Albums of the Year 2009

The art of list making is what separates humans from the rest of the animal kingdom (imagine manatees debating the top 10 sexiest videos of the noughties) and with that in mind here’s my choice of the 20 best albums of 2009 (plus the five worst). Discuss away...  

The Top 20

1.    Japandroids – Post Nothing (Polyvinyl)

Scuzzy and fuzzy with lyrics that border on both childlike simplicity and swooning genius (the closing refrain of ‘Wet Hair’ proclaims, “Let’s get to France/So we can French kiss some French girls” – how great is that?), Japandroids’ debut hits top spot for just being so exquisitely tilted between garage messiness and perfect pop melodies that I’ve listened to it nearly every day since its release.

2.    Future Of The Left – Travels With Myself And Another (4AD)

Riffs capable of levelling entire cities, basslines so full of dirty funk they’ll give you STDs and filthy synths straight from the bowels of a debauched hell. That’s enough to justify its placement before you even get to the lyrics. Album number two from the Cardiff based punks takes the blueprints laid down with previous band Mclusky and the critically acclaimed debut ‘Curses’ and ramps everything up to deliver a set of tunes to rival the best of Shellac, Pixies and Nirvana.

3.    Dananananaykroyd – Hey Everyone (Best Before)

Let’s start with the name. Some love it, some hate it – me, I think it’s fucking genius but I never type the right amount of ‘an’ when I try to spell it which is really annoying. The music sits alongside Johnny Foreigner and Los Campesinos! in the sense that it originates in twee but manages to be punk as fuck whilst also being a guaranteed highlight on any indie dancefloor. In at number three mainly for the brilliant opening to ‘Watch This’.      

 

4.    A Place To Bury Strangers – Exploding Head (Mute)

They’ve been called “the most ear-shatteringly loud garage/shoegaze band you'll ever hear” which was good enough for me to be positively dripping with excitement when a copy turned up in the office. It’s all very Jesus and Mary Chain (although that’s obviously no bad thing) and reawakened my love of all things melodic but noisy just when I thought the rest of ’09 was going to be drowning in electronica.

5.    Pissed Jeans – King Of Jeans (Sub Pop)

Love Flipper, The Jesus Lizard or Tad? Then Pissed Jeans are the band for you. This is sludgy, riff laden rock that pummels your skull like a punk rock pneumatic drill. Sound unlistenable? Well, you’ll be surprised because underneath the toffee-like layers of noise lurk nuggets of pure melody that lift ‘King Of Jeans’ into the upper echelons of rock godliness.

6.    The Horrors – Primary Colours (XL)

There has been a tendency to treat The Horrors like a joke but despite the “look” the music was always fantastic and their influences immaculate.  I was looking forward to their sophomore effort but I didn’t expect the stylistic shift towards My Bloody Valentine territory that marked this as one of the finest albums to emerge from the UK in recent years. Atmospheric, noisy yet full of cracking tunes, ‘Primary Colours’ was the perfect response to the doubters.  

 

7.    Part Chimp – Thriller (Rock Action)

I’d seen (and loved) these guys live a couple of times before but never totally believed in their recorded output. This all changed as soon as ‘Thriller’ hit the stereo: a stoner rock masterpiece that owes a debt to Sabbath whilst never descending into pastiche. It wasn’t a hard rock covers album of the Wacko classic though, sadly.  

8.    Passion Pit – Manners (Columbia)

Having swooned to the gorgeousness of ‘Sleepyhead’ late last year, anticipation for Passion Pit’s debut full lengther was pretty high, but it wasn’t until seeing them live that I truly fell for this stunning band. A bit Flaming Lips, a bit euphoric dance and a whole lot fucking ace, ‘Manners’ marks the emergence of one of the best new bands in the world today.

9.    The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart (Fortuna Pop)

The lush noise-pop of ‘Come Saturday’ hooked me initially but over the course of the year I came to fall in love with the entire Jesus And Mary Chain-meets-My Bloody Valentine (them again!) indie of this stunning debut album. As fuzzy, shoe-gazey pop returned to the hearts of music lovers everywhere in 2009, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart swayed beautifully at the top of the tree.

10.    Daniel Johnston – Is And Always Was (Feraltone)

The real Daniel Johnston (not that godawful name stealer on X Factor) has never quite reached the level of public adoration that his beautifully simple tales of love and loss deserve despite a critically acclaimed documentary and the patronage of Kurt Cobain. However, on ‘Is And Always Was’ Johnston roped in ex-Jellyfish man and Brendan Benson collaborator Jason Falkner to bring an extra sheen and the results are one of his most accessible albums yet. Let’s hope the public finally takes notice.

