Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Creamtastic / National Skyline / Reviews Working on My Year-End List: 40 of the Year's Best Records
Posted by D Patrick Rodgers on Wed, Dec 16, 2009 at 7:11 AM
Back in June, I blogged that I was already beginning to consider my options for albums of the year. The annual Pazz & Jop Poll--which is half the reason I started this blog--is hosted by our former overlords at Village Voice, and they've again asked for our opinions regarding 2009's strongest albums. Sweet of them, considering we at the Scene aren't a part of the corporate family anymore--though I'm not entirely sure they realize that.
Anyhow, I've grown a lot since June, and I can tell you right now that--even though I once said, "I'd probably vote for Jeff Tweedy if he put out an album of birdcalls"--Wilco (the Album) probably won't be getting a vote from me. I think I would have found the birdcalls more compelling. Given my obsessive tendencies regarding album analysis, the plethora of records released this year and the respective back catalogs of the artists being considered, I'm having a hell of a time picking my absolute faves. For instance, enormously influential bands like Dinosaur Jr., Air, The Flaming Lips and Built to Spill put out solid but not innovative records this year--they were all enjoyable, but most of them didn't stack up to the rest of their catalogs or even necessarily against this year's competition. Plus, putting an exhaustingly consistent band like Air in the Top 10 would mean bumping a small, brand-new act with an interesting sound (Screaming Females or French Miami, for example). I've listed precisely 40 records released this year that I find compelling in some respect, and I'd like you to have a look at it. Tell me what's missing, what you think is out of place, and why you think I'm a blowhard.
It's important to first note that I don't follow hip-hop and metal as fanatically as some, so there is very little/none of either genre represented in my list. A lot of people seem to enjoy Sunn O)))'s Monoliths and Dimensions, but I don't tend to vote for albums that quake my abdominal cavity nearly to the point of making my guts fall out. Sorry. Just a personal rule. There are also a handful of leaks that I'd vote for had they been officially released (such as Yeasayer's Odd Blood), but I guess I'll just have to remember them for next year. By the way, if you're not morally opposed to following such a thing, Leak Tweet is a great place to locate leaky leaks.
Here's my list, semi-casually arranged in bestish-to-worstish formation, followed by some of my favorite local releases of the year. Again, you can find reviews and preview tracks for almost every one of these records right over there.
Non-Locals:
Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Atlas Sound, Logos
Animal Collective, Fall Be Kind EP
White Denim, Fits
Animal Collective, Merriweather Post Pavilion
Japandroids, Post-Nothing
Jarvis Cocker, Further Complications
Screaming Females, Power Move
Miike Snow, Miike Snow
Jookabox, Don't Go Phantom
Sunset Rubdown, Dragonslayer
French Miami, French Miami
Dirty Projectors, Bitte Orca
Dinosaur Jr., Farm
Grizzly Bear, Veckatimest
Dan Auerbach, Keep It Hid
Yeah Yeah Yeahs, It's Blitz!
Air, Love 2
Cryptacize, Mythomania
Built to Spill, There Is No Enemy
Jay-Z, The Blueprint 3
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Up From Above
Neon Indian, Psychic Chasms
Phosphorescent, To Willie
The Fiery Furnaces, I'm Going Away
White Rabbits, It's Frightening
Os Mutantes, Haih or Baraua
Flaming Lips, Embryonic
Wilco, Wilco (the Album)
Black Moth Super Rainbow, Eating Us
Locals:
Slowmotions, Quick Potions
Cortney Tidwell, Boys
The Non-Commissioned Officers, Make-Out With Violence OST
Uncle Skeleton, Pancho Chumley
JEFF the Brotherhood, Heavy Days
Turbo Fruits, Echo Kid
Those Darlins, Those Darlins
The Kindergarten Circus, The Kindergarten Circus
Millionaire Magicians, Millionaire Magicians
The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker, Burn It Down
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Locally I think any omission of Dewey Decibel is a real shame.
Nationally I think anytime Richard Swift puts out an album it should be duly noted.
Haven't heard either of 'em yet, Mike. One man can only hear so much.
Publishing a Best Of 2009 List (especially around here)with no mention of Superdrag's "Industry Giants" = blowing it.
industry giants was not one of the 40 best of the year.
1) Tim Hecker - An Imaginary Country
2) Dino Jr. - Farm
3) Japandroids - Post Nothing
4) Isis - Wavering Radiant
5) Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport
Relegating Wilco to the bottom of the list where they belong. Way to go! That album was a snoozefest.
Also, that Edward Sharpe record is not top 40 of the year. "Home" is an incredible song, the rest of the album is solid but it's not top 40 of the year.
You're missing Blakroc from that list. For a man that can only hear so much, I'd suggest you put JEFF on the shelf and pick this one up.
Replace Edward Sharpe with Micachu - Jewellery.
Replace Wilco with Ramona Falls - Intuit
@ d. patrick:
Yeah... and if Sunset Rubdown and White Rabbits records were falling from the sky in vast quantities, I wouldn't bother stooping down to pick one up. It really doesn't matter.
Richard Swift is really great. more people need to check him out.
Kurt Vile's new one, Vijay Iyer's Historicity. and Real Estate.
@ Zach
wow, i was going to mention kurt vile's new one; glad someone else feels the same way. it's one of the best albums of the year by far.
Megmo, check out this video for "Lady Luck," if you haven't stumbled upon it already...
Robert Glasper - Double Booked (hands down my favorite) J. Dilla - JayStayPaid, Blakroc, Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport, Horace Andy & Alpha - Two Phazed People, Shpongle - Ineffable Mysteries From Shpongleland
Do reissues count? If so, Hatfield & The North - Rotterd Club, Lloyd Miller - A Lifetime in Oriental Jazz
Robert Pollard had one of his best years since the mid-90s heyday of GBV. Boston Spaceships' "The Planets Are Blasted" and "Zero To 99" and his solo album "Elephant Jokes" all have consistency and high standard of rock quality not seen since bee thousand, alien lanes and under the bushes. and all 3 were released in just one year. also love the new Clientele album and that live Lambchop album is quite the revelation.
@wh its so nice. Especially with cocoa.
@ burrito we need to hang out, I totally slipped on glasper
Here We Go Magic got brushed over by the Spin when they opened for the Walkmen but put out a unique bit of pulsing, freaky pop this year; I'd say check 'er out.
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