Best Albums of 2009

[en480c4]

Well, last year I started a thread and never did a list. Not this year. Unfortunately a change in jobs around mid-year has left me with considerably less time to explore for new music. This has left me in a bit of a rut with music, and has also left me without a lot of exposure to second-half 2009 releases. But for what it's worth, my abbreviated list is below.

Neko Case - Middle Cyclone



What list of mine couldn't start with Neko Case? I figured it would be my album of the year after the first listen, and many months and two live shows have done nothing to change my mind. If anything, seeing her perform has allowed me to appreciate some of the songs on the album that left me a cold. I like the change of pace from Fox Confessor..., and while it might not be as strong an album in the long run, it still buried most releases this decade, never mind this year.

Rykarda Parasol - For Blood and Wine



This album had the unenviable task of following Our Hearts First Meet, which slowly became a favorite of mine throughout 2008. And I have to admit that I came away a little disappointed after the first listen. The first couple of songs were unexpected, but once I was able to give it some more time, it really started to sink in. "Covenant" is definitely the stand-out track for me... Haunting and beautiful. The rest of the tracks range from fragile and beautiful to boot-stomping bar room songs.

Metric - Fantasies



This is definitely my favorite Metric release... It addresses my issues with their previous albums, and in doing so created an album that's great from first track to last, full of hooks, great music and Emily Haines wonderful vocals.

Sarah Jarosz - Song Up In Her Head



I saw Vicki post this in the WAYLTN? thread and fired up the samples online before leaving for work. It's become a staple of my music listening since. It's hard to believe someone so young can bring so much to this kind of music.

Swallow the Sun - New Moon



I still maintain that it has an incredibly unfortunate album title, but what an album it is. StS is a band that almost was an afterthought for me, with my love of Opeth & Draconian. But I find myself wanting to spin last year's odd release Plague of the Butterflies and New Moon more and more. Great album.

The Gathering - West Pole



I was very late to The Gathering, so Anneke leaving wasn't as big a deal to me as it likely was to long-term fans. And Home is still my favorite of their albums with her. But I really, really like West Pole. It's nothing ground-breaking, but it's a great effort from a band that had a lot to live up to, and handled that pressure well.

Diablo Swing Orchestra - Sing-Along Songs for the Damned & Delirious



I guess since The Butcher's Ballroom took a while to grow on me, I shouldn't be surprised that this has too. I haven't warmed to it like I thought I would, and it was definitely one of the albums I was most looking forward to this year. But it still gets spins, and I hope it really clicks with me sooner or later.

Epica - Design Your Universe



I know a lot of people think this is better than The Divine Conspiracy, but it's another one that just hasn't clicked for me the way I hoped. Simone's vocals are better than ever, the songs are bigger than ever, but the continuity in TDC really helped tie everything together, where the tracks here leave me wanting.

The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love



Another band I was late to the part on... I gave Crane Wife a listen shortly after it was released and getting rave reviews, but it wasn't my cup of tea at the time (Though I've since revisited it and enjoy it quite a bit). But THoL is another thing all together. The rock opera/concept album is great, the story is fun, the music is interesting throughout and the vocal performances are fantastic. The choices for the female parts were excellent... Especially Shara Worden.

Other albums I enjoyed, but haven't spent enough time with to really have an opinion on...

Norah Jones - The Fall

Didn't get this until Christmas... Like what I've heard so far.

Regina Spektor - Far
A better balance of her quirkiness and radio-friendly tunes, but not something I've revisited often.

Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
Struck me as far more accessible than her debut. But another than I haven't had a big desire to revisit lately.

Bon Iver - Blood Bank [EP]
I usually throw this in after For Emma, Forever Ago..., but nothing really jumps out at me like some of the tracks from last year's LP.

Jenny Owen Youngs - Transmitter Failure
Probably a stronger album than her debut, though I still prefer Batten the Hatches.

I'm sure I'll think of something I've forgotten... I'll be sure to post if I do.

Looking forward to seeing other's thoughts on 2009!

[Hopstretch]

A couple of my favorites off the top of my head:

Dirty Projectors -- Bitte Orca

Animal Collective -- Merriweather Post Pavilion

toe -- For Long Tomorrow

Built To Spill -- There Is No Enemy

Fever Ray -- Fever Ray

[Duggeh]

Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells 2009 Remaster (ultimate edition)

Ludovico Einaudi - Nightbook.



Most of the new music I heard this year was from the 70s and 80s. *shrug*

[Dusty Chalk]

Swallow the Sun - New Moon



I still maintain that it has an incredibly unfortunate album title, but what an album it is. StS is a band that almost was an afterthought for me, with my love of Opeth & Draconian. But I find myself wanting to spin last year's odd release Plague of the Butterflies and New Moon more and more. Great album.

