Over the past week and a half, a ton of local musicians – BC, Alastair St. Hill, Kamran Mir, Anonymous, Vinnie Cosentino, Soraya Zaumeyer, Crash Mitchell and Jonny C. – have had their say.

Today, Julie Garisto, tbt*'s Meet the Band columnist and a Soundcheck contributor, lists her picks for the Best Local Albums of 2009:

1. Sons of Hippies, Warriors of the Light: In my next life, I want to be SoH frontwoman Katherine Kelly (above right, with SoH cohort Jonas Canales). See Vinnie Cosentino’s review for more.

2.  Roppongi’s Ace, Into the Night: Vintage blues-Americana updated and generated by earnest and powerful vocals, tight musicianship and hella good production by Steve Connelly.

3. Have Gun, Will Travel, Postcards From the Friendly City: Linchpins of the West Central Florida rustic belt show us a more introspective side – and we like it.

4. Anonymous, Sincerely Anonymous: With verbal musicality, top-notch guest vocals and edgy cleverness, Chris Nunez takes us into the next generation of underground hip-hop.

5. Los Hijos de Ismael, En Pie de Paz: The guys from Tampa’s Triptico romance us with their Spanish folk music side project; delicate, spacious and gorgeous – but powerful.

6. Rich Whiteley, Ruby Fizz: Folk, country, rock and pop combine with an achingly sincere vocal that never overdoes it. Listen to this when the world seems crazy. It’ll bring back some perspective.

7. Aych, Long Way From Home: You gots to love Hansel Wilson’s honest rhymes and stylishly smooth production as he coasts the line between the street and underground without a wobble.

8. Jim Morey Band, Nuthin But Love: Haunted by sexy demons from years past — jazzy swing, New Orleans stomp and darkly rhapsodic serenades.  

9. Jeremy Gloff, 21st Century Love Songs: Longtime folk-disco troubadour, society commentator and all-around sweet gentleman, Gloff enlists the help of Ronny Elliott and other luminaries of the scene for an impressively produced CD.

10. Dan Kincaid, The Walk Within: Uplifting, confessional and inspirational tunes not neatly tied to any niche or scene. (See Soraya Zaumeyer’s review) 

EPs of ’09

1. BC, Time Pieces: Red Tide frontman B.C. ingeniously takes us on a road to the future paved by the ills of today; first of three in a conceptual series, rapid-fire rhyming series.

2. Philip Pietri and Manatees, Beach Jazz: Ever dig the pretty calypso-tinged new wave songs of the 80s, such as Haircut 100? If so, you’ll want to hear Pietri’s more sophisticated and nuanced take on the sunny side of weirdness.

3. Light Yourself on Fire, Light Yourself on Fire Intimacy: Speaking of twisters, here we have a cyclone of metallic, progressive and punk styles – LYoF is too original for categorization, and the band’s dynamics keep you on your toes.

4.  Blind Man’s Colour, Wooden Blankets: Young inventive duo creates lush and pretty psychedelic experimental pop. Fans of Yeasayer should dig it.

5. The Hip Abduction, Move:

A tasty Reggae-flavored gem to get your hips swaying.

-- Julie Garisto, tbt*