My Top 10 Albums of the Year

Music writing is a very personal endeavor, and the best you can do is to find someone whose tastes you share so you can then trust their opinion. As a consequence, music reviews - especially "best of" or "top albums" posts tend to tell you more about the writer than the music. With that being said, here's my top 10 albums of the year. Feel free to psychoanalyze what that says about me as you read through the list below.

I have ordered the list alphabetically by first name, and not in any sort of order to indicate an album hierarchy.

A Tribe Called Quest - We Got It From Here... Thank You 4 Your Service:

RIP Phife. This is hands down the second best album from this band... behind their Greatest Hits Album. They went out with their best work, and this album is so much more important than we thought it would be back when it was announced. "We The People..." is an anthem and a battlecry, and the rest of the album is a who's who of hip-hop - Kanye, Busta Rhymes, Kendrick Lamar, André 3000, Anderson .Paak, Talib Kweli, Consequence - and a who's who of music - Elton John, Jack White, Marsha Ambrosius - helping to push this album from "message" to "missive."

Don't forget to listen to "Dis Generation," and just enjoy Jarobi getting in on the action. Let it wash all over you. And then when you're good and angry, it's time to get to work.

Anderson .Paak - Malibu:

This album was released in January, and I'm really sad that I didn't hear about him until he killed it at the Soul Train awards. This is my punishment, because that's 11 months that I could have been listening to it that I didn't. The whole album is great, but "The Dreamer" has been on my "shit hot tracks I can't get off my mind" list for the last week. Listen, and you'll see why.



I know Anderson .Paak has been around the seams of hip-hop for a while, but I have to and will do better in the future on following and discovering new hip-hop.

Beyoncé - Lemonade:

There have been a million thinkpieces written on this album, but more of them focus on Beyoncé than the music, and damn the music is good. Anyone who doesn't think that Beyoncé could own ANY form of music needs to sit down and listen to this album. Again, and again, and again. I'd say to watch her CMA performance, but it looks like the racist country folks did a real good job of scrubbing it. "Daddy Lessons" was one hell of a country song, and the album included amazing collaborations with James Blake, Jack White, The Weeknd, and Kendrick Lamar. And just remember, she did all this without any input from Mr. Knowles. If she wanted, she could dominate the Pop, Rock, R&B, Electronic, and Country charts... JUST WITH THIS ALBUM, so here's "Formation," because why not.

Listen to the damn album. Just give into the fact that she's the Queen Bey, and we're all just lucky to be her peasants.

Bon Iver - 22, A Million:

My review has been unapologetically black so far, but you know, Justin Vernon was on Kanye's "Monster" track, so let's just go with that? This is an ambitious album, well worth the 5 year wait. From "For Emma, Forever Ago," to this album, Bon Iver has gone full experimental folk, and brought a richness and fullness to the sound that his previous songs have only hinted at. "22 (OVER S∞∞N)," pronounced 22 Over Soon, is an excellent first track, but it really is great all the way from opening track "22" to closer "Million."

This is an album to take in one song at a time, then one side at a time, then the whole album. I've listened to this album at least a dozen times, and I find something new in it every time.

Childish Gambino - Awaken, My Love!:

I hesitate to overuse the term "shit hot" in this review, but this entire album is "shit hot." This is Donald Glover's (Uncle Donald to some people at this blog) Mad Max: Fury Road, versus his Babe (Camp) and Happy Feet (Because the Internet). It's tough to pick just one track to feature, because this is an album: just sit back and listen. The lyrical difference between "Sweatpants" (a treasure from Because the Internet) and "Redbone" (an important piece of the treasure that is Awaken, My Love!) is an evolution that most artists never complete, let alone in 3 years.

Also, watch Atlanta, because that show is great. I'm excited for every single project that he's working on, and will keep watching and listening until he gives me a reason not to.

Drive-By Truckers - American Band:

This is one of the most political albums I have ever heard, and I love it. I thought Drive-By Truckers couldn't get better after Jason Isbell left, but it turns out him leaving was the best thing for both of them. Hell, he's like their Peter Gabriel and Genesis. I don't know how to put it other than that this is one of the biggest acts of musical courage since the Dixie Chicks, and the songs are damn good, too!

These guys are only going to get better, and I'm ready to keep listening to them and Jason Isbell go their separate, awesome musical paths. (As an aside, if you haven't listened to Jason Isbell's Southeastern and Something More Than Free, go listen. I'll wait.)

