The Music Submissions: Looking Back at 2k9

In the beginning SFCritic was all about going out and looking for great music. One of the many ways you the readers shared your love with us this year was by sending us music that you think we'd like, or more likely that you'd like us to hype. When it became clear that there was just way too much stuff coming in, and gems were likely being lost in the shuffle, The Music Submissions were born. Each week the emails streamed in, and each week we listened to as much as possible before deciding which two albums (or songs in rare cases) would go up for you, our fearless readers, to read. It was our hope to give you a more intimate glimpse into the musician-marketing-blogger relationship in addition to giving constructive criticism to acts large and small.

It was an inconsistent bunch, to be sure. Sometimes the submissions were for rising stars, like Fanfarlo and The Antlers, both of which wound up making my Top 8 Albums of the Year. Bowerbirds, Lookbook, and Birdmonster were all highlights. Others not so much. Not even :Kinema:'s cover of Animal Collective's "My Girls" was enough to make-up for their uninteresting auto-tuned disco. While Portland's Hockey seemed promising the first few listens, it turned out to be at best bland and at worst annoying. We at SFCritic would like to thank you all for sending us so much music and for following us in 2009. Keep sending in new, weird, and wonderful music and we'll write about it in 2010.

Merry Christmas, y'all.