The Best Albums of 2009

Here is the moment we have all been waiting for: the very best albums of 2009! I sat stressing over the nuances of this list for a really long time before coming to the conclusion that all 49 of these albums are really great in their own way. If they made the list, they should make your itunes library for sure. The numbers really just represent the impact they had on me personally. Please feel free to discuss, comment, and share your own!

49. Atlas Sounds- Logos (Kranky/4AD)
48. My Heart to Joy- Seasons in Verse (Topshelf)
47. Fuck Buttons- Tarot Sport (ATP Recordings)
46. Sonic Youth- The Eternal (Matador)
45. Transit- Stay Home (Run for Cover)
44. The Lawrence Arms: Buttsweat and Tears (Fat Wreck Chords)
43. Bomb the Music Industry- Scrambles (Quote Unquote/ Asian Man Records)
42. Real Estate- S/T (Woodsist)
41. The Clean- Mister Pop (Merge/ Arch Hill)
40. The Drums- The Summertime EP (Moshi Moshi/Popfrenzy)
39. The Thermals- Now We Can See (Kill Rock Stars)
38. The Loved Ones- Distractions (Fat Wreck Chords)
37. The Sidekicks: Weight of Air (Red Scare)
36. NoFX- Coaster (Fat Wreck Chords)
35. NoFX- Cokie the Clown (Fat Wreck Chords)
34. Nothington-Roads, Bridges and Ruins (BYO/Left off the Dial)
33. The Mountain Goats- The Life of the World to Come (4AD)
32. A Wilhelm Scream- S/T EP (Paper + Plastick)
31. Small Brown Bike- Composite, Volume One (No Idea Records)
30. Brand New- Daisy (Interscope)
29. No Age- Losing Feeling (Subpop)
28. Phoenix- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (V2)
27. Sufjan Stevens- The BQE (Asthmatic Kitty)
26. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart- S/T (Slumberland)
25. Volcano Choir- Unmap (Jagjaguwar)
24. Title Fight- The Last Thing You Forget (Run for Cover)
23. Animal Collective- Fall Be Kind EP (Domino Records)
22.Do Make Say Think- Other Truths (Constillation)
21.Charles Spearin- The Happiness Project (Arts and Crafts)
20. Make Do and Mend- Bodies of Water EP (Panic Records)
19. Andrew Jackson Jihad- Can’t Maintain (Asian Man)
18. Polar Bear Club- Chasing Hamburg (Bridge Nine Records)
17. The Appleseed Cast- Sagramatha (The Militia Group)
16. Short Fuse Burning- Scream When You Burn (Self-Released)
15. Coalmine Canary- The Company we Keep (Polk-Records)
14. Lucero- 1372 Overton Park (Universal)
13. Algernon Cadwallader- Hot Green/Fun EP (Be Happy)
12. Matt and Kim- Grand (Fader Label)
11. Vacations- I was Bikini/Rain Afraid (Record Label)
10. Bon Iver- Blood Bank EP (Jagjaguwar)
9. Chuck Ragan- Gold Country (Side One Dummy)
8. Propaghandi- Supporting Caste (Welcoming Comittee Records)
7. Cymbals Eat Guitars- Why There are Mountains (Self-Released)
6. Old Canes- Feral Harmonic (Saddle Creek)

#1-5 Category Winners

The Twilight Sad- Forget the Night Ahead (Fat Cat)

Saddest Album
Reasons to love this album: Emotive, beautiful, indie-rock. Plus, singing in scottish accents could not sound cooler. I couldn't turn this one off for an entire month. Favorite tracks: I Became a Prostitute, 7 Years of Letters, and That Room.

Merriweather Post Pavilion- Animal Collective (Domino Records)

Best Hair
Animal Collective really came into their own with Merriweather Post Pavilion. This album combines their experimental electronic component with upbeat and catchy melodies. A must have for every collection (plus, the cover is a stereogram. Look Closely). Favorite tracks: Summertime Clothes, My Girls, and Brother Sport.

Japandroids- Post-Nothing (Polyvinyl)

Best Debut
This album is hands down incredible. Its simplistic, lo-fi, and melodic. Everyone song has 2 lines of lyrics tops, and those homey chord progressions that bring you back to simpler times. This is a scream-out-loud on a long car ride kind of album. Favorite tracks: Young Hearts Spark Fire, Wet Hair, Rockers East Vancouver

Owen- New Leaves (Polyvinyl)

Best Followup Album
New Leaves is Owen's (Mike Kinsella) first release since the critically acclaimed "At Home With.." (2006). I have to say, it does not disappoint. Although it is more heavily orchestrated then his works in the past, you can still here his twinkly guitar riffs. Its as innocent and pretty as ever. Favorite tracks: Good Friends, Bad Habits, Amnesia and Me, a Trenchant's Critique

Pissed Jeans - King of Jeans (Subpop)

Most Brutal
This is my go to album when I've had a bad day. Seriously its perfect: heavy, but artfully. Not drop-D-chug-a-lugging, but just some dudes who kind of sound like Jesus Lizard. This album rocks. Favorite Tracks: False Jessi pt 2, She is Science Fiction, Half Idiot.

