Grammatics - Grammatics
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Chamber Math Pop
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Surprise surprise! XD But seriously, those whove been around me since ive heard this album back in may already knew that itll be my fav album of the year, mostly cos i cant stop thinking or talking about it. Its just perfect. Usually when i listen to album the artistic spirit in me goes like "oh i would change that part" or "oh that lyric/chord shouldnt be there" but Grammatics pretty much owned me, theres not a bad thing i can say about it, never before in my life i felt that im listening to a perfect album but this is it. Band is based around singer Owen and bassist Rory, the rest of the cast changes every few months. Owen has an amazing voice and Rory keeps all the messy mathesque drums together with his simple yet great bass parts, and electric cello with all its reverb and delay is just too good for words. The very first review written for this album stated that its better than Kid A (Murderer and Inkjet Lakes borrows the moaning/wailing cello bits from How To Dissapear Completely), all major blogs nominated it for album of the year among giants like Arctic Monkeys and Muse, every critic loves this album, everyone from Rolo Tomassi to Stephen Fry is a fan. Its not hard to tell why. In the decade when not trying too hard is considered cool and cunts with wannabe Ian Curtis voice are considered good singers Grammatics are a godsend. Thats why Grammatics self titled debut album is my fav release of the year. Touring with huge yet amazing Bloc Party and their latest single Double Negative just reaffirms that in these hard times Grammatics are an essential band and theyre onto huge things in near future so do yourself a favor and get into them now.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: theyre yet to write a song i dont love

2.The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
========================================================================

======================================================================================
C86
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I had a hard time deciding whos going to top my list and whos going to end up being second. Theyre both very good but The Pains get second place. Its not an unique album, it pretty much rips off what My Bloody Valentine did back in 1986 when C86 was the hot thing (C86 being the jangly pop brother of shoegaze in case you dont know XD). But it sure is refreshing to hear more of this stuff today. Its basically a cross between The Jesus And Mary Chain guitar noise and The Smiths melodies. Every song have enough hooks and brilliant melodies hidden under the onslaught of noise. If youd look past it youd get a brilliant pop album (they pretty much did that on their new ep which sounds like electrogaze or The Cure on drugs or smth XD) Lyrics are happy yet clever, however like any real shoegaze band most lyrics they write are about sex. The Pains might be considered a hipster band cos pitchfork made them famous and their pop music might be a bit too much for casual pop fans but if you want your dose of brilliant hooks and melodies this year look no further. This album is a must hear masterpiece of contemporary shoegaze and this band are on their way to become one of the genres defining bands.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: too many of them

3.Wild Beasts - Two Dancers
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Chamber Indie Rock
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Wooo thank you pitchfork for catapulting another worthy band into mainstream. Rarely bands from up north are this good. Wild Beasts released their quite good debut Limbo Panto last year and wasted no time in recording and putting out their second album and how they improved that much just in one year is beyond me. Its great that they came out now when Britain is probz the worst place for music in the universe. Nowadays its a must to play in a lad-revival band singing stuff about how life sucks and we just got to have another pint with your mates or be another meaningless retard created by x-factor freaks. But here comes a band that brings seriousness and coolness back to guitar music and does it with a high level of professionalism. Their live shows are note perfect and both vocalists have stunning voices (has a mini crush on Hayden) From the beginning of 00s we were forced to put up with messy guitar bands who are doing it just for fun and its such a relief to leave this decade with this album which gives me hope that good guitar music will be back into mainstream soon.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Hooting & Howling

4.Dananananaykroyd - Hey Everyone!
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Fight Pop
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Story of the year. I started 2009 hating this band cos i thought that they try too hard to act like retards in their excuse of having fun but then, slowly i started getting into them. By the time they released this album in April i already felt quite good about them and Hey Everyone made me like them. It felt like there finally is a band to replace Blood Brothers with their crazy guitars and 2 screaming vocalists. But then summer came and i had a chance to go to London to see them live and oh my lawd, was that the best music-related thing in my life. I dont think i had so much fun in my life before and that was the moment when i fell in love with Dananananananaykroyd (and i touched Calum <.<). I guess you have to see them live to truly appreciate them and now at the end of 2009 my hatred for them turned into love. Brings tear to your eye doesnt it? XD
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Some Dresses

5.The Horrors - Primary Colours
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Shoegaze
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ahhhhh The Horrors, the most important band of my life made a comeback this year. I expected it to be crap but omg. They shocked me when ive first heard about them and their album, it was shockingly amazing. There are only few bands in the world that shock me like that and theres deffo only one band that managed to shock me two times, and this album is to blame. I expected more of the same only to get blown away by their new sound that they unleashed with their easily best song of the year Sea Within A Sea. Not much to say, they just did a My Bloody Valentine here, went from horror punk to shoegaze. Lets just hope that Primary Colours is their Isnt Anything and that the best bit is yet to come.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Sea Within A Sea

