#1 themselves - Crownsdown

So... Now it's time for number one. Drumroll please.... Album of the year 2009 goes to... themselves and their album CrownsDown. So why is that record better than any other this year? Well, to be honest, I can't really say. But it is. First off, I think that doseone is one of the most underrated emcees out there today. Many people don'tlike his whiny voice and his sometimes weird lyrics. Me however loves them! Combine that with the awesome productions from jel and you have one of the best teams in music today. Here we have two guys who've never produced a single bad song in my book, and not many artists have accomplished this. So what can I say about their recent offering. It simply blew my mind the first time I heard it, and every single time since then it does exactly that. Got to hand it to anticon. They've done it again.

#2 WHY? - Eskimo Snow

This was the album that I in advance was sure would be number one this year. As most people know, I totally adore WHY? and they have released awesome records in the past. Eskimo Snow is no different. It might not be as instant as last years Alopecia, but it's a record that grows on you. The singer Yoni Wolf is in my eyes the best songwriter there is today. Period. What can I really say about this album and this group that I haven't already said over the years? I will simply leave it at this: The album fuckin' rocks and you need to listen to it!

Yoni Wolf:

"I'd say my favorite musical moment of the year was watching Mount Eerie in San Francisco in October."

#3 Andrew Thompson - I'm Not Likely To Change

I'm not quite sure how I came across Andrew Thompson. It might have been while looking for records by Edan and finding out that they both share label, Lewis Recordings. Not that that really matters. All that matters is that when I first listened to I'm Not Likely to Change I simply got blown away. It's not that often nowadays that I come across records that can do that to me. But songs like In this Town and We're in Business made me fall in love with Andrews simple, sweet popsongs. I did however expect to get a bit tired of him over the year, but I was wrong. The album still puts a big smile on my lips and make me want to put on my dancing shoes every single time.

#4 Exile - Radio

I really love good lyricists. Amazing emcees that can blow me away with their technical skills as well as their brilliant subject matter. But sometimes...sometimes I just want them to keep quiet. I don't want to listen to their inflated egos that seem to think that the world revolves around them. And it's moments like this when I need albums like Radio and artists like Exile. Exile has over the years made himself a name both for producing tracks for artists such as Mobb Deep, Jurassic 5 and Snoop Dogg as well as being a part of the group Emanon and working with Blu.
This year he released Radio. An album consisting of hardhitting beats sprinkled with voices sampled from the radio and the result is amazing and extremly funky. He moves in the same circles as producers such as Cut Chemist and knows how to make music that both puts a smile on your face at the same time as it keeps your head nodding.

#5 Langhorne Slim - Be Set Free

If it wasn't for my man Scott Da Ros I would probably have missed out on Langhorne Slim. But luckily enough I took him up on his tip about Langhornes latest album Be Set Free, and I'm so glad that I did. This 29 year old folksinger from Langhorne, Pennsylvania has made a truly beautiful collection of songs that fits any mood like a glove. I frequently return to this album on my iPod during my daily trips on the tram to and from work. It's perfect in the morning when I want a laidback soundscape to slowly wake me up in the morning and in the evenings I hide inside the worlds that his stories create. And really, what more can one ask of an album?

"One of the best concert experiences this year was at Newport Folk Festival when I had the opportunity to join Pete Seeger and Joan Baez on stage. Definitely memorable!"

#6 Eyedea & Abilities - By the Throat

If there is one emcee that makes me happy just by the pure sound of his voice, it's Eyedea. Ever since his days as a successful battle emcee in the late 90s he's been my favourite emcee. The only negative thing is that I don't always like his music. The albums that he's been part of over the years range from excellent (First Born) to mediocre (Carbon Carousel). Luckily enough his latest album together with turntablist supreme Abilities is awesome. I know a lot of people don't like it because they think that E&A has moved away to much from straight up hiphop. Well, that's what I love about them. Here's two guys who are not afraid to push the envelope on this artform and together they make new and exciting music.

#7 Cage - Depart from Me

If there was one album this year that I was looking forward to with very mixed emotions it was this one. Cage album Depart from Me would either be terrible and such a disappointment or a truly good album that I would enjoy a lot. If he had made an album in the same style that he became famous I would have really disliked it. Luckliy enough he went the other way and did a really artistic and beautiful album that shows his true talent. There are very few songs on the album that don't really hold up to the test of time and I think that this is an album that I will return to many years from now.


On the question on what Cage himself thinks are the best albums of the year, he answers:

"Man on the Moon by KiD CuDi is my favorite rap record of the year, and the new Converge record Axe to Fall is my favorite rock album of the year for sure."

#8 Myka 9 - 1969

Myka 9. The name itself will forever hold a spot in my own Emcees Hall of Fame. As a founding member of Freestyle Fellowship as well as being a key figure at the Good Life Cafe in the early 90s and as being one of the original members of Project Blowed he has forever paid his dues and deserve only the best in life. Early this year he released his fifth soloalbum, 1969. I must admit that I didn't have any real expectations when I heard of the release. I kinda lost track of Myka the last couple of years and should be ashamed because of it. The album also sat the standard for the label Fake Four Inc. this year. More about that in an upcoming post. So what about the album itself? Well, it's filled with tight productions that are sprinkled with Mykas dark flawless flow. The man is an emcee genius and this album is just another one that proves it.

So what did Myka himself think was the highlight of the year?

"Coming to Europe will be the highlight of 09!
I must also mention the Soundset Festival (20,000 fans) in Minnesota and all The Burning Man type functions!"

