Happy New Year everybody!!!! Hope everyone had an awesome and safe night. Now that 2009 has come to an end, I can post my “Best Of” albums list. I’m gonna keep it short and only put 5 down.

5) A Day To Remember “Homesick” - What a good start to 2009 with this record coming out early on in the year. Making poppy parts even poppier and breakdowns even heavier, this album spans a wide spectrum of sounds while never leaving it’s “pop punk/hardcore” labeling. They easily had the biggest crowd at the ‘09 Warped Tour’s NY date, with at least 3 to 4 circle pits and garbage cans flying freely through the crowd. I’m especially excited for their new material since their lineup change. I want to see what Kevin Skaff is capable of.

4) Paramore “Brand New Eyes - Somehow, they topped “Riot!” Hayley Williams quickly became one of my favorite lyricists after my first listen through this album. After all, with the band almost breaking up, she had a lot of feelings to get off of her chest. No two songs on this record sound even close to being the same. All of the music is extremely well written, and let’s face it, Hayley has angelic pipes.

3) The Swellers “Ups and Downsizing” - I had never even listened to this band until the summer of 2009 when I saw them at the NY stop on the Gig Life Tour. All I could think was “wow, their singer can belt it out and shred.” This new album did contain drastically fewer intense guitar solos than their previous effort, “My Everest,” but their overall songwriting took it’s place in the driver’s seat. From tales of moving out and selling your home, to jumping off of a bridge and deciding you still want to live as you are halfway down, this record is top notch from front to back.

2) New Found Glory “Not Without A Fight” - After delving into a softer sound on “Coming Home,” I kind of thought New Found Glory would never sound like they used to. This Mark Hoppus produced work completely shattered all of my expectations. The band who became the poster boys for pop punk had changed the entire game. I can never stop liking this band. After all, they do comprise a good chunk of my t-shirt collection.

1) Set Your Goals “This Will Be The Death Of Us” - I waited SO long for this record to come out, and saying I was thrilled with it wouldn’t even do it justice. This album captures the reality of having your integrity compromised, but still being able to overcome any obstacles in your way. Every song is great, and not too overproduced. I saw these guys on the Gig Life Tour about a week after the record came out and they stole the show from every other band on the bill (Gravemaker, The Swellers, Fireworks, and Four Year Strong). It’s only uphill from here guys.