LISTMANIA!The 20 Best Albums of 2008

(If you haven't already, be sure to check out the runners up and the best songs of 2008.)

2008 is over. Shall we raise some hosannahs to the sky? In all fairness, I shouldn't add to the chorus of bellyaching; economic collapse aside, I still have a job and my loved ones all seem to have their health. Besides, 2008 ended up being a pretty good year for music. The top end was especially loaded, with no less than three albums with legitimate claims to the top spot. Still, if the Highlander movies have taught us anything (and they have taught us so much), it's that there can be only one.

We've also learned that, just as 2006 was a great year to have "wolf" somewhere in your band's name (Wolfmother, Wolf Parade, etc.), 2008 was the year of "crystal," with fantastic albums from Crystal Castles, Crystal Antlers, and Crystal Stilts. And we've discovered that it was a terrific year to be Bradford Cox, who released not one, not two, but three albums (technically) that made the *bitter defeat* top 20. That's fairly impressive. Finally, we've learned that young, noisy bands playing in warehouses and backyards are still the most exciting game in town, from "elder statesmen" like Jay Reatard, Fucked Up, and No Age to up-and-comers like Ponytail, Vivian Girls, Crystal Antlers, Pissed Jeans, and Abe Vigoda.

LISTMANIA 2008The Best Albums of the Year: Honorable Mentions

Only twenty candidates made the cut this year, but there were quite a few excellent albums lingering at the edge of the bubble...like Syracuse on the NCAA tourney selection special. Some simply weren't top-twenty material, while others I could only hear briefly or piece-by-piece via free downloads, but all are worth picking up if you have the means (or a Limewire account).

I would also like to mention a few albums I wanted to listen to, but never got to hear in their entirety: TV on the Radio - Dear Science; Guns & Roses - Chinese Democracy; Boris - Smile; Kanye West - 808s and Heartbreak; Earth - The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull; Spiritualized - Songs in A & E; and Hot Chip - Made in the Dark.

(Don't forget to check out the 40 Best Songs of 2008!)

Here, in no real order, are the Listmania 2008 runners-up.

LISTMANIA 2008The 40 Best Songs of the Year, Part 2

Fleet Foxes at Sasquatch!, May 24, 2008

Although time constraints have prevented me from providing any commentary thus far in the Listmania season, rest assured that the 2008 Album List will, in fact, contain actual written content. What can I say? As you all know, 2008 has been a total bitch. In the meantime, here are the top 20 songs of 2008.

Don't forget to check out nos. 40–21 first!

NOTE: All streaming audio has been removed due to bandwidth issues.

Songs 20–1

20. "Midnight Vignette" – Evangelicals

19. "L.E.S. Artistes" – Santogold

18. "Recent Bedroom" – Atlas Sound

17. "Where Do You Run To" – Vivian Girls

16. "Always Wanting More" – Jay Reatard

15. "We're Gonna Rise" – The Breeders


14. "Strange Times" – Black Keys

13. "No Future" – Titus Andronicus

12. "Daddy Needs a Drink" – Drive-By Truckers

11. "A Thousand Eyes" – Crystal Antlers

10. "Cold Son" – Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks

9. "The Rip" – Portishead

8. "Knots" – Pete & The Pirates

7. "Nothing Ever Happened" – Deerhunter

6. "Electric Feel" – MGMT

5. "A Milli" – Lil Wayne

4. "Fools" – The Dodos

3. "Keep Your Eyes Ahead" – The Helio Sequence

2. "In the New Year" – The Walkmen

1. "White Winter Hymnal" – Fleet Foxes

LISTMANIA 2008The 40 Best Songs of the Year, Part 1

Islands at Siren Fest, July 19, 2008

After a long holiday layoff, *bitter defeat* returns with the first installment in the 2008 edition of LISTMANIA. We begin with the 40 best songs of the year, a list that says far more about the author than it does about the actual musical landscape. Of course if you try to cover the actual musical landscape, you end up with something like Rolling Stone's mind-bendingly schizophrenic Top 50 Albums of 2008 list, which includes No Age, the Jonas Brothers, Jackson Browne, B.B. King, Metallica, and (SHOCKER!!) Bob Dylan. No single publication should attempt to simultaneously appeal to me, my mom, and my (imaginary) 11-year-old sister. Still, there is something to be said for balance, and I'll be the first to admit that I failed once again to really delve into hip-hop and "urban" music this year. Lil Wayne aside (and let's be honest here... Lil Wayne is this year's Hip-Hop Artist that White Indie-Rock Fans Like), my tastes ran to white, blogger-approved, guitar-driven indie music.

Admissions of White Liberal Guilt aside, there remains the usual raft of disclaimers, qualifications, and guidelines that go into any respectable year-end list. To begin with, for the sake of variety I decided to limit entries to one per artist. In addition, although most of these songs were, in fact, released as singles, that is in no way a requirement; album tracks are just fine. Additionally, a couple of tthese may technically have been released as singles in 2007, but if I first heard the song in 2008 and it was included on an album released in 2008, then it bloody well counts. Conversely, if the song was on an album released in 2007, but was released as a single in 2008...then give me a fucking break. In other words, no Radiohead songs came out this year, so Radiohead has no place on any 2008 best-of lists.

Since this intro was so damned long-winded, I'll also forgo lengthy commentary on songs 40 through 21.

School of Seven Bells at Mercury Lounge, December 15, 2008

My ears are still ringing like a television tube after last night's excellent School of Seven Bells show at Mercury Lounge. It's amazing how much noise you can make without bass or drums. Plenty more shots in the Flickr gallery.