Joe Ayling

Disclaimer
While my choices in previous years have been inspired by live gigs, a swathe of new British bands and even the invention of the iPod, 2009 saw me subscribe to Mojo magazine. While the move filled in the cracks of my shaky archive, including Californian country rock from the 70s and early Blues and Motown, it has left my contemporary collection a bit thin on the ground. For this reason, and due to my early ignorance of Spotify, the following 2009 list is basically the only ten CDs I bought last year, plus one I got free with a newspaper.

10: The Enemy - Music For The People
Pretty lame follow up to We Live And Die In These Towns, which was one of my favourite albums of the decade. It's almost like they got out a copy of Be Here Now and said: "Right, if we can mix this with Status Quo..." Never mind lads.

9: Florence + The Machine - Lungs
Will always be known for You've Got The Love cover, but the whole album has plenty else to offer and glad I've found a female-led band to enjoy for once.

8: Bob Dylan - Together Through Life
Quite a Bluesy album, is there no end to this man's musical longevity? Maybe his Christmas album will be just that.

7: Frank Turner - Love Ire & Song
Glad I've discovered Frank Turner - right up my street. The songs are all quite folky and if he's not slagging off his ex-girlfriend, its infrequently the state. Look forward to going through his first few albums now.

6: Kasabian - West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
Great live band and this serves as their most listenable album in my view. Although Where Did All the Love Go feels a bit Fatboy Slim for some reason.

5: Noel Gallagher - The Dreams We Have As Children
And you thought I wouldn't be able to squeeze an Oasis album in this year? A free giveaway in The Times, it includes live performances of Strawberry Fields and (look away now Olly) There is a Light that Never Goes Out.

4: The Cribs - Ignore The Ignorant
The addition of Johnny Marr gives them more depth, but haven't lost any swagger by having an old man on board either. The opening track We Were Aborted and We Share The Same Skies are both excellent.

3: The Twang - Jewellery Quarter
One of the few bands I got out and saw live amid 2009's dire recession, but there's no violins on this album. As a Brummie, the appeal here is obvious, while the album name will surely go alongside Moseley Shoals in a future pop quiz question. Songs Barney Rubble and Encouraging Sign hold their own too, and who else can fit lines like "double trouble Barnie Rubble chitchat" into a song?

2: The View - Which Bitch
Much like The Twang, another great second album and these songs sound awesome live. The View's gigs don't attract as many drunken teenagers as you'd think. 5 Rebeccas and Covers are two songs that show the versatility of Dundee's finest.

1: The Arctic Monkeys - Humbug
Josh Homme added a new dimension to the band's music after a slightly lazy second album. A real grower and Alex Turner hasn't lost his lyrical magic either, sounds quite poetic these days. Cornerstone and Dance Little Liar are the highlights.

It's Good, But Not That Good
Franz Ferdinand - Tonight; Franz Ferdinand

Emperor's New Clothes
Olly from X Factor
Isn't he just Will Young?