25 Favorite Albums of '09

I'm sorry.

25. Polvo - In Prism
24. Crocodiles - Summer of Hate
23. The Big Pink - The Big Pink
22. YACHT - See Mystery Lights
21. Spectrals - Spectrals
20. Kurt Vile - Constant Hitmaker
19. Morrissey - Years of Refusal
18. Om - God is Good
17. Marked Men - Ghosts
16. Abe Vigoda - Reviver EP
15. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
14. HEALTH - Get Color
13. The Field - Yesterday and Today
12. Vivian Girls - Everything Goes Wrong
11. Real Estate - Real Estate

10. Mi Ami - Watersports - Experimental rock is a term that phases itself out the more it is used. Since the 80s there is a massive influx of already-been-dones coming out. Some thieving tendencies work, others don't, but those who can reinvent the genre better...or weirder can have thier day. Mi Ami throwback and reinvent.

9. Cass McCombs - Catacombs - Since 2003, Cass McCombs has been in the background of many folk out croppings, most notably Sufjan, Neutral Milk Hotel, and Beirut. Despite this, he is perhaps the most experimental album to album. 2005s PREfection on 4AD records was dripping with new wave, and on Dropping the Writ he sounded strikingly like Morrissey. Catacombs sounds like a return to more classic, extremely minimal folk like he did on A.

8. Cold Cave - Cremations - Reasons I love this album: I. Philadelphia II. Dreamy Dark Wave III. Minimalist Post Punk

7. Washed Out - Life of Leisure - For a while, Yo La Tengo's I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One has been my feel good album, now i have to make a playlist with Life of Liesure in there too. As winter rapidly approaches and I begin dreading the idea of 'layering up,' this surfy no-fi electronic album is something to listen for.

6. The Horrors - Primary Colours - Kevin Shields is a god. Loveless is one of my favorite albums, and many have tried to summit such a sonic peak before. None tastefully. However, the massive guitar lines on this album are only a fraction of the Horrors' sound. Vocally, they bring an air of Twee pop, contrasting dark daunting lyrics with an accent.

5. No Age - Losing Feeling EP - Along with #17, No Age represent a nice punk revival. Since Weirdo Rippers, they've crystallized their sound with Nouns. And the most exciting fact about the EP: they aren't changing their sound. Even Jarmusch is stoked!

4. Bear in Heaven - Beast Rest Fourth Mouth - Neo psychedelia...it's here and what will probably stay as the hip thing for a little bit. Animal Collective did it on Merriweather, but they had to change their sound. Bear in Heaven have their sound defined and this album is an experimental pop bull's eye.

3. Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights - Having marked their territory very, very clearly, Brian and Brian continue to bring out the jams. In the Power of Milkshakes and Salad Gibson stated "were not classic rock" but Dave Auchenbach was partly right. In the realm of noise rock over which LB reigns, they are regular rock and roll, or were. Earthly Delights moves their sound over on the dial into avant-garde black metal.

2. Dan Deacon - Bromst - The party album came first, then Dan went new classical on us. Bromst was awesome and certainly one of the most anticipated albums of the year. Dan didn't compensate for the human element in his song writing, he still wrote blisteringly fast songs, but they are much more thoughtful. He's still throwing the Go Baltimore! party, just thinking about the theme, the appetizers, and the party favors a little bit more.

1. Japandroids - Post-Nothing - Just two people make the sounds you hear. Once you get over that fact, you realize the songs are really damn good still. Track after track of huge lo-fi played with reckless abandon. This album has something for everyone's alt rock taste. Because the songs are stripped down and garage-y, it also seems to have an ability to stand up over time. Drummer David Prowse relies on the beat, not the fill. Brian King's guitar work, using massive amps for parts of his sound, rather than one for himself, creates rhythm and lead all at once: a grunge record as much as it is a starry eyed dreampop/shoegaze. The only minor dismay might be the song lengths, which usually end up being very non-punk in structure, but we love listening to it, and they must love playing it.

