2009 was a strange year. I spent most of it grumbling about a shortage of quality music only to fall completely in love with several amazing albums at the end of the year. This explains (at least partially) why over half the albums on my Top 10 list were new to my site. There just wasn’t enough time to write about them all before the end of the year (full disclosure: there was definitely some laziness mixed in there too).

But good music is good music, regardless of how long it takes me to finally write about it. To make amends for the many albums that slipped through the cracks in 2009 (and in general), I’m introducing a new series called “Better Late Than Never,” or BLTN for short. It will feature music that I’ve been listening to for a while but haven’t yet written about on my site.

The first installment in the series is Union, the fantastic sophomore album by The Boxer Rebellion. It landed at #7 on my Top 10 Albums of 2009 list and (amazingly) grabbed the top spot in the alternative genre at the iTunes store.

I’m surprised by this because, on first listen, Union comes off sounding a little cold and uninviting. If given the proper amount of time, however, this initial bleakness fades to reveal complex layers of beauty and emotion. Union is a definite grower, much like Frightened Rabbit’s Midnight Organ Fight (though the two albums sound nothing alike). If forced to make lazy comparisons, I’d say The Boxer Rebellion sound like a cross between Interpol and Sigur Rós. Mainly because of the shimmering guitars and soaring vocals.

The track post below is the most accessible on Union. It also happens to be my favorite. It’s called “Soviets.” Enjoy!

[mp3] The Boxer Rebellion :: Soviets

I just realized it’s been well over a month since I last posted an mp3 and almost 3 months since my last Mike Mix! I sincerely apologize. Now that my year-end coverage is officially complete, I will return to my normal schedule. And I have a lot to write about. Over the past few months, I’ve become obsessed with a handful of amazing albums. I hope to write about each one in the coming weeks. I might even come up with a catchy title for the feature. Stay tuned.

But before I do that, I have a brand new Mike Mix to introduce. A quick glance at the track list (below) reveals that nearly half of the songs come from only two bands: Loney, Dear and Annuals. If you’ve never heard these two artists before, Mike Mix 12 will serve as an excellent introduction to them. Make sure to check out the track “Always Do.” The pedal steel and soaring middle section of the song are truly incredible.

Scattered between these tracks are dusty gems by some of my all-time favorite bands. Highlights include: “Metal Detektor,” an effortlessly cool number by Spoon; “Uprooted,” a slow-burning anthem from The Antlers; and “About Today,” a slice of late-night perfection by The National.

As always, I highly recommend listening to Mike Mix 12 in the order presented below. Download the entire mix here or stream it using the player below! Enjoy!

Initially I didn’t think I could write this post. It seemed like an impossible task. How on earth was I supposed to come up with and then rank my favorite albums from the past decade? I have enough trouble doing it for just one year. There’s simply too much good music out there (despite my occasional whining to the contrary).

But when I really started thinking about it, I came to the following conclusion: a decade is a terrible thing to waste. In all reality, I may not get another opportunity like this. After all, who knows what I’ll be doing ten years from now. Also, musically speaking, the past decade was an important one for me. Over the course of ten years, my muted appreciation of music gradually transformed into a full-blown obsession. I now spend most of my free time searching for, writing about, and listening to music.

In the end I guess it was a pretty easy decision. I would’ve been extremely foolish to let the decade pass without weighing in on my favorite albums. It was a lot of work, but I managed to compile a list of my 30 favorite albums from 2000-2009. Not necessarily the best or most important albums, but those that had the greatest impact on me.

With all that said, I proudly present the Top 30 Albums of the Decade…

ALBUMS 30 – 21

ALBUMS 20 – 11

ALBUMS 10 – 1

Like I said, compiling this list was no easy task. In the end, tons of amazing albums got axed. Check the comments to see which ones barely missed the cut. And leave comments to let me know which albums I missed completely!

Throughout most of 2009, I struggled to find inspiration to write on my blog. If not for my monthly Mike Mixes, my site would’ve been rather quiet. So what gives? After some thought, I’ve decided that 2009 just wasn’t that great of a year for music. There was plenty of hype but very few albums actually delivered.

With that said, I’m pleasantly surprised by how my list shaped up this year. Initially I couldn’t even come up with 10 albums worthy of the honor. But after spending several weeks reexamining the year’s output, I’ve assembled a list of 10 truly amazing albums. Normally I would write short blurbs about each one but I’m a little tired after the New Year’s Day tragedy (aka accidentally deleting my entire website and having to rebuild it from scratch).