11.    Dinosaur Jr – Farm (PIAS)

One of my favourite musical stories from this year was the announcement that the new Dinosaur Jr album had been mastered too loud which was, considering how fucking loud the band are anyway, both hilarious and ironic. Did I send my copy back in exchange for one without ear-bleeding levels of feedback, did I fuck...the louder the better. Another masterclass in guitar noise and cracking tunes ‘Farm’ is a classic from the Mascis/Barlow stable. 

 

12.    Jarvis Cocker – Further Complications (Rough Trade)

Geek king of Britpop ropes in the geek overlord of US alt-rock and the finished article is nothing short of remarkable. Jarvis is on top form throughout singing his unique tales of sexual longing and mid-life fantasy over some of the punchiest tunes in his repertoire. It’s a far cry from the days of Pulp and arse wiggling at the Brits and all the better for it as ‘Further Complications’ establishes Cocker as one of the brightest jewels in the British indie crown.  

13.    Sonic Youth – The Eternal (Matador)

Sixteen albums and no signs of mellowing from NYCs premier art-rockers. After the commercial frills of 2006’s ‘Rather Ripped’, ‘The Eternal’ saw a return to the more challenging tunes of albums past yet still retained a pop sensibility that is rarely glimpsed in bands of such experimental leanings. ‘The Eternal’ also saw the band leave the relative safety of major label Geffen to take up refuge with indie titans Matador, hinting that there’s still a lot of life in the old dogs yet.

14.    The Juan Maclean – The Future Will Come (DFA)

The point at which The Human League meet LCD Soundsystem, The Juan Maclean’s second album ‘The Future Will Come’ is a supersonic ride through squelchy electro, retro disco and anthemic dancefloor mayhem. 12 minute+  closer ‘Happy House’ is so monumental it should come with a national preservation order attached.  

15.    Fuck Buttons – Tarot Sport (ATP)

The authoritative stamp of producer Andrew Weatherall is all over this album and the result is a stylistic leap forward from ‘Street Horrrsing’,  the Bristol duo’s critically acclaimed debut. A leap which essentially makes ‘Tarot Sport’ sound a bit ‘Screamadelica’, but a leap nonetheless. Huge washes of sound soak the listener with aural beauty creating a sea of magnificent noise that you’ll want to dive into like a pig in shit. Awe inspiring stuff.

16.    Brendan Benson – My Old, Familiar Friend (Echo)

The greatest songwriter of his generation (my opinion, but I’m right) returned with a fourth album of McCartney-esque alt-pop after the slight creative misstep of 2005’s ‘Alternative To Love’. In the interim he’d become a full on rock god as part of Jack White’s Raconteurs project and the effects on his latest solo outing were obvious. The songs here have a bulkier feel and the delivery is one of confidence and swagger suggesting Benson may be ready to step out of White’s shadow to become a legend in his own right.  

17.    Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career (4AD)

Glasgow’s finest exponents of twee indie reached album number four whilst delivering two of the most gorgeous slabs of pure pop in ‘French Navy’ and ‘The Sweetest Thing’ not privy to a Phil Spector production. A band so heartbreakingly lovely that listening to them will make you want to hug all the breath out of the world before reviving it with tender kisses. Even for a miserable old punk lover like me this is pretty irresistible.

18.    Cougar – Patriot (Ninja Tune)

From the furious opening salvo of ‘Stay Famous’ you’ll get sucked into this astonishing record of instrumental post-rock from  Wisconsin’s Cougar. References to Explosions In The Sky and Mogwai are relevant but underneath the sweet guitar noodling and crunchy riffs lurks a percussive beast that takes cues from the likes of Four Tet and sees them more akin to bands like Battles.  Beats the crap out of most po-faced post rockers more interested in beard stroking than rocking out.

19.    La Roux – La Roux (Polydor)

I tipped La Roux right at the start of the year and having seen them perform live at a Universal new music event back in February I held firm with my opinion despite a bunch of industry bleaters telling me that the other acts that night (Gary Go (who?), Noisettes (what?), Melody Gardot (why?) and I Blame Coco (fuck off Sting)) were all more destined for stardom. Despite the hair, despite the hype this album shone through as a pinnacle of where pop music can go in the 21^st Century. Daring, exhilarating and damn-fucking-danceable.