2009's Best 25 Albums

25. Chinoiseries/Onra- Mind blowing, instrumental hip hop. Samples old songs from China. Think J. Dilla- does it get better?
24. Get Colour/HEALTH- Coming from the Smell to the middle of your head; HEALTH scale down the wildness in turn for a more subtle, creepy, and dance-y vibe. Bravo.
23. LP/Discovery- Members of Vampire Weekend and Ra Ra Riot team up for a goofy, Top 40-esque R&B album. Yes!
22. Embryonic/the Flaming Lips- Wayne Coyne and friends make the controversial choice by alienating 50% of their fans with this quasi-lo fi album, with krautrock repetition. The songs are good, too.
21. White Collar Crime/Phaseone- Anchored by (mostly) remixes, Phaseone shows his ability as a very capable producer. Highlight: "I'm Not" by Panda Bear
20. Dark Was the Night/Various Artists- A wonderful charity compilation of the "who's who" in popular indie culture; check out the highlights from Dirty Projectors/David Byrne, Kevin Drew, and more.
19. Everything Goes Wrong/Vivian Girls- Three garage rockin' gals shit kicking on their latest. Listen and love, pals.
18. Dark Rift/Pictureplane- Arizona knob-twister throws down party jams of the year with "Goth Star" and "Solid Gold".
17. Apple's Acre/Nurses- Taking a page out of Animal Collective's book, Nurses get freaky and quiet on their second LP.
16. Psychic Chasms/Neon Indian- Vega's main man warps his cassettes to produce summer jams.
15. the Smith Westerns/the Smith Westerns- Garage rocking kids get super lo-fi on this dreamy ode to girls.
14. Hey Boy + Good to Be 7"/the Magic Kids- Spunky dudes hit you with some throwback, teenage love jams. Feel it all around.
13. Unmap/Volcano Choir- Justin Vernon steps back from Bon Iver; still breaks hearts- this time with Four Tet electronics behind him.
12. Logos/Atlas Sound- Man of the year, Bradford Cox, gets nostalgic on new album. Very natural, heartbreaking. Wonderful.

11. King Of Jeans/Pissed Jeans- Pissed Jeans

10. Losing Feeling [ep]/No Age

No Age garnered tons of hype in the past couple of years for their heavily distorted, lo-fi anthemic version of punk. Turning the lo-fi down, No Age's latest EP blows minds with the new usage on loops, atmospherics, and louder vocals, all while keeping the ass kicking ethos that made them popular in the first place. Looks like growing up isn't always such a bad thing.

09. Real Estate/Real Estate

New Jersey's Real Estate dropped their self-titled debut a little too late in the season. I can imagine this album being the one that defined my summer... Followed by a chain of EPs and samplers, this album finds the group taking it slow and easy- a nice reminder for everyone else suffering these harsh winter months on the coast. I just wish it was nice enough to sit around a fire on the beach.

08. Post-Nothing/Japandroids

Anthems for teenage boys and girls; although a vague description of Japandroids' debut album, "Post-Nothing" shows Canada's garage duo fucking the life out of their instruments. Fast paced, emotive, catchy; Try not to pump your fist(s) to opener "The Boys Are Leaving Town". I dare you.

07. Fall Be Kind [ep]- Animal Collective

Animal Collective bang out five more great songs by the end of the year. Whether it be the pan flute Hobbit jam on "Graze", the pop song perfection of "What Would I Want? Sky", or the eerie/moody atmosphere that permeates the rest of this wonderful EP, Animal Collective have taken their sound even further, mixing the electronics and natural/freak folk-esque elements on their past albums.

06. Blood Bank [ep]/Bon Iver

The story of Bon Iver's Justin Vernon won his debut album, "For Emma, Forever Ago" a lot of hype. But where could he go after his masterpiece album? "Blood Bank" goes electric, uses sparse piano, and even an amazing use of Auto-tune ("Woods") to keep you nice and sad throughout the winter months.

05. 421 Wythe Avenue/Alcoholic Faith Mission

This album is an absolute gem. Found on some random blog during the late winter months, Alcoholic Faith Mission's "421 Wythe Avenue" became the soundtrack to many late, calm, and frigid nights. I'll leave this review short, and let the music speak for itself. However, I will leave you with this story, illustrating the power of this album: I was laying in bed, at night, with my girlfriend- I had never really listened to "421 Wythe Avenue" before... the music starts up, we both comment on how gorgeous (and depressing) it sounds. Then the lyrics come in, saying "Just 'cause I'm a whore, you know it doesn't mean I can't feel it when you fuck me gently". We were hooked.

04. Veckatimest/Grizzly Bear

Brooklyn's golden boys deliver a mind-blowing follow up to "Yellow House"; "Veckatimest", named after an obscure island in Massachusetts, is a record filled with beautiful instrumentation, harmonies, and general feel. The album itself is like some opium induced haze: the beauty found throughout the record seems so natural and timeless, and is easy to swallow, but one has to wonder where it all came from. While "Two Weeks" may be the most gorgeous song of the year, it utterly confounds me... how does a band make such beautiful music? The album stays consistently amazing throughout. Highlight "While You Wait For the Others" just might be the most polite "break up" song ever written. Don't deprive yourself of this album.

