Best Remixes of 2008
My favourite remixes of 2008 (plus one live Justice track) combined into one playlist. Any feedback is appreciated, since this is my first electronic playlist, just leave a comment.
Thanks for the great picture Tim Walker.
Sleepyhead (Streetlab mix) /// Passion Pit
Kids (Soulwax Nite Version) /// MGMT
Mercury (CSS Remix) /// Bloc Party
We Are Your Friends (Disco Villains Remix) /// Justice vs. Simian
Jokin’ Jay z (Remixed by Don Rimini) /// Jay Z
Electric Feel (Justice Remix) /// MGMT
Dirty Harry (Disco Villains Remix) /// Gorillaz
D.A.N.C.E. (Live Version) /// Justice
Hype Machine Opens Zeitgeist
The Hype Machine has started to release it’s most popular artists, albums and songs of 2008, read it here.
The artists section is not so much about quality, but more about popularity within the blogosphere. Which isn’t really that interesting, is it? If I was a betting man, I would say that MGMT would come out on top, followed by Vampire Weekend and then TV on the Radio. Unfortunately, Justice won’t be there, even though their remixes keep re-emerging, because the tracks are under the name of the artist and not Justice. The popular songs are slightly more intriguing since they have done it month by month and included news snippets along with each month.
Albums of 2008 is by far the most interesting section. You can listen to each whole album for free, check it’s average placing in lists and who put it in their list. I presume TV on the Radio will get the number one place, otherwise I think 2008 was such a varied year, that the rest of the list is impossible to guess. Leave your thoughts and predictions in the comments.
Best Albums I Discovered in 2008
The following albums were discovered during 2008, but were from years before. I think they are pretty amazing and are worth a shout.
The Futureheads – The Futureheads
Outshining their later attempts, The Futureheads’ debut is a hard-hitting bit of post-punk. They blended a mixture of raw and chunky guitar sections with a interesting array of multi-vocal work. Highlights include the amazing First Day, a speedy interpretation of what working is, and the ferocious and energetic Man Ray. I think the idea in mind was “quantity over quality”, however the album is still well worth purchasing with over half of the 17 tracks being really great.
Era Vulagris – Queens of the Stone Age
Harsh, distorted, violent and almost psychedelic, Queens of the Stone Age produced something different, but arguably much better, than their previous work. They put together a hard rock album, something I normally despise, and fueled it with a power station, to create haunting electric echoes, drilling guitar riffs and a mixture of moaning and screaming from the singer. Even if you’re not really into this type of thing, I would encourage you to at least try some of their creative rock music.
† – Justice
Justice’s debut features a stunning amount of synth work work, plus some great sampling. You can definitely here some of the rock and pop influences here, which makes it a really great album to listen to.
Orchestra of Wolves – Gallows
Hardcore is not my favorite genre, to say the least, but Gallows showed me how amazing this genre could be. With violent and jagged chords, unmelodious solos and amazing “vocals” from the lead singer, Orchestra of Wolves, is something which really gets your blood boiling, not your ears bleeding.
Abandon Ship, Will Someone Shoot That Fucking Snake
Silent Alarm – Bloc Party
Though I can’t stand their slow and only electronic work, their tracks which are based on rock, are amazing. An excellent example is Positive Tension. It starts off with a simple bass line. It throws in a fast drum beat and then it adds interesting, but nothing special, lyrics. Mixed in are some slow guitar chords. But what is revealed half way, is Bloc Party’s genius. “Something glorious is about to happen! The Reckoning!” the leader singer yells, cueing the punchy solo guitar chords. Fast and jumpy the second guitar kicks in as both singers start to scream. It’s all released in a face-melting solo to a quiet end.
Thanks for the picture Ryan Chirnomas.
Best Albums of 2008
These “best of the year” lists, should be done after the year has past. Unfortunately, Hype Machine has forced me to do it early and so I am stuck with a list, which is not finished and only contains nine albums. Do not worry, I will post the final one next year when I have finished making my mind up. Leave a comment if you disagree, or if I missed one out, so I can see if I want to include it in the final version. Enjoy!
