Music Blogs

These are selections #1 through #10 in our Best Albums of 2008 countdown series.

#1. For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver

Released: February 19, 2008
Label: Jagjaguwar
Album Charts: #181 The Billboard 200, #26 Top Independent Albums, #5 Top Heatseekers

"Justin Vernon locked himself up in a remote Wisconsin cabin for three months to write and record this album under the moniker Bon Iver. It's not the most technically advanced record and its not breaking any new ground. However, I had to chose it as my top album for 2008 because it is the most entrancing album I've ever heard and contains not a single note of filler. I could talk about the wonderful atmospherics, catchy vocal hooks and measured acoustic guitar, but what puts For Emma, Forever Ago over the top is a special quality that just can't be defined. For Emma... sounds like a record that's always existed. It was simply waiting for the right moment, and the right person, to pull it out of the nether."

Listen to For Emma, Forever Ago:

   1. Flume
  
   2. Lump Sum
  
   3. Skinny Love
  
   4. The Wolves (Act I and II)
  
   5. Blindsided
  
   6. Creature Fear
  
   7. Team
  
   8. For Emma
  
   9. Re: Stacks

#2. Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!! by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds

Released: March 3, 2008
Label: Mute
Charts: #64 The Billboard 200, #5 Top Independent Albums, #64 Top Internet Albums, European Top 100 Albums

"Nick Cave has put out a gaggle of breathtaking albums that fly under the radar of the corporate-pop masses. He has returned this year with the Bad Seeds after the excellent 2006 Grinderman release. On Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!, Cave & Co. is able to combine perfectly structured rock & roll, cathartic outpouring, well-timed dynamic punch and some of the most brilliant lyrical poetry being written today into one of the best albums of his career. And I'll tell you what, if you're familiar with the music of Nick Cave, that's saying an awful lot."

 Listen to Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!:  

   1. Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
  
   2. Today's Lesson
  
   3. Moonland
  
   4. Night Of The Lotus Eaters
  
   5. Albert Goes West
  
   6. We Call Upon The Author
  
   7. Hold On To Yourself
  
   8. Lie Down Here (And Be My Girl)
  
   9. Jesus On The Moon
  
   10. Midnight Man
  
   11. More News From Nowhere

#3. Santogold by Santogold

Released: April 29, 2008
Label: Downtown
Album Charts: #74 The Billboard 200, #2 Top Electronic Albums, #6 Top Independent Albums

"Santogold has taken what we like best about M.I.A. and has improved upon it. This debut is more refined, more in control, wider in its influences and more memorable. The duo of Santi White and John Hill, who make up Santogold, have brought together electro-pop, 80s retro, hip-hop, reggae, indie and punk in a way that's instantly attractive. This may be the most hummable and most danceable record of the year. Santogold appeals to the music snob and the average music fan equally because it does everything right."

Listen to Santogold:

   1. L.E.S. Artistes
   
   2. You'll Find A Way
   
   3. Shove It
   
   4. Say Aha
    
   5. Creator
     
   6. My Superman
   
   7. Lights Out
    
   8. Starstruck
    
   9. Unstoppable
   
   10. I'm A Lady
    
   11. Anne
   
   12. You'll Find A Way (remix)

#4. Dear Science by TV On The Radio

Released: September 12, 2008
Label: Interscope
Album Charts: #23 The Billboard 200, #17 Top Canadian Albums, #23 Top Internet Albums

"TV On The Radio's latest release, Dear Science, is a much smoother endeavor than 2006's Return To Cookie Mountain. In fact, it's almost placid in comparison. But this feeling only lasts for one or two run-throughs. By your third listen you'll be stunned by the complex and incandescent sounds found on Dear Science. TV On The Radio is a band reaching further than any other at the moment, but at the same time they're also becoming easier to listen to. I can't think of any other band recording today that I can say that about."

Listen to Dead Science:   

   1. Halfway Home
  
   2. Crying
  
   3. Dancing Choose
  
   4. Stork and Owl
  
   5. Golden Age
  
   6. Family Tree
  
   7. Red Dress
  
   8. Love Dog
  
   9. Shout Me Out
  
   10. DLZ
  
   11. Lover's Day

#5. Third by Portishead

Released: April 29, 2008
Label: Mercury/Island
Album Charts: #7 The Billboard 200, #3 Top Canadian Albums, #7 Top Internet Albums

"It's been over a decade since we have heard from trip-hop heroes Portishead. And their third album, aptly titled Third, finds them taking a further turn to the dark side. Where the band's melancholy components have previously been overshadowed by an upscale sophistication, Third finds them completely embracing a ghostly, brooding atmosphere. You won't be playing this album at your next martini party, it requires solo listening in order to really soak up the experience. Third's eerie undercurrent is so well done that you may actually find yourself frozen and drained on its completion."

Listen to Third:

   1. Silence
  
   2. Hunter
  
   3. Nylon Smile
  
   4. The Rip
  
   5. Plastic
  
   6. We Carry On
  
   7. Deep Water
  
   8. Machine Gun
  
   9. Small
  
   10. Magic Doors
  
   11. Threads

#6. Trouble In Mind by Hayes Carll

Released: April 8, 2008
Label: Lost Highway
Album Charts: #11 Top Heatseekers

"Trouble In Mind ended up being my favorite Americana album of 2008. This is Carll's first record for Lost Highway, and it finds the Texas poet incessantly whacking you upside the head with one perfectly crafted song after an other. The subjects covered are pure country -- bad women, hard living and struggle. But while the subjects covered are not breaking new ground, Carll's poetic imagery, humor and delivery are as good as it gets. The album flows splendidly between back porch Americana and drunken honky tonk. But it's songs like "Bad Liver And A Broken Heart" and "She Left Me For Jesus" that highlight a God-given cowboy wit and humor not often found in country music."

