Top 10 Albums of 2009

A quick Top 10 Albums of 2009 list. These are the records out of all the records I heard this year that I can without a doubt recommend you to spend your hard-earned dollars or downloads on. In no discernable order except that in which the date of which they were released.

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart – s/t (Slumberland Records)
Painfully entertaining record that faithfully mines for all those wonderful treasures buried almost 25 years ago by such acts as The Pastels, Close Lobsters and the Wedding Present.

Tommy Keene – In the Late Bright (Second Motion Records)
Just another wonderful album in a 25 year long line of wonderful albums that remain criminally overlooked to this day.

Vee Dee – Public Mental Health System (Criminal IQ Records)
These Chicago rockers worship in the same way as the Original Sins did at the altars of garage rock, psychedelia and, at times, classic heavy metal. Shades of the 13th Floor Elevators, Sun Ra and early Black Sabbath/Hawkwind all abound.

The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love (Capital Records)
Many of their fans seem to be split right down the middle in regards to the Decemberists’ latest offering, with some bombasting it as a complete bore and others reveling in its remarkable beauty and wit. I fall in the latter. The Hazards of Love takes everything that folk acts such as Fairport Convention did so well and successfully adds the bottom heavy drone found in the genre of heavy metal.

Bob Mould – Life & Times (Anit Records)
I said it 7 months ago and it still holds true today; Life & Times is Bob’s best solo album since 1989’s Workbook, only being succeeded in the interim by Sugar’s Copper Blue and Beaster.

David Kilgour & Sam Hunt – Falling Debris (Arch Hill Records)
Every once in awhile an album of immense beauty falls into your lap. David Kilgour has long penned some of my favorite musical moments found on this earth but this time he does it to the lyrics penned by poet Sam Hunt thus making the ingredients found on this record completely inseparable, not to mention irresistable.

Polvo – In Prism (Merge Records)
This is the comeback album that came out of nowhere. One would have a very strong argument if they were to state that In Prism far surpasses most of the band’s mid-90s output.

Wild Beasts – Two Dancers (Domino Records)
Another WTF!?!? moment that occurred when first listening to the Wild Beasts’ Two Dancers. I have no idea where this came from but Two Dancers is a streamlined, minimal produced and eccentrically charming indie pop record likened to acts such as The Smiths and Orange Juice.

Baroness – Blue Record (Relapse Records)
In no way did I think, after hearing Baroness’ Red Album 9 months ago, that the band would be able to craft something superior. The Blue Record doesn’t quite surpass its predecessor but it certainly stands shoulder-to-shoulder with it and with anything else I heard this year.

Pelican – What We All Come To Need (Southern Lord Records)
As hinted at on their previous albums, City of Echoes and The Fire In Our Throats, Pelican continue to move outward and away from their lumbering drone-metal origins, crafting an album that is one of, at many times, immense beauty.

And last, but certainly not least, a happy new year to all of you and well wishes for an even brighter 2010.

Hooting & Howling

First off, let me state that the Wild Beasts and their sophomore album, Two Dancers, was nowhere near becoming a blip on my radar for releases to look out for in 2009. Their debut album, Limbo, Panto, revealed that, if anything, the Leeds, UK-based quartet were an eccentric bunch that were capable of crafting some catchy hooks and witty, Morrissey inspired lyrics but overall fell a bit short of becoming anything memorable. If anything, the album displayed promise that the band might offer more in the future. Two Dancers and its boisterous production completely wipes away any preconceived prejudices one may have against the band, to the point where a reexamination of any past efforts may be in order.

While the band still comes off as an infused-hybrid of many conventional early-to-mid-80s UK indie-pop bands who exhibit a daringly original vocal-style (e.g., Affectionate Punch-era Associates, The Smiths), Two Dancers does exhibit a change in direction that comes off as one infused with confidence and a patient direction for which the album’s compositions need to go and not a change that is born out of a need to bolster sales. One almost gets the sense that the album wasn’t really labored over endlessly; as all of the songs sound complete and exactly the way the band intended them to be. The songs are all sung with the same shrill, almost slightly-overbearing falsetto backed by chiming, jangly guitars with a production that seems to make everything absolutely flourish and shimmer; in a way that almost makes the tracks jump right out of the speakers. For me, this is a Top-5 album for 2009 and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

The Wild Beasts – “All The Kings Men” (mp3)

The Wild Beasts - "Hooting & Howling" (mp3)

(from the Domino LP, Two Dancers, 2009)

What We All Come To Need

Having only discovered Pelican within the past year, I’m super-excited for the band’s hometown show tonight over at the Empty Bottle. For several years now, since probably from around the time of their second full-length album’s (2005’s The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Thaw) release, I’ve curiously read the accolades the band has received for their recorded efforts but have only just recently taken the plunge into their music.

I suppose metal might be a starting point when describing the band’s aggressive riff-laden style but I just can’t help but feel that that’s an unfair comparison as the music itself is almost too pristine-sounding to be categorized along the likes of Baroness or Mastodon. That being said, it doesn’t exactly fit comfortably next to the post-punk leanings of Shellac or many of the other Touch & Go groups either. To quote guitarist Trevor de Brauw, “It's developed from something that's not just feeling loud but seeming loud. It's not so much about the actual volume.” Fair enough.

The band’s new album, What We All Come To Need, is a beauty. Easily their best recorded effort and that’s actually saying something because I really love its predecessor, City Of Echoes, despite drummer Larry Herweg’s almost too hard-hitting sound. More effort seems to have been put into the recording of the new album because the sound is absolutely terrific; I’m eagerly anticipating its vinyl release next month although I’m sad to report that I missed out on Kuma’s Corner’s October special, the Pelican Burger. A kobe beef patty with pan seared scallops and lardons, in a garlic white wine sauce on top of a parmesan crisp, and served with white wine-garlic aioli…oh my.

Pelican – “Glimmer” (mp3)

Pelican - "Specks Of Light" (mp3)

(from the Southern Lord download, What We All Come To Need, 2009)