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2009 was certainly an amazing year with a lot of adventures.  I’m looking forward to what 2010 will bring.

In the meantime, here is an awesome 2009 mix (with personal notes for each song!) by the one and only Trip Cook…  I highly recommend you download this.*

*if you’re cool

>>> http://www.sendspace.com/file/nbz6×7

1- CoCoComa- You Better Beware
2- Charlie and the Moonhearts- Real Hot Breakers
3- JEFF the Brotherhood- Bone Jam
4- Raekwon- Surgical Gloves
5- Wavves- Here’s to the Sun
6- Box Elders- One Foot in Front of the Other
7- Thee Oh Sees- Meat Step Lively
8- Sonic Chicken 4- Surf on a Plane
9- The Almighty Defenders- Bow Down and Die
10- Smith Westerns- Be My Girl
11- Ty Segall- Standing at the Station
12- The Fresh and Onlys- Peacock and Wing
13- Tyler Jon Tyler- Faster than Light
14- Shannon and the Clams- I Wanna Go Home
15- The Cave Weddings- Bring Your Love
16- The White Wires- Ha Ha Holiday
17- Hunx and His Punx- Cruising
18- Magic Kids- Superball
19- Eat Skull- Stick to the Formula
20- Method Man and Redman- City Lights
21- Useless Eaters- Chemical Imbalance
22- Cheap Time- Woodland Drive
23- Mos Def- Auditorium
24- Titus Andronicus- Four Score (Part 2)

2009 mix notes by Trip Cook:

1- You Better Beware- My favorite album opener this year. Feedback for 10 seconds–then, bam. It starts going and doesn’t stop. I saw CoCoComa twice this year. Once during the amazing Oblivians reunion weekend and once during the amazing Gonerfest weekend. Amazing!

2- Real Hot Breakers- From one of the great 7″ released by Trouble in Mind, the great record label started this year by the husband-and-wife duo from CoCoComa. I saw Charlie and the Moonhearts once this year with Ty Segall. They used a wind machine behind the drummer, I think. It was neat.

3- Bone Jam- I forgive JEFF the Brotherhood for being from Nashville. This song is catchy as can be. I saw them twice in 2009–it was two-brother attack both times. Heavy Days, their new album, is really good from start to finish.

4- Surgical Gloves- Only Built 4 Cuban Linx shouldn’t have worked, but it did. It was my favorite hip-hop album in a weak year for hip-hop (let’s face it, Jay-Z is pretty terrible now. Kid Cudi? yawn.). Raekwon still has it. The hardest part was picking a song from this album. NSFW, silly.

5- Here’s to the Sun- I don’t think the cool kids like Wavves any more. Did they ever? I’m not sure. But this is a great song. I have listened to this album once or twice, but I’ve listened to this song hundreds of times. I can’t get it out of my head. It’s fun (it’s also loud, so be careful if you’re listening on headphones).

6- One Foot in Front of the Other- I saw Box Elders with the Neckbones and Jack O & the Tennessee Tearjerkers on New Year’s, which I think was a sign of good things to come. I also saw them two other times in 2009. They are really great live. I bet “where youuuuuu gonna go?” gets stuck in your head. I bet.

7- Meat Step Lively- My favorite song from 2009. Man, I love the swirling sound of this song (as long as ’swirling’ can be used to describe a sound). I am an unapologetic fan of the Wall of Sound–this song sounds like an updated, fuzzier version of Mr. Spector’s finest work. I am not exactly sure what they’re saying in this song, but it really doesn’t matter—especially by the time the flute kicks in. Flute solo! Listen to this one really loud in your car–it bounces around beautifully.

8- Surf on a Plane- Another one from the Trouble in Mind folks. Perfect pop music from France. Go, organ! Go!

9- Bow Down and Die- I may have listened to this song more than any other song this year. It’s a boozy wailer–my favorite kind of wailer. I haven’t listened to it quite as much in the last couple months, but it’s still a wonderful one. I saw a video of them performing this song in choir robes–then, one of them starting puking. I think that’s the essence of this one—gospel music sung by drunk people. God bless it.

10- Be My Girl- How is this song not extremely popular with the kids? It’s catchy. It’s fun. It has a chorus you can yell. Come on, America!

11- Standing at the Station- Ty Segall won my heart in 2009. His LP, Lemons, was my favorite album of 2009. His split with Black Time was great. I saw him twice and he was really exciting both times. This song moves right along. It also features the best “owww!” of the year. Enjoy.

12- Peacock and Wing- I walked in several songs into their set at Gonerfest and they were playing this song. I assumed it was a cover. It sounded really familiar. It’s not a cover—it’s a very good, romantic song, though.

13- Faster than Light- This song gives me chills every time I listen to it. Not many songs do these days, but this one does. “Heyheyheyheyhey! Where have you gone, baby?” Whoa. Now, that’s some simple, universal sweetness.

14- I Wanna Go Home- This song gets stuck in my head daily. There’s nothing new going on here, but there doesn’t need to be. It’s a very pretty pop song.

15- Bring Your Love- Speaking of nice pop songs. I heard the Cave Weddings for the first time on the I’d Buy that For a Dollar Volume 2 7″. Since then, I have scoured the Internet for things by them. This is a good one to sing along with.

16- Ha Ha Holiday- I put all the catchy pop songs together, huh? This song makes me feel better. Their LP is my favorite debut album this year. I think you’ll like it.

17- Cruising- Ahhh, Hunx. So many great things coming together with Hunx and His Punx. A little girl group. A little Ramones. A little gay. Actually, a lot gay. Love it!

18- Superball- I saw Magic Kids so many times in 2009, I am afraid I might be classified as a superfan. Not a good superfan. A weird, sad superfan. Anyway, I don’t like this studio version quite as much as the live version of “Superball,” but it’s still my favorite song by them. Imagine this studio version louder and with a bit more thump. That’s what it sounds like live. Sad superfan!

19- Stick to the Formula- Who does this sound like? I am pretty sure it’s someone from the 80s. A Left of the Dial box set band, maybe? Anyway, it’s a nice song.

20- City Lights- I almost didn’t put any hip-hop on this mix because I know some of you don’t like it. Meh. Some of you need to listen to this song. Racists.

21- Chemical Imbalance- I really love Useless Eaters. They’re my favorite Memphis band at the moment. The Eaters have put out about 10-12 wonderful songs this year. They have all been permanently stuck in my head. “Malfunction” would be on here, but I couldn’t find an MP3. This song is also deserving.

22- Woodland Drive- 93 seconds of goodness. Cheap Time keep churning out excellent, bouncy music. Nashville ties are forgiven.

23- Auditorium- I am not sure what song is sampled on this song, but I love it. Mos Def does what Mos Def does. I may be alone in loving when Mos Def sings. There’s a little in this song. The Slick Rick verse is inspired.

24- Four Score (Part Two)- I am glad I found this song last week. I was trying to shoehorn Titus Andronicus on to this mix for some time, but the only thing they released in 2009 was a vinyl-only live album. Then, I found this song from their album that’s going to be released in March. Lucky for me, I love it. I saw Titus Andronicus three times this year and I think there were fewer people there each time. Shame. Every time I see them, it makes me think about youth, frustration and that sort of thing. I think this song encapsulates that pretty well. I need that. In the last year, I’ve sometimes felt some complacency and resignation creeping in. I don’t like that. I am fine with being happy, but I still want to feel some anger about things I should be angry about. I still want to feel like better things are possible. Listening to Titus Andronicus reminds me what it’s like to feel passionately about things bigger than me.

This song sounds a little like a national anthem for drunk, angry, young men who read books. “It’s still us against them.” Yes.