Over the past few years, I’ve been writing up my list of top 3 or 5 albums for each year. When I went back through the albums I’ve heard in 2009 it seemed that there was too much good music to stop there. On the other hand, I wanted to focus on what I felt were the most distinguished releases – the albums that truly meet the “Best of” criteria. To try and balance this out, I’ve decided this year’s list will feature just my pick for the #1 album of 2009 – in ten or so carefully chosen music genres.
Best Album of 2009 in the following Categories:
#1 Art of Song Writing Album: Middle Cyclone – Neko Case. I briefly contemplated putting together a “Top 10 Albums of the Decade” list (abandoned for fear of pushing the narcissistic level of music preaching a little too far). When I started to think about it, I immediately knew that Neko Case would have at least a couple albums on that list and Middle Cyclone could arguably be her best. In fact, when you look at her portfolio of work since releasing Furnace Room Lullaby in 2000, I think it’s pretty hard not to consider her one of the best songwriters of the decade. Case in point: see “This Tornado Loves You” or “Middle Cyclone.”
#1 Indie-Pop Album: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – Phoenix. Okay, I’m not a big fan of French Pop music but fortunately for me, the first time I heard Phoenix I had no idea they were French. All I knew was that they had some incredibly catchy songs. This year they released Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – a well rounded album that has the sharpest hooks I heard all year. This is the kind of album you could use in the music dictionary to define “pop music” as a genre. Even though you’ve heard 30 seconds of it about a thousand times (thanks to Cadillac), go ahead and dance along to the rest of their big single “1901.”
#1 Midnight Mood Music Album: The xx – The xx. The first thing I heard about this new band from England was that they gave a boring live show. That may or may not be true, but who cares. This album cleanly and efficiently creates a mood, an entire shell around you, which is not meant for a crowded club but for just the two of you after you come home from the club and settle into a dark room with a couple drinks and a soft rain on the windows. Take a listen to “VCR” and where it puts you.
#1 Time Machine to 1994 Album: Farm – Dinosaur Jr. Some people may think these guys were cheating when they competed in this category given that they were the ones who actually helped define my memory and the sound of 1994 but that doesn’t take away from the fact that this album rocks. In fact, I think it makes it even more impressive. I mean how many quintessential 90’s grunge bands have managed to either stay together and release quality material or come back and do anything worth a beans. Pretty much everyone assumed Dinosaur Jr had peaked back there in the early 90’s, then disappearing, never to be heard from again. (Yes, I know Lou Barlow went on to do great things with Sebadoh but that’s the point – it seemed like Dinosaur Jr and J Mascis were done.) Then in 2007 they pull the band together and release a surprisingly solid album called Beyond and now with Farm I think they’ve done their best album ever. Yes, I said it – their best album. Unfortuantely, it got no credit and will probably go largely unnoticed in this day and age because it still carries a lot of that same sound they had originally. The thing is, it’s a rockin’ sound that they’ve really perfected and it kicks ass no matter what the decade. Listen to “Over It” and remember what rocked about 1994. Honorable Mention: Post-Nothing – Japandroids. If someone jumped in a time machine and handed this album to the 16 year old me (yes, you’d have to go back further then 1994), I guarantee it would instantly become my all-time favorite album. The 36 year old me likes it a lot too.
#1 Passport to Africa Album: Welcome to Mali/The Magic Couple – Amadou & Mariam. Amadou & Mariam have been around for a while and have quite a catalog of albums out but I just learned about them this year and I’m thankful for it. The only bad thing is that since few of the lyrics are in English, I have no idea what they are singing about most the time. This doesn’t deter from my appreciation of the music, but it means I’m left happily dancing along to every song even though some of them are statements on the hardships of life in Africa. Welcome to Mali is their release of new material this year – and a great album. (For a taste check out “Je Te Kiffe.”) The Magic Couple is a compilation album they also released this year which gives you a taste of their past work.
#1 Album from the Queen of Rock: Fortress ‘round My Heart – Ida Maria. This was by far the toughest category. I went back and forth, tried various methods of grading, scoring and accessing, and still couldn’t decide. In the end, I concluded Ida Maria and Erika Wennerstrom are both worthy heirs to the throne of Rock Queen but gave the nod to Fortess ‘round My Heart because I like you better when you’re naked. Honorable Mention: The Mountain – Heartless Bastards
#1 Hip-Hop/Rap Album: No Bird Sing – No Bird Sing. I heard several hip-hop albums this year that I liked but in the end it was an easy choice. No Bird Sing is a new treo from St. Paul, MN who put together what I think it is a gutsy, innovative and haunting album. They stand out from so much of the popular hip-hop/rap stuff because of strong musical talent and an intensity I haven’t heard since Rage Against the Machine. With just a guitar and a drummer (yes, a live drummer, not a machine) they create a sparse sound that seems to hit all the heavier because of the space it contains. On top of this you have intelligent, hard hitting lyrics from front man Joe Horton – there’s even a lyrical theme of freedom represented by birds that’s carried through the entire album. To experience the power and range of No Bird Sing, start with track two – “Devil Trombones” – and then take in the last track – “Plastic Lines.”
#1 Prog-Rock Concept Album: Hazards of Love – The Decemberists. Yes, I realize that naming a #1 Progressive Rock Concept Album sounds a lot like naming the #1 Sandra Bulluck movie. I am not a fan of progressive rock and generally, I am not a fan of concept albums. (Notable Exception: Okkervil River’s Black Sheep Boy.) But despite the potentially disastrous direction taken by Colin Meloy, he was able to put his folk sensibility into it and I think this album came off huge. I may not listen to it every day, but I do think it’s something that I will continue to go back to consistently and will hold up well over the years. It doesn’t hurt that they put on a kick-ass live show. The stand-out track on the album would have to be “The Rake Song.”
#1 Nitty-Gritty Alcohol Drenched Alt-Country Album: Born on Flag Day – Deer Tick. These guys are raucous, rough, and ooze the real outlaw country sound. This is the band you want to be playing on Friday night when you head down to your local bar looking to forget about your work week. Have a beer (or four) and listen to “Easy.”
#1 Soundtrack Album to Colby’s Year: Reservoir – Fanfarlo. This isn’t the soundtrack to my year because of a necessary lyrical synergy (not to say that there’s anything wrong with the lyrics) but rather something about the combination of jangly guitars, violins, horns and mandolin that captured me from the first listen and remained the sound I felt most at ease with throughout the year. If Fanfarlo is new to you, try “The Walls are Coming Down.”
Bonus Selection: #1 Album I Missed in 2008: Nation of Heat EP – Joe Pug. So there are about a million new albums released every year so even the professional music critics can’t listen to them all and there are certainly a lot of them that I don’t hear. Invariably some gems slip by. But thanks to several good music websites, blogs and podcasts, I do manage to find out about an amazing amount of music. Lucky for me I eventually stumbled on to Joe Pug’s 2008 EP Nation of Heat. This is powerful acoustic singer-songwriter stuff; the best I’ve heard since Alexi Murdoch or early Elliot Smith. His song “Hymn 101” should be a classic. Honorable Mention: Midnight Organ Fight – Frightened Rabbit.
Stay tuned for part 2 of my 2009 music review and my picks for best songs. You can also go back to my previous year end music lists: 2008 albums & songs; 2007 albums & songs
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