Top 10 Albums of 2008 (in no particular order)
1. Santogold
-This one took me a few listens to get turned onto, but once I was on, I was on!
A creative album that dips into a bin of ‘80s synth, reggae, hip-hop, and world music,
and manages to come up with something that is atmospheric, danceable at times, and
certainly not boring.
2. Vampire Weekend
-Backlash be damned, I’m still playing this on a loop after more than a year!
3. Girl Talk-Feed the Animals
-Thank you, Girl Talk, for amping up my cardio workouts. And teaching me some sweet
dirty slang.
4. The Black Keys-Attack and Release
-Ike Turner may have had something to do with this album, or was going to have something
to do with this album, so maybe that’s why it kicks ass! (Hee hee) Nice to see
the boys get even better with the kicked-up production of Danger Mouse.
5. Beck-Modern Guilt
-I just love everything he does; he manages to create consistently good music that
is somehow not entirely derivative of everything else he’s ever done.
6. Blitzen Trapper-Furr
-I think I saw these guys open for Clap Your Hands a few years back and I remember
thinking they were all over the place, yet enjoyable. If it’s the same band, well,
looks like I was right on the mark, wasn’t I?
7. Bon Iver-For Emma, Whenever Ago
-I wish I could be this creative after getting dumped. A beautiful piece of music.
8. The Gaslight Anthem-The ’59 Sound
-Thank you, Jersey. I’ve been pumping my fist on the ride home from work for months
now and there’s no sign of stopping!
9. Frightened Rabbit-Midnight Organ Flight
-I think I’ve probably teared up a number of times while wailing along to this one…sober…but
alas, my tears dissolved like Scottish rain.
10. Erykah Badu-New Amerykah, Part I: World War 4
-I always love confusingly militant album titles, so this one made it into my top
10. Oh, and I adore it in its entirety, from her gorgeous vocals to the tight production.
Perhaps yet another piece of our new post-racial America? Gimme some more!
