Top Albums 2009

So this is 2010, and with a new year also comes a brief review of the past year, so first up is which albums were good in 2009? I gotta say I had difficulty making this list, last year it was a breeze, this year a chore. I managed to make it longer than last year just because the last 10 were all kinda equal, so I had to mention them but I couldn't really make a ranking in them. I was most disappointed by mainstream artist. Sure we had Lady Gaga, Them Crooked Vultures and the second Lilly Allen album, all were ok, not really list-material.. Where last year Hip-hop artists were heavily represented, this year they are nowhere to be seen. Also electro did not impress me this year. So you might already guessed it, this year was an indie-year, so I've found a lot of non-mainstream fun bands, yet there are some more known artists and a few genrebreakers. Give it a look!

#25: Major Lazer - Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do!
This was the kind of album you just have to mention when you're into "partymusic". It wasn't really anything I had heard before, Reggae Fusion. But it caught my eye because of a contribution by Santigold, and later on you couldn't go to a party without hearing 'Pod De Floor'. Which was later on subject of a Dutch Acapella group, and gained quick popularity. It opened doors for before less accesible genres, I even think the (coming) explosion of Dubstep kinda owes this album. Furthermore I gotta say I didn't like the whole album, but it was worth a mention.

Major Lazer - Pod De Floor

#24: Arctic Monkeys - Humbug
The third album by those guys who became famous grace à Myspace. I really liked their first album, it was so real, it felt like something we all could have written + it was fun! Now the second album wasn't bad, but it was not remarkable. You could say that this album did not do anything more, still the nostalgia drenching this album and gives it an extra dimension. There's again some feeling I can't describe but they got me. So this is why it's up here. Certainly not as good as their first, but still a really great album.

Arctic Monkeys - Cornerstone

#23: HairGlow - HairGlow
I'm hating myself for putting this up here, just as I hated myself when I bought this album, because Alex Callier is a twat. But the single 'Let It Go' did it for me, what can I say, I'm in love with 80s! The single overpowered me and so I bought the album, the rest of the songs were nowhere near as good as the single, but the whole album was this perfect 80s album, he stayed true to the concept, if it was putten out back then, this album would have stood next to Rick Astleys and it would have gone into history like that. Now it will just be forgotten really quickly, but it was a nice try by Dickhead Alex Callier.

HairGlow - Let It Go

#22: Girls - Album
I liked this album, it's got this unfinished sound to it. Which means that these guys know what they're doing, they wanted a sound and went after it. They know their stuff, in Ghost Mouth they wink at Sinead O'Connors Nothing Compares 2U. I was reminded of Elvis Costello by their sound, and since I decided not long ago that I like Elvis Costello, I can only be happy with that. Funny thing is I liked Girls before my decision to like Costello. This album has been high ranked on a lot of sites, I can understand that, yet I will not do the same.

Girls - Hellhole Ratrace

#21: Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
I liked the Metronomy-vibe this album had from time to time, as Metronomy is still one of my favorite bands. It's experimental pop indie with touches of folk. Although less poppy then Metronomy and a little more hard sometimes. This is a lovely album, the female vocals are amazing. It doesn't ever really bore, but I don't think it's memorable. I could listen to it now, but It'll leave my mind quickly.

Dirty Projectors - Stillness Is The Move

#20: Soap&Skin - Lovetune For Vacuum
What can I say about Soap&Skin? Well, she looks like a witch and her music is often really creepy, but her concert was one of the best I had ever been to. Her music isn't fun, it's just beautiful. Wiki describes it as Neoclassical, I think that's a good way to call it, I could see musicsnobs putting on a record of her in the future. She scares me, but I love her.

Soap&Skin - Thanatos


#19: The Big Pink - A Brief History Of Love
"These girls fall like dominos, dominos,...", catchy right? That's how The Big Pink wheels you in. They got this high ranking just because of that song. The rest of the album doesn't really deserves this spot, but there's no doubt they should have been in the list. It's really dark in my opinion, even the 'happy'songs sound dark to me, I don't know why. It's got this New Wave vibe, but it brought it to the next level. It's a good album.

