then we saw the stars again

I couldn’t resist. I keep reading end-of-the-year lists everywhere, and I thought I’d do one too. 2009 has been a busy year for releases, and we’ve been showered with some true masterpieces. whoever thinks that the music industry is dying is clearly not listening to the right music, because there are so many awesome new bands, it’s almost impossible to keep track.
The flipside of course is that with so much going on all the time, how do you get the attention that you deserve? I always think that the best record is the one I haven’t heard yet, but for now I think I have my little top 5 for 2009.

This is not necessarily the top 5 I’ve been reading everywhere, and as much as I enjoy Animal Collective and the Antlers, I can’t say I was blown away by their records. I have listened to them throughout with no distraction, and then I put them back in their cases. I admired the craft displayed in those albums more than I found a visceral connection to them. In fact, I realise I’ve only listened to most of last year’s releases only a couple times each, only to move on to the next one.
Except for the following.

They may not be the blogosphere’s best albums of the year, but they are the ones I enjoyed the most, each for a different reason.
No ranking here, if not alphabetical.

1. Andrew Bird, Noble Beast / Useless creatures

Here is the perfect example of a late discovery. I have literally missed the first 10 years of Andrew Bird’s career, and what a revelation this has been. I am very particular about voices (and this is why I don’t listen to Anthony Hegarty or Patrick Wolf among others) but there is something immediately comforting and endearing about Bird’s tone. Almost timeless. Each song on the album sounds so effortless and the arrangements are always ornate without becoming precious. Useless creatures, the other instrumental half, is one of the most daring things I’ve heard last year. 10-minute loop experiments? check. Weird violin miked through a Leslie? check.
In a way, this is what Smile could have sounded like if Brian Wilson had been sane enough to complete the damn record 40 years ago. Quaint yet elegant, odd yet refined.

2. Mono, Hymn to the Immortal wind.

A few months back I wrote about Mono in relation to Beethoven. And though I still prefer “you are there” and their collection of EP’s, the affinity to classical music, and Beethoven and Schubert in particular, is most apparent in their latest effort.
With Hymn to the Immortal Wind, Mono don’t overuse the typical soft/loud pattern of post-rock or merely rely on an ever-growing barrage of sound. Instead they create some of the most beautiful and terrifying music of the decade, a universe where the glockenspiel is as important as a white-hot jazzmaster. The balance between the classical influences and the metal leaning never feels contrived or forced, and their understanding of melody and harmony is most welcome in a genre that sometimes relies more on layering and repetition than genuine musical (re)invention.
Romantic music for the new Century.

3. Russian Circles, Geneva

Another late discovery. And not unlike Mono, the Chicagoan trio has expanded its sound to include a string section, and even some horns to create some of the most harrowing sounds of 2009.
Though there are only 7 tracks here, the album takes the listener to many different places within its 45 minutes confines. From the chugging metal riffs of Geneva to the ethereal beauty of Melee, Russian Circles demonstrate that you don’t have to sacrifice variety for the sake of cohesion in an instrumental record.
There is nothing groundbreaking here, but the execution and sequencing are flawless. Special mention must be given to the rhythm section too, for churning out some of the most inspired fills and breaks in a post-rock album.
My favourite loud music of the year.

4. St Vincent, Actor

I remember being really excited about Bjork around the Debut/Post period. You could say I was a fan, obsessing over all the details of each song, finding out as much as I could about the singer’s musical tastes and personal preferences. Her universe was so completely idosyncratic: oddball comedy meets sensual femme fatale.
I suppose I feel the same way about Annie Clark now. How she manages to marry the delicate with the abrasive is a mystery, the dangerous balancing act of dancing a waltz to a Nine Inch Nails song. And she does this, and so much more, in only 40 minutes. The time it takes you to be completely won over by her delightfully bizarre showtunes.
Total schoolboy crush.

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5. Them crooked vultures, Them crooked vultures

I realise that I’ve almost stopped listening to mainstream rock, the exception being Kings of Leon, anything by Jack White (you stop being indie once you score a James Bond song) and Queens of the Stone Age. And in a way, those bands share a secret ingredient in common: sex.
More often than not, a lot of rock music (and yes, I’m also looking at you, hipster indie-rock) is a lifeless, self-important affair. Which is a shame, because the great hours of Rock ‘n’ roll were founded on the very axiom that getting laid was all there was to it.
And admit it: Josh Homme is a master at singing about sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. His guitar riffs are not the most technical stuff around, but they sure make you want to get it on. Dave Grohl on the drums and the living god John Paul Jones on the bass and mellotron can’t really hurt either.
This is a record that makes you fall in love with rock all over again.