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Top 10 Albums of 2008

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Skibas_clavicle:
Stephan Stills! <3

On a closer listen I take that Fleet Foxes off my list. The Jenny Lewis album is totally solid, though.

Shadows Collide:
SHEARWATER!! Really blew my mind and is unexpectedly my favorite of the year, and one of my favorites full stop (at least at the moment)

Some dumb review on Tiny mix tapes (usually a reputable website) gave it 1 star and most people have dismissed it basically. That TMT review said the band are just imitating Talk Talk in their style. The singer certainly has a similarly fragile and touching voice like Mark Hollis, and this comparison might explain why "Rook" has such an effect - it has the same attention to detail and aural space that classics like Laughing Stock had back in the day.

A future classic? Possibly...

mberan42:
Here's my annual list of favourite albums.

Honourable Mentions (in no order)
[*]A Silver Mt. Zion – 13 Blues for 13 Moons
--I don't get the 13 tracks of noise at the beginning, and some of the lyrics are frankly a bit creepy, but Blind Blind Blind makes this album great.
[*]Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend
--Oh man Oxford Comma is awesome. I HATE the Oxford comma, and they sing a song about it!
[*]M83 – Saturdays = Youth
--Welcome back to the 80s! Mellow, smooth and fun are three perfect adjectives for this album.
[*]Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours
--Not much to say about this album other than it's a neat electronic/techno/poppy album.
[*]The Notwist – The Devil, You + Me
--As someone else said, this album is the Postal Service without being emo, and I couldn't think of anything better to say.
[*]This Will Destroy You – This Will Destroy You
--Man, I downloaded a lot of post-rock this year (Mogwai, This Is Your Captain Speaking, Russian Stations, Mono, The American Dollar, Laura, Misuse, The Samuel Jackson Five, We Made God, etc.), but this album was by far the best. This would've been #10 on my list, but I really wanted to put my current #10 on there. More complex than Explosions in the Sky, they've got the restraint-crescendo-explode thing down, but it never gets boring or old. (The album cover is both awesome and awful at the same time. Pretty sure it's intentional, though.)


Top Ten

10. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drl200/l209/l20975v6fj8.jpg[/img]
Computer vs. Banjo – Computer vs. Banjo
--A neat album. Equal parts electronica and folk, it's like if Iron & Wine played their music through a synthesizer, minus Sam Beam's breathy vocals.

9. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drk600/k611/k61148ylzsd.jpg[/img]
The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
--A bit disappointed with this album, but not surprising. Their last album Boys & Girls In America was such a brilliant album (one that just keeps getting better every listen I give it) that it would have been near-impossible to record a better follow-up. That aside, Stay Positive is still a great album, completely true to the band's bar rock. One other criticism - they sound too polished, too complete. Every other record feels a bit unfinished, a bit raw. I think they spent too much time in the studio perfecting Stay Positive. I mean, I heard Sequestered in Memphis on XRT for god's sake...

8. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drk800/k809/k80992x9hct.jpg[/img]
Sigur Rós - Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust
--I don't really know what to write about this album. It's Sigur Rós, so I love it, but it's a big step in a different direction for the band. The epic track Ára Bátur is perhaps too epic that it spills over the top. Nevertheless, a good album from a great band. Definitely not their best, but the guys tried something different. In that, though, they succeeded.

7. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drj200/j273/j27312k2ipv.jpg[/img]
British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music?
--I do. I DO like rock music! And this album is a great rock album!

6. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drl300/l394/l39491ly719.jpg[/img]
Parts & Labor – Receivers
--Man, thank you Sound Opinions. I was listening to NPR one night last year, Sound Opinions was on and they were interviewing Parts & Labor. They were talking about their (previous) album, Mapmakers. I really dug it. Noise rock at its finest, Receivers is a wonderful tribute to 80s underground rock and 60s acid rock, but perfect for today.

5. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drk300/k338/k33835pa3g8.jpg[/img]
No Age – Nouns
--Now I'm not a big fan of punk, but these guys rock. Lo-fi audio at its finest (can lo-fi even be fine?). I wish I could've seen them when they were in town - I heard the show was killer.

4. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drl400/l402/l40247z9o4z.jpg[/img]
Titus Andronicus – The Airing of Grievances
--I know I said I'm not a big fan of punk, (see above). These guys are more indie-punk than anything. Weird way to categorize them, but I can't think of anything else. And, as I've said before, I'm no music critic - I like what I like and can't tell you why. This album is fantastic.

The next three are so far above and beyond the initial 7. All three are incredible albums that just catapulted their way to the top of the list. Incredible recordings by three very different artists, I had a difficult time deciding their order. I ultimately settled on the following, solely based on the number of times I played them all this year:


3. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drl300/l380/l38040arnrp.jpg[/img]
The Dodos – Visiter
--A joy to listen to. Playful and boisterous. Words fail me in describing this album. Incredible musicianship.

2. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drl600/l677/l67702cr6v8.jpg[/img]
TV on the Radio – Dear Science,
--God I love these guys. Every album is so different, so unique, so damn good. So much more complex than anything they've ever recorded before (which doesn't seem possible), this album has such a range of songs. From the danceable Golden Age to the incredibly touching Family Tree to the most blatent "I want to fuck you" song I've ever heard, Lover's Day.

1. [img width= height=]http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drl300/l394/l39423kwhes.jpg[/img]
Girl Talk – Feed the Animals
--Absolutely brilliant. I don't know how he does it, but Gregg Gillis is a fucking genius. This album is just awesome. Released on the internet on 19 June 2008, I've probably listened to it 200 times. That's more than once a day. I just can't get enough. I listen to it at work, I use it as my running soundtrack, I listen to it at home... Unbelieveable how good this album is.

There you go!

Katherine:
That Girl Talk album is incredible.  I've gotten as many of my friends hooked on it as I possibly can and all it takes is just one listen because it is just that awesome.

Jackie Blue:
That This Will Destroy You album cover literally is just the cover for the album.  The CD cover is completely different.  The album cover is obviously a joke.  You might have noticed the difference if you had paid for it instead of downloading it.

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