The Big Pink - Domino's

#18: The XX - XX
I had some songs of this band from their myspace before the whole hype began, I liked them but I wasn't impressed. (Yeah, I'm just saying this so you know I'm not a follower!) Then the hype began and I did not jump on the bandwagon, they exploded on the web, still I did not feel the need to check them out again. It's but two months after their album came out and I heard Islands bizillion times that I checked out the album, and I liked it, it was enjoyable, still not worth the fuzz, but a great listen.

The XX - Crystalized

#17: Customs - Enter The Characters
Here they are, you've been waiting, some Belgians! Indeed, Customs made a mentionable album this year, their two singles, Rex and Justine, were awesome. They are kinda late with their style of indie, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate them, it's a nice album.

Customs - Justine



#16: Mayer Hawthorne - A Strange Arrangement
This album is kinda 'black'. (I really hope saying this doesn't make me a racist!) Mayer Hawthorne, a white dude, brings us Soul music that can easily be compared to the works of Curtis Mayfield and Isaac Hayes, black dudes, and that's probably the reason he got to work for Stone Throw Records, a known hip hop record label. The whole album is Motown-y, it's retro and it's magnificent. The fact that the amazing single 'Just Ain't Gonna Work Out' was printed on a red heart-shaped vinyl just makes Mayer a bunch cooler. This album is great, it's so great I'm wondering why it isn't higher ranked, oh well!

Mayer Hawthorne - Just Ain't Gonna Work Out

#15: Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
I always loved Phoenix, but I was never crazy about them so I never really told anyone about them, and I think that is what defines Phoenix. It's music everybody likes, just not enough to talk about, also the reason why they'll probably wait forever for their big break, always floating on the edge of fame and known. That doesn't change the fact that this album is awesome. Philippe Zdar, from Cassius, is back to help, like with their debut album, so you know this is something great. Their two singles, Lisztomania and 1901, take up the front seats of this album, and that's a good start, these are two very strong singles. As always Phoenix delivered a quality album, maybe the most accesible so far, and certainly one of their best.

Phoenix - 1901

#14: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
Karen O's beautiful voice is what makes this third album again a homerun. I don't know what to say about this album, if you know you like Yeah Yeah Yeahs you'll love this album just as much as their previous ones, if you don't know them, definitely give them a try, if you don't like them, well fuck off! Zero was/is an amazing single that got my head turned for this album, and Heads Will Roll is perfect for dancefloors, even without the amazing remix by A-Trak. Whereas Skeletons gives you a softer view of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Zero

#13: Röyksopp - Junior
Röyksopp, the band that won our hearts with Eple, is back and they brought a bunch of girls. We were all still wondering 'What Else Is There?', but we're happy they brought us some new stuff. With the help from Robyn, Lykke Li and Karin Dreijer this makes for one unforgettable album, with the exception of Lykke Li the two other females just empower the feeling of this special brand, Scandinavian Electro. You can't deny that they're doing something special up there, in the cold north! I think it's the constant darkness that brings these happy bubbly synths in their songs. The Girl and The Robot is an amazing song, even if you hate Robyn you can't deny that. And Röyksopp is happy up there, I can't wait for their next album 'Senior'.

Röyksopp - Happy Up Here

#12: Neon Indian - Psychic Chasms
"I should have taken acid with you...", that's how Neon Indian got to our ears, I had their EP by the same name and I already liked that, but I was kinda freaked out, it sounds weird doesn't it? Chillwave, it's called, I like the name of the genre, their song 'Terminally Chill' plays in on that I think, and it's an amazing song. Still you get the feeling that you should be completely drugged up to listen to this, but by listening you kinda get drugged. It's experimental and I absolutely love it!

