1. The Indelicates – David Koresh Superstar
2. Destroyer – Kaputt
3. Radiohead – The King of Limbs
4. Elbow – Build a Rocket Boys!
5. PJ Harvey – Let England Shake
6. Marissa Nadler – Marissa Nadler
7. The Twilight Singers – Dynamite Steps
8. British Sea Power – Valhalla Dancehall
9. Luke Haines – 9 1/2 Psychedelic Meditations On British Wrestling Of The 1970s and Early 80s
10. 8in8 – Nighty Night
11. Frank Turner – England Keep My Bones
12. Craft Spells – Idle Labor
13. Veronica Falls – Veronica Falls
14. Widowspeak – Widowspeak
15. EMA – Past Life Martyred Saints
16. Wilco – The Whole Love
17. Toro Y Moi – Underneath The Pine
18. Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi
19. Amanda Palmer – Amanda Palmer Goes Down Under
20. Akron/Family – S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT
21. Timber Timbre – Creep On Creepin’ On
22. The Horrible Crowes – Elsie
23. Dum Dum Girls – Always in Dreams
24. Grails – Deep Politics
25. Mogwai – Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will
26. The Horrors – Skying
27. Tori Amos – Night Of Hunters
28. Soft Metals – Soft Metals
29. Los Campesinos! – Hello Sadness
30. The Decemberists – The King Is Dead

My gut instinct is that no record released this year should make the list. Just because I’ve not had time to assess their importance. But at the same time I don’t think that’s fair to an album like The Hazards of Love, which I reckon I’ll still be listening to in 2019.

So without further ado, a first stab at a list of records from the last 10 years that I think people should own, and that in some way sum up the decade for me.

Radiohead – Kid A (2000) – To me this record redefined what a big selling record could sound like, and did a great job of sounding like everything I was currently listening to at the time (Tortoise, Jim O’Rourke, Miles Davies and a few even more esoteric things). Everything they released this decade would get into my top 100, but this is where they laid down the blueprint for what was to come. I bought this album the day I had my first interview to work at the University, and to me it perfectly sums up 2000.

Wilco – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002) – The album that introduced me to Wilco, and that marked them out as something more than just an alternative country band. It was also the first album (I think) that was streamed to listeners before it was released, and marked the first of four consecutive great albums they released between 2002-09. It was hard choosing between this, A Ghost is Born and Wilco (the album), but I think YHF just shades it, and is the one I’d recommend people start with.

The Arcade Fire – Funeral (2004) – They seemed to come out of nowhere, and to be critically acclaimed without ever being fashionable. This album was the one that really introduced me to them, and made me realise that there was something coming out of Canada that wasn’t 24 minute instrumental masterpieces or trite pop songs. I played this album to death in 2004, and still dip into it every now and again, and it is something I would recommend to anyone who likes music.

The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday (2005) – I didn’t discover this band until their 4th album (Stay Positive), but soon fell in love with their second effort from 2005. They are described as a bar band, but I see them as the 21st century version of Jack Kerouac and the best storytelling band ever. The music is loud and simple, the lyrics are narrative and hilarious, and the fact that something made in 2005 topped my listening charts for this year just goes to show it is something special.

Elbow – The Seldom Seen Kid (2008) – Last year’s album of the year by a mile, and something I keep going back to when I want to be reminded of 2008 (which was generally a good year). I’ve been a fan of theirs for a while, but this is the first album where I would recommend every single song.

