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1. Black Cocaine The other day I got an email from Havoc, otherwise known as Kejuan Muchita, otherwise known as one half of the legendary hip hop duo Mobb Deep. The email let me know of the release of a new EP called Black Cocaine. This was good news, as I am a fan. Upon my arrival home, I downloaded the EP. Did I listen to a 30 second sample? No. Did I go on Amazon or iTunes and see how many stars people were giving it? No. Did I check out the hip hop bloggerati to see what the pundits were saying? No. Did I engage in a spirited discussion with some fool who thinks Prodigy (Havoc's partner) lost it 10 years ago? No. I simply downloaded it. After all, it's by Mobb Deep and it's called Black Cocaine. There are few guarantees in this life but that's one of them. If it's by Mobb Deep and it's called Black Cocaine, it will be good. And it is good - very, very good. So go buy it. If you must sample a song, watch this gruesome video. You'll wish you had just bought the EP.
2. Pusha T Otherwise known as Terrance Thornton, Pusha is one half of the not quite legendary but still astounding hip hop duo Clipse, known for some of the finest hip hop albums of the new millennium. After recording some staggering verses with Kanye West as part of the My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy project, the next logical step for Pusha was a solo album which, in the style of the day, was heralded by a free mix tape over the summer called Fear Of God. Unfortunately, except for the hypnotic Raid, which featured 50 Cent's best work since Blood Money with Mobb Deep, the collection was a stiff. Rote beats, unimaginative hooks, and just a few of Pusha's patented "young black Socrates" zingers. So when RCRD LBL let me know of a new track called Body Work from Fear Of God 2, my hopes were not high. And it turned out to be lame. But somehow in the aftermath of my earlier disappointment, I had missed the September release of a track by him pithily entitled Don't Fuck With Me, which I now discovered.
Just seeing the title reminded me of the time when a contemporary novelist expressed her frustration with the fact that Anthony Trollope had written a novel called The Way We Live Now - in 1875. "Shouldn't every novel be called that?" she asked. Well, shouldn't (nearly) every rap song be called Don't Fuck With Me? But it took Pusha to do it and it's pure genius. Download it for free from RCRD LBL - and sign up for their excellent emails while you're at it. Sometimes one great song can make up for a lot of duds.
Time to get cracking on that Best of 11 list...cheers.
The Other Ten: Rather than an ordered list, this is more of an overview of 10 other records that I really enjoyed from 2009.
Justin Vernon Deals With Success
After listening to the masterful debut for the better part of a year, Bon Iver's Blood Bank EP felt somewhat like an epilogue but the songs it contained were certainly more than b-side material. Woods,the final song, is a lush exploration of what a true artist can pursue with Autotune.
Vernon also collaborated with some old friends on Unmap, released under the name Volcano Choir. A sort of campfire minimalism propels some of the pieces and the wide dynamic range recalls Peter Broderick's brilliant Home. If not for a few self-indulgent tangents, this might have been in the Top Ten - it's a richly rewarding listen.
For anyone not convinced of Vernon's sheer greatness as a singer, find his spine-tingling performance in NPR's podcast of the Dark Was The Night concert here.
Competing With Themselves
It was wonderful to have new albums from both The Clientele and Tinariwen, however neither one surpassed their amazing previous releases with their 2009 entries. Bonfires On The Heath finds The Clientele in an autumnal mood, with the more delicate songs flickering like cupped flames. Tinariwen's Imidiwan:Companions creates a dust storm of their distinctive guitar-driven hypnotism. Desert Wind, the meditative finale, could have gone on forever without complaint from me.
Brand New You're Retro
Both Mayer Hawthorne and Major Lazer are masters of styles created by others in the recent and not so recent past. Part of the fun of both of these is the conceptual framework - the Warhol touch, if you will - that seems to underpin them. Now, that could all be in my head but that is exactly where I listen to music so it works for me. To a point.
A Strange Arrangement, the all-singing, almost-all-playing debut from dynamite DJ Hawthorne, takes us through a variety of soul styles the way only a true crate-digger can. Folks like Raphael Saadiq and Eli Reed may have more sheer talent but they bring no perspective to bear on their perusals of the past. However, Hawthorne's voice can sometimes seem as slight as the running-length of the album.
Guns Don't Kill People...Lazers Do is a project of genius producers Diplo and Switch and listening to the whole album is a little like spending time with the nutty friend-of-a-friend who just doesn't know when to stop. In small doses, however, their twisted simulacra of reggae and dancehall tropes is delightful. There was no way the blissful Cash Flow was not going to be heard during my New Year's Eve DJ set. And it rocked the house.
Lazy Dylan Is Better Than No Dylan
After the run of three masterpieces followed by the jaw-dropping Tell Tale Signs, naturally I had very high hopes for Together Through Life. They weren't entirely dashed - the record got a lot of play. Yet while the tossed off music (along with Dylan's sepulchral cackles) was often a blast, the lazy lyrics often dragged me back to earth. I choose to blame it on Robert Hunter, his co-writer on many of the songs. If you're a fan, don't hesitate to pick it up - and get the deluxe version with an entertaining episode of his Theme Time Radio hour.
Underdogs, It's Gonna Be Alright
The great Virginia hip hop duo Clipse and Congolese collective Staff Benda Bilili would seem to have little in common but they are both underdogs in their way. Staff was formed by polio survivors who developed a joyful sound that can be deeply funky. The signature sound of the band on Tres Tres Fort is the homemade satonge, a one-string guitar played by Roger Landu. On occasion he seems to be trying so hard to play wildly unexpected runs that his solos (and there are a lot of them) gradually become predictable. He's only 17 so I expect much more from him and the group.
With two all-time classics under their belt (not to mention the amazing We Got It For Cheap mixtapes), Clipse might still feel like underdogs what with the record industry kicking them around and, to my mind, less appreciation than they deserve. However in a decade where if you're name wasn't Jay-Z, Little Wayne or Kanye you were practically persona non rappa Pusha T and Malice definitely made their mark. A full celebration was planned for the release of Til The Casket Drops, but the cork got a little stuck in the Champagne bottle. The first seven tracks are nearly up to snuff, all booming bass and braggadocio, with odd beats and gleaming touches. Then things fall off to grab bag level. For the first time, I started skipping tracks on a Clipse album. There Was A Murder is one great track - best hip hop of the year.
Missed It By That Much
I tried to listen to every list candidate before publishing the last entry. However, it wasn't until 12/31 that I got to hear Efterklang's Performing Parades. This is a live recording with the Danish National Chamber Orchestra of their 2007 masterpiece. The live setting and additional musicians adds depth to their modernist music and, surprisingly, more rock heft. They are true artists - I can't wait to watch the DVD.
And you? What floated your boat in 2009?
In two weeks: Highlights, lowlights, reissues and buried treasures.
