My obilgatory best of 2009.

Everybody else is doing it, or so it seems. Figured I may as well make a post highlighting the... well, highlights of 2009 for me.

BEST GAME: inFamous
And my, what an impressive game it is. Beautifully animated and well planned, though not as planned as it could have been. It may be my game of the year but it isn't perfect. However, the few bugs and flaws that exist around the ravaged Empire City are easily ignored by the game's interesting story and intense, fun gameplay. Apparently a movie is in the making, and you know what that means; it will either glorify or ruin the game. Ah well. If it comes down to the latter, then at least there's inFamous 2 to look forward to. Maybe that time around Sucker Punch will nail it perfectly.

BEST MOVIE: Up
This may seem like an odd choice, but I'm an odd man. Of all the movie's I've seen this year, of all the laughter and action and violence I've experienced, why choose a kid's movie? My response is simple. It regained my hope in the tattered remains of the Disney franchise. With all the utter garbage they are spewing out, it was refreshing to see that Pixar can still produce a funny, entertaining, and most importantly moving film. It took me back and brought out the younger kid in me. And considering I already act like a 10-year-old, that's not an easy feat.

BEST ALBUM: Fact, "Fact"
Next to The Ghost Inside, this band has been one of my greatest last.fm finds. I came across them during a period wide-spread anticipation for the release of their first USA-release album on Vagrant. A few listens to their older material and I was psyched. When the CD arrived, it did not leave my listening cycle for a good few months. I even went as far as to use it for an Art Design project. Even now, I still can listen to the album the entire way through and be blown away just as much as the first listen. The perfect blend of pop-punk and metalcore, with all the technicality, melody and electronics to help the band stand out from the bland band crowd.

And now, in true Stephen Colbert style, I present my Tips of the Hat and Wags of the Finger. Honorable and not-so-honorable mentions to bands for actions in the past year.

TIP OF THE HAT TO...

Metalcore fathers Converge.

They released their absolutely stunning album Axe to Fall late this year, and my goodness, these guys do not disappoint. All the chaos, fury and efficiency of their previous work is totally overshadowed by this album, it's certainty their greatest release yet in my opinion. Not many bands can claim this kind of victory 18 years into their career. A tip of the hat to these men.

Those wacky japs in Fact.

Not only did they release their superb self-titled album this year (as previously mentioned) in April, but if you're a reader of this blog you'll also know they're releasing a new full-length album, In The Blink Of An Eye, mid-January 2010. Yes, a mere 8 months since their last mind-blowing release, they're releasing another whole album. And judging by the sound of the new single "Slip Of The Lip", we are in for a treat. I tip my hat to these hard-working boys.

A special honorable mention to No Harm Done.

Possibly the one of the greatest hardcore bands to ever exist split up this year, after a short and not incredibly successful 5-year career. Despite remaining prominently unknown to the world, those who did enjoy their music enjoyed melodic, pop-punk drizzled hardcore of the highest quality, jam-packed with aggression, passion, fury and emotion. I tip my hat to you No Harm Done, you will be sorely missed. RIP

WAG OF THE FINGER TO...

Intentional sell-outs A Day To Remember.

Shot to fame over the internet, it wasn't a surprise they were snatched up by Victory records. And with them even stating they always wanted to make it big as a band, their direction was clear from the start. But damngoddit, what an unnecessary disappointment Homesick was. The band used to be fun, catchy, emotional and somewhat original, borrowing the most effective aspects from hardcore and pop-punk and fusing them into a successful sound. However, upon signing to Victory and shooting up in the charts (#13 in top artists of 2009 on last.fm) they decided not to fuse the most effective aspects, instead fuse the ones that were the most user-friendly and marketable. The result was a mediocre at best album just oozing with pop-cheesiness and insincerity. ADTR, I am disappointed. Wag of the finger to you.

Now to you, my loyal (very sparse) readers, I present a gift. A summary of the music of 2009 according to yours truly. 25 tracks ranging through the prominent punk & hardcore in my library and also through reggae, post-rock, folk and indie. Enjoy!

25 tracks / 1.5 hours / 186 MB