Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Best albums of 2008

It's about that time of year again. These are in no particular order, just the ones that come to my mind.

Attack & Release - The Black Keys
They have sort of a southern rock sound, and I was very surprised by this band. I hadn't heard them until this summer, but they are seriously awesome. This was a great album if you like southern indie rock.

Conor Oberst - Conor Oberst
Self titled album by just Conor, not with Bright Eyes. He is such a good songwriter and I'll continue to respect him for that. He may not be my all time favorite artist, but he is definitely one of my all time favorite songwriters. There are some really great tracks on this album.

Narrow Stairs - Death Cab For Cutie
Possibly my favorite album of this year. They never disappoint. Every album is like gold. I don't think you could ever sit here and say they've made a bad album, and that's impressive for a band who's had six albums and has been around since 1997. Most bands make at least one or two not so great albums. But it's probably because Ben Gibbard is amazing, has a great voice, and can write one hell of a song and tune. No one sounds like Death Cab as much as they might want to. No one ever will. They really are great.

The Second Gleam - The Avett Brothers
These guys are so awesome. I saw them live at Bonnaroo and then in Somerset, KY over the summer and they are so full of energy and passion. They have a great sound, a great love for what they do, great music, and great intentions, and that all comes forward in their performances. This album's best song for me was "Murder In The City", and if you've never heard it, at least listen once. It's awesome.

Way To Normal - Ben Folds
Haha man, Ben Folds is so cool. Saw him for the first time at Bonnaroo and he was so much fun. In my top 5 favorite performances of all time by any band or artist. I haven't listened to much of this, but I can already tell it's good. Anything by Ben is good, he is a phenomenal pianist.

Cardinology - Ryan Adams
God, I could not love Ryan Adams more right now. He is the best thing I've come across in a long long time. This album, although not his best, is still fucking awesome. Get this album. I don't really need to say much, because everyone knows how brilliant this man is.

Something For All Of Us... - Brendan Canning
Brendan Canning is one of the co-founders of Broken Social Scene, one of my favorite bands of all time. They are so badass. They have like 17 members at all times, and each member has either contributed to Broken Social and/or has solo stuff that really rocks. This album was really good, I liked it a lot.

Evil Urges - My Morning Jacket
Favorite band, hands down. Haunting, mysterious, sentimental, rock and roll is how I would describe them. This album is nothing short of great. Best band to come out of Kentucky ever. I'm proud to say I'm from the state they are.

Feed The Animals - Girl Talk
I really enjoy Gregg Gillis as of late. Not much to say about him, Girl Talk is all the craze so everyone knows what's up. Definitely best dance party tunes ever created.

The Stand Ins - Okkervil River
I haven't heard this entire album yet, but Okkervil River is definitely good. I just discovered them last year, and I sometimes wonder what took me so long.

1 comment:

Nick Fulton said...

Interesting list. The Black Keys album seems to have failed a bit in most peoples lists, good to see it in yours