Alternative 
THE FEATURES: On the Horizon(0)
July 1, 2009
Songs are not always what they seem; never confidently infer meanings of a lyric from a band’s bio . . .
JOHN VANDERSLICE: On Track
The concept album lives on in the less grandiose visions of indie rock auteurs Colin Meloy (The Decemberists), John Darnielle (Mountain Goats) and John Vanderslice . . .
25 Of Our Favorite Songs From 1984-2009
The older one gets, the more one looks back at those years now gone. American Songwriter’s reached the ripe age of 25 and the best years are ahead. But as happy as turning 25 makes us, we decided to look back at all the songs we’ve found and loved since 1984, the year the magazine started . . .
More in this category:
- BOMBADIL > Tarpits and Canyonlands
- PATTERSON HOOD > Murdering Oscar (and Other Love Songs)
- CHARLIE MARS > Like A Bird, Like A Plane
- SON VOLT > American Central Dust
- A PURE DROP: THE LIFE OF JEFF BUCKLEY > Jeff Apter
- U2 > Rattle & Hum
- DRUG RUG > Paint the Fence Invisible
- American Songwriter at Bonnaroo: Video
- THE SOUNDS > Crossing the Rubicon
- MANCHESTER ORCHESTRA > Mean Everything to Nothing
- ZAC BROWN BAND > The Foundation
- LONEY DEAR: New Faces 09
- THE AVETT BROTHERS: Life and Art, Ambition and Vision
- WILLIAM ELLIOTT WHITMORE: New Faces 09
- DM STITH: New Faces 09
- ASOBI SEKSU: New Faces 09
- LOU REED: Transformed
- ANDREW BIRD > Noble Beast
- THE DEAD TREES > King of Rosa
- STARFLYER 59 > Dial M
- RYAN ADAMS & THE CARDINALS > Cardinology
- FRANZ FERDINAND > Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
- NICO VEGA > Nico Vega
- DANIELSON > Trying Hartz
- THE SMITHS > The Sound of The Smiths
- MARK OLSON & GARY LOURIS > Ready for the Flood
- Interview: Little Joy, Part 1
- RODNEY CROWELL: Closer to Heaven
- LUCINDA WILLIAMS: On Record, Extended and Uncut
- THE KILLERS: Vital Signs
- TOM VERLAINE > Dreamtime & Words from the Front
- BENJI HUGHES > A Love Extreme
- EMILiANA TORRINI > Me and Armini
- DEERHUNTER > Microcastle
- THE DEARS > Missiles
- LAMBCHOP > OH (Ohio)
- BLITZEN TRAPPER > Furr
- KINGS OF LEON > Only By The Night
- LAND OF TALK > Some Are Lakes
- THE WHISPERTOWN 2000 > Swim
- OKKERVIL RIVER > The Stand-Ins
- BLOC PARTY > Intimacy
- THE ROSEBUDS > Life Like
- TV ON THE RADIO: On Track
- DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES: Labor of Love
- RACHAEL YAMAGATA: Threatening Cynicism
- CALEXICO > Carried to Dust
- DEAD CONFEDERATE: On the Horizon
- THE DEEP VIBRATION: Quiet! Recording in Progress
- BROOKE WAGGONER > Heal for the Honey
- BECK > Modern Guilt
- THE WALKMEN > You & Me
- BODIES OF WATER > A Certain Feeling
- DR. DOG > Fate
- 8/8/08 Wilco and Bon Iver @ Koka Booth Ampitheatre, Cary, N.C.
- 8/8/08 Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band @ Mercy Lounge, Nashville, Tenn.
- 7/18/08 Pitchfork Music Festival @ Union Park, Chicago, IL
- WEEZER: Heart Songs
- SILVER JEWS: Carry On
- MY MORNING JACKET: On Love and Songwriting
- MY BRIGHTEST DIAMOND > A Thousand Shark’s Teeth
- MANDA > Keeps On Turning
- WALTER MEEGO > Voyager
- 5/5/08 Holy F**k, M.I.A. @ City Hall, Nashville, Tenn.
- 5/4/08 Mason Jennings @ City Hall, Nashville, Tenn.
- DESTROYER > Trouble In Dreams
- TAPES ‘N TAPES: On Track
- GARY LOURIS: On Record
- SUN KIL MOON: On Track
- 4/08/08 Caribou, F**k Buttons @ Mercy Lounge, Nashville, Tenn.
- 4/4/08 Teletextile @ Union Hall, Brooklyn, N.Y.
- 3/25/08 Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks @ Mercy Lounge, Nashville, Tenn.
- ATLAS SOUND > Let the Blind Lead Those Who See But Cannot Feel
- AMERICAN MUSIC CLUB > The Golden Age
- DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE: Gets Analog in a Digital Age
- BABY DEE > Safe Inside the Day
- BOB MOULD > District Line
- XIU XIU > Women as Lovers
- BE YOUR OWN PET: Let’s Get Awkward
- 1/17/08 Yo La Tengo @ The Belcourt, Nashville, Tenn.
- VIVA VOCE > Lovers, Lead the Way!/The Heat Can Melt Your Brain
- THE WHIGS > Mission Control
- SEA WOLF > Leaves in the River
- RADIOHEAD > In Rainbows
- MINIPOP > A New Hope
- Louis XIV > Guilt By Association
- GRIZZLY BEAR > Friend EP
- CROSS CANADIAN RAGWEED > Mission California
- NIRVANA > Unplugged In New York
- JOY DIVISION > Unknown Pleasures; Closer; Still
- FRANK BLACK: Frankly Speaking
- 10/30/07 The Whigs @ Exit/In, Nashville, Tenn.
- THE EVERYBODYFIELDS > Nothing Is Okay
- DEADSTRING BROTHERS > Silver Mountain
- DEVENDRA BANHART > Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon
- 10/26/07 Spoon @ Cannery Row, Nashville, Tenn.
- STEVE EARLE: The Last Hardcore Troubadour
- PANDA BEAR > Person Pitch
- MIRANDA LAMBERT > Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
- KEREN ANN: In Nomad’s Land
- THE ELECTRIC SOFT PARADE: The Brothers’ Grit
- The Talented M. Ward