2009: The Albums

Well, I'm happy to say that 2009 was a significantly better year for me that 2008 was. Although I managed to say away from really bad news for the most part, I did have to step up my work schedule quite a bit for mildly unfortunate reasons, which meant that the opportunities to take part in this here blogging hobby of mine had to suffer, just a little bit. Whenever I did find a moment to post something, there was usually a belated show review that I had to get to, which meant that I didn't get a chance to review as many albums as I have in previous years. This didn't mean that I avoided listening to music every chance I could though, and there have been some pretty impressive things released over the course of the year.

Looking over some of the other lists that have already emerged made me realize that there is a lot of stuff that I just haven't gotten around to listening to yet, but surprisingly, this is the first year that I remember being mostly OK with that. I am quite happy with the albums that made my list, and the fact that I still haven't gotten around to listening to heavy hitters like Fever Ray, Little Boots and even the mighty Neko Case's current releases and it isn't keeping me awake at night the way that these things used to, is making me surprisingly proud of my newfound maturity. I'm growing up kids; I'm growing up. And here's the list:

1. The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love (Review)

So if you've been following the blog at all, then you've already seen me gush about this album before, and you've already seen its unusually high position on my 'best of the decade' list and you already knew that this was going to be number one. So, let's move on... (Myspace)

Video: The Rake Song on youtube

2. The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart

I realize that this is a recent album, but man does it take me back. Every party that I went to between 1989 and 1992 was jammed with this style of melancholy shoegaze-y pop music, and TPOBPAH and I must've been attending the same parties because they've got the sound nailed, and I gotta say that I love them for it. (Myspace)

Download: Everything With You mp3

3. The Paint Movement - Our Eurythmy (Review)

My vote for local release of the year goes to this unassuming group of intense brass rockers who've nailed a sound that I've been waiting approximately 30 years for. That's right, I've been longing for their sound since I was about 6 years old. If you don't believe me, ask my parents! I've looked around and although you could compare them to Broken Social Scene and the like, their lush sounding, jazz tinged indie vibe stands alone and I honestly don't hear anyone else that sounds like them right now. Anywhere. (Myspace)

Download: Knock Knock mp3

4. The xx - XX

By george, I think that The xx have finally got it. Several bands have been trying over the past few years to master the art of creating an unforced Ian Curtis inspired drone and while a few have come close (see Interpol, Editors, etc) others have simply come across as contrived. But The xx have done it! The album is flawless from start to finish, and the fact that it sounds so effortless fills me with the hope that these guys may just have a natural knack for all things droneful and shoegazelike, and if that's the case, the rest of their output will continue to be equally as mindblowing. Here's hoping! (Myspace)

Download: Basic Space mp3

5. Bat For Lashes - Two Suns

I know people that love Bat For Lashes and I know people that hate them. Although I can't really speak for the under 30 crowd, the thirtysomethings among us who find themselves missing the glory years of Kate Bush, have probably latched onto this album with both hands because it captures that sound perfectly. I absolutely loved Kate, so it was a no brainer that this album would speak to me in the way that it has. Absolutely mesmerizing. (Myspace)

Video: Daniel on youtube

6. Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career (Review)

Although the album is pretty much just more of the same delicately tortured music that we've come to expect from the Obscura crew, when it sounds this good, why mess with it? The album as a whole may not be their strongest release to date, but even a lesser album by these tweesters is going to be better than most albums by anyone else. (Myspace)

Download: My Maudlin Career mp3

7. Bruce Peninsula - A Mountain Is A Mouth

I used to believe that when it comes to the music that I like, the human voice is probably the least important instrument. Bruce Peninsula have proved me wrong. The vocals and choirs on this album are celebratory to say the least, as this album is probably the most uplifting release of the year. Some have claimed that it doesn't quite reach the heights that their live show does, but if that's the case, then I still have yet to see them perform at their best because to my ears, there's never been an album that harnesses the live sound better than this one. (Myspace)

Download: Steamroller mp3

8. Elbow with the BBC Orchestra - The Seldom Seen Kid Live At Abbey Road

I've always been a big fan of live orchestral reworkings of already established albums. Some would refer to such efforts as a blasphemous form of sacrilege, but I've always thought there was something to be said about making a great album sound larger than life. To be honest, when the original version of this album won the Mercury Prize in 2008, I admittedly didn't fully understand the hype. Not only do I think that this version is better, I think it's absolutely spellbinding. (Myspace)

Video: Grounds For Divorce on youtube

9. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion

Although this was released all the way back in January, I actually didn't get around to properly listening to it until about three months ago. Having done so, I have to admit that it is fully worthy of all of the praise that it's been receiving throughout the year, and the fact that this album seems to be topping more year end's than any other, does not surprise me. Yes, it's a little bit more streamlined and accessible than previous albums, but it's still just weird enough that it sounds like Animal Collective. Only time will tell, but there's a part of me that thinks that this may be their Pet Sounds. (Myspace)

