The best songs of 2009 (Songs not on the top 20 albums)

Reader, wasn't 2009 a good year for music? That having been the case, there were many, many albums and songs to which I took a liking. However, some of those songs were not on the albums in my top 20. Therefore, reader, in order to prevent songs from the top 20 albums hogging the best songs list, they have been excluded.

Without further ado, reader, I present Best Of Music Blog's (the BOMB's) Top 20 songs of 2009.

20. They Might Be Giants - "Meet The Elements"

19. The Decemberists - "Sleepless"

18. Andrew Bird - "Oh No"

17. Metric - "Satellite Mind"

16. Charles Spearin - "Vanessa"

15. Gold Panda - "Quitter's Raga"

14. YACHT - "Psychic City (Voodoo City)"

13. Antony & The Johnsons - "Crazy In Love"

12. of Montreal/Jon Brion - "First Time High"

11. The Twilight Sad - "I Became A Prostitute"

10. Windmill - "Airsuit"

9. Destroyer - "Bay Of Pigs"

8. Vampire Weekend - "Cousins"

7. Passion Pit - "Sleepyhead"

6. Memory Tapes - "Graphics (Single Mix)"

5. Dirty Projectors & David Byrne - "Knotty Pine"

4. Frightened Rabbit - "Swim Until You Can't See Land"

3. Los Campesinos! - "The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future"

2. Camera Obscura - "French Navy"

1. Das Racist ft. Wallpaper. - "Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell (Wallpaper. remix)"

Romance Is Boring is the best album of 2010 (I'm pulling a Stereogum here)

Reader, I know that it is folly to hear one album that you've been looking forward to from the coming year and then declare to you that it is the best album of that year, when the year hasn't even begun (I'm looking at YOU, Stereogum. While Merriweather Post Pavilion was very, very good, it is not the best album of 2009, as a future post shall tell us,) but as of now, I will be willing to pull a Stereogum (with tongue tucked firmly in my cheek) and say that the latest release from Los Campesinos! is the best album of 2010. So far.

Ever since I started listening obsessively to "The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future," I had very high expectations for this album. I hoped, nay, reader, I knew that this album would be a 10.0 in my book. You understand my anxiety, reader, that came with actually pressing play on this album. What if I'm disappointed? What if the rest of the album is subpar and I'll be stuck obsessively listening to "The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future" screaming "Why, Los Campesinos!, Why?!"

Thankfully, reader, that is not the case. Romance Is Boring is, pardon my French, fucking awesome. It is representative of a major progression from the passive-aggressive twee of Hold On Now, Youngster... to, as my high school theater teacher would say, questions, concerns, frustration, and angst. All in the space of single songs.

Prepare yourself, reader, to not be disappointed.

9.3/10

let's you and i get to know each other (Jenny was a friend of mine)

Reader, I feel we may be still somewhat distant, you and I, and perhaps you feel the same way. Therefore, let us try and forge a stronger connection, so that we may in the future become the best of friends. I shall start by introducing myself more informally: Hello, my name is Harrison. What may I call you, reader? I think I shall call you Jennifer, because I like that name. (If, Jennifer, you are by any chance male, and dislike being referred to by such a feminine name, or are even offended that you would be given a name that does not befit your sex, perhaps you should read a different blog. I hear that TSURURADIO needs readers these days. I also heard they occasionally have pictures of naked people. You like naked people, don't you, you impostor? You're not Jennifer at all! Rather, you are some sort of ragamuffin or ramekin or crockpot! In any case, I do not wish for the likes of you, Crockpot, to come strolling around these parts. Get out of my site, wastrel!)

I must profusely apologize, Jennifer, for that long-winded and heated parenthetical aside, though you must admit, "Get out of my site" is a rather amusing and quite clever play on words. I know, Jennifer, I sometimes surprise even myself with my razor-sharp and caustic wit, but permit me to continue our conversation. Already I feel as though I've known you for many years. Don't you think so, Jennifer? Indeed, our friendship is forming fast. I realize, Jennifer, that since this is an internet friendship, you haven't the foggiest idea what I look like. Well, Jennifer, I can assure you that my looks are just as good as the next person's. Here I am on a good day:

However, at present time, Jennifer, I have just pulled an all-nighter, so I look more like this:

I must apologize for my rather uncouth appearance, Jennifer. You can see that I have forgotten to put on my hat and glasses and to grow my moustache, but I am certain that you have written some long and strenuous papers on the subject of the ego-libido in British literature in your time, so you will fully understand my current state as simply a natural aftereffect of writing such a paper.

