2009 - The Midway Point

Now halfway through 2009, here are the five best records I've bought this year so far:

5. Grizzly Bear's Veckatimest - One of those rare peaceful albums that becomes catchier the more you listen to it. You might find yourself humming songs like "Fine For Now" and "About Face" at work, even though they are as creepy as they are beautiful. I'm still amazed that this is the indie rock album to debut in the Billboard top ten (they debuted at number 8), but it almost couldn't happen to better people.

4. U2's No Line On The Horizon - There have been a few good big-name rock releases this year (Green Day and Dave Matthews Band included) but this is the one I keep coming back to. Extended art pieces like "Unknown Caller" are a great way to fill space between big stadium rockers like "I'll Go Crazy...", which might be the best single not to be released as a single so far this year. Wow, a U2 album with some legs - it has been awhile.

3. St. Vincent's Actor - Click here to watch her make her TV debut on David Letterman; this is one of the strangest songs ever attempted on national TV. I love it. I have no idea why she would attempt "Marrow" here when she had more "conventional" tracks like "Laughing With A Mouth Of Blood" and "Actor Out Of Work" to choose from, but I don't think anything about this girl is conventional. She's an even crazier Fiona Apple, and this album destroys output from any other female singer/songwriter album this year - or most in recent memory.

2. The Dream's Love Vs. Money - I think losing Michael Jackson makes me love this record more, because clearly The Dream wants to be the one to carry his legacy. Classic soul songwriting get modernized with club synths and a killer sense of humor. "Rockin That Shit" is the hip-hop single of the year so far.

1. Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion - Nothing else this year is even close. This might be the first time I've ever seen an album come out in January that won't get touched all year. In January, I thought this was a good album. In June, I think it's a masterpiece along the same lines as Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and Kid A. By December, who knows how much I'll love this album. Uplifting and stunningly imaginative, this is what you need if you only buy one record this year.