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?
Two Nice Songs
Again, apologies for not posting. Again, I don’t how I couldn’t find a little time for the blog. Anyway here are two nice, softer songs which I have been listening to recently.
I just bought the album from the mercury-nominated singer, and I am deeply impressed. She has been contributing to hosts of other bands (Noah and the Whale, Mystery Jets and The Rakes to name a few) and by herself she has her own unique style and a really fantastic voice. She could have my favourite female voice, but we will have to see once I have finished the album. Soft sliding guitars, mix with her friendly, wonderfully placed lyrics and well inserted piano, violin and male vocal sections.
My favourite track on their album, which I had only just managed to get a hold of. You can hear Laura’s influence here, with cheerful singing between verses. The main guitar riff is incredibly catchy, with an infectious beat and dabs of xylophone. The lyrics in this song are magnificent and are well thought out; “I’m not trying to write a love song, just a sad, pathetic moan, and maybe I just need change, maybe I just need a new cologne”. The whole song has this wit and is really fun to sing along to.
Also I just got LittleBigPlanet and it is pretty cool…
Noah and the Whale
Noah and the Whale are the new leaders in folk rock. The mix of new and old is Noah and the Whale’s sound it’s great. It gives one a warm feeling inside. From the few demos I could find from them, there are two that really stand out. “Beating” initially mislead me as a sad slow song about violence. On closer inspection I realised it is actually a jaunty song, with a slow beginning and lyrics about always loving; “In everything you do let your heart shine through.” The first of the part of the song is haunting with slow chords and the occasional drum beat. A bugle blows in with a melancholy melody after the singer has stopped singing with his female back-up singer. Then, suddenly the momentum picks up and the lyrics are again recited. The tone becomes upbeat with fast violin and banjo harmonies. Then for the end of the song, within every line, the tempo speeds up and down again and again. A simple but magical song. I can’t wait to hear this one’s proper finished state. “5 Years Time”, their popular indie hit Is a simple 4 chord structure but as the song progresses a range of instruments are added from bass guitar to violins to flutes. The lyrics are fantastically happy and catchy and can easily be sung along to. This song is incredibly upbeat and happy, it is definitely a favourite in my “Happy” playlist. Their album is coming out August, hopefully it will be as good as these initial demos.
Mypace
5 Years Time
