While I began my exploration without the help of the Internet, there’s no question that without it my music collection would not be where it is today. Modern day radio or MTV are over commercialized and it would have been almost impossible to learn about these great artists without the open possibilities of the Internet. It started with Fluxblog, Stereogum, Pitchfork and Scenestars (no longer in existence). This list of course has grown exponentially since then.

To start off my year end list like so many of my fellow bloggers have done, I will highlight my top inspirational artists of the past 10 years.

There are about twenty bands / artists on this list. They’ll be posted during the remainder of the year and at the very end I’ll share the rest of the albums that I picked up this year that are worth mentioning.

Note: To purchase albums, scroll over the album title and an Amazon window will pop up. In some cases Hip2besquare gets a small referral fee if you purchase the album.

Wilco

When I first heard Yankee Hotel Foxtrot I was convinced that this album would easily be remembered as one of the great masterpieces of classic American rock / pop music. In reality, what I was listening to was one of the greatest bands and artists, Jeff Tweedy, of our time. It took me a little while to get into some of their older material such as Being There (2 LP 180g vinyl with bonus CD) or A.M. but over time, it has been their back catalogues that I listen to the most. Recently they’ve been moving away from some of the experimental fuzzy, feedback style rock tunes that you can find on albums like A Ghost Is Born. Some people have been coining their style of music today as Dad Rock. What ever it is, I like it all. I also recommend checking out the Mermaid Avenue recordings that they did with Billy Bragg, the English singer/songwriter who Jeff Tweedy of Wilco has collaborated with on and off through his career.

2009 Album: Wilco (The Album)

Got me hooked: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Flaming Lips

“Oh Yoshimi, They don’t believe me, but you won’t let those robots eat me.” Screaming this line from the top of my lungs down Green St. in Burlington Vermont my Junior year is definitely a fond memory of this past decade in music. When someone put Flaming Lips in my hand for the first time since I had heard the She Don’t Use Jelly song from back in the 90′s, I thought it was a joke. While their behavior may come off as not being serious, and they would probably be the first to make claim to such non-serious behavior, their ability to write conceptual albums and masterful psychedelic rock music is nothing but serious. And for those who thought Flaming Lips were getting out of the coneptual album business and were happy being the wacky live show dudes, their latest, Embryonic, should help deter those thoughts.

2009 Album: Embryonic

Got me hooked: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots

Stephen Malkmus

Some may find it strange that I’m putting Malkmus and not Pavement on this list. To be honest, there are moments of Pavement that I really enjoy but just about all moments on the Malkmus albums that I own are enjoyed with every listen. When I first heard Pig Lib, the guitar and vocals produced by Stephen practically fried my brain. I didn’t know what to think or rather how to comprehend what was going on. There are so many twists and turns in his song writing that for the casual music listener there is a clear “enter at your own risk” stamped to his style. He has a rather unattractive singing voice which causes some to claim Pavement as well as Stephen overrated. But they said the same thing about David Byrne and the Talking Heads in the 70′s and 80′s so you do the math. If you’re like me and a sucker for guitar mastery, look know further then Malkmus.

No 2009 album

Got me hooked: Pig Lib

 
Bonus Download: “Cold Son” from the album Face the Truth (courtesy of Matador Records)

Phoenix

If it wasn’t for the great directing of Sophia Coppola and the performance by Bill Murray in Lost in Translation I may not have been so drawn to this movie and all that went with it, including the music. After listening to the soundtrack once, It only took a few seconds before Too Young’s pulsating guitar riff and intoxicating chorus section were forever supplanted into the fabric of my musical bones. While I’ve been a fan since 2005, it was only recently at the Orpheum Theatre in Boston that I got to see them live. And they may just make the ranks as one of my all time favorite live performers. They just keep getting better in my opinion.

2009 Album:Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

Got me hooked: United

 
Bonus video:

Andrew Bird

I can remember the exact moment when I took a break from work and perused the usual blogs to see if I could find any new gems. The one most frequent visit was to Fluxblog and it was here that I heard the song “A Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left” by Andrew Bird that blew me away. It was like nothing I had ever heard before. From his ability to whistle any melody imaginable to his ability to intertwine lyrics through his bouncy rhythms, Andrew is a true virtuoso. The lyrics, the meanings of which would make Dr. Seuss proud, dive deep from the consciousness of a down home Midwestern farm boy. Ladies and gentleman, I give you my maestro of the first decade of the 21st century.

2009 album: Noble Beast

Got me hooked: Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs

 
Bonus Video:

Tom Waits

This obsession started when my college buddy, Fred Torphy, who’s got his own band now out in San Francisco (Big Light), introduced me to Tom’s 1973 classic, Closing Time. Since then, I’ve been in awe of his ability to continuously pump out songs with lyrics that could easily put him up in the top ranks of one of the greatest poets of our generation. My favorite material comes from Tom’s older albums where it sounds like he has inhaled five cigarettes and a couple shots of whiskey before singing into the box instead of today where it’s more like a full pack and an entire bottle of whiskey are on the menu before taking his cue. But his three disc monster released in 2006, Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards, blew away any of my doubts about his ability to belt out a tune in a fashion that I could tolerate. In the end, it’s about the attitude and whether it’s emitting from a youthful yet scratchy young Tom or old, fifty frogs in my throat Tom, it’s all good to me.

2009 Album: Glitter and Doom Live

Got me hooked: Closing Time

Bill Frisell

To express how much Bill means to me in words is not easy. Much like the difficulty of putting a category to his music – part jazz, country, Americana and old timey music. It all started back in the early 90′s when he released the album Have a Little Faith where he first explored these old American styles and ever since they have been a part of his make up. But as a whole, Bill is in a category on his own. As someone who dabbles in playing the guitar, listening to him play is a humbling experience. There’s no doubt in my mind that he is clearly one of the greatest guitarists living today and perhaps one of the greatest American based guitar players to ever live.

2009 Album: Disfarmer
A beast of an album with 26 tracks, this is classic Frisell at his best. The album is honoring the late Mike Disfarmer, a famous photographer who was born in 1884 and died in 1959. Chances are you’ve seen one of his black and white photos of the late 19th to early 20th century America. Learn more about the Disfarmer Project at www.disfarmer.org

Got me hooked: Nashville

 
To Be Continued…