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2008-09 Best Albums

Tim’s ‘Best Music of the Last Year’ List

2008/09 Edition

Mix link:

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewIMix?id=313552138

Gary Louris – “Vagabonds” and “Ready for the Flood” -- Former Jayhawks front man and Jeff Tweedy’s (Wilco/Golden Smog) pal Gary Louris put out “Ready for the Flood” in January working with his fellow Jayhawk Mark Olson. Great album. Very stripped down and melodic. Produced by Chris Robinson from Black Crowes. ‘She only Calls me On Sundays’ is one of my favorite songs of the last few months -- great lyrics and gospel-esque backup vocals. Both of these albums are solid all the way through. While you’re at it check out the new retrospective of Golden Smog (Stay Golden, Smog) – great stuff.

Death Vessel – “Nothing is Precious Enough for us” – Death Vessel? Best name ever? Perhaps -- particularly given the music itself could not be further from dark/evil. DV is Joel Thibodeau – he plays with Jose Gonzales and this is his first solo effort. You simply cannot believe that it’s a guy singing – amazing falsetto. Most of the album is pretty mellow, neo-folky, uplifting mood music. But check out “Peninsula” – so sweet – this for me is the highlight…..turn it up LOUD and shut your eyes for the breakdown jam at 3:30. Simply amazing energy…just crushing….very reminiscent of Zeppelin or Hendrix with a bit of Pulp Fiction vibe. Awesome. Especially as it is followed by the little childish ding-dings of the fisher price xylophone.

Ryan Adams and the Cardinals Live at the Herbst Theater (SF) – go download this live show (you will need BitTorrent – easy to figure out - http://www.bittorrent.com/). Best RA ever. I was there and the sound was just spectacular. Like a symphony performance. If you like Ryan Adams (and you know he is one of my all time favs) then this show is a must have. These guys have come so far in the last few years and are one of the tightest bands performing today IMO. Love them. http://www.ryanadamsarchive.com/torrents.php?search_text=herbst&f=&sort=0

Murray Perahia – Bach Partitas 2, 3, and 4. Murray is the man. Seriously. If you don’t know him then consider yourself turned on. He has been tickling the ivories as a top American concert pianist and composer for decades, and the man is incredibly talented. http://www.murrayperahia.com/. This year he released his Bach Partitas 2,3,4 and it is just an awesome recording – will surely win a Grammy for best classical solo performer. I listen to it every morning with my coffee at work to start the day. He has dozens of albums and they are nearly all amazing – what a career.

Andrew Bird – “Noble Beast” – Great album and Andrew Bird has earned his place among the indie/alternative/post-modern-pop/new folk pantheon. Classically trained as a violinist and long-time ‘do-it-my-own way’er’ -- this album is his “breakout” after decades of touring and honing his sound. He delivers, great album. One of Heather’s favorites too. Great whistling.

Various – “Dark was the Night” – best mix ever? Hard to say for sure, but it would have to at least make the short list. Cat Power doing Amazing Grace? Connor Oberst and Gillian Welch doing Lua? Sufjan Stevens, Iron and Wine, Andrew Bird, My Morning Jacket, Jose Gonzales, David Byrne, Arcade Fire, Bon Iver, The National, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings all on the same album? Forget it, too good. Standout tracks include ‘I was young when I left home’ by Antony, ‘Train Song’ by Feist and Ben Gibbard, and the Welch/Oberst duet ‘Lua.’

Sam Baker – “Pretty World” – I just love Sam Baker, and he is on this list every year. This album (his second) came out in 2007 but I still listen to it like it’s just come out. Same with his first album “Mercy” actually. I put his body of work up against any Americana singer-songwriter ever. His combination of strings (esp cello) and slide guitar is transcendent. Listen to the last song “Recessional” – it is as pretty as it gets. Also listen to the title track on “Mercy” – I will never tire of this music and it has become “life soundtrack” material these last few years. Best listened to while on the road, on the move, in the air, etc, as it grounds you in “the mindset of home” -- which is a powerful thing.

