Best Album:
40. Retribution Gospel Choir - s/t 39. My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges
38. Neil Halstead - Oh! Mighty Engine 37. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - Lie Down In The Light
36. Okkervil River - The Stand Ins 35. Xiu Xiu - Women As Lovers
34. High Places - s/t 33. R.E.M. - Accelerate
32. Wire - Object 47 31. Lindstrom - Where You Go I Go Too
30. The Sea and Cake - Car Alarm 29. Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
28. Her Space Holiday - XOXO, Panda and 27. Beach House - Devotion
the New Kid Revival
26. Deerhunter - Microcastle 25. Lukestar - Lake Toba
24. Destroyer - Trouble In Dreams 23. Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer
22. Ida - Lovers Prayers 21. Lykke Li - Youth Novels
20. The Walkmen - You & Me 19. Plants and Animals - Parc Avenue
18. TV On The Radio - Dear Science 17. Department of Eagles - In Ear Park
16. Sigur Rós - Með suð í eyrum 15. Hercules And Love Affair - s/t
við spilum endalaust
14. Stephen Malkmus - Real Emotional Trash 13. The Presets
12. Deerhoof - Offend Maggie 11. Santogold - s/t
10. Frightened Rabbit - The Midnight Organ Fight 9. Fleet Foxes - s/t
8. Bodies Of Water - A Certain Feeling 7. M83 - Saturdays=Youth
6. Evangelicals - The Evening Descends 5. Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
4. Shearwater - Rook 3. Grand Archives - s/t
2. Portishead - Third 1. Sun Kil Moon - April
Honorable Mentions: The Kills - Midnight Boom, The Cure - 4:13 Dream, Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line, Stereolab - Chemical Chords, School of Seven Bells - Alpinisms, Coldplay - Viva La Vida, Love Is All - A Hundred Things Keep Me Up at Night, The Secret Machines - s/t, Parts & Labor - Receivers, Mogwai - The Hawk Is Howling
(note: although the "top10" Bon Iver album was officially released early this year, it was independently released at the end of 2007 and thus won't be part of this list)
Best Album Art:
WIRE - Object 47
High Places - High Places
The Music Tapes - Music Tapes For Clouds and Tornadoes
Sun Kil Moon - April
Grouper - Dragging A Dead Deer Up A Hill
Best New Band/Artist:
Grand Archives
Are: Matt Brooke, Curtis Hall, Ron Lewis, Jeff Montano, Thomas Wright
From: Seattle
Album: Self-Titled
Honorable Mentions: Fleet Foxes, Santogold, Hercules and Love Affair, The Duchess and The Duke
Best Video:
"House of Cards" - Radiohead
Best Concert:
Mark Kozelek / Neal Halstead @ The Music Hall of Williamsburg
Runner Up:
Cut Copy / The Presets @ Webster Hall
Honorable mentions: Frightened Rabbit @ Southpaw, R.E.M./Moddest Mouse/The National @ MSG, M83 @ Bowery Ballroom, Sigur Ros @ United Palace Theater, Low @ The Bell House, Grand Archives @ Union Hall, Destroyer @ Bowery Ballroom, Fleet Foxes @ Union Hall, Portishead @ Coachella, Shearwater @ Le Poisson Rouge
Best Song:
"We Carry On" - Portishead
2. "Moorestown" - Sun Kil Moon
3. "Lost Coastlines" - Okkervil River
4. "Torn Blue Foam Couch" - Grand Archives
5. "Nowheres Nigh" - Parts & Labor
6. "Shooting Rockets" - Destroyer
7. "Kim and Jessie" - M83
8. "English House" - Fleet Foxes
9. "In the New Year" - The Walkmen
10. "Lump Sum" - Bon Iver
11. "The Killers, 1964" - Ida
12. "Heron Blue" - Sun Kil Moon
13. "Rooks" - Shearwater
14. "Inni Mer Syngur Vitleysingur" - Sigur Ros
15. "Party Crashin'" - Evangelicals
16. "Unforgettable Season" - Cut Copy
17. "The Rip" - Portishead
18. "Under the Pines" - Bodies Of Water
