Rob Gordon style...2009

My Top 5 Albums of 2009
(keep in mind, they didn't have to come out in '09...I just had to rock them a lot this year)

The funny thing about this list is that all of them have Twitter, and I have so politely given you that information to seek them out and enjoy them as I have.
I have seen 4 of the 5 of them live this year.
3 of them I have taped myself.

I don't do reviews, folks...because it's too personal and emotional to put any kind of rating or rank on it.
These are the 5 albums that spoke the loudest to me this year.

5. Jamie Lidell - JIM (@Jamie_Lidell)
www.jamielidell.com



"All I Wanna Do", "Wait for Me" and "Little Bit of Feel Good" are my favorites from this album.
This guy is like soul and nerd and DJ all in one incredible mix of an artist.
This is the one I have not seen. Yet.



4. SOJA - Born in Babylon (@SOJALIVE)
www.sojamusic.com

I told their merch guy once that Jacob Hemphill and I must have been living parallel lives while he was writing this record.
There are several tracks on this one that I have to pause and wonder if I was being watched...

For example, this little one called "Here I Am"



And "I Tried" made it to my own 2009 soundtrack because of how accurate it is.

I have been able to see SOJA 4 times this year. They never disappoint me live.

3. The Guggenheim Grotto - Happy the Man (@GGrotto)
www.guggenheimgrotto.com

I found this band in 2006, when I helped street team and do merch for one of their labelmates. And I fell for them hook, line and sinker. Two of the nicest Irish boys I have ever met and some of the most beautiful songs I have had the privilege to hear, both recorded and live.
I cannot tell you which one is my favorite - there are so many that speak to me. Happy the Man is their 2nd album, and their first is Waltzing Alone.
If you don't have either, you need both.
And they let me tape them right at the beginning of '09.



2. Band of Skulls - Baby Darling Doll Face Honey (@bandofskulls)
www.bandofskulls.com

Let's see...October or November something I randomly came across this band online. Don't remember how. But I heard "Fires" and then downloaded the rest of the record immediately and have literally listened to it every day since.
So then, in November, I saw that they would be playing in Nashville with the soon-to-be-mentioned (again) and very obvious at this point #1 album band.
And I had to take a cold shower after seeing that lineup.
So you can only imagine (or don't...it could be dangerous) what I had to do after seeing the actual show...
My favorite from this album is "Fires", which is one of the sexiest songs I have heard this year.
But this one, "Dull Gold Heart" just gets to me. Something about it.
The whole album is like that.



1. Silversun Pickups - Swoon (@SSPU)
www.silversunpickups.com

So I read/heard/watched (who knows at this point...) an interview with them saying that Swoon implies something kind of painful, like a negative thing you just fall into without choice or warning. Most people say they swoon when they have some kind of crush or attraction or infatuation with something and don't necessarily think about it as a negative thing.
I happen to be with SSPU on this one. But it is one of those "hurts so good" things. Like a masochistic thing.
And that is one of the things I love about this band and this album.
It lets you get hurt, it lets you feel that shit and go through that shit and also has enough balance to be like "you dumb fuck, feel better, life is pretty fucking good!"
And I honestly cannot find a better way to describe 2009 for me than that.
Which is why this is the easiest #1 choice I have ever made musically. It is organic.
I saw them 6 times in 2009.
I am toying with posting a decent video for this, but my own are more important to me.
I got 4 (shame on me...illegally) at my first time in Richmond. But I am not going to show you one of those.
I am going to show you a shitty one, but a pretty important one.

45 seconds.
Ignore the background yapping. Note that I didn't zoom this one much at all.
And I can honestly say, I was definitely NOT looking closely... Oops.



Now, win that fucking Grammy.



I hope you guys get a chance to check out the ones you don't know. And let me know what you think.
Not a single one of my Top 5 are on a major label...and that is what keeps me going and loving music.
Passion is not optional...