stan's list '08

2008. what a year. actually, it hasn't been the most amazing year for music. in fact, most of the truly great albums i listen to came out in '07. i had to take a look at my itunes "most played" list to see what i was listening to from '08, nothing really stood our for me. that said, these are the tracks that spent the most time in my head from this year. out of laziness, i'm not taking the time to put them in any particular order.

a.a. bondy, american hearts

a friend saw him open a show in knoxville and directed me to a live show of his on npr. great folk music, with plenty of religious overtones and dylan-style rebellion.

okkervil river, the stand ins

this is the follow up to last years stage names, making the two into one big, amazing album. i guess they are technically alt-country and rock, but they are one of those bands that you find it hard to classify to a friend because the genre is not what stands out when you listen to them (if that makes any sense).

ra ra riot, the rhumb line

classic indie pop music, plus strings.

vampire weekend, vampire weekend

i know, i know, i'm tired of the album at this point as well. but let's face it, it was damn good.

destroyer, trouble in dreams

while the album is not nearly as good as destroyer's rubies, this is a classic. i love his weird poetry.

nick cave & the bad seeds, dig, lazarus, dig!!!

i didn't start listening to nick cave until last year. now i'm obsessed. solid crazy rock. just listen to the creepy lyrics on "today's lesson." each song is like a short story.

beach house, devotion

kind of like a slightly depressed soundtrack for your dreams. not a nightmare, but not a sunny day either.

department of eagles, in ear park

i like grant's description of dept. except it doesn't give the right impression to say they resemble the beach boys...maybe the beach boys on crack...i like "teenagers" as well, but i included my other favorite "no one does it like you."

girl talk, feed the animals

i don't really have anything to add to my post on this guy. this album rocks.

fleet foxes, fleet foxes

a solid album. the renaissance, simon & garfunkle, my morning jacket and band of horses rolled together in a compact disc. again, read grant's description.

i made a little playlist of some of my favorite tracks from all these albums. i also tacked on songs from deerhunter and frightened rabbit. these guys would go on there if i were including more than ten.

08

Top albums of 2008

Okay, i loved reading grantly and will's top albums of 2008 so i felt compelled to share my own. It was tough and there were many albums such as Bon Iver and MGMT which i felt should be on here but realized they were released in late 2007. Will, sorry to disappoint you excluding the Emo Beattles, Panic at the Disc Player!

10. Ratatat - LP3.
I just love me some ratatatechno. Its ideal for when you need to read a book pretty fast and your eyes are heavy.









9. Coldplay - Viva La Vida.
The songs on this album just flowed together so tastefully. These brits may be slightly over rated but they have evolved so well and created a great album here. Enjoy the piano version of lost i posted below

Lost? - Coldplay







8. Kings of Leon- Only By The Night.
I really loved this album. This may not have been there best album yet. Call me gay but I love his scratchy voice.









7. Girl Talk - Feed the Animals.
This albums rocks so hard. It may be the best road trip album EVER! It bumps, raps, rocks and its a good game to try to see who can guess the different tracks layered in each song.






6. The Whigs- Mission Control.
Ever since i saw this band play in Nashville, TN at the basement I have been hooked. This is their second album and it still is as raw as their first. If these guys had been around during the early 90's grunge scene they would have been ridiculous. Then again so might anybody now if they came pre beattles.

Right Hand On My Heart - The Whigs







5. The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely.
The versatility of this album makes me so happy.










4. TV On the Radio - Dear Science.
This album is ridiculous. I have to agree with all the critics, its great. So intricate, creative and fun to listen to.









3. Vampire Weekend- Vampire Weekend.
Confession. I really didn't want to like this album after hearing all the greatest band ever hipe. I was weaseled into my first listens and still didn't like it. Finally, after being forced to purchase it up by a man with an indie gun, it really grew on me. Now, I love it. It makes me feel like i am on the beach everytime i hear it which must be why its number 3 on my list.





2. Sigur Ros- Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust
This album was much more poppy and I loved it.










1. Jon Foreman- Fall, Spring, Summer, Winter.
This is actually 4 EPs, 3 of which were released this year. Jon (try to ignore the fact he is the lead singer of switchfoot), writes with unflinching honesty about human nature, struggle, beauty and faith with amazing melody. Most of the songs if not all are acoustic driven. I love the idea of writing music to create a mood and with each EP he creates a unique mood to each season. He just released "Limbs and Branches" which is a quasi greatest hits of these 4 EPs, if your interested.

The Cure for Pain - Jon Foreman

My top ten albums of 2008

I am following in our founder’s footsteps by posting a list of my favorite albums of 2008 (so far). It was hard for me to rank these, and I’m sure I’ll change my mind on a few of them, but for now the list represents my feelings. Also, there are some 2008 albums that would maybe make this list but I haven’t invested the time or $ to listen to them yet (The Dodos, Of Montreal, Deerhunter, etc.)

I would love to see what some other peoples’ top 2008 album/song lists are and hopefully get a glimpse at the various music sensibilities represented on TLE.


10. Truckasaurus : Tea Parties, Guns, and Valor
I know, I know. I can’t help it though – I like this album. The blips, bleeps and bloops are like a tractor beam for me. And – the band is named after the Truckasaurus episode from the Simpsons! I mean c’mon - that’s good stuff! But seriously, the mixing, rythms, etc. on this album are really cool, and I’ll keep on enjoying it. Below is a great remix of one of the songs.

