tuneage : everyone deserves good music

Richard Swift - “Lady Luck” *

Well, it’s that time of year again. You know this time of year: when all the music blogs get together and decide how they’re all going to post the same 10 albums in different orders, with maybe one or two curveballs thrown in for ‘flair’.

Tuneage will of course participate in this year-end circle-jerk round-up, but we like to think ours is slightly different. First, we don’t post a single list (we’re far too lazy to get together to come up with a single list and argue over whether Merriweather Post Pavilion was really better than Veckatimest or just better hyped). Second, we’re posting our favorite albums of the year. Sure, they may not be the best (technically speaking), but they’re the ones we enjoyed the most…and I’d rather hear about the music someone really liked, rather than what they appreciate for its technical merits.

OK, enough babbling, here are my favorite albums of 2009 (in alphabetical order)…

Bill’s Favorites of 2009:

• Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
• Bibio - Ambivalence Avenue
• jj - nº 2
• Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
• The xx - xx

Much like last year’s list, I don’t think there’s much surprise here, but I’ve listened to each of these albums a few dozen times each over the course of the year and I have yet to grow tired of any of them. And if that’s not enjoying an album, I don’t know what is.

* Although his album, The Atlantic Ocean, didn’t quite make my favorites-of-the-year list,”Lady Luck” was easily one of my favorite songs of the year and somehow hadn’t been posted here yet. Oops, that makes two of these this week.

jj - “My Love”

I can tell I love an album when my favorite song on the album changes every time I listen to it, and that’s exactly what happens when I listen to jj’s jj nº 2. Found on the same label as Tuneage favorites Air France and The Tough Alliance, jj find themselves doing a similar kind of electronic/island-infused pop that’s easy and pleasing to listen to. It’s not challenging (although you’d be remiss to call it overly simplistic), it’s not pretentious, it’s not in-your-face, it’s just…good. I’ve listened to this album dozens of times (I find it’s best enjoyed in the morning, or in the late-afternoon with drink in hand) this summer, and I show no signs of stopping any time soon.