My current top 10 of 2009 (which is a little biased, I suspect, due to recent shows), also in no particular order, with my own notes:
1) Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Know Better Learn Faster
**This album didn't immediately jump out at me like Thao's earlier stuff did, but I trust her, and in the end, it paid off. The production is a little slicker on this third full-length, and the songs a little bit more mature, but the things I know and love about Thao come through nevertheless. I suppose the one disappointment I had with this album is I felt it was lyrically weaker than her previous work, though, that is to say it is still echelons above anything I can pull off.
2) Do Make Say Think - The Other Truths
**I just saw them play at the beginning of the month. It was probably my 4th or 5th time, and they never disappoint. It's the hardest show for me to leave, because they are so good at creating an atmosphere, a world, a whatever, that by the time it's over, the mere thought of having to re-enter the real world is mortifying and reprehensible. I'm always surprised how this band can constantly refine their song on each album, exploring a new texture and new blends of genre within their own genre of 'post-rock': their last album seemed to me to really delve into a folk sound at times, outright rock at times, and the constant genius bass work of Charles Spearin, who comes from a background of, among other things, free jazz. He pulled out a 6 string fretless bass at the last show. Just sayin.
3) Years - Years
**A side project of Do Make Say Think, guitarist Ohad Benchetrit's solo work is perhaps not quite as solo as one might be led to believe. He opened for DMST at the show, and of course, Charles Spearin finally pointed out the obvious that even though there were three bands on the bill (the third being Spearin's own side project), it was really the same band coming on and off stage. That being said, Ohad's guitarwork, recognizable immediately to any DMST fanboys like me, has a nostalgic quality to it anyway, veering on the path of folk at times. But the whole project begins to deconstruct his own guitar abilities, with a more electronic, glitchy feel than DMST. Two BOSS RC-50 Loop Stations strong.
4) Norberto Lobo - Pata Lenta
**This may have been my own most important discovery of this year. I'm not even sure how I found him, but Norberto Lobo is one of the most blistering yet graceful guitarists I've ever seen. All his work is fundamentally solo guitar work, so you can imagine the normal influence that usual entails of John Fahey and American Primitivism, but the crucial difference here is that Lobo is Portuguese, and one can hear the traditional folk influence of his native land rampantly growing on top of the Fahey aesthetics. As if listening to hours and hours of gypsy jazz didn't make me feel enough like an incompetent guitarist, Norberto Lobo is out there to remind me that I'm outclassed pick or no pick, standard tuning or open tuning.
5) Tegan & Sara - Sainthood
**Well, I don't know what to say about this. As a male lesbian, I think I'm obligated to put Tegan & Sara down on this. I know some of my other lesbian friends don't like this new album, but something about it really grabbed me, and caused me to rediscover all my Tegan & Sara. This newest album has something of a darker, more urgent feel than their older stuff, slightly less of an acoustic sound, and more of a controlled cold growl of distortion that I expect from bands like Metric. But then, seeing as Tegan and Sara Quinn and Emily Haines would form the trifecta of lesbian wet dream awesome, I suppose that all makes sense.
6) HEALTH - Get Color
**Similar to the Tegan & Sara album, I have friends (primarily in noise bands, of course) that were not fond of the newest HEALTH full-length. I personally love it all the same, as long as I remind myself not to expect quite the same HEALTH as from their self-titled first full-length. The first thing I noticed off this new album is that BJ's virtuosic drum pounding, with the full ferocity of an entire warring tribe, has been toned down to little more than a 4 to the floor beat at times. It's as if the successful Crystal Castles remix of Crimewave and the resulting HEALTH//DISCO remix album got into someone's head, and they decide to make noise rock album that was more danceable. That being said, the signature guitar tones with all their asymmetric square waves are still there, and you don't realize how much you need those haunting mechanical sounds until you try to find another noise band that is that good at experimenting with tonal qualities.
7) Julie Doiron - I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day
**For those of you that don't know Julie Doiron, I'm sorry. If you have any love for Feist in her pre-iPod days, Julie Doiron provides a wealth of introverted emotional ephemera. Whereas her earlier album Woke Myself Up was up for some awards in Canada, I think that this album has done more for her here in the US. I suspect it's because it was released after her collaboration with Fred Squire and Mount Eerie that put her on the radar of all the Mount Eerie fans. This album seems to take off from the same point of departure as those two earlier albums I just mentioned, with a more upbeat sound, whose sound at times threatens to unhinge, reminding you that Julie is a nice person, who just wants to talk to her kids on her birthday while she's on tour. Anyone that gets a chance to catch her live, do it; you'll be in for a treat as you listen to Julie Doiron haphazardly relate 10 minute anecdotes between songs that remind you that despite what you may think, there is plenty of warmth in Canada.