03. Make You Mine 7"/Best Coast

Pocohaunted's Beth Cosentino gets down and dirty in 2009's summer jams. Originally regarded as a one-off hit musician with "Sun Was High (So Was I)", the "Make You Mine 7" cements her as a force to be reckoned with. The emotions involved here are natural, and relatable: wanting to be in your own room for privacy, or making that special someone yours. However, the lo-fi filter that surrounds this whole 7" is absolutely fucking beautiful. Via la bedroom rock.

02. Album/Girls

Hype band of the year. I stumbled across Girls' single "Hellhole Ratrace", and fell in love. That was until I purchased the album and got an insight into San Fran's psycho mastermind Christopher Owens. Whether it be depressive California pop ("Lust For Life", "Laura"), surf rock ("Big Bad Mean Motherfucker"), or even shoegaze ("Morning Light"), this album encompasses everything about being a teenager in the summer. Not your type? Owens is well-versed in having shitty cards handed to him throughout life- he was raised in a religious cult while his mother was a prostitute, and ended up becoming a pill popping junkie. Listen to this immediately, and soak up the sun.

01. Merriweather Post Pavillion/Animal Collective

Despite the fact that this album is a love or hate situation with all Animal Collective fans, there is no dying that 'Merriweather Post Pavillion' is a beautiful piece of art. Both lush and coherent, the album finds band members Avey Tare, Panda Bear, and Geologist putting down their live instruments for purely electronic music (most of it sampled). I believe the best forums of art are ones that delve into escapism, or the type that can be appreciated in any situation. When Avey Tare sings, "If I could just leave my body for a night..." before a tribal drum freak out, I'm in a totally different sonic plane. Reguardless of hype and it's subsequent backlash, Merriweather is the album of the year. Catchy, deep, unique, and something that grows with every single listen.

Top Songs of 2009

So, here we are. It was such a shitty task of narrowing all of 2009's greatest into 15 tracks... BUT! I chose my personal favorites. Feel free to discuss via the comment section. ALSO! CLICK ALBUM ART FOR A LINK TO EACH SONG.

15. "Cousins"/Vampire Weekend- kicking the list off with a track that rounded the year out, the newest single of Vampire Weekend's "Contra" is sort of what you'd imagine it to be: minus the math-y guitar, bouncing bass, lightning-fast snare rolls, and killer bells. Still a little bit of Paul Simon, but in a totally refined manner.

14. "Mickey Mouse"/Wavves- I know what you're going to say: "Fuck Wavves". We all know Nathan Williams is a huge douchebag (read anything about him from 2009 for proof), but one thing is for sure: jipping Animal Collective and enlisting Hella's Zach Hill was the best choice the faux-beach punk could make. With a joyous, hazy feel permeating the whole track, "Mickey Mouse" is bound to make listeners rethink Wavves. Only time will tell if he pulls through, though.

13. "That Room"/the Twilight Sad- Scotland's proclaimed sad band (get it?!) is more than what the title suggests: the band should be retitled "the Twilight most depressing band on earth". I guess that's not too clever, but "That Room" finds the Scots dropping their shoegaze roots for a repetitive piano line, following through with a slow burner that would make any (ordinary) emotive person weep. Victory for the Twilight Sad.

12. "Sound Guardians"/Lightning Bolt- Rhode Island's resident noisemakers continue to fuck skulls on their newest album. Opener "Sound Guardians" kicks the album off with a preview of what's to come: a wonderful mixture of bizarreness and brutality.

11. "It Ain't Gonna Save Me"/Jay Reatard- Nashville "shitkicker" turns down the lo-fi for his new album. Sounds like a downward spiral, right? If so, then take a listen to the album's first single. Maintaining his punk ethos and sound, while adding a more accessible tone, Reatard and company deliver a bipolar diatribe about the sky shitting on me, how all is lost, and that there is no hope. On one hand, he knows there's nothing to do: but he'll still find ways to fight it.

10. "Generation Locust"/the Sinbusters- Local garage monsters deliver a live favorite off of their 6 song sampler. With buzzsaw guitar and piercing Casio (yes, piercing Casio), the Sinbusters tear through this 2.5 minute shitfest with reckless abandon, leaving all around with a sense of destruction, confusion, and the attitude that the Mill City is an upcoming scene to be reckoned with.

09. "Norway"/Beach House- Leading single off the forthcoming "Teen Dream". Beautiful, somber, and somewhat epic, "Norway" is a great preview for one of 2010's competing "best of" albums.

08. "False Jesii pt. 2"/Pissed Jeans- This song makes me want to absolutely fucking destroy everything and everyone. Period. Pissed Jeans remind me quite a bit of the Jesus Lizard, except this makes me want to beat up more people, and shoot up less junk.

07. "Deadbeat Summer"/Neon Indian- Summer of 2009's biggest fad? "Glo-fi", "chillwave"... no matter what silly name you apply to these summery movement, the bottom line is that Neon Indian's breakout single is something completely original. Warped cassette tapes mixed with broken synths, thrown through a magic lo-fi filter. Disregard the imposters- this reflection on an uneventful summer is the real deal.

