lots of people seem to be doing this and i will do this too. because i like making lists and ranking and filing my music. it's the best music that i have listened to enough to judge of 2009 of my life so far:
let's make it...oh, i didn't plan this out, did i? let's make it 10. or whatever it turns out to be once i list the ones that i deem listable. 11 it is! also note that i don't feel any of them should be #1 at this point. i don't think i've heard my #1 of 2009 yet. at least i hope not. so it's top 12 without a #1. or maybe one of those from the list below (of tbd rankings) will be #1.
12. iran - dissolver. pretty awesome. but upon further inspection, only like 4-5 of the songs are super fantastic. if they had a higher success rate this could be way higher on the list.
11. nasa - the spirit of apollo. pitchfork hated this. but i really feel like this is the next in the line of the gorillaz/gnarls barkley/whatever for genre transcendence of rock and hip hop. and the best songs are really the combinations of the two (even though such combinations can be disastrous sometimes). like the song with ODB and karen o. and the song with kool keith and tom waits. it's just a party record that seems really hard to hate, and i don't know how people can. but whatever.
10. obits - i blame you. so when i looked back at 2008, i was kind of surprised by the lack of rock music i had been involved with. and so this year i really wanted some real rock and roll. and here it is. this may not be as good as the best hot snakes records, but it's got what i need. rock in its purest, meanest form.
9. phoenix - wolfgang amadeus phoenix. i've heard this band referred to as the french mgmt. which is funny, because i consider mgmt the poor man's of montreal. so phoenix is therefore the poor man's french of montreal. even though montreal is in canada and phoenix is in america. confusing. but this band has been at it for a long time apparently, but i hadn't heard them before this year. i can't really explain why i love this album. probably because it evokes a lot of the same stuff as of montreal, one of my very favorite bands.
8. andrew bird - noble beast. there's not really anything too special about this album except that it is just very high quality. it is just full of quality, enjoyable songs. nothing groundbreaking, just very well done.
7. aceyalone - the lonely ones. aceyalone shows his love for old timey music. somehow he makes music that sounds like it could come out in either 1960 or 2009. if they had rapping in 1960. this has basically all the elements i love about 60s soul music. it just sounds so natural; i'm not sure how this hasn't been done before (or has it???)
6. dark was the night. weird that a compilation could be on this list. usually when i get a compilation i listen to it a couple times and then forget about it (other than, maybe, a couple standout tracks). this one is a fully realized, great album. it just fits together unlike any other compilation i've ever heard. it's cohesive. the only complaint i have is that it's two full discs, so it's very long and overwhelming.
5. grizzly bear - veckatimest. it's a grower.
4. sonic youth - the eternal. how can a band be so good so far into their career? i feel like only sonic youth could pull this off, staying relevant for almost 30 years now. i guess that's how far ahead of their time they have always been.
3. mi ami - watersports. this is primal, uncompromising, and at times grating music. in other words, this is music that makes me feel ALIVE. it demands your attention. most people will hate it. it's just a combination of dub, hardcore, and really really annoying vocals. love it. NOTE TO EVERYBODY: anything featuring former members of the band black eyes is going to be amazing. divisive, sure, and maybe you won't like it. but i have loved everything these guys have done.
2. mos def - the ecstatic. this album makes me ecstatic.
1. ??????????
the problem here, see, is that lots of the great music just came out like, in the last couple weeks. so here is a list of stuff that just came out that may or may not make it on my year-end list once i can digest it:
dinosaur jr
dirty projectors
rock plaza central
tara jane oneil - i need to listen to this more even though it came out awhile ago. i blame the fact that the vinyl didn't come with a download, so i have only listened to it once. but it is fantastic.
and finally, my top anticipated albums of, presumably, if they actually get released this year, the rest of 2009
-big boi/outkast/andre 3000 - whatever they actually put out. apparently they are supposed to both have solo albums plus an outkast album. but it'll probably be a couple more years. but that big boi song that leaked last year (royal flush featuring andre 3000 and raekwon) was one of the best hip hop songs of the year for sure.
-jay-z - blueprint 3. you know.
-deltron 3030 - event 2 (or whatever its name will be). like outkast, this has been pushed back and pushed back again. although it's never had an official release date. but it seems everything's been done except del's part for like 2 years now. dude needs to get on that. also i haven't liked his last two solo albums THAT much. i hope the 'tron brings him back to what made him one of my favorite rappers back then.
-yo la tengo - popular songs. these guys are so good and so versatile. this is going to be something else.
-tyondai braxton - central market. i only first heard about his solo stuff a couple weeks ago when pitchfork reported that he had another one coming out this fall. i still need to track down his other solo stuff and enjoy it, but battles are one of my favorite bands of the past couple years, and it has to be fantastic.
-kyp mallone solo album - yeah!! maybe it will surpass iran.
-the roots - how i got over. did you hear the song on jimmy fallon last week? holy crap. FUNKY FUNKY.
-annie - i hope this sees the light of day soon.
-the flaming lips - embryonic
