My Favorite Songs of 2008 (1 of 2)

Over the past year I’ve listened to a countless number of songs and many of them (over 300 according to my estimations) I’ve reviewed on this blog.  So to cap off the year, I’m sharing with you the 50 songs that grabbed my attention and kept me listening all year long. These are my favorite songs of the year (presented in two parts).

In making this list, I selected the songs that I treasured the most, ones that I’ll be replaying for years down the line.  Like the other two years I’ve done this, there won’t be any artists featured twice on this list.  Also, I suggest you don’t put too much stock in the ordering.  I realize that 50 songs is a completely arbitrary practice, but I also think these lists can get bit confusing without any numerical basis. So there you go.

In conclusion, I’ve really enjoyed re-listening to all my favorite songs this year and expressing my thoughts on the music, and I hope you enjoy these 50 songs just as much as I do.  There’s a link by each song choice where you can download/hear the song, but to make it easier for you, you can also download all the tracks in a zip by clicking this link. Enjoy!

50. Santogold – Lights Out MP3

With such incredibly giddy, upbeat songs like this, it’s no wonder why Santogold is now in every other commercial.  I immediately fell in love with the “oh oh, oh oh”s.

49. Weezer – The Greatest Man That Ever Lived (Variations on a Shaker Hymn) Youtube

Weezer’s concept of “variations on a shaker hymn” that range from glam rock to Gregorian chants is both a highly ambitious and comically ridiculous idea. It’s amazing at how well the band pulls it off.  Kudos to you, Rivers.

48. War on Drugs – Taking The Farm MP3

I said: The opening for the song is just perfect, as the song lays down all the key pieces to the instrumentation one by one.  It’s such a well-crafted intro, I’ve listened to it alone dozens of times just to try to understand it’s intricacies. Just for the record though, the rest of the song is just as great.

47. The Raveonettes – Dead Sound MP3

There’s a lot of Jesus and Mary Chain-borrowers out there, but The Raveonettes are the best. This is my favorite song from the band yet.  I said: The song has it all: reverbed-out verses, beautiful harmonies, and angsty noise-pop guitar.

46. Titus Andronicus – Upon Viewing Brueghel’s “Landscape With The Fall Of Icarus” MP3

I said: This is a song I can imagine being played by the Arcade Fire, not because it sounds in any way similar to the band, but it has the same kind of fiery intensity and sense of “rock and roll can save your life” enthusiasm that the band exhibits.  Even though I know Titus Andronicus is a little band from New Jersey, I get the sense I’m listening to something very important from this song…

45. Bloc Party – Ion Square Youtube

I thought Intimacy was a huge disappointment, especially after a fantastic debut and formidable follow-up.  The one good thing about the album though is “Ion Square”, a sweeping, beautiful track which harkens my favorite tracks from the band like “This Modern Love” and “So Here We Are”.  Why can’t they write more songs like this?

44. The Decemberists – Valerie Plame Youtube

“Valerie Plame” isn’t anything new for The Decemberists.  It has all the catchy melodies, varied instrumentation, and storytelling intrigue you’d expect from the band, they even through in a trademark mid-song tempo change.  But, hey, those are all the things I LOVE about The Decemberists, so I’m not complaining.

43. The Grates – Burn Bridges MP3

I said: “Burn Bridges” features one of The Grate’s best melodies along with a monster riff and plenty of hand-clapping, chanting, and general rocking out. Somehow the band fits this massive whirlwind of sound into 2 minutes and 26 seconds. Such an awesome song.

42. Coldplay – Vida La Vida Youtube

So what if Coldplay is being sued for copping this song from Satriani? Doesn’t change how totally awesome this song is.  Say what you want about Coldplay, but when they get it right (and this song gets about everything right) they can sure write an amazing pop single.

41. The Avett Brothers – Murder in the City MP3

Such a simple, non-assuming and gorgeous folk song.  It’s the lyrics on this track that really bring “Murder in the City” to the next level.  When he sings “I wonder which brother is better? Which one my parents loved the most?” it gets to me every time.

40. The Lodger – The Good Old Days MP3

I said: Jangly guitars, lively vocals, insanely catchy hooks, it’s just a overall brilliant song. Can’t recommend it enough.

39. Los Campesinos! – Ways To Make It Through The Wall MP3

I said: The melodies are as catchy and the instrumentation as dynamic as anything they’ve done, and they’ve perfected the art of accentuating their music with unrestrained sonic outbursts …. The chorus has been stuck in my head since the moment I heard it.

38. The Walkmen – In the New Year MP3

I said: There’s so much dramatic flair to this song, the vocal performance is off the charts, and mixed with some truly inspired instrumentation of guitar, strings, and organ it makes for what is easily one of the band’s best tracks.

37. Meursault – A Few Kind Words MP3

Meursault was one of my biggest surprises of the year.  This song just blows me away. I said: The electronica on this song is simply perfection and mixed with the acoustic strums and chanted vocals, it makes for a magnificent pop song.

