Top 5 Electronic Albums of 2009
By Nick Manteris · 0 Comments · Leave a Comment
My exposure to good electronic music experienced a significant decline sometime at the beginning of the decade, but it seems like things are starting to pick up a bit. Two of the albums on this list are technically good enough to make the main top 10 albums of 2009, but “Electronic” is an important subgenre that should have its own list. Maybe there will be enough electronic albums in 2010 to make a top 10 list.
5. Air – Love 2
- Score
- 78%
Love 2, the sixth full-length from the French duo Air just might be their best album to date. (For the record, there was never a Love 1.) Another interesting bit of trivia: Air has been retroactively fitted with an acronym (this is apparently called a backronym) that stands for Amour, Imagination, Rêve (French for Love, Imagination, Dream).
4. Fever Ray – Fever Ray
- Score
- 80%
Fever Ray is the self-titled solo project of Karin Dreijer Andersson, the Swedish vocalist from the electropop duo, The Knife. The music that she makes as Fever Ray is much darker and moodier than the stuff from The Knife, but, as you can see, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
3. IAMX – Kingdom of Welcome Addiction
- Score
- 81%
I really liked IAMX when they were called Sneaker Pimps and Kelli Ali was singing, but, even with all the extra industrial flavors, Chris Corner is making some great music. Check out the full review for Kingdom of Welcome Addiction and when you get a chance, listen to “The Great Shipwreck of Life.”
2. Faunts – Feel.Love.Thinking.Of.
- Score
- 82%
Faunts are a Canadian band that got a huge boost in popularity when their song was chosen to play during the credits of Bioware’s role-playing game, Mass Effect. They deserve all that recognition and more. Feel.Love.Thinking.Of is an amazing album, perfect for something like, say, driving home alone on the empty early-morning streets after a party. “Input” “Alarmed/Lights,” and “Das Malefitz” are all excellent examples of their music.
1. Ruby Jean and the Thoughtful Bees – Ruby Jean and the Thoughtful Bees
- Score
- 85%
Ruby Jean and the Thoughtful Bees are a Canadian four-piece that classify themselves as indie, electro and metal on their MySpace page. Their sound is actually a bit more groovy than that (electro-dance maybe?) – but you just have to hear them to fully appreciate what they do. Stream Ruby Jean and the Thoughtful Bees from Killbeat and pay attention to the track “The Best of All,” which just happens to be the best of all.