Neon Indian - Terminally Chill

#11: Discovery - LP
Little sideproject of Rostam Batmanglij from Vampire Weekend. This album is amazing, it has such a happy feeling, I liked it more than Vampire Weekend, yet the one of the standout songs is 'Carby' which as vocals from Ezra Koenig(, singer VW). The Michael Jackson cover 'I Want You Back' is my absolute favorite! And 'I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend' featuring Angel Deradoorian is another remarkable song of the album. I absolutely loved this album, and I want more of this!

Discovery - I Want You Back

#10: Severin - Cheesecake
Severin is like a French Mark Ronson, his music is nothing alike, but I mean he doesn't sing himself, he just invites other singers and plays some music. But another difference is that he doesn't invite (really) famous singers, just girls from all over the world to sing in their own language. So you've got Russian, French, German, Swedish, Brazilian,... Some you might know like Marina from Bondo Do Role, and Nadège Winter, Busy P's wife. All the songs are lovely, so poppy! Most of the time I have no idea what they're saying, or what language it is, but it's sounds nice, typically girl voices. 'Tu Peux Plus M'en Vouloir' by Gesa is my absolute favorite!

Severin - The Edge Of A Sunday (Nadège Winter)

#9: Matt & Kim - Grand
The first time I heard 'Daylight' by Matt & Kim I was in love! I kept putting on that song without any interest of searching if the band had an album, the song on its own was enough! Some time later I did search the album and I must say it's indie pop in its most purest form, it's this typically American indie pop. The whole experience reminded me of the first time I heard Man's Needs by The Cribs, the whole proces was the same, and The Cribs were typically British indie pop at that point. The funny thing is that both of this bands also coined indie nudeness, a weird side-effect some indie bands lash out in, because they wanna prove their youth, humor, hipness and just how special they are.
Nevertheless the album is a perfect example of it's genre, it's really good, and 'Daylight' is great, so that's why they're up here.

Matt & Kim - Lessons Learned

#8: Daan - Manhay
Aaah, Daan! I always loved him, I think after Soulwax he's my favorite Belgian performer. I've got every album of him, and not even copied! In his new album he left the synthesizers mostly out of the game which saddens me. Still 'Exes' and 'The Stealing Kind' make this album absolutely worthwile, Icon is kinda of a cheap Johnny Cash rip-off but it's still cool. Even though he said The Player was kind of a joke, I still liked it more than Manhay, but it's Daan and he's awesome, so is this album.

Daan - Exes

#7: Annie - Don't Stop
I've discovered this masterpiece just a week ago, I think. It's like perfect pop, and it's kinda mainstream, so I'm glad I found this. I'm serious this album is awesome, the first song I heard was 'The Breakfast song', it's really repetitive and has like those M.I.A.-vocals, and I was sold! Afterwards I discovered 'I Know Ur Girlfriend Hates Me' which is just such a fucking cool song. The whole album has this vibe that seems so familiar, she reminds me of someone, but I can't remember, maybe a way cooler Kylie Minogie (last album) or a more mainstream Roisin Murphy without crazy costumes? I don't know I just know that this album is amazing, plus Alex Kapranos from Franz Ferdinand helped on two songs by playing guitar and Datarock also came for a duet.

Annie - I Know Ur Girlfriend Hates Me

#6: Das Pop - Das Pop
Postcards from Fuckland or the third album by Das Pop is one piece of art. I've always been a fan of Das Pop, but kinda same story as with Phoenix, you know them, but you forget them once in a record store. And they're also always floating between known and fame. Still this album is again so pretty, just as good as their previous two, Das Pop is a certitude for beauty and quality. Singles 'Fool For Love' and 'Never Get Enough' give you an idea of the brilliance, but songs like 'Try Again' and 'The Last Thing' could just as well been the singles, as they are just as awesome. And 'Let Me In', although not single material, is just a really cool song. (Btw. Bent is the coolest dresser in the history of man)

Das Pop - Underground

#5: Ex Norwegian - Standby
I just read on their wikipage that this band has borrowed their name from a Monty Python episode, which is in itself reason enough to be up here. Luckily they also make great music, Ex Norwegian is another one of these bands I immediatly fell in love with upon hearing them, and I searched for weeks for their album. They have this Weezer-vibe, a bit.