The Low Anthem – “Ballad of the Broken Bones” and “Oh My God Charlie Darwin” – great albums both of them. They embody the great folk/singer-songwriter vibe I love but bring something new to the table as well…hard to put your finger on it. Something to do with the falsettos, lyrical creativity, instrument combos, occasional flare of the electric guitar, accordion, shakers, etc. Very smooth, sweet vocals and great harmonies. Check out ‘Cage the Songbird.” Awesome – and so much reverb you just swim in it. Also check out ‘What the Crow Brings,’ ‘This God Damn House,’ ‘Charlie Darwin’ (awesome) and ‘To Ohio’ (awesome). Their cover of ‘Keep on the Sunny Side’ is also sweet. I have very much enjoyed getting to know these guys last few months, a new favorite for sure.

Great Lake Swimmers – “Bodies and Minds” – I love mellow, melodic, bare, acoustic music that has that raw “recorded in a grain silo” feel. Great Lake Swimmers are right there in that sweet spot and on top of their game. Nothing better when you just want to chill out after a long day with a glass of wine. Check out the opener ‘Songs for the Angels’ – so, so beautiful. All their stuff is great and they will be on the top of my playlist for a long time to come. They came out with a new album just April 1 called Lost Channels – also exceptional.

Bon Iver – “For Emma, Forever Ago.” – This one made all the 2008 top 10 lists and with good reason. Amazing and beautiful album that achieves a level of “sweet haunting” that is quite powerful. Bon Iver is what you’d get if Iron & Wine and Sigur Ros had a love child. He also proves that auto-tune has a home beyond the pop rap propagated by Kanye West, T-Pain, etc. His new 4-song effort ‘Blood Bank’ is also great.

Phish – Hampton, VA – 3/9/09 – the boys are back in town. Yes, Phish got back together and played their first live show in years at Hampton, VA. Awesome news, awesome show, awesome recording available at www.livephish.com. Bands love Hampton because the unique round shape of the coliseum provides a really amazing, unique acoustic experience. I saw a Phish show back in the mid-90s there and it was indeed amazing sound. The recordings are phenomenal and the band sounded great after all those years off. Too many standouts to call out, but hearing Trey hit the guitar solo on the opener ‘Fluffhead’ around minute 11:00 was like time traveling back in time to 1990. Great memories and glad they are keeping them alive. Especially enjoyed the ‘Loving Cup’ encore despite it sounding like four wasted drunk college guys singing in the streets while stumbling home from a bar at 4am…or come to think of it that’s probably why I love it so much.

John King – Bach Partita No 3 for Unaccompanied Ukulele (Nalu Music). Unreal. It’s a Bach…on a ukulele. Incredibly well done and a great work. What else can I say. Listen and you will view the ukulele in a whole new light. And while you’re at it, this is also a worthwhile ukulele link to click on…gorgeous, one of my favorites: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puSkP3uym5k&feature=related

Phoenix – “Its Never Been Like That” A good pal of mine recently “re-turned me on” to Phoenix. Their song ‘Everything is Everything’ was all over the radio a few years ago and I never really tuned into their music back then as it just seemed so commercial. But now that I have heard their whole library I must say that these guys are great, and ‘E is E’ is actually one of their less interesting songs. They are a bit like Air meets Beck meets Arcade Fire. ‘Long Distance Call’ is a simple song but very pretty and walks the fine line between pop and alt/indie….successfully. ‘North’ is very nice and sounds a lot like Radiohead’s ‘Jigsaw Falling into Place’ (awesome track). ‘Lost and Found’ reminds me a bit of old New Order from the 80s. Also check out ‘Love Like Sunset Pt I & II’ (find on iTunes) – cinematic, sweeping soundscapes with some very grindy bass tones and builds, highly emotive music. I also love ‘Too Young’ from their first album – very Ben Folds Five-esque on the vocal. All of their albums are good.

Sigur Ros – “Med sud l eyrum vid spilum endalaust” -- More amazing, ephemeral, “what ghosts must listen to” music from the Icelandic masters of the sweeping, dramatic, cinematic genre they largely created. Awesome effort. Best listened to from start to finish, uninterrupted, in a dark room with a nice Bordeaux or zin…something full bodied.

Conor Oberst – “Connor Oberst” -- His first self-titled album. Good stuff. Recorded in a cave in Mexico. Love the opening guitar on ‘Get Well Cards’ and ‘Milk Thistle’ is very pretty. He is the king shoe-gazer disaffected emo type dude, but I really like him and his music anyway. Lyrics like “I’m a single cell on a serpent’s tongue” are pretty powerful…and he also does a good job on the political/protest song front which is easier said than done. For those who don’t know him check out Bright Eyes, his band the last bunch of years.