06. "Sun Was High (So Was I)"/Best Coast- This summer saw the explosion of the 'genres' chillwave and glo-fi... putting aside those titles, a lot of music that came out this summer actually reflected the feeling of hanging around during those three months. Best Coast, an offshoot of Pocohaunted, fills her first single with fuzzy distortion, soaring (fuzzed out) vocals, and an undying sense- and love- of summer.

05. "Two Weeks"/Grizzly Bear- I think this could be the most beautiful song of the year. Off the impeccable "Veckatimest", kickoff single "Two Weeks" is filled with gorgeous harmonies, twinkling organ, and an absolutely horrifying music video. Brooklyn has found it's golden boys. Don't deprive yourself.

04. "Snookered"/Dan Deacon- Bromst's centerpiece song; eight full minutes of contemplative synth, lamenting lyrics, and features the most batshit vocal breakdown of the entire year. With virtually no chipmunk vocals to be heard, this shows a more serious side of Deacon, with a song that cements him as an electronic wizard more-so than an absurdist dude from Wham City.

03. "Walkabout"/Atlas Sound ft. Panda Bear- Sampling the Dovers' "What Am I Going To Do", Bradford Cox learns the ways of Panda Bear's beat matching, and invites his teacher to sing with him. The result is nothing short of breath-taking: over the bubbling, ethereal sample, Cox and Panda Bear trade lines about growing up, and remembering what you want(ed). Absolutely gorgeous pop music- nothing more, nothing less.

02. "What Would I Want? Sky"/Animal Collective- I think this very well might be the guide on how to write a perfect song. Broken down into two pieces, the beginning is both looming and exotic, with bubbling synth put over sparse breakbeats. This builds and builds, and drops just as quickly as it came in. Enter the Grateful Dead sample, with Avey Tare and Panda Bear trading vocals about cheering up a bit over some of the most accessible (and ethereal) music Animal Collective have made to date. Yes, please!

01. "Lust For Life"/Girls- The catchiest song that I have heard all year, by far. Girls is primarily the child of Christopher Owens, whose background involves his mother becoming a prostitute, religious cults, and a whole lot of pill abuse. So when he says "Now I'm just crazy... I'm fucked in the head", you know that he means it sincerely. With sublime, California beach production backing Owen's lament on the loss of love (and a normal life), this song is not only the catchiest debut single of 2009- it actually, in a funny sort of way, has some substance.

The Best Solo/Side Projects of the Decade

The Best Solo/Side Projects
2000-2010









10. Matty Pop Chart- Plan-it-X Records
This is Matt Tobey from Abe Froman
Think cute vocals, fun, optimistic folk punk.
Check out: Everyone does Everything (2007)

9. Bobby Burg- Record Label Records (Chicago)

Bobby Burg is from Joan of Arc. I like two of his side projects: The Love of Everything
and Vacations.
The Love of Everything is his mellow, twinkly, solo project.

Click HERE for my review of Vacations, I was Bikini/Rain Afraid (2008)
Check out: Superior Mold and Die (2006)

8. The City on Film - Grand Theft Auto Records
Bob Nanna of Braid and Hey Mercedes
Think of a mellower version of Hey Mercedes
Check out: In Formal Introduction (2005)

7. Sundowner- Red Scare
Chris McCaughan of the Lawrence Arms.
The Lawrence Arms with acoustic guitars? Maybe more. Sad, nostalgic, uplifting, gorgeous.
Check out: Four One Five Two (2007)

6. Panda Bear - Paw Tracks
Noah Lennox of Animal Collective
Electronic elements, reverberant vocals, happy, and melodic. For all Animal Collective lovers
Check out: Person Pitch (2007)

#1-5 In Random Order:

The Postal Service- Sub Pop
Project of Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), and Jimmy Tamborello (Dntel).
Also features Jenny Lewis (Rilo Kiley) on many tracks.
Undeniably an important album, Give Up, was chock-full of catchy, environmentally-
conscience songs that became immediate classics.

