2009 According to Steve

writing a personal 2009 music summary is really hard. it feels a bit stupid to say that i avoided all party music, but it is actually the truth.. instead of nodding away to bangers, i found myself chasing the more refined sounds of disco and chillwave. which was ok cos it was apparently a great year for the more chin-strokey and misty-eyed beats anyway:

Washed Out - Feel It All Around

some people might say that 2009 was the year of dubstep. i on the other hand would argue that it was the year of dream-pop and nu-disco.. boat club, toro y moi and memory tapes may have all flown that dream-pop flag high with some amazing releases, but the simplicity, reverb and "oooooooo's" put forth by washed out's 'feel it all around' managed to cradle me into misty-eyed bliss more any of them.

Telefon Tel Aviv - Helen of Troy

i had this song jammed solidly on repeat for basically the entire start of '09. their album 'immolate yourself' may have been a fantastically whacked out prog-journey in itself, but as a single, 'helen of troy' was like the soundtrack to my dad and i discussing the meaning of life. an absolute standout.

D-Pulse - Highway To Saturn

the disco genre apparently decided to take in the intergalactic scenic drive in '09.. cosmic tracks were plentiful, and i have to say that the mateship of strong funky basslines and echoey, soaring vintage synths really floated my boat. big time. to me, d-pulse's 'highway to saturn' epitomises this cosmic '09 sound. funky, classy and oh-so-cool, this track may be more 'logan's run' than '2001: a space odyssey', yet definitely does not suffer for it.

Space - Just Blue (Ichisan's Quatro Diversion)

sitting proudly alongside lindstrom & prins thomas, d-pulse, acos coolkas et al as the solar crown princes of this cosmic sound is ichisan. powerful, all-encompassing productions are ichisan's game and in '09 he certainly played well.
this remix that he turned in for the space remixes project pushed my buttons in every way.. epic, pounding pianos, rolling basslines and more drama than your nye with the phantom of the opera.

Lindstrom & Prins Thomas - Gudene Vet + Snutt

where to start with a duo like lindstrom and prins thomas? 2009 again presented these guys with a commanding view of the lush disco landscape after several top-notch remixes and a couple of impressive lp's between them.
it is hard to pick one stand-out track from them, but the hammock-inspiring "gudene vet + snutt" was an absolute standout from the majestic "II".. rocking a distinctly relaxed air-air, this track is truly all orange sunshine and yellow sand: summery disco at its very finest.
i know i talk about songs being soundtracks to things very often, but if this song was the soundtrack to anything, it would be this.

DOWNLOAD STEVE'S 2009 (zip file)

DOWNLOAD ENTIRE BLOUSE BEST OF 2009 (zip file - 187mb)

Honourable Mentions:

Miike Snow - Silvia
Siriusmo - High Together
Tesla Boy - Neon Love
Toby Tobias - In Your Eyes (Tensnake Remix)
Memory Tapes - Green Knight
Junior Boys - Parallel Lines
Fever Ray - Dry & Dusty

2009 According to Omar

It's a new year, it's a new decade.

Lots of cool sounds went through the blouse office in '09 and it's hard to rank these tunes from 'great' to 'made our year'. So here's a slice of some tracks we liked as a reminder of the memories made in 2K9.

Major Lazer – Pon De Floor

The first time i heard this song i repeatedly cried out “YES, YES, YESSSS!!!” It’s the greatest party starter i’ve heard in a very long time, rubbing a dirty Dancehall beat in your lap while rabid laser samples and militant snares completely annihilate whatever senses you have left after the first 90 seconds.

Animal Collective – Brother Sport

This is an ode to mateship employing kooky samples and symbolistic lyrics. It sounds a bit jarring until the build-up begins, which culminates in an afrobeat mashup of tangled samples and disjointed synths before bouncy harmonies bring it all together.

Washed Out – Phone Call

Released on the cassette-only album High Times, this track is not one of Ernest Greene’s most popular. But its summery, Mungo Jerry-esque piano riffs and gushing harmonies are testament to what’s so good about post-electro indie. It’s Lo-fi, it’s Chillwave and it symbolises summer. Guess time will tell if it lasts the winter too.

Telefon Tel Aviv – M

'M' is a dark synth-fest married to moody vocals. Carrying with it the zeitgeist of New Wave with unusual confidence, the eerie nature of this track hints at the intense emotional depths band member Charles Cooper might have entered before he was found dead, the result of an alleged suicide, two days after the release of Immolate Yourself.

Florence & The Machine – Dog Days Are Over

This project has received remarkable hype this year. The opening track to Lungs encapsulates a folk aesthetic that’s ‘big’ enough for a stadium, yet yielding enough for headphones. It strikes the perfect balance between fist-in-the-air up-tempo rock and group hugging at a Janis Joplin acoustic gig.

DOWNLOAD OMAR'S 2009 (zip file)

DOWNLOAD ENTIRE BLOUSE BEST OF 2009 (zip file - 187mb)

Honourable Mentions:

Fuck Buttons – Space Mountain
Junior Boys – Bits & Pieces
Midnight Juggernauts – This New Technology
Bachelorette – Her Rotating Head
Logo – Junocide
La Roux – Quicksand
Grizzly Bear – Two Weeks
Phoenix – Lisztomania
Neon Indian – Deadbeat Summer
The Flaming Lips – Silver Trembling Hands