Sondre Leche – “Dan in real life” (soundtrack) – This is sort of a guilty pleasure album. Boppy-hoppy simple hooky love songs that I would imagine teenage girls liking. Fun music to put on for a drive or on a weekend morning down to the farmer’s market with the family in the wagon. The movie was actually not that bad and Steve Carell is hilarious even when he is trying to be serious.

Alela Diane – “To Be Still” – reminiscent of Jolie Holland but with a bit less country warble and a bit more hobo hummin’ in a boxcar feel. Very solid effort and she has a bright career ahead of her. Her voice is really quite beautiful and the word “honey” comes to mind. Nice guitar and harmonies as well.

Claudio Montiverdi – I fell in love with Claudio Monteverdi over the holidays last year. His “Vespers of the Blessed Virgin” is amazing as is most of his stuff. Beautiful holiday music without being annoyingly commercial. Great year round as well. You should add him to your classical go-to shortlist.

Pete Yorn – “Westerns” -- I listened to a lot of Pete Yorn in 2008. Good uplifting stuff if not a touch on the pop side. The song “The Man” may be one of the best accessible pop-folk style tunes of all time. It is a major chord hoottenany of simplistic fun. Play it loud if you’ve had a bad day and I swear it will change your mood.

Stevie Ray Vaughn – “The Sky is Crying” -- We had a daughter in January and named her Skye. At one point I told my wife that “Skye is crying” and it led me to put on this album which was one of my all time favorites back in college. It was like putting on Led Zeppelin I and hearing “Good Times, Bad Times” for the first time in a decade. Wow. I put on some headphones, turned it up, and listened to the whole album. SRV is the original ‘guitar hero’ and this is his Requiem. He records ‘Life by the Drop’ shortly before dying at 36? Are you kidding me? It’s ridiculous in that overwhelming loss sorta way. Give it a listen front to back if it has been a while. Doesn’t get much better than his ‘Little Wing.’

Jeff Buckley – “Grace” – speaking of overwhelming loss, like SRV I picked this one back up a few months ago and have just been mesmerized by it. ‘Lover, You Should Have Come over’ may well be one of the most powerful tunes of all time. Play it loud when no one is home, sit on the couch and focus in on his voice. What an unbelievable instrument, what a gift, what a loss. Sheer vocal power. The high notes he hits around 6:15 are just amazing for a male vocalist…he was so talented. ‘Hallelujah’ is, of course, also just a gorgeous song and his version is one of the best ever.

Oscar Peterson – “Quiet Now” -- Awesome jazz. Mellow, heartfelt, the real deal. I love this album. Also great for that romantic dinner at home with a special someone. In a word: mood. So much of his stuff is just top notch.

Pat methany – “Quiet time” – This is a phenomenal album, one of my all time favs. I listen to it all the time. I would submit that there is no better album to put on around the house on a rainy Sunday – sit on the couch, read the paper, watch the time pass, roll around with the kids/dog etc. It is great “settle on in” music. Pat Methany can get a bit avant garde and new-agey/esoteric in his tunings and weird chords and licks on other albums, but this album is just a straight up melodic meandering walk through a rainy night in the city. I love it. Also makes me feel very introspective and slows me down, which is nice sometimes in this speedy world.

Van Morrison – “Veedon Fleece” – Astral Weeks gets all the attention, but Veedon Fleece is the Van Morrison album for me. And honestly I am not even the biggest Van Morrison fan – must have heard Brown Eyed Girl and Moondance one too many times in college. But this album is from a whole different VM universe. It is simply a great album – far more soulful and bare than his more commercial stuff…no showmanship, no sugar-coating, no hooks -- just a remarkable work that was just remastered in 2008 and thus sounds amazing. I can’t say enough good things.

Sera Cahoone – “Only as the Day is Long” – I discovered Sera last fall and have really come to love this album. Her self-titled debut is also really good. She is a heck of a singer-songwriter and I think she will have a long and amazing career. Great stuff.

The Avett Brothers – all albums. Check these guys out if you have not yet. They are taking Americana/folk/bluegrass in a whole new direction and they’re about to blow up IMO. Rick Rubin is producing their next album and it is sure to be a major release for 2009. I think “Swept Away (Sentimental Version”) may be the sweetest love songs I have ever heard. Some of their songs are a wee bit annoying and over-layered vocally, but make a playlist out of the good ones and you will be psyched – it’s really high quality.