In the fifth and final portion of our Best Albums of 2008 we reveal our top ten albums of the year.
#10 Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - Real Emotional Trash
It’s astounding that, after years of creating music, Stephen Malkmus can still write and record an album as good as Real Emotional Trash. The band sounds more focused than ever, and the jamming that turned some listeners off on the previous two Jicks albums has now become a definite strength. The riffs are some of the biggest Malkmus has ever written and the man is still as goofy as ever, singing about sleestaks and dragonflies eating pie with his signature deadpan delivery, and that’s why you really listen to him anyway. – Matthew Kalogerakis
#9 Okkervil River - The Stand Ins
Wrapped around a theme that combined film and music, last year’s The Stage Names influenced Okkervil River’s belated reverence and recognition. This year’s The Stand Ins follows suit. It’s the companion piece to The Stage Names and is another collection of sparkling songs, the kind that gleam with skillful songwriting, radiate with compelling melodies and most importantly, dazzle with inspiration. Like every other erstwhile album, there is something to love for every music fan. The marvelous wordplay between Will Sheff and Jonathan Meiburg on “Lost Coastlines” makes up one of the best songs of the year, the fantastic storytelling that is “Calling and Not Calling My Ex” all encompassed into one catchy ball of rock, or the luminous guitar work and fitting horns on the laid-back “Starry Stairs” all add up as one of the best albums of the year. It’s okay to let go of the old times with new and inviting songs as influential as the aforementioned, and if not, as Sheff sings, “If you don’t love me, I’m sorry.” – Bryan Sanchez
#8 Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
What can you say about the year these Columbia boys just had? The band’s self-titled debut album came out in January and they were off to the races, gaining praise from all journalistic venues, getting name-dropped by Hollywood stars, and appearing on multiple magazine covers. The shock in all this is that Vampire Weekend plays surprisingly heady and wonderful music. Rooted most notably in Afro beat, its sound is something most privileged white kids hadn’t heard before, but their penchant for amazing hooks and clever lyrics are really what put them on this list. Even if it is “trust fund frat rock,” songs like “A-Punk” and “Walcott” are a fucking good time, so who cares? – Matthew Kalogerakis
#7 Deerhunter - Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.
Over the years, experimental rock band Deerhunter have slowly transformed their aggressive noise-rock into a friendlier dream-pop sound, culminating with this year’s excellent album Microcastle. It was a crowning achievement, a hybrid of hazy and three dimensional ambient and indie-rock. This ethereal mix of multi-layered and textured sounds includes both brooding and dynamic instrumentals and shimmering, atmospheric indie-rock. The songs can be overflowing with thick and complex guitar swirls or awash in soft and airy synth lines, some include open and soothing passages while others employ more adventurous and exploratory musical segments that provide originality and distinction. The band even mixes in dabs of droning shoegaze and some electro-style beats to augment its pop experimentation. The result is a rewarding album of novel and well-crafted songs that are always a joy. As a bonus we also got the aesthetic continuation of last year’s epicCryptograms on Weird Era Cont.. – Matt the Raven
#6 Lil’ Wayne - Tha Carter III
As someone who is picky about hip-hop, my enjoyment of Lil Wayne and almost everything he does comes as somewhat of a surprise to me. Songs like “A Milli,” “Let the Beat Build,” and “3 Peat” had some shockingly clever rhymes and beats that stuck in your head for days. His appearance on Kevin Rudolf’s “Let It Rock” solidified the fact that he has real creative talent, and “Phone Home” was a certifiable hit. This album made Lil Wayne a legitimate superstar and is a bright spot in his burgeoning career. Not all the tracks are phenomenal, but if Lil Wayne’s future releases are as impressive as Tha Carter IIIthen he’s on track to make good on his claim of being the greatest rapper alive. – Claire Schuster
#5 The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