36. The Rosebuds – Border Guards MP3

This song does the best job of mixing the acoustic wonder of Birds Make Good Neighbors with the ominous digital post-punk of their later work.  I can’t explain it, but once the chorus hits and the cymbals do that cresendo (just listen, you’ll see), something magical happens.

35. Bodies of Water – Darling, Be Here MP3

I said: On their sophomore album, Bodies of Water replace gospel-folk epics with prog-rock epics and this song is the best of them.  The monster guitar riff, quirky keyboard breakdown, and jubilant vocal climax makes ”Darling, Be Here” a triumph.

34. Dear and the Headlights – Talk About MP3

This is one of the funnest, most thrilling singles of the year.  In fact, I can’t help but get the image of a roller coaster when I listen to this song . The song is constantly moving, twisting, and turning, only stopping momentarily to give you a breather, and then immediately shooting you back.  The song continuously building it’s own intensity until the huge climax that leaves you completely breathless.

33. Ladytron – I’m Not Scared MP3

I said: This song that charges forward full force with dark, mysterious synths and drums that sound straight out of New Order’s discography. The ladies’ vocals are the highlight from sly pronunciation on phrases like “the generosity of strangers” to the high-pitched accents during the fantastic chorus of the song.

32. Why? – Fatalist Palmistry MP3

“Fatalist Palmistry” is an extremely memorable, addictive and catchy pop song, which is the last thing I expected to hear when I was introduced to the hip-hop/rock fusion band, Why?.  The sheer jubliance of this track is outstanding and the metaphorical lyrics and mind-bending rhyming schemes are out of this world. Also like I mentioned before, this song has the best opening line I’ve heard all year.

31. Quinn Walker – Save Your Love for Me MP3

I said: This is of the most superbly crafted songs of the year. Everything about the song recalls a Berlin-era David Bowie from the electronic backing to Quinn Walker’s fantastic falsetto/baritone. Then there’s that perfectly placed guitar solo that brings it all together. Seriously, this song is incredible.

30. Jamie Lidell – Hurricane Youtube

About half of the songs on Jamie Lidell’s latest album have been my favorite at one point or another, but in the end, I landed up on “Hurricaine” as the best.  It’s the artist’s most exclamatory, driving beat and it never loses an ounce of momentum through the punchy verses and the explosion of a chorus.  It also features Lidell’s most dynamic, showiest vocal performance.

29. Evangelicals – Skeleton Man MP3

The textural density of this track with it’s heavy distorted guitar and drenching psychedelia, is hugely impressive but under a mountain of sonic noodling there’s a strong melody that shines through, making this song truly a force to be reckoned with.  The crazy guitar shredding at the end is definitely part of the appeal as well.

28. The Rural Alberta Advantage – Don’t Haunt This Place MP3

I said: This song hooks you from the start with a very unique drum pattern, soft organ, and a poignant cello that somehow work perfectly together.  The vocals are especially stellar as well, much of the song featuring lead male and female vocals that mix wonderfully with the overall sound.  Easily one of the most sonically interesting and just plain cool songs I’ve heard in a long while.

27. The Mountain Goats – Autoclave MP3

“Autoclave” is both one of the poppiest and deeply self-loathing tracks from The Mountain Goats. The music is exuberant, bubbly, and refreshing while Darnielle’s vocal performance is earnest and delicate.  Lyrically, the narrator’s heart is continually compared to this bacteria-killing machine, but it ends on a hopeful note with the borrowed line “Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name”. It’s as if to say, all you need is a few drinks with Sam, Cliff, and Norm to ease that troubled autoclave-like heart.

26. Destroyer – My Favorite Year MP3

Accented by an fluttering, otherworldy electric guitar which both opens and closes the track, this song provides a completely exhilarating, highly eclectic listing experience.  The track bursts open near the 3 minute mark adding a spirited chorus of female vocalists while Bejar sings my favorite line, “it was a good year. it was a VER-RY GOOD YEEEEAAAAR.” Every time I hear it I can’t help but sing with him.  One of the purest, most euphoric moments in music this year.

Download these songs in a zip HERE.

***
Click here to be see the stunning conclusion of this list, my 25 Favorite Songs of 2008

Drunk Like Bible Times

Dear and the Headlights‘ sophomore album, the exuberantly-titled Drunk Like Bible Times, has been much anticipated around these parts and I’ve now had a couple of weeks for it to sink in.   The band certainly hasn’t lost the spark from their debut, but it I’m finding that it doesn’t have the consistency of greatness that Small Steps, Heavy Hooves has. When the songs hit, though, they really pack a punch, such as the opening jam, “I’m Not Crying, You’re Not Crying, Are You?” and the ridicuously catchy first single, “Talk About”, which is easily the funnest song the band has put on record. The album also succeeds in the variety of styles that the band play, whether it be alt-country, folk, post-punk or indie pop (such as in the delightfuly sunny “If Not For My Glasses”).