Did you, Jennifer, listen to music when you wrote your paper? And did you, at any point, feel the urge to stop what you were doing and air drum? Was this moment, Jennifer, by any chance during your first hearing of the single mix of "Graphics" by the inestimable Memory Tapes? Why, me too! And did you, upon hearing the song, feel compelled to tell everyone via facebook status update that it was even better than the excellent album version? Why, Jennifer, you don't say! We have so much in common, Jennifer, that I am led to believe we may be long-lost siblings, separated at birth, and phenomenally have developed almost like minds. Don't you agree, Jennifer? Why, Jennifer! What would make you think I am flirting with you? If I think we are siblings, it would surely mean that the norms of American society would prevent us from making sweet love to one another, unless we had a sort of awkward Fiery Furnaces thing going on, which would be perfectly fine for me if... you're... into that...

Perhaps it is best, reader, that we remain distant. I find this a satisfactory solution, and it prevents any and all complications that would otherwise arise in a strong friendship situation. Also, reader, please realize that any statements about Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger of The Fiery Furnaces are made in jest. I sincerely hope, reader, for the future of all humanity, that he has not been Chiefly Inspecting her Blancheflower. If you catch my drift.

MP3: Memory Tapes - Graphics (Single Mix)

winter is crazy and so is this (stopping by snow on a frosty evening)

How is it, reader, that seeing the first snow of the year can be so awe-inspiring, yet at the same time instill a sense of great dread? Everything is coated in shimmering white, looking almost apocalyptic, and there you are, bundled up, knowing that this is how it will be for months to come. Snow is wonderful, reader, until you must shovel it. Then it becomes a gigantic pain in the ass.

But, reader, waxing poetic on the subject cannot do it justice like my current musical obsession. No stranger to wintry landscapes, Sweden's The Field (real name Axel Willner) makes minimal techno music that is repetitive without becoming boring. From Here We Go Sublime, his debut album, didn't receive universal critical acclaim for nothing. The sounds of Sublime are wintry, melancholic, uplifting, and have the scope of a sunrise over a white landscape and the intricacies of a snowflake. The vocal samples no longer speak recognizable words, and instead perform an ethereal, otherworldly chant, perhaps an approximation of what snow would sound like if it could sing. This is the music of clouds passing by at double speed, like this:

The songs are more than just soundscapes, reader. They are landscapes. Now, go forth and listen!

mp3: The Field - Over The Ice

mp3: The Field - Good Things End

Obligatory Introductory Post

Dear Reader of this blog,

Welcome to my blog. You have no doubt arrived here for one of two reasons: One, you arrived here by sheer coincidence, possibly through StumbleUpon. Two, you were directed here by me posting a link on a public message board. The latter seems the much more likely answer.

I understand, reader, that you may be experiencing the all-too-ubiquitous anxiety that comes from visiting a brand new blog for the first time. Perhaps you are overwhelmed by uncertainty, not knowing what sort of thing to expect from this blog. Will there be lengthy musings on the banality of everyday existence? Will there be links to videos on YouTube? Will there be deep, confessional pieces of prose? The questions are endless. I, therefore, will do my best to get you acquainted with how things will operate in my domain.

However, perhaps you, reader, have a keen eye for detail. You have no doubt, then, observed that the title of this blog is "Best Of Music Blog." You may refer to it as the "B.O.M.B." for short, if you feel so inclined. You may also have come to the conclusion that a blog with such a title would indeed be one dedicated to the preservation and survival of good taste in music. This is certainly a correct statement. You may also have deduced from the "Best Of" in the title of this blog, that the site will be composed primarily of "Best of" lists. This is not quite true. While there will certainly be lists, the majority of the writing on this site will consist of my whimsical music musings, including: first impressions of a new album, revisiting old albums, making strange connections between albums, artists, and songs, and live concert reviews, whenever possible.

Additionally, reader, you may be anxious not knowing the person behind the blog. I will strive, therefore, to have a certain degree of transparency. Without further ado, I shall introduce myself. My name is Harrison and I currently attend college. That is all I have to say about myself for the time being.

For now, this introductory post will be the only thing you see here. Don't you worry, reader. In time, more will come. Patience is a virtue, as you know.

Sincerely,
Harrison