Best Albums of 2009: 2009

Friday, December 25, 2009

Best albums of the decade

The top ten:

1. Sigur Ros: Ágætis Byrjun

2. Tool: Lateralus

3. Radiohead: Kid A

4. Modest Mouse: Moon and Antarctica

5. Arcade Fire: Funeral

6. Interpol: Turn On the Bright Lights

7. Wilco: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

8. Boards of Canada: Geogaddi

9. Neko Case: Blacklisted

10. Coldplay: Parachutes

11-25:

11. Broken Social Scene: You Forgot It in People
12. The Mars Volta: De-Loused in the Comatorium
13. Flaming Lips: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
14. Isis: Oceanic
15. Panda Bear: Person Pitch
16. Sufjan Stevens: Greetings from Michigan: The Great Lake State
17. The New Pornographers: Mass Romantic
18. The Shins: Oh, Inverted World
19. White Stripes: Elephant
20. Queens of the Stone Age: Songs for the Deaf
21. Opeth: Blackwater Park
22. Amy Winehouse: Back to Black
23. Godspeed You Black Emperor!: Lift Your Skinny Fists like Antennas to Heaven
24. Fleet Foxes: Ragged Wood
25. LCD Sound System: Sound of Silver

Honorable mention (listed alphabetically):

A Perfect Circle: Mer De Noms
Aimee Mann: Lost in Space
Aimee Mann: Bachelor No. 2
Amon Tobin: Supermodified
Amon Tobin: Out From Out Where
And So I Watch You From Afar: ...And So I Watch You From Afar
And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes
Animal Collective: Here Comes the Indian
Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavillion
Antlers: Hospice
Antony & the Johnsons: I Am A Bird Now
Arcade Fire: Neon Bible
Art Brut: Bang Bang Rock And Roll
Atlas Sound: Logos
Audioslave: Out of Exile
Band of Horses: Everything All the Time
Battle of Mice: Day of Nights
Battles: Mirrored
Beck : Sea Change
Beta Band: Heroes to Zeros
Bjork: Vespertine
Bloc Party: Silent Alarm
Blonde Redhead: 23
Bon Iver: For Emma Forever Ago
Built to Spill: You in Reverse
Caribou: Andorra
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah : Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Clinic: Internal Wrangler
Coldplay: A Rush of Blood to the Head
Deathcab For Cutie: Transatlanticism
Deerhoof: Friend Opportunity
Deftones: White Pony
DJ Shadow: The Private Press
Doves: Lost Souls
Doves: The Last Broadcast
Evpatoria Report: Golevka
Explosions in the Sky: The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place
Feist: Let it Die
Gnarls Barkley: St. Elsewhere
God is an Astronaut: The End of the Beginning
Gojira: The Way of All Flesh
Gorillaz: Demon Days
Grizzly Bear: Yellow House
Iron & Wine: The Creek Drank the Cradle
Iron & Wine: Our Endless Numbered Days
Isis: In the Absence of Truth
Japandroids: Post-Nothing
Jesu: Conqueror
Joanna Newsom: The Milk-Eyed Mender
Justice: Cross
Kaiser Chiefs : Employment
Koop: Waltz for Koop
M83: Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts
Mastodon: Leviathan
Meshuggah: ObZen
Meshuggah: Nothing
MGMT: Oracular Spectacular
MIA: Arular
MIA: Kala
Microphones: The Glow, Pt. 2
Modest Mouse: Good News for People Who Like Bad News
Mogwai: Happy Songs for Happy People
My Morning Jacket: At Dawn
Neko Case: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Neurosis: Given to the Rising
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds: Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus
Of Montreal: Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
Porcupine Tree: Fear of a Blank Planet
Porcupine Tree: In Abstentia
Portishead: Third
Queens of the Stone Age: R
Radiohead: In Rainbows
Radiohead: Amnesiac
Rage Against the Machine: Renegades
Red Hot Chili Peppers: By the Way
Red Sparowes: Every Red Heart Shines Toward the Red Sun
Royksopp: Melody A.M.
Sigur Ros: ()
Spoon: Girls Can Tell
Spoon: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Sufjan Stevens: Illinois
Supergrass: Life on Other Planets
System of a Down: Toxicity
The Dears: No Cities Left
The Decemberists: The Crane Wife
The Dresden Dolls: The Dresden Dolls
The Fiery Furnaces: Blueberry Boat
The Gathering: If_Then_Else
The Most Serene Republic: Population
The National: Boxer
The New Pornographers: Electric Version
The New Pornographers: Twin Cinema
The Ocean: Precambrian
The Shins: Chutes Too Narrow
The Streets: Original Pirate Material
The Strokes: Is This It?
Thievery Corporation: The Mirror Conspiracy
Ulrich Schnauss : A Strangely Isolated Place
Vampire Weekend: Vampire Weekend
White Stripes: White Blood Cells
Wilco: A Ghost is Born
Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer

Sunday, December 13, 2009

The best albums of 2009

Okay, we're done. I now present to you the best albums of 2009:

[9.2] Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavilion

[9.1] And So I Watch You From Afar: And So I Watch You From Afar

[9.0] Japandroids: Post Nothing

[8.9] The Antlers: Hospice

[8.9] Atlas Sound: Logos

And the rest:

Monday, December 7, 2009

Best metal albums of 2009

1. Isis: Wavering Radiant

2. Mastodon: Crack the Skye

3. Sun O))): Monoliths and Dimensions

4. Converge: Axe to Fall

5. Baroness: Blue Record

The rest:

6. Absu: Absu
7. Pyramids: Pyramids with Nadja
8. Obituary: The Darkest Day
9. Bloodhorse: Horizoner
10. Kylesa: Static Tensions
11. Tombs: Winterhours
12. Katatonia: Night is the New Day
13. Slayer: World Painted Blood
14. Irepress: Sol Eye See I
15. The Arusha Accord: The Echo Verses
16. Nile: Those Whom the Gods Detest
17. A Storm of Light/Nadja: Primitive North
18. Behemoth: Evangelion
19. My Dying Bride: The Lies I Sire
20. Every Time I Die: New Junk Aesthetic
21. The Black Dahlia Murder: Deflorate

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Albums that missed the cut

I present to you now the bridesmaids of 2009 -- a list of albums that failed to make the Best Albums of 2009 list. Some of these are quite good and worth a listen:

3: Revisions
Between the Buried and Me: The Great Misdirect
Black Moth Super Rainbow: Eating Us
Brendan Benson: My Old, Familiar Friend
Cass Macombs: Catacombs
Delorean: Ayrton Senna EP
Destroy Destroy Destroy: Battle Sluts
Dethklok: Dethalbum II
Devendra Banhart: What Will We Be
Dream Theater: Black Clouds & Silver Linings
Discovery: LP
Dredg: The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion
fun.: Aim and Ignite
Ghostface Killah: Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City
Imogen Heap: Ellipse
It Hugs Back: Inside Your Guitar
Jeniferever: Spring Tides
Jesu: Opiate Sun
Lamb of God: Wrath
Marianne Faithfull: Easy Come Easy Go
Muse: The Resistance
Paramore: Brand New Eyes
Patrick Wolf: The Bachelor
Peter Bjorn and John: Living Thing
Phosphorescent: To Willie
Psapp: The Camel's Back
Rain Machine: Rain Machine
Riverside: Anno Domini High Definition
Robyn Hitchcock: Goodnight Oslo
School of Seven Bells: Alpinisms
Shadows Fall: Retribution
Sondre Lerche: Heartbeat Radio
Suffocation: Blood Oath
Tegan and Sara: Sainthood
The Big Pink: A Brief History of Love
The Gourds: Haymaker
The Swell Season: Strict Joy
The Temper Trap: Conditions
Thermals: Now We Can See
Tommy Keene: In the Late Bright
Volcano Choir: Unmap
Wilco: Wilco the Album
Woe of Tyrants: Kingdom of Might
Wolfmother: Cosmic Egg

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Sufjan Stevens: The BQE

Artist: Sufjan Stevens
Album: The BQE
Date Released: October 20, 2009
Genre: classical crossover, classical, post-rock
Rating: 7.4

Neon Indian: Psychic Chasms

Artist: Neon Indian
Album: Psychic Chasms
Date Released: October 13, 2009
Genre: indie electronic, electronic, alt-rock
Rating: 7.9

Jonsi and Alex: Riceboy Sleeps

Artist: Jonsi and Alex
Album: Riceboy Sleeps
Date Released: July 21, 2009
Genre: post-rock, experimental rock
Rating: 7.8

Pelican: What We All Come to Need

Artist: Pelican
Album: What We All Come to Need
Date Released: October 27, 2009
Genre: post-rock, post-metal, instrumental rock
Rating: 8.3

Moderat: Moderat

Artist: Moderat
Album: Moderat
Date Released: April 21, 2009
Genre: electronic, experimental techno, techno
Rating: 7.3

Kylesa: Static Tensions

Artist: Kylesa
Album: Static Tensions
Date Released: March 17, 2009
Genre: metal, alternative metal, indie metal, sludge metal
Rating: 8.2

