Best Albums of 2009

1. The Duke & the King – Nothing Gold Can Stay | CD Vinyl MP3
   Download “The Morning I Get to Hell” (mp3)

   Simone Felice, of the Felice Brothers, has teamed up with Robert Bird Burke, Simi Stone, and Reverend Loveday to create a folk album that is also an homage to ‘70s soul. The ardent acoustic songs are punctuated with moving melodies, accordant music, and lilting vocals.

   
   
2. Samantha Crain & The Midnight Shivers – Songs in the Night | CD MP3
   Download “Songs in the Night” (mp3)
   Download “Get the Fever Out” (mp3)

   On this impressive debut full-length album, Samantha Crain crafts descriptive songs. Her resounding voice sounds like a cross of Thao Nguyen and Erika Wennerstrom. The Midnight Shivers, her backing band, complete this superb album with a countrified roots rock sound.

   
   
3. Coconut Records – Davy | CD MP3
   Download “Microphone” (mp3)

   Jason Schwartzman has been playing music longer than he’s been acting. This album, his second under where he tackles all the instrumentation under the name Coconut Records, is a consistent batch of ten indie pop songs. The Beatles and Matthew Sweet influence these delectable layers of keyboards, guitars, percussion, and vocals.

   
   
4. Arbouretum – Song of the Pearl | CD Vinyl MP3 | Directly from Thrill Jockey
   Download “False Spring” (mp3)

   This album is explosively expansive, but tighter than previous releases from the band. Heavy guitars gorgeously drone and melodiously ring with the dreamy opulence of a classic rock album matted with the placidness of a band that has been entrenched in folk rock. The album culminates with a bewildering, distortion-laden version of Dylan’s “Tomorrow Is a Long Time.”

   
   
5. Bob Dylan – Together Through Life | CD Deluxe Edition 2CD/DVD Vinyl MP3
   Download “Beyond Here Lies Nothin’” (mp3)

   Dylan has reinvented himself throughout his career, but on Together Through Life he continues the style perfected with his past three albums – Time Out of Mind, Love and Theft, and Modern Times. With David Hildago’s accordion, Mike Campbell’s guitar, Donny Herron’s versatile instrumentation, and the solid rhythm section of Tony Garnier and George Recile, Dylan has created another gem in an unprecedented musical discography.

   
   

6. M. Ward – Hold Time | CD Vinyl MP3
   Download “Never Had Nobody Like You” (mp3)

   M. Ward’s folk music beckons back to the roots of rock n roll. Like the rest of Ward’s catalog, this album summons a timeless trait that sounds both retro and modern, recognizable and unique. Compared to Ward’s earlier albums, Hold Time has more abundant production – provided by Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes, Saddle Creek, and Monsters of Folk – and successfully progresses the singer-songwriter’s sound.

   
   
7. Ida Maria – Fortress ’Round My Heart | CD Vinyl MP3
   Download “Oh My God” (mp3)

   This debut album from Norwegian guitarist and singer Ida Maria Sivertsen was originally released overseas in 2008, but the tracks were reorganized for the US release. This punk induced indie pop has a frenzied energy while Ida Maria’s commanding vocal discharge punctuates the performance.

   
   
8. Lushlife – Cassette City | CD MP3
   Download “Bottle Rocket” (mp3)

   This is a consistent and cohesive album, not just a collection of a couple of singles and a lot of filler as most rap albums seem to be. It mixes the lyricism of ‘90s rap with beats and instrumentation that are lush, resonant, and diverse.

   
   
9. Heartless Bastards – The Mountain | CD Vinyl MP3
   Download “The Mountain” (mp3)

   Erika Wennerstrom experienced a few changes before making this album – she moved to Austin and changed the band’s lineup. With these transitions, producer Mike McCarthy retains the band’s ornate blues rock sound while expanding the instrumentation. As always, Wennerstrom’s guitar prowess and eclipsing vocals remain at the epicenter of the album.

   
   
10. These United States – Everything Touches Everything | CD MP3
    Download “I Want You to Keep Everything” (mp3)

    Everything Touches Everything, the third album from These United States in 18 months, presents more polished production than their first two albums and is another gem in their quickly expanding catalog. The band continues to offer unfurled lyrics and impellent guitar work while still borrowing from a folk tradition.

    
    
11. Japandroids – Post-Nothing | CD Vinyl MP3
    Download “Young Hearts Spark Fire” (mp3)
    Download “Heart Sweats” (mp3)

    This duo consists of guitarist Brian King and drummer David Prowse sharing vocals duties. For their first full-length album, after self-releasing two limited edition EPs, the Vancouver band plays music that is a combination of unadulterated punk, aggressively distorted indie rock, and lo-fi, fuzzy garage rock.