20.    Vetiver – Tight Knit (Bella Union)

Devendra Banhart cohort Andy Cabic dropped this fourth album of laid back West Coast folk back in March but it has rarely been far from the stereo ever since. ‘Tight Knit’ is groovy yet lazy, funky yet half asleep but in amongst these contradictions lies an album of sublime craftsmanship and undoubted beauty.

Bubbling Under

Big Business - 'Mind The Drift' , Vivian Girls - 'Everything Goes Wrong' , Maps - 'Turning The Mind' , Alice In Chains - 'Black Gives Way To Blue' , Tom Morello/Boots Riley - 'Street Sweeper Social Club' , NASA - 'The Spirit Of Apollo' , Kong - 'Snake Magnet' , Grizzly Bear - 'Veckatimest' , Lily Allen - 'It's Not Me, It's You' , Telepathe - 'Dance Mother' , Cate Le Bon - 'Me Oh My' , Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard - 'Em Are I' , Manic Street Preachers - 'Journal For Plague Lovers' , Lovvers - 'Ocd Go Go Go Girls' , Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - 'Beware' , Howling Bells - 'Radio Wars' , Animal Collective - 'Merriweather Post Pavillion' , Eels - 'Hombre Lobo' , The Thermals - 'Now We Can See' , Empire Of The Sun - 'Walking On A Dream' .

The Worst 5

There's been a plethora of shit this year and I almost made this a top 10 (Alphabeat would have featured but the album isn't out until next year). However, 5 is enough for any man to have to revisit so here we go.... 

1. The Living End - White Noise

Lyrically banal and musically inept. Provoked endless laughing in the office even after we turned it off.

2. Kasabian - West Rider Pauper Lunatic Asylum

Oasis-lite dress up like extras from a Blackadder episode and attempt to go psychedelic. Results are a bit like watching someone pretend they are on acid when, in fact, they've only swallowed a stamp.

3. Noisettes - Wild Young Hearts

Dropped once then re-signed by the same label on the strength of one single. Single is a massive hit after huge advertising campaign. Album fails to deliver follow-up. My spider sense suggests another dropping is on the cards. This sums up why the music industry is up shit creek without a paddle.

4. Hollywood Undead - Swan Songs

Rap-metal, how very ten years ago. Now fuck off back to your mum's and get on with playing Warcraft. Twats. 

5. Reverend And The Makers - A French Kiss In The Chaos

No doubting the validity of the man's politics but musically the good ol' Rev just doesn't cut it. We've given you a couple of goes now Rev - stick to what you're good at (shouting your mouth off) and leave the music to the professionals.  

Opinions? Comments? - let me know your highs and lows of 2009.....

take it easy

Steve

 

Comments

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[M.D.]

i am very confused that you are dissing probably the best album of the year, DEFINATLY not the 2nd worst. What next, you’ll be saying the hockey album wasn’t very good.
M.D.

[Steve]

Kasabian's third atrocity is DEFINITELY the second worst album I've heard this year (and I've heard alot). What is there to be confused about? Others may disagree, but they have cloth ears.

Steve

[Anonymous]

i though this was about popularity not personal views of insignificant people.You should not have included the five albums you hate in this it is unreasonable and as you see you have offend people!do you not think you should have apologies and not written that second comment?????
please think about this Steve!

[Steve]

Hey,
it's a blog - it's all about personal opinion! I happen to think the first 20 albums are the best thing I've heard this year and those other five albums are absolutely terrible - other people may hate the work of Lily Allen or Passion Pit, they can write their own blog or vote in our albums of the year. If we all liked the same thing the world would be a truely terrible place (a bit like Tesco - they only like what's popular as well). But anyway, smile, it's just a bit of fun!

[the camden crawler edvard]

the twang, 'jewellery quarter' really did it for me this year. a combination of razor sharp lyrics and catchy hooks made mine and the lads' summer!
really looking forward to duffy's second album which should be high up on next years list.
edvard x

[edd]

i think Wavves should be in there, somewhere arround no. 14. one my albums of the year so far.

[r4i]

Nice collection of albums. I am a music lover music always makes me crazy.West Rider Pauper Lunatic Asylum is my favourite.

[Gannon]

Mostly great shouts, particularly #1 - agreed, it's never out the player.

[Steve]

glad you approve. It's a stunning album just gutted I keep missing them play live
Steve

[sildenafil]

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