The Ten Best Albums of 2009 (and some other random music thoughts from the year)

If there was a theme to the year in music in 2009, it was “pop sensibility”. Artists like Animal Collective, Dirty Projectors, Wilco and Grizzly Bear, all of whom were known for anything but appealing to the masses, released albums which showcased their pop songwriting ability without compromising their sounds. This fact has, of course, led to major breakthroughs for all these bands (with the exception of Wilco, who made their splash with the best album of the decade, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot).

The critical and commercial love for (most) of this music was completely justified. The albums released by Animal Collective, Dirty Projectors, Grizzly Bear, and Sunset Rubdown (among others) were not only their most accessible; they were also their best.

As such, 2009 was a pretty amazing year for music if you know where to look. Any year in which albums by Neko Case, The Thermals, (MF) DOOM, Wilco, Jay Z, the Decemberists, P.O.S.,  and one of the greatest indie compilations in recent memory, Dark Was The Night, are outside the top 10 is most likely an incredibly solid year. Since this is the case, I’m sure most of you will disagree with a lot of my picks. It’s only natural. I’m always open for discussion, so feel free to leave a comment.

(Quick note: a few of the albums listed have made waves on many other Top 10 lists. I’ve only included short entries for some of these albums, since most of what I’d say about these albums has been said already)

The Top 10:

1.

Sunset Rubdown, Dragonslayer

Unlike Spencer Krug’s other band, Wolf Parade, who sometimes seem to be living in the past (if living very well), Sunset Rubdown seems to embrace the past only as the memories behind their eyes, which remain fixed firmly on the horizon ahead of them. Influences can be heard, of course, but instead of imitation, they specialize in advancement.

Dragonslayer may be their biggest step yet. Each song is manic, jumping from the mellow to the insane, rarely with any build-up. For example, “Black Swan” starts off with lyrics over simple percussion, then launches quickly into a proggy chorus, backed by keyboard passages, then into experimental feedback solos. And that’s just the first 3 minutes.

2.

Animal Collective, Merriweather Post Pavilion

The words “pop sensibility” have seldom required such a wide definition as they do when applied to Merriweather Post Pavilion. The album isn’t exactly what the average listener would call “pop”. Animal Collective didn’t exactly start playing Taylor Swift songs here.

But I can’t help but think that if Brian Wilson made Pet Sounds today, it would sound more than a bit like this. The music is challenging and bizarre, yet wholly listenable. As with Pet Sounds, their most daring decisions seem to make the most sense.

3.

Dirty Projectors, Bitte Orca

Bitte Orca is the sonic equivalent of the X-Men. The question is whether it’s the next step in the evolution of rock and roll, or a freak to be weeded out by natural selection. In my opinion, it’s the former.

4. Japandroids, Post-Nothing

Yes. The Japandroids debut is that good. 8 songs of insane rock fury in under 36 minutes; you just don’t see this kind of album anymore. Each song has a focus and an intensity which is rarely heard even from experienced bands. The simplicity of the songs is hidden by the sound of Brian King’s guitar, drowned in distortion over David Prowse’s precise, booming drums. And no, unfortunately, the drummer did not play Darth Vader.

5.

Brother Ali, Us

To make an original statement in a genre which may have peaked more than 15 years ago, Brother Ali takes hip hop back to where it all started. “Brothers and Sisters” foreshadows what’s to come. Over the course of the next 15 tracks, starting with the ecstatic “The Preacher”, Brother Ali takes us on a tour of hip hop as soul. Hip hop fans looking for the next great MC would be wise to pay attention to Brother Ali, who is set to bring rap into its fourth decade.

6.

Dinosaur Jr, Farm

“Black Flag or a lot of the bands that were popular from that period had songs that you really loved, but they didn’t really touch you in a personal, emotional way the way that a lot of J’s early stuff did,” says Lee Ranaldo about Dinosaur Jr’s J Mascis in Our Band Could Be Your Life. The question a statement like that brings up is: Will a band 10 years ahead of their time still sound fresh 25 years later? Can a band that stood out in the 80s still stand out in the post-Nirvana music scene, where even bands like Metallica, who once skewed emotion, have injected their songs with a dose of vulnerability?

