Best Album of 2009

Posted by Troy | Filed under Music

middle-cyclone

It is that time of year… everyone is putting out their “best album of the year” list…

Usually these lists have a lot more to do with what will invoke heated discussion among readers than what is actually the best.

They are fun to read though and I’ve found them to be a really great resource for discovering new music.

There’s been a lot of buzz about Animal Collective. I liked their newest, Merriweather Post Pavillion and found it much more accessible than their previous offerings… and I can definitely see from an artists perspective why someone might consider it “the best.”

but to be honest, I really only listened to it a handful of times.

And I was really looking forward to the new Grizzly Bear album, but for some reason it wasn’t available on Rhapsody (my subscription of choice) until recently… and only after several forced listens am I finally starting to really appreciate it…

Anyways… hope you enjoy my little lists… Please add your thoughts, hits, misses in the comments!

Favorite Albums of 2009

I don’t know if Middle Cyclone is for sure my favorite or the best, but it definitely got more playing time than anything else this year. Of course, if Brandi Carlile had released her album sooner… she definitely would have given Neko Case a run for most plays this year.

Whether or not they are the best, here are a few of my favorites from this year:

  1. Neko Case -Middle Cyclone (also one of my favorite album covers of 2009)
  2. Brandi Carlile – Give Up the Ghost
  3. Monsters of Folk – Monsters of Folk
  4. Andrew Bird – Noble Beast
  5. Yeah Yeah Yeahs -It’s Blitz
  6. Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career
  7. Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest (watch for a Strong Odors review coming soon)
  8. Ida Maria – Fortress Round my Heart
  9. Wilco – Wilco (the Album)
  10. Pheonix – Wolfgang Amadeus Pheonix

Best 2008 Albums of 2009

Here are some albums that technically were released in 2008, but honestly most got more playing time this year than almost anything in the above list.

  1. Kathleen Edwards – Asking for Flowers
  2. Sigur Ros – Med sud I eyrum vid spilum endalaust
  3. Band of Horses – Cease to Begin
  4. Leona Naess – Thirteens
  5. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
  6. Anathallo – Floating World
  7. Weezer – Weezer (the red album)
  8. Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend
  9. Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes
  10. Coldplay – Viva la Vida

Could have been Favorite Albums of 2009

A few albums were either released late in the year or I didn’t discover until recently that definitely could have been in my top 10 if I’d had more time to enjoy them before now.

  1. Passion Pit – Manners
  2. The Avett Brothers – I and Love and You
  3. Matt Pond PA – Auri Sacra Fames (watch for a Strong Odors review coming soon)
  4. The Antlers – Hospice
  5. Kings of Convenience – Declaration of Dependence

Noel’s Favorite Albums of 2009

Just off the top of her head, my wife rattles off the one’s she’s really enjoyed this year (she could care less about release date and all that)

  1. Pheonix – Wolfgang Amadeus Pheonix
  2. Brandi Carlile – Give Up the Ghost
  3. Swell Season – Strict Joy
  4. Bon Iver -  For Emma, Forever Ago
  5. Andrew Bird – Noble Beast
  6. Pete Yorn/Scarlett Johannsen – Break Up
  7. Neko Case -Middle Cyclone
  8. Kings of Convenience – Declaration of Dependence
  9. Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career

Permalink | December 15th, 2009

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6 Responses to “Best Album of 2009”

  1. 2009 Best Album Covers | Troy DeShano Creative Says:
    December 15th, 2009 at 2:55 pm

    [...] (This also happens to be my favorite album of the year.) [...]

  2. tim clark Says:
    December 15th, 2009 at 7:04 pm

    These are my most listened to albums of 2009. I think all of these except She and Him came out this year.

    1. The Avett Brothers – I and Love and You
    2. Switchfoot – Hello Hurricane
    3. A Day to Remember – Homesick
    4. The Sounds – Crossing the Rubicon
    5. Where The Wild Things Are Soundtrack – Karen O. & the Kids
    6. Hotel Spangler – Dead and Done
    7. John Davis – Arigato!
    8. Matt and Kim – Grand
    9. She & Him – Volume 1
    10. Silversun Pickups – Swoon

  3. Troy Says:
    December 16th, 2009 at 7:42 am

    Where the Wild Things Are was one of my tops too…
    and that is so funny because I was just listening to The Sounds and said “Tim and Mel would love this.”

  4. Marlowe Says:
    December 17th, 2009 at 9:00 am

    Bon Iver?? I just barfed…. Tell Noel we just broke up…no more :-)

  5. tim clark Says:
    December 18th, 2009 at 9:20 am

    Yeah man. I love The Sounds. I actually like Dying to Say This to You better than Crossing the Rubicon. But both were new to me this year. We discovered them after finding another favorite, Metric – Fantasies. Melanie actually likes Metric more than The Sounds. Probably because they’re from Canadia.

  6. nate Says:
    December 27th, 2009 at 2:55 am

    What do you think of Noah and the Whale’s “The First Days of Spring” ? A sad breakup album after making “Peaceful, the World Lays me Down”… very good.

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