Top 25 Albums of 2008
So, here's my long mulled over list of favorite albums of the year.
Just a couple notes before you read on:
You may notice that in my intro to last year's list I mention feeling bad that I couldn't find room for Bon Iver's debut disc. Well, after a year of satisfying listens (and an official label release), I thought it deserved a spot on the 2008 list.
Secondly, if you've been looking at a lot of year-end best albums lists, it seems like a lot people agree with my #1 choice. I hate being so predictable, but honestly no other album even came close.
50. THE BUG / London Zoo
49. HIGH PLACES / High Places
48. LINDSTROM / Where You Go I Go Too
47. EL GUINCHO / Alegranza
46. WOLF PARADE / At Mount Zoomer
45. DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES / In Ear Park
44. Q-TIP / The Renaissance
43. MAE SHI / Hlllyh
42. ELBOW / Seldom Seen Kid
41. BONNIE 'PRINCE' BILLY / Lie Down in the Light
40. CRYSTAL CASTLES / Crystal Castles
39. SIGUR ROS / Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust
38. SPIRITUALIZED / Songs in A & E
37. WHY? / Alopecia
36. BUN B / II Trill
35. HORSE FEATHERS / House with No Name
34. CRYSTAL STILTS / Alight of Night
33. VAMPIRE WEEKEND / Vampire Weekend
32. ERYKAH BADU / New Amerykah, Pt. 1: 4th World War
31. HERCULES AND LOVE AFFAIR / Hercules and Love Affair
30. CALEXICO / Carried to Dust
29. FUCK BUTTONS / Street Horrrsing
28. SANTOGOLD / Santogold
27. CUT COPY / In Ghost Colours
26. THE DODOS / Visiter
25. PORTISHEAD / Third
24. KANYE WEST / 808s and Heartbreak
23. M83 / Saturdays = Youth
22. MY MORNING JACKET / Evil Urges
21. THE WEEK THAT WAS / The Week That Was
20. SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS / Alpinisms
19. BLACK KIDS / Partie Traumatic
18. MAN MAN / Rabbit Habits
17. BON IVER / For Emma, Forever Ago
16. THE DUTCHESS AND THE DUKE / She's the Dutchess, He's the Duke
15. LIL' WAYNE / Tha Carter III
14. DEERHOOF / Offend Maggie
13. AMADOU & MARIAM / Welcome to Mali
12. JAMIE LIDELL / Jim
11. DEERHUNTER / Microcastle / Weird Era Cont.
10. NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS / Dig! Lazarus Dig!
9. QUIET VILLAGE / Silent Movie
8. BLACK KEYS / Attack and Release
7. FOALS / Antidotes
6. SHUGO TOKUMARU / Exit
5. BLITZER TRAPPER / Furr
4. LYKKE LI / Youth Novels
3. NEON NEON / Stainless Style
2. FLEET FOXES / Fleet Foxes
1. TV ON THE RADIO / Dear Science
--
Top 50 Singles of 2008
Top 50 Albums of 2007
Top 50 Albums of 2006
Top 50 Albums of 2005, Part 1 | Part 2
All Year-End Lists Back to 1995
Labels: best of 2008, lists, music
posted on Tuesday, December 16, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
TOP 50 SINGLES OF 2008
It became very clear to me when I began compiling this list that I spent much of 2008 seeking out good dance music. Luckily, the year was full of great electronic acts and energetic indie bands that I didn't have to search too hard. Dance cuts all but dominated this year's list. But you won't get to #1 without hearing a fair share of dramatic guitar riffs and undeniably catchy pop hooks.
As usual, I've done my best to limit these choices to songs that were actually released as singles, even if that meant axing some really great tracks like Erykah Badu's "The Healer" and Santogold's "You'll Find a Way".
I'll have my Top 50 Albums posted in a couple weeks.
50. TV ON THE RADIO / "Dancing Choose"
(video) (stream)
49. CHRIS BROWN / "Forever"
(video) (stream)
48. THE HELIO SEQUENCE / "Keep Your Eyes Ahead"
(video) (mp3)
47. GNARLS BARKLEY / "Run"
(video)
46. THE LAST SHADOW PUPPETS / "The Age of the Understatement"
(video)
45. KARDINAL OFFISHALL featuring AKON / "Dangerous"
(video) (stream)
44. FRANZ FERDINAND / "Lucid Dreams"
(stream)
43. ISLANDS / "Creeper"
(video)
42. SANTOGOLD / "L.E.S. Artistes"
(video)
41. GLASVEGAS / "Geraldine"
(video) (stream)
40. HERCULES AND LOVE AFFAIR / "You Belong"
(video) (stream)
39. ELBOW / "Grounds for Divorce"
(video)
38. WOLF PARADE / "Call It a Ritual"
(mp3)
37. DUFFY / "Mercy"
(video) (stream)
36. DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE / "I Will Possess Your Heart"
(video)
35. DAN LE SAC VS. SCROOBIUS PIP / "Look for the Woman"
(video)
34. LEONA LEWIS / "Bleeding Love"
(video) (stream)
33. LYKKE LI / "I'm Good, I'm Gone"
(video)
32. ANNIE / "I Know UR Girlfriend Hates Me"
(youtube)
31. BLACK KIDS / "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
(video)
30. ATMOSPHERE / "You"
(video)
29. BECK / "Chemtrails"
(stream)
28. TING TINGS / "Shut Up and Let Me Go"
(video) (stream)
27. FLEET FOXES / "White Winter Hymnal"
(video)
26. JAMIE LIDELL / "A Little Bit of Feel Good"
(video)
25. HOT CHIP / "One Pure Thought"
(video) (stream)
24. NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS / "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!"
(video)
23. NEON NEON featuring CATE LE BON / "I Lust U"
(video)
22. CUT COPY / "Lights and Music"
(video) (stream)
21. MADONNA featuring JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE/ "4 Minutes"
(video)
20. BASIA BULAT / "In the Night"
(video)
19. FOALS / "Balloons"
(video)
18. PNAU featuring LADYHAWKE / "Embrace"
(video)
17. T.I. / "Whatever You Like"
(video) (stream)
16. ESTELLE featuring KANYE WEST / "American Boy"
(video)
15. SAM SPARRO / "Black and Gold"
(video) (stream)
14. SEBASTIEN TELLIER / "Divine"
(video)
13. HERCULES AND LOVE AFFAIR / "Blind"
(video) (stream)
12. THE FUTUREHEADS / "The Beginning of the Twist"
(video) (stream)
11. RIHANNA / "Don't Stop the Music"
(video) (stream)
--
10. LADYHAWKE / "Paris is Burning"
(video) (stream)
9. CRYSTAL CASTLES vs. HEALTH / "Crimewave"
(video) (stream)
8. CSS / "Move"
(video)
7. ROBIN THICKE / "Magic"
(video) (stream)
6. KANYE WEST featuring DWELE / "Flashing Lights"
(video) (stream)
5. MGMT / "Electric Feel"
(video) (stream)
4. LYKKE LI / "Breaking It Up"
(video)
3. M83 / "Kim and Jessie"
(video) (stream)
2. HOT CHIP / "Ready for the Floor"
(video) (stream)
1. MGMT / "Kids"
(stream)
--
Top 50 Singles of 2007
Top 50 Singles of 2006
Top 25 Singles of 2005
Labels: best of 2008, indie rock, lists, mp3, music, music videos, streams
posted on Saturday, December 06, 2008 | [permalink] | 1 comments
FULL MP3 ALBUM: VICE GIVES YOU THE GIFT OF GOOD MUSIC
Vice Gives You The Gift Of Good Music
It's not a holiday album. It's a compilation of tracks (downloadable via Amazon.com) from artists on the Vice Records roster, including Chromeo, Japanese Motors, King Khan & The Shrines, and The Streets. A couple of these had already been available for free download on the label's mp3 blog, but I believe most of these are first time freebies.
And, if you happen to be in search for some actually holiday music. Vice is offering up "Come On, Santa" for the taking. The track is from The Raveonettes new Christmas EP.
Labels: holiday music, indie rock, mp3, music
posted on Wednesday, December 03, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
LIST: LAST.FM BEST OF 2008
Last.fm Best of 2008
If you've been poking around through music blogs lately, you've surely already experienced the glut of year-end lists touting the best of the year. (And yes, I'll be adding to the mess soon enough.) One year-in-review I was particularly fascinated by was the one at Last.fm, which ranks the year's top tracks, albums, and new artists by total number of listeners on the site. The countdown of tracks is dominated by Coldplay and MGMT, but the other two lists include interesting jumbles that just cry for analysis. Katy Perry wedged between Foals and Fleet Foxes? The Kooks have the sixth most listened to album of the year? Statistics hounds, let your reasoning begin.
Labels: best of 2008, last.fm, lists, music
posted on Tuesday, December 02, 2008 | [permalink] | 1 comments
VIDEO: LOW
It might not be a typical holiday album, but Low's 1999 holiday record Christmas was actually quite hauntingly beautiful. This year, they cross the line from haunting to just plain creepy on their new yuletide single "Santa's Coming Over". And check out those kids in the video. Truly frightening.
