At the end of this week I’ll be posting my top fifteen favorite records of 2008. In order to pave the way, here is a post including the records that almost made the cut, my favorite songs of the year, and three special releases that would have demolished my list.
(All lists in alphabetical order)
Honorable Mentions of 2008:
Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band – Seasons of Change
Lindsey Buckingham – Gift of Screws
David Byrne/Brian Eno – Everything that Happens will Happen Today
Coldplay – Viva La Vida
The Dodos – Visiter
The Fireman – Electric Arguments
Flying Lotus – Los Angeles
Johnny Flynn – A Larum
Jenny Lewis – Acid Tongue
MGMT – Oracular Spectacular
Favorite Songs of 2008:
Barry Adamson – “Beaten Side of Town”
Bon Iver – “Flume”/”Skinny Love”
Department of Eagles – “No One Does It Like You”
Fleet Foxes – “White Winter Hymnal”/”Blue Ridge Mountains”
Johnny Flynn – “Tickle Me Pink”
Ezra Furman & The Harpoons – “Take Off Your Sunglasses”
Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks – “Hopscotch Willie”
MGMT – “Kids”/”Time to Pretend”
The Tallest Man on Earth – “Shallow Grave”
TV on the Radio – “DLZ”/”Lovedog”
Loudon Wainwright III – “The Drinking Song”
Special Releases of 2008:
Had I included these next records in my top fifteen list, they surely would have occupied space in the top five. So I’ve decided to honor them here separately since they were all recorded a while back. These were three of the best records released this year. Stop reading this and go pick them up.
Bob Dylan – Tell Tale Signs [Bootleg Series Vol. 8]
Yes, this is an album of outtakes and unreleased extras that have been lying around for years, and yes, it is worth it. It’s collections like this that prove Bob Dylan is an unparalleled musical genius. The songs here were all recorded between 1989’s Oh Mercy sessions and 2006’s Modern Times sessions. Really, really wonderful stuff here. Highly recommended. Rating: 5.0/5.0
Nick Lowe – Jesus of Cool [30th Anniversary Edition]
Nick Lowe’s Jesus of Cool rocks just as hard and its sarcastic, humorous critique of the music industry is just as potent after thirty years as it was on the day of its release. This is an unappreciated, lesser-known gem that you should hear. This 30th anniversary edition features some nice packaging which includes a great booklet as well as ten extra songs. No one really does it like Nick Lowe. Highly recommended. Rating: 5.0/5.0
Pavement – Brighten the Corners [Nicene Creedance Edition]
A very good album by one of the best bands of the 1990s. Though Brighten the Corners isn’t typically considered one of Pavement’s masterpieces, hearing it remastered with a disc and a half of mostly unreleased material will make some fans reconsider its place in the Pavement canon. Highly recommended. Rating: 4.5/5.0
December 16, 2008 at 10:52 pm |
I’m not sure how I feel about you demoting no fewer than five of my Top 15 selections to “honorable mention” status.
December 17, 2008 at 3:07 am |
Good grief. Did you classify enough?! You have such a ranking mentality– just like someone else I know.
December 17, 2008 at 3:13 am |
Hey, it’s a status of honor. That’s good.
December 19, 2008 at 6:43 am |
[...] December 19, 2008 by Gavin Breeden Well, if there is only one thing a music critic loves to do, it is making a year-end list. Some do ten, some do fifty, some do twenty. Any number is really just as arbitrary as the next one, so I’ve chosen to do fifteen. Of the all the albums I heard this year, these were my favorite, not necessarily the best–though I like to think there is some significant overlap in those two categories. (See also my 2008 lists of Honorable Mentions, Favorite Songs, and Special Releases.) [...]