Best Albums of 2009
Albums don’t mean much anymore, I guess, but these do. I narrowed it down. Anything after #6 is supergood but it’s hard to put things in order.
1. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
+
Easily the most cohesive, forward-thinking, dizzying, and above all else, beautiful thing put out this year. Will fuck with the way you listen to music. Experimental music palatable enough for the masses. Listen beginning-to-end; there isn’t any other way. How you like them harmonies?
-
Can be disorienting. Can be too beautiful. “The Bride” is a little bit slow.
*
“Stillness is the Move,” “Useful Chamber,” “Remade Horizon”
2. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
+
Another case of experimental-accessible. Insanely good, distinctly (is there such a thing?) postmodern, disciplined songwriting (if that’s what it’s called here). Conventions of hip-hop exploded onto electro-alt. Lyrics ache with sincerity. Weirdly danceable in places.
-
Can be disjointed. Definitely not an “album” - rather, a collection of brilliant songs. I don’t like “No More Runnin.”
*
“My Girls,” “Summertime Clothes,” “Taste,” “Brothersport”
3. Sleigh Bells - (Collected Songs)
+
Where did this come from? Why has this not been done before? Totally blown-out, loud rhythmic clubby ravey synthy pop. Sound ranges from cracked-out Beyonce (“Crown on the Ground”) to Tarantino-esque robot rock (“A/B Machines”) to sexy 60s pop (“Ring Ring”). Just astounding and listenable and severely fucked up.
-
“Beach Girls” is a misstep. There aren’t enough songs. Not really an album, per se.
*
“Crown on the Ground,” “Ring Ring,” “A/B Machines”
4. Major Lazer - Guns Don’t Kill People, Lazers Do
+
All of these songs are as awesome as “Paper Planes”, which was produced by the same team. Dance music at its breakneck best. This is all you need for a party for reals. Based on Jamaican dancehall music and inspires dancing like the same. Awesome guest spots. Pitch-perfect production. Man, I want to dance to all of this right now. How are these not all hit singles?
-
I feel a little bit weird about the sort of ironic faux-Jamaicanism that is all over the place. And definitely weird about the album being made by two white dudes. Couple songs aren’t as good as the others.
*
“When You Hear the Bassline,” “Can’t Stop Now”, “Keep it Goin’ Louder”
5. Islands - Vapours
+
They still got it. Very good city music; you can tell Nick lives in New York now, somehow. Creative instrumentals for sharp, cut-down alt-pop gems. Even embraces Auto-Tune on one awesome track. Voices and lyrics totally beautiful. Just solid and remarkable. Can only see Islands getting better.
-
OK, some of it is unremarkable. “On Foreigner” is too long. So is “Everything is Under Control.”
*
“Switched On,” “Devout,” “Heartbeat”
6. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
+
Is there too much pop music on this list? Is it “pop” if it’s not on Hot 97? I don’t even know anymore. Anyway, this is summery and delicious and simple. Joyous, except a less wintry word for “joyous.” So pleasurable it hurts, sort of. Effective,efficient songwriting and pretty lyrics.
-
Almost too poppy. The singles are too ubiquitous to be enjoyable in December.
*
“Listzomania,” “Love Like a Sunset,” “Rome”
Micachu - Jewellery
Weird, noisy, often profound electro-pop.
Julian Casablancas - Phrazes for the Young
What the second and third Strokes albums should have sounded like.
Gordon Voidwell - Voided Checks Mixtape
Heard it was “Prince meets Passion Pit,” that’s pretty right-on. Lezgo NY.
Miike Snow - Miike Snow
They wrote/produced “Toxic” for Britney Spears and this is a more mature version of that.
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes - From Below
Americana! Nice voices! Good songs! Sincerity!
Chester French - Love the Future
They’re friends with Diddy and went to Harvard and know how to write pop.
Harlem Shakes - Technicolor Health
So catchy in April. Elated. Now sounds a little thick.