Flight of the Conchords has been a bit of an addiction since I discovered their TV series. I basically downloaded anything I could find from their rather huge collection of music. Of course, I decided to buy their debut. It’s just a shame how it’s not very different from their TV show material. They are at their best when they perform live and since the album is mainly ripped straight from the TV show, I didn’t put it any higher on the list. Still, their material is both funny and musically interesting. Using styles ranging from David Bowie to Shaggie, Flight of the Conchords’ album is well worth listening to.
The Most Beautiful Girl (In The Room)
Peaceful, The World Lies Me Down, is an interesting take on folk music. It has both witty and clever lyrics, produced by a very unlikely kind of vocalist. It has the beautiful voice of Laura Marling and it has some really nice instrumental work, the violins are particularly memorable. Though, I did not enjoy the slow sections of the album, finding them slightly dull, it is the faster paced tracks, like 2 Atoms In A Molecule and Rocks And Daggers that make Noah and the Whale’s first album truly great.
MGMT don’t prove the formula ”quality of quantity”. With ten tracks on the album, only three proved to be amazingly epic (Time to Pretend, Electric Feel, Kids). The rest is just not very interesting. You can argue it’s all experimental, which is fine, but don’t put it on the album then. It’s a shame, because if they had kept up the standard of those three, MGMT’s debut would be the best album of the year.
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Tokyo Police Club produced a pretty amazing EP last year, and their debut was a bit more gritty, but did not disappoint. Their sound is very Strokes-esque, but with a less harsh (Candian) vocalist and distorted synthesisers, which produces a faster sound, something which might be heard on a dancefloor somewhere.
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The Blood Red Shoes’ album is short, but ferocious, simple, but still fascinating. With just a guitarist and a drummer, it seems like their music might be dull, but this is where you start listening to their impressive debut. Hard and fast drumming, relentless guitar strumming and the interesting interwoven vocals from Laura and Steven create a great rock record.
Dark and strange, Alex Turner’s side project, The Last Shadow Puppets, did not really spark my interest initially. But after a couple of months, I can really appreciate it. Age Of The Understatement sounds like an album made of Bond theme songs, but with a lot more depth It manages to keep all the grandness even with the slow, acoustic songs. I can’t wait to see what Alex Turner will do next.
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A flawed, but great album from Foals. It’s a real shame they missed out on Astronauts and All and Hummer, for Heavy Water and Big Big Love (fig. 2). The rest is perfect. In the last three months they have creeped into my Last.fm’s 8th most listened to artists. Battling guitars, addictive bass lines and unbelievable drum patterns make an album which everyone should try. Red Socks Pugie is definitely one of my favourite tracks ever. They also managed to prove themselves as the best band I have seen live.
Lightspeed Champion’s first album is stunning to listen to. With it’s incredibly beautiful melodies, violent and open lyrics, Dev Hynes has created an album where every song is a masterfully created sensation. Would have got my album of the year, if not for Salty Water. I don’t need to describe it anyway, because you should already be rushing to get this from the shops or be downloading it right now.
Just an incredibly well-rounded album. There are no flaws, it’s just a barrage of incredible songs. And with a completely different sound, to anything right now, they have a winning formula. From the opening bangs of Mansford Roof, to the simple melody of Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa, to the final clash of Walcott, Vampire Weekend’s debut, is a thrill to listen to. You’ve got it anyway, haven’t you?
Best Albums Of 2008 – So Far
Here are the my favorite (so they must obviously be the best) albums of the year so far:
5) Flight Of The Conchords by Flight Of The Conchords – With fresh ears this might be number one, but most of the songs on the album I had already heard exact same versions of, from the TV show. And it doesn’t really capture their brilliance when they are live.
4) Oracular Spectacular by MGMT – Personally, I did not believe the whole album was fantastic (unlike most), but there were some really amazing tracks. Not perfect but good.
3) Antidotes by Foals – Foals have grown on me a little more since last time I wrote about them, however I still believe that the album was not “the best thing ever”. However, it is still a very well-rounded one and is still pretty enjoyable.
2) Falling Of The Lavender Bridge by Lightspeed Champion – Simply Beautiful, it is just a really likable album with a style that seems lost now days.
1) Vampire Weekend by Vampire Weekend – Brilliant, if you haven’t purchased this record, go out and get it now.
I tried to take in about 20 albums for this small list, so I did try to cover a spectrum of different albums that have come out in the last 6 months or so.
Think I’m wrong? Add your comment!
