Artists' Picks: Top Songs of '09

If you’ve picked up the latest issue of OrigiVation, you probably saw my “Top 9 of ‘09” article, in which Apache Beat, Elizabeth & The Catapult, Jonas Sees in Color, Lenka, Lennon, Mean Creek, Or, The Whale, and Sorry and the Sinatras all shelled out their picks for the top three songs of 2009. However, there’s a lot more to that story. As promised, here are the picks of many more artists. Keep checking the blog for more artists picks.



Kevin Barker
(Former Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom collaborator, Kevin Barker, released his solo debut digitally in 2009, with a 2010 date penned for the hard copy.)

Chris Weisman - "Working On My Skateboarding"
I'm convinced this is one of the greatest songs ever written in the history of planet Earth. Chris is the brother of former Feathers member Kurt Weisman and shares Kurt's uncannily pure and childlike vocal qualities, as well as his gift for offbeat melodies. Chris writes and sings with a sense of humor that's so offbeat it almost sounds accidental, and the end result is a folk-art quality that brings to mind Bobb Trimble and Rodd Keith. Chris is insanely prolific. I HIGHLY recommend checking out this tune, as well as such classics as "B.O.A.C.," "Lemon Poppyseed" and "Billy Don't Pawn your Horn." He's really one of the most unique and talented songwriters out there.

Michael Hurley & IDA - "Wildgeeses"
Michael Hurley is a true American treasure. His songs are so full of warmth, sadness, humor, werewolves, lustful thoughts, loneliness and good times that you feel like your whole life has been encapsulated in a single album. And the fact that this record is like number twenty-two, that's basically a small town's worth of wisdom sitting on your record shelf.

Antony & The Johnsons - "Epilepsy Is Dancing"
It feels a little self-serving choosing something I played on, but this song is so gloriously lush and disarmingly beautiful that if I didn't choose it I'd just be lying. When I was young I owned 3 cassette tapes - Prince "Purple Rain", which I found on the sidewalk outside a Cuban restaurant in Washington DC, and the two albums by Yaz, which I listened to so much I could still sing you every word. This song of Antony's takes me back to the unabashed earnestness and visceral heartbreak of the best Yaz songs. I couldn't figure out if "Moyet" was a boy or a girl, but I knew I loved him/her, and that he/she spoke for me, down to the deepest depths of my preteen soul.


Joshua Blatchley
(Mountain Home’s Josua Blatchley recently released solo acoustic guitar album for the VDSQ series.)

Alter - “Dusk”
One of the best current black metal soloists.

Marissa Nadler - “Rosary”
This whole record is lush and warm, but the extra vocals really set this track apart for me. I can't say enough nice things about her and I consider myself very lucky to have worked and toured with her.

Earth - new song w/o a name
Check it out on youtube. The best music they've made since their return. I really dig the three piece line up (simple is good).


Body Language
(This summer Brooklyn’s Body Language released their debut EP, Speaks, while the rest of the year they found themselves sharing stages with Passion Pit, School of Seven Bells, and We Have Band.)

Grizzly Bear – “Two Weeks”
This, in my opinion, is one of the best pop songs written in a while with one of the best full out vocal deliveries I have heard ever. It’s undeniably simple and good.

Dirty Projectors – “Stillness on the Move”
This song sustains itself on the thread of a single guitar line and gymnastic vocal lines. Awesome.

Washed Out – “Feel it All Around”
Killer sample ripping and simply a good groove to listen to, the vibe is what makes this track.


Mike Stack (Burning Human)
(2009 saw the release of New York Death Metallers Burning Human’s debut album, fourteen years in the making)

Katatonia – “Forsaker”
Heavy, yet dynamic and melancholic all at the same time. Katatonia continue to outdo themselves with each release. One of my all time favorite bands in Metal.

Mastodon – “Oblivion”
It's Mastodon, what do I really need to say? Heavy, melodic, progressive and epic...... Mastodon!

Alice In Chains – “A Looking In View”
Great heavy riff, great melody and just plain great to see Alice In Chains back in top form.


Scott Middleton (Cancer Bats)
(Canadian hardcore punks have spent 2009 working on their upcoming release, III: Bears, Mayors, Scraps & Bones.)

Tegan and Sara - "Hell"
Since Hearing this song I haven't been able to get it out of my head. Think equal parts Joy Division, New Order and the Buzzcocks. Not only is it one of the catchiest and most punk rock songs Tegan and Sara have ever written, but it's also the first time they've ever made me come close to getting in an accident from rocking out so hard in my car!

Git Some - "Trixy Loves Misty"
A stand out track from this amazing band who formed from the ashes of the seminal Planes Mistaken For Stars. Dirty, Punk and gnarly as fuck. This is full bore headbanging rock n' roll from the mountains of Colorado that is far more substantial and noteworthy than any current punk or hardcore trend.

