December is the best time of the year for music fans, the month where critics and fans enthusiastically compile and share their lists of their favorite albums of the year. Though the month is usually a slow one for new releases, I discover more new music in December than any other time of the year because of these recommendations.
In Milwaukee, the best albums of the year tradition is particularly rich, thanks to the Pabst Theater's Matt Beringer, who runs a blog where anybody can post their own lists, Letters Home From Camp. Last year the blog hosted almost three dozen of them, and most were more insightful and varied than any compiled in magazines and blogs. Where professional lists are encumbered by consensus and internal politics, fan's lists are bound only by personal preference; as a result they're much more honest and often more interesting.
As usual, Beringer is also hosting a top albums party where friends and strangers can talk music, swap mixtapes and guest DJ throughout the evening. This year it's on Sunday, Dec. 27 at 8 p.m at Trocadero, where there will be free Riverwest Stein.