Ex Norwegian - Something Unreal


#4: Micachu - Jewellery
Micachu is this 22-year old girl, that looks like a 14-year old boy, and also sounds like that. Which gives her happy popsongs an extra cachet, plus her homemade instruments gives it all a special sound. It took me some time to realise it but I really love this album, I think I'll be listening to this for a long time. I also have good memories from the time I saw her live, yet I don't know if I was happy during the concert. Still Jewellery is a gem, and 'Sweetheart', 'Worst Bastard' and 'Guts' are pearls!

Micachu - Golden Phone

#3: Passion Pit - Manners
Passion Pit, our lovestory is a short but great one. Early 2009, the 'Chunk Of Change Ep' got me to hear 'Cuddle Fuddle' from that moment on I was sure that this was the new MGMT, Passion Pit had to be hyped. Sadly it didn't, and some crap bands (Empire Of The Sun) did. Still my interest in this band kept up, and I was happy with the release of their debut album, Manners was a big album. 'The Reeling' was an awesome single, and it did well, my expectations were met. Passion Pit, j'en veux plus!

Passion Pit - Sleepyhead

#2: The Drums - Summertime / The Drums
Ok, I'm kinda cheating on this one, The Drums did not yet release a LP, but they did release two great EPs, although I can't find any prove of the existence of The Drums EP, which is my favorite, on Wiki.. Songs like 'I'll Never Drop My Sword', 'Me And The Moon', 'Don't Be A Jerk, Johnny', and 'Let's Go Surfing' were so fun to discover and to keep listening to, this is my 2009 discovery and I'm happy I found them. I can't wait untill they release a full album. The reason why I haven't described their sound yet is simple, I can't. When you love something so much they become a sound of their own, they sound like The Drums, you should fucking listen to them. (Ok, maybe Beach Boys, the cool songs at least..)

The Drums - Dancing

#1: Future Of The Left - Travels With Myself And Another
I don't know if this is really the best album of 2009, probably it's not, but I love Future Of The Left so much! I saw them live some time ago and I was blown away, this band rules! And although their second album isn't as good as their first, it still made my summer, well especially the part where I was pissed because I had to work in a supermarket and my exames were fucked up again. They fueled my will to be a rockstar once more by their crazy lyrics. They sound happy while being mad and using big words not to sound smart but just because it's funny, how can you not love that? This album takes one more step away from mclusky which is sad, but it's also good, it allows Future Of The Left to further grow. 'You Need Satan More Than He Needs You' is a perfect example of their own style, and it's a cool song. 'Arming Eritrea' is a typical FOTL song, and 'Stand By Your Manatee' gives us a visionary quote "hidden in the mess of letters lies the awful truth...". To end I just wanna say Future Of The Left made a rocking album and that is more than you can say about all those big shots in Them Crooked Vultures.

Future Of The Left - The Hope That House Built

#EXTRA:
Metronomy - Not Made For Love EP
This is probably what I listened to most this year, the three song EP by Metronomy, it has gotten some bad reviews, but I think it's just awesome! From the title song, which is again a beautiful story to which everyone can relate even if you haven't been in that situation, just because you can feel the naivity of the storyteller, to 'What Do We Do Now?', which is incomprehensible, except in the end when they repeat the title, but the gloomy synths make this a really good song.
Rainbow Arabia - Kabukimono
Another release which I can't call a real album, because it's made out of 5 songs and two remixes, but I saw Rainbow Arabia live and they were really fun. The songs 'Holiday In Congo' and 'Harlem Sunrise' are quirky and I remember them well. It's a fun little EP, worth a listen.