Katatonia: Night is the New Day

Artist: Katatonia
Album: Night is the New Day
Date Released: November 10, 2009
Genre: metal, death metal, alternative metal
Rating: 8.0

Every Time I Die: New Junk Aesthetic

Artist: Every Time I Die
Album: New Junk Aesthetic
Date Released: September 15, 2009
Genre: metal, alternative metal, indie metal, screamo, metalcore
Rating: 7.2

Converge: Axe to Fall

Artist: Converge
Album: Axe to Fall
Date Released: October 20, 2009
Genre: metal, punk metal, metalcore, hardcore punk
Rating: 8.5

The Black Dahlia Murder: Deflorate

Artist: The Black Dahlia Murder
Album: Deflorate
Date Released: September 15, 2009
Genre: metal, death metal, metalcore, deathcore
Rating: 7.0

The Arusha Accord: The Echo Verses

Artist: The Arusha Accord
Album: The Echo Verses
Date Released: November 2009
Genre: metal, indie metal, alternative metal, progressive metal
Rating: 7.6

Very heavy and highly technical indie metal from the UK, these guys draw influences from such bands as Dillinger Escape Plan, Tool and Machine Head.

Behemoth: Evangelion

Artist: Behemoth
Album: Evangelion
Date Released: August 11, 2009
Genre: metal, death metal, blackened death metal
Rating: 7.3

Running out of time...

We're now well into December and I haven't finished reviewing all the albums for 2009 that I want to. So, what I'm going to do is post the albums anyway and skip the written reviews for some. Time permitting I will add some notes about each album retroactively.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Peaches: I Feel Cream

Artist: Peaches
Album: I Feel Cream
Date Released: May 5, 2009
Genre: indie electronic, techno, electro-techno, dance, dance punk, synthpunk
Rating: 7.6

Former elementary school teacher turned potty mouth techno-dance musician, composer and producer, Peaches has released her fourth studio album -- and it's solid. Her lyrics are sexually explicit and provocative as usual; the beats, synth pulses and grooves are highly addictive and laden with ear candy. The album's got a lot of attitude and is a ton of fun. Track highlights include "Billionaire," "I Feel Cream," and "Take You On."

Health: Get Color

Artist: Health
Album: Get Color
Date Released: September 8, 2009
Genre: noise rock, alt-rock, indie-rock
Rating: 7.1

Health is an American noise rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band has collaborated with Crystal Castles and toured with Nine Inch Nails -- and it's fair to say that their sound is firmly situated between the two. Health's dark, noisy and experimental flair is offset by its predilection for synthy, high-energy and upbeat music.

On Get Color, the band is once again loud, noisy and digitally distorted in surprisingly beautiful ways. The tracks are fun, inventive and highly listenable -- though you have to have the patience for this kind of music. Track highlights include "Die Slow," "Before Tigers," and "We Are Water."

Black Crowes: Before the Frost/Until the Freeze

Artist: Black Crowes
Album: Before the Frost/Until the Freeze
Date Released: September 1, 2009
Genre: American trad rock, blues-rock, rock & roll, hard rock, blues
Rating: 8.2

Few people have noticed, but the Black Crowes are awesome again. It all started last year when the veteran band got back together to put out the outstanding War Paint album; the momentum has been carrying them forward ever since.

Witness this year's effort: An ambitious double album of new material recorded in front of a live audience at Levon Helm's barn in upstate New York. The tracks are vintage Black Crowes with distinctive hints of The Band, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan (Chris Robinson sounds downright Dylanesque on "Appaloosa"). And the production values are exquisite; rarely does a live album sound so damn good. Add some incredible performances and strong tracks and you have an absolutely stellar album.

Given their surprising resurgence and reinstated relevancy, the Black Crowes are making a strong case for being one of the best blues-rock bands of all-time.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Pyramids: Pyramids With Nadja

Artist: Pyramids
Album: Pyramids with Nadja
Date Released: October 27, 2009
Genre: metal, post-metal, alt-metal, experimental, avant-garde metal, ambient, minimalism
Rating: 8.4

Pyramids with Nadja (streaming audio available) is a massive collaborative effort between Pyramids, Nadja and a number of other musicians. All members of Pyramids (f. coloccia, m. dean, m. kraig, r. loren, d. william) and Nadja (Aidan Baker & Leah Buckereff) perform on all four tracks on the record.