Owen- Polyvinyl Records
Mike Kinsella of Joan of Arc, American Football, and Cap'n Jazz
Twinkly, orchestrated, acoustic tunes.
Check out: Everything he has ever done

Bomb the Music Industry!- Quote UnQuote Records, Asian Man Records
Former members of Arrogant Sons of Bitches
This group has gained a lot of fame for themselves in the past few years. They are known for
their musical style which is all over the map, falling into genres such as ska, hardcore,
synthpop and more. Overall attitude? Music is something we should share!
Download all their music for free HERE

Broken Social Scene- Arts and Crafts
A collective of Toronto-based indie-rock artists started by Kevin Drew (K.C. Accidental) and
Brendan Canning (By Divine Right, Blurtonia, Valley of the Giants, Len, and hHead).
They are unique in the way that all the members draw influences from their own projects,
making Broken Social Scene, in many ways, the melding of many different parts.
Check out: Bee hives (2003), You Forgot it in People (2002), and S/T (2005)

The Happiness Project- Arts and Crafts
A recent project of Charles Spearin (Do Make Say Think, Broken Social Scene)
Spearin went to all of his neighbors and interviewed them about their definition of happiness.
He then sat down and wrote music to the exact inflection of their voices. The product? This is
incredible. You get to hear these uplifting tales and explanations of happiness over the
gorgeous innovation of Spearin's music.
Read More and Listen
Or just watch this:

Charles Spearin - The Happiness Project

The Happiness Project | MySpace Music Videos

Is this Jazz # 4: The Top 50 Jazz Albums of the Decade

Every Jazz List I have ever come across includes albums a decade before or a decade after 1959, and with good reason. ’59 marked a pivotal year for jazz culture. It included 2 groundbreaking Miles Davis Albums, Brubeck’s Time Out, Coltrane’s Giant Steps, Ornette’s Shape of Jazz to Come, Mingus entering a phase of un-abashed third stream genius, and countless musicians who played on these various cuts, all which would move onto bigger and better things.

And today, jazz is dead, but dead like punk...its still breathing. Time and time again we've seen it altered, added too, enhanced, bastardized, stripped down, and built up. Jazz, after 50 years of rock and roll, has begun to hybrid itself with countless musical movements. Some have worked, (punk-jazz, electronic improv), and others haven't (adult contemporary, smooth, Bolton Swings Sinatra). Upon entering the 2000s, many of these styles have been either accepted and crystallized, or shunned by jazz enthusiast and left to consumerist masses during holidays. I was originally planning on limiting my list to 2009, but here at the turn of the decade we are still finding a shortage of jazz lists, I could probably try to make a list in 7 months from now and it could be entirely different. Someone sitting next to me could find half the albums on this list unbearable. I tried...and the top ten are in alphabetical order, not numbered. Best of the decade:

50. Lars Danielsson - Tarantella, Act Music + Vision 2009
49. Charles Lloyd - Jumping the Creek, ECM 2005
48. Old Dog - By Any Other Name, Porter 2009
47. Bebo & Cigala - Legrimas Negras, RCA 2004
46. Vandermark 5 - Alchemia, Not Two 2005
45. Anashai Cohen - Continuo, Sunny Side 2006
44. Esbjorn Svensson Trio - Seven Days of Falling, Act 2003
43. Susie Ibarra - Folklorio, Tzadik 2004
42. Full Blast - Full Blast, Jazzwerkstatt 2005
41. Mark Feldman - Secrets, Tzadik 2009
40. Kieth Jarrett - Up For It, ECM 2003
39. Scorch Trio - Luggmut, Rune Grammofon 2004
38. Derek Bailey - Mirakle, Tzadik 2007
37. Milford Graves & John Zorn - 50th Birthday Celebration Vol. 2, Tzadik 2004
36. Greg Osby - Channel 3, Blue Note 2005
35. Dave Douglas - Strange Liberation, RCA 2004
34. Ellery Eskellin - Aracanum Moderne, HATology 2003
33. Nels Cline - Monastery, Cryptogramophone 2006
32. Braxton, Graves, Parker - Beyond Quantum, Tzadik 2008
31. Led Bib - Sensible Shoes, Cuneiform 2009
30. David S. Ware - Corridors and Parallels, AUM Fidelity 2001
29. Bobby Bradford Extet - Midnight Pacific Airwaves, Entropy 2008
28. Brad Mehldau - Day is Done, Nonesuch 2005
27. Tord Gustarvsen Trio - Being There, ECM 2007
26. Alexander von Slichppenbach Trio - Swinging at the BIM, Phantom 2008
25. Anouar Brahem - Astrakan Cafe, ECM 2001
24. Evan Parker - After Appleby, Leo 2000
23. Wadada Leo Smith - Lake Biwa, Tzadik 2004
22. Art Ensemble of Chicago - The Meeting, Pi 2003
21. Andrew Hill - Time Lines, Blue Note 2006
20. Matt Wilson - Humidity, Palmetto 2003
19. William Parker - Sound Unity, AUM Fidelity 2005
18. Fred Hersch - Trio + 2, Palmett0 2004
17. Bobby Previte - 23 Constellations of the Joan Miro, Tzadik 2003
16. Paul Bley, Jimmy Giuffre, & Steve Swallow - Emphasis & Flight 1961, HATology 2003
15. Mathew Shipp - Nu Bopp, Thirsty Ear 2002
14. Electric Masada - 50th Birthday Celebration Vol. 4, Tzadik 2004
13. Ben Allison - Riding the Nuclear Tiger, Palmetto 2001
12. Tim Berne - Open, Coma/The Shell Game, Screwgun 2001
11. The Masada - Sevilla 2000/Tonic 2001, Tzadik 2000/2001

