Best Albums of 2009
 

Just like it says... post your favorite albums of 2009

PLEASE keep your descriptions short and clear! This board has tons of tastes... keep it usable!
If you have a link for downloading it or previewing, please post it!

Here are some of mine:

Hudson Mohawke - Butter
psychedelic glitched out hip-hop influenced weirdness. electronic/sample based. on Warp records.
Listen: http://www.myspace.com/hudsonmo

Jon Hopkins - Insides
insanely beautiful classical stylings that suddenly fall into dark, gritty, almost dubsteppy broken beats. holy hell! possibly the best crossover album of the year.
Listen: http://www.myspace.com/jonhopkins

SUNN O))) - Monoliths and Dimensions
ambient grind core metal. they describe themselves as a "cover band for planet earth." deep. so deep. psychedelic brain food.
Listen: http://www.myspace.com/thegrimmrobe


if you're on SoulSeek, so am I. My username is PulpMind. All of these albums are in my "New Downloads" folder.

I just wanted to say thank you for starting this thread--last time I found one of these, I found some great new artists.

Top Ten:

Mos Def - The Ecstatic
Converge - Axe To Fall
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz
Fall Of Efrafa - Inle
Zs - Music of The Modern White
And So I Watch You From Afar - Self-Titled
Coalesce - Ox
Russian Circles - Geneva
Kylesa - Static Tensions
Isis - Wavering Radiant

Honorable Mention:

Anaal Nathrakh - In The Constellation of The Black Window
Zu - Carboniferous
Infested - 1000 Doors
Tombs - Winter Hours

Old Albums Discovered In 2009:

Friendly Fires - Self Titled
These Arms Are Snakes - Easter
Trap Them - Sleep Well Deconstructor
Intronaut - Prehistocrisms

Biggest Disappointment:

Cage - Depart From Me
Cage - I Never Knew You

Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
Dragonette - Fixin To Thrill
Fever Ray - Fever Ray
Florence and the Machine - Lungs
Imogen Heap - Ellipse (I don't think it's her best album, but still great)
La Roux - La Roux
Little Boots - Hands
Marina and the Diamonds - Obsessions EP and The Crown Jewels EP (first major album coming soon)
Metric - Fantasies
Mika - The Boy Who Knew Too Much (can't decide if I like this album or his first better)
Regina Spektor - Far (again, not her best, but still very good)
St. Vincent - Actor
The Sounds - Crossing the Rubicon
Nellie Mckay - Normal as Blueberry Pie (not my favorite of hers, I prefer her original stuff, but I have to give her some love!)
The Bird and the Bee - Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future
Tori Amos - Abnormally Attracted to Sin (about half great, would remove some songs :p)
Shakira - She Wolf (also half good, many songs are formulaic and lack the Shakira touch)

Hey guys, I know it's hard to read, but can you please do that thing I asked, like, post a link to the music or *at least* give a short description of the album?

The fact is, no one is going to give any of this music a chance unless they have some reason to believe they're going to like it.
So spend a little more time to add that info, so that you're not wasting any of your time.

Thanks!

PS - Really long lists are painful. Just a BEST OF, please.

Hi Pulp.

I appreciate your concerns, but actually I find a simple list to be quite easy, and in this community, I know enough about many of the posters to know whether I will gel with their opinions. If I see something that intrigues me, I will google or look them up on wikipedia.

Sometimes, it's nice to lay down a list of quick points, not to have to go to the trouble of writing a long piece on each CD. Last year I picked up about 100 new albums, and for me to review each one would take me longer than it's worth, but to lay out titles of the best might help others.

In alphabetical order by artist:

The Weirding by Astra. Great new prog.
Before the Frost...Until the Freeze - Black Crowes : return to form
Live From MSG) - Clapton & Winwood : just, wow!
The Kinks Choral Collection - Ray Davies : beautiful reworking of old favourites
Black Clouds & Silver Linings - Dream Theater : get the 3 disk special edition with some great covers on.
Lungs - Florence and the Machine : brilliant pop
The Liberty of Norton Folgate - Madness : seriously, their best album since the first one.
The Resistance - Muse : if Queen had never ended.
Pendulum: Live at Brixton Academy - Pendulum : rocking banging great tunes
Invaders Must Die - The Prodigy : great big beats
The Crooked Vultures
The Whirlwind - Transatlantic : more prog

Later, I'll come back for re-issues and compiltions...

OK, on to re-issues, and old albums that I finally got in 2009.

