2009 Looking Good

It's the fourth week of 2009 and we've already seen releases from such awesome artists as: A.C. Newman (of the New Pornographers), ANDREW BIRD (more about that sometime soon), Animal Collective, Antony and the Johnsons, and Bon Iver. So far these albums have all been pretttttty good. This leaves me with one theory, 2009 is going to be an awesome year for music.

What follows is a list of some artists with expected releases coming to a record store that I am particularly excited for click here for a larger list off of last.fm, that I have used to supplement my own knowledge of SOME upcoming releases (mainly consisting of the alternative/indie-whatsit genre)

FEB 02 - Ben Kweller - Changing Horses
FEB 17 - Beirut - March of the Zapotec (double EP)
MAR 10 - Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows
MAR 16 - Pete Doherty - Grace/Wastelands
MAR 24 - The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love
MAR 31 - Great Lake Swimmers - Lost Channels
MAR 31 - Peter, Bjorn & John - Living Thing
APR 14- Metric - Fantasies


Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Patrick Wolf - Battle
Silversun Pickups - Swoon
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz
Maxïmo Park - Rollerdisco Of Dreams (working title)
Kings of Convenience - (title TBA)
Muse - (title TBA)
The Strokes - (title TBA)
The White Stripes - (title TBA)
Wilco - (title TBA)
The Flaming Lips - (title TBA)
Sufjan Stevens - (title TBA)
Arctic Monkeys - (title TBA)
The Wombats - (title TBA)
The National - (title TBA)
Shout Out Louds - (title TBA)
The Shins - (title TBA)
Modest Mouse - (title TBA)
Broken Social Scene - (title TBA)
Ted Leo and The Pharmacists - (title TBA)
The Arcade Fire - (title TBA)
Klaxons - (title TBA)

The aforementioned journal entry I found this list on also states rumours of... wait for it.... wait for it Jeff Mangum / Neutral Milk Hotel WHAT?! HOW?! Man... if that turns out to be true, well that's just plain HISTORIC.


All I can say is... WOW. This year could totally beat '07 for awesome releases of bands I know and love. I mean, 2008 was a fairly good year for music, but most of the releasing came from new bands (think Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, MGMT, The Dodo's, Plants and Animals, etc.), it was a year of discovery. If new bands keep it up, and the bands listed put out some awesome albums... then... even making a top 100 releases of 2009 could be difficult.

The Best 25 Bands to Dance to

So, as MANY of you know, tonight is the legendary MIT inappropriate office party. In honour of this function I have put together a list of bands (along with recommended songs) that you may not think to dance to or may not even know about, and unless you go to beat connection, or shake appeal you probably never hear in bars.
So without further delay, here is my list:

1. Animal Collective- their hyper sound on Winter Wonderland would make anyone get out of their chair
   
2. Arcade Fire- Keep the Car running moves quickly and has a catchy chorus
3. Bloc Party- Helicopter and Banquet are my personal favourites.
   
4. Born Ruffians- Where to start? This Sentence, Hummingbird, Foxes Mate for Life, Born Ruffians are one of the funnest bands out there, and Canadian!
   
5. Broken Social Scene- It's all Going to break is a really epic song if the crowd knows it... Major Label Debut (FAST) has become one of my top songs to dance to.
   
6. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!- Such a unique sound... Is This Love? and Satan said Dance are definitely key
   
7. Crystal Castles- Even if you don't know it, you've probably heard Crystal Castles. From Toronto, in 2008 they quickly became a sensation Worldwide. Try Crimewave, Alice Practise, of Magic Spells
8. The Cure- a cult classic band, Close to Me, Pictures of You, and Friday I'm in Love are favourites at retro nights everywhere
   
9. Cut Copy- Getting more and more publicity for their electropop/danckpunk altogether wonderful 80's style synth sounds they are GREAT. Check out Feel the Love, Hearts on Fire, Lights and Music
   
10. Digitalism- Because you can't NOT dance to Pogo
    
11. Dragonette- This one may be more for a girls night... Dragonette are fantastic and breaking out, Competition and I Get Around is sure to make for a good time.
12. Girl Talk- The master of Mashups, with Girl talk everyone will know something. Bounce that, Overtime, Too Deep... I could go on, all of them are amazing.
    
13. Holy F***- If you didn't catch them at LOLA fest 2008, well, maybe you shouldn't listen to them, there will only be regret. Lovely Allen and Milkshake are Boss.
    
    
14. The Hood Internet- One of my BEST discoveries ever. Hoodinternet is all free mashups between indie gems and rap/ hip-hop favs. Absorb the Lipgloss (Lil Mama Vs. Marnie Stern), Snatch Da Crystal Cat Back (Khia Vs Dan Deacon), Can You Hear My Kids Now (Lil Kim VS MGMT), and sooo many more will be enough to addict you for life.
    
15. Hot Chip- Ready For the Floor, and Over and Over are prime songs for this indie-dance-techno band
    
16. Klaxons- Golden Scans, and It's Not Over Yet will leave you begging for more
    
17. Los Campensinos!- The exclamation mark says it all. Try You! Me! Dancing! for a good time
    
18. The Lovely Feathers- A favourite for my friends, Rome is in the Valley could probably be called our anthem.
    
19. Matt and Kim- Dash after Dash and Yeah Yea call for high kicks.
    
20. MGMT- No list is complete without MGMT. Electric Feel, Kids, and Time To Pretend were some of the best dongs of 2008. If you don't know them... where have you been?
    
21. Muse- No playlist is complete without Knights of Cydonia, or Starlight
    
22. Of Montreal- There is no band today quite as psychedelic as Of Montreal. Requiem for O.M.M.2, Grolondic Edit, and so many more are perfect additions to any party


23. Ratatat- Loud Pipes, Seventeen Years, and Swisha have no lyrics but they will be sure to get toes tapping
    
24. Shapes and Sizes- Head Movin', Alone/Alive, and Boy You Shouldn't Have will require a lot of energy for a lot of awesome beats
    
25. Wolf Parade- Dear Sons and Daughters, and Grounds for Divorce are welcome additions to any tracklist.