2009 Round-Up Part 4 – Best Albums (Top 10)

A few days later than planned, here is my Top 10 Albums of 2009 in full. If you missed the first part (numbers 25-11) you can find it here. Expect top 10 gigs to follow soon, and in the next week or so expect normal gig diary service to resume. Keen to hear other people’s top albums of the year so do leave a comment if you’ve gone to the trouble of compiling a list too.

10. Manic Street Preachers – Journal For Plague Lovers

When the Manics announced that they were to record a new album using lyrics left behind by (missing, presumed dead, original guitarist & lyricist) Richey Edwards there was a mixed response. Would they still be capable of writing songs worthy of Richey’s lyrics? Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when the answer turned out to be a big yes! Combining their renewed energy and catchy tunes of previous album ‘Send Away The Tigers’ with the darkness of Richey’s lyrics, and early masterpiece ‘The Holy Bible’ it was a winning formula. An album that manages to sound modern, but still part of the early Manics (and Richey’s) legacy. No ‘hit singles’ to be found, but a great solid album that has managed to surprise a lot of people this year.

[Listen on Spotify]

2009 Round-Up Part 3 – Various Stats & Lists

Being a music geek I have to admit I’m a bit of a fan of stats & lists. This very reason is why sites like Last.fm and Songkick. They allow music geeks like me to track who they have seen & listened to, and then present them back in some nice lists, as well as gathering some great data about people’s listening habits and gig attendance as a whole, not just on an individual basis.

So before I reveal (i.e. finish writing) my top albums and gigs of the year, here are some of the ‘highlights’ of what I’ve been up to taken from those very sites. If you get bored easily by lists, look away now!

What albums am I missing this year?

It’s getting to that time of year where everyone is publishing their ‘albums of the year’ list, and so I’ve started thinking about mine. I’m starting to become aware of the many albums getting lots of praise that I have yet to hear, so thought it was worth asking the question – what should I listen to that I might have missed this year?