Even though they didn’t release an album in 2007 you can’t say the Hold Steady took some time off. After their usual round of endless touring they headed into the studio with more ears than ever awaiting the results. As on its previous three records the band didn’t disappoint. Stay Positive was full of excitement, melody, and Craig Finn’s world weary characters. This time around the focus was on maturing gracefully and the band grew along with them. By incorporating new instrumentation and additional guests it expanded its sound without compromising a thing. That makes the Hold Steady one of the best, most entertaining, and honest bands working today. – Matthew Smith
#4 No Age - Nouns
With the success of last year’s compilation, Weirdo Rippers, there was a definite buzz surrounding No Age. It’s been quite the year for the California rockers though: Dean Spunt and Randy Randall toured the U.S., were featured on everything from Pitchfork T.V. to MTV, were signed to a major indie label, and oh yeah, they made a gritty, noisy, mess of a beauty withNouns. Sprawling with loud and spiraling two-minute songs, this thirty minute gem was everything anyone could have hoped for: lyrics that embrace the new youth, music that can be piercing and still have a wonderful melody deep inside, and do-it-yourself spirit that portrays earnestness and realness. There are moments throughout the album of ambient coziness (“Things I Did when I was Dead”), where everything just washes over you like a cloud of comfort and an even-keel of raucous sound-beaters to choose from. It’s a gripping clutter of the best kind of noise: the kind of album that will leave you giddy with excitement, the kind of listen that shocks all of your senses, and the kind of music that you just want to play repeatedly, without ever stopping. – Bryan Sanchez
#3 TV On The Radio - Dear Science
TV on the Radio’s Dear Science is, without a doubt, one of the best albums released this year. Though more accessible than 2006’s Return to Cookie Mountain, Dear Science is incredibly dense and its complexity can only be fully appreciated through repeat listens. Andrew Sitek’s production is impeccable, creating lush soundscapes with layer upon layer of synthesized ambience and spiraling rhythms. At its core, beneath the massive wash of sound, the album is full of good songs. From its charging opener, “Halfway Home,” to the danceable “Crying” and “Golden Age,” to the haunting ballad “Family Tree,”Dear Science never gives your ears the opportunity to get bored. Whether heard passively in the background or fully experienced with closed eyes through headphones, it delivers. – Christopher Witter
#2 Portishead - Third
Almost ten years in the making, this long awaited effort by the Bristol-based trio was perhaps aptly dubbed “the Chinese Democracy of trip-hop” by some; the difference certainly being that Third was worth the wait. Although this marks a fairly obvious departure from their sound on classic release Dummy, Gibbons’ familiar, ethereal voice ties everything together nicely, making this distinctively a Portishead album. This offering is at times haunting and beautiful and, at other times, downright disturbing to listen to; the album, both musically and lyrically, drips with menace, shame and guilt. Shunned by many “fans” of the band, simply because it isn’t a re-hashing of Dummy, this is certainly a challenging and thought-provoking listen. Those looking for repetition should look elsewhere. It’s a new century and it was time to change the record – and Portishead did that with style on Third, producing one of the most interesting and one of the best releases of the year. – Laura Bettney
#1 Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant EP
At the beginning of 2008 there was a buzz surrounding Fleet Foxes that is unmistakable in our line of work. There were whispers of “instant classic” before they even had an official release date. The accolades heaped upon the band’s self-titled album and Sun Giant EP upon their release were well warranted. Robin Pecknold’s honey-toned voice sounded instantly timeless when combined with the band’s baroque, mainly acoustic compositions. Clearly their predecessors are groups like The Beach Boys, The Zombies, Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Neil Young, and Phil Spector but there is an unidentifiable originality here that is practically inarguable. Maybe it’s those tender, picturesque vocals sounding utterly glorious and significantly poignant, or maybe it’s the pristine, nearly flawless instrumentation and production (by The Shins main man, Phil Ek), or maybe it’s the culmination of one of the most emotionally charged albums of the year, but whatever it is, Fleet Foxes delivered something stunningly beautiful. Fleet Foxes sound magically gorgeous, and it’s easy to regard their self-titled album and its accompanying EP as true masterpieces. – Joe Davenport & Bryan Sanchez