Various - NME Album 2009

  by Kelly Smith

published: 13 / 12 / 2009

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Review

As the year draws to a close, it seems there are certain annual albums whose release is as inevitable as too-early festive decorations, last minute present panic and the everlasting naivety that maybe, possibly, this year, it will snow on Christmas Day. Looking past the literal never ending procession of 'Now That’s What I Call Music' albums (what are they on now, like number 865?), 'NME The Album 2009' is full of this year’s alt/indie hits, along with some tracks you may not have heard before but which are nearly always worth a listen. Special mention must go to the Temper Trap’s outstanding 'Sweet Disposition'. I have literally listened to this song hundreds of times now, and it haunts me in the most superb way. The melody is sublime and the vocal is dreamlike. It is rightly placed in this album of songs of the year. I’ve liked this song for months now, and its appearance in one of my favourite films of the year ('500 Days of Summer', if you’re interested...) cemented it in my heart as something truly extraordinary. 'Sticks and Stones' by Jamie T, which I hadn’t heard previous to receiving this album, is nothing short of immense. Having been near obsessive about his debut album 'Panic Prevention' for a month or two in early 2007, it seems like we’ve drifted apart these last couple of years. After hearing his familiar frantic beats and reassuringly English lilt on 'Sticks and Stones', Jamie T and I will not remain estranged for much longer. Some bands, Enter Shikari and the Horrors, although fairly well established now are still not as popular as I’d like to see them be, so I appreciate their inclusion on this album. Their tracks here, 'No Sleep Tonight' and 'Who Can Say' respectively, are not as strong as some of their previous material, but I’ve come to expect that from bands who arrive on the scene with such a strong sense of self. It must be difficult to maintain that singular style for longer than the first album, but I still appreciate both acts continuing to make music. Other 'NME' stalwarts appear here, as would be expected – The Enemy, Franz Ferdinand, Muse, Kasabian and Maximo Park are all obviously well loved bands, but they are hardly anything we haven’t heard before. I haven’t read the 'NME' for a year or so, and I seem to remember that when I stopped buying it, it was because I was bored of reading about people I already know about. I guess this album is pretty much a combination of sublime new music by unknown or underrated acts, and the sort of music Jo Whiley used to peddle out as “brand new” before she got buried inside weekend radio. I’d reckon that you’ll already know if this album is the kind of thing you’re interested in without having to read reviews of it. It is indie pop with a hint of a punk/rock edge sporadically interjected, and it’s thoroughly pleasant the whole way through. Not many surprises, but if you’ve fallen off the indie wagon for the past 12 months you might find yourself lured back in by some bands you’ve missed out on in recent times. I will say this much though, just to get it off my chest before the end of the year – being aware of the controversy such a statement could provoke, and of how desperately, achingly uncool and out of the scene I sound just typing it – I just simply do not like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. And that just about wraps up 2009, then.

Track Listing:-

1 Muse- Uprising
2 Kasabian- Fire
3 Friendly Fires- Kiss Of Life
4 The Temper Trap- Sweet Disposition
5 Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Zero
6 Jamie T- Sticks'n'stones
7 The Big Pink- Dominos
8 Maxïmo Park- In Another World (You'd Have Found Yourself By Now)
9 The Enemy- Be Somebody
10 Franz Ferdinand- Ulysses
11 White Lies- Death
12 Passion Pit- The Reeling
13 The Maccabees- No Kind Words
14 Gossip- Love Long Distance
15 Jack Peñate- Tonight's Today
16 Peter Doherty- The Last Of The English Roses
17 Esser- Headlock
18 The Virgins- Private Affair
19 The Cribs- Cheat On Me
20 Gallows- I Dread The Night
21 Biffy Clyro- That Golden Rule
22 Paramore- Ignorance
23 Green Day- Know Your Enemy
24 The Prodigy- Warrior's Dance
25 Enter Shikari- No Sleep Tonight
26 The Horrors- Why Can Say
27 The View- 5 Rebbeccas
28 Ian Brown- Stellify
29 Bombay Bicycle Club- The Hill
30 Howling Bells- Into The Chaos
31 Little Boots- Remedy
32 Marmaduke Duke- Je Suis Un Funky Homme
33 Marina & The Diamonds- Obsessions
34 Animal Collective- My Girls
35 Dananananaykroyd- Black Wax
36 Golden Silvers- Please Venus
37 Phoenix- 1901
38 Manic Street Preachers- Peeled Apples
39 Graham Coxon- Dead Bees
40 Glasvegas- Flowers & Football Tops