1. The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
2. Wilco – Wilco (The Album)
3. The Horrors – Primary Colours
4. Portugal. The Man – The Satanic Satanist
5. Florence and The Machine – Lungs
6. Jarvis Cocker – Further Complications
7. The Big Pink – A Brief History of Love
8. Califone – All My Friends Are Funeral Singers
9. Doves – Kingdom Of Rust
10. Maxïmo Park – Quicken The Heart
11. And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – The Century of Self
12. Robyn Hitchcock – Goodnight Oslo
13. Editors – In This Light And On This Evening
14. Manic Street Preachers – Journal For Plague Lovers
15. Bear in Heaven – Beast Rest Forth Mouth
16. Julian Casablancas – Phrazes For The Young
17. Fresh Body Shop – The Ugly Army
18. Atlas Sound – Logos
19. David Byrne & Brian Eno – Everything that Happens will Happen Today
20. Monsters of Folk – Monsters of Folk

Oddly enough, three of my most played (and favourite) albums of 2009 were released prior to 2009. They slot into the top 5 as follows:

1. The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday
2. The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
3. Wilco – Wilco (The Album)
4. British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music?
5. The Hold Steady – Stay Positive

Nothing else from before 2009 got anywhere near the top 20 (American Demo by The Indelicates being the closest by some distance).

• Listening to the new albums by The Flaming Lips, Atlas Sound, Charlotte Hatherley and Broadcast (all of which I’m really enjoying)
• Updating my main workstation to Ubuntu 9.10
• Learning about Google Wave
• Trying to juggle various work tasks (and not dropping anything hopefully).

Oh, and I still hate this time of year. Even though we had no annoying begging children this year, there is still the firework-hating dog to deal with.

In other (more relevant) news, I’ve been losing myself in the new Flaming Lips album for days. It’s epic (over an hour and a half if you download the iTunes version), and a very challenging listen, but if you like music that makes you think and that is a little (lot) to the left of the mainstream then I’d very much recommend it. I’m also liking the new Califone album (for those times when I need to be soothed rather than challenged), but have otherwise not bought a great deal of new music recently.

Of course, by “recently” I mean this month.

It’s certainly well worth 11 emusic credits, and probably worth a lot more than that.

I didn’t watch the Mercury Music ceremony in the end (Dollhouse was more pressing this week), but I’m slightly disappointed with the result. I’ve heard bits of the winning album, and I don’t think it offers anything I’ve not heard before. I’d like to have seen Florence winning, but it doesn’t change the fact that “Lungs” is a great album that would appeal to most people who can appreciate music made by someone who gives a damn.

The Butcher’s Ballroom by Diablo Swing Orchestra – Another great name, and an album that I can only describe as a cross between Opera and thrash metal. Except it is a lot better than I’ve made it sound, and is the sort of thing that should be made into a musical.

Before We Stand… We Crawl by Hungry Lucy – Interesting trip hop, with a female singer who can sing, and some killer melodies to go with it.

All are freely available to download.

1 Maxïmo Park – Quicken The Heart
2 Manic Street Preachers – Journal For Plague Lovers
3 The Horrors – Primary Colours
4 Jarvis Cocker – Further Complications
5 The Wind Whistles – Animals Are People Too
6 Super Furry Animals – Dark Days/Light Years
7 The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
8 Bat for Lashes – Two Suns
9 Crazed Outlook – Double Talk
10 Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career

And then looking at everything from 1st Jan – 30th June:

1 The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
2 Maxïmo Park – Quicken The Heart
3 The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday
4 Frank Turner – Love Ire & Song + The First Three Years
5 The Hold Steady – Stay Positive
6 Modern Skirts – All Of Us In Our Night
7 And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – The Century of Self
8 British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music?
9 Manic Street Preachers – Journal For Plague Lovers
10 The Horrors – Primary Colours

So yes, I’ll do this again at the end of September.

I like this a lot. It’s lazy, charming and creative indie music, and fits the mood of a summer week off work perfectly. I’ve just downloaded two more albums in the hope that they are at least half as good (see http://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/Pinkle for a full catalogue of releases). I’d buy “The Sounds of Music” and will certainly be trying to find out more about the artist (EDIT: I’ve now found a website at http://www.pinklemusic.com which explains more).