Fitz and the Tantrums - Fitz and the Tantrums:

I thought long and hard about including this one over some of the honorable mentions, but Fitz and the Tantrums were smart enough to wait until they had an album that deserved to be self-titled, and this is it. In addition to the endlessly catchy "Handclap," there are more gems on the record, and the meet-cute video for "Roll Up" enhances what is already a great song.

This is the very definition of a solid album. Go listen. It's pretty great for a living room dance party, too.

Leonard Cohen - You Want it Darker:

Musicians who know they're about to die - take note. This is how you write a love letter saying goodbye to your fans. I talked about this album earlier, and I'm not sure what else you can add: "You Want It Darker" is a perfect title track.

I'm just going to go with what I wrote before: "the title track is one of the weightiest songs you'll ever put into your ear-holes. He was ready to go, even if we weren't ready to lose him. It's our fault (or at least mine) for waiting until he was gone to listen to it."

Lin-Manuel Miranda and Friends - Hamilton Mixtape:

Because the original Hamilton cast recording was just so good, I was prepared to judge this harshly for being the pretty good Load on the heels of Metallica's Black Album, but then this blew me away. The Roots and Busta Rhymes on "My Shot," Queen Latifah's verse on "Satisfied," and Lin-Manuel Miranda's awesomely personal "Wrote My Way Out" were all phenomenal... and I'm not crying at Kelly Clarkson's "It's Quiet Uptown," YOU'RE CRYING. Andra Day slays "Burn," Wiz Khalifa owns "Washingtons By Your Side," and John Legend... is just John Legend. This album is so good that I'm barely mentioning the Roots, Ashanti, and Ja Rule! So just have all of it with the Album release Ham4Ham:

For my money, it doesn't get better than "Immigrants (We Get The Job Done)" with K'naan, Residente, Show Tha Product, and, as you'll see below, my newest crush, Riz MC.

Swet Shop Boys - Cashmere:

Heems and Riz MC just know how to spit it, but in addition to their flow and sound, this is a deeply personal album for me. Redhino's production is good, but just feeling the lyrics on T5, as a brown man who gets "randomly selected" at the airport all the time: "Oh no, we're in trouble/TSA always wanna burst my bubble/Always get a random check when I rock the stubble." Heems understands what it's like not to be Muslim and to be profiled, while Riz's face in the music video says almost as much as his lyrics. The entire video is a tribute to being brown in a white world, and, uh, about that psychoanalyzing thing I said above...

In addition to that, if you haven't seen "The Night Of" on HBO with Riz, you're missing out. Get this album, listen to it. Learn from it.

Honorable Mentions:

• Bruce Springsteen - Chapter and Verse: He's still the Boss.
• Bruno Mars - 24K Magic: So. Much. Fun.
• David Bowie - Blackstar (RIP): Just a really, really, really good goodbye letter.
• Explosions in the Sky - The Wilderness: Perfect rock symphonies for 45 minutes.
• Frank Ocean - Blonde: This was the toughest omission for me.
• Leslie Odom, Jr. - Simply Christmas: Dat voice doe.
• Pentatonix - A Pentatonix Christmas: Doze voices doe.
• Solange - A Seat at the Table: Almost knocked her sister out of my top 10.
• Snarky Puppy - Culcha Vulcha: A really great album from a really good funky jazz band.
• Sturgill Simpson - A Sailor's Guide to Earth: If Drive-By Truckers hadn't released their career work this year, Sturgill Simpson would have taken the alt-country spot above.
• St. Paul and the Broken Bones - Sea of Noise: Does it show that I have a soft spot in my heart for Southern Rock?
• Tedeschi Trucks Band - Let Me Get By: Does it show now?
• The 1975 - I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It: It was a pain to capitalize the name correctly, but it just got edged out by Fitz and the Tantrums.
• Viola Beach - Viola Beach (RIP) - Sadly, the entire band died in a car crash earlier this year, but their posthumous, self-titled album sounds like so much unrealized promise.

Just listen to all of this music, and get excited for the new stuff coming out next year!

'Til next time... keep on listening, keep on singing, and keep live music alive.

Lost in the World

 As the weekend rolls in we're sending you Kanye's recent genius mix, Lost in the World. Building off of Bon Iver's Woods, this song is less about the auto-tune and more about blending genres and bringing beats. And I think that we can all agree that samples of Gil Scott Heron make every song better. Kanye is definitely redeeming himself here. Listen and love.