So without further ado, I present the Top 10 Albums of 2009…

I kick off my year-end coverage with the Top 10 Songs of 2009. Unlike previous years, I assigned a specific order to the songs on the list. Click any of the cells below to download individual tracks, or grab all ten here. You can also stream the entire mix using the flash player at the end of the post.

THE BIG PINK :: VELVET A late addition to the list, “Velvet” is big, dramatic, and grabs your attention on first listen. Too bad the rest of The Big Pink’s debut can’t quite measure up to this fantastic song.

FANFARLO :: I’M A PILOT This song pretty much has it all: great lyrics, gorgeous strings, beautiful piano melodies, thunderous drums, and (of course) an epic climax.

DEER TICK :: SMITH HILL What’s the best way to lament losing your true love? There are many options, but on “Smith Hill” Deer Tick choose to sing an incredible, soaring chorus. I think it’s pretty effective.

CAMERA OBSCURA :: FORESTS AND SANDS I’m not the biggest Camera Obscura fan, but something about “Forests and Sands” really gets me. I love how the instrumentation perfectly matches the sorrowful lyrics.

HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF :: DANIELLA I’ve said this before but it needs repeating: the intro to “Daniella” is one of the most beautiful and relaxing pieces of music I’ve ever heard. The rest of the song is icing on the cake.

BUILT TO SPILL :: THINGS FALL APART The song title pretty much says it all. On “Things Fall Apart” Built to Spill temporarily abandon their signature detachment for a more personal (and vulnerable) sound.

LONEY, DEAR :: DISTANT LIGHTS I had a very difficult time picking just one song from Dear John. On an album full of amazing tracks, “Distant Lights” shines slightly brighter than the rest.

ARCTIC MONKEYS :: DANCE LITTLE LIAR Every time I listen to this song I fall in love with a different part. First it was the hair-raising guitar solo. Then the monstrous drum beat. Now the cryptic lyrics. I can’t wait to see what’ll be next!

BRAND NEW :: BOUGHT A BRIDE On “Bought a Bride” Brand New sound almost unhinged. I thought their old material was as intense as it gets. I was wrong. This song is on another level.

THE ANTLERS :: TWO This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. I’ve been obsessed with this song since first hearing it back in June. Heartbreaking and epic, “Two” is damn near perfect.

Do you think I left out a song or two? You’re probably right. Let me know what I’m missing by leaving a comment!

As it turns out, every song on Mike Mix 11 is new to my site. I don’t know how this happened, but needless to say I have my work cut out for me.

So I guess I’ll start with the obvious: Mike Mix 11 features a ton of great music. And it starts out firing on all cylinders. After almost two minutes of quiet noodling, the first track, “Brother” by Annuals, explodes in a cacophony of guitars, drums, and violins. The next two songs keep the pedal to the floor. “Percussion Gun” by White Rabbits rides a thunderous drum beat while “Quiet Little Voices” by We Were Promised Jetpacks soars on a relentless guitar riff. It’s hard to imagine a more energetic start to a mix.

Following this fiery opening is a trilogy of fantastic songs. “Y’all Come Back Now” by Ten Kens is one hundred percent badass. “Available” by The National is the angriest, most bitter song the band’s ever recorded. And “Papillon” by The Twilight Singers is dark yet surprisingly upbeat.

The second half of Mike Mix 11 doesn’t quite pack the same punch as the first. But what it lacks in energy it makes up for with raw emotion. “Lies I’ve Told” by Yarn is completely devastating. So too is “Fool” by Cat Power, though for different reasons. In “Lies I’ve Told” the lyrics break your heart, whereas in “Fool” the instrumentation paints an overwhelmingly bleak picture. But the second half isn’t all doom and gloom, however. The mix closes on a relatively upbeat note with “Epilogue,” the soaring finale from Hospice by The Antlers.

As always, I highly recommend listening to Mike Mix 11 in the order presented below. Download the entire mix here or stream it using the player below! Enjoy!

Ryan Adams’ Cold Roses has everything a good country album should: weepy ballads (”How Do You Keep Love Alive”), rollicking barn-burners (”Let It Ride” and “If I Am a Stranger”), and bittersweet love songs (”Dance All Night” and “Friends”). The album’s diversity of sound is truly impressive. It got me through both good and bad times.

Quite naturally, I’ve been searching for more albums like Cold Roses. Josh Ritter’s Golden Age of Radio came pretty close. But a few weeks ago I found something even better: Transcendental Blues by Steve Earle. If that name sounds familiar it’s because I’ve mentioned his son Justin Townes Earle a few times before on my site.

