Howdy. How's everyone doing? Happy Boxing Day.
We've just come up with a revolutionary concept! What if we did a list of the Best Albums of the year? It's a wonder no one has thought of this before. Maybe we'll start a trend.
In previous years we'd take this opportunity to offer a special comment on the state of music as we see it here from our Mountain top, usually doing a good bit of complaining disguised as analysis. But, you know what? We don't have all that much to whine about this year. There's some pretty good records being released out there, and even REM awakened from their slumber and made a decent album (we're as surprised as the next person). Is there a fair amount of crap floating around the airwaves? Sure, but who cares? With all the forms of music dissemination we have available to us, we have the unique ability in this day and age to control, mostly, what we listen to. Digital forms (mp3, streaming, etc.) may not be the optimal way to hear music, but it's the most accessible, the most populist. And that's a pretty swell thing.
So, over the next few posts, we're gonna count down our 37 favorite records of the year, 2008. Why 37? Seemed as good a number as any.
Our list is by no means definitive, of course, and outside of the Top 10, which we stand by, many of these records are ranked randomly, and could be higher or lower depending on what day it is. You'll see several record labels represented in higher quantity than others, but that's just how it goes. We even managed to find room for a few indie rock (whatever that is) releases, believe it or not. That's how good a year it was. We prefer to call this list a "favorite" list rather than a true "best of", since only time can tell the true lasting value of any recording. If you're a regular reader 'round these parts, we think you'll find these records to be pretty nifty. If you're relatively new, this'll give you some idea what to expect from us throughout the non-Holiday year. And Country fans, don't despair...you'll be pretty pleased with our Top 10.
For the list today (21-37), we've tried to limit ourselves to 17 words or less, description-wise. Who actually visits music blogs to read, anyway?
Big Rock Candy Mountain Favorite Records of the Year (Pt. 1)
37. Country Teasers/Ezee Tiger: W.O.A.R/W.O.A Split Album
Hillbilly Scottish scum filtering The Fall through smokey haze.
Country Teasers: Open Country (mp3)
36. Dead Meadow: Old Growth
Fuzzy psycho-delic plant life as folk-scuzz guitar miasma.
Dead Meadow: Keep On Walking (mp3)
35. Gutter Twins: Saturnalia
Greg Dulli and Mark Lanegan make late-nite gospel music from hell.
The Gutter Twins: Seven Stories Underground (mp3)
34. Black Keys: Attack and Release
Zeppelin meets Hank Williams fucking Junior Kimbrough. Danger Mouse produces. Goddamn.
The Black Keys: All You Ever Wanted (mp3)
33. Pure Country Gold: Yellow Bubbles and P.C.G.E.P 7"ers
Junk yard country trash glory.
Pure Country Gold: Yellow Bubbles (mp3)
32. The Kills: Midnight Boom
Seedy sleaze in the midnight hour.
The Kills: Goodnight Bad Morning (mp3)
31. Malcolm Middleton: Sleight of Heart
Former Arab Strap feller makes classic bedsit rumination for rainy days.
Malcolm Middleton: Marguerita Red (mp3)
30. Possessed By Paul James: Cold and Blind
Texas one-man band kicks nasty Country blues-punk.
Possessed By Paul James: Vodka and a Fight (mp3)
29. The Raveonettes: Lust Lust Lust
Jesus and Mary Chain reborn as Ronettes. With motorcycles and sex. Yummy.
The Raveonettes: Dead Sound (mp3)
28. Willard Grant Conspiracy: Pilgrim Road
Pastoral burn-desert rumination, the voice of Moses, repent.
Willard Grant Conspiracy: Lost Hours (mp3)
27. Lambchop: OH(Ohio)
Strummed soul Country, quiet and lonesome from Nashville carpenter. Best Song of Year.
Lambchop: National Talk Like A Pirate Day (mp3)
26. The Dutchess and the Duke: She's The Dutchess, He's The Duke
Girl/Boy folk/trash yummy.
The Dutchess and the Duke: Back To Me (mp3)
25. The Juke Joint Pimps: Boogie The House Down
Jive Ass boogie in your pants.
Juke Joint Pimps: Holey Juke Joint Beat (mp3)
24. Tweak Bird: Reservations
Allman Brothers battle Guided By Voices in the woods. The critters win, drive away in T-Bird.
Tweak Bird: Shivers (mp3)
23. She and Him: Volume 1
Pedal steel saturated Countrypolitan revisited in lazy afternoon sunshine.
She and Him: I Should Have Known Better (mp3)
22. American Music Club: The Golden Age
Return to lost soul form from Mountain favorite. Best AMC record since Everclear.
American Music Club: All My Love (mp3)
21. King Khan and BBQ Show: Animal Party 7" and King Khan: It's A Lie 7"
King Khan is God. BBQ is Jesus. Rawk'n'Roll party, mutherfuckers.
The King Khan and BBQ Show: God of Raisins (mp3)
Top 20 coming next week. Oh yes.
God or Raisins is AMAZING. Rock and Roll mutherfuckers indeed! Can't wait for the conclusion of this list!
ReplyDeleteOK apologies. I'm new here, from the UK and left comments on the Archive page 'cos I didn't think to come to the main page (Derrrrr...) and didn't think you'd posted your No: 1 BUT - now I'm here - I'm pleased to see the genius that is 'Fairytale' is top of your tree, as it should always be. It's a work or Art more than a Christmas record. Happy New Year
ReplyDelete37 to 21 look very tasty - can't wait for next week. Cheers and Salutations.
ReplyDeleteif u like the malcolm middleton track then check out the original (even better) by king creosote - he's the head honcho at fence records www.fencerecords.com
ReplyDelete