Best of 2008 – Records

I’m sorry I haven’t been updating at all recently, it’s been a busy time filled with long delays in airports, old friends, rampant consumerism, and other non-music related things. I plan to step things back up in January, I promise! In fact, I’ll be posting tomorrow with my favourite concerts of the year, but for now here is the list of records I couldn’t put down in 2008!

Why? – Alopecia
A beautiful fusion of indie hip hop and indie rock. Yoni Wolf’s depression is gorgeous.
Perfectly Devastating.

Deerhunter – Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.
After a disappointing live show this summer at the Sled Island Music Festival in calgary, this new album redeems them in my books. A lovely bit of forward looking nostalgia-rock.

Frightened Rabbit – Liver! Lung! FR!
After hearing and being a little underwhelmed by their must lauded sophomore album, the Midnight Organ Fight (which deserves mention simply for its title: seriously, that one took balls!), this live set made a believer out of me. The band has serious chops, and the vocal expression here is wonderful.

Burning Star Core – Challenger
For me, 2008 was the year of noise. I discovered the genre, fell in love, and became a bit of a connoisseur over the past 12 months. This is one of the best, most listenable, and totally stunning noise albums I’ve come across. Listen in the dark, clench your fists. Feel it.

Deerhoof – Offend Maggie
Deerhoof have really perfected the balance between totally bizarre J-rock and Post Punk. This is one of my favourite guitar records, and fits the angular buzz word far better than most albums to which it is applied.

Chad VanGaalen – Soft Airplane
Chad VanGaalen has been a home town favourite of mine for years, and I’ve enjoyed his past two albums immensely. This, however, is his first home run. From start to finish, Soft Airplane feels like a single well developed point. Chad continues to explore many different sounds, moods and genres, but this year he was able to create a cohesive whole.

The Hospitals – Hairdryer Peace
Noisy, Lo-Fi, and unpredictable, the Hospitals have created a surprisingly smooth album with Hairdryer Peace. Stabs of melody pop out of nowhere, a shaking tambourine, whale sounds, early arcade fire-esq vocal bleating. Just great.

Skeletons – Money
Talk about a big project! Money feels like a wonderful collaboration between Animal Collective, the Dirty Projectors, and some free jazz and electronic artists. Given the massive range of styles and influences, the flow of this album is truly remarkable. Skeletons have been added to the list!

Stag Hare – Black Medicine Music
To be honest, I know almost nothing about Stag Hare, but after noticing this album popping up on all sorts of year end lists, I gave it a spin. Their drone-y sounds have captured my ears. I can’t stop listening!

AIDS Wolf – Cities of Glass
Finally AIDS Wolf have put out a record fit to match their live shows. The intensity, mix, and tones are all perfect. This is the first Noise Rock album that I’ve heard which makes me feel the way live noise rock sets do. Major props to producer Weasel Walter, committing energy and sounds like these to tape can’t have been an easy feat!

[For the record, I saw Bon Iver play after spinning his record constantly for a month in November, 2007.]

Honorable Mention: The Neighbourhood Council – Set Pieces EP, Women – Women, Azeda Booth – In Flesh Tones, Constantines – Kensington Heights, Sylvie – Trees and Shade are our only Fences, Abe Vigoda – Skeleton, To Live and Shave in LA – Wigmaker, Our Sleepless Forest – S/T, Birchville Cat Motel – Gunpowder Temple of Heaven

[The Morning After: 1) I noticed when re-reading this post that I only mentioned 9 albums. I've added Hairdryer Peace, it was in my original list, but somehow got displaced during the formatting process. 2) I ran into The Wigmaker in 18th Century Williamsburg this year, and wasn't able/didn't try to find information about its release date, and just assumed it was a recent release. Regardless, it is fantastic.]