We need nothing at all (Best albums of 2009, pt. 2)
It was a long, long year of self-reflection. This portion of the best-of rundown has changed a lot even right up to the last minute. I had to re-jig a lot of stuff in the bottom top 10 to get the line-up just right. You’ll see a few rockers in this section that have been consistent for years and years and a couple that have gone in the literal opposite direction in 2009. But all remain very, very tasty.
Here we go, jerks!
15. O Pioneers!!! - Neon Creeps
If you haven’t figured it out by now I love this band. Neon Creeps finds Eric simultaneously getting more desperate and harrowed lyrically while taking a bit of the edge of what is normally his extremely acerbic guitar tone. His playing sounds more precise, less hack-and-slash, and while it shouldn’t make that big a difference the addition of bass to the mix really helps flesh out the arrangements and support Eric in the quieter bits. Lyrically it might be kind of a bummer, but these songs are real; the desperation and depression is genuine. This is the sound of a man working through everyday frustrations with dramatic results. Read more here.
14. the Bronx - Mariachi el Bronx
As I previously stated, I’m not the least bit qualified to critique mariachi music. I have zero qualifications. But to paraphrase some old dude, I may not know mariachi but I know what I like and I like this album. It has a relaxed rhythm, shamelessly full arrangements, some great singing, and huge hooks. That Prince cover was a perfect teaser and the album delivered on all of its promise and then some.
13. Chad Price - Smile Sweet Face
This is the opposite of ground-breaking but Smile Sweet Face is both impossibly heartbreaking and improbably beautiful. There’s nothing revolutionary about a sad white dude and his acoustic guitar but the simple fact that Price’s world-weary voice can carry such incredible melodies and devastating sentiments is worth celebrating. “This War” perfectly captures the crushing weight of infidelity and “Peachy Tuscadero” sounds like the opposite of what it is: a mash note to a misfit puppy. This album has everything.
12. Propagandhi - Supporting Cast(e)
Fat Wreck Chords who? The long-running Winnipeg anarcho-punks say goodbye to their long-time associations and deliver what is unequivocally their best album ever, How To Clean Everything be damned. A second guitarist has them sounding huge (the compression helps the loudness as well, of course) and they’re still highly aggressive, but Cast(e) is also their most melodically rich and complex work yet. Aside from the horrifying death knell that starts “Human(e) Meat (the Flensing of Sandor Katz)” they don’t strike a single wrong note.
11. the Thermals - Now We Can See
Hutch Harris and Kathy Foster still writes songs that consist of little more than four chords and a heartbeat, but they’re sounding more at home than ever on Now We Can See. Down-playing the aggression that marked The Body, The Blood, The Machine, these songs are 100% anthemic and still rather thought-provoking. I maintain my assertion that “When I Died” is the best pop song you didn’t hear on the radio in 2009. Read more here.
O Pioneers!!! - Stressing The Fuck Out [2:36m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Mariachi el Bronx - Quinceniera [3:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Chad Price - With Bleeding Wrists: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Propagandhi - Dear Coach's Corner [4:29m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download the Thermals - I Let It Go [3:36m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | DownloadO Pioneers!!!: All music physical, some files digital.
Mariachi el Bronx: Get the album (and/or Mariachi el Bronx’s exclusive cologne) from their webstore. Here’s the iTunes.
Chad Price: Smile Sweet Face and a bevy of other Price-related albums can be foundin the Suburban Home/Vinyl Collective webstore. The album is on iTunes, but you’re better off getting it from Suburban Home/Vinyl Collective’s own digital store. It’s cheaper.
Propagandhi: CD/LP/download is available through the G7 Welcoming Committee site, which I didn’t even realize still existd. Surprisingly, they’re also on iTunes. A lot.
the Thermals: Physical purchases can be made through Kill Rock Stars’ website. Old releases are on Sub Pop. iTunes is a thing too.