LOW
"Santa's Coming Over"
See also:
subpop.com
tags: music | music videos | indie rock | holiday music | Low
posted on Sunday, November 30, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: A.C. NEWMAN
"There are Maybe Ten or Twelve"
(ACNewman.net)
This track from A.C. Newman's upcoming album Get Guilty is a simple and pretty pop song. It feels very much like some of the ballads from Challengers, but I think we'll have to wait until we hear the album before we can judge how much of a departure it is from his previous work with and without The New Pornographers.
tags: music | mp3 | indie rock | A.C. Newman
posted on Sunday, November 30, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
VIDEO: MGMT
I'm not sure I would have guessed that MGMT would make "The Youth" a single, but I suppose the most obvious dance-floor-ready tracks from Oracular Spectacular have already been released. Whether you love the track or not, you'll at least be amused by the video, which was directed by Eric Wareheim of Tim & Eric's Awesome Show, Great Job!.
MGMT
"The Youth"
Other MGMT music videos:
"Time to Pretend"
"Electric Feel"
"Kids"
See also:
whoismgmt.com
tags: music | music videos | indie dance | MGMT
posted on Monday, October 13, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: FRIDA HYVONEN
"Enemy Within"
(Secretly Canadian)
Swedish songstress Frida Hyvonen has a voice that's both haunting and tender, And it's hard to ignore its power on "Enemy Within", which will appear on her upcoming sophomore album Silence is Wild. Musically, Hyvonen appeals to lovers of traditional singer-songwriters, yet she constintent dares to move boldy out of the girl-at-a-piano comfort zone.
See also:
fridahyvonen.com
tags: music | mp3 | indie rock | Frida Hyvonen
posted on Saturday, October 11, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: +/- {PLUS MINUS}
"Snowblind"
(Absolutely Kosher)
A new track from search engine stumpers +/-, who'll be releasing their latest album entitled Xs on Your Eyes on Oct. 21.
See also:
plusmin.us
tags: music | mp3 | indie rock | +/-
posted on Monday, October 06, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: JENNY LEWIS
"Acid Tongue"
(Toolshed)
I'm not sure anyone succeeds at freshening up a traditional storytelling country-folk song quite like Jenny Lewis. The Rilo Kiley singer releases her new solo album Acid Tongue on Sept. 23 -- this time without the Watson Twins but with help from collaborators like Elvis Costello, Zooey Deschanel, and Chris Robinson. Just one listen to this title track and I'm yearning to hear all those harmonies.
See also:
Jenny Lewis
tags: music | mp3 | americana | indie rock | Jenny Lewis
posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: BRIGHTBLACK MORNING LIGHT
"Hologram Buffalo"
"Oppressions Each"
(Matador)
With these two spacey selections, psychedelic folk band Brightblack Morning Light blaze the trail toward their forthcoming release Motion to Rejoin, which may make even the most straight-laced of fellows want to dress like a hippie and pop some pills.
See also:
thebrightblackmorninglight.com
myspace.com/brightblackmorninglight
tags: music | mp3 | psych rock | indie rock | Brightblack Morning Light
posted on Monday, September 08, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: HORSE FEATHERS
"Curs in the Weed"
(Kill Rock Stars)
Frontman Justin Ringle styles his voice after Nick Drake on this new track. Despite a roster of multi-instrument-playing band members, the Oregon-based outfit finds beauty in the simple and sparse. Horse Feathers' new album House with No Name is available on Sept. 9.
See also:
myspace.com/horsefeathersmusic
tags: music | mp3 | folk | indie rock | Horse Feathers
posted on Friday, September 05, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
VIDEO: CSS
I certainly don't disagree with the lukewarm reviews critics gave CSS' sophomore album Donkey. It's pretty lackluster compared to their debut album, which made the Brazilian group dancefloor regulars a couple years back. However, the CD does have one glowingly good moment. Their new single "Move" was the lone track I really thought could be a hit when I first listened to Donkey. Doused in '80s electro-pop, the song even features a brief and adorable Debbie Harry-esque rap.
CSS
"Move"
See also:
www.csshurts.com
tags: music | music videos | indie dance | CSS
posted on Thursday, September 04, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
MP3: PATTERN IS MOVEMENT
"Bird"
(Team Clermont)
Two-man Boulder band Pattern is Movement's new album All Together was released on Tuesday. Fans know them from their high energy eclecticism. If you need proof, throw on this track. It sounds like it belongs in a Japanese pop musical.
See also:
patternismovement.com
tags: music | mp3 | indie rock | experimental | Pattern is Movement
posted on Thursday, May 08, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments
VIDEO: THE FUTUREHEADS
Like many, I was a big fan of the driving, angular pop of The Futureheads' 2004 self-titled debut. But their follow-up album 2006's News and Tributes was a bit of a disappointment -- more of the same, but much less fun. Their newest single "The Beginning of the Twist" is a good sign that the English band found their mojo again and that their next album just may something to look forward to.
THE FUTUREHEADS
"Beginning of the Twist"
See also:
thefutureheadscms.trinitystreetdirect.com
tags: music | music videos | indie rock | Futureheads
posted on Wednesday, February 13, 2008 | [permalink] | 0 comments