#. Bar Kokhba Sextet - 50th Birthday Celebration Vol. 11, Tzadik 2004 - Of all the Zorn on this list, I feel bar Kokhba is his masterpiece. Both this and the Electric Masada recording (#14) are featured debuts by him from this decade and each presents Zorn as a seasoned avant-garde veteran. The Masada comes in right above the ten here and he and drummer Milford Graves are up higher at #37. Needless to say, this 3 night live feature is from the most important month of jazz this decade, September 2004. In mixing klezmer with new classical, frantic free jazz, and dark somber tones, Zorn assembled a team of Tzadik wunderkinds to play some of the most beautiful, powerful renditions of the Masada songbook.

#. Bohren & der Club of Gore - Black Earth, Ipecac 2004 - This album is without definition so whatever the Gore Club consider themselves is fine with us. They used to be a hardcore metal band, but now exhibit an extremity of self-control. Black Earth is strewn with swings, flows, and terrifies. Death metal lounge music would be spot on but the Club is something more visceral and deep. The quartet conjures up images and lets you decide what any of their 9 ballads of mystery and madness mean.

#. Bill Frisell - Richter 858, Soundlines 2005 - Jazz musicians become legends because they have a sound. Frisell broke into the usually tepid world of jazz guitar with just that. His long run with Nonesuch has produced some of the most interesting works on guitar in the last two decades. Songlines release Richter 858 presents a look at the seasoned Frisell where each piece is a sublimation of art by German artist Gerhard Richter. The albums tracks are repetitive violin/cello/viola lines on top of which Frisell smears on the effects, the beauty, and the anti-rhythm.

#. Charles Mingus - Cornell 1964 w/ Eric Dolphy, Blue Note 2007 - Certainly the best discovery of the year goes to Sue Mingus. This album is as stacked as they come: Dannie Richmond, Eric Dolphy, Jaki Byard, Johnny Coles, and Clifford Jordan. The hand of Mingus guides this group through the likes of When Irish Eyes Are Smiling, Fats Waller's Jitterbug Waltz, a 29 minute Fables of Fabus, and Mingus' solo bass homage to Ellington in Sophisticated Lady. Within these comes the endless styling of such a diverse group in solo sections, complementing, and Mingus' spur-of-the-moment stage direction. A must-own.

#. The Bad Plus - These Are the Vistas, Sony 2003 - The most interesting part about the Bad Plus is their drummer David King. King, who has drummed primarily with rock groups including 12 Rods, Meat Beat Manifesto, among others. But this unlikely trio doesn't end there, pianist Ethan Iverson seems a cooler version of Mehldau, preferring classical and free jazz influences to more traditional like Bill Evans, and Reid Anderson is a NYC new classical composer with a stint of garage rock running through him. These Are the Vistas is their second rock/pop influenced post-bop record. Apart from covering Smells Like Teen Spirit, they explore the boundaries of what a jazz trio can do, writing arrangement after arrangement of mini-pop symphony.

#. Dave Holland - Extended Play: Live at Birdland, ECM 2003 – If '59 was a pivotal year, then '69 could be said to follow it in importance. Again, at the helm is Miles Davis with In a Silent Way infusing us forever with rock and electronic music. Out of this mist came Dave Holland, the bass player who adapted his playing to fit the electronic charge in the air. Soon thereafter, he began a successful solo career. Fast forward 30 years, he plays live with his quintet consisting of saxophonist Chris Potter, trombone/cowbell Tom Eubanks, vibe/marimba Steve Nelson and drummer Billy Kilson. Every track but one clocks in over 10 minutes, some as long as 20. Holland and his guys just love to play and do so in a fashion which shatters normal conventions while staying within jazz's classic sound.

#. Thomasz Stanko - Suspended Night, ECM 2004 – The European free jazz bullpen is deep, all too often with people North America never hears of. Thank god for ECM, which turns up allover this list. Throughout the 90s Stanko began recording eerie ballads drenched in his far-off, minimal trumpet. Since the 60s he had been helping Krzysztof Komeda on such albums as Astigmatic. At the turn of the century, he had perfected this and has released a slew of great albums, any of which could have made this list. Suspended Night contains some of the most standard recordings of them all, making a very accessible recording.

#. John Coltrane - The Olatunji Concert: Last Live Recording, UMVD 2001 - As far as rediscoveries go, live stuff is always the most exciting. Coltrane’s last live set from 1967 has an incredible lineup, including his wife Alice Coltrane, drummer Rashied Ali, complementing saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, and several more African percussion players. The two tracks, Ogunde and My Favorite Things are among his best ever recorded on record. The venue, Olatunji Center of African Culture, is a perfect atmosphere for Trane’s last amazing licks.

