Best of 2009

[Lem]

I know there are a few things still trickling in for December but I thought I'd start this thread anyway.

What do you think was the best of 2009?

I mostly listen to old music so my list is a little short haha. Reflecting back, I realized that if I did listen to something new this year it was from Visual Kei/Japanese band and not really much from Western music. So my list will focus mostly on VK/Japanese music.

In no real order.

Top2 -
Matenrou Opera - ANOMIE
I'm not sure what songs are being released again with this but most of the album was new to me. I loved just about every song on the album. I bought the European version, which was terribly over priced and didn't come with the DVD. (I assumed that since it was $60 it would have the DVD). However despite spending way to much for this dumb thing, it's a pretty good album. So I guess not so bad. Came with two extra songs, one song though is like a short instrumental clip that cuts off. (SCREW YOU).. Yet the other songs make up for it. I'm still butt hurt but eh...

Megaromania - Prophetic Faction -the Universe- and the three single concept release.
Okay since this is Undercode, after weeding out the actual new songs on their recent album, it's pretty dang good. They've gone to a closer Power Metal sound with their album (Bloodshed "borrowing" heavily from Rhapsody). Prologue&Epilogue is a really catchy song and probably my favourite on the album. I didn't think it was going to be an actual song when I first read the track listing.

Everything else -
DELUHI - Two Hurt
Bear McCreary - Battlestar Galactica Season 4 soundtrack
-OZ- - VERSUS
Arkona - Goy, Rode, Goy!

Most disappointing.

ClearVeil - Reborn
Man did this suck. Megaromania is about the only good Undercode band left imo.

DELUHI - Yggdalive
I don't really like any of the songs on this release. I had high hopes since I like a lot of their previous releases. Yu-to left GALNERYUS to focus on DELUHI so I was expecting the music to have really stepped up....but eh, this ain't doing it for me. REVOLVER BLAST is okay.

Moi dix Mois - LOL
Needs to release something >:[

Stuff I am looking forward to in 2010.

Kiryu, Megaromania, -OZ-, Wintersun, Versaillies, emmurée and Grimm.

 

[Garnet in the Eden]

Bjork - "Voltaic"
Imogen Heap - "Ellipse"
Regina - "Puutarhatrilogia"
Lady Gaga - "The Fame Monster"
Soap&Skin - "Lovetune for Vacuum"
Animal Collective - "Merriweather Post Pavilion"

 

[Nocturne]

Gackts new releases were all really good. I liked all of his new songs though I thought Faraway wasnt as strong as the others.

I liked alot of Deluhi's stuff, got into Duel Jewel as well.

I really got into Girugamesh this year. They really stepped it up as a newer band in my eyes.

Mucc has some good releases, Vamps was ok, not as strong as Hyde's other solo works.

Versailles has been getting even better than better.

Vistlip is also another band I've been watching and have been impressed with.

Tried The Gazette out and really hated them.

Dir en Grey had a good solid release with Uroboros.

Abingdon Boys School also had a few great releases too.

Some new bands Ive been getting into have been The Kiddie and Lolita 32. Decent bands as well. Trying to broaden my horizons

 

[Manneking]

err.. lemme see... A list of releases I loved this year:

1) Blam Honey - Providence of Decadence set
2) Noir du'soleil - ~Into the sky~
3) Lady Gaga - The Fame Monster
4) Kaya - Ophelia single
5) D - Genetic World/XOVER - Aureola

Artists I was disappointed with this year:

Moi dix Mois
BLOOD
GPKISM (damn remixes...)
Aural Vampire
Marilyn Manson

And artists I got into/liked this year:

Velvet Eden
Blam Honey
Lady Gaga
Hora
Flood of Rain

 

[Einherjer]

nothing! I only listened to old stuff this year

oh wait! NO! How did I forget the new Depeche Mode album??

 

[Phantom Pabulum]

I really enjoyed (new releases)

Though technically not a release, dead scape & the sect

Diablo Swing Orchestra - Songs for the damned and delirious

GPKISM - Atheos (Embarrassing, but true. It's one of my favorite albums now.)

Okay Stuff
ALI PROJECT - Poison (First half of the disc is AMAZING but the next half wasn't my cup of tea.)

Kanon Wakeshima - Shinshoku Dolce (many tracks got old really quickly, her singles are still really good + Lespoir)

GPKISM - Iudicium (I enjoyed the title track, angelus (still sounds bare and unpolished, but great melody), and the shin-kai- remix of angelus but the rest of the disc pretty much sucked.)

