Worst of 2009: The 5 Biggest Disappointments

Every year has its ups and downs, musically. For me, the worst downs are not when a bad album drops, but rather when a bad album that should have been great releases. These are albums from artists who have proven themselves to be capable of something amazing, but have instead opted to phone-in an album or make something so uninspired or bad that listening to it is more of a chore than a joy. 2009 certainly had its share of disappointments. Here are the 5 that really stood out to me.

#5. Our Lady Peace: Burn Burn – Of all the albums on this list, this is the worst. Of course, that doesn’t make it the biggest disappointment of the year, especially considering how bad Our Lady Peace has been over the last decade. But when I heard the band was coming out with a new album, my thoughts immediately went to their work in the 1990s. Heck, Happiness was this blog’s #5 Alternative Album of all freaking time. But alas, what Burn Burn is is a continuation of the band’s post-millennial work, with sappy lyrics and big me sensibilities. Hey, they’re back though. And they’re still better than most modern rock bands. So that’s something I suppose.

#4. Metric: Fantasies – If I seem conflicted on this one, it’s because I am. I mean, there are some fantastic songs on Fantasies, don’t get me wrong. But there are some downright bad ones too. If there’s one thing Metric had never given us in their 10-years of music making it’s a “hit or miss” album. But Fantasies has that locked down!

#3. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band: Outer South – Wow. Less than a year after they got together to make Oberst’s brilliant self-titled, the Mystic Valley Band released this dud of an album to audiences. Thanks for that, guys. Outer South lacks all the charm, talent, and songwriting skills of its semi-quasi predecessor. That makes it quite the disappoint for yours truly, not to mention all of those other critics out there. With that said, I still must admit to liking “Air Matress.” I mean, that’s just a fun time.

#2. Cursive: Mama, I’m Swollen – I should’ve known something was up when Saddle Creek decided to sell this one for pennies in its opening days. I got mine for $1, which granted, isn’t a bad deal, but still. After 2 amazing albums that really helped define my early adulthood, Cursive dropped this big lo’ pile of mediocrity on us. The first 4 or 5 songs? Solid. The rest? No thanks. It was lacking all the bite, focus, and passion of past Cursive albums, so I stopped listening after 2 weeks or so.

#1. Zero 7: Yeah Ghost – Ugh, guys really? How do you follow up The Garden with this collection of abrasive, ugly pop music sung by the most mediocre of vocalists? Whereas every other album from this duo has been pretty much mellow, electronic pop, Yeah Ghost is just plain annoying. Whether they decided to go in an entirely different direction or just phoned this one in, there’s no denying how awful this album is.

The Top 25 Alternative Rock Albums (Albums 5-1)

So after 4 weeks of counting down Audio Overflow’s Top 25 Alternative Rock Albums, we’ve finally made it to the Top 5. Be sure to let us know what we should have added and what we should have taken off.

#5. Our Lady Peace: Happiness Is Not A Fish That You Can Catch (1999)
Erin says: “A lot of the songs on this album are really unique and I truly get into them. I believe that Our Lady Peace’s uniqueness is what makes their music so entertaining and memorable. The majority of the songs on this album definitely fall into that category. “

Cale says: “This was one of the first albums that I can remember liking all the way through. Each song on it is fantastic and passionately performed by the band. They have not matched the heights reached on this album since.”

#4. Bush: Sixteen Stone (1994)
Erin says: “When I first saw the movie “Fear”, I remember thinking, “I want this soundtrack”, when someone next to me said, “just buy Sixteen Stone”. Well, I never did, but that never stopped me from listening to, singing to, and respecting the many wonderful works of Bush. Gavin Rosdale’s voice is one of my favorites and seemed to almost embody the concept of alternative rock…Or at least every 16 year old girl’s stereotype.”

Cale says: “Totally agree with Erin on that one. Gavin’s voice truly makes this album what it is. The amount of quality songs contained on it is nearly unparalleled in the genre. Still, if it weren’t for Gavin, I doubt anyone would’ve ever heard of this band.”

#3. Nirvana: Nevermind (1991)
Cale says: “I think that for the most part, Kurt Cobain is one of the most overhyped vocalists of all time. When it’s all said and done, he was downright terrible at vocals. Still, Nirvana was a band that started a music revolution, and Nevermind was truly ahead of its time.”

Erin says: “Well it’s no big secret that Nirvana is not one of my favorite bands…so why would I nominate them for the top 25? Well it’s simple. Grunge is one of the subgenres commonly associated with alternative rock and since Nirvana was a HUGE turning point away from hairbands of the 80’s, I respect them and this album. If not for this album (and this is heavily debated) I believe that music today would be entirely different. They were pioneers in the music industry…definitely innovators.”

#2. Pearl Jam: Ten (1991)
Jill says: “”Alive” was and always has been one of the most stiring songs ever. It’s the benchmark for a deep, dark story and I never took the chorus for anything inspirational. Sometimes being alive can be such a burden. “

Erin says: “Just awesome! There’s a reason why most alternative stations still play a good majority of “Ten’s” songs on the radio. They are still great songs over a decade later! I can’t think of one song on this album that I hate. I really feel like Pearl Jam and this album take home the prize for being the most unique.”

#1. Live: Throwing Copper (1994)
Cale says: “Words cannot accurately describe the greatness of this album. It came out when I was in middle school, and I have revered it highly ever since. “Pillar of Davidson” is one of my all-time favorite sing along songs and “Lightning Crashes” still sends chills down my spine. The greatness of Throwing Copper is only heightened by the sad truth that Live was never able to put together an album as solid as this ever again. But if there was an album on this list that deserved to be considered the greatest Alternative Rock album of all time, I’m happy it could be this one!”

Erin says: “If you’ve read my retro review on this album, then you already know my opinion. If you don’t like it, you probably don’t have ears. Throwing Copper is capable of stirring up many thoughts during it’s course of play time. I have yet to listen to it and not have an overwhelming appreciation of their talent. Definitely my favorite alternative album!”