Best Non Metal Albums of 2009 (that I listened to...)

As you know, I already went through my best metal albums of the year. But there were plenty of good non-metal albums that came out in 2009. There were plenty of good albums spanning a slew of different genres that touched the top of the charts, and some that didn’t even come close . Here are the albums that weren’t metal that piqued my interest in 2009:

-Muse- The Resistance: Perhaps not as memorable as “Black Holes and Revelations”, but songs like the title track and the hit “Uprising” showed that Muse is the band that could most likely pick up U2’s mantle now that Coldplay has bored us to tears.

-Prodigy- Invaders Must Die: The team of “The Fat Of The Land” were back, and delivered some killer dance tunes this year, such as “Run With The Wolves” and “Take Me To The Hospital”. Bonus points for doing their first tour in the U.S. since 1998.

-Alice in Chains- Black Gives Way To Blue: Without Layne Staley, people were sure what to think of AIC’s first album in 14 years. With new singer William Duvall in tow, Jerry Cantrell and company brought the pain and made us forget about new albums from other 90’s luminaries (yes, we’re looking at you Pearl Jam!).

-Steel Panther- Feel the Steel: The funniest hair metal in history by far. With song titles like “Eatin’ Aint Cheatin’” and “Turn Out The Lights”, the band proved they also have the musical chops to go with the raunchy lyrics. Pure stupid genius.

-Metric- Fantasies: The New York via Canada band had years of toiling around in the indie circuit before getting much more exposure this year, thanks to songs like “Help I’m Alive” and “Sick Muse”. Look for bigger things from Emily Haines and company in the future.

-A Day To Remember- Homesick: Imagine Blink 182 and Hatebreed having a love child and that is what A Day To Remember is. Listen to songs like “The Downfall Of Us All” and “My Life For Hire” and tell me just how catchy this band can really be.

-Them Crooked Vultures- Self Titled: Put Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones in a supergroup, and you might just have the best “supergroup” album since Velvet Revolver’s first record. The bluesy classic rock of the album grows on you after every listen.