The Gathering - West Pole



I was very late to The Gathering, so Anneke leaving wasn't as big a deal to me as it likely was to long-term fans. And Home is still my favorite of their albums with her. But I really, really like West Pole. It's nothing ground-breaking, but it's a great effort from a band that had a lot to live up to, and handled that pressure well.

Diablo Swing Orchestra - Sing-Along Songs for the Damned & Delirious



I guess since The Butcher's Ballroom took a while to grow on me, I shouldn't be surprised that this has too. I haven't warmed to it like I thought I would, and it was definitely one of the albums I was most looking forward to this year. But it still gets spins, and I hope it really clicks with me sooner or later.

Epica - Design Your Universe



I know a lot of people think this is better than The Divine Conspiracy, but it's another one that just hasn't clicked for me the way I hoped. Simone's vocals are better than ever, the songs are bigger than ever, but the continuity in TDC really helped tie everything together, where the tracks here leave me wanting.

Norah Jones - The Fall

Didn't get this until Christmas... Like what I've heard so far.

Regina Spektor - Far
A better balance of her quirkiness and radio-friendly tunes, but not something I've revisited often.

Swallow the Sun -- yeah, kind of hard to follow Plague of Butterflies, but I still dig it. Yeah yeah, I know it's metal with cookie monster vocals, but I still love it.

The Gathering -- you know what, I am not new to the Gathering, but this album still rocks. Love the preponderance of instrumentals, I do think that is one of their strengths -- the first time I saw them live, they played a track called Vermillion (I think) that was about 30 minutes of them jamming.

Diablo Swing Orchestra -- no, it's not you, the album isn't as consistent as their previous, but the high points are still very strong.

Epica -- not my favorite album by them, but still head and shoulders of so much else out there, they only pale when compared to themselves.

Norah Jones -- only heard this once so far, but I definitely dig it, despite it not being my usual cup of tea.

Regina Spektor -- very strong release, more mature than previous efforts, and resultingly more cohesive.

And some additions:

Katatonia, Night is the New Day -- I love these guys so much, they write all the music and cover all the touchpoints that I love so much. It's not hard enough to be metal, and it's too metal to appeal to the hard rock fans, but guess what? That's me, pretty much.

Steven Wilson, Insurgentes -- technically not a 2009 release, but I don't care, I didn't hear it until then, mostly because the commercially available version didn't come out until February -- Steven Wilson doing a lot of non-Porcupine Tree-ish things, I dig it.

Porcupine Tree, The Incident -- one of the harder albums they've done, and has a cohesiveness that I haven't heard, and doesn't have a weak point on it, though its strong points don't quite live up to previous peaks ("Anesthetize", "Arriving Somewhere Not Here"). The climax suite of "Octane Twisted"/"The Séance"/"Circle of Manias" (? -- I'm not good at track titles) comes close, though.

And, as usual, I know I'm forgetting something, blah blah blah...

[postjack]

The Dead Weather - Horehound

[n_maher]

I'd add:

A Fine Frenzy - Bomb In A Birdcage


The Sounds - Crossing The Rubicon


Imogen Heap - Ellipse


Sarah Blasko - As Day Follows Night (which inexplicably has still not been released in the US )


Greg Laswell - Covers EP


I'm sure I'll think of more, but that's what I've got for now.

[Dusty Chalk]

Two more:

OSI, Blood -- contemporary progressive, alternating between hard and experimental/melancholy/ambient/whatever you want to call it, quite possibly their best since the first one.

Placebo, Battle for the Sun -- easily my favorite Placebo release ever. Songwriting fine-tuned down to Garbage standards (which, for me, is pretty high).

[Genetic]

Wow!!! I dont know half of your selections....







Amicalement

[sschell]

You Me & Iowa - Aquarium
It's also their last album. Available only as a download (unfortunately), but with name your own price.

[cetoole]

Epica - Design Your Universe



I know a lot of people think this is better than The Divine Conspiracy, but it's another one that just hasn't clicked for me the way I hoped. Simone's vocals are better than ever, the songs are bigger than ever, but the continuity in TDC really helped tie everything together, where the tracks here leave me wanting.

I wouldnt say better than The Divine Conspiracy or Consign to Oblivion, but definitely my favorite album of 2009. Was expecting Katatonia's Night is the New Day to be up there, but that one I found quite disappointing.

[Duggeh]

I'm earmarking the albums mentioned in this thread for possible consumption after I've digested the ones I got for Christmas.