Video: My Girls on youtube

10. Fox Jaws - At Odds (or Exercises in Separation While United In The Fall) (Review)

And those kids from Barrie have done it again! This album is everything that a sophomore release is supposed to be, and more. It's a definite step up in production (no doubt due to the masterful work of the Nevado crew), it's just experimental enough to stand on its own as a separate entity to their debut, yet it's not so different that everything that made the debut so great is suddenly lost. This album solidifies the fact that Fox Jaws are still one of my favorite bands. (Myspace)

Download: Ahab's Ghost mp3

Honorable Mention #1:
Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse - Dark Night Of The Soul

I really really contemplated including this album on the list because quite frankly, it's one of the best albums of the year by far. However, the fact that it was never technically released disqualifies it from the final list. The legal kerfuffle that prevented this David Lynch soundtrack from ever seeing the light of day has been well documented elsewhere so there's no need for me to get into that, but let's just say that it's a confirmation that Suzanne Vega has still got it, Iggy Pop and Black Francis are legendary for a reason and Julian Casablancas has the ability to not be crappy when he's being led in the proper direction by the right people. Add in appearances by Gruff Rhys, Wayne Coyne, Jason Lytle and more and you've got an album that's ... well, need I say more? I don't want to be the one that recommends that you hit them innernets and search this one out but....

Other Honorable Mentions:
Sunparlour Players - Wave North
Dog Day - Concentration
Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk
Great Lake Swimmers - Lost Channels
Sonic Youth - The Eternal
Various Artists - Dark Was The Night
Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs
The Racoon Wedding - Gather Gather Bones Rattle Rattle Truth
Son Volt - American Central Dust
The Schomberg Fair - Gospel
The Hoa Hoa's - Pop/Drone/Pedals
The Balconies - The Balconies
El Perro Del Mar - Love Is Not Pop

2009's best songs, shows and individual performances will be up next week, along with a review of the wicked awesome Spiral Beach show that I went to last week. Thanks for reading!

"Spiders are singing in the salty breeze ... spinning out webs of deductions and melodies"

Precursor Ramblings To Bobby B's 50 Albums of the Decade...

It's hard to believe that we're already 10 years into this millennial decade. It seems like only yesterday we were all in fear of Y2K and all of the nonsense associated with that. I always assumed that by this time I'd be flying around in my fuel efficient time machine Delorean, paying $400 for a Coke and fighting intergalactic battles with Wilma Deering by my side. It was 100 years ago that Ottawa won its first Stanley Cup as the Ottawa Senators and it was also that same year when the first commercial flight took place. We're just shy of two years away from the 100th anniversary of the Titanic's massive sinking and just four years away from the 100th anniversary of WW1. We're currently also about 51 years away from Halley's Comet's next appearance.

But random wikipedia stalkings aside, at this here blog it's all about the music, and the internet age of this last decade has seen music become more and more accessible to the masses, as the general public is finally in a position where they get to choose for themselves what they're going to listen to. Sadly, the large majority still hasn't taken advantage of this newfound freedom, opting to put money in the pockets of all of the Theory of a Nickelcreeds and Taylor bleedin' Swift's out there, but I don't think that we'll be seeing that for too much longer. The foul stench of the music industry's rapidly decaying corpse is becoming stronger than ever, and the public will soon have no other choice but to look to podcasts, blogs and other independent sources to feed their musical appetite which means gaining recommendations from people who actually enjoy music. What a novel idea! We're inching that much closer to an era where the important thing will no longer be what a singer's midrift looks like or what music some stuffed shirt has slapped into the pretty person's teen drama of the moment, but it will finally depend on the actual sounds coming through your speakers. OK, maybe I'm dreaming, but when has dreaming ever hurt anybody?

Still, in the meantime, for those who actually care, we have access to more music than ever before, which means that, to my ears, music has never sounded better. I'm sure that hundreds would disagree with me, but I feel that the "oughts" have been the best decade for music since the 1960's, and I've found it downright impossible to keep up with every band, genre and artists that appeals to me; a problem I've never encountered before. However, this is a fun problem to have as I've been spending the last couple of months revisiting all of the music that I've been introduced to since the year 2000 in an effort to compile a list of my favorite albums of the decade. And I'm happy to say that, by George, I think I've got it!

Starting tomorrow, I'll be taking you on a two week journey through my top 50 albums of the decade. I don't think that there'll be a huge ton of surprises, especially for those who have been following my blog at all over the last few years. I worked hard to be as objective as I can be though, not allowing myself to be swayed by popular opinion or common thoughts on what is "hip" or "cool" or (ugh) "indie." There are a few choices that are pretty much exclusive to my own personal list, not because these albums are that much better than everyone else's, but more because I've grown a personal attachment to them. Of course, there are other albums that are making all of the "decade end" lists simply because they deserve it, and you're gonna find these ones on my list too. (Yes, of course Arcade Fire made my list because I'm not an idiot, but it's not number one nor is it in the top ten.)

So I hope you enjoy my ten day foray into self indulgence (eleven days if you include this wordy rambling) as I will have album's 50 - 46 posted early tomorrow morning.

The title lyric is from the song 'Spiders (Kidsmoke)' by Wilco (pictured above), an artist that makes a couple of appearances on the list.