ContactMusic — Pj Harveys acclaimed album Let England Shake has crowned a triumphant year for the British singersongwriter after it was named the best record of 2011 by music critics Harveys state-of-the-nation address scooped the prestigious Mercury Prize in Septe... more info

Guardian Music — The top 40 tracks of the year, as voted for by Guardian writers1 Lana Del Rey – Video Games2 Azealia Banks – 2123 Tyler, the Creator – Yonkers4 Joe Goddard – Gabriel ft Valentina5 Frank Ocean – Swim Good6 Nicki Minaj – Super Bass7 BeyoncÃ... more info

Here Comes The Flood — DIY punk cabaret duo The Dresden Dolls go down under in early January Amanda Palmer (piano, vocals) and Brian Viglione (drums, guitar, bass) will be kicking off with a show in Brisbane, Australia. Live dates: 01/05 The Tivoli, Brisbane, Austral... more info

Guardian Music — We handed over this week's Film&Music features to the young volunteers of Live magazineNewsPJ Harvey – Let England Shake is our album of the yearBeach Boys reunion rumours resurfaceMumford & Sons plan 'doom folk' albumAmy Winehouse's family open to... more info

Guardian Music — You've seen our top 50 albums of the year. But what did Guardian critics' individual lists look like?Here's the full list of votes from our critics. We asked them for their top 10 albums and tracks of 2011. Then we tallied up their votes, awarding 10... more info

Guardian Music — England did indeed shake this year to the sound of riots, protests and distant wars. No wonder, then, that PJ Harvey's raw yet meticulously researched record hit a nerveDepicting war has always been an overwhelmingly male concern, even though it tear... more info

DrownedInSound — This week's Spotify playlist, formed from the week's content on the website. Warning: it leans heavily towards the end of year content. Still, we're trying to drum some of the bands and songs into you, so here's another attempt. Read the full s... more info

Guardian Music — Adele, PJ Harvey and Björk led the way in a great year for female performersSports commentators quickly get used to bandying about the phrase "torn anterior cruciate ligament" – the knee injury that commonly hobbles footballers. This year, pop ... more info

Stereogum — After Rolling Stone, NME is now the second major music magazine to reveal its year-end top-50 list today. And following Uncut and MOJO, it’s also the second British rock rag to name PJ Harvey’s Let England Shake as its album of the year. Those Br... more info

Guardian Music — Dave Guetta's ubiquitous productions made Alexis Petridis feel like his dad – thank heavens for PJ HarveyThere were moments when the 2011 singles chart seemed likely to trigger an existential crisis in music fans of a certain age. This summer I tur... more info