Music Blogs

These are selections #31 through #40 in our Best Albums of 2008 countdown series.

#31. Alopecia by Why? (Explicit)

Released: March 11, 2008
Label: Anticon
Album Charts: #28 Top Heatseekers

"At times incredibly intelligent, and at times incredibly sordid, Why? take artistic risks on Alopecia that almost help redefine independent music. They are completely unafraid to go out on a limb musically, lyrically or stylistically. And while this strategy is a recipe for disaster among those hocking records to the masses, it's a triumphant work of art for those of us who appreciate music that takes us forward."

Listen to Alopecia:

   1. The Vowels Pt. 2
  
   2. Good Friday
  
   3. These Few Presidents
  
   4. The Hollows
  
   5. Song of the Sad Assassin
  
   6. Gnashville
  
   7. Fatalist Palmistry
  
   8. The Fall of Mr. Fifths
  
   9. Brook & Waxing
  
   10. A Sky for Shoeing Horses Under
  
   11. Twenty Eight

   12. Simeon's Dilemma
  
   13. By Torpedo or Crohn's
  
   14. Exegesis

#32. Lust Lust Lust by The Raveonettes

Released: February 19, 2008
Label: Fierce Panda/Vice
Charts: None

"On Lust Lust Lust, the Raveonettes have produced the most delicious noise pop album since The Jesus and Mary Chain's 1985 classic Psychocandy. The album's opener, "Aly, Walk With Me" is a plodding gem that bursts into an explosion of perfectly controlled fuzz. This sets the tone for a record filed with memorable vocal and guitar melodies, perfect harmonies, and hazy, but powerful crescendos that will renew your faith in music."

 Listen to Lust Lust Lust:

   1. Aly, Walk With Me
  
   2. Hallucinations
  
   3. Lust
  
   4. Dead Sound
  
   5. Black Satin
  
   6. Blush
  
   7. Expelled From Love
  
   8. You Want The Candy
  
   9. Blitzed
  
   10. Sad Transmission

   11. With My Eyes Closed
  
   12. The Beat Dies
  
   13. My Heartbeat’s Dying (Bonus Track)
  
   14. Honey, I Never Had You (Bonus Track)

#33. Shall Noise Upon by Apollo Sunshine

Released: August 5, 2008
Label: Headless Heroes
Album Charts: None

"With their latest album, Shall Noise Upon, Apollo Sunshine have delivered a hippy-psychedelic masterpiece that is more rooted in modern indie music sensibilities than it is 40-year old retro psychedelic rock. Indeed, the ideals of the summer of love will never die even though it's obvious from Shall Noise Upon that the music certainly will."

Listen to Shall Noise Upon:

   1. Breeze
   
   2. Singing to The Earth (To Thank Her For You)
   
   3. 666: The Coming of The New World Government
   
   4. Shall Noise Upon
   
   5. Brotherhood of Death
   
   6. Happiness
   
   7. We are Born When We Die
   
   8. The Funky Chamberlain (Who Begot Who)
   
   9. Wolf Frog White
   
   10. Money
   
   11. The Mermaid Angeline
   
   12. Green Green Lawns of Outer Space
   
   13. Honestly
   
   14. Coyote Hearing
   
   15. Fog and Shadow
   
   16. Light of The World

#34. Volume 1 by She & Him

Released: March 18, 2008
Label: Merge
Album Charts: #71 The Billboard 200, #81 Top Internet Albums, #8 Top Independent Albums

"Actors turned singers usually end up making excellent schaudenfreuder, but actress Zooey Deschanel has broken the mold. After pairing up with M. Ward, who she worked with on the 2007 film The Go-Getter, the duo formed She & Him. This album debut includes mostly original songs written by Deschanel with a smattering of cover songs. It may be the first album debut by an actress-turned-singer to not only hold it's weight, but exceed."

Listen to Volume 1:

   1. Sentimental Heart
  
   2. Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
  
   3. This Is Not A Test
  
   4. Change is Hard
  
   5. I Thought I Saw Your Face Today
  
   6. Take It Back
  
   7. I Was Made For You
  
   8. You Really Got A hold On Me
  
   9. Black Hole
  
   10. Got Me
  
   11. I Should Have Know Better
  
   12. Sweet Darlin'
  
   13. Bonus Track

#35. Death Magnetic by Metallica

Released: September 12, 2008
Label: Warner Bros.
Album Charts: #1 The Billboard 200, #1 Top Canadian Albums, #1 Top Internet Albums, European Top 100 Albums

"In regards to Metallica, I have my own opinions, one of which is that their best album happens to be 1983's Kill 'Em All. And I can say with a straight face, that although Death Magnetic can never capture the destructive beauty of Kill 'Em All, it comes closer than anything the band has done since the 1980s. Lay the credit solely at the feet of Rick Rubin, who has the world's leading track record of getting talent that have lost their way back to doing what they do best."

