Best of 2009

A month later, a new post.

A few years ago I started keeping track of my favorite shows, events, movies, and music of that particular year. Somewhere along the way I started to mix up when things came out but 2009 has been a very fun year overall. So without further opening rambling I present to you The Best of 2009!

AUSTIN LUCAS Somebody Loves You

I first heard a single demo from Austin Lucas late last year and wound up playing it non stop on a drive from Phoenix to Tuscon. This whole album is just unbelieveable. While the idea of "alt country" may be a worn out catchphrase, it does a serviceable job explaining the sound of this album. Listen below if you haven't heard Mr. Lucas just yet.



Under the Influence

Last year Suburban Home Records started a series they called "Under The Influence". The series revolved around current artists covering bands that have greatly influenced them. Some of my favorite songs of the year have come from this series. Lemuria covering The Pixies, Frank Turner covering Bruce Springsteen, Austin Lucas covering Dolly Parton, and more have opened my ears to many great bands and great songs. Take a shot with any of the tracks below, some may not be to your liking and some may be a little rough but all of them have been great.





Chuck Ragan - Gold Country
Not all of my favorite releases came from Suburban Home/Vinyl Collective, but Chuck Ragan's "Gold Country" sure sounds like it could have. From doing solo shows to the Revival Tour, ChucK Ragan has covered a lot of ground this year, much like he has the last 15 or so. "Good Enough For Rock n Roll", while not the best track on the album, gets stuck in my head atleast once a day. Don't have anything to stream so I'll throw out the myspace page http://www.myspace.com/chuckragan and this:



New Found Glory
New Found Glory: Everyone's favorite guilty pleasure and legitimately one of my favorite bands of all time put out the alleged comeback album: Not Without A Fight. This album from top to bottom is awesome. I won't go so far as to say its my absolute favorite, but it is really close. I honestly can't say enough about it, but I'll try and show you some of it here:



Thursday - Common Existence

A number of years ago I saw Thursday and was blown out of the water. They became one of my favorite bands within seconds of hearing them. Their newest album "Common Existence" was a continuation, not a return to, form for this band. While many still bemoaned that it isn't like their first few albums, I have to disagree. This album shreds from start to finish. Check some of it out here:



Lemuria - Ozzy 7in

A year without a release from Lemuria wouldn't be a good year at all. As it is, 3 new songs is still better than nothing. This album has some of the best packaging of any album in recent memory with a cardboard fold over encasement housing the vinyl itself. The songs themselves further push into indie rock territories continuing to balance the female/male vocal dynamic the band has come to be known for. You can check out the release here (scroll down for artwork of the Lemuria record) http://hanginghex.blogspot.com and you can check out Lemuria themselves here http://www.myspace.com/lemuria. Here's a live taste of Ozzy:



There will definitely be more labels, artists, shows and Best of 2009 over the next few days so feel free to come back and check it all out. Also be sure to come back for a potential Best of 2000 to 2009 if I can remember to write it up in a timely fashion.

Thanks for reading, and remember the sage like wisdom of Bill S Preston Esq and Ted Theodore Logan "Be excellent to each other!"