Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #10 - #4 [Update]- with the top 3 now!

Wow finally we're there... Every click sees me being super excited and then sometimes disappointed or even more excited / happy depending on the title I see at the top of the page loading .

#10 - Kanye West
How come??!!

This album...

Just painful...

Kanye is getting artistic, but it's not like it's something nobody has done before. Just some autotune, that can't even conceal his "beautiful" voice and some 808 drums beats. Well congrats for selling that much and having so much scrobbles on last.fm .

#9 - Yeahs Yeahs Yeahs
I should have introduced them properly, but it turned out that after hearing and loving Heads will Roll as the soundtrack of the Hills promo - could any songs fits this any better ? - I decided to try the whole album. All the songs are not at the same level of Heads will Roll but after some listen, I'm starting to get into it.

#8 - Green Day
Well Green Day is a veteran punk act, and they're still doing it well. I am the one who grew out of this phase.

#6 - Beyonce
This is a surprise, but a nice surprise.

I had decided I'll showcase the top 5, then the top 3 at least, otherwise it would be a little too boring lol till I saw who made the list... I think I can all stuff it there, I don't want to waste a post for those artists . I'll do my own top 10 instead :p .

#5 - Franz Ferdinand
This is so funny, and I know some people won't like it, but I kinda thought about Britney Spears and Fall Out Boy at the same time. I had no idea Franz Ferdinand was still active. I haven't listened to any of their new songs.

#4 - The Prodigy
See the previous comment

I'm stopping here because, actually, I wanted to do a honest review, and I have to say that I never really listened to the next two artists... Even if I was somewhat disappointed by the top three, I feel I should still do a small review about it. Coming up!

[UPDATE]

Actually, I was so disappointed with the top 3, I didn't even feel like writing a whole post about them and looking for youtube videos to introduce them. Every one knows about Lady Gaga and her raw raw raw raw raw raw na na na na na ....
Anyway on to the top 3.

#3 - Lily Allen
I don't care.

#2 -  The Killers
I don't care either.

#1 - Lady Gaga
So disappointed.

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #7 - Animal Collective

Finally!!!
Someone I'm really excited about!
I kinda forgot about them and this album, because it was released in early January. It is still fresh though and I enjoy listening to it from times to times.
I didn't feature a promo pic of the artist but chose to display the cover of their second album Merriweather Post Pavilion as it really fit their music.
It is just completly out there..
Even if the fans said that this album was more accessible/more poppy that the others - and I agree - it is still completly different from what we listen to the radio.

Just beware.

Those videos are not my favorites songs, but they're still good and real.





Verdict : To experience.

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #20 - #11

To be honest, I had kinda peeked at the ranking before, because I was so late and I was wondering if some new interesting artist were coming soon...
What a disappointment!!! I'm not even excited to see who's gonna be at the top, I think the job is almost done lol...

Anyway at

#20 - La Roux
I think I got introduced to her because she popped up once in my recommended artists list, and then I realized that even my sister had already listen to her!!
I had to try some of her songs...
I didn't fell in love with her voice. I gave her a second chance now, being in the ranking and all, but I still don't like it. The music is similar to Little Boots, or Little Boots is similar to her music - it's electro after all - but it's not doing anything for me.

#19 - Placebo
Still around.

#18 - Kelly Clarkson
-chuckles- Well I'm happy for her, as I remember I wanted to vote Justin Guarini at the finale of the first season of American Idol.

#17 - Paramore
urgh.

#16 - Phoenix
Pfuu some redemption at last. And they're from France!! You learn something everyday...

#15 - Black Eyed Peas
I have to say that I had my share of their singles this summer. You just couldn't escape I got a feeling.

#14 - Muse
This album was a big disappointment to me. But I guess a lot of people listened to it, trying to see if they could get into it and then just moved onto something else.

#13 - Taylor Swift
Omg, I was almost afraid I had to write a whole post about her because basically, she's a new artist to me, as I never really listen to her songs... Entirely.