8) Mika Miko - We Be Xuxa
**Mika Miko was the band that re-instilled my faith in punk rock. And it's a pity that they are breaking up, or have already done so, this year, but that's the way of punk bands. One should be surprised, I suppose, that any punk band lasts as long as it does. Mika Miko has the stripped down guitar work and driving beats you expect from this genre, but with the testosteroney male aggression defanged. That is not to say these aren't some tough ladies, and I find myself describing Mika Miko as a (post)-riot grrrl band, whatever that even means. The vocals are a bit of a departure from typical punk, and are much more in the style of noise rock. It's a pity they aren't playing shows anymore, because they seemed to consistently have the best artwork for their merch.
9) Beach House - Teen Dream
**I don't even know if this album is getting released this year or next, but I managed to get a hold of what is probably a transcode, since the torrent was pulled rather quickly. In any case, I've always liked Beach House, but was never blown away. And normally I'm not really enthusiastic about bands becoming more well-produced, but it seems to have worked for Beach House this time around. Their dream pop has gotten dreamier, like when you know you shouldn't eat those pizza and donuts at 3 in the morning before you go to sleep, but you do anyway. Well, minus the stomach-ache, anyway. The new single, "Norway", (which is available for free on their website, I think) has been the song of the month or whatever for me; I can't stop listening to it. Highly recommended whenever it finally is released for real.
10) The Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows
**I have some friends that say that they can't listen to music without lyrics, and that generally speaking, they need vocals to focus on, even if they aren't in English. Well, if any of you are like that, I hope I don't surprise you with 4 instrumental albums on my list. The Bell Orchestre, from their inception have been in my sights. They follow a similar formula to Do Make Say Think with their 'post-rock with horns' formula, but they pull it off without going the jazzy direction that DMST does (which may just be because DMST has two drummers as well). In fact, I get this general feeling from this Canadian band when I listen to them like I'm going on a fox hunt in the middle of winter, but instead of finding a fox in the thicket of the woods, I find myself in Narnia. This album seems overly appropriate for the new snow and is certainly going to help me make it through the winter.
****
some other honourable mentions:
Charles Spearin - The Happiness Project
Le Loup - Family
Micachu - Jewellery
The Most Serene Republic - ...And the Ever Expanding Universe
Team Teamwork - The Ocarina of Rhyme [no, I'm not shitting you; a Zelda-rap mash up that is genius]
Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport
Matt & Kim - Grand
****
I probably forgot some, so correct me if I'm wrong.
Also, if anybody feels like they need something, send me a message.
1) Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Know Better Learn Faster
**This album didn't immediately jump out at me like Thao's earlier stuff did, but I trust her, and in the end, it paid off. The production is a little slicker on this third full-length, and the songs a little bit more mature, but the things I know and love about Thao come through nevertheless. I suppose the one disappointment I had with this album is I felt it was lyrically weaker than her previous work, though, that is to say it is still echelons above anything I can pull off.
2) Do Make Say Think - The Other Truths
**I just saw them play at the beginning of the month. It was probably my 4th or 5th time, and they never disappoint. It's the hardest show for me to leave, because they are so good at creating an atmosphere, a world, a whatever, that by the time it's over, the mere thought of having to re-enter the real world is mortifying and reprehensible. I'm always surprised how this band can constantly refine their song on each album, exploring a new texture and new blends of genre within their own genre of 'post-rock': their last album seemed to me to really delve into a folk sound at times, outright rock at times, and the constant genius bass work of Charles Spearin, who comes from a background of, among other things, free jazz. He pulled out a 6 string fretless bass at the last show. Just sayin.
3) Years - Years
**A side project of Do Make Say Think, guitarist Ohad Benchetrit's solo work is perhaps not quite as solo as one might be led to believe. He opened for DMST at the show, and of course, Charles Spearin finally pointed out the obvious that even though there were three bands on the bill (the third being Spearin's own side project), it was really the same band coming on and off stage. That being said, Ohad's guitarwork, recognizable immediately to any DMST fanboys like me, has a nostalgic quality to it anyway, veering on the path of folk at times. But the whole project begins to deconstruct his own guitar abilities, with a more electronic, glitchy feel than DMST. Two BOSS RC-50 Loop Stations strong.
4) Norberto Lobo - Pata Lenta
**This may have been my own most important discovery of this year. I'm not even sure how I found him, but Norberto Lobo is one of the most blistering yet graceful guitarists I've ever seen. All his work is fundamentally solo guitar work, so you can imagine the normal influence that usual entails of John Fahey and American Primitivism, but the crucial difference here is that Lobo is Portuguese, and one can hear the traditional folk influence of his native land rampantly growing on top of the Fahey aesthetics. As if listening to hours and hours of gypsy jazz didn't make me feel enough like an incompetent guitarist, Norberto Lobo is out there to remind me that I'm outclassed pick or no pick, standard tuning or open tuning.