Ouch My Face - "Don't Take a Knife to a Graveyard"
The First minute of this song alone is heavier and more crushing than the entire American metal scene of the last 5 years. This 3 Piece from Melbourne Australia brings out the freshest and most honest take of the current Melvins/Jesus Lizard/Shellac revival and goes well beyond that with a female vocal that's far more refreshing than any tired male scream or growl. Genre crossover at it's best and entirely addictive; it's a song like this that keeps rock music exciting.



The Coathangers
(Atlanta PostR.Grrrls The Coathangers have spent 2009 on the road in support of their sophomore effort, Scramble, arguably the year’s most punk album.)

Lady Gaga - "Poker Face"
It's for god and the gays!

Baby Dinasaur vs. Extinction - "Coke Dick"
It's a drag and a bummer!

Love Boat - "For Your Love"
So good!


Dead Leaf Echo
(Dead Leaf Echo have spent 2009 haunting NYC clubs with the city’s most morbidly romantic sounds while recording their latest, Truth.)

Atlas Sound - "Quick Canal"
So who needs Tim Gane anyway......

Dinosaur Jr. - "I want you to know"
Felt like 92' all over again.

The Mary Onettes - "Dare"
My favorite Swedish import since Ikea.


Doctor Rosen Rosen
(Doctor Rosen Rosen has spent 2009 putting his own alt. pop “spin” on mega pop stars such as Weezer, Lily Allen, Kanye West, and Phoenix.)

The-Dream - "Fancy"
My favorite album of 2009 was definitely The-Dream's Love Vs. Money which has my hands down favorite song of the year- "Fancy." If Prince (circa Under The Cherry Moon) and R. Kelly had a baby it would sound like this weird "arty" R&B song. I have probably listened to the last 54 seconds of this song 500 times.


La Roux – “In For The Kill”(Skream's Let's Get Ravey Remix)
Best remix of the year. Skream's take on La Roux's "In For The Kill" is dark and extremely spare yet unbelievably powerful. I love how much energy lies in the empty spaces of this song.

Daniel Merriweather ft. Adele - "Water and a Flame"
Daniel Merriweather and Adele make a gorgeous break-up song. Their voices seem to be made for each other and the arrangement is perfect. Good to know there are still vocalists that can actually sing making records in 2009.


Yoni Gordon (Yoni Gordon & the Goods)
(Yoni Gordon spent 2009 spreading his quirky and chaotic tunes across this side of the Mississippi.)

Diamond Mines - "Whatever's Clever"
Awesome band from Boston. Straight up great rock song writing. You could listen to this and swear you'd heard their record once in some second hand store and you meant to write down the name of the band but forgot to. Sounds new and old, familiar and fresh, classic and modern, pretty and pretty and pretty great. If this band is playing a show near you, go see them.

Deer Tick - "Houston, TX"
I'd heard this song maybe two years ago at a show we played together. The song just sort of stayed in my head all that time, until I finally got the new record. If you can hear a song once, in a loud bar, maybe after knocking back a few drinks, and still remember is two years later, that is pretty much the mark of great songwriting. I just bought an old beat up van to tour in, and this record sounds the best on that old car stereo!

The Reigning Sound - "Debris"
This band has all the things that I like in rock and roll: awesome guitar tone, hammond b3 organ and really concise but soulful songwriting. Not that I like to play the "sounds like" game, but they really do remind me of like, Paul Westerberg switching places with Bob Dylan during those '66 Royal Albert hall shows. My new favorite band.


Miracles Of Modern Science
(Miracles of Modern Science continue to promote their debut EP, released in 2008, and prove that strings really can rock.)

Le Loup - "Beach Town"
I honestly didn't think much of this when I first heard it, but man, did it grow on me. The band has fantastic energy.

St. Vincent - "Laughing With a Mouth of Blood"
I can't really pick a favorite on _Actor_. Annie Clark is an amazing melodist, and she gets some of the coolest fuzzy drum and horn sounds I've heard.

Animal Collective - "Bluish"
I'm a sucker for pretty melodies.


Netherfriends
(Justin Fernando and a rotating cast of characters have spent 2009 touring as Netherfriends and making hipster asses shake in the country’s most offbeat venues)

Apache Beat – “Sinkane”
We are label mates and he might be the greatest musician of our generation. He is currently the drummer for Yeasayer and was previously drumming for Caribou, Of Montreal, and Born Ruffians.

David Bazan - “Hard To Be”
An amazing opener to his first solo LP. It's all about the first chorus.

Grizzly Bear - “Two Weeks”
This might be on everyone's list, but when I first heard them play this on Letterman I had it stuck in my head immediately!


Josh Ottum
(After making a big splash along the West Coast and throughout Europe, Americana singer/songwriter’s debut LP, Like the Season, finally saw its stateside release this year.)

Jason Lytle – “Flying Thru Canyons”
This song usually brings at least three tears to my eyes. It sounds like credits rolling over a montage of a one's life. The fake choir is so funny and so sad, so epic and so cheap. It makes me think about a little chapel on a little mountain in the middle of a huge desert. It also makes me think about how much I love my family and about the very thin line between laughing and crying.

