# Top Ten Albums of 2008 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 1, 2008, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209 "2008-12-01T17:46:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2008, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/101 "2008-12-08T03:39:18Z")
P.W. is rocking the hell out of it right now, and he’s playing all of the instruments. What a mish-mash of stuff. Get it! ---
**Author:** ![TastesLikeBurning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@TastesLikeBurning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TastesLikeBurning)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/102 "2008-12-14T02:31:35Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Didn’t know she had a new one! The only one I have by her, _Love in the Time of Science_, sounds to me like what Bjork would sound like if she was only interested in selling albums by repeating her voice style on _Birthday_. (One of the few instances where I _wish_ someone would sell out.) > > If her latest album is like that as well, I’ll get it, even if it is nothing special 🙂 She did in fact have another album that she put out between these two called **Fisherman’s Woman** which is really an album to savour. Not quite as upbeat as Love in the Time of Science, but achingly beautiful. A song you may have heard from it is [Sunny Road](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyuL1z2tejs) which even though I have loved this song for a long time, took on a new meaning for me recently when I found out she wrote this album as a remembrance of sorts for her boyfriend who died suddenly. ---
**Author:** ![BabaBooey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dfb087/32.png) [@BabaBooey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BabaBooey)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/103 "2008-12-14T06:50:06Z")
Seems like 90%+ of the bands listed are indie, which doesn’t really interest me aside from Kings of Leon and The Killers (I think they are considered indie), but Steeldrivers’ self titled album is one of the best bluegrass albums I’ve heard. The only other 2008 albums I’ve heard are the aforementioned Drive By Truckers: Creations Dark (which was really good, but not on par with their other albums) and Jackson Browne’s new album, which has some good tracks, some bad ones, but is way too political for my liking. It wouldn’t be memorable even if it weren’t political. ---
**Author:** ![ZebraShaSha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/eada6e/32.png) [@ZebraShaSha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZebraShaSha)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/104 "2008-12-14T09:00:51Z")
> [@BabaBooey](#): > > Seems like 90%+ of the bands listed are indie, which doesn’t really interest me aside from Kings of Leon and The Killers (I think they are considered indie), but Steeldrivers’ self titled album is one of the best bluegrass albums I’ve heard. The only other 2008 albums I’ve heard are the aforementioned Drive By Truckers: Creations Dark (which was really good, but not on par with their other albums) and Jackson Browne’s new album, which has some good tracks, some bad ones, but is way too political for my liking. It wouldn’t be memorable even if it weren’t political. Kings of Leon lost their indie card; The Killers never had it. Speaking of Brown, there’s a whole slew of really great remix albums that were released last yearish, but are still worth mentioning (because I found out about them this year): J Rocc’s [Say It Loud, Say it Proud](http://www.soundsoftheuniverse.com/releases/?id=12282) along with [Cooking Ingredients](http://www.soundsoftheuniverse.com/releases/?id=12285), and B+'s [album](http://www.soundsoftheuniverse.com/releases/?id=12289) is superb as well. There’s another by Madlib but I can’t find it right now. Ah well. ---
**Author:** ![Caprese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9a28c/32.png) [@Caprese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caprese)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/105 "2008-12-14T12:03:28Z")
> [@Hodge](#): > > TV on the Radio - “Dear Science” (contender for my favourite. These guys are awesome) > > The Raconteurs - “Consolers of the Lonely” (kinda disappointed nobody else has mentioned them yet) > > Most over-rated: Vampire Weekend. Seriously, what the hell is the appeal? The massive acclaim really baffles me, here. I’m not all that familiar with Vampire Weekend but enjoy what I’ve heard. My hipster credentials expired a long time ago; being irrelevant is both humbling and liberating. I’m _still_ listening to Consolers, and I bought the album just a couple weeks after its release. I like TV on the Radio–I bought a few tracks from Dear Science and have been enjoying them. Other music I’ve enjoyed this year: Fleet Foxes eponymous album, I love the harmonies and old-timey feel Ratatat’s Shiller and Mirando. I’ve been enthralled with [Beirut’s](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beirut_(band)) old world indie stuff, love the horns and Condon’s vocals, but perhaps their Flying Club Cup album cannot be considered 2008, it having been released in October of 2007. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/106 "2008-12-14T12:35:36Z")
Best: Strength in Numbers by The Music Biggest disappointment: Forth by The Verve. Love is Noise was a good single. The rest of the album was pussified crap about sipping lattes. Ashcroft’s been living in London for too long. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/107 "2008-12-14T13:42:27Z")
I think this may be the worst year since god knows when, in terms of musical acquisitions. All I can remember buying (and I don’t even know if they are all 2008 releases) are: _Dig!!!Lazarus Dig!!!_ by **Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds** _Fleet Foxes_ by **Fleet Foxes** _Break Up The Concrete_ by **The Pretenders** _Brighter Than Creation’s Dark_ by **Drive By Truckers** _Harps and Angels_ by **Randy Newman** _Real Animal_ by **Alejandro Escovedo** _The Airborne Toxic Event_ by **The Airborne Toxic Event** _The Felice Brothers_ by **The Felice Brothers** _The Flying Club Cup_ by **Beirut** _Flying Colours_ by **Bliss n Eso** _Gurrumul_ by **Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu** ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/108 "2008-12-14T16:40:17Z")