#9 AC4 - AC4

Anyone who knows me knows of my slight obsession when it comes to the old straight edge hardcore band Refused and then especially the singer Dennis Lyxzén and the drummer David Sandström. Since the groups demise in the late 90's they have both made brilliant albums in various constellations such as The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Text, David Sandström Overdrive and Invasionen just to name a few. Now they have started an old school hardcore band together with Karl Backman and Jens Nordén and are calling themselves AC4 (AC stands for the code of the region in Sweden where they are from and the 4 is for the number of members). The self titled album is raw, basic and just straight up brilliant. 15 songs in just 21 minutes. I love it!

#10 MC Paul Barman - Thought Balloon Mushroom Cloud

This year was almost coming to an end and I was quite sure how this top ten list would turn out. Didn't really expect an album to pop up at the last minute and force itself on to the list. But I was wrong. Along came MC Paul Barman. Here's a guy who always been left in the dark and never really got the attention that he deserved. His album Paullelujah! was a masterpiece when it came. And who could really think that he would be able to do another one 7 years later. But he sure did. Thought Balloon Mushroom Cloud is just as lovely, tight and quirky as one could hope. Paul is a truly underrated emcee and with the help of amongst others Masta Ace, Del The Funky Homosapien, Memory Man, Prince Paul and Doom he's truly made an album worthy of being on my top ten list this year.

So what did MC Paul Barman himself think was the musical highlight of the year? He was good enough to share this with us, and this is what he had to say:

This year I finally discovered John McLaughlin.
In the late sixties, McLaughlin was working as Miles Davis's guitarist until Miles told him he needed his own band. So he formed The Mahavishnu Orchestra with monster drummer Billy Cobham and made one of my all time favorite records The Inner Mounting Flame.
Every Sunday I listen to Garam Masala, an Indian music show on WKCR and I heard his more traditional Indian work, the type of work he apparently prefers over his famous electric guitar. I adore both styles and am amazed by his breadth of work.
I began researching Hinduism and the lives of Vishnu in order to illustrate the cover of Thought Balloon Mushroom Cloud. I am hoping this will lead to a greater understanding of McLaughlin's music.

Compilation of the Year - Fake Four Inc A Record Label Sampler vol 1

I usually don't think about compliation albums. They are simply there but never anything out of the ordinary really. But I thought I should mention Fake Four Inc A Record Label Sampler vol 1 for 2 reasons. Firstly because of the pure content of it. Every single song is amazing in it's own right. But also because the label Fake Four Inc. is without a doubt the label of the year. And for everyone that knows me and knows of my obsession with anticon that means a lot. Not that anticon has been bad this year, on the contrary. But as a whole, Fake Four Inc. sweeps the floor with its mix of artists. Ceschi, Awol One, Factor, Myka 9, Gregory Pepper & His Problems, sole & the Skyrider Band and Cars & Trains are just a few of the amazing acts on the label. I will not go into the album too much actually. The album is a free download and if you don't go here and download it, well, then you're simply stupid.


I asked MiC K!NG who are also one of the artists on the label what label he thought was the best this year and also to share with us the musical highlight of the year for him personally.

"Being that Ceschi is one of my best friends and I know how talented he is and how hard he works at the label, I'm gonna have to say Fake Four Inc. is easily my favorite label for 2009. They've been doing a great job and offer a very diverse array of music. I hope to see it flourish into being the next indie powerhouse.

As far as my favorite music moment, it's kinda hard for me to say. I've never been a media darling so I get most of my enjoyment out of my shows. I had a lot of amazing shows this year in both the US and Europe including some festivals that people said I was the best act! The standout might be this point when Dos-Noun and I were in Strasbourg, France playing at this venue called Molodoi. It was a weird situation where we'd been added to the show last minute and it was more like a talent showcase with dance troops and other genres of music. People were generally just milling around and it seemed as though no one was going to pay attention to our sets. Basically I was able to captivate the attention of everyone there and in the middle of one of my songs I just had this immense feeling that "wow, this rap shit is gonna work out after all." I may never be a media darling, but as long as I can fully convert a crowd of people that never heard of me I'm cool with that."

Please check out Gregory Peppers answers to the questions here.

Gregory Peppers Most Memorable Moments of 2009

Was Kanye Right? (I Think He May Have Been)

by Gregory Pepper

So remember how Kanye West bum rushed the stage whilst Taylor Swift was receiving the award for "best female vocal" at the 2009 VMAs? It seemed to be in pretty poor taste, even for an admittedly artistically vacuous event such as the MTV video awards. Obama already totally called him on it but for posterity's sake, let's just take a moment to examine the hard evidence: like, have you ever heard a Taylor Swift song? The tune she won the award for, You Belong to Me is too brutal to describe. In fact, it seems to embody- in one fell swoop- all that is wrong with popular music, with it's faux "girl next door" posturing and all that trite middle-american imagery.

Now take a look at Single Ladies by Beyonce. Say what you will about that weird metalic glove, but guy, that shit is on point. The chorus has this dark, brooding undertone, perfectly complementing the infectious beat, while miss Knowles and her two friends are violently thrusting their pelvises like there's no tomorrow. Dude, you can't deny that it is unequivocally better than Taylor Swift. Kanye may be relying too heavily on the auto-tune as of late, but he did have that cool rotoscope video plus that other one with Will Oldham and Zach Galifianakis. I'm just saying, man...

Favourite label of the year? I'd have to go with Flemish Eye Records just because that's Chad VanGaalen's label, and he is the man.