The war for the Best Film of 2012 wraps-up today with our Drama picks. Many thoroughly engrossing dramas were released theatrically in North America throughout 2012 but only a select few could make our year-end Top 10 (or 12) list. ...Read More
The war for the Best Film of 2012 continues today with our Foreign Language picks. Many touching and engaging foreign films were released theatrically in North America throughout 2012 but only a select few could make our year-end Top 10 list. ...Read More
The war for the Best Film of 2012 continues today with our Documentary picks. Many compelling documentaries were released theatrically in North America throughout 2012 but only a select few could make our year-end Top 10 list. ...Read More
The war for the Best Film of 2012 continues today with our Genre picks. Many thrilling movies were released theatrically in North America throughout 2012 but only a select few could make our year-end Top 10 list. ...Read More
The war for the Best Film of 2012 starts today with our Comedy picks. Many hilarious movies were released theatrically in North America throughout 2012 but only a select few could make our year-end Top 10 list. ...Read More
As 2012 winds to a close, it's time to look back on some of the most popular music that we've shared over the last 12 months here at Exclaim.ca. Be sure to note that this isn't a list of favourites, and there's no qualitative assessment involved in the music featured here. Rather, this ranks posts from our Music/Video section based solely on their popularity on Exclaim.ca. Many of the posts included here are full album streams, and half of them come from Canadian acts, although the No. 1 spot is reserved for an exceptionally big name from elsewhere. Can you guess who it is? Peruse...Read More
Here at Exclaim!, we've seen a little of everything in 2012. From landmark albums to tragic deaths to brave expressions of self to controversial court cases, this year has had no shortage of memorable news stories. We've taken a look back on the year that was and compiled a list of the year's 10 most notable newsmakers. There are the artists who, for reasons either good or bad, kept popping up in headlines and in discussions around the water cooler. And while there are plenty of noteworthy stars who didn't make our list (Whitney Houston, Amanda Palmer, deadmau5 — we're looking at you), these are the artists who truly came to define 2012. ...Read More
In the lead-up to Christmas, music fans get assaulted with countless cash-in cuts about the baby Jesus, sleigh rides, and cuddling up by the fire with your friends and family. There's apparently not much quality control this time of year, but this season's song crop isn't entirely hopeless. ...Read More
Cover songs are a tricky thing. On the one hand, many artists pride themselves on their ingenuity and originality, and opt to reconfigure a classic to the point where listeners can't understand the point of reference. Other times, a straight-up redo often times just sound lazy and uninspired. There seems to be no right or wrong way to go about it, so long as you put your heart in it. Here are a few covers that hit the mark in 2012 no matter what route the artist chose. ...Read More
Throughout the month of December, Exclaim! has been rolling out our coverage of the best albums of the year, divided into seven different genre sections: pop and rock, electronic, soul, R&B and world, folk and country, metal, hip-hop and experimental and avant-garde. With one exception (avant-garde), these lists are built by consensus by the entire pool of Exclaim! contributors, who all submit their "best of the year" lists, organized by genre. They are then ranked via a points system that's been developed at Exclaim! HQ over a number of years; the resulting tally is how we determine our best albums of the year. ...Read More
A lot of great music comes out in a year, and not all of it gets the attention it deserves. Some get a fair bit of credit, but not enough; others even sell well, but critics don't appreciate them; some don't get any love at all. We've dug back into the year that was 2012 in the hopes of uncovering those special albums that got buried, to unearth the gems that went unappreciated this year. Below, we hold them up to the light....Read More
Between major-player stop-gap freebies from dudes like Rick Ross and Big Sean, career-building collections from Joey Bada$$ and Chief Keef, the weekly offerings from Lil B, and the thousands upon thousands of undiscovered gems that fill DatPiff and LiveMixTapes, rap and hip-hop seem to have the mixtape game on lock. That said, the other genres of the world are prone to drop great digital exclusives too. Here are just a few of our favourite genre-jumping freeleases of 2012. ...Read More
For those of you who don't shut off your computer in an act of rage or careful self control, list season is one that can get emotions high as many debate over which order the same 20 to 30 albums should be arranged in. Well, in your fragile state you might be a little frustrated with this: our list of the 10 most disappointing albums of 2012. But before you ruin your keyboard with salty tears as you clack away a vitriolic response, remember that "disappointing" doesn't necessarily mean anything other than just that. These albums aren't all bad, nor are they even close to the worst albums of the year. They're just letdowns from people who we expected so much more from. ...Read More
Given the diversity and depth of the improv and avant-garde scene, instead of ranking and rating releases, we've asked regular contributors to discuss their favourite 2011 albums from the far corners of the scene. Enjoy the last list of our best albums below, and stay tuned for our list of Most Unappreciated Albums of 2012 to come. ...Read More
Assuming you already picked up our 2012 year-end issue, you already know our number one album here, not that Kendrick Lamar's poignant debut taking the cake should surprise you. But the talent this year in hip-hop ran deep otherwise— dig in below. ...Read More
While it's easy for musicians to play nice in an effort to save face, maximize networking and rack up a nice Rolodex, that gets a little boring after a while. Especially when we all know there's no way they love each other that much. That's why, we've spent the year bringing you the best disses, spats and hissy fits from all kinds of artists. After all, even if you're a strict vegetarian, who doesn't love a healthy dose of beef? Let's make a stew! ...Read More
Our Exclaim! Best of 2012 lists have been posted for Dance and Electronic, Metal and Hardcore, Folk and Country, and, as of this morning, our complete Pop and Rock. Last Thursday, we unveiled our favourite albums in Groove, but a list is never enough; we also examined the course that R&B and World music took in 2012. ...Read More
We left you hanging on Friday (December 14) with 30 through 16 on the Pop and Rock list. Now, we're unveiling the rest of our top 30, from 15 all the way to our number one album. Let the arguing begin! ...Read More
Now that we've sorted out the Exclaim! Best of 2012 in Dance and Electronic, it's time to take a closer look at what trends defined this year in the genre. ...Read More
The clips accompanying our Canadian artists' finest singles this year ran the gamut from big-budget productions with countless set pieces to on-the-cheap chucklers full of low-brow boner jokes. A good number of them had us scratching our heads, with camera cuts homing in on anything from medieval sword fights on the beach to an iPhone-indebted look at the world outside our cellies. Let us pray that the more inventive vids of the year inspire more directors to abandon the traditional faux-concert clip and go for something bigger and, ultimately, better. ...Read More
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