Dinner for One by Amity in Fame

Quite heavy, in a largely acoustic way (in the same was the new Mars Volta album is). I like this, and have found that it has got better with each listen. The only downside is that I’ve not wanted to play it from end to end for reasons I can’t quite put my finger on. Certainly a burn it, although the title track in particular I’d pay for.

Animals are People Too by The Wind Whistles

A record I waited over a year for, and one which has not disappointed. The songs are shorter than the last album, but there are more of them and they have a more indie rock feel to them. None of these are a bad thing, and I would gladly file it next to “Window Sills”, which has been played a very large number of times over the last year.

So High by Le Galago

A British melodic indie group who come from Birkenhead, and sound a lot like Muse to my ears. This is not a bad thing as such, and they certainly have a sound (and in particular a singer) that could take them places. I like this, but it doesn’t tell me anything new about the world or myself, but I’m more than happy to listen to their songs when they appear on my playlist.

2 Days a Night by The Liquid Kitchen

I downloaded this a while ago, and listened to it a fair bit on my way to and from work. To my ears they sound a lot like Neil Young fronting a bar band, and I really have to remind myself on occasions that I’m not actually listening to Neil Young. Great if that is what you are after, but it seems like this really is their only trick and I’m not sure it would stretch to a second album without an input of new ideas. Worth a download though.

Born in the USB by William Doyle

I downloaded this for the title alone, but the music itself is rather fine too. It’s indie with a slight psychedelic edge, and opening track “Beneath the Soil” is possibly my favourite song of the last few weeks. It tails off a bit towards the end, but still warrants a good few listens.

If I had to list my concept albums of the 21st century, it would go something like (in no particular order):

• Frances the Mute by the Mars Volta
• Stay Positive by The Hold Steady
• Separation Sunday by The Hold Steady
• The Crane Wife by The Decemberists
• The Hazards of Love by The Decemberists
• The Raven by Lou Reed

1. The Hold Steady – Stay Positive
2. Frank Turner – Love Ire & Song + The First Three Years
3. Maxïmo Park – Quicken The Heart
4. The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday
5. The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
6. British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music?
7. And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – The Century of Self
8. Manic Street Preachers – Journal For Plague Lovers
9. Modern Skirts – All Of Us In Our Night
10. Robyn Hitchcock – Goodnight Oslo

Ok, so some of these are not from 2009, but I think it’s a fair indication of what I’ve been listening to recently. Although Jarvis Cocker’s new album would be on the list in about 2 weeks I think (the stats come from last.fm and the album is very new).

Dirty Wings by Josh Woodward – I downloaded this on the back of listening to his most recent album last week. “Dirty Wings” is less acoustic, rockier, and gets downright political in places, but is still obviously by the same person who recorded “The Simple Life”. I really like this record, have played it on several occasions over the last few days, and would recommend it as a good starting point. I’d give this a “Buy it”, but if you are burning selected tracks then go for “Gallows Hill” first.

Orgamilk and Make This End by Fresh Body Shop – I’ve only had these a couple of days, but felt they were worth a mention. “Orgamilk” is a totally acoustic record, with quite delicate melodies and some fine songwriting. “Make This End” wants to be Nine Inch Nails, and almost manages it on a couple of tracks. I’m not sure if these guys have a career plan, or are even still together, but they are certainly worth checking out in a “Burn it” kind of way.

The Intimate Stranger by Curious – This band want to be The Cure. A lot. I really wanted to like this, but I actually couldn’t make it all the way through to the end. The songwriting is ok, but the singer’s voice really grates, and they are not doing anything I’ve not heard a thousand times before. Trash this, or better still accept that I’ve suffered so you don’t have to.

Take it or Leave it by Terremoto – Great songwriting, which reminds me of the Go Betweens (who I adore). Unfortunately, the sound quality is dreadful, and some songs are almost unlistenable because of this. I really hope someone pays for them to record these songs in a proper studio, because if they did then this would be a “Buy it” record.

The new album sounds really good from the two tracks I’ve heard (Living Well is the Best Revenge and Supernatural Superserious).