Much like Cold Roses, Transcendental Blues features a remarkable range of sound. There are country rockers (”The Galway Girl”) and barroom bawlers (”Lonelier Than This” and “Over Yonder”). But that’s where the similarities end. Transcendental Blues is an entirely different experience. It sounds grittier and more mature than Cold Roses. Earle’s gravelly southern drawl provides the perfect accompaniment to the tales of hardship, disappointment, and regret that abound in his music.

The two tracks posted below anchor the middle of Transcendental Blues. Despite their side-by-side placement on the album, the songs couldn’t be more different. “The Galway Girl” makes you wanna dance while “Lonelier Than This” makes you wanna cry, highlighting Earle’s impressive range.

Transcendental Blues is my first experience with Steve Earle. It certainly won’t be my last; the man has 13 studio albums to his name. Looks like I’ve got some work to do!

[mp3] Steve Earle :: The Galway Girl
[mp3] Steve Earle :: Lonelier Than This

Much like its older siblings, Mike Mix 10 is packed with tons of great music. And while I always recommend listening to the mix in its entirety, a few tracks stand above the rest.

The first is “Sublime” by The Twilight Singers. Drifting dangerously close to adult-contemporary, the song features sultry vocals, whiny guitars, and some unbelievably cheesy whispering during the bridge. In anyone else’s hands this song would be a train wreck, but The Twilight Singers make it sound heartfelt and sincere.

The second is “Trailer Trash” by Modest Mouse. Replete with depressing lyrics and fantastic guitar work, the song is vintage Modest Mouse. If you enjoyed “Broke” on Mike Mix 09, you’ll love “Trailer Trash.” Self-loathing never sounded so good.

And the third is “Love Vigilantes” by Iron & Wine. Originally recorded by New Order, the song tells the story of a soldier returning home after war. I would say more but I don’t want to give too much away. Just listen to the song. You’ll quickly discover why I love it so much.

But don’t forget there are 12 more songs on Mike Mix 10. I’ve written about a handful of them previously, but several are appearing on my site for the first time. There’s the sinister “DLZ,” the creepy-but-achingly-gorgeous “Borrowed Your Gun,” and the heartbreaking “Miss Me.” Listen to them all and let me know your favorites!

Download the entire mix here or stream it using the player below. Enjoy!

A couple years ago I briefly mentioned the Swedish band Loney, Dear on my site. You probably don’t remember this because the few sentences I wrote about them were pretty pathetic. I’d just discovered their album Loney, Noir and didn’t yet know what to think of it.

As it turns out, I never really made up my mind. That didn’t stop me from downloading their previous album Sologne. But after nearly a dozen listens, I still couldn’t decide whether I liked it or not.

So when Loney, Dear released Dear John earlier this year, I didn’t rush out to buy it. In fact, it sat on my “Save For Later” list on eMusic for several months. Then one random day I decided to give it a try. I don’t remember what prompted me to do it, but it was a fantastic decision.

Darker and more complex than its two predecessors, Dear John is an incredible album. Its shiny pop veneer masks feelings of loneliness, regret, and melancholy. I’ve never heard an album that bounces around so effortlessly between happy and sad. It might take a few spins before the album’s greatness hits you, but when it finally does, you won’t want to listen to anything else. For these reasons, Dear John has undoubtedly secured a spot on my year-end list.

I’ve posted three tracks below. The first two (”Summers” and “Distant Lights”) are my favorites from Dear John. The last one (”Sinister In a State of Hope”) is the song that got me into Loney, Dear in the first place.

[mp3] Loney, Dear :: Summers
[mp3] Loney, Dear :: Distant Lights
[mp3] Loney, Dear :: Sinister In a State of Hope

Every time I make a new Mike Mix I’m amazed by how much good music falls through the cracks over time. After all, only a small number of songs on each mix have been featured previously on my site. There simply isn’t enough time to write about them all.

Which is why I love making these mixes so much: songs that otherwise would’ve remained permanently buried finally see the light of day. The 14 tracks of Mike Mix 09 are no exception. Many of them are appearing on my site for the first time; most of them should’ve been posted months ago.

With all that said, it’s time to introduce Mike Mix 09.

Despite its quiet start, Mike Mix 09 packs quite a punch. “Lookout Mountain” by Drive-By Truckers rocks incredibly hard; “Else” by Built to Spill bounces around nervously; and “Only In Dreams” by Weezer builds to an epic climax. At the opposite end of the spectrum, “My Lady’s House” by Iron & Wine plods along gently while “The Blackest Crow” by Justin Rutledge quietly refuses to end (in a good way).

As always, I highly recommend listening to Mike Mix 09 in the order presented below. Download the entire mix here or stream it using the player below! Enjoy!