For this section of my year in review I will be posting my top 50 songs of 2009. While I won't be writing about each track, I will include youtube links to the top bunch as well as a couple 8tracks links so you can listen to selected songs.
50. Sing Sang Sung - Air
49. Eazy Speaks - Apostle of Hustle
48. Laura Palmer’s Prom - You Say Party! We Say Die!
1. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimist 2. Metric - Fantasies 3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Its Blitz! 4. Joel Plaskett - Three 5. Bruce Peninsula - A Mountain Is A Mouth 6. Timber Timbre - Timber Timbre 7. The xx - xx 8. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion 9. U2 - No Line On the Horizon 10. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
1. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimist Earlier this year, Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead declared that Grizzly Bear is his favourite band. Call it the Oprah effect, but now everybody wants in on the Grizzly Bear action. Jay-Z was spotted at one of their shows this summer, and even Michale McDonald of the Doobie Brothers lent his vocals for a b-side version of While You Wait For The Others. Basically Grizzly Bear, the indie darlings, made it huge this year. The first single Two Weeks had a power of its own, the opening piano notes, the catchy chorus, the harmonizing vocals. After being stuck in the heads of indie hipsters and not so indie hipsters for weeks the album finally dropped. But don't drop it too hard, since each and every note in the song is carefully crafted. The timing of each wave of percussion, each set of harmonizing vocals, every pluck on the bass. While it is apparent great care was taken in the recording of the album, this in no way detracts from the grandness of the whole thing. While You Wait For The Others is proof of this, one of the best overall songs of the year. While the album may not click on the first listen, a few listens in show why this album has spurred on a new group of Grizzly Bear fans.
Favourites: While You Wait For The Others, Two Weeks, Southern Point, Foreground
2. Metric - Fantasies Some albums take a few listens to make their impact. But not Fantasies. Metric bring their A-game to the table delivering over forty straight minutes of pop with meaning, rock with soul, and the sounds of finely crafted songs. The album opens up with the first single Help I'm Alive, almost a cry to show that this album is alive, that there is something behind the drums, bass, guitars, and vocals. Don't blink, as soon as its over it is straight into Sick Muse continuing the themes of love, real love, mirages of love, and finally stadium love. Metric is at their finest here, with a healthy mix of guitar and synth sounds. Emily is in peak form delivering some of her best lyrics of her career, including the unforgettable question of "Who would you rather be: the Beatles or the Rolling Stones" in Gimme Sympathy.
3. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Its Blitz First of all, the album cover is awesome. Secondly, the artwork inside the album is even better. The inside sleeve looks like a pizza box, grease and all. The actual disc has a pizza design on it featuring the heads of the band members as toppings. This chart topping album is full of delish flavours. Ranging from electrorock songs like lead single Zero to the softer and quieter Soft Shock. This album shows diversity with Karen O telling you to dance until you're dead in one song, and then politely and sweetly asking not to leave on the next. The album is engaging the whole way through, full of distinct sounds and songs leaving a pleasant taste ensuring you come back later for another listen. The extra acoustic tracks at the end of the album are a great bonus as well.
4. Joel Plaskett - Three Joel Plaskett has ruled this blog the past 12 months or so as I've been privileged to see him perform multiple times which no doubt has influenced my view of this album. Three is Plaskett's ambitious triple album containing a total of 27 songs as well as 3 other songs available on iTunes and vinyl. While this may sound like overdoing it, surprisingly each album is carefully crafted and is full of songs that should last the test of time. The real strength of this album is the way that he collaborated with Ana Egge and Rose Cousins, drawing on their musicianship and vocals to make songs like Through & Through & Through really come alive. They play a central role in many of the songs, doing call back parts with Joel, as well as really driving the catchy choruses home. The album contains a variety of songs, from the country infused Pine, Pine, Pine to the traditional East Coast sounding Sailor's Eyes. Plaskett's lyrics are at his best on this album, thoughtful, playful, and witty. This album propelled Plaskett from an artist that I appreciated to one of my favourite artists making music.
Favourites: Through&Through&Through, You Let Me Down, Wishful Thinking, "Deny, Deny, Deny", "Heartless, Heartless, Heartless, One Look
5. Bruce Peninsula - A Mountain Is A Mouth Initially I was blown away by the band members personalities. Then I was blown away by their live show. Then I was blown away by their full length album. I can't say I wasn't warned. Herohill (essential music blog by the way) have raved about them multiple times and had them headlining their showcase at the Halifax Pop Explosion. The band has a big sound, having anywhere from 6 to 600 people contributing vocals, guitars, hand claps, and the like. Okay not quite 600, but you get the idea. The album sounds big too. This album makes you want to join in and lend your voice to the choruses as well. The lyrics sound like they were written outside while the rest of the world burns to pieces inside. At other times it is a peaceful album, like during Weave Myself a Dress with just the sounds of acoustic guitars creaking and Misha Brown's beautiful voice. It is a different album, hard to really pin it down to one genre or style, which is exactly what they want.