Bad Stuff

GPKISM - Barathrum

Artistes I got into this year

NACHTMAHR (to think I hated this project at first, now it's kicking everyone's ass on my ipod.)
GPKISM (lol)

 

[flowersofnight]

I'd say this year's highlights were:
Susumu Hirasawa - tenko suru wakusei
In which our hero takes another small step back toward innovative music and away from stuff that his idiot Japanese fans like

Kanon Wakeshima (and her staff of composers ) - Shinshoku Dolce
I enjoyed getting to see Mana's long-repressed non-evil side XD

 

[MissUMana]

Depeche Mode : Sounds of the Universe (those guys will never get old and boring, they're the best)

Velvet Eden : Street of Alice (never heard of them before, Revelation of the Year, amazing!)

Flood of Rain (beautiful, I'm hoping for more!)

 

[Berserk]

Muse - Uprising
The Gossip - Heavy Cross
Seether - Careless Whisper
Green Day - 21 Guns, Know Your Enemy
Linkin Park - New Divide even though it's f-ing overplayed and overrated
Behemoth - Ov Fire and the Void
Anything GaGa, of course

 

[adonis]

The best could be:

-Kanon Wakeshima's Shinshoku Dolce + concerts in France (god I love her so much and she's amazing live)
-Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster
-GPKISM's Barathrum/Iudicium/Atheos
-Moi dix mois' The Sect and Dead Scape (god I would have expected a real album for this year -_- hope 2010 will be better)
-Versailles' Ascendead Master ( truly awesome, can't wait to hear more from the new release!)

And the worst would be:
-the death of our dear Jasmine You
-no new release from Moi dix Mois

 

[Amatsu]

Lady Gaga - Speechless
I can't think of anything else that was released this year that I listened to and liked a lot...

Green Day - 21 Guns, Know Your Enemy

Really?
I was unaware that people still liked Green day.

 

[Berserk]

Their songs are simple, but they're good And Billy Joe is a good singer.

EDIT: Oh, duh! How could I forget?

Placebo - Ashtray Heart
Sick Puppies - You're Going Down

Lots of good music this year. And movies.

 

[Monophobia]

I feel like I need to find out about other new releases this year to judge, but off the top of my head and currently:

D - Genetic World
Lady Gaga - The Fame Monster
Metric - Fantasies

 

[voixdinferno]

The Best for me are:

Megaromania - Prophetic Faction-the Universe-
Moi dix Mois - the new 2 Songs
Dark Moor - Autumnal
Gackt - Ghost (but only the B side, Blue Lagoon)

The Poor are:

Shinshoku Dolce!... well only this one XD

 

[Haus der Lüge]

Mass of the Fermenting Dregs - World is Yours
A great release from an all female Japanese band. It's pretty much straightforward rock, but with some more noisy and shoegazy moments.

Sonic Youth - The Eternal
Their most enjoyable album this decade (for me at least). The best part is that Lee Ranaldo did two vocals instead of his usual one.

And my favourite of 2009:
Rowland S. Howard - Pop Crimes
Rowland hadn't released anything new for ten years (mainly due to his poor health), but this was still at least as good as his previous album, Teenage Snuff Film. Probably my favourite guitar player ever.

 

[Camuflagem]

In no particular order;

Albums
Lady Gaga - The Fame & the Fame Monster
A-ha - Foot Of The Mountain


Songs:
Tom Frager & Gwayav' - Lady Melody
Alicia Keys & Jay-z - Empire State of Mind
Daniel Merriweather - Impossible
Leona Lewis - Let it Rain
Michael Jackson - This is it
Noisettes - Never Forget You
Gackt - Koakuma heaven, Journey through the Decade and Ghost
Madonna - Celebration, Revolver
MGMT - Kids
Jay Sean - Down
La Roux - Bulletproof, In for the Kill
Lady Gaga - Paparazzi, Alejandro, Bad Romance, Telephone, No Way.
A-Ha - What there is.

I didn't listen much japanese stuff this year.

 

[Rosiel]

Oh my gosh so much stuff I instantly forgot everything.

Great stuff:

Versailles (Poor Jasmine you that was so devastating)

Muse - oh my gosh...

D

Kanon Wakeshima

500 Days of Summer- a great movie!

and I lost my thoughts. I know there is so much more.

 

[Mademoiselle Folie]

Sonic Youth - the Eternal (so long waited)

BLAM HONEY - Providence of Decadence (god bless RYONAI)

of curse, Flood of Rain (i discovered FoR this year)

Közi back to the scene.

can't think about anything right now...

Versailles - Ascendead Master ansd now Jubilee

of curse!

Uprising - MUSE

 

[Leon Evans]

Best~

Music:
Design your Universe, Epica.
Ascendead Master, Versailles.
Gothic Lolita Doctrine, Yousei Teikoku
Yu~ki is "back"
V-Rock Festival

Concert:
Iron Maiden, Foro Sol, Mexico (Aces High never was so epic)

Web:
After a whole year lurking, at least I dared to post in Scape forums.

Worst~

Music:
Jasmine You death.
Not formal Moi dix Mois release

Concerts:
Bad organization at Mayhem concert in Mexico...

 

[Amatsu]

MGMT - Kids

...? That came out in 2007.