#12 - Fall Out Boy
I didn't know they were still making music.

#11 - Britney Spears
I didn't realize she was still relevant. She's still selling!!! OMG!

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #23 - A Day To Remember

Well I have to say I was wondering if I should skip this artist or not, as punk music is really not my forte...





Indeed I didn't like it... At all.

Verdict : Two Thumbs down.

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #30 - #21

#30 - U2
I didn't even know they released an album this year :S

#29 - Gun's and Roses
I know some people were waiting for Chinese Democracy . Dr. Pepper even made a bet regarding the release date . I'll pass.

#28 - Nickelback
Okay... If things continue like that, I can't wait for the number one.

#27 - The All American Rejects
Really?

#24 - Röyskoop
Röyskoop makes electro music. They're not bad but not especially good either. Some catchy tunes, but like all electro bands out there..

#22 - Artic Monkeys
I've never really liked them...

#21 - Grizzly Bear 
I already wrote a small review of the Yellow House album here. I have listened to Veckatimest but I still haven't grown into it. I find there is something missing , that doesn't create the atmostphere of Yellow House. Maybe with time, I'll like it..

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #25 - Passion Pit

Ok, I guess I spoke too fast when I said I needed to feature at least one artist between 30 and 21.

Passion Pit - what a weird name no? Reminds me of Panda Pear - Person Pitch, I don't know why - anyway Passion Pit is a band who dabbles in electro, pop, well a little of everything I should say.





It is really too bad that I find the singer's voice so annoying.... I wonder if I'll get around it - I used to find Thom Yorke's voice annoying when I first got introduced to Radiohead...

Verdict : Interesting but will need to overcome the singer's voice.

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #26 - Bat For Lashes

Ok I know this artist and I really love her music, but I needed to feature at least one artist between 30 and 20. She released her sophomore album this year,  and I can see the evolution from the first album : excellent atmosphere, more upbeats stuff and her voice is shining.
This is probably my favorite song of the album, but everytime I listen to it, I change my mind.



Also here's the official video for Pearl's Dream , Daniel & Sleep Alone

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #40 - #31

#38 - Kasabian
Well the first time I encountered Kasabian was when I went to see Mew at a concert around 4 years ago. Actually Mew was the opening act of Kasabian but they were the band I wanted to see so I skipped the rest. My sister who stayed told me that she really like their act, it was a real show and she even started to listen to them but I didn't bite. And I'm still not biting. It's pretty generic rock , reminds me a little of Oasis.

#36-The Fray
I'm not found of the Fray. It's a little like Coldplay, rock music with piano melodies, a little emoish, and I find it even less enjoyable than Coldplay's music... So... Yeah.

#35 - Metric
Metric is on my to-check list but I never took the time to really listen to their discography. They're worth a try though.

#33 - Eminem
I don't think he needs to be introduced...

#31 - Depeche Mode
Same thing here, though I'm somewhat interested into seeing how their sound evolved since this song

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #32 - Fever Ray

Fever Ray is the half of the Knife, a band I've heard of but never tried. I know that they are on the electro-ambiant side but otherwise than that I have no idea what their sound is like.

I started with If I had a heart.

Wow the ambiance is very heavy and the sound is almost tribal. Very weird, different from what I'm used to listen to. After a few listens though, I'm starting to get into it.


When I grow up is in the same area, but with more lyrical contents. I guess I'm a fan of "minimalistic" music because I really  didn't get into this song.

Verdict : Difficult to get into, but still nice

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #34 - The xx

Funny, really I should stop judging a book by its cover. When I saw The xx, I thought they would play some kind of punk rock , very noisy but actually it's pretty much on the acoustic side. They barely have a battery and the guitars are very soft. Anyways, you guys should check it out.



Verdict : To try

Best of 2009 - Last.fm : #37 - Regina Spektor

Ok this one I like ! The raspy voice combined to the piano melodies make me want to dig a little further into her discography





Verdict: To try.