In addition to listening to the album, I saw the band live a couple weeks ago in a pre-Pygmalion show with Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s (who unfortunately canceled at the last minute).  The band played mostly new tracks (“Bad News” and “Crying” came off especially good) interspersed with some classics like “Run In The Front” and “I’m Bored, You’re Amorous”.   Ian’s passionate vocals and the band’s musical ability (most of the band members played at least two instruments) shine through even stronger during their live show.  I’m still amazed this band isn’t huge, but with another fantastic album under their belt and coming off a tour with Jimmy Eat World from this summer, hopefully they will soon get the recognition they deserve. 

MP3 Talk About
MP3 I’m Not Crying, You’re Not Crying, Are You?

 See my pictures from the the band’s show by at the musicforants flickr page.

My Favorite Albums of 2007

photo illustration by Taylor Johnston (view original)

Hard to believe it, but 2007 is coming to a close and soon we’ll have a whole other year of music ahead of us. This was a big year for me. I got engaged, I was interviewed in the New York Times, I saw countless bands and listened to hours and hours of songs. It’s time to wrap it all up here with my final year-end list. It’s been a great year for music, many of my favorite bands have released what I think, their best albums and I’ve been introduced to so much great new music. After all of that, these are my favorite 25 albums of 2007. Make sure to leave a comment if you appreciate the list or have your own favorite albums to add. Thanks for reading and listening and I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!

25. Office – A Night At The Ritz

This album is a late addition to the list but I’ve been loving the stylish and sexy new wave sound from one of Chicago’s best new bands. “Wound Up” is an extremely addicting track.

MP3 Wound Up
MP3 The Big Bang Jump

24. The Shout Out Louds – Our Ill Wills

Shout Out Louds just barely beats out Jens Lekman for my favorite Sweden pop album of the year. This lush and incredibly orchestrated album not only gave me one, but two of my favorite songs of the year: “Tonight I Have To Leave It” and “Impossible”.

MP3 Tonight I Have To Leave It
MP3 Impossible

23. Broken Social Scene presents Kevin Drew – Spirit If…

I didn’t really warm up to this album until I saw it performed live. Kevin Drew might be a bit crazy, but songs like “Lucky Ones” and “Backed Out On The…” rank among the best in Broken Social Scene’s catalogue.

MP3 Lucky Ones
MP3 Backed Out On The…

22. Bloc Party – A Weekend In The City

This album actually dropped quite a bit in my personal listening over the past year but it still think it has some amazing moments, most notably the 1-2-3 punch of “Kreuzberg” / “I Still Remember” / “Sunday” near the end of the album.

MP3 Kreuzberg

21. Panda Bear – Person Pitch

I loved “Comfy in Nautica” the moment I heard it but it took a little longer for me to warm up to the rest of Person Pitch. All the psychedelic loops and beautiful harmonies eventually won me over to what might be one of the best summer albums I’ve ever listened to.

MP3 Comfy in Nautica

20. The White Stripes – Icky Thump

After a couple average releases from Jack White (Get Behind Me Satan and The Raconteurs side-project), he re-establishes himself as a guitar god with Icky Thump. The riffs on this album are absolutely killer and the fun little diversions like “Rag and Bone” and “Conquest” give this album its character.

MP3 You Don’t Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You’re Told)

19. Klaxons – Myths of the Near Future

Justice might have gotten all the attention this year but Klaxons made what remains my favorite dance/rave album of the year. “Atlantis to Interzone”, “Golden Sans”, and “It’s Not Over” are some of the sickest party-starting jams of the year.

MP3 Atlantis to Interzone

18. Wilco – Sky Blue Sky

This is definitely a more mature album Wilco and it seems like fans either love it or hate it. I’m in the love it category, the album is full of breezy and delightful songs like “Either Way” and “What Light” and features some amazing guitar work by Nels Cline. The dueling guitar freak-out at the end of “Impossible Germany” is one of my favorite moments this year in music.

MP3 Impossible Germany

17. Battles – Mirrored

With their insanely tall crash cymbal and the chipmunk-like vocals, Battles took the music scene by storm in 2007 and created some of the most unique, inventive, and sometimes weird, music of the year. I’ve heard Battles described many times as the music of the future, and I can only hope this is true. All the songs have their moments but “Atlas” is stunningly good.

MP3 Atlas

16. Beirut – The Flying Cub Cup

After Gulag Orkestrar, Beirut quickly became one of my favorite bands and this year Zach Condon brought on a full band and made two more fantastic additions to their portfolio with the Lon Gisland EP and The Flying Cub Cup. Although there’s not a huge standout track like “Postcards to Italy” or “Elephant Gun”, the album is full of bright, sunny, and romantic songs and Zach Condon’s captivating vocals. It’s difficult to choose a favorite but I think the biggest highlight of the album is the gorgeous, ukelele-featuring “The Penalty”.