5) Tegan & Sara - Sainthood
**Well, I don't know what to say about this. As a male lesbian, I think I'm obligated to put Tegan & Sara down on this. I know some of my other lesbian friends don't like this new album, but something about it really grabbed me, and caused me to rediscover all my Tegan & Sara. This newest album has something of a darker, more urgent feel than their older stuff, slightly less of an acoustic sound, and more of a controlled cold growl of distortion that I expect from bands like Metric. But then, seeing as Tegan and Sara Quinn and Emily Haines would form the trifecta of lesbian wet dream awesome, I suppose that all makes sense.
6) HEALTH - Get Color
**Similar to the Tegan & Sara album, I have friends (primarily in noise bands, of course) that were not fond of the newest HEALTH full-length. I personally love it all the same, as long as I remind myself not to expect quite the same HEALTH as from their self-titled first full-length. The first thing I noticed off this new album is that BJ's virtuosic drum pounding, with the full ferocity of an entire warring tribe, has been toned down to little more than a 4 to the floor beat at times. It's as if the successful Crystal Castles remix of Crimewave and the resulting HEALTH//DISCO remix album got into someone's head, and they decide to make noise rock album that was more danceable. That being said, the signature guitar tones with all their asymmetric square waves are still there, and you don't realize how much you need those haunting mechanical sounds until you try to find another noise band that is that good at experimenting with tonal qualities.
7) Julie Doiron - I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day
**For those of you that don't know Julie Doiron, I'm sorry. If you have any love for Feist in her pre-iPod days, Julie Doiron provides a wealth of introverted emotional ephemera. Whereas her earlier album Woke Myself Up was up for some awards in Canada, I think that this album has done more for her here in the US. I suspect it's because it was released after her collaboration with Fred Squire and Mount Eerie that put her on the radar of all the Mount Eerie fans. This album seems to take off from the same point of departure as those two earlier albums I just mentioned, with a more upbeat sound, whose sound at times threatens to unhinge, reminding you that Julie is a nice person, who just wants to talk to her kids on her birthday while she's on tour. Anyone that gets a chance to catch her live, do it; you'll be in for a treat as you listen to Julie Doiron haphazardly relate 10 minute anecdotes between songs that remind you that despite what you may think, there is plenty of warmth in Canada.
8) Mika Miko - We Be Xuxa
**Mika Miko was the band that re-instilled my faith in punk rock. And it's a pity that they are breaking up, or have already done so, this year, but that's the way of punk bands. One should be surprised, I suppose, that any punk band lasts as long as it does. Mika Miko has the stripped down guitar work and driving beats you expect from this genre, but with the testosteroney male aggression defanged. That is not to say these aren't some tough ladies, and I find myself describing Mika Miko as a (post)-riot grrrl band, whatever that even means. The vocals are a bit of a departure from typical punk, and are much more in the style of noise rock. It's a pity they aren't playing shows anymore, because they seemed to consistently have the best artwork for their merch.
9) Beach House - Teen Dream
**I don't even know if this album is getting released this year or next, but I managed to get a hold of what is probably a transcode, since the torrent was pulled rather quickly. In any case, I've always liked Beach House, but was never blown away. And normally I'm not really enthusiastic about bands becoming more well-produced, but it seems to have worked for Beach House this time around. Their dream pop has gotten dreamier, like when you know you shouldn't eat those pizza and donuts at 3 in the morning before you go to sleep, but you do anyway. Well, minus the stomach-ache, anyway. The new single, "Norway", (which is available for free on their website, I think) has been the song of the month or whatever for me; I can't stop listening to it. Highly recommended whenever it finally is released for real.
10) The Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows
**I have some friends that say that they can't listen to music without lyrics, and that generally speaking, they need vocals to focus on, even if they aren't in English. Well, if any of you are like that, I hope I don't surprise you with 4 instrumental albums on my list. The Bell Orchestre, from their inception have been in my sights. They follow a similar formula to Do Make Say Think with their 'post-rock with horns' formula, but they pull it off without going the jazzy direction that DMST does (which may just be because DMST has two drummers as well). In fact, I get this general feeling from this Canadian band when I listen to them like I'm going on a fox hunt in the middle of winter, but instead of finding a fox in the thicket of the woods, I find myself in Narnia. This album seems overly appropriate for the new snow and is certainly going to help me make it through the winter.
****
some other honourable mentions:
Charles Spearin - The Happiness Project
Le Loup - Family
Micachu - Jewellery
The Most Serene Republic - ...And the Ever Expanding Universe
Team Teamwork - The Ocarina of Rhyme [no, I'm not shitting you; a Zelda-rap mash up that is genius]
Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport
Matt & Kim - Grand
****
I probably forgot some, so correct me if I'm wrong.
Also, if anybody feels like they need something, send me a message.
Califone's All My Friends Are Funeral Singers. Boss. Real boss.
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