19. "Ragged Wood" - Fleet Foxes
20. "Blind" - Hercules and Love Affair
21. "We Own The Sky" - M83
22. "Viva La Vida" - Coldplay
23. "The New Kid Revival" - Her Space Holiday
24. "Family Tree" - TV on the Radio
25. "Agoraphobia" - Deerhunter
26. "Sleepwalking" - Grand Archives
27. "Blindsided" - Bon Iver
28. "Lost Verses" - Sun Kil Moon
29. "I'm a Lady" - Santogold
30. "The Modern Leper" - Frightened Rabbit
31. "Fresh Born" - Deerhoof
32. "Cold Son" - Stephen Malkmus
33. "In Ear Park" - Department of Eagles
34. "Bye Bye Bye" - Plants and Animals
35. "Leviathan Bound" - Shearwater
36 "My People" - The Presets
37. "Snowblind" - +/-
38. "The Shade You Hide" - Lukestar
39. "Celebrated Summer" - Mark Kozelek
40. "Small" - Portishead
41. "I'm Good, I'm Gone" - Lykke Li
42. "Cheap and Cheerful" - The Kills
43. "Undertow" - Stars
44. "Mr Richards" - R.E.M.
45. "Weekend" - The Sea and Cake
46. "The First Snowflake" - The Boy Least Likely To
47. "Happiness" - Goldfrapp
48. "Miniature Birds" - Grand Archives
49. "Queen Bee" - Neal Halstead
50. "The Grey Estates" - Wolf Parade
With the rise and glory of such musical sessions as Juan's Basement, The Black Cab Sessions, and Stereogum's little new thing, interest in one of the original boutiques for indie live acts, Daytrotter, seems to be declining. No need to sound the alarm. People still love Daytrotter and great acts will continue to perform sessions, but since Juan's Basement is basically sponsored by Pitchfork and The Black Cab Sessions carry such a new, eclectic appeal, Daytrotter is being overshadowed and under-appreciated. Of course, the obvious difference is that these sessions aren't visual. Rad December Daytrotting sessions include The Minus Story, Joseph Arthur, My Brightest Diamond, Damien Jurado. and Takka Takka.
This year's Christmas releases haven't been large in quantity but there are probably just as many solid releases as last year. Of course, 2006 was a highlight because of the Sufjan Stevens 5-part Christmas series. The single best Christmas album is Low's Christmas record, comprised of the classics, the original "Just Like Christmas" and the minimal, Gap-approved "Little Drummer Boy." The 2008 holiday season was treated to a return to the Christmas single by David Bazan of Pedro the Lion, who this time released the 7" of "Jingle Bells" and "All I Want For Christmas" under his own name. For me, "Jingle Bells" is his finest Christmas song of the 6 he's released- yes a little bit more affective than his version of "I heard the Bells on Christmas Day." One of the best songs for the holidays wasn't intended to be a Christmas song at all, but The Boy Least Likely To said that that their new single, " The First Snowflake," reminded them of the 25th so much that they are are going to apply the tag. Rosie Thomas's "A Very Rosie Christmas" is probably the
15 fine 2008 Christmas/Holiday songs:
"Jingle Bells" - David Bazan
"Alone At Christmas Time" - Rosie Thomas
"Why Can't it Be Christmastime All Year" - Rosie Thomas
"Christmas Time Is Here" - Rosie Thomas
"The First Snowflake" - The Boy Least Likely To
"No Christmas For Me" - Zee Avi
"Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" - The Raveonettes
"Come On Santa" - The Raveonettes
"Santa's Coming Over" - Low
"O Come O Come Emmanuel" - Enya
"The Man in the Santa Suit" - Neil Halstead
"Nutmeg" - Stephen Colbert, et. al.
"There Are Much Worse Things to Believe In" -
Stephen Colbert et. al.
