NW Reviews: Albums of the Year

Now, in one massive post, the albums of the year from some of us here at 402 Productions!

Nick Wan’s list:

The album of the year is…

David Bazan - Curse Your Branches

Best album this year? It’s hard to compete against someone who has produced three cult followings for three different projects, has put out multiple albums without a lull over the past decade, has attracted a mass following from three different parts of the Seattle-indie world, and has the talent to put out Curse Your Branches, which is a cumulative effort from all three of his faces (Pedro the Lion, Headphones, and David Bazan the solo act). Some might argue that all three sounds the same, but all three are actually very different. From the full on live three piece band to the synth-pop-rock to the singer-songwriter and now a mix of all three and more, Bazan has crafted the best showing in 2009 with Curse Your Branches.

Here are my top albums in no particular order, but possibly in particular genres.

Tegan & Sara - Sainthood

The Quins, along with the two producers who put out The Con and So Jealous, have reached the #2 spot on my list for not failing to deliver the next installment of Tegan & Sara. The album, Sainthood, takes a major step away from their past acoustic singer-songwriter beginnings towards more band-oriented music. The cohesiveness between all the instruments punched in with catchy vocal melodies make up a very big surprise from the Canadian twins. Although very different than their older stuff, the album itself still had some minor shortcomings. For instance, rehashing “niche” pop-punk songs from Tegan (e.g. “Northshore”) and the random one-off indie-pop song from Sara (e.g. “Alligator”) make for predictability. Also, the lack of a solid “hit” on the album might not stand the test of time in the later years, unlike their past albums where there has been a definite “hit” (e.g. “Back in your Head”, “Walking With a Ghost”, “Monday Monday Monday”, etc). However, for this year, this album has shown musical maturity and growth from the Plunk sisters and it seems as if the next step might be even more surprising than this step with Sainthood.

Owen - New Leaves

Owen, aka Mike Kinsella, cradles us with another Chicago-indie hit. New Leaves is what happens when Mike goes from his bedroom to a larger room with a band in mind. The songs on this album might not have that “there’s a pillow next to me” sound, but the album does have the “how will I play this live, solo acoustic?” sound. Kinsella’s response to playing these songs solo? Playing them with a band. Owen, the band form, took form for the album release party — a first since Mike played in American Football in the late 90′s. The album is consistent and doesn’t have a downfall at any given point, but does take on a bit of wear when compared to his other bedroom hits. The album itself is the less-keyboard-y version of Bazan’s album in my opinion, which doesn’t sit too well with the Owen fan base since Mike has only elaborated on what accompanies his playing rather than changing the entire sound of how he plays music. Still, the album is the best thing Owen has come out with since i do perceive and one could only hope he plays an actual tour with a band some time soon.

Fanfarlo - Reservoir

Fanfarlo, a newcomer from London, has set the bar high for indie pop a la Noah and the Whale and Beirut. These guys jumped on the scene early this year with this release and has flown under the radar ever since.  Only touring in the USA once, ever, Fanfarlo hasn’t seem to have broken out of their shell. This album, I would say, seems to be able to withstand the test of time. And should Fanfarlo be able to reach out and become something like Noah and the Whale or Beirut here in America, then this album could be one of those albums people look back on and say, “damn, should have picked up on these guys back in 2009″. I got your back, Fanfarlo. For whatever that is worth.

fun. - Aim and Ignite

It took a hard while for me to justify this album over Morrissey, but I did. Nate Ruess and company are venturing forth into a new realm of music that is slowly catching on. Although some might agree that Forgive Durden’s Razia’s Shadow was more pinnacle in pinning the new fascination behind this new theatre-rock, fun. is doing their part to further the genre into something maybe less story based and something more musical based. fun. is taking the eccentric and elaborate arrangements of theatre and putting that into indie-rock form, creating this new music that seemingly only few bands are trying out lately. fun. should look forward to a big year in 2010, as should the indie-pop-rock scene.

Malajube - Labyrinthes

I was turned into a big fan after my first few listens to this album. I think these guys might be the most under rated and over looked band right now. Sure, the French language isn’t the greatest “sing-along” language, but the music is everything from warm and fuzzy to hard and complex. These guys touch on a lot of different bases with their album, honing in a sound that seems so peculiar that it makes the listening aspect of this album a lot more fun. It definitely makes the lack of knowing what they are saying a lot more convenient. A good musical album, regardless of what they are singing.

And that’s all from this year. There is a post I put up for potential albums of the year, including links to the reviews, so if you want to see what I was considering check it out here. Hope you liked the podcast, and I hope to have a few more coming soon.