2006 - Best?

Once upon a time I looked at end-of-year lists as an easy way find the best new music. These days I’m considerably more up to date and these lists are now populated mostly by albums I’m already familiar with. Now the only really purpose of these lists (though still relevant) is to give me an interesting insight into the tastes of others. It is around this time that I begin to notice all the albums that received plenty of praise but which I never liked. I usually go back to make sure I didn’t miss something, but many of these ‘best of 2006’ albums remain as duds in my mind. Over the course of the year, you’ve found out what albums I did like, now it’s time to see what I didn’t like. You may have thought I’ve missed quite a few of this year’s biggest albums; perhaps I just hated them? There’s various degrees of dislike here, from ‘enjoyed it but was lacking something’ to ‘what couldn’t anybody possibly see in that’. I should also note that none of these albums have just been heard once and then dismissed. I have listened to each of them many times, tried my hardest to like them, but just been unable to. And the losers are...

CONTROVERSY WILL ENSUE! While I hope this feature will challenge peoples' perceptions of what this year's best albums are, it really is more about me noting some of the albums I didn't like. This doesn't necessarily mean they're bad, and if you liked them, feel free to challenge my challenge. To each his own...