In addition to this, Pyramids with Nadja also features Simon Raymonde of Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil (performs bass on track one and four), Albin Julius of Der Blutharsch (performs vocals on track four), Chris Simpson of Mineral (performs vocals on track two), Colin Marston of Dysrhythmia and Behold the Arctopus (co-produced/engineered track one) and James Plotkin of Khanate, Khlyst, O.L.D. Phantomsmasher (mixed and mastered the entire album).

As the number of contributors would suggest, the music on Pyramids with Nadja is a remarkable integration of diverse sonic influences, a palate that includes ambient, industrial, shoe-gaze, and experimental/minimalist metal. While Pyramids and Nadja dominate the album, there's no question that this is a product of many musical minds.

The album itself consists of four long-play tracks that weave in and out of the listener's conscious awareness. Pyramids with Nadja is about slowly morphing texture, mood, and walls of soundscapes; it's a very 'visual' album in this sense. Remarkably, despite the minimalism and atmospheric bliss-outs, the album contains a definite melodic quality. Without a doubt, this is one of the most original and remarkable albums of the year.

New feature: Sort by genres

By popular demand I have added the ability to sort all genres listed on the Best Albums of 2009 site. It's located in the right-hand sidebar just below the list of rankings. Thanks to Lucas for setting this up. Enjoy!

Loney, Dear: Dear John

Artist: Loney, Dear
Album: Dear John
Date Released: January 27, 2009
Genre: alt-rock, indie-rock, indie-pop
Rating: 8.0

Loney, Dear is the pseudonym of Swedish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Emil Svanängen. Dear John is Loney, Dear's third full-length album and the follow-up to his critically acclaimed Loney, Noir (2007).

On Dear John, Svanängen often treads perilously close to music that could be considered quite glossy and flowery, but his richly detailed arrangements and gorgeous soundscapes never allow the music to reach that point. Svanängen manages to darken these tracks with delicate moments of minimalism, his (almost uncomfortably) intimate vocal delivery, and plenty of minors and fifths.

Take the track, "Under a Silent Sea." Svanängen starts off with an unassuming acoustic guitar, but the arrangement slowly builds into one of the most powerful and dramatic tracks put out this year by any artist. The comparisons to Sufjan Stevens are not out of place.

Dear John is a difficult album to categorize and its charms aren't immediately recognizable. Stick with this album, though -- it's a real beauty.

Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures

Artist: Them Crooked Vultures
Album: Them Crooked Vultures
Date Released: November 17, 2009
Genre: rock, hard rock
Rating: 7.7

There's been a lot of hype surrounding the release of Them Crooked Vultures -- and for good reason: the band is a supergroup consisting of John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin), Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) [I can't help sing to myself at this point, "These are a few of my favorite things..."].

The band is clearly dominated by its guiding force, that being Homme, who performs all vocal and rhythm/lead guitar duties; the album often feels like it could easily double as a QOTSA effort, but that's not to diminish the contributions of the other two band members. John Paul Jones's rhythmic structures and bass progressions bring late-era Zeppelin to mind, while Grohl continues to show why he's one of the most talented and coveted drummers in the business.

Them Crooked Vultures is raw, nasty and heavy -- exactly what you'd want and expect from these particular guys. Track highlights include "No One Loves Me & Neither Do I", "Elephants", "Scumbag Blues" and "Interlude with Ludes."

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Latest adjustments to rankings

I've made some adjustments to the rankings:

Demotions:

maudlin of the Well: Part the Second from 9.0 to 8.5
The xx: The xx from 8.5 to 7.9
The Most Serene Republic: ...And the Ever Expanding Universe from 8.3 to 7.5
The Fiery Furnaces: I'm Going Away from 8.1 to 7.4

Promotions:

Cymbals Eat Guitars: Why There Are Mountains from 8.3 to 8.7

Not done yet

We're quickly approaching the end of the year, but I've still got a bunch of albums that need to be reviewed; the BAo09 list is far from complete, so stay tuned for more.

Also, I'll be posting the best albums of the decade sometime in mid-December so watch out for that. And finally, I'll also be posting a list of decent albums from this year that failed to make the cut.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

The Very Best: Warm Heart of Africa

Artist: The Very Best
Album: Warm Heart of Africa
Date Released: October 6, 2009
Genre: international, world music, African traditions, Afro-beat
Rating: 8.4

Esau Mwamwaya is a singer from Lilongwe, Malawi who is best known for his collaboration, The Very Best, with the British DJ/production duo Radioclit. Together, the music of The Very Best is an Afro-Western mix of dance, hiphop, pop and the traditional music of Malawi.