Aint No Danbo (When Hes Gone) [Copy Remix] - Truckasauras

9. Portishead : Third
It’s been about a decade since Portishead’s last release, and they definitely did not disappoint with Third. This is a dense album, or dense in its darkness at least. This is not one of those albums I pop in the player when I just need some easy-listening chill music. This is an album to play when it’s raining and cold and your mood reflects the weather, or there’s just been a nuclear apocalypse. Sometimes the album can be slightly jarring, but overall I enjoy it.

Silence - Portishead

8. Flying Lotus : Los Angeles
If you’ve ever watched Adult Swim on Cartoon Network there’s a good chance you’ve heard some of Flying Lotus’ stuff. It’s kinda laid back hip-hop inspired electronica. This is great background music. A signature track is below.

Beginners Falafel - Flying Lotus

7. Department of Eagles : In Ear Park
This album took me by surprise. This band has a strange history, as it kinda started when Daniel Rossen (of Grizzly Bear) worked on some tracks with his NYU roommate…and I think eventually put out an album. Then the whole Grizzly Bear thing happened, but he thankfully went back to DOE and released this album in 2008. Definitely has a slight Beach Boys feel, and it evokes Brian Wilson’s collaborator Van Dyke Parks (from his album Song Cycle – but in a good way) with all the orchestral arrangements. In Ear Park has really grown on me. Teenagers is a great track.

Teenagers - Department Of Eagles

6. Vampire Weekend : Vampire Weekend
Some of you may like this album, some of you may loathe it. For all the naysayers out there – I like it, even if I’m kinda sick of it by now. That’s all I’m gonna write about that.

Walcott - Vampire Weekend

5. Crystal Castles : Crystal Castles
I can’t stop listening to this album. It’s just so catchy. There’s something special about pounding out 8-bit soundscapes accompanied with a screaming female voice.

Seriously, why do I like this album so much? Is there something wrong with me? One more track below for your enjoyment/hatred (no screaming on this one).

Knights - Crystal Castles

4. TV on the Radio : Dear Science
Gosh. TV on the Radio is proof that there is plenty of hope for the continued creativity of the Brooklyn music scene. These dudes know what they are doing and are very consistent. Below is a BBC recording of one of the killer tracks on Dear Science.

3. M83 : Saturdays = Youth
I love M83 and I probably always will. This album is very poppy, dreamy, and has a strong shoegaze feel to it (reminiscent of My Bloody Valentine mixed with Cocteau Twins). There are some straight up electronic tracks as well on the album, which are also nice. Below is my favorite song from Saturdays = Youth.

Kim & Jessie - M83

2. The Walkmen : You and Me
I’m glad the Walkmen have been able to stick around. This album is classic Walkmen without feeling too repetitive. My favorite is below.

Four Provinces - The Walkmen

1. Fleet Foxes : Fleet Foxes
I know this is also the no. 1 album (along with the EP) on Pitchfork, but so what. I agree and I’m copying them. I think many on this blog will and do agree that this album, this band…….wow. They are freaking awesome. I don’t know what else to write. A good-but not the best-song from the album:

Quiet Houses - Fleet Foxes

Delta Spirit

Maybe I'm late getting to this party, but I heard this Delta Spirit song on the college station a few weeks ago and the piano riff has been stuck in my head since.


Delta Spirit - Trashcan [mp3]

To answer Will- the simplest way I've found to embed music is with this code:

<embed src="URL.mp3" autoplay="false" loop="true" 
width="367" height="14"></embed>

Replace "URL.mp3" with the location of the audio file, either by uploading to a free server, or by finding places that people have already done so with search engines like Hype Machine.

Blood Bank EP

Here's a few tracks from Bon Iver's new EP, Blood Bank:


Bon Iver - Hazelton [mp3]


Bon Iver - Beach Baby [mp3]

More good frozen melancholy winter music. I haven't seen "Hazelton" on the EP track lists- maybe it'll show up in a future album. I included it here 'cause I like it. Download the whole EP (minus "Hazelton") here.

girl talk: feed the animals

many of us remember the pop culture grenade that went off the first time we heard night ripper. in my opinion, feed the animals is like a cluster bomb. and it rocks. 

the format hasn't changed at all. he's still throwing out excellent mashups of rap, pop, rock and pretty much whatever else. i think this album is better because it is so accessible. night ripper was fun to listen to because of his disc jockey abilities, but parts could get really old and i had to skip a few tracks. the new album retains all his technical skill but really is a party that you can put inside your cd player. example: i can listen to this album with my wife in the room/car. actually, she requests it. anyway, i can't say much more. i hope you have fun with this album.

i'm trying out a new player format. i uploaded a few of my favorite tracks. keep in mind girl talk is best the whole album through. my suggestion is to listen to "play your part 1" first. its the opener and sets the album up nicely. 

you can download the entire album from his website, radiohead style.

Johnny Moessner

Many of you know John Moessner from CPA. As part of his Masters thesis he created his debut album Welcome to the Johngle. I was pleasantly surprised. It is actually very clever and well produced. Take a listen. You can listen to the whole album on line at his website www.johnmoessner.com
Also on the website is a album that another CPA grad recorded. I don't know if many of you know James Peel, but his album is on there as well. Also not bad. Check it out and let me know what you think.