    
    
12. Drew Nelson – Dusty Road to Beulah Land | CD MP3
    Download “Grandmother Moon” (mp3)

    Drew Nelson creates Americana music that is poignant and depicts, as one lyric states, “how a family goes from middle class to hand to mouth.” His voice sounds vaguely reminiscent of a more resonant Lyle Lovett or a more rustic David Wilcox. All these qualities are wrapped with production that is spotlessly sensitive.

    
    
13. Cotton Jones – Paranoid Cocoon | CD Vinyl MP3
    Download “Gotta Cheer Up” (mp3)

    This band has a soulful and seraphic sound with vocal pairing of its two members, Michael Nau and Whitney McGraw. The music is rooted in soothing folk rock with hints of psychedelic influences. The production and added reverb make the songs feel as though they were recorded in a celestial garage.

    
    
14. Bad Veins – Bad Veins | CD Vinyl MP3
    Download “Gold and Warm” (mp3)

    Bad Veins started as a solo project for Ben Davis, who ends up providing keyboards, guitars and vocals. The addition of Sebastien Schultz’s dynamic and expressive drumming propels the duo’s bombastic debut album full of catchy, blearing indie rock.

    
    
15. Aceyalone – Aceyalone & The Lonely Ones | CD MP3
    Download “The Way It Was (feat. Bionik)” (mp3)

    The underground rapper takes his influence from doo-wop, ‘60s and ‘70s soul on this album. The additional vocals from Bionik give it the doo-wop sound while the bass lines and horn chops add the lively, soulful sound. Aceyalone’s raps overtop of the diverse music is a fantastic combination.

    
    
16. Telekinesis! – Telekinesis! | CD MP3
    Download “Coast of Carolina” (mp3)

    Telekinesis, on recordings, is the handiwork of Michael Benjamin Lerner. On this debut, he performed the drums, guitar, keyboards and vocals and, with the production of Death Cab For Cutie’s Chris Walla, created a wall of well-crafted and catchy indie pop.

    
    
17. The Fruit Bats – The Ruminant Band | CD Vinyl MP3
    Download “The Ruminant Band” (mp3)
    Download “My Unusual Friend” (mp3)

    Fruit Bats is the band of Eric Johnson, who plays guitar with The Shins and Vetiver. With a new lineup of musicians, Johnson’s folk rock retains its tactile qualities. Fluently moving from country rock to mellow pop to recondite folk, the album peaks as the band’s most inviting.

    
    
18. Electric Owls – Ain’t Too Bright | CD MP3
    Download “Magic Show” (mp3)
    Download “Cannibal Superstar” (mp3)

    Andy Herod, taking a break from The Comas, recorded this delectable indie pop album. There are ten tracks of luscious arrangements to the acoustic-based songs. Ain’t Too Bright is full of creative production and well-crafted songs.

    
    
19. Otis Gibbs – Grandpa Walked a Picket Line | CDMP3
    Download “Caroline” (mp3)

    This album is a batch of folk songs led by Gibb’s poignantly raspy voice. These songs chronicle the austere stories and follows in the footsteps of Woody Guthrie, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, and Billy Bragg.

    
    
20. The Cave Singers – Welcome Joy | CD Vinyl MP3
    Download “At the Cut” (mp3)
    Download “Beach House” (mp3)

    The sophomore album from the trio is a solid set of modern folk rock. Pete Quirk’s husky bellow is veiled behind reverb as the hypnotic music jangles along. The band is at its best when the electric guitar picking drives a song.

Honorable Mentions:
Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons – Death Won’t Send a Letter | CD Vinyl MP3 Condo Fucks – Fuckbook | CD Vinyl MP3
Cursive – Mama, I’m Swollen | CD Vinyl MP3
Fake Problems – It’s Great to Be Alive | CD Vinyl MP3
Jay Farrar and Benjamin Gibbard – One Fast Move or I’m Gone: Music from Kerouac’s Big Sur | CD CD/DVD Deluxe CD/DVD Vinyl/DVD MP3
Jay-Z – The Blueprint 3 | CD CD/DVD Vinyl MP3
Daniel Johnston – Is and Always Was | CD Vinyl MP3
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – The Pains of Being Pure at Heart | CD Vinyl MP3
Peasant – On the Ground | CD MP3
The Wooden Birds – Magnolia | CD Vinyl MP3

Best EPs of 2009
Best Albums of 2008 | Best EPs of 2008
Best Albums of 2007
Best Albums of 2006
Best Albums of 2005

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