Of the 30 or so albums I got this year. only three were released in 2008: Ray Davies’ _“Working Man’s Cafe”_, Dave Gilmour’s _“Live in Gdansk”_, and Tom Petty with his old band, _“Mudcrutch”_. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2008, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/109 "2008-12-14T19:15:15Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > I think this may be the worst year since god knows when, in terms of musical acquisitions. All I can remember buying (and I don’t even know if they are all 2008 releases) are: > > _Dig!!!Lazarus Dig!!!_ by **Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds** > _Fleet Foxes_ by **Fleet Foxes** > _Break Up The Concrete_ by **The Pretenders** > _Brighter Than Creation’s Dark_ by **Drive By Truckers** > _Harps and Angels_ by **Randy Newman** > _Real Animal_ by **Alejandro Escovedo** > _The Airborne Toxic Event_ by **The Airborne Toxic Event** > _The Felice Brothers_ by **The Felice Brothers** > _The Flying Club Cup_ by **Beirut** > _Flying Colours_ by **Bliss n Eso** > _Gurrumul_ by **Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu** And that’s a bad year for you? I doubt I’ve bought that many albums in a year this decade. Though in 1997 I would buy about that many albums per _week_. ---
**Author:** ![DfrntBreign](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@DfrntBreign](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DfrntBreign)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/110 "2008-12-15T00:23:46Z")
I had most of a very good post with links and summaries and observations (oh my) only to have my browser crash (fucking MySpace) eating it all. So you get this. What I bought in 2008 (that was also released in 2008) **The Reasoning** - _Dark Angel_ **Joe Satriani** - _Professor Satchafunkilus and the Mysterion of Rock_ **Steve Winwood** - _Nine Lives_ **The Tangent** - _Not As Good As The Book_ **The Flower Kings** - _The Sum of No Evil_ (Sp. Ed.) **Widespread Panic** - _Free Somehow_ **moe.** - _Sticks and Stones_ also **Mitch Hedberg** - _Do You Believe In Gosh?_ but that’s not music. The Reasoning is probably the only thing on the list that is even remotely “new”, but then I am an old man. The Satriani is not the first I’ve ever bought, but it’s the first in a number of years. I hated the post-Traffic Winwood stuff, but the last couple of years has renewed my faith in him. I love this and _About Time_ from 2006. The Widespread Panic and moe. I bought mostly from inertia. While I don’t think either suck, I am not that crazy about them. I would see either band live, but studio albums are not their forté (although to be fair, they both have studio albums I like. See _No Doy_ for moe. and _Space Wrangler_ or \*Ain’t Life Grand \*for WP.) The Tangent and The Flower Kings are modern progressive rock bands from England and Sweden, respectively. If you liked old school Yes, ELP, King Crimson, Genesis, or bands like Spock’s Beard, Dream Theater, Tool. etc. you should at least check them out. Don’t expect any three minute, hummable pop songs, though. I also downloaded an EP from **Rose Falcon** for a friend. I thought it was quite nice. As you can probably see, I’m not really plugged in to any “new music scene”. But I do check out what others have posted and am always surprised to find music I really like. So Thanks, everyone for helping me find new stuff to listen to. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Lance_Murdoch)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2008, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/111 "2008-12-29T16:32:58Z")
When I first started this I thought it would be hard to find 10 worthy albums and then I realized it would be hard to narrow it down to 10. Nick Cave, Bon Iver, Spiritualized, Beck, MGMT and others that I liked didn’t make the cut **1. Distortion - The Magnetic Fields** It’s like other Stephin Merritt records only it’s not. There are a lot of great songs on this one from “California Girls” which is the antithesis of the regrettable Beach Boys standard to “Drive On Driver” which wallows in the power tool like distortion that envelopes the whole album. I have no doubt Merritt’s next album will sound a lot different than this, but I can’t wait to hear it. **2. Lust Lust Lust - The Ravenottes** I just love the noisy pop these two make. **3. Acid Tongue - Jenny Lewis** Better than Rilo Kiley. **4. The Seldom Seen Kid - Elbow** **5. Third - Portishead** **6. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend** **7. Dear Science - TV On The Radio** **8. Offend Maggie - Deerhoof** **9. Exit - Shugo Tokumaru** **10. We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed - Los Campesinos!** ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/112 "2008-12-29T17:02:30Z")
I thought this was a pretty dismal year for music, actually. I thought the Beck album was just okay, The Hold Steady was pretty good but not fantastic, and there wasn’t much else I really liked, with one exception: **The Black Keys - Attack and Release** was, for my money, the best album of the year. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Lance_Murdoch)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2008, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/113 "2008-12-29T18:13:39Z")
Oh, by the way, my choice for the most overrated album of the year goes to Donkey by CSS. ---
**Author:** ![HoboStew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f17d59/32.png) [@HoboStew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoboStew)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/114 "2009-01-10T03:55:42Z")
I took some of the things I posted in this thread and decided to turn them in to an article. Lo and behold - it actually got published by the International Mixtape Project! [Check it Out.](http://www.internationalmixtapeproject.com/showArticle.php?articleID=6797) ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2009, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209/115 "2009-01-10T06:29:32Z")
Ok, new nomination: Opeth’s _Watershed_. Opeth is a different band, they have the death metal moments wrapped up in a nice organic blanket of 70’s prog rock and Watershed is a nice addition to the discography. Challenging at the first listen (as is the entire catalog) this record really grows on you after a few listens with some really strong stand out tracks like Burden and The Lotus Eaters. I’ll admit that metal prog is a newer genre for me, but this stands out really well and unlike some of the previous albums bears repeated listens. It’s everything you want from Dream Theatre minus the hair metal pro tools moments. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-ten-albums-of-2008/475209.md?page=5)