My 2009 Music Awards

It’s that time of year again! Time to look back and remember this year in music!

Most Anticipated

MOST ANTICIPATED ALBUM AWARD

OneRepublic’s “Waking Up.” I love it that these guys are bringing piano-driven pop back in a cool way. The textures of the programming in their sophomore release really hit the sweet spot.
John Mayer’s “Battle Studies.” Runner up is John Mayer, who has been on my radar ever since he released his live album, “Where The Light Is.” He’s a massively talented dude, as you can tell from seeing him perform live, but his pop efforts sometimes fail to show his full potential.

BEST DRESSED AWARD

Lady Gaga. OK, just kidding. She gives me nightmares. But I will give her this: Her music is infectiously catchy, and she knows how to turn a performance into a spectacle people talk about for days.

BEST SONG WRITING AWARD

Taylor Swift. Taylor’s songs tell a story — an engaging, memorable story that connects with your experience. That level of creativity is rare these days. I only wish her singing matched her mad songwriting skillz.

WORST STAGE PRESENCE AWARD

Kanye West. I think President Obama said all that needs to be said about this jackhole… We need to install a seatbelt on his chair at the awards shows.
Miley Cyrus. Miley is proof that even I could have a successful recording career. I’m a big fan of her hit singles, “The Climb” and “Party In The U.S.A.” She’s proven she can do country ballads and teen pop hits and everything in-between. But to hear her attempt those songs live on stage reveals that a lot of magic has gone on to make her studio recordings sound as solid as they do.

Accordion

BEST ACCORDION SOLO AWARD

Green Day. At MTV’s Europe Music Awards, this punk band proved once again that nothing goes together better than pyrotechnics and accordions. From one accordion player to another: props, dude, props.

WORST CAREER MOVE OF 2009

Switchfoot leaving Columbia Records. Everybody is hailing Switchfoot’s latest album, “Hello Hurricane,” as their return to greatness. They regained complete creative control of their sound after leaving Columbia Records. But I kinda liked their sound better when it was record executives who molded the final product into what they knew the public liked. Say whatever you want, but “Nothing Is Sound” will always be the gold standard for me, and this new album is very, very rough in comparison.

STUPIDEST NAME AWARD

Souljah Boy Tell ‘Em. Really? Can your name be a whole sentence with a verb and everything?

OBVIOUS AUTO-TUNING AWARD

The Glee Cast. They’re tuning these poor kids to death. And that’s a shame since some of them, like Lea Michele, have awesome voices without turning them into T-Pain.

WORST MASTERING AWARD

Kristian Stanfill’s “Attention.” Great collection of songs. Hard to listen to. Man, I wish I had the opportunity to re-master these so the crash cymbals wouldn’t eat the entire mix alive!

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT AWARD

U2′s “No Line On The Horizon.” Although their newest CD contains my favorite U2 song of all time, “Magnificent,” the rest of the tracks completely miss the mark. They’re one of my favorite bands, but “weird” is the only word I have to describe the strange style they’ve adopted for this effort.
David Crowder Band’s “Church Music.” Given how much I love programmed music and the DC*B, this album should have been a shoe-in as my favorite of 2009 But, it’s dark. Dreary. Strange, even. And rather than taking us through the history of church music (starting with the Phos Hilaron and moving forward), it remains in one gear the whole way through. Big disappointment from one of my favorite bands.
Christy Nockels’ “Life Light Up.” This Watermark and Passion Conferences veteran has always been one of my favorites. Unfortunately, her solo debut on sixsteps records doesn’t capture her awesomeness at all.

PLEASANT SURPRISE AWARDS

Owl City’s “Ocean Eyes.” The polar opposite of David Crowder’s dreary CD, Owl City’s unique brand of feel-good programming rocks! The newest album inspires me to greater levels of creativity when using Propellerhead Reason for programming my own music.
Derek Webb’s “Stockholm Syndrome.” Super original programming. Tight lyrics. Killer album from a guy who turned his career around by ditching the acoustic guitar for some hip hop beats.
Fee’s “Hope Rising.” Unexpectedly, Fee has become one of my very favorite Christian artists. Unlike some albums that take a few listens to grown on you, this stuff hooks you from the first listen. (Mad props to Eddie Kirkland for co-writing a bunch of these awesome, original, God-honoring songs.)

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Chris Tomlin, for making a Christmas worship album. Awesome!
Casey Darnell and James David Carter, for being my new favorite indie artists! Hey, I predicted Fee and Kristian Stanfill. Will I be right again? Somebody give them a record deal, already, so I can be right (and we all can get some good music)!!!

DISHONORABLE MENTIONS