MP3 The Penalty
MP3 A Sunday Smile

15. Patrick Wolf – The Magic Position

Although this album will probably best be remembered for it’s breathtaking title track (which I called “one of the most delightful anthems of the year” in last week’s post), The Magic Position is full of dark and enchanting songs. The instrumentation which prominently features violin and mixes both organic and unnatural sounds is nothing short of brilliance. Never straying away from controversy whether it’s firing his drummer on stage, threatening to quit the music business, or getting in a feud with Mika, one thing is sure: Patrick Wolf is one of the best pop songwriters that we have, and I think his best work is yet to come.

MP3 The Magic Position

14. Dear and the Headlights – Small Steps, Heavy Hooves

This band came out of nowhere (Arizona actually) to release one of my favorite debuts of the year. The band draws on it’s many influences whether they be alt-country in the vein of Wilco, indie folk/pop such as Belle & Sebastian and Elliott Smith, and the passionate indie rock of bands like Modest Mouse and Sunny Day Real Estate. “It’s Gettin’ Easy” is an exhilarating track with amazing harmonies, and extremely catchy chorus, and brass and strings boosted ending that demands to be played loud.

MP3 It’s Gettin’ Easy
MP3 Grace

13. Radiohead – In Rainbows

Seriously, what can I say here that you haven’t already heard much more eloquently than I could say. It was easily the most buzzed and talked about record of the year and unlike some over-hyped albums, it completely lives up to all the talk. My favorite Radiohead albums has always been The Bends, so for me this was the Radiohead album that I wanted. It’s definitely a rock record, the band has recorded some of their best guitar riffs on “Bodysnatchers” and “Jigsaw Falling Into Place” but it has some fantastic subtle moments like the strings in “Nude” and “Reckoner”.

MP3 Bodysnatchers

12. Windmill – Puddle City Racing Lights

Windmill is probably the most exciting new band I’ve heard this year and Puddle City Racing Lights continues to impress. Matthew Dillon set out to make an album with the piano as the prominent instrument and he came up with 12 songs that are beautiful, epic, heartbreaking, fist-pumping all at once. The album begins with the perfectly-executed pop explosion of “Tokyo Moon” and then hits you with great song after great song. “Plastic Pre-Flight Seats” is a completely engrossing song and “Asthmatic” is unbelievably gorgeous. Although the voice (which I’ve heard compared to Wayne Cohen, Alec Ounsworth, and Daniel Smith) throws some people for a loop, repeated listens make this one of the most rewarding and satisfying albums of the year.

MP3 Tokyo Moon
MP3 Asthmatic

11. Sunset Rubdown – Random Spirit Lover

This album like most of the music that Spencer Krug has created is very hard to put into words. Krug has again made an album that is both beautiful and chaotic. Random Spirit Lover improves on Shut Up I Am Dreaming in way it densely layers the instrumentation and flows the songs to a make an incredibly cohesive and yet still wild and adventurous record. “Up On Your Leopard, Upon The End Of Your Feral Days” is perhaps the most intense and moving song that Krug has written and the painful emotion of songs like “The Taming of the Hands That Came Back to Life” and “Trumpet, Trumpet, Toot! Toot!” will haunt you for days after listening.

MP3 Up On Your Leopard, Upon The End Of Your Feral Days

10. Bodies of Water – Ears Will Pop & Eyes Will Blink

This album has shot up faster on my listening scale than any other over the past couple of weeks and I’ve had to adjust my rankings a couple times to find the right place for it. On the strength of the amazing and awe-inspiring songs like “I Guess I’ll Forget The Sound, I Guess, I Guess”, “Doves Circle The Sky”, and the spell-bounding “These Are The Eyes”, I’ve decided that Bodies of Water definitely deserves a top 10 placement and my declaration of favorite debut album of the year. The album takes everything I love from it’s modern influences like Arcade Fire, The Polyphonic Spree, and Sufjan Stevens and puts it together in one joyous collection. Although the wide array of dramatic and often retro-sounding orchestration does it part in making this album wonderful, it’s the gospel-like vocal harmonies that will really make your eyes pop and your eyes blink.

MP3 These Are The Eyes
MP3 I Guess I’ll Forget The Sound, I Guess, I Guess
MP3 Doves Circle The Sky

9. The National – Boxer

The National have produced some of the most chilling and breathtaking songs of the last decade. While Boxer doesn’t have any songs that will hit you immediately as “Abel” and “Mr. November” did, the subtleties of even their mellowest, most understated tracks reveal themselves over time to be something truly beautiful. Matt Berninger writes some of the smartest and most interesting lyrics that I’ve heard and his brooding baritone gives this album its heart and soul. The drums on the album are amazing throughout and the guitar provides a melancholy atmosphere that perfectly fits the mood of the songs. It might take some time for songs like “Slow Show” and “Racing Like A Pro” to fully hit you, but when they do it’s a truly amazing thing.