Luckily, the reunion of J Mascis, Low Barlow and Murph timed their comeback at a time when indie rock could use a healthy jolt of power from one of its true pioneers. Dinosaur Jr avoids all the lazy puns that would have inevitably shown up in countless reviews had their newest album (following 2007′s very good Beyond) had they not made a step forward with their music and made one of the greatest guitar albums in years.

7.

Sonic Youth, The Eternal

After years of nixing their signature mix of distortion, noise and feedback for experiments in a cleaner, quiter sound on very good albums such as Murray Street, Rather Ripped and especially Sonic Nurse, Sonic Youth bring back the insanity with The Eternal. In the 14 years since 1995′s Washing Machine, their last truly great noisy album, they haven’t lost a step. Songs like “Sacred Trickster” and “Calming the Snake” would easily fit in on Sister or Goo, while the coda on the blistering, booming “Anti-Orgasm” (the best song here) shows they can emerge from the depths just as easily and fluidly as they plumbed them.

8.

Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

There were better albums than Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix this year, but I’d be hard-pressed to call any album this year more likable.

9.

Raekwon, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…Part 2

One need only hear “House of Flying Daggers” to know that Raekwon is not going to just make another Only Built 4 Cuban Linx. Instead he enlists a slew of some of the greatest producers to provide textures over which Raekwon, Ghostface, and various other members of the Wu-Tang Clan flow. With the RZA and Dr. Dre laying down beats on some of the best tracks, one can’t help but lapse into nostalgia for the golden age of hip hop.

10.

The xx, xx

Another debut in a strong year for new bands that provide me with a lot of hope for the next ten years, xx is made up of deadpan pop songs. The album doesn’t really ever rock, instead every song is a different kind of mellow. Sometimes lightly danceable, other times creepily expansive, xx manages to sound cohesive without being stuck on a single note.

Honorable Mention:

I love all these albums, as well. If you ask me next week, some of these albums will probably be on my top 10 of 2009 list, but for tonight, they have to deal with honorable mention.

Neko Case, Middle Cyclone

The Antlers, Hospice

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

The Thermals, Now We Can See

Art Brut, Art Brut Vs. Satan

DOOM, Born Like This

White Rabbits, It’s Frightening

Various Artists, Dark Was The Night

P.O.S., Never Better

Jaydiohead, Jaydiohead

Girls, Album

Animal Collective, Fall Be Kind EP

Overrated:

Grizzly Bear, Veckatimest

Yes. This is a “Great” album. And a beautiful album. And it is a big step forward for Grizzly Bear. And it’s garnered heaps of critical attention. But the the fact of the matter is, it just sort of puts me to sleep. I loved it the first time I listened to it, but each subsequent listening has result in diminishing rewards. While albums like Merriweather Post Pavilion and Bitte Orca have gotten more and more interesting after repeated listens, Veckatimest has just gotten real old, real fast.

Underrated:

Rain Machine, Rain Machine

Wilco, Wilco (The Album)

The Decemberists, The Hazards of Love

Jay Z, The Blueprint 3

Mission of Burma, The Sound, the Speed, the Light

Rising Star:

Kid Sister

Who would think a song about nail salons could be so good? Kid Sister released Ultraviolet this year, and it’s one of the most diverse albums in mainsteam rap from the past year. And beyond that, it’s just plain fun.

I still don’t know what “A Coca-Cola shake with an onion in the back” means, though.

(Thanks to those commenters who pointed out that I’d listed Spencer Krug’s other band as Wolfmother when I first posted. Of course, Spencer Krug is not in Wolfmother. That would be weird.)

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~ by Patrick Brennan on December 29, 2009.