Jason Bajada

Love, she is a bitch. And nobody knows this better than Jason Bajada. Oh, boy, the man is hurtin'. On his new album, LoveShit, Bajada makes the anguish of a break-up into his muse. There are moments of such aching intimacy ("your dresses are touching other men") that sometimes you'd almost wish that you weren't permitted into Bajada's world of hurt. Once there, it's far too compelling to walk away. With lyrics like "Everywhere's winter, even here with the palm trees" and "I wanted to marry you and your family," "Hard Not To Quit" is the most heart-wrenching tune of 2009. The stark themes of Loveshit and Bajada's folk and country influences make this an easy one to compare to Lee Hazlewood's Requiem For An Almost Lady. It doesn't get any sadder-sack or much more nonchalantly lovely than this.