[Voltron]

I concur with a lot of the foregoing, so without repeating those albums here are too many favorites from 2009, in no particular order:

ROCK/POP

Ben Gibbard and Jay Farrar -- One Fast Move or I'm Gone: Kerouac's Big Sur

Steve Earle -- Townes

Grizzly Bear -- Veckatimest

Dave Rawlings Machine -- A Friend of a Friend

Monsters of Folk -- Monsters of Folk

Flight of the Conchords -- I Told You I Was Freaky

WPA -- Works Progress Administration

The Avett Brothers -- I and Love and You

Robyn Hitchcock and The Venus 3 -- Goodnight Oslo

St. Vincent -- Actor

The Smithereens -- Tommy

M. Ward -- Hold Time

Wilco -- Wilco

Iron & Wine -- Around the Well

Yo La Tengo -- Popular Songs

God Help the Girl -- God Help the Girl


JAZZ

Anthony Wilson -- Jack of Hearts

Joshua Redman -- Compass

Branford Marsalis Quartet -- Metamorphosen

Christian McBride -- Kind of Brown

Steve Kuhn -- Mostly Coltrane

Anouar Brahem -- The Astounding Eyes of Rita

The Masada Quintet -- Stolas: Book of Angels Vol. 12

Dave Douglas -- Spirit Moves

John Zorn -- Alhambra Love Songs and O’o

Doctor 3 -- The Song Remains the Same

Jeff “Tain” Watts -- Watts

Enrico Rava -- New York Days

Ran Blake -- Driftwoods

Nels Cline -- Coward

Peter Bernstein Trio -- Monk

Bobby Broom -- Plays for Monk

SF Jazz Collective -- Live 2009

[Dusty Chalk]

A couple more additions: Bear in Heaven, Beast Rest Forth Mouth -- Yes, I really did enjoy it that much.
The XX, XX
Tokio Hotel, Humanoid -- too poppy for the "darkest desires" set, too hard for the pop set, just right for me.
Fever Ray
Yello, Touch Yello

YouTube- Vijay Iyer Trio . Galang (trio riot version) .

That rocks something awesome. (For those not familiar, it's a cover of the M.I.A. song.)

Hey, if you haven't heard of them already, you should check out the Bad Plus.

[uberburger101]

Totally agree with A Fine Frenzy, Regina Spektor, and the XX. Just got Imogen Heap's (a little late, I know), will give it a spin later.

Want to add:

Muse - The Resistance


I quite like this one even though their previous effort was less than stellar.

Rodrigo Y Gabriela - 11:11


Technically superior to their previous album, more of what you love but it took awhile to grow on me.

Pink Martini - Splendor In The Grass

[Aimless1]

x2 on Rodrigo Y Gabriela - 11:11
One of my favorite albums from 2009.

I also enjoyed the 40th anniversary release of King Crimson's Red and Moby's Wait for me. This recording of Red is clearly superior to previous recordings IMO as well as a great listen. Wait for Me has a sublime etheral feel. The total experience is greater than the collection of songs.

[Dusty Chalk]

I was going through a thread on another board to get some ideas, and one album that keeps popping up that I've never seen mentioned before was We Were Promised Jet Packs, These Four Walls (maybe because the band name is so memorable, but that one stuck out). Anyone heard? I'll be checking it out myself.

Also, I've seen a lot of love elsewhere for Merriweather Post Pavilion (Animal Collective) -- how come not so much here? I gave up on A/C a while ago (don't "get"), but have to admit to being tempted to revisit with that one.

[Voltron]

I was going through a thread on another board to get some ideas, and one album that keeps popping up that I've never seen mentioned before was We Were Promised Jet Packs, These Four Walls (maybe because the band name is so memorable, but that one stuck out). Anyone heard? I'll be checking it out myself.

Also, I've seen a lot of love elsewhere for Merriweather Post Pavilion (Animal Collective) -- how come not so much here? I gave up on A/C a while ago (don't "get"), but have to admit to being tempted to revisit with that one.

Stretch has listened to These Four Walls and posted in the WAYLTN? thread. Lots of folks in that thread seem to have been loving on Merriweather Post Pavilion, especially when it came out. Also, Stretch had that in his list above.^

[jinp6301]

MPP is probably the best one if you want to try to "get" AC

[Dusty Chalk]

Stretch has listened to These Four Walls and posted in the WAYLTN? thread. Lots of folks in that thread seem to have been loving on Merriweather Post Pavilion, especially when it came out. Also, Stretch had that in his list above.^

Me == 'pay attention' fail.

[deepak]

Some of my favorites:

The Flaming Lips - Embryonic. One of their finest albums and one of the best albums in the last 10 years.

Stardeath and the White Dwarfs - The Birth. Closely related to the Flaming Lips, but completely original in their own way.

Bat For Lashes - Two Suns. I love her debut and this one, really hard to say which I like more.

Raekwon - Only Built For Cuban Lynx Pt2. One of the finest Wu Tang solo albums. I would go so far as to say best rap album in the last 10 years maybe even eclipsing the first Cuban Lynx. Either this or Fishscale for best rap album of this decade IMO obviously I have my biases

Bear in Heaven - Beast Rest Forth Mouth.

Porcupine Tree - The Incident.

The Dead Weather, I will need to listen to some more. I still haven't heard the new Rykarda Parasol and I loved her debut. Sort of a weak year for me.