MP3 Mistaken For Strangers
MP3 Slow Show

8. Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

It would have been a near impossible task to follow up Funeral and please absolutely everyone. What Arcade Fire did instead is make an album that was just as anthemic while changing the lyrics from focusing on the introspective to examing outward feelings whether they be on politics, religion, or mass media. The results are often bleak and piercing as seen in “Black Mirror” and “My Body is a Cage” but the Arcade Fire produces just as many moments that are big, epic, and gloriously triumphant such as “No Cars Go”, “Keep The Car Running”, and the last half of “The Well and the Lighthouse”. It might not top Funeral, but it’s hard to deny that Neon Bible is another classic album from the band full of the grandeur and transcendence we’ve come to expect from the band.

MP3 No Cars Go

7. LCD Soundsystem – Sound of Silver

With Sound of Silver, James Murphy has made the both the greatest and the most heart-breaking ode to growing up that I’ve ever heard. Whether mourning the loss of a loved one or wishing he could see all his friends one last time or wishing he could feel like a teenager again, the album hits home at all the right points. While many fusions of dance and rock music feel empty, LCD Soundsystem lovingly recalls the sounds of New Order, David Bowie, and the Talking Heads and creates a fully developed and perfectly realized album. It helps that the album contains the best song of the year in “All My Friends”.

MP3 All My Friends

6. Andrew Bird – Armchair Apocrypha

Those of you who have read this blog on a regular basis probably know how much I love Andrew Bird so putting Armchair Apocrypha up here is an obvious one for me. The man is ridiculously talented, and I don’t think it’s possible for him to make a bad album. What’s notable about Armchair Apocrypha, is that he really embraces guitar rock for the first time on the album while still incorporating his trademark violin and whistle and incredible songwriting prowess. “Plasticities”, “Heretics”, “Scythian Empires” and “Dark Matter” aren’t just some of the best songs in Andrew Bird’s career they’re some of the finest tracks of the year.

MP3 Heretics
MP3 Plasticities

5. Okkervil River – The Stage Names

After the epic and universally accepted masterpiece that was Black Sheep Boy, Okkervil River decided to do something new for this album and they’ve put together the most joyous, rambunctious, and refreshing sequence of tunes they’ve ever recorded. Will Sheff jumps into the world of film, music, theatre and poetry with his lyrics singing about the plight of rock band or the depression of a poet. The songwriting on this album is great beyond belief but it’s the moment of pure, unadulterated rocking out in songs like “Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe”, “Unless It’s Kicks”, and the Sloop-John-B homage, “John Allyn Smith Sails” that makes this album such an unstoppable force.

MP3 Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe
MP3 Unless It’s Kicks

4. Spoon – Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Only Spoon could make an album with a baby-speak for the title and third of the song titles misspelled and have it be this mind-numbingly brilliant. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is the epitome of an all killer, no filler album, at 36 minutes there’s not one dull moment. The album is full of great power-pop songs like “The Underdog”, with it’s mariachi band horns and handclap percussion, the overly catchy fist-pumper “Finer Feelings”, and “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”, a song that’s soulful, lively, and extremely infectious. The band also breaks new ground with the beautiful Beatles-esque “Black Like Me” and the dreamy “Ghost Of You Lingers”. It’s my favorite album from one of the most talented and creative bands in the world.

MP3 You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb
MP3 The Underdog

3. Iron & Wine – The Shepherd’s Dog

I’ve always enjoyed the beautiful and sparse whisper-folk of Iron & Wine but it took Sam Beam adding a full band for me to really fall head over heels for this band. The band forges out new territory throughout the album with diverse sounds and musical arrangements with flourishes of piano, strings, backwards guitar, organic percussion, and even electronic elements spread throughout the album. While the album strays all over the sonic spectrum what stays consistent though is Sam Beam’s drop-dead gorgeous vocals and his finely-tuned songwriting craft.

With an array of upbeat folk pop such as “Boy With A Coin” and fascinating diversions on the album (“House By The Sea”, “Wolves”), it might be easy to overlook the softer moments like “Resurrection Fern” and “Flightless Bird, American Mouth”. It’s these transcendent moments though that make this album a completely sublime and awe-inspiring listening experience that you’ll want to have over and over.

MP3 Boy With A Coin
MP3 Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car

2. Of Montreal – Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?

Kevin Barnes was in a state of extreme sadness and isolation when he wrote this album and he channels all of his feelings and emotion, however angsty they might be, into an album that’s nearly flawless. Barnes has always had a gift for writing melodic hooks but he pushes his songwriting skills to their limit here by cloaking his depression in a psychedelic glam-pop kaleidescope of sounds that showcase all of his manic mood swings throughout writing the album.

As suggested on the album’s grandest highlight, “Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse”, the journey is fueled by chemicals and during the epic sprawl of centerpiece “The Past Is A Grotesque Animal” Barnes’ relationship problems are fleshed out with such painful emotion it you almost feel bad that you’re dancing. This could be the heaviest, most serious indie pop album ever recorded but it in no way feels like a downer while you’re listening. Whether you’re dancing to the beat of “Come on! Chemicals!”, shouting out in unison “Let’s all go down together!”, or telling off a girl because she don’t got know “soul power”, the album connects us in a way that only pop music can do.