Death Magnetic is not available for streaming:

  1. That Was Just Your Life
  
  2. The End of the Line
  
  3. Broken, Beat & Scarred
  
  4. The Day That Never Comes
  
  5. All Nightmare Long
  
  6. Cyanide
  
  7. The Unforgiven III
  
  8. The Judas Kiss
  
  9. Suicide & Redemption
  
  10. My Apocalypse

#36. Do You Like Rock Music? by British Sea Power

Released: January 9, 2008
Label: Rough Trade
Album Charts: #5 Top Heatseekers, European Top 100 Albums

"Do You Like Rock Music? has the same kind of art school aesthetic that's helped make some of the biggest names on the indie music scene, but it also has more power and clarity. The production on Do You Like Rock Music? is more intricate and manipulated, but it never pisses you off, even if you are a lo-fi snob. The end result is a rich experience that will pay dividends with repeated listens. "

Listen to Do You Like Rock Music:?

   1. All In It
      
   2. Lights Out For Darker Skies
      
   3. No Lucifer
      
   4. Waving Flags
      
   5. Canvey Island
      
   6. Down On The Ground
      
   7. A Trip Out
      
   8. The Great Skua
      
   9. Atom
      
   10. No Need To Cry
      
   11. Open The Door
      
   12. We Close Our Eyes

#37. A Piece Of What You Need by Teddy Thompson

Released: June 17, 2008
Label: Verve Forecast
Album Charts: #19 Top Heatseekers

"It's simply not fair that one family has been given as much talent as the Thompson family. The son of Richard and Linda Thompson has put out some good albums, and his 2008 release A Piece Of What You Need continues to show off his diverse talent. The record is more upbeat and happy, but it also carries more hooks per second than his previous efforts, which were not slouches to begin with."

Listen to A Piece Of What You Need:

   1. The Things I Do
 
   2. What's This?!!

   3. In My Arms

   4. Where To Go From Here

   5. Don't Know What I Was Thinking

   6. Can't Sing Straight

   7. Slippery Slope (Easier)
  
   8. Jonathan's Book

   9. One Of These Days
  
   10. Turning The Gun On Myself
  
   11. A Piece Of What You Need
 
   12. The Price Of Love

#38. Rook by Shearwater

Released: June 3, 2008
Label: Matador
Album Charts: #15 Top Heatseekers, #42 Top Independent Albums

"I knew this album would make my best of 2008 list the first time I heard it, but I had a heck of a time placing it. Every time I hear this record I love it more, give me another couple weeks and it could move into my top 10 for the year. It has so much to offer, it's subtle and expansive, emotionally charged and gorgeous -- Rook is short at 36 minutes, but it doesn't have a single throwaway track so it's worth every penny you will spend on it."

Listen to Rook:

   1. On The Death Of The Waters
  
   2. Rooks
  
   3. Leviathan, Bound
  
   4. Home Life
  
   5. Lost Boys
  
   6. Century Eyes
  
   7. I Was A Cloud
  
   8. South Col
  
   9. The Snow Leopard
  
   10. The Hunter’s Star 

#39. Verbs by Au

Released: June 24, 2008
Label: Aagoo
Album Charts: None

"Some critics just aren't getting the brilliance behind Au's 2008 release Verbs. This may be because so many critics are lazy, and this album takes a little effort. The project includes about 30 musicians from the Pacific Northwest and is lead by the super-talented Luke Wyland. Besides the technically superior playing on the record Wyland also directs multiple voices in choir backgrounds, controlled cheering, hand clapping and other noises in a way that is truly creative and groundbreaking. There is so much on this record to discover that if I could only afford one album this year, it would be Verbs."

Listen to Verbs:

  1. All My Friends
  
   2. Are Animals
  
   3. Summerheat
  
   4. Rr Vs. D
  
   5. All Myself
  
   6. Two Seasons
  
   7. Prelude
  
   8. The Waltz
  
   9. Sleep  

#40. One Kind Favor by B.B. King

Released: August 26, 2008
Label: Geffen
Album Charts: #37 The Billboard 200, #1 Top Blues Albums

"It still amazes me how you can pick B.B. King out of a mix based on a single guitar note.The man has one of the most distinctive guitar tones and playing styles in the history of music. And you could probably say the same thing about his soulful and guttural voice. There is no denying that B.B. King is a constant. A lighthouse in an ever-changing sea. The difference in his albums usually comes from how the producer approaches his talent. And T-Bone Burnett has taken a stripped-down approach on One Kind Favor that let's what we love about this beacon named B.B. King shine like a thousand suns." 

Listen to One Kind Favor:

   1. See That My Grave Is Kept Clean
    
   2. I Get So Weary
    
   3. Get These Blues Off Me
    
   4. How Many More Years
    
   5. Waiting For Your Call
     
   6. My Love Is Down
    
   7. The World Is Gone Wrong
     
   8. Blues Before Sunrise
    
   9. Midnight Blues
    
   10. Backwater Blues
    
   11. Sitting On Top Of The World
    
   12. Tomorrow Night
    
   13. My Baby Is Now
      
   14. Just To Be With You
      
   15. Haunted House

Continue to the Best Albums of 2008 - #41 to #50