Favourites: Steamroller, Shutters, Weave Myself A Dress, Shanty Song
6. Timber Timbre - Timber Timbre A mysterious, deep, and dark album, Timber Timbre's self titled album features simple but moving folk songs. The music explores emotions and themes that many artists are not able to go near. Asking questions such as "Will you beg for forgiveness?/Will you pray to be saved?/Will you choke your children when they spit in your face?" just give a glimpse at the themes explored in this album. The songs can be uncomfortable at times, yet there is great craftsmanship and beauty behind each carefully written lyric.
Favourites: Demon Host, No Bold Villian, We'll Find Out
7. The xx - xx This abum is almost the anti-Merriweather Post Pavilion. The album features simple guitars, simple drums, quiet vocals, and simple silence to make a spectacular album. There isn't one particular element of the album that stands out, yet it is easy to get lost in the music. The female and male vocals going back and forth working together in fine form. It is hard to describe what it is that makes this album so special, yet it is.
Favourites: Intro, Islands, Shelter
8. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion When this album came out in January, many hailed it as a strong contender for album of the year. Fast forward almost 12 months and this album is at the top of many year end lists (exclaim, Spin, surely pitchfork). This album is not for the faint of heart. The vocals, the sampled loops, the noises, everything is done with great detail. The creative burst of this album can be overwhelming at first, but after a few listens the power of this album really grows. At times some songs can seem to long and overindulgent, but it is definitely an album to behold.
Favourites: Summertime Clothes, Bluish, My Girls, Brother Sport
9. U2 - No Line On The Horizon This seemed to be a love it or hate it album. Some viewed it as their best album for many years, while the usual U2 haters used it as more fodder in their cannon of hate. It certainly is not a "safe" album, although a song like Get On Your Boots did sound like they were trying too hard to make a Vertigo/Elevation type of song. The album was also overshadowed by the colossal world tour that accompanied it. However a 7 plus minute song three songs in shows that U2 are not constrained by trying to make radio friendly songs, but instead are allowed to let their creativity pour out how they see fit. Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois returned on this album, contributing guitars and vocals at various points. While Bono's voice may not be what it once is, he still delivers a passionate effort, and the Edge continues to provide his classic guitar sounds. This album sounds like a band making the music that they want to make, and something they are proud of, even if everybody does not like it.
Favourites: Moment of Surrender, No Line on the Horizon, Cedars of Lebanon
10. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix This French band has been kicking around as long as Coldplay, yet it wasn't until the release of the single 1901 that the music world really took notice. The blogosphere was all over this song, and then the album was released. And the hype did not die down, receiving critical acclaim and picking up a new multitude of fans in the process. The entire album is filled with catchy songs making it easy to get into, yet months later it still remains fresh and exciting. When making those playlists of music that you love but your friend might not necessarily know, be sure to chuck on a song like 1901 or Lisztomania.
11. Young Galaxy - Invisible Republic Two years ago Young Galaxy were number two on my year end list, only behind Radiohead. Fast forward two years and the band has released a second album that is quite different from the first one. The first single Long Live the Fallen World showed great promise, a track that starts with the typical dreamy atmospheric Young Galaxy sound, but in the end it rapidly speeds up and almost sounds like the Millennium Falcon will go into Hyperspace. But quickly after that the album is grounded again into the familiar Young Galaxy sound again. Both Catherine McCandles and Stephen Ramsey deliver vocals that work well together, providing a sound landscape that is dreamy but at the same time delivers a sense of urgency as it reflects on the present state of the world. It is about lovers surviving in these disposable times. Not for the faint of heart.
Favourites: Dreams, Queen Drum, Long Live the Fallen World
12. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca Indie hipsters unite! This album was met with open arms by Pitchfork.com and deservedly so. It contains a wonderful mix of songs with male and female vocal parts, bursting choral background vocals, hand claps, choppy guitars, fuzzy guitars, tambourines...you name it, its there. And it sounds great together. The album also features two of my favourite songs of the year: "Stillness Is the Move" and "Useful Chamber."Useful Chamber features a song that keeps changing all of the time, alternating between chilled beats, rocky vocals, and then a huge burst of awwwww's as the song rapidly changes direction again.
