Tops of 09, Props to 0-10

Well, it's officially 2010. This past year has been pretty fantastic musically. I grew a lot personally in my own musicality while some really awesome were albums released. I also ate a lot of egg drop soup, discovered thai food, spent a summer in LA, found love, embraced twitter, and was up 33% on my investments. I saw some unbelievable live shows - White Rabbits, Monsters of Folk, The Avett Brothers, Dr. Dog, and The Antlers were especially fantastic. I fell in love with Jazz vinyl, especially with the late Art Tatum. And Dave Brubeck. I also ate a lot of bagels. And without further ado, a few lists of what I enjoyed from 2009.

Top 15 albums of 2009:

1. The Antlers - Hospice
2. Grizzly Bear - Vecktimest
3. The xx - The xx
4. Samantha Crain & The Midnight Shivers - Songs in the Night
5. Dark Was The Night Compilation
6. Black Moth Super Rainbow - Eating Us
7. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
8. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
9. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
10. White Rabbits - Its Frightening
11. Vetiver - Tight Knit
12. Pomegranates - Everybody Come Outside
13. Bon Iver - Blood Bank EP
14. The Avett Brothers - I and Love and You
15. Heartless Bastards - The Mountain

Top 4 movies of 2009:

1. The Fantastic Mr. Fox
2. Inglourious Basterds
3. Up
4. The Hangover

Favorite 6 Singles of 2009:

1. "Home" - Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
2. "Two Weeks" - Grizzly Bear
3. "Percussion Gun" - White Rabbits
4. "The Train Song" - Feist and Ben Gibbard
5. "Kettering" - The Antlers
6. "The Blackest Purse" - Why?

Top TV Moment:

1. Dexter Season 4 Finale. OMG!

Samantha Crain & The Midnight Shivers - Songs In The Night

A few months ago, I found myself at a concert at The Church in Philadelphia. I went to see a fantastic group called Thao with the Get Down Stay Down (Check out the track "Swimming Pools"). Anywho, I wound up loving one of their openers - Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers.

First off, Samantha Crain's presence was amazing. Emotional, energetic, and dynamic, her mix of depressing tunes and upbeat charm had me purchasing her new album, Songs in the Night, immediately after the show. And I'm so happy I did.

Songs in the Night, another one of my top albums of 2009, is really, really good. My favorite track, "Devils in Boston", highlights her ability to captivate listeners. Her consitent sad tone is expressed through mastered dynamics, catchy guitar riffs, and swooning vowells. And her voice. Her voice! Not even close to what you'd deem an 'amazing voice', but it works so so well.

On Ramseur Records (along with The Avett Brothers), Samantha Crain is an awesome artist to check out at her official website or myspace.