Looking Back on 2009

As any year comes to a close, it’s always entertaining to look back and figure out what kept you listening the most. Sometimes, it is intensely difficult to narrow down the albums that really mattered. Other times, you know right off the top of your head without a second thought. This year was definitely not as difficult as you might expect with all of the new music that’s been pouring out of artists lately.

Many artists in 2009 dominated with multiple releases for the year. Such artists would be: Animal Collective, with an LP, an EP, a single, and even a boxset, Javelin, with the Jamz n Jemz CD and with the Javelin 12″. Real Estate have just put out an LP, an EP is due out shortly, and now there is even a new “Live on the Radio” album on vinyl-format only. Kurt Vile released two full lengths, “Childish Prodigy” and “God is Saying This to You”, and also a couple of singles. Last but certainly not least would be Ganglians, releasing two LP’s on the Woodsist label, and then a great 7″ on Captured Tracks. Basically what this all means is that there was a lot to choose from for 2009.

Best Albums of 2009:
1.) White Denim – Fits
2.) Javelin – Jamz n Jemz
3.) Warpaint – Exquisite Corpse
4.) Double Dagger – More
5.) Real Estate – Real Estate
6.) Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion
7.) Arctic Monkeys – Humbug
8.) Various Artists – Underwater Peoples Summertime Showcase CD
9.) The Smith Westerns – The Smith Westerns
10.) Ganglians – Ganglians
11.) Chain and the Gang – Down with Liberty…Up With Chains!
12.) Spider Bags – Goodbye Cruel World, Hello Crueler World
13.) Kurt Vile – Childish Prodigy
14.) The Entrance Band – The Entrance Band
15.) Do Make Say Think – Other Truths

Late Entries: The Strange Boys – And Girls Club
Foreign Born – Person to Person
Fungi Girls – Seafaring Pyramids

Tracks of 2009:
Washed Out – “Feel It All Around”
Akron/Family – “River”
Wooden Shjips – “For So Long”
Julian Lynch – “Banana Jam Pt. 1”
tune-yards – “Sunlight”
Animal Collective – “What Would I Want? Sky”
Andrew Cedermark – “Anchorite”
Kurt Vile and the Violators – “The Hunchback”
Memory Tapes – “Bicycle”
Ganglians – “Blood on the Sand”
Family Portrait – “Mega Secrets”
Fool’s Gold – “Suprise Hotel”