Favourites: Useful Chamber, Stillness Is The Move, Fluorescent Half-Dome
13. The Most Serene Republic - ...And the Ever Expanding Universe The album title and song names such as "Bubble Reputation", and "No One Likes A Nihilist"give you a rough idea of the creative force behind this album. A listen through confirms these suspicions. Smart, intricate, and creative lyrics are met with smart, intricate, and creative musicianship. One highlight of the album is the instrumental "Patternicity". Instrumental doesn't do the song justice though, it is an epic song that sounds like it should be performed by a symphony. By the end of the album, we're met with "Don't Hold Back, Feel A Little Longer" which makes it hard to not dance and sing along, at least a little. The album shows that this band are truly students of music and have an ever expanding knack for putting together diverse songs. The video for Heavens to Purgatory is rather awesome. Favourites: Phi, Patternicity, Bubble Reputation
14. Wilco - Wilco (The Album) The album Wilco (The Album) opens with the song Wilco the song. The cover of this album features a two humped camel with a party hat beside a table with six empty chairs. It is a little hard to take things too seriously with such an over the top and silly presentation. But by the time you get through One Wing three tracks in it is pretty evident that there is some seriously good songwriting taking place. Jeff Tweedy delivers a stellar performance right through. What drew me to this album was the collaboration with Feist for the song You and I. Both of their voices work perfectly together resulting in one of my favourite songs of the year.
Favourites: One Wing, You and I, I'll Fight
15. Jenn Grant - Echoes Another breakup album, how original right? At the time of writing, Jenn was still in a relationship and didn't realize it was a breakup album right away. This leads to some honest and soulful songwriting that is easy to follow and listen to. An artist using her creativity to express herself. Seeing her live as part of Halifax Pop Explosion was a bonus. She has a charming and engaging personality, and this flows right throughout her album. The strength of this album lie in the vocals and the wonderful instrumentation that accompanies them.
Favourites: Heartbreaker, Where Are You Now, Sailing by Silverships
16. Tegan & Sara - The Sainthood I bought this album on a complete whim and ended up loving it. The Canadian sisters deliver thirteen short pop songs featuring catchy vocals, hooks, and riffs. A very easy album to get into, and one that will leave the songs stuck in your head for days.
Favourites: Alligator, Hell, Northshore
17. Atlas Sound - Logos Bradford Cox of Deerhunter is a scientist of music. Just read or watch any of his interviews and you will notice that he loves to talk about music, loves to experiment with music, and wants to excel at what he does. This album contains some great new ideas and new sounds, but the highlights are the guest collaborations. Noah Lennox a.k.a. Panda Bear of Animal Collective lends his vocals on the track Walkabout. Laetitia Sadier provides vocals on the track Quick Canal, an eight and a half minute long song that still doesn’t seem long enough. A great album form one of the great minds in music.
Favourites: Walkabout, Quick Canal, Shelia
18. K’naan - Troubadour This album was highlighted earlier this year. It is a powerful mix of rap, hip-hop, rock, and brutally honest lyrics. While the headlines of the news may not be filled with headlines about Somalia, K’naan paints a clear picture about what is going on in his country. While the message is powerful, so is the medium. The album has something for everyone, everything from songs that get airplay on the radio to songs that would make any radio listener feel uncomfortable. Favourites: T.I.A., Somalia, Dreamer 19. Bat For Lashes - Two Suns Natasha Khan delivers a beautiful album that shows why she is one of the most talented female vocalists currently making music. Songs such as Glass show off the great range of her vocals. The album also features Daniel, one of the best songs of the year.
Favourites: Daniel, Glass, Moon And Moon
20. Apostle of Hustle - Eats Darkness The album sleeve of this album somewhere states that the album is for Apostle of Hustle fans. After many listens, this makes perfect sense. Perhaps the least accessible of their three albums, this album contains the sounds of the band making the music they want to make, taking chances and experimenting. Something that a fan of the band understands, but may throw a first time listener for a loop.The album is filled with multiple samples of speaking parts with strange music which are entertaining, but can distract from the album. It is still a fun album, but requires patience and understanding.
