The next best of 2009 blog challenge topic I felt compelled to write about was actually last Thursday’s topic. Album of the year: What’s rocking your world? For whatever reason, Thursday got away from me and I didn’t get a chance to write the post. But, this blog is called Natalie’s Wire and I do what I want; so here it is, a few days late, but right on time in my world… the album that rocked my 2009.

Actually released in 2007, In Our Bedroom After the War is the fourth album from Canadian band Stars. In an interview with MTV Live, Stars frontman Torquil Campbell indicated that one of the goals of the band was to create an album that came across as a unified whole through careful sequencing and thoughtful storytelling instead of simply sounding like a collection of tracks.

Mission accomplished. This album went with me everywhere for nearly half of 2009 and I don’t know if I ever skipped over random tracks to get to a favorite song. The album as a whole is just too damn good. The story is captivating and the juxtaposition of male and female vocals carries you along through an enchanted journey.

Following a mostly instrumental first track, The Night Starts Here kicks off a trip that has sucked me in time and time again.

Honorable Mention – Other artists who rocked my world in 2009:

Bon Iver - Having gone to college in his hometown, frontman Justin Vernon has been on my playlist since his Mount Vernon, Black Pirate days. But, it is his latest venture with band Bon Iver that has grabbed the rest of the world’s attention. The story goes, after a breakup with both band and girlfriend, Justin came home and spent three months at his father’s remote cabin in northern Wisconsin. It was there that he wrote most of the music for Bon Iver’s debut album For Emma, Forever Ago; and developed the concept of Bon Iver, derived from the French “bon hiver“, or good winter. Anyone who has ever lived through a northern winter and came out a better person will be able to relate to Bon Iver’s songs and sound.