#. Ornette Coleman - Sound Grammar, Sound Grammar 2006 - In 2007 Coleman won a Pulitzer Prize for this, and it was his first album in over a decade. Chock full of the usual free, upward swells of jubilee, Coleman is also one of the great listeners of music and makes extensive use of musical quotation. Greg Cohen and Tony Falanga both play bass...giving the album double, double bass. The album seems as if it could be transplanted from his seminal album Live at the Golden Circle in Stokholm, and now, at 76 years old, he is still utilizing trumpet, violin, and sax to bring classic free jazz and show he is still the ruler of his kingdom.

#. Supersilent - 5/6, Rune Grammofon 2006/2005 - When Rune Grammofon records began in ’98, the Norwegian label began drawing from techno influences heavily. Supersilent became their international success. Having released 5 of their 9 albums this decade, 5 and 6 present some of their most compelling work. Each album is the result of a live improvisational performance combining a quartet of trumpet, drums, electronics/electric guitar, and synthesizer.

Favorite Albums Ever!

Picture this: you're driving along with some friends listening to your Ipod when a song comes up on shuffle. Something classic, that you haven't

listened to in what feels like years. You turn up the volume, everyone is singing, you feel 16 again.

The following list is just that: a compilation

of albums that I couldn't stop listening to for days and embody everything I love about music. Read them, research them, listen to them, discuss them.

10. Defiance, Ohio- The Great Depression

Defiance, Ohio is a six piece folk-punk group from the midwest, showcasing banjo, fiddle, cello, double bass, and more. The Great Depression, their sophomore album released on No Idea records, is a real classic. Its political undertones are carried over catchy melodies mixed with nostalgia and optimism.

9. World/Inferno Friendship Society- Red-Eyed Soul

W/IFS is the culmination of a bunch of punk-rock musicians that have turned to world music. Red-Eyed Soul is a masterpiece album: catchy songs, masterful production and re-recordings of older songs. Not to mention that anarcho-camaraderie that gets everyone singing along and picking up their feet.

8. The Bouncing Souls- How I Spent my Summer Vacation

This album is the punk-rock anthem of our generation. Hands down. Every song is pure gold: simple, catchy nostalgic, and embodying the freedom of a summer vacation with no responsibilities.

7. Endless Mike and the Beagle Club- The Husky Tenor

Discovering this band was like finding a 20 dollar bill in an old pair of jeans. Hailing from Johnstown, PA, Endless Mike grabbed my attention immediately with a song off of a split 7" they released with Mischief Brew, Wingnut Dishwashers Union, and Guitar Bomb. "The Husky Tenor," was released in 2006 and features a whole boatload of instruments. Its politically charged lyrics satirize everyone's personal complacency. In other words: I care, just not enough. Prepare to laugh, cry, and be inspired.

6. The Promise Ring- Nothing Feels Good

Simple, and perfect. Two lines of lyrics per song. Heart-wrenching guitar riffs.

(this is how all reviews for this album should look)

5. Guided By Voices- Bee Thousand

Guided by Voices was a band from Dayton, Ohio, and fronted by the infamous Robert Pollard. Pollard has written at least a zillion songs, some of them great, some of them not-so great. "Bee Thousand," recorded on a four-track in 1994, contains 20 of these "great" tracks. No song exceeds 3 minutes, and the transitions are choppy, but with all this aside, there are some real beautiful and uplifting songs with strange and eerie lyrics.

4. The Get Up Kids-Something to Write Home About

This one brings you right back to middle school. It is perfect melodic punk rock with exactly the right formula. It is emotional, fast, and uplifting.

3. Jawbreaker- Dear You

The final Jawbreaker album ends up number 3 on my list. No, it is not like other Jawbreaker albums, but man does it hit you where it hurts. There's nothing like listening to "Dear You," when your down, and who isn't down once in a while? Its melodic, and slow but still retains the grungy early emo sound that Jawbreaker is known for.

2. Brand New- The Devil and God are Raging Inside of Me

Brand New had to make this list. This band can do anything, and they certainly did it again with TDAGARIOFM. It is a dramatic maturation from Deja Entendu, their sophomore full-length: heavy where it needs to be, slow and heart-wrenching where it isn't. The lyrics are less angsty, and more tortured, dealing with issues that where way above the heads of the little pop-rock band that Brand New used to be. This album will tear you apart.

1. Owen- At Home With...

Putting "At Home With Owen" first on my list was not hard to do. No longer a guilty pleasure, or a bedtime musician, this was THE album anyone could put on the drive home. Owen is the solo project of Mike Kinsella, the renowned Chicago emo-music pioneer, and "At Home With..."is certainly his masterpiece album. It is twinkly, beautifully orchestrated, and features lyrics that will break your heart. If you haven't heard it, you are missing out.