Now that 2009 has been over for about 2 months and we’ve all had time to fully reflect on it (a.k.a. – I meant to make this post closer to two months ago and here’s my excuse), I wanted to share with you both my Favorite and most disappointing albums of 2009.
Absolute best album of 2009
Hands down, this award goes to The Gossip’s “Music For Men”.
I’ve been a huge fan of the Gossip for quite some time. Ever since I first heard “Standing in the Way of Control” while watching Subterranean back in 2005. After I became obsessed with the album of the same name, I went back and got all of their previous albums as well. I like them all as they’ve always had a certain energy that I love.
Even with all of this knowledge of and experience with the band’s music, Music for Men blew me away.
The band seems like they’ve found a little nook in their genre crossing that works amazingly well for them. It’s tucked snugly somewhere in between hard hitting dance rock and soulful disco of yesteryear.
The album opens with a rhythmic and slightly mysterious “Dime Store Diamond” and follows right into the incredibly energetic “Heavy Cross”. The album continues to be a solid disco dance trip all the way through to the very last track.
Beth Ditto’s vocals are primarily responsible for the soulful disco I mentioned earlier. She has got a set of pipes on her like you wouldn’t believe and her singing really mirrors that of most disco queens. Another amazing addition to the band is the drummer, Hannah Billie. She is pretty much the best drummer I’ve ever heard, based on her understanding of how to form a killer beat that sounds fresh. She is responsible for blending Beth’s disco influence vocals into the dance rock monster that it is. Combine these with awesome synth, keytar, keyboards, and guitar and you’ve got a delicious recipe for success.
Here’s a few of my favorite tracks from the album (I have to use grooveshark’s direct url because my server is being annoying right now. Sorry for this)
- Heavy Cross
- Love Long Distance
- Men in Love
This album continues to get me to groove every single time I listen to it. I can’t remember an album that’s this heavy an impact on my eardrums since Sufjan Stevens’ “Illinois”.
and for added bonus, here’s the promo that they put together for the album:
Most disappointing album of 2009
I hate to say this but this one goes to Calvin Harris’ “Ready For the Weekend”.
I was looking forward to this album like nobody’s business. Every since 2007′s “I created Disco”, I was drooling for more dancetastic fun from Mr. Harris. When I heard his new album was going to be released, I impatiently waited until it’s debut. Unfortunately (and trust me, it pains me to say this), it just wasn’t up to par with what I expected. It didn’t feel like the same Calvin. Some could argue that he further refined and matured his sound but I actually think he took a step backwards.
If I could say one thing about why I really don’t like the album as much as I thought I was going to it would be that the whole thing sounds way too “trancey“… as in the genre of so-called “techno” music. Sure, i created disco has a heavy trance influence but he took the sound and melted in his own flairs and sounds from other influences as well. It was incredibly fun with it’s lyrics and content and also had a heavy disco influence with a strong emphasis on heavy danceable beats. Gone is this formula for “Ready For the Weekend” and, in my opinion, the album falls just outside the realm of any other trance song you’d hear in a generic club. Sure it’s got things that separate it and it’s still a decent album…it just didn’t wow me like his debut did.
I won’t say much more but I will provide examples of what I’m talking about.
Here’s two tracks from his debut “I created Disco”. Notice the fun lyrics and danceable beats.
- Merry Making at My Place
- Acceptable in the 80′s
And here’s one from “Ready For the Weekend”
All of the tracks on this album have a similar feel. it’s got a few gems on it like the titular track “Ready For the Weekend” and “Stars Come Out” but overall I was pretty let down. Now, don’t get me wrong, this album is still a good one that’s definitely worth a listen, I was just disappointed in the direction that Calvin Harris decided to take his music for this venture.
Bonus Category: Most anticipated of 2010
Definitely either Cake or Scissor Sisters. Seriously…where are they?
Cake last put out their B-Sides and Rarities album that was supposed to hold us over until their next studio album but that was way back in 2007!
And Scissor Sister’s last album “Ta-Dah” dates back to 2006! Let’s get on it!
So tell me, what were your best as most disappointing albums of 2009? If you’re going to take the time, why don’t you tell me which one you’re anticipating the most for release in 2010? 
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:00 am
Dear buddy, it pains me to say that I flatly disagree with your assessment concerning Calvin Harris’ album, Ready For the Weekend.
For me, I see it as a progression (not necessarily a maturation) of musical style. Like… if “I Created Disco” was his love letter album to the disco-style brought forward to modern time (most evident in his continued adulation in “Acceptable In The 80s”) then I feel like “Ready For The Weekend” is like a homage to the four-on-the-floor dance/club tracks of the 90s.
Obviously, this must do primarily with personal taste, but as much as I LOVE LOVE “I Created Disco” I have listened to “Ready For The Weekend” from front to back (something I could never do with “Disco”) two to THREE times more than I ever did his debut album.
I just find it cleaner, tighter and more sonically focused than his first.
But, that’s the awesome thing about opinions, no? :p
Also, Jake Shears keeps teasing about the new Scissors’ album, so my hope is that it’s around the corner. Cake, on the other hand, I anticipate with the same rabid curiosity as you. I hope dearly that it pays off.
~LX.
March 1st, 2010 at 9:23 pm
Favorite Album of 2009:
La Roux. It’s the album I keep finding myself going back to and wishing there was more of, and since it’s the only one from 2009 that I can really say that about, it’s my favorite, followed closely by Music for Men (Gossip) and Crazy Love (Michael Buble)
Most Disappointing Album:
Brand New Eyes (Paramore) I was very disappointed by this album being a fan of Paramore’s previous two albums this one fell short of my expectations. I did however find a band called Automatic Loveletter that sounds just like Paramore did before this sad sad release.
March 23rd, 2010 at 10:19 am
I’m adding that Shiny Toy Guns album to the disappointment list of 2009 since I was thinking about it. Season of Poison. Mediocre, and that makes me sad.