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TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2009

Posted by Jakub

City Center

#10 City Center – “City Center” (Type)

City Center ISO50 posts: 1 / 2 / 3

Neon Indian

#9 Neon Indian – “Psychic Chasms” (Lefse)

Neon Indian ISO50 posts: 1 / 2 / 3

Various Artists - Pop Ambient 2009

#8 Various Artists – “Pop Ambient 2009” (Kompakt)

Pop Ambient 2009 ISO50 posts: 1

Junior Boys - Begone Dull Care

#7 Junior Boys – “Begone Dull Care” (Domino)

Junior Boys ISO50 posts: 1 / 2

Atlas Sounds - Logo

#6 Atlas Sounds – “Logo” (Kranky)

Atlas Sound ISO50 posts: 1 / 2

Kings Of Convenience - Declaration of Dependance

#5 Kings Of Convenience – “Declaration of Dependance” (Mawlaw 388 Ltd)

Kings Of Convenience ISO50 posts: 1 / 2 / 3

Fever Ray - Fever Ray

#4 Fever Ray – “Fever Ray” (Rabid)

Fever Ray ISO50 posts: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6

The Horrors - Primary Colours

#3 The Horrors – “Primary Colours” (XL)

The Horrors ISO50 posts: 1 / 2 / 3

Washed Out - Life Of Leisure

#2 Washed Out – “Life Of Leisure” (Mexican Summer)

Washed Out ISO50 Posts: 1 / 2 / 3

The Drums - "Summertime!"

#1 The Drums – “Summertime!” (The Drums)

The Drums ISO50 posts: 1 / 2

2009 was a creative year for musicians like City Center who has the perfect voice and a natural sense for lo-fi singer songwriter material, if you’ve worn the groove out of your Panda Bear record then look no further and pick up his self titled LP. We saw Dubstep take over in the US and UK clubs with unique takes on albums from Martyn, 2562, and many others. Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear showed the top 40 charts that indie rock has a big say in what people want to own and even Jay-Z thought so. Lo-fi is back on all different levels like surf, folk, and a fusion of a ton of different genres which really had a big impact on my daily listening.
I’m not going to ignore that some people didn’t like my #1 song and #1 album of the year and I kind of want to share why I liked it so much. At first they were a band that i wanted to sign but after seeing a few shows of them playing live I was hooked, soo much energy, passion and catchy parts plus the band is just fun to watch, the tambourine player even was more hyper than any musician I saw all year. The songs all have this mash of a lot of music that I grew up on and still to this day listen to frequently. I see them as a band that can jump into the top 40 and get a budget to be a great band to see live and I guess the live show did it for me this year and I loved sharing the bands songs with friends, so I guess those are some of the reasons why I loved The Drums release.

HONORABLE MENTION:
Telefon Tel Aviv – Immolate Yourself

*Please note I did not include any releases by Ghostly International, Moodgadget, remixes, Tycho songs and ISO50 exclusives just to make this a fair collection. If you like this list then take a second and check out ISO50’s 2008 list.

23 Comments Leave A Comment

1

Jonathan says:

December 22, 2009 at 8:55 pm

I agree with The Drums- “Summertime!” being number #1 album for 2009. I don’t get why so many people dislike it. To me its perfect. Fun, but not over the top. I definitely feel the nostalgia of 60s and 80s surf rock, but still feels refreshing in contrast to all the pop music nowadays.

2

Christian says:

December 23, 2009 at 3:48 am

Great list.

Danish “the Rumour Said Fire” with their album “The Life And Death Of A Male Body” is fantastic. One of my favorites for Danish album of the year.

5

Eric says:

December 23, 2009 at 9:50 am

“Immolate Yourself” is an absolutely fantastic song. Listened to it for 2 days straight when I first got it… the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate passing of Charlie Cooper make this song even more powerful.

8

Kevin says:

December 23, 2009 at 4:58 pm

I gotta say, this list is, pretty much, with a couple exceptions, an exact replica one i would make. Although, i’m inclined to agree with Tardlovski on this one, no Dam Funk? And what about Nosaj Thing? I’m pretty sure he KILLED IT this year. Even his remixes where flawless. Great list, none-the-less.

9

RA_OUL says:

December 23, 2009 at 8:01 pm

Great list!!! I would have definitely put Immolate Yourself on the Top 10 for sure. My favorite from the Top is Fever Ray that album is still smashing for me.

10

Eric says:

December 24, 2009 at 5:09 am

The Horrors really? I saw them live twice open for NIN and they weren’t they great. They were just another Bauhause/Interpol knock-off band.

11

Matt Davis says:

December 24, 2009 at 10:02 am

This list is flawed and one-sided. The Drums are not worthy of a number one spot and aren’t that good—kind of annoying. Of all the bands listed, Fever Ray should go number one.

Then what about some others not listed: Mos Def, The Ecstatic; Mew, No More Stories Are Told Today Sorry…; Raekwon, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…Pt. II; Sonic Youth, The Eternal; The Flaming Lips, Embryonic; Bear in Heavan, Beast Rest Forth Mouth; Bon Iver, Bloodbank EP—to name a few.

14

Matt Davis says:

December 24, 2009 at 8:51 pm

The system is flawed, not the opinion. I think more than one person should decide on the list. Jakub is a credible source, but the title should read ” Jakub’s favorite albums from 2009″.

16

Jakub says:

December 25, 2009 at 9:23 am

These were actually albums that I listen to the most this year over and over, Bear In Heaven, The xx, Bon Iver, Bibio, Dam Funk, etc are all great albums and all of them would of been in my 25 for sure but these 10 definitely set the pace for 2009 in my opinion for albums to listen to start to finish.