6.Micachu - Jewellery
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Avantgarde Bedroom Freak Folk?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
And the most unique album of the year award goes to Micachus Jewellery. I honestly have no idea what genre it is but it sounds amazing. She makes her own guitars and even plays a hoover on several songs, how great is that. The album isnt long and could be a bit longer cos it feels like theres so many ideas and stuff going on here all at the same time sometimes it might feel like a mess but this album is a beautiful controlled mess. It feels like a bedroom album, rather lo-fi with lyrics about relationships and stuff. One thing that i dont get is how this album was overlooked by this years mercury prize. Micachu featured on Speech Debelles album so really, they couldnt have missed this one and it is definitely the most original album of the year. Anyways, it might not have the longlivety but its a nice introduction to Micachus music and i have great hopes about her future releases.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Lips

7.Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Psych Electro
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
So yeah, back in january i said that if this wont end up at the top of this list ill eat my skinny hipster jeans. Now i say 'pass me the salt' XD But seriously, the album that catapulted these psych oldies is not as good as i first thought. The synth sounds that never stop throughout the album made me feel that this is to electronica what Loveless is to shoegaze but i was cheated. After repeated listens its clear that theres nothing deep here. Just one layer. The lyrics are good but not as good as i thought they were. I instantly fell in love with several songs cos of their lyrics about love and fun only to find out that theyre about blowjobs (nice one guys, well done) XD Its their most simple album and yet they cant perform it well live. Animal Collective are a good studio band and maybe they should stay there and write a better album. I still like it, theres some absolutely amazing tunes and its probably up there for the best album cover ever, but i cant help but critisize it after feeling like its the greatest thing ever i got bored with it after mere 10 months. Ty guys, we see that you can sell out, now make some good music like you used to.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: My Girls

8.Manic Street Preachers - Journal For Plague Lovers
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Rock
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Well i am getting carried away with big bands but idc XD I remember first time ive heard Manics i thought theyre a pop band (Love Of Richard Nixon and all XD), then i got into them properly with the release of Send Away The Tigers. Learned about their history and story about Richey and fell in love with them properly. Now take a guess how excited i was when ive heard that their new album will feature lyrics by Richey himself? Half of me felt it might fail but omg what an album this turned out to be. Manics at their loudest (ty Steve Albini) and most lyrically awesome mode since The Holy Bible. Sometimes i like to pretend its their 4th album with Richey and it makes me sad cos i believe that if he still was alive (see what i did there <.<) they couldve been the best british rock band ever. But im just glad that after 15 years we got album like this, full of tunes and awesome lyrics. Its probably going to be the last great Manics album and sometimes i think that they should quit while theyre at their best. Atleast im glad that things like this still happen, a band 20 years into their career release their best album.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Williams Last Words

9.Arctic Monkeys - Humbug
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Stoner Indie
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Have you stopped laughing by now you dirty hipsters who think that all successful bands are crap? XD But seriously, Arctic Monkeys never fail to impress me. I loved their debut when i had crap music taste back in 2006, i loved Fav Worst Nightmare even more few years ago when i got into good indie music and here i am in 2009 going all like "oh Arctics are releasing new album? Well thats going to suck" and they managed to impress me for the 3rd time. Its a departure from their previous sound, on Humbug they sound like a completely different band than the one that released Whatever People Say. They combined dark bits of the second album, Alexs side project The Last Shadow Puppets and threw some Queens Of The Stone Age in the mix. Theres no big choruses, no singalongs, no chooooons for ordinary lads etc. Lyrics improved beyond belief. No more nonsense about getting drunk and hitting on birds or shit like that, Alex is a storyteller now and his stories and the way he paints them is impressive. Pretty Visitors is probz the best song lyrically, moments of it even reminds me of little bits of vivid imagery that Blood Brothers used to use. And dont even get me started on how much i love the tongue in cheek honesty of Cornerstone video. Arctics might have lost lots of their old simple minded fans but now theyre better than theyve ever been and sounds like theyll continue to improve and impress me with their future albums.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Cornerstone

10.Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
========================================================================

======================================================================================
Experimental Folk + Freak R&B
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The first and so far only Dirty Projectors album ive heard. Apparently its second official album if you dont count other releases and compilations. Instantly fell in love with it. Combines weird jangly guitars with funky rhythms and good vocals. I couldnt really say anything bad about it. It has few weaker songs near the end when compared to the first half and despite my love for Stillness Is The Move its one of those things that i hate, when the band has a very poppy single that stands out in a bit of sellout way but oh well XD The album is rather eclectic. From poppy Stillness Is The Move to happy and dancey Cannibal Resource to what could only be described as a very beautiful ballad - Two Doves. Theyre the buzz band in the states atm and theyre building up their fanbase in uk thanks to signing to brilliant Domino Records. I highly recommend this album to anyone who havent heard it cos its a must hear.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fav Song: Cannibal Resource