50 Best Albums of 2011: PJ Harvey, 'Let England Shake'

50

49

48

47

46

45

44

43

42

41
40

39

38

37

36

35

34

33

32

31
30

29

28

27

26

25

24

23

22

21
20

19

18

17

16

15

14

13

12

11
10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

PJ Harvey, 'Let England Shake'

prev 47/50 next

Polly Jean Harvey steeps her latest in her homeland's folk music and the "gray, damp filthiness" of its history. There's a punk sense of horror in low-key death-folk ballads like "The Last Living Rose," as if she's crashing the Renaissance Faire to torch the maypole.