:
      Holy Other: Held
      Old Apparatus: Derren EP
      Squarepusher: Ufabulum
      The Field: Looping state of mind
      Sakamoto & Willits: Ancient Future

  9. Gotyé and Penguin Prison.

    And Norway’s Donkeyboy jumped to the electronic side of the fence and made a KILLER album, my favorite record of 2012.

      1. I listened to it and found it disappointing. I wanted so much more from Squarepusher and it just left me feeling flat. Same thing with Burial’s Truant/ Rough Sleeper. There were great moments but overall it was disappointing. Kindred was brilliant though.

  12. Highly subjective, but some of my personal favourites this year:

    Ital – Dream On + The Dubout/Saviour’s Love Megamix of Only for Tonight)
    Burial – Kindred
    Sprutbass – Sprutbass EP
    Postiljonen – Satisfaction (track)
    Todd Terje – Inspector Norse‘
    ‘Boom Bip + Charlie White – Music for Sleeping Children (especially the Isabelle track)
    John Talabot – fIN
    Dean Blunt – The Narcissist II
    Steve Summers – Dreaming in Color

  22. Ametsub – All is Silence LP
    Minilogue – Let life dance thru you EP
    Squarepusher – Ufabulum LP
    DJ Food – The Search Engine
    Photek – Pyramid

  26. Todd Terje-Inspector Norse
    Holly Herndon made a very daring, beautiful record.
    everything I’ve heard off of the ManMakeMusic label namely Leon Vynehall, and U’s “Eah”.
    Schlomo’s Lianne La Havas remix.
    XXYYXX
    I stumbled across a kid called Dream Koala from France who is making some excellent music.

  28. Black Mother Super Rainbow – Cobra Juicy
    Fort Romeau – Kingdoms
    Georges Vert – An Electric Mind
    Prince Rama – Top Ten Hits Of The End Of The World
    Belbury Poly – Belbury Tales
    Poolside – Pacific Standard Time

  30. Electronic instruments are better than ever. Electronic music however is dead. All that’s left is the twitching corpse of resuscitated disco from the 70’s, moronic rap and mindless, mechanical music for robots. True electronic music died 20 years ago and few are even interested in it any more.

    1. I kind of agree, the last really creative time for electronic music was in the 80’s. Everything sounds like its made with factory presets nowadays ;o)

    2. BH is right, the gear IS better than ever. Sadly, I also agree about the Disco Factor. The Beat has taken over so much, actual complex compositions with some sweat in them have faded quite a bit. I LIKE some of it, in part because The Beat is central to out hearts, literally. I simply fret over the numbing repetition, which doesn’t really have much to say. Sure, I can cruise YouTube and find many new musicians whose labor-of-love factor is great, but its not the common direction; you have to DIG for it. For every Ozric Tentacles, there seem to be a hundred people playing 5th chords over beat #34. The small plus is that it makes me work harder to keep the human element preset in my own work. Behold the great Bryson Andres, who steps up to the peak with “just” a violin and a looper. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPYGeELPpno
      Aphex Twin covers can’t touch the spirited immediacy he conveys. I ache to hear more people find that in themselves and express it. I love my machines dearly, but they sing best when I don’t play in lockstep with the gears. So Bryson is MY pick for the best ‘electronic’ find of the year.

      1. After a snort of Nyquil and a Percoset to combat the flu, EVERYONE feels 187 years old. I slowed down so much I started a nice ambient piece before I passed O-U-T.

  31. For me, Japanese artist Numb’s new album was most impressive,, for its song structure and sound quality.
    He hasn’t released it outside of Japan yet but he really should.
    Please give a try : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruB7CIKcM3M
    This is not PR purpose but I really want to share his music with every electronic music listeners.

  34. Most music is electronic these days. Haven’t used my phonograph lately.

    But seriously there is some serious bleed over.

  35. this is hilarious. Electroniic music dead? it is now more alive than ever. Sorry if you don’t like whats coming out, to each it’s own. But to declare it dead? When electronic musicians are probably on the spotlight now more than ever. Also a HUGE underground scene everywhere. Dont be a moron and say its dead because you are old and don’t like what the new kids are doing. The times change and thats the way it works.

    2. Yeah, get off my lawn, you noisy kids! I’m old and I don’t like what you’re doing! Nah, I can’t help but stay interested. I bought a sound set called Kitchen Sink, in which the creator simply whacked his entire kitchen and made a set of the best results. Its a great little drum option and its not tied to any one style. Its intimate and atmospheric. If I use it in a dull manner, that’s my fault. Like Religion™ and Politics™, electronic music is due for an upgrade. I’d like for it to be a bounce-back against excessive simplicity. When Jerry Harrison was asked what he thought the next big trend would be, he said “Competence.” Good start! I think I’ll try more of it myself…. ahem.

    3. No old-style 4-piece garage band can touch the shoe-tops of one practicing dubstep. That kind of bass will loosen the bolts on a car 3 blocks over and send the neighbors scrambling for their guns. You noisy kids.

  36. Some news stuffs on planet-mu, rephlex
    Still in love with:

    Ceephax
    Com Truise
    Polysick
    Peaking lights
    Flying Lotus
    Kuthma
    Resound
    Sparkle Motion
    DBR UK

  44. Devonwho – Perfect Strangers Vol 1
    Black Moth Super Rainbow – Cobra Juicy
    Lucian Flur – Robots in the Garden
    Little Dragon – Ritual Union

  46. This year was the year in which I reawakened my long-dormant interest in electronic music, bought a synth and started making my own. So I’d have to say that the best new electronic music I discovered in 2012 was mine (at SoundCloud under the name RedYellowRed). I also heard some other people’s lovely stuff that I’d never have heard otherwise, so it was a year of discovery, except for electronic dance music, which I’ve never liked.

  48. Man lots of good finds on this one, but a couple that haven’t been mentioned:
    Scuba- Personality is one of the best techno albums I’ve heard since Soulwax’s Nite Versions
    Prodigy- Fat of Land Disc 2 had some super hard and nasty remixes from Noisa, M.Lazer and the Glitch Mob
    Holy Other’s ‘Held”, and How to Dress Well’s “Total Loss” killed it in the broken beat and slow jamz category.
    Nouveau Palais’ “Extended Play” on the Red Bull label was also pretty wicked.
    Cherub’s “Mom & Dad”, was a great indie-disco album
    and, Maya Jane Coles continued to kill it with her new album “Easier to Hide”.

    The most anticipated albums for me is the follow-up to SBTRKT’s self titled album, and Tycho’s next effort.

  50. to add to some of the above (&thx for a handful of new suggestions, all):

    Rene Hell’s “In 1980 I Was a Blue Square” side of the split he did with Oneohtrix Pt. Never

  56. New Look – New Look
    Crystal Castles – Crystal Castles III
    They just both happen to be Canadian 🙂

    I love the sounds and production on the VCMG album but I don’t know if the music interests me allot.

    The thread has made me realize there’s a new BEEM album I didn’t know about.

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