Rating: 
It’s been quite the week for children’s choirs, huh? First Karen O and the Kids and now Dead Man’s Bones, children’s choirs are having the best week ever! But I digress. Dead Man’s Bones is the brainchild of Oscar nominated actor Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields. When I initially heard of this project I, of course, was skeptical. I mean you when hear about two actors who wrangle up a children’s choir and write an album based on zombies, vampires, and werewolves, your cynicism is warranted, these conditions are capable of inducing Scarlett Johansson amounts of worry.
I have to tell you though, and I apologize for gushing, but this album, their self-titled debut on Anti-, is a joy to listen to. The Silverlake Conservatory Children’s Choir does a terrific job supplying ample amounts of atmosphere for these well-crafted songs. On the Where the Wild Things Are soundtrack, the childrens choir was used to convey wild and youthful abandon, but with DMB (no, not that DMB) the choir comes off more creepy and ethereal. This coupled with waltzes about vampires (Young & Tragic) and doo-wops about zombies (My Bodies a Zombie For You) makes for a truly original album.
On the initial listen, I kept thinking I would get bored, but even when my attention was waning on the current track, I was always looking forward to what Gosling, Shields and the Kids would showcase on the next track. I don’t say that too often, especially in this age of a la carte listening, picking and choosing your favorite tracks and discarding the rest. Dead Man’s Bones deserves a full listen, and then some.
Once again, if you have kids in your life they should love it!
[audio: https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Dead_Mans_Bones_-_My_Bodys_A_Zombie_For_You.mp3]
Download: Dead Man’s Bones – My Body’s A Zombie For You [MP3]
We have to start this list off with a disclaimer. We have three writers, all with different tastes, so the list should reflect that a little bit. Also, these are our opinions, and by no means, are they meant to be seen as an “end all be all” to the question of what were the best songs of 2009. That being said, we like our list quite a bit. Sure, it’s got some expected numbers at the top, but the rest of the list is genius. We’ve got some of the songs streaming for you, and the rest take you straight to youtube. Follow the jump for full list.