Best of 2012: Citizen Insane's Top 20 Singles (So Far)

What would a half-year critical list be without a rundown of one's favourite songs? I initially planned to limit things to singles only, but after so many excellent tracks got left out, I made "premiered in 2012" the qualifier instead. Without a doubt, this list will change more than any other by year's end. Picking my brain for its most addicted-to MP3s was no easy feat, especially when limiting the list to 20, so hopefully this makes up for my utter absence in the entire month of May. Bonus: Things are ordered in reverse for your listening pleasure, a mix clocking in over an hour.

Though liable to change come December, these brief snapshot lists offer a mid-semester evaluation of music so far and are as good an excuse as any to share, debate and listen...

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1. A$AP Rocky - Goldie
2. DIIV - How Long Have You Known
3. Dirty Projectors - Gun Has No Trigger
4. Kanye West - Mercy (feat. Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz)
5. Willis Earl Beal - Evening's Kiss

6. Mister Lies - Cleam
7. St. Vincent - Krokodil
8. XXXY - I Know This (Can't Be Love)
9. King Tuff - Bad Thing
10. Ryan Power - I Don't Want to Die

11. Matthew Dear - Her Fantasy
12. Cloud Nothings - Stay Useless
13. Baaur - Harlem Shake
14. Hospitality - The Birthday
15. Killer Mike - Big Beast (feat. Bun B, T.I. & Trouble)

16. Alt-J - Breezeblocks
17. Death Grips - I've Seen Footage
18. Heavenly Beat - Messiah
19. Machinedrum - DDD
20. Sun Kil Moon - I Know It's Pathetic but that Was the Greatest Night of My Life

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The Monday Mixtape: Catching Up With My iTunes History

Some old tunes, some new tunes, all good tunes, most Mondays...
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White Denim - Don't Look That Way at It
Jai Paul - Jasmine (Demo)
The Trade Winds - New York's a Lonely Town
Dirty Projectors - Gun Has No Trigger
Fort Romeau - Theo
Beach House - Other People
Ride - Cool Your Boots
Danny Brown - Grown Up
Milk Music - Out of My World
Willis Earl Beal - Evening's Kiss

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AotW - Fantasy Memorial by Dinosaur Feathers

So I've been spinning Dinosaur Feather's new LP non-stop and I've only had the record for a little over two days. That's a good sign. These Brooklyn dudes play a shopworn collage of avant-pop pastiches that manage to sound both pretty unique and very familiar. I'm sold.

Grabbing style from The Dodos, acoustic Animal Collective, Born Ruffians, Minus the Bear, Dirty Projectors, Andrew Bird, and a bunch of your other favourite bands, I'd say the songs on Fantasy Memorial sound like danceable freak folk, but then again, none of the tracks here really sound the same.

While that kind of diminishes the album as a whole, the schizophrenic musicianship suits Dinosaur Feather's catchy eccentricities. One track could have drums machines, hand-claps, and doo-wop vocals, while others sound like Grizzly Bear covering Radiohead's "There There."

These guys are all over the map, yes, but the culture cramming works and all these different sonic elements play off each other incredibly well. It doesn't hurt that the record sounds like autumn either. If you like the posted tracks, grab the whole LP by clicking here.

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Family Waves - Dinosaur Feathers

Teenage Whore - Dinosaur Feathers

I Ni Sogoma - Dinosaur Feathers

Know Your Own Strength - Dinosaur Feather

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The Monday Mixtape: Good Tunes, Great Times

Most Mondays, I post a handful of MP3s that I've had on heavy rotation.
Some new tunes, some old tunes, all good tunes.
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Barbra Streisand - Duck Sauce

Golden Years - David Bowie

Burying Stones - Highlife

Stillness Is the Move - Dirty Projectors

3 Umbrellas - Avey Tare

On One - Freddie Gibbs

Superball - Magic Kids

Hey Lizzy - Fair Ohs

Weekend in Brooklyn - Kisses

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Mixtape: Dominique Young Unique

In news that's only a couple of weeks old, Dominique Young Unique -- of "Show My Ass" fame -- dropped her first mixtape, Domination. I'll be blunt: highly recommended.

While none of the twelve tracks reach the highs of "Show My Ass" (which is a legitimately great party song), Dominique does a solid job showcasing her hyperactive flow and unique dance-rap sound. Pun not intended: Domination is made up of club-ready elements we've all heard before (Lil Kim, electroclash, Diplo, et al...) thrown into a blender and spit back out in a quick-fire, attention-deficit fashion.

Her case isn't hurt by the fact that she's a mere eighteen years old and has the talent to get attention from both the blogosphere and more major publications. Hell, she's even opening for Dirty Projectors during the September leg of their current tour.

Download the entire mixtape by clicking here, but if you're not sold yet, check out my favourite cuts below + a Hood Internet mash-up from their latest tape...

"Make that ass clap, yes, it's only right."

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Pussy Popping - Dominique Young Unique
Blaster - Dominique Young Unique
Hot Girl - Dominique Young Unique
I'm In Love With a Hot Girl (Dominique Young Unique x YACHT) - The Hood Internet

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Show My Ass - Dominique Young Unique

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