Last.fm - Best of 2009 : #39 - Florence + The Machine

Here's an artist I've never heard of, so I was kinda eager to try it out, and my curiosity was sparked by the looks on the promo pictures... I was wondering about the + The Machine, as we only see one girl in all the photos.

†
Kiss with a fit is a funny bubbly pop-rock song. I like the style and her voice but I find the music is pretty generic.


Dog Days are Over is more on the soft side. This is my type of songs but still no sparkle.

I had a last song Rabbit Heart but it seems it is now featured on youtube so we can't embed it... Anyway...

Verdict : Like the sound of the voice but the music is pretty generic.

Last.fm - Best of 2009 : #40 - Little Boots

So here I begin my short reviews of what last.fm consider being the best of 2009. At number #40 we have Little Boots, from UK, doing some electro-disco music based on her profile.

I started with Stuck on Repeat.



It starts well, very well, very 80's, I know some people will love it.
Then she starts singing.

Okayyyy...

Well first, I am not found of her voice, I'm not saying she's a bad singer, but I feel it is a let down after what the introduction built.
It is still a good song and I'm sure I'll enjoy it for a while.

Then I tried Meddle.


I don't like this song as much. It's very poppy and too much lyrics content for me, especially that I just stated I'm not found of the voice... It's not that bad, after a few listen but this experience made me look for a third song, just to have a wider overview of the artist's sound.

So here comes Remedy


Again the same thing, too much pop and lyrical content. Actually after trying those songs and seeing some pictures of the artist, she kinda reminds me of Lady Gaga. What do you guys think?

Verdict: It's not bad but it's not exceptional as well. Still above average

Best of 2009 - Last.fm

So Last.fm came up with its best of 2009 as well as a special MJ.
I heavily rely on last.fm to discover new music and , as I am in a somewhat dry spot lately, I intend to try some of the artists on this list - the one I never heard about - and comment on them.
To come.

J Dilla - Donuts

Style : Hip Hop beats
Read about the name a few times, he's supposed to be a really good hip-hop producer/beat makers out there so I decided to give it a try. It's only beats, even if the album is not completely instrumental, the "songs" are around 1:30-2mn . This is really something different and worth a try.

J-Dilla - Donuts (2006)

1. Donuts (Outro)
2. Workinonit
3. Waves
4. Light My Fire
5. The New
6. Stop
7. People
One of my favorite songs of the album is People, I guess because it has been sampled in My People by Erykah Badu.
8. The Diff'rence
9. Mash
10. Time: The Donut of the Heart
11. Glazed
12. Airworks
13. Lightworks
14. Stepson of the Clapper
15. The Twister (Huh, What)
16. One Eleven
17. Two Can Win
18. Don't Cry
19. Anti-American Graffiti
20. Geek Down
21. Thunder
22. Gobstopper
23. One for Ghost
24. Dilla Says Go
25. Walkinonit
26. The Factory
27. U-Love
28. Hi.
29. Bye.
30. Last Donut of the Night
31. Donuts (Intro)

R.I.P. J Dilla.

Wanted & Angelina Jolie

So we started watching Wanted despite the warnings from my father and sister...
After the intro, I caught my sister looking at me and she started snickering , like a I-told-you-so snickering.
Then after 45 mn, my brother , who was the one who insisted on watching the movie, excused himself and left.
I don't understand why Angelina Jolie is still an actress and getting scripts. She looked so frail in the movie I was wondering how she was even able to fire a weapon or fight with guys.
I also would like to voice my disappointment in Hollywood for resorting to rappers to fill the black actors void.
That is too bad.

Acoustics songs

I went to see an acoustic show where my friend Cat sang two songs : This love from Maroon Five and  Use somebody from Kings of Leon. It was really nice and made me thinks of songs that would sound really nice acoustic.









Somebody did Hit me baby one more time, reminded me of a cover I heard a long time ago. Which one do you prefer? This one or the original?


What would you guys sing? French is welcome, we're looking for some nice french songs. One of my favorite song of the show was this one