   Kanye West - "Lost In The World" by Thisis50

Best Non-Debut Albums of 2008

Yesterday we brought you our list of Best Debut Albums of 2008, so today we thought we'd follow it up with our list of Best Non-Debut Albums of 2008, in no particular order. If you think we left something out, let us know what in the comments section! Or if you just want to add any thoughts on the albums we posted. Oh, but take note - there are still some lists yet to come (so much good music! We may have gone a little crazy with the lists this year...).

Best Non-Debut Albums of 2008

Nada Surf- Lucky
This seems to be the album that grows on people, slowly taking them over. At first listen, it seemed to be a collection of listenable and radio-friendly songs, but pretty soon we found ourselves craving to listen to those tracks again and again. The lyrics are great and each track has its own lovable element to it, whether it be the uplifting pulsing rhythm of Beautiful Beat or the sung narrated truth of "Everyone's right and no one is sorry" with perfect background "oohs" in See These Bones.
Beautiful Beat [mp3] - (iTunes)

Sigur Rós - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust

Sigur Rós came out with their 5th album this year and it started off on the right orchestrated foot with the now ever-popular Gobbledigook. The band's made-up etheral language of Vonlenska once again proves to be a bewitching characteristic of the group, but they proved that they could create the same emotional experience in English for the first time ever in the track All Alright. While the album lacks the cascading genius that 2005's Takk contained (Festival is simply no Glósóli), the overall feeling of the album is that it is wiser, older and filled with more emotion and drama. More emphasis on keys and guitar progressions, Sigur Rós has learned a thing or two over the years, and this rich, sparkling album is a beautiful example of combining silver with gold.

Gobbledigook [mp3] - (iTunes)

The Dresden Dolls - No, Virginia

A more pensive, slightly less playful album than the "brechtian punk cabaret" duo from Boston has come out with in the past, "No, Virginia" continues to showcase their talent and versatility, taking subjects as dark as rape or as mundane as teen angst and taking them in musical directions that I'm not sure anyone else would ever think of or could ever get away with. The Dresden Dolls remain truly one of a kind.

Night Reconnaissance [mp3] - (iTunes)

My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges

Not traditionally our style, we've gotta give credit to the classic rock sound when it's due. This Americana-alternative rock collection is filled with good tunes that satisfies many an ear, with old-school guitar improvisations, sing-along choruses and that sweet home alabama taste. Some songs sport a different sort of flair, such as the Prince-like vocals on Highly Suspicious or the James Taylor-esque laid-back Librarian or Sec Walkin. Nevertheless, the album is classic rock at its soul, and it the large range and perfection of acheiving the sound intended really makes this album different from the rest.

Librarian [mp3] - (iTunes)

Cloud Cult - Feel Good Ghosts (Tea-Partying Through Tornados)

We couldn't resist posting one of our favorite Minneapolis bands. While some people have said this album is not as strong as their others, we have to disagree. So many of the songs from this album have remained on our playlists since the album came out in April, which is proof of the band's staying power and we certainly hope that means the rumors of a break up are false. Cloud Cult's music is always emotionally powerful, lovely, and they have developed their own style very well. It would be ashame for it to end now.

No One Said It Should Be Easy [mp3] - (iTunes)

The Dandy Warhols - Earth to the Dandy Warhols

Is there a Dandy Warhols song that we dislike? Not that we can think of... This album is The Dandy Warhols' first self-released album, which is exciting as they have always struggled with the corporate side of the entertainment industry, some would say to their detriment, and they are the types of free spirits that probably work best when they feel uninhibited by "the man." This album is a highly enjoyable mix of their usual sounds - from psychadelic to country, and just about everything in between. One of our favorite things about them is that they can take any musical genre and make it their own.

The World Come On [mp3] - (iTunes)

Ladytron - Velocifero

When we think about this album, we think "Dance, baby, dance." Crunched drums, fast-tempo, synths, catchy club hooks flying every which way, this album is perfect for those nights that you just want to let loose, especially with the dark thumping drums featured on Predict the Day. The swinging rhythm of Ghosts became the hit track of the album and constantly on the rotation list at clubs, clothes stores and radios nation-wide. The whole album is a solid collection of dance hits that are sure to fit the bill for any night out.