Again in alphabetical order:

Aerosmith - Permanent Vacation and Get a Grip. I know, i know, I can't explain why I didn't have them either, but now I do and I regret no getting them sooner.
The Beatles - all of the reissues, but especially Let it Be, Abbey Road, and Revolver.
Crosby, Stills, Nash (and partially Young) - Deja Vu, CSN, Four Way Street ; picked these up after seeing CSN from Glastonbury on the BBC. Always liked some of their work, but felt the need to delve more deeply.
The Incredible Bongo Band - Bongo Rock ; simply for their version of Apache.
Alison Krauss - all of her back catalogue. Simply lovely.
Various - The Harder They Come - another "why didn't I have it years ago" purchase.
Various - The Woodstock Experience CDs - especially Johnny Winter, Jefferson Airplane, and Santana.

Here are a few, mostly culled from onodrim's list. Maybe more to come later.

St. Vincent - Actor [Marrow, Actor Out of Work]

Bat for Lashes - Two Suns [Daniel, Sleep Alone]

Metric - Fantasies [Sick Muse, Gimme Sympathy]

Fever Ray - Fever Ray [When I Grow Up, If I Had A Heart]

Little Boots - Hands [Remedy, Earthquake]

Mastodon - Crack the Skye
--Excellent transition from the heavy/loud/thrash sound they had on Leviathan and Remission - shows new vocal style and improved musicianship. The concept of the album is great - Russian Czars (and Rasputin), space travel and the devil.
The Dead Weather - Horehound
--Jack Whites new band and quite an excellent rock album

I've been listening to Cobalt's album, Gin for a couple weeks now, and I'm loving it! I guess at their core, Cobalt are a black metal band, but this album has so many experimental parts that it can be hard to paint them into a corner.

EDIT: From reading a bunch of reviews, they seem to be compared to Tool quite a bit (some Mastodon and Isis comparisons as well...), but as far as I can tell it should only be for the guitar tone and the drums, and even that is only in parts here and there. This album is for you if you ever wanted to know how Tool could sound if you wanted them to be more "metal".

Alright, I'm pretty sure I've heard all the new music I'm going to hear this year. Either way, I'm ready to commit to a top 20 for 2009:

1. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Ben Gibbard & Jay Farrar - One Fast Move Or I'm Gone - Collaboration of the front men from Son Volt and Death Cab For Cutie for a Jack Kerouac documentary. (Alt. Country)

2. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band - Outer South - Bright Eyes front man sharing the vocals with others. (Alt. Country, Folk)

3. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk - "Super Group" of Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket) and M. Ward. (Folk, Rock, Alt. Country)

4. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Patterson Hood - Murdering Oscar (and other love songs) - Solo effort from Drive-By Truckers front man (Alt. Country)

5. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - A.A. Bondy - When the Devil's Loose - Second album from former Verbena front man. (Folk, Rock)

6. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Black Crowes - Before the Frost....Until the Freeze - 20 new songs recorded live on Levon Helm's farm in Woodstock (Rock, Alt. Country, Folk)

7. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Drive-By Truckers - The Fine Print - Rarities and B-Sides from DBT, including covers of Tom Petty, Warren Zevon and Bob Dylan (Rock, Alt. Country)

8. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - The Swell Season - Strict Joy - Return of the duo who starred in "Once" (Rock, Folk)

9. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Son Volt - American Central Dust - Former Uncle Tupelo songwriter continues his Alt. country sound. (Rock, Alt. Country)

10. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Blakroc - Blakroc - Collaboration of Black Keys and MC's like Raekwon, Mos Def and Q-Tip (Hip Hop)

11. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Guy Clark - Some Days the Song Writes You - Country legend strips it down for new album (Country)

12. http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-...45711_7319.jpg - Jaydiohead - Jaydiohead - Mash-ups of Jay-Z and Radiohead tracks. (Hip Hop)

13. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Drive-By Truckers - Live in Austin - DBT's appearance on Austin City Limits (Rock, Alt. Country)

14. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - The Mars Volta - Octahedron - Prog rockers latest album (Rock, Prog)

15. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - Former Drive-By Trucker's second solo album (Rock, Alt. Country)

16. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Grizzly Bear - Veckatamist - Mix of folksy arrangements and multi-part harmonies (Alternative)

17. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Doves - Kingdom of Rust - Underrated British pop/rockers return to form. (Alternative Rock)

18. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - The Dead Weather - Horehound - White Stripes' Jack White plays drums with this new rock group (Alternative Rock)

19. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Heartless Bastards - The Mountain - Southern Rock with a female lead singer (Rock)

20. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...160_AA115_.jpg - Iron & Wine - Around the Well - Demos and b-sides from Sam Beam (Folk)


Records I never got to include The Flaming Lips (Embryonic), Wilco (Wilco the Album), Avett Brothers (I and Love and You), Will Johnson & Jason Molina, and Them Crooked Vultures

Metric- Fantasies
Front to back, this album is a gem. I find I like the songs that are not on the radio, more than their releases. Definately Indie at its best!

Them Crooked Vultures- Self Titled
Anything Dave Grohl touches is golden. Just a great mix of classic rock (John Paul Jones) and progressive rock (Dave Grohl/Josh Homme).