Warm Heart of Africa is the follow-up to their excellent 2008 debut, Esau Mwamwaya and Radioclit are the Very Best. And the album is aptly titled: the music is upbeat, fun and extremely catchy. But most of all it sounds extremely fresh. There's no one right now mixing African, dance and pop traditions to the same effect as these guys. And when you add guest appearances from M.I.A. and Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend it's instant win.

Raekwon: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II

Artist: Raekwon
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II
Date Released: September 8, 2009
Genre: east coast rap, hardcore rap, gangsta rap
Rating: 8.7

Corey Woods, better known by the stage name Raekwon, is an American rapper and a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx..., back in 1995, and has continued recording solo and with the Wu-Tang Clan since then. This year, Raekwon released the much anticipated sequel to his critically acclaimed debut with Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. II.

Like the original, the album follows a crime-laced cinematic approach. Lyrically, the concept follows the story of a mafioso crime boss and is told primarily from the third person perspective. It is combined with carefully placed skits weaved into the beginnings and ends of songs. The lyrics are raw, honest and very explicit -- not for the feint of heart.

The album is laced with incredible talent, both from the production and performance side of things. Featured members include RZA, Ghostface Killah, Jadakiss, Cappadonna, Pete Rock, the Alchemist, and even Dr. Dre. Raekwon also weaves in some incredible samples, including Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" on "Kiss the Ring," Odetta's "Hit or Miss" on "Penitentiary," and Styx's "Castle Walls," on "Surgical Gloves."

The only word that seems to do Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II justice is epic. The performances are spectacular and the production is remarkably creative, diverse and tight. Definitely the not-to-be-missed rap album of the year.

Lightning Dust: Infinite Light

Artist: Lightning Dust
Album: Infinite Light
Date Released: August 4, 2009
Genre: indie rock, alternative rock, indie folk, acid folk, sadcore
Rating: 8.1

Lightning Dust, a Canadian indie rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, is a side project of Amber Webber and Joshua Wells, both members of Black Mountain. But unlike Black Mountain, Lightning Dust has a sound that's softer and more melodic. As Wells has noted, the band arose from a desire to "do something that was sparse and minimal, and with a lot of space around it." Webber, who performs vocal duties, described the band as an opportunity to "explore her goth side."

And it's clear from the opening track, "Antonia Jane," that this is not a Black Mountain album -- far from.

Infinite Light is a lyrical, gentle and atmospheric album. It's also very sad and dark -- a mood that's punctuated by some spacey sonic elements, and of course, Webber's lyrics and vocals. Indeed, Infinite Light is an acid-folk tour de force for Webber's singing and she clearly takes center stage. Her warbly and somber delivery is an indelible part of the Lightning Dust sound, a style that's reminiscent of a much more subdued Grace Slick.

Another solid release from a very talented and prolific duo.

Bear in Heaven: Beast Rest Forth Mouth

Artist: Bear in Heaven
Album: Beast Rest Forth Mouth
Date Released: October 13, 2009
Genre: indie rock, neo-psychedelia, progressive rock, alternative rock
Rating: 7.9

Beast Rest Forth Mouth is the sophomore release from Brooklyn's Bear in Heaven, a band that incorporates influences from prog, psychedelia, electronica and krautrock. Thanks to bands like Mew and Muse, prog-rock is no longer a dirty word -- but as far as Bear in Heaven goes they're much more like the former than the latter. Where Muse wears its pretension like a badge, Mew and Bear in Heaven take a more subdued and ethereal approach to their music.

Beast Rest Forth Mouth is a prime example. It's an album of steady and hypnotic beats, synthy and spacey rhythmic sequences and dreamy vocals. The tracks are paced and have a shoegaze element to them at times, while frequently coloured with power-chords and some very heavy synth pulses.

Sonically, the album is gorgeous from start to finish; but stronger tracks and a clearer commitment to melody would have propelled this album from good to great. Track highlights include "Beast in Peace," "You Do You," and "Lovesick Teenagers."

Slayer: World Painted Blood

Artist: Slayer
Album: World Painted Blood
Date Released: November 3, 2009
Genre: metal, thrash metal, speed metal
Rating: 7.7

Hey, no one's more surprised than me that Slayer has made the BAo09 list -- but credit where credit is due. These beloved metal veterans have put it all together this year on World Painted Blood, the follow-up to their rather meh Christ Illusion. This album has all the Slayer hallmarks: headbanging rhythms, ear-splitting riffs, bone-chilling leads and a merciless percussive attack. Combined with one of the best vocal performances from Tom Araya in years and you have what is a very solid metal album.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Monday, December 7, 2009

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Saturday, November 21, 2009

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