Jim O'Rourke – “The Visitor”
This song makes me more interested in wooden chairs, mother nature, father time and family...and less interested in my computer, iPhone apps and advertisements. This song is basically a multi-vitamin that points to the unshakable foundations of history and tradition. It also makes me think of the smell of corduroy and dirt.

Yuuki Matthews – “Sea Sponge Cake”
This song is like a church hovering slowly down the street as part of the first annual parade of holy buildings. The church hasn't seen many visitors in a while and it is coming back to remind people of who they really are. This church beams rays of dark purple light on the masses, helping them realize they don't have to be slaves to negative self talk. They can just love themselves and embrace the present moment.



Bryan Scary + The Shredding Tears
(2009 saw Brooklynites Bryan Scary + The Shredding Tears sign with Old Flame Records and release their Mad Valentines EP.)

Bruno Coulais – “End Credits” (Coraline Soundtrack)
The best film score in years.

The Fiery Furnaces – “Charmaine Champagne”
It sounds like two little kids fighting.

The Flaming Lips – “The Sparrow Looks up at the Machine”
A Big Bad Groovy Düüly Faustian Splatter.


Kenneth "Ripper" Olsen (SYRACH)
(2009 saw Napalm Records’ release of doom metal outfit Syrach’s A Dark Burial.)

Megadeth - "44 Minutes"
I have been into this band since the debut album, Killing is my Business...and Business is Good!, in 1985 and when they now return with a great album, Endgame, this year, I just had to have them on my list. The song "44 Minutes" reminds me of the great songs on the So Far...So Good... album. "44 Minutes" has it all: a great opening, amazing chorus, and even a decent guitar solo. A song that I can hearover and over again and never get tired of it.

My Dying Bride - "My Body, A Funeral"
What can I say? My Dying Bride return with, in my ears, a masterpiece of an album. Or to put it the My Dying Bride way, a meisterwerk. Starting up SYRACH in 1993, I was really into the British Doom scene at that time, so many great bands came with that wave in the early 90's and My Dying Bride was one band I kept closest to my heart...with albums like Turn Loose The Swans/The Angel and The Dark River they are one of my absolute favorite band in this genre. I could actually pick every song from The Lies I Sire, but I had to choose one, and for me, "My Body, A Funeral" has the atmosphere and feeling that makes My Dying Bride such a great band. The calm start, the heavy guitars taking over, and of course the violin. We had the chance to work with Aaron Stainthorpe as an artist for the cover artwork on our album Days Of Wrath and it was a pleasure.

Jace Everett - "Burn For You"
"Six feet down I'll call your name...and this whole world goes up in flames, baby I burn for you." This line from "Burn For You" is just perfect and sets the mood in the song. Every song with the words "flames" & "baby" has to be brilliant ;) This is my non-metal alibi. A great voice and to me a mix between Isaak & Orbison, what a great combination. It's something dark in Everett’s music that I like. And of course everybody knows him for his "Bad Things" from True Blood. This is also a great song, but I don't like the series. I just love "Burn For You" and Everett has a really dark and "heavyfilled" voice. It's a pleasure listen to him sing sometimes.

Tatiana De Maria (TAT)
(TAT spent 2009 promoting their Soho Lights, a collection of infectiously catchy punk tunes), including a summer spent on the Warped Tour.)

Regina Spektor – “Laughing With”
This song should go down in history. She single handedly turns the world on its head destroying cynics and embracing faith in a religion-bashing age. Incredible musically and lyrically just pure genius.

The Script – “The Man Who Can't Be Moved”
Fantastic lyrics and overwhelmingly beautiful melody. We've all been there and they sum up our unanimous sentiment of giving it all and stubbornly holding on against all odds.

Jay-Z, Rihanna and Kanye West – “Run This Town”
The instrumental is phenomenal. Great song overall, but the music is just killer. Enough to make one of my top three of the year.


Hattie Williams (Telegraphs)
(In 2009 Telegraphs have continued to spread their moody indie pop throughout the UK, including a tour with Thrice)

Brand New – “At The Bottom”
Brand New are one of my favourite bands - this song was the first that I heard from the new album, Daisy. It's sublimely grungy, dark, and thoroughly miserable - just how I like 'em. The lyrics are totally killer - Jesse Lacy has outdone himself with this one. I got to see them play in London in the summer and it was a really exceptional show - the band just keep growing and developing with every release, which is so rare.

Sights & Sounds – “Sorrows”
This song does funny things to my insides. The whole album does. This track opens the record, and the first time I heard it, it wormed its way into my heart and has been sitting there ever since. It is an emotionally stirring, cathartic and dynamic wonder that everyone should hear. Right now - definitely my favourite album of 2009.

Bat For Lashes – “Daniel”
Natasha Khan has the most gorgeous voice! There will always be a certain songs that you hear and you are taken back to a time and place, I think this song will always remind me of this year, and the summer. It's a really haunting and melancholy track about The Karate Kid, apparently. It has been banned from our van though - I over played it!