Daniel - I'm not asking for reviews, just a short description. Something like "nu metal" or "free jazz" can go a long way to garnering interest.
So far, I haven't looked into any of the albums posted without descriptions where I didn't already recognize the artists' name. I'm sure that's true for 99% of the people perusing this.

I've gone back and edited my post to include short descriptions

Albums that I liked that came out in 09:

-Metallica: Death Magnetic - The best studio album they've put out since Justice.

-Redemption: Snowfall on Judgement Day - Progessive metal similar to Dream Theater but not quite as technical.

-Dream Theater: Black Clouds and Silver Linings - Another top-notch release from progressive rock/metal's best act.

-The Devin Townsend Project: Ki and Addicted (two separate albums) - Hard to define. Parts one and two of a four part project. Heavy at times, clean vocals, some screaming, progressive, lots ambient stuff (especially on Ki), some almost dance beats with female vocals (Addicted). Extremely varied and enjoyable. Not at all like his (Devin Townsend) metal band, Strapping Young Lad. Much more accessible and easier to listen to when you aren't in the metal mood. I'm really starting to become a Devin Townsend fan after discovering these two cd's.

Looking at my collection, that's really all I found that came out in 09 (that I liked). I discovered a number of bands and albums that were released prior to then, and I guess that's mostly what I was listening to outside of the five albums already listed.

I wasn't counting Death Magnetic as it came out in 2008, but it was good. Better than St Anger, certainly.

They're not grindcore in the least.

My golden find was Red Fang's self titled debut album... crunchy, dirty metal/rock riffs with raw vocals.

RED FANG on MySpace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures & Music Downloads

Metric - Fantasies
Joel Plaskett - Three
Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
Handsome Furs - Face Control

Grizzly Bear - Veckatmist
Animal Collective - Merriwheter Post Pavillion
Bill Callahan - Sometimes I Wish I were an eagle
Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus
Pains of being Pure at heart - self titled

Grizzly Bear - Veckatmist: A superior mix of psychedelic folk rock and pop. The harmonies are fantastic and moving - check out "I live With You".

Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix: My favorite french pop band's newest release is their breakthough, although I would of liked it to have been It's Never Been Like That. Tons of electronic and chugging guitar lines.

Girls - Album: A mix of Costello and Beach Boys on this album that laments not preparing for your twenties. Lots of foot tappers but lacks some substance. Lust For Life, the opening track, is probably it's strongest.

The Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca: A mix of ambient pop melodies and modern romps through syncopated drum fills and quick changes.

Mos Def - The Ecstatic: Mos steps back into the early ninties with lo-fi loops and slick lyrical work. Probably his strongest album thus far.

Florence + The Machine - Lungs: An English siren who takes over for Imogen Heap by taking her beautiful and angelic tones and adding copious amounts of indie pop. Dog Days Are Over is feverish, and Cosmic Love leaves you a little drunk with her.

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion: I'm not a huge AC fan but Merriweather makes something more out of their sound than previous albums. You can hear intense and almost religious melodies sitting bellow the oceans of white noise. And when you catch them, there isn't much better.

Miike Snow - Miike Snow: Catchy and cerebral indie pop; an upbeat Bon Iver. Danceable but a little too dissonant sounding for me.

Julien Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young: My favorite album of the year. Casablancas steps up his song writing with solid melodies and incredibly catchy hooks. The lyrics are still a little weak but he finds a way of mixing his natural new wave sensibilities with the muscle memory he's developed with The Strokes. Very bouncy and meticulous.

Rain Machine - Rain Machine: An export of a band who can't miss the mark, TV on the Radio, Rain Machine is just as intelligent but perhaps a little less political sounding. The songs are far more personal, and the music a little more guitar and percussion saturated. The vocals, however, and just as howl heavy.

Time To Die - The Dodos: I'm a huge fan of the Dodos after Vister's release and this only furthers my love of them. The music gets a little simpler but just as hypnotic and, somehow, equally frantic.

Brakes - Touchdown: Remind me a little of Nirvana and Beck. Certainly a lot less dark than Nirvana, but they've got the chugging distortion and tom laden drum fills. It's all very self-loathing but if you're a big fan of early ninties garage pop rock than this is your band. They aren't Detriot rock. More like a suburb in Washington.

Ben Folds - Way To Normal: A return to Kate and other BFF classics. A couple of tunes that feel like they should be on Songs For Silverman, but for the most part it's a return to his song writing roots. But what makes it better is Kate now has perfectly arranged string sections, better phrasing, and a lot of self-awareness.

Patrick Watson - Wooden Arms: Incredible. Listen to it. I can't explain it's power.

That's it for this year. A decent year in releases but not THAT strong.

Lyle Lovett - Natural Forces

Roseanne Cash - The List