MP3 Heimdalsgate Like A Promothean Curse
MP3 She’s A Rejector

1. Cloud Cult – The Meaning of 8

We’ve finally reached the end of that tunnel which is 2007 and there’s one album that stands out for me and the most memorable, enjoyable, heart-breaking, and magical listening experience of the year. I would have never expected that a band I had never heard of before this year would have created my favorite album but that’s exactly what Cloud Cult did with The Meaning of 8. I have a hard time explaining why this album is so meaningful to me, why it hasn’t left my CD player for more than a few days since I got it nearly eight months ago. There’s something indescribably beautiful about this album, which is mostly about Craig Minowa’s infant child who died unexplainable and would have been eight years old at the time of this release, that affects me more than anything I’ve heard this year.

It’s not a perfect album by any means, it’s front-sided and the running time is longer than it should be. Nevertheless though, this is my favorite album of the year, blemishes and all, because of the countless moments that overwhelm me with emotion. Whether it be on the simple acoustic progression of “Chemicals Collide” the jarringly pretty “Deaf Girl’s Song”, the magnificent and uplifiting “Pretty Voice”, or the awesome, unbelievably powerful “Take Your Medicine”. The songs at the core are just simple pop structures but with the added layers of jagged bass, frantic strumming guitars, high-pitched glockenspiel, melancholy cello, and an awe-inspiring choir of vocals they become so much more. When I’m listening to The Meaning of 8 I’m completely entranced and time seems to fly faster than it ever has before. There’s something about the album that is too extraordinary to put into words and I can only hope that, among all the chart-toppers and critical favorites, you would give this little-album-that-could a try and truly let this songs soak in and move you as they’ve done to me.

MP3 Take Your Medicine
MP3 Chemicals Collide

Additional Lists:
Albums that just missed my Top 25:
Jens Lekmen – Night Falls Over Koreladaga
The Twilight Sad – 14 Autumns and 15 Winters
Rogue Wave – Asleep At Heaven’s Gates
Bishop Allen – The Broken String
Dan Deacon – Spiderman of the Rings
Justice – †
Manchester Orchestra – I’m Like A Virgin Losing A Child
Ola Podrida – self-titled
Kanye West – Graduation
The Broken West – I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On

Albums That I Need More Time With:
Yeasayer – All Hour Cymbals
Animal Collective – Strawberry Jam
Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
Against Me! – New Wave
St. Vincent – Marry Me
Caribou – Andorra
White Rabbits – Fort Nightly
Vampire Weekend – Blue CD-R
Akron/Family – Love Is Simple
Les Savy Fav – Let’s Stay Friends

Albums That Just Aren’t My Thing:
Dirty Projectors – Rise Above
The Field – From Here We Go Sublime
Deerhunter – Cryptograms

Thanks again to everyone for reading! I’ll be back in 2008…

Top 50 Awesomest Songs of 2007

I had so many songs that I loved this year that I had to upgrade my top songs list this year from 30 to 50. If you’ve been reading this site or generally listen to awesome music, many of these songs will be familiar to you, and if you find one you don’t know you can guarantee that I give it my full endorsement (there’s a link by each song choice where you can download/hear the song). I selected songs based on what songs I’ve experienced this year that have been the most memorable, most listened to, most enjoyed, and as a rule I didn’t choose more than one song per artist. I had a lot of fun re-listening to these songs and I hope you enjoy this list (as always, I would ask that you leave a comment if you do). Don’t forget to click the read more… link for the top 25 with reviews for each song. Thanks for stopping by!

50. Georgie James – Need Your Needs MP3
49. Immaculate Machine – Dear Confessor MP3
48. The Broken West – Brass Ring MP3
47. The Manchester Orchestra – Wolves at Night MP3
46. The Clientele – Isn’t Life Strange? MP3
45. Windmill – Asthmatic MP3
44. Parts & Labor – Fractured Skies MP3
43. Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew – Lucky Ones MP3
42. M.I.A. – Jimmy Youtube
41. Twilight Sad – That Summer At Home I Had Become The Invisible Boy MP3

40. Page France – Mr. Violin and Dancing Bear MP3
39. Rogue Wave – Lake Michigan MP3
38. Noah & The Whale – Five Years Gone MP3
37. Laura Veirs – Don’t Lose Yourself Youtube
36. The New Pornographers – My Rights Versus Yours MP3
35. The Snake The Cross The Crown – The Great American Smokeout MP3
34. Office – Wound Up MP3
33. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – Emily Jean Stock MP3
32. Feist – I Feel It All Youtube (live on a bus)
31. Loney, Dear – The City, The Airport MP3

30. Avril Lavigne – Girlfriend Youtube
29. Okkervil River – Unless It’s Kicks Youtube
28. Blonde Redhead – 23 MP3
27. The White Stripes – You Don’t Know What Love Is Youtube
26. Ola Podrida – Cindy MP3

CLICK BELOW TO SEE THE TOP 25

Interview with Ian from Dear and the Headlights

Dear and the Headlights are perhaps my favorite new band from this year and their brilliant debut album, Small Steps, Heavy Hooves is still a constant listen for me. So as you can imagine I was very excited at the chance to chat with the lead singer and creative force behind the band, Ian Metzger. We discussed how they found the band found their drummer on Craigslist, singing in made-up languages, picking a band name, and meeting Jeff Tweedy. Click here to view the whole interview and make sure to grab the MP3’s at the bottom.

