The term ‘best’ in terms of music is almost meaningless because so much is subjective. So this is just a list of albums I liked. My ranking system includes factors like some attempt at an objective rating, my expectations, my initial reaction, its staying power and my longer term reaction, how much I think I’ll want to listen to it in months and years further down the road, and how much I found myself wanting to listen to it.

For further thoughts and discussion about year end lists and my lists, please see my post from yesterday.

I made a list of 2008 releases I liked. That’s the long (50+) list to this short list. There were a few dozen more 2008 albums I listened to and didn’t like. I’ve relistened to all of these at least once–more for the ones that ended up placing highly–over the last couple weeks.

1. Bon Iver For Emma, Forever Ago [1] (original post)
   If this list were evenly spaced, I might put this at one and then start the rest at ten. It’s a gorgeous and wrenching album with Justin Vernon’s wintery songs and falsetto vocals. This is an album that I’ve told friends to buy with a promise to pay for it if they didn’t like it. There are some great albums on this list, but this is the only one that was transformative for me–it’s changed the way I think about music. That’s not a small feat, given this unfortunately jaded music listener.
   Bon Iver – Skinny Love (mp3)
   
   Bon Iver – Re:Stacks (mp3)
   
   (buy)
2. J Tillman Minor Works [2]
   While I think it’s great Tillman’s now in the Fleet Foxes, I hope it doesn’t slow down his solo material. From the first song, this album is stunningly gorgeous and it stays consistent throughout. The first four tracks have each separately been stuck in my head for days or weeks at a time–two of which appear below. Great melancholy and yearning orchestrations.
   J Tillman – Crooked Roof (mp3)
   
   J Tillman – Jesse’s Not a Sleeper (mp3)
   
   (buy)
3. the Rural Alberta Advantage Hometowns (original post)
   Strained vocals, oddly and inconsistently recorded drums, lovely cello, bells and some gorgeous songs somehow come together to make this engaging and endearing album. “Don’t Haunt this Place” is a really addictive and fantastic song. But even as much as I like that song, I hear this album as a whole rather than as a collection of disjointed songs. If this didn’t win my ‘most listened to’ award for ‘08, it came close.
   the Rural Alberta Advantage – Don’t Haunt This Place (mp3)
   
   the Rural Alberta Advantage – Sleep All Day (mp3)
   
   (buy)
4. Horse Feathers House with No Home (original post)
   I really like the two tracks below, tracks 1 and 3, so I thought I might be fooling myself into thinking it was a good album because of that good start. I started the album on track 4 and it was still a great album. I love the almost-too-breathy vocals and lush strings. Also, give me good banjo on a few songs I’m halfway to loving it already.
   Horse Feathers – Curs in the Weeds (mp3)
   
   Horse Feathers – Working Poor (mp3)
   
   (buy)
5. Two Sheds Two Sheds EP [EP] (original post)
   This year started without any knowledge of Two Sheds. After I heard “It’s Hard” and then the rest of their album, Strange Ammunition, I was hooked. There’s always some trepidation with the follow-up album or EP, though. Can they keep it up? Two Sheds was a rare case where they got better. On this five song EP–with one Strange Ammunition repeat (and another alternate version)–the band still easily makes the case that they’re getting more consistent and better.
   Two Sheds – You (mp3)
   
   Two Sheds – To Be Alive (mp3)
   
   (buy)
6. James Hunter The Hard Way (original post)
   It was with so much dread that I put this album on for the first time–it was on Starbucks’ Hear Music label after all– but with so much joy that I listened. In a time when people seem to be doing retro-soul left and right–some of it respectable and a lot of it bad–Hunter seems to somehow bypass that ‘retro’ thing entirely; this album just seems like it is original. The songwriting it’s great and his band is tight. His versatile croon hovers over punchy horns and bluesy arrangements on this eclectic set of songs (given the genre).
   James Hunter – Hand It Over (mp3)
   
   James Hunter – the Hard Way (mp3)
   
   (buy)
7. Joe Pug Nation of Heat [EP] (original post)
   While “Hymn #101″ hit me immediately, the rest of the album took much longer to get to me. That process was certainly aided by hearing these songs in an intimate live setting. If and when you get past the obvious comparisons, I think you’ll find some big songs with big ideas from this young Chicagoan. People don’t often write songs this ambitious anymore and fewer succeed; Pug is certainly getting there.
   Joe Pug – Hymn #101 (mp3)
   
   Joe Pug – I Do My Father’s Drugs (mp3)
   
   (buy)
8. Silian Rail And I You, to Pieces (original post)
   This is a hard album to pin down–it’s a lot of things to a lot of people. I’ve just taken to calling it instrumental indie rock. Intriguing songs with active, punchy drums and catchy riffs. Not to diminish the present quality of this album, but a significant factor of how its ranking is how well I’m sure this will hold up in the future and how much future enjoyment I’ll get from it.
   Silian Rail – Awake (mp3)
   
   Silian Rail – Zzth (mp3)
   
   (buy)
9. Johnny Flynn A Larum (original post)
   After having my ears piqued by their performance at SxSW, I made sure to give this album an extra listen when it came through. I’m glad I did. Initially it sounded a little odd to me–his take on the dark tones of folk doesn’t follow the American conventions–but it grew on me. He’s got a real talent at lyrics, particularly the narrative details. For example, the lyrical turn in “Wayne Rooney” where he describes the bartender looking like George Best (”a lot of them do”) and transitions to talking about Best. Or his interweaving of Catholic imagery in “The Wrote and the Writ”.
   Johnny Flynn – Wayne Rooney (mp3)
   
   Johnny Flynn – The Wrote and the Writ (mp3)
   
   (buy)
10. the Dodos Visiter (original post)
    Local guys done good. I’ve liked their earlier releases, but they mostly served as a reminder of their amazing live shows. Now they’ve put out an album that can stand on its own. That it serves as a reminder of the live show helps, but it manages to capture a lot of that energy while still having room for subtle and endearing melodies throughout.
    the Dodos – Red and Purple (mp3)
    
    the Dodos – Jodi (mp3)
    
    (buy)
11. Raphael Saadiq The Way I See It (original post)
    This seems to be a fairly polarizing album among people who like classic and retro-soul. Some people find it a cheap imitation and others think it’s got some hot Motown-like tracks. Talking with some people recently, I was almost convinced of the former. But then I went back and listened to it and thought, no. NO. It’s too good and the tracks get me moving too much.
    Raphael Saadiq – 100 Yard Dash (mp3)
    
    Raphael Saadiq – Seven (mp3)
    
    (buy)

Four releases that were knocking at the door of this list [in alphabetical order]:

• Breathe Owl Breathe Ghost Glacier [EP]
• Frightened Rabbit Liver! Lung! FR!
• Neil Halstead Oh Mighty Engine
• the Notwist The Devil, You + Me

[1] Originally, this was self-released and in very limited distribution in 2007, but it was released by a label in 2008 and that’s why I first heard the album (though I’d heard “Skinny Love” in 2007).

[2] Originally, this was self-released and in very limited distribution in 2006, but it was released by a label in 2008 and that’s when I first heard the album (though I’d heard “Crooked Roof” in 2007).

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 9th, 2008 at 11:14 pm Posted by adrian in SF bay area, blogs, lists, mp3s, photos. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.