Listen to Trouble In Mind:   

   1. Drunken Poet's Dream
 
   2. It's A Shame
 
   3. Girl Downtown

   4. Bad Liver And A Broken Heart
  
   5. Beaumont
  
   6. I Got A Gig
 
   7. Faulkner Street
 
   8. Wild As A Turkey
 
   9. Don't Let Me Fall
 
   10. A Lover Like You

   11. I Don't Wanna Grow Up
  
   12. Knockin' Over Whiskeys

   13. Willing To Love Again
 
   14. She Left Me For Jesus

#7. Hercules And Love Affair by Hercules And Love Affair

Released: March 25, 2008
Label: DFA/EMI
Album Charts: #7 Top Heatseekers, #5 Top Electronic Albums, European Top 100 Albums

"Producer Andrew Butler has resurrected the best of (*gasp!) disco in 2008. With the production help of Tim Goldsworthy, multiple musicians, and vocals by Antony Hegarty, Kim Ann Foxman & Nomi, Butler has evolved disco from its 70s tradition into something more sophisticated and modern. With beats that fill the dancefloor, the Hercules And Love Affair debut is the club gem of 2008."

Listen to Hercules And Love Affair:

   1. Time Will
 
   2. Hercules Theme
 
   3. You Belong

   4. Athene
   
   5. Blind
  
   6. Iris
 
   7. Easy
 
   8. This Is My Love
 
   9. Raise Me Up
 
   10. True False/Fake Real
 
   11. Classique #2 (Edit)
 
   12. Roar

#8. Parc Avenue by Plants And Animals

Released: August 4, 2008
Label: Rub Secret City
Album Charts: None

"Montreal has been breeding quality music like nobody's business this decade. The latest to hail from this fine northern city is Plants and Animals. The band threads the needle between art school indie and epic orchestral pop. The bombast on this record could easily fall the way of more of the same if it wasn't for the band's ability to write song hooks in what seems like no more difficulty than signing your name. Every sound fits naturally and the album flow serves to keep everything uncommonly interesting. One of my most listened to albums of 2008."

Parc Avenue is not available for streaming:

   1. Bye Bye Bye
 
   2. Good Friend
 
   3. Faerie Dance 

   4. Feedback In The Field 

   5. A l'Orée Des Bois 

   6. New Kind Of Love 

   7. Early In The Morning
 
   8. Mercy 

   9. Sea Shanty 

   10. Keep It Real
 
   11. Guru

#9. Time:Line by Nicolay & Kay (Explicit)

Released: February 12, 2008
Label: Nicolay
Album Charts: None

"It has been fascinating to watch a classically trained producer from the Netherlands go from completely unknown 4 years ago to being one of the most creative talents in hip-hop. From the Internet collaboration with Phonte Coleman on The Foreign Exchange, to his excellent solo EP Here, to this new team-up with Houston rapper Kay, Nicolay is moving up the ladder in giant steps. On Time:Line Nicolay produces the most sophisticated grooves released in 2008, and Kay show maturity and depth while he weaves his lyrics into every crack and crevice. This is a match made in heaven, let's all pray it continues."

Time:Line is not available for streaming:

   1. Time:Line
 
   2. Blizzard 

   3. The Lights 

   4. Through the Wind 

   5. What We Live 

   6. I've Seen Rivers 

   7. Tight Eyes 

   8. As the Wheel Turns
 
   9. The Gunshot 

   10. Grand Theft Auto 

   11. When You Die 

   12. Dancing with the Stars

#10. Like A Fire by Solomon Burke

Released: June 10, 2008
Label: Shout! Factory
Album Charts: None

"The title track on Like A Fire, which opens the latest Solomon Burke album, was written for Burke by Eric Clapton. It's the worst track on the album and Solomon should have kindly declined it, but can you really say no to Eric Clapton when he writes a song for you? Anyway, once you get past this modern-day Clapton shmush Solomon is left to smolder and burn through some honest and emotionally charged soul. I've felt real physical chills listening to this album on multiple occasions, which makes up for the small amount of over-produced schmaltz you'll hear. Burke delivers the Keb' Mo' penned "We Don't Need It", (a story of a father losing his job and his family's support through hard times) in such a touching and heart-wrenching way that it should be required listening by federal law; especially considering the current economic climate. Although there are some production-related bones to pick, Burke's voice cuts through it all and speaks directly to the heart. And that's exactly where music should be speaking. I would like to personally thank Solomon for helping me remember that."

Listen to Like A Fire: 

   1. Like A Fire
  
   2. We Don't Need It
  
   3. The Fall
  
   4. A Minute To Rest And A Second To Pray
  
   5. Ain't That Something
  
   6. What Makes Me Think I Was Right
  
   7. Understanding
  
   8. You And Me
  
   9. Thank You   

   10. If I Give My Heart To You

Continue to the Best Albums of 2008 - #11 to #20   

Follow Robert of the Radish on Twitter