Ghosts [mp3] - (iTunes)

Ane Brun - Changing of the Seasons

A positively haunting album, every song will make you shiver with how gorgeous it is. Ane Brun's effortless voice floats over her fluent music in a way that makes music seem as easy as breathing for her. The album also grows on us with each listen more and more, unlike some albums which you get sick of after repeat listening. Honestly, it's hard for us to describe how talented Ane is, so just listen to her music and hear it for yourself.

The Puzzle [mp3] - (iTunes)

The Hard Lessons - The Complete B & G Sides

Ok so technically it's not one album. But throughout the year, Detroit rock band The Hard Lessons has been coming out with 3-song EPs that they call "B & G Sides" (as in Boy & Girl - Ko Ko Louise writes one, Augie writes one and they write one together I believe). They released volumes 1-4, which is definitely a full LP's worth of songs, so we are still going to count it. Ko Ko and Augie have perfect rock voices and the rockstar attitudes to accompany them (in a good way). And their songs are catchy to boot. They put on a great live show, so if you have the chance to see them, do it.

See and Be Scene [mp3] - (iTunes)

Frightened Rabbit - The Midnight Organ

Wonderous, wonderous Scottish indie music, how we love thee, espeically Frightened Rabbit. You're honest, you're life is imperfect, you've felt tough pain - and you create smart indie lo-fi rock songs about it. Its hard to choose favorite lyrics of yours, whether it be the imagery of the hole in Keep Yourself Warm or the understandable "I'm not ready to see you this happy" in Good Arms vs. Bad Arms, but we know that any song of yours is practically perfect. Stellar sophmore album from this amazing group.

Backwards Walk [mp3] - (iTunes)


Best Re-releases

These albums are albums that were self-released by the artist before 2008 but re-released by a label in 2008. Or in a few cases, EPs were released before 2008 and the companion LP released in 2008 has most/all of the songs from the EP.

Meiko - Meiko

It seems like every time we posted Meiko here at GFP, fans would crawl out of the blogosphere woodwork and shout their praise for this artist. Indeed, when Lise first posted Meiko, she couldn't decide which mp3 to post because she loved them all and ended up posting an unprescedented 4 mp3s, so its no wonder that Meiko is on our list now. Technically, Meiko released her album in 2007 and met with tons of success - she landed at #35 for top 100 iTunes albums that year. In June 2008 she signed with a label and her album was re-released in August where it jumped to #14 on the list. Meiko is everything Lise loves- a folk/pop female singer-songwriter that has immense talent. This girl has just begun to outshine many, and we can't wait for her next album.

Boys With Girlfriends [mp3] - (iTunes)

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago

This album was originally self-released in 2007 and re-released by the indie label 4AD in 2008. There's something about this album that is reminescent of the experience of listening to early Coldplay or Radiohead for the first time, and there is no other way to explain or describe it. There is something organic and natural about this music - something terribly sad and at peace all at the same time. Its a simply balanced work of art that easily creeps into the soul, and once it does, it circles around once or twice before hunkering down.
Flume [mp3] - (iTunes)

Locksley - Don't Make Me Wait

Locksley is shooting to stardom, opening for acts like The Bravery, Rooney and Ray Davies (of the Kinks). Now that they have a shiny new label behind them and a shiny new bass player (lead singer Jesse Laz-Hirsch's younger brother, Jordan), they've remastered the old tracks, added a few bonus tracks, changed the album cover and rereleased a shiny new version of their old album. Locksley is kind of like The Beatles reincarnate - screaming teenage girls and all. Or well, The Beatles before they went all psychedelic. You can't help but bounce up and down to they're obscenely catchy retro pop sound. And bonus points for the fact that they're all well-dressed, charming and handsome too.

Don't Make Me Wait [mp3] - (iTunes)

Frontier Ruckus - The Orion Songbook

Michigan folk band Frontier Ruckus self-released a six-song EP last year and it was quite a DIY affair in an 8.5 x 11" paper packet (no jewel case), with hand-written lyrics and hand-drawn album art. While that was actually rather charming and gave it a personal touch, they now have a label behind them and can afford jewel cases, which I think is a good thing. They re-released newly recorded versions of 5 of the 6 songs from the EP on an LP this year with a bunch of new songs too. Even though they now have a label, they're still the same old wonderful folk band, with their banjo, saw, harmonica and the arresting vocal harmonies that are some of the most natural I've heard of any band.

The Blood [mp3] - (iTunes)