21. Arctic Monkeys - Humbug Stoner rock! It is evident that producer Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) had his fingerprints all over this one. The album contains a mix of heavier rock songs like Crying Lightening, but also some slow ballads that really show off this bands strength, including some of their best songs yet such as Cornerstone. The lyrics throughout the album are great, its almost like sitting back and listening to some storytelling, except its done through a rock album. Favourites: Cornerstone, Dance Little Liar
22. AIR - Love 2 AIR is one of those bands that I love to put their albums on in the background when I'm doing work or reading. The simple, yet catchy beats, sounds, plunks, synths, vocals, and lyrics that don't quite make sense make it easy to get lost in the album. At times its like being in an elevator at the supermarket, other times it is like landing on a distant planet. Either way it makes for a fun album. My favourite music video of the year also came from this album in the form of Sing Sang Sung. Favourites: Sing Sang Sung, African Velvet 23. Franz Ferdinand - Tonight This album came out early in the year, but I haven't really listened to it since when it came out. It contains the classic Franz sound with their art rock choppy guitars, catchy sing a long choruses, and songs that make it hard to not tap your foot. It also contains their longest song to date, Lucid Dreams, which starts off like a normal Franz song, but eventually dissolves into an electronic dance with buzzing synths taking turn alternating between the right side and left side of the brain. I'll have to revisit this album at some point. Favourites: Lucid Dreams
24. You Say Party! We Say Die! - XXXX Exclamation points and X's are littered throughout this album, but rightfully so as love is the primary theme of the album, and is delivered in an energetic, exciting, and charismatic manner. An album full of heavy hitting songs in the sense that almost all of them could be singles. It is hard to sit still while listening to this album. Favourites: Laura Palmer's Prom, Lonely's Lunch
25.Acres and Acres - All Nations Another local addition to this list, this album is perhaps ranked lower than it should be. It instantly has the sounds of a great Canadian singer-songwriter type of album. In many ways it reminds me of Bruce Cockburn in delivery as well as the very strong political undertones throughout. It is the lyrics that really draw me to the album, drawing on themes of greed, pollution, and questioning the constructs of society. Favourites: From A Forest, Joker
26. In Flight Safety - We Are An Empire My Dear Halifax based In Flight Safety released their second full length album earlier this year. It features the song Model Homes which is one of my favourite songs of the year. There are some other great tracks on the album, and they are a fun band to see live. This album possesses more depth than their debut album The Coast Is Clear. It sounds less like Coldplay and more like themselves. Favourites: Model Homes, Big White Elephant
27. Real Estate - Real Estate If you ever need an album to just chill out to, get some work done, or do no work at all, this is the album for you. It is made up of dreamlike songs, heavy on reverb. It is easy to listen to this album and not realize you went through it all. Not because of the album's length, but rather the feel of the album. Favourites: Fake Blues, Beach Comber
28. MSTRKRFT - Fist of God Electro duo MSTRKRFT drop an album that is heavy on beats, bass, and guests. The album caries a high level of energy throughout its entire duration. Best played at high volumes, with flashing lights, and whatever you need to get your groove on. Favourites: Heartbreaker, Bounce
29. Volcano Choir - Unmap Justin Vernon of Bon Iver joined Colony of Bees to create this beautiful album. It features lots of instrumental sounds, reverb, and the distinctive voice of Justin Vernon. It takes some effort to get into the album, and at some moments it seems to drag on. But at other moments such as during Still, it is hard to not get caught up in the beauty of what is happening throughout this album. Favourites: Still, Island IS
30. k-os - Yes Toronto based rapper k-os did some creative things with this album. The tour supporting it was a pay-what-you-want all ages tour, allowing show attendees to determine how much they wanted to pay to show, or if they in fact wanted to pay. But not to distract from the album, this album had some enjoyable and fun songs, displaying k-os delivering a variety of genres. Pop songs, rap songs, rock songs. This diversity may take away from the diversity of the album at times. Favourites: I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman, Uptown Girl, Burning Bridges
This year I'll be doing my 4th annual album countdown. Right now I've picked around 30 albums to be on my long list. Over the remainder of November I'll try to get some more listens in to albums that may be considered for the list. So if you see anything amazingly awesome that I've missed leave a comment and I'll check it out.
Joel Plaskett - Three
Metric - Fantasies Grizzly Bear - Veckatimist Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Its Blitz U2 - No Line On the Horizon Pheonix The most serene republic Timber timbre Young galaxy Bat for lashes Animal collective Dirty projectors K'anaan K-os Air Franz ferdinand Wilco Apostle of hustle Gentleman reg The xx Atlas sound Bruce peninsula Jenn grant Charles spearin In flight safety YSP!WSD! MSTRKRFT Volcano choir
Eps: Bon iver Deerhunter The mountain and the trees Death cab for Cutie