What’s in heavy rotation on your iPod right now?

Bob Dylan, The Beatles, and Neil Young are on constant heavy rotation, but out of newer bands I’ve been listening to a lot of The Great Lake Swimmers, and this other band called Danielson, and Dr. Dog.

What’s the story behind the name “Dear and the Headlights”?

It’s just a really bad play on words, that’s all. (laughing)

So were you just brainstorming…

No I don’t think there was really much brainstorming involved, it was just like “hey what about this” as a joke and everyone’s like “yea sure” and I’m like “wait, no… are you sure?”, “yea why not”, “oh, ok…”.

I’ve sent the band to a few friends and the first thing that some people have said is that they love the name Dear and the Headlights.

It’s funny we get such mixed reactions. I think as a name in some ways it works very well just because of the saying itself, when you spell it the correct way people already think they’ve heard of the band just because everyone’s so familiar with the saying itself. It’s definitely easy to remember, you know. And then other people are like “that’s the worst name we’ve ever heard”. But at the same time it’s not like Radiohead is a really great band name.

You can’t really get any worse than Arctic Monkeys.

Yea once you write decent songs, if your music’s good then people kindof forget the badness or really pick it apart too much.

I read you found your drummer on Craigslist. How’d that happen?

The whole thing had been ridiculous and we had tried out like 13 different people over the course of two years and failed miserably with every one of them. So kindof as a last resort thing are guitar player Joel was like “well, I don’t know, just as a joke let’s put an ad out on craigslist” and within a day Mark responded. It was kindof funny, this was the first time Joel ever used Craigslist and it was the first time Mark ever used it and he was looking for drummer ads at the exact same time Joel posted it. I don’t know how conventional of way that is to find a drummer but it worked out for us.

How has your music progressed from when you started making demos to right now?

I think it’s just gotten more mature to be honest, I mean this whole thing before recording took about five years and some of those songs are a lot older than others. It’s just progressed as we’ve all become better musicians. I think I’ve become better at writing lyrics then I was.

What were the first songs that you recorded that made it to the CD?

A few of the older songs on the CD sound a bit old and dated to me. The oldest songs on the CD are Run In The Front, Sweet Talk, and Paper Bag. Paper Bag doesn’t sound as dated to me as the two others though.

What’s the most interesting tour experience so far for you?

I think playing Lollapalooza was absolutely the most crazy experience. It was kind weird, we’re such a small band, you know, it’s kindof crazy to be associated with and having all the same priviledges as all these other gigantic acts even ones that we’ve looked up to like My Morning Jacket and Modest Mouse. I got to meet Jeff Tweedy from Wilco.

Wow, I didn’t know that he was there.

Yeah, he didn’t play but he was there. I totally like geeked out big time when I saw him, I just did the lame thing like (in Wayne’s World voice) “Hey, you’re Jeff Tweedy” and he’s like “Yeah, I’m Jeff Tweedy” and I was like damn it, did I just say that?

Best of 2007 (so far)

This was both one of the funnest and hardest music lists I’ve made for this site. Fun because I got to relisten to all my favorite albums of 2007 and remember why I liked them so much in the first place. Hard because I only am choosing 12 (and a half) for this list and I’m cutting out some big favorites. When it came down to it though, I chose the albums that are both hitting me the hardest right now and that I think I’ll remember most down the road. Without further adieu, here they are.

These 12 and a half albums (picked because it’s half of 25) are listed in chronological order and only include albums released in the first half of this year.

Of Montreal – Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
Of Montreal have made some wonderful records in their career but this one tops them all. Kevin Barnes takes the glam and elctrodance tendencies of the band to their extreme and comes up with twelve of the most memorable tracks of the year.

MP3 Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse

Bloc Party – A Weekend in the City
I really didn’t expect much out of this album. Bloc Party seemed like a surefire entry in the “sophomore slump” category. Boy, was I wrong. The album is just as ambitious and grandiose as their debut, and proves how incredibly talented this band is.

MP3 Waiting for the 7.18

Dear and the Headlights – Small Steps, Heavy Hooves
I knew the moment I heard the opening piano to “It’s Gettin’ Easy” that Dear and the Headlights were something special, but it wasn’t till I got their whole debut did I realize how seriously awesome this band is. Takes the best of the parts of indie folk and late-90’s emo scene and creates an album where each track is as stunningly fresh as the one before it.

