Oh 2009 what a really really god awful year you turned out to be. Having said that, here are some of my personal highlights from the last year of the millennium’s first decade.
Favorite Song/Album:
Animal Collective – Summertime Clothes/Merriweather Post Pavilion:
Yeah, yeah, a guy in his 20′s with facial hair likes Animal Collective, I know, big shock. But I really can’t get sick of this song. I guess I’m just a sucker for a good love song that’s more interested in talking about being in love than trying to define what love is (also it’s nice when they avoid words like girl, baby, or even love). This is a song that captures the simple joy of being with that special someone doing nothing particularly special at all, and in the end walking around in our summertime clothes sounds way better than dinner and a movie.
The album, Merriweather Post Pavilion, came out in January and I’ll be honest I wasn’t very impressed at first. But as 2009 grew so did the album’s appeal, it may lack the variety of some of their earlier work, but it traded it in for something the band’s detractors have been looking for all along: cohesiveness.
Favorite Hip-Hop Song/Album
With apologies to DOOM, and Jay:
Mos Def – Supermagic/Ecstatic:
Seriously, is there anyone on planet earth as cool as Mos Def (the eternal and obvious David Bowie exception always withstanding)? Such a great track to kick off such a great return to form. Watch that video and try to go the rest of your day without mumbling “supermagic, black origin, freshly out of dopeness” under your breath.
Favorite Music Video:
Fever Ray – If I Had a Heart:
So many great videos this year! But head and shoulders above the rest for me is this one. There is so much atmosphere in each shot you might choke on it. Director Andreas Nilsson captures everything wonderful about Fever Ray/The Knife’s music–it’s sense of wonder, it’s magic, it’s mystery–and presents it in one chilling, yet beautiful package. God I hope I can figure out how to write a story that captures this mood.
Favorite Live Show:
Devo – Palladium Ballroom 3/09:
Booji’s Beautiful World:
Saw a handful of stand out shows this year, but nothing could top the classic tunes, on-stage costume changes, and duck-billed platasynth of DEVO! If you watch the imbed you can clearly hear my “YEAH!” right before the end. These guys rocked so much harder than a lot of bands I’ve seen who are half their age (including the TERRIBLE local boys who somehow got to play the opening spot). Such a great time, good to know they still got it.
Fave Film:
Where the Wild Things Are*
Ok, giant asterisk by this one since I’m still desperately playing catch up with a lot of my ’09 must sees.
I’ve seen some amazing films this year: Inglorious Basterds, Up, Hurt Locker, but I think the thing that sets WTWTA apart for me is there has been no other film this year I’ve had as much fun talking about with people. I really think psychologists could start gauging someone’s reaction to this film as a substitute for the Rorschach test. I’ve heard people describe it as a divorce allegory, I’ve seen people nearly weep as they describe the hidden past traumas that this film brought to the surface, and then I’ve seen people smile and say the film made them want to be a kid all over again. The opus Jonze and writer Dave Eggers have made out of a few brief sentences is humbling, magical, and though no one can say where to, it is undeniably moving.
I would love to talk about best book, comic, TV show, etc. but sadly I’m way too far behind on all of them to honestly evaluate. But off the top of my head:
Best Book I read this year: Dhalgren by Samuel Delany
Best TV show I started watching for the first time: 30 Rock (yeah, yeah, always late to the game)
Best Comic: OUTLAW TERRITORY! No, really, probably Scott Pilgrim vol 5, but everyone and I mean EVERYONE needs to check out this book by my good friends Len Wallace, Michelle Silva, and Dave Tuney. It is awesome.
So goodbye 2009, goodbye 00′s, I look forward to spending the next 10 years drinking you out of my memory.
