Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Best of 2009: Albums

Almost lost in all the hoopla over end of decade lists was the fact that 2009, in fact, had some good music in it. I don't think it matched up with 2007 or 2008, but I also think there is much that I just haven't been able to absorb, and much much more that I haven't heard at all.

Anyway, I still liked quite a few albums and here are the 10 I liked the best (and a couple of the best tracks on each).

1. It's Blitz - The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
(Hysteric, Soft Shock)
2. Roadhouse Sun - Ryan Bingham
(Dylan's Hard Rain, Country Roads)
3. Backspacer - Pearl Jam
(The Fixer, Supersonic)
4. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - Phoenix
(Lasso, 1901)
5. It's Frightening - White Rabbits
(Percussion Gun, They Done Wrong/We Done Wrong)
6. Farm - Dinosaur Jr.
(Ocean in the Way, Plans)
7. Merriweather Post Pavilion - Animal Collective
(Summertime Clothes, Taste)
8. Metric - Fantasies
(Twilight Galaxy, Help I'm Alive)
9. When the Devil's Loose - A.A. Bondy
(Oh the Vampyre, On the Moon)
10. Technicolor Health - The Harlem Shakes
(Strictly Game, Nothing but Change)

This list is subject to change, of course. The beauty of these things is that there is always more music out there. Metric actually just made the list this week when I started listening to them after seeing them in concert. There will surely be someone else who I find out about in the next few months who easily could have made the list. Other people's year end lists are often good sources to find those new albums.

I also wanted to mention a great live album, Nirvana's Live at Reading and a fantastic greatest hits album of sorts, The Vaselines' Enter the Vaselines. Neither fit my criteria for a best of 2009 list, but both were really, really good. What did you like in 2009?

1 comment:

bigsmithdude said...

wow. i haven't heard of most of these. mine is in the works and will be up soon

 

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