Chris Walker Versus

Interestingly enough, when I stopped writing about music I fell back in love with it. Or maybe 2008 was such an awesome year for music to not get sucked back in would’ve been impossible. Either way, making this list was difficult due to the fact there were just so many great albums to choose from. I finished it, though, and it’s pretty damn solid, if I do say so myself.

Like I’ve done every year since I started doing this, I’ve kept the list at ten – despite the urge to increase it to twelve or fifteen or even twenty. I’ve got to show restraint somewhere in my life, right? I left out some obvious picks and decided to, once again, just stay true to what I listened to the most. As always, feel free to agree with or refute my picks and leave your own top ten in the comments should you deem it necessary.

10. KANYE WEST: 808S & HEARTBREAK

When I heard Snoop Dogg’s “Sexual Eruption” I thought it was incredible. Here’s a guy who’s been in the “rap game” forever trying something different, really taking a chance. Then I heard Ego Trippin’, the album “Sexual Eruption” is on – it was essentially the same album Snoop’s been putting out for the last decade. I was disappointed.

Leave it to Kanye West – currently the only interesting artist in hip hop – to do what Snoop couldn’t: go out on an artistic limb and stay there. When Kanye performed “Love Lockdown” on the VMAs it seemed like a one-shot, who knew he’d follow suit for an entire album? Reviews may be mixed but I personally believe 808s & Heartbreak is one of the most prolific and fresh sounding releases of the year. If you disagree you obviously haven’t listened to “Paranoid”, “Heartless”, “Streetlights”, or “Coldest Winter”.

[MP3] Kanye West: Love Lockdown (right-click to download)

Purchase Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak.

09. MY BRIGHTEST DIAMOND: A THOUSAND SHARK’S TEETH

In a world of Lady Gaga’s and Lily Allen’s, Shara Worden seems like the last of a breed. Her ethereal, Buckley-esque voice; her vast, sweeping orchestration; her music is almost that of a not-crazy Bjork, and it’s more refined than eccentric. Worden doesn’t seem to fit in anywhere. Perhaps she’s too introspective to be a Sarah Brightman; too deep and classical to have a mainstream hit. Whatever the case, her second album, A Thousand Shark’s Teeth, went sorely overlooked this year and it’s a shame because it was spectacular. A must-own.

[MP3] My Brightest Diamond: Inside A Boy (right-click to download)

Purchase My Brightest Diamond’s A Thousand Shark’s Teeth.

08. BEACH HOUSE: DEVOTION

Ghostly and gorgeous. Haunting and heavenly. That is the signature sound of Beach House, as they introduced on their self-titled debut and delicately expanded upon with their follow-up, Devotion. Victoria Legrand singing, “Oh, but your wish is my command,” on album opener, “Wedding Bell”, was stuck in my head for the entire year. So good.

[MP3] Beach House: Gila (right-click to download)

Purchase Beach House’s Devotion.

07. SEBASTIEN GRAINGER: SEBASTIEN GRAINGER AND THE MOUNTAINS

Maybe I was just happy to hear Sebastien Grainger on something other than a electronic track, and that’s why I love this album so much. Or maybe it’s just a great album. Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains sounds nothing like Grainger’s old band, Death From Above 1979, but that’s not a bad thing. There’s still aggression and immediacy in Grainger’s voice and the more straight-foward rock approach works well for the drummer virtuoso. I’ve listened to this album pretty religiously since it came out, you should probably be listening to it as well.

[MP3] Sebastien Grainger: (Are There) Ways To Come Home? (right-click to download)

Purchase Sebastien Grainger’s Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains.

06. DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES: IN EAR PARK

Don’t call it a side project. Daniel Rossum, well-known for his work with Grizzly Bear, and his friend Fred Nicolaus created In Ear Park, an album so good I was recommending it to people I never even recommend albums to. In Ear Park is a whimsical journey, a delightful mix of pop sensibility and masterful melody, lush and expansive yet subtle in all the right ways. And although I shared it with so many, it’s probably best listened to while alone.

[MP3] Department of Eagles: In Ear Park (right-click to download)

Purchase Department of Eagles’ In Ear Park.

05. FLEET FOXES: FLEET FOXES

I avoided this album for months under the impression I would hate it. I was wrong, Fleet Foxes is incredible. It really should be listened to in it’s entirety; that being said, you should own it for “White Winter Hymnal” alone.

[MP3] Fleet Foxes: Ragged Wood (right-click to download)

Purchase Fleet Foxes’ Fleet Foxes.

04. THE BLACK KEYS: ATTACK & RELEASE

Drenched in whiskey and heartbreak, it oozed sexuality and begged to be played loudly. Even at the tender moments. Basically what I’m trying to say is Attack & Release by The Black Keys kicks serious ass.

[MP3] The Black Keys: Strange Times (right-click to download)

Purchase The Black Keys’ Attack & Release.

03. BENOIT PIOULARD: TEMPER

Thomas Meluch or Benoit Pioulard, however you want to refer to him, evokes all that is beautiful and pure about music and art and the eternal combination of such. From the twenty-five handmade copies of Temper, to the polariods, to the music itself, everything about Temper was grand and breathtaking.

[MP3] Benoit Pioulard: Idyll (right-click to download)

Purchase Benoit Pioulard’s Temper.

02. VAMPIRE WEEKEND: VAMPIRE WEEKEND

Vampire Weekend, by Vampire Weekend, feels just like The Strokes’ Is This It does; it’s one of those timeless, fun sounding albums that I will listen to for years and years to come and never tire of. Sure, Vampire Weekend have faced quite a backlash since introducing their afro-punk sound late last year, but I’m not very concerned with what is and isn’t cool to like. I just like what sounds good and Vampire Weekend is just that. Aside from the annoying “One (Blake’s Got A New Face)” Vampire Weekend was undoubtedly the most solid release of the year.

[MP3] Vampire Weekend: Mansard Roof (right-click to download)

Purchase Vampire Weekend’s Vampire Weekend.

01. THE KILLS: MIDNIGHT BOOM

For me, The Kills’ Midnight Boom was this year’s The Reminder. Neither sound anything alike however; they’re both similar in the sense the recording process was just as important as the recordings themselves. In a time when singles are more important than the whole, Midnight Boom was the opposite. It was a real album, an enveloping experience. While listening, I would thumb through the album booklet, and read production notes and lyrics as if I were 12-years old and the new Stone Temple Pilots album had just come out.

Working with Spank Rock’s Armani XXXchange also took The Kills’ gritty, cigarette-tinged and wine-stained rock-American to an entirely new level. And as a result of good nights and bad mornings, everything on Midnight Boom sounded perfect. Not to mention, I don’t think there was a better song this year than “Last Day of Magic”.

[MP3] The Kills: U.R.A. Fever (right-click to download)

Purchase The Kills’ Midnight Boom.

Note: All MP3s are for sampling purposes and will be taken down if requested. These are songs from the best albums of the year though, so click the links and buy the albums – if you don’t already own them. They’re obviously worth it.