MP3 It’s Gettin’ Easy

Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
It’s not as incredibly powerful and consistent of an album as Funeral, but Neon Bible is still far from being a disappointment. Songs like “Keep The Car Running”, “Antichrist Television Blues” and the updated “No Cars Go” prove that Arcade Fire are still completely in a league of their own.

MP3 Keep The Car Running

Andrew Bird – Armchair Acrophya
Andrew Bird is ridiculously talented, I don’t think it’s possible for him to make a bad album. In Armchair Acrophya, Andrew Bird really embraces guitar rock while still incorporating his trademark violin and whistle on some of the best songs of his career.

MP3 Heretics

LCD Soundsystem – Sound of Silver
What an incredible step-up from LCD Soundsystem’s first album this is. Going from an album with a couple great singles and a bunch of filler to one that has one great song after the other, filled with musical variety and lyrical sincerity. If I had to choose a favorite song of the year right now I think it would be “All My Friends”.

MP3 All My Friends

Klaxons – Myths of the Near Future
I know these songs have been floating around for a while, but this has been my go-to album ever since I first heard it early this year. The album is hyped as a nu-rave dance record but what’s really amazing how hard Myths of the Near Future rocks. This is a party album if there was one.

MP3 Atlantis to Interzone

Cloud Cult – The Meaning of 8
I’ve never heard an album that is so enjoyable to listen to and at the same time is so emotionally draining. The lament for the singer’s lost son is really heartbreaking, but it’s done in a way that is so musically and lyrically beautiful that you can’t help but listen to it again and again. I can’t imagine this not being a top 5 album when the end of the year comes.

MP3 Take Your Medicine

Windmill – Puddle City Racing Lights
Windmill is probably the most exciting new band I’ve heard this year, and it would seem that I can’t stop talking about how great this album is. Puddle City Racing Lights impresses me even more on a daily basis. Unbelieveably epic stuff.

MP3 Plastic Pre-Flight Seats

Patrick Wolf – The Magic Position
This album was my first experience with the sheer brilliance that is Patrick Wolf, and the mixture between dark and enchanting and uplifting and triumphant is completely captivating. The songs creep into your ears and don’t escape.

MP3 The Magic Position

Wilco – Sky Blue Sky
I’ve only been a full-fledged Wilco fan for a couple of years, and I’m really glad that I jumped on board because this to me is up there with the band’s best. Nel Cline’s guitar freak-outs alone would be enough to secure a place on this list, but Tweedy’s songwriting and vocal delivery are also in top form on tracks like “On and On and On” and “Impossible Germany”.

MP3 Impossible Germany

The National – Boxer
This one was a blog favorite from the get-go, and it shows that 2005’s Alligator was no fluke. The musical atmosphere that The National portrays is what separates them from the pack, the album is overflowing with the fantastic drumming and dark and meaningful vocals that create a dense musical landscape.

MP3 Fake Empire

Favorite EP of the 2007 (so far):
Beirut – Lon Gisland
These five songs represent the half in my 12 and a half number, and the main reason I think it should be recognized is it proves that Beirut weren’t a one-album wonder. The new version of Scenic World is a huge improvement, and Elephant Gun is easily one of the best singles of the year. This band is going to be around for a long time and I couldn’t be more excited about it.

MP3 Elephant Gun

Just Missed:
The Rosebuds – Night of the Furies
Page France – And The Family Telephone
Battles – Mirrored

Honorable Mentions:
The Broken West – I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On
Loney Dear – Loney, Noir
The Snake The Cross The Crown – Cotton Teeth
The White Stripes – Icky Thump
Pela – Anytown Graffiti
The Maccabees – Colour It In
Ola Podrida – s/t
Dappled Cities Fly – Granddance
The Twilight Sad – Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters

Dear and the Headlights

I first heard of Arizona-bred band, Dear and the Headlights, when Come Pick Me Up started talking them up early last year based on a few demos circulating the web. Since then the band has grown tremendously and it’s first album, Small Steps, Heavy Hooves, was released this February to an array of eager fans. From just listening to the album a couple times I can tell you it’s extremely impressive, in the drop-whatever-you’re-doing-and-listen type of way.

The band performs an incredible mixture of folk-based indie pop, alt-country, and the passionate vocals/lyrics of the 90’s emo scene. The song of theirs that has deservedly been getting the most attention is “It’s Gettin’ Easy”, an exhilarating and catchy piano-led song that uses both a brass and string section to great effect. The band is successful at doing something that doesn’t seem like a clone of any other band out there, instead it draws on it’s influences (which range from ryan adams to pedro the lion to belle & sebastian) and creates something completely fresh that you want to listen to over and over.

MP3 It’s Gettin’ Easy
MP3 I’m Bored, You’re Amorous

Myspace
Buy their album on iTunes

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Jesus picks his favorite music blogs in this post on his holy blog, I’m of course honored to be mentioned, but also wondering if JC didn’t catch the dripping sarcasm of my Fall Out Boy post.  Either way, I thought it his blog evaluations were pretty dead-on, pondering if Largehearted Boy was ran by Satan was pretty funny.