"Someday At Christmas" - Jack Johnson
"Auld Lang Syne" - El Perro Del Mar
20 Fine Songs From Christmas Past:
"Just Like Christmas" - Low
"Little Drummer Boy" - Low
"Baby (Please Come Home) - U2
"Santa Baby" - Snoop Dogg, P. Diddy, Salt-N-Peppa,
Joseph Simmons, Keith Murray, Onyx, Mase
"O Come, O Come Emmanuel" - Sufjan Stevens
"The 25th of December" - Everything But the Girl
"Last Christmas" - Erlend Oye(Kings of Convenience)
"All I Want" - The Weepies
"Sleigh Ride" - Ella Fitzgerald
"Christmas Isn't Safe For Animals" - Of Montreal
"The Christmas Song" - The Raveonettes
"Christmas Time is Here" - Smashing Pumpkins
"Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy - Bing Crosby and
David Bowie
"Holiday Road" - Matt Pond PA
"I Just Wanted to Say" - My Morning Jacket
"Maybe This Christmas" - Ron Sexsmith
" Do You Hear What I Hear" - The Carpenters
"Donna and Blitzen" - Badly Drawn Boy
"Christmas Time" - Denison Witmer
It's common for album releases to slowly decline in quantity as the year nears its end. December itself seems to be a month to recap, not release new albums...unless its novelty stuff, remixes, EPs, or Britney Spears....which all makes sense to be sure. November saw some solid releases as it usually does. Denison Witmer, Wilderness, Longwave and Lukestar released under-appreciated gems, while our Scandi-darlings Love is All returned with a worthy sophomore album and Asobi Seksu finally released a new song to tie us over to their full-length next year. In December and under the novelty theme, Mark Kozelek's The Finally LP, an album of covers that were done for various compilations gathered together along with a couple original Kozelek tracks, is his best covers album yet(he's also done covers albums exclusively devoted to ACDC and Modest Mouse) and also proved to be one of the best albums of the past few months altogether. Hüsker Dü's "Celebrated Summer" is the highlight for me but I think any song on the album could qualify for that for anyone else as the album has no duds. "New Partner," a Will Oldham tribute, is another favorite as is "Bedtime Lullaby," a Jarond Gibbs song done for the Children's show "Yo Gaba Gaba!" And it's interesting to hear Mark's take on "Send in the Clowns."
One of this year's best new artists Lukestar, while not technically "new," made an album, Lake Toba, that approved them for the non-official, official indie rock arena. The obvious Mew influence isn't surprising as these kids are also Scandis. But these Norwegian type are a little bit more untamed. Think Mew meets Pretty Girls Make Graves.
More Denison? Yes please. One of the most underrated singer-songwriters of the past ten years is Denison Witmer out of Philadelphia. Riding the heels of his neighbors The Innocence Mission, Denison crafts the same simple, piercing music but from more of a micro level -in scope and in general as he is a one-man outfit. Blake Shelton produced Witmer's recently released Carry The Weight, which continues the folk-inspired tradition of past records but with slightly more polished production, which is nice because it's different, but on the flip-side it's no Safe Away -Witmer's first and finest album that is extremely raw and personal.
And the new single from Asobi Seksu is not to be taken lightly:
...(variations on a Shaker Hymn)" And the video carries a timely theme albeit something you may not associate with Weezer.
Scratch that- only Saturdays=Youth is available for purchase
at this time. So all of you(including me) who want to
listen to those slow burners from the classic Before the Dawn Heals Us on cracklin vinyl with the lights off(not including me), you'll have to wait till January 13th. Puzzling, I know. it would have been the perfect Christmas gift from my sister! Alas, in the meantime we can also set adrift on this year's excellent Saturdays=Youth as well as get our dance on if we choose.
That's right, the rumors are true. LCD S. has made a video for "New York I Love You, But You're Bringing Me Down" off last year's awesome Sound of Silver and it features our favorite amphibious puppet. And it doesn't disappoint. You have to go HERE to see it but make sure you watch the entire thing.
