Year-End Critics' Polls '08

The Power of Norway

This scent reflects the power of Norway and captures the cool freshness of the crisp Norwegian mountains and the warm scent of exotic herbs and spices. 3.4 oz.

there are some wtf choices that i kind of understand (lol all rappers love coldplay) but i can't think up one reason why vibe magazine would feel the need to include far and away the worst bloc part song of all time - they don't even have name cache or anything anymore

― merriweather passantino pavilion (J0rdan S.), Sunday, December 14, 2008 5:44 AM (5 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Two words:

Living Colour.

thank u sir

gotta love waking up to a geir truth bomb

Geir Bombgro

Is your lady's hair thinning? Buy Her Gwangro

we are not scare mongro-ing
this is really happening

Ladies love the cool scent of Geir.

Anyway... Not much to comment otherwise. Marcello is Marcello. The Lex is The Lex. Nothing new....

― Geir Hongro, Friday, December 12, 2008 3:21 PM Bookmark

I think this may be the first time I've ever seen Geir acknowledge anyone else on this board exists.

Ladies Love Cool Geir

Nice to see the Koen Holtkamp make WIRE's electronica list. Criminally overlooked, I tell you!

Nice to see Esperanza Spaulding on the Vibe list. My favorite thing I've discovered today.

discovered? DISCOVERED? oh rev

that's why you gotta read your Cave17 yo

I'd actually forgotten about Cave 17! Thanks for reminding me, I should check that.

78. MGMT ft. Jim Jones, "Electric Feel (Remix)" (mixtapes)

^^hang on wtf is this

― lex pretend, Sunday, December 14, 2008 5:32 AM (8 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Another track will be the remix to MGMT's "Electric Feel". Jim Jones said this to GQ.com about it

“They did a show (at United Palace Theater) up in Washington Heights, the initial conversation was just that it was an honor to meet them, I think they're kinna cool. And from there it lead into me saying, It'd be crazy if I remixed "Electric Feel". They were like, Yeah, that would be crazy. So I said, Let me get the beats and shit.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pray_IV_Reign

what a great fuckin story

"Great Story, Katie Holmes Jim Jones!"

Matos we're gonna do a top 20 and some other stuff in the next week, stay tuned

Everyone else what's up, I'm back kinda

Clash Magazine

40. The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age Of Understatement
39. Cadenie Weapon - Afterparty Babies
38. Adele - 19
37. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!
36. Flying Lotus - Los Angeles
35. Killers - Day & Age
34. No Age - Nouns
33. Eiene Kliene Nacht Musik - s/t
32. Primal Scream - Beautiful Future
31. British Sea Power - Do You Like Rock Music?
30. Friendly Fires - s/t
29. Why? - Alopecia
28. Hercules & Love Affair - s/t
27. My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges
26. Wild Beasts - Limbo Panto
25. Fleet Foxes - s/t
24. Hot Chip - Made In The Dark
23. Emiliana Torrini - Me & Armini
22. Dr. Dog - Fate
21. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
20. Neon Neon - Stainless Style
19. Mystery Jets - Twenty One
18. Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul
17. Deerhunter - Microcastle
16. Aliens - Luna
15. Portishead - Third
14. Coldplay - Viva La Vida...
13. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
12. White Denim - Workout Holiday
11. Laura Marling - Alas, I Cannot Swim
10. The Bug - London Zoo
9. Gang Gang Dance - 'Saint Dymphna'
8. Santogold - s/t
7. TV On The Radio - Dear Science
6. Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid
5. Benga - Diary Of An Afro Warrior
4. Foals - Antidotes
3. Late Of The Pier - Fantasy Black Channel
2. Vampire Weekend - s/t
1. Kings Of Leon - Only By The Night

Culturedeluxe - The Top 50 Albums of 2008
http://www.culturedeluxe.com/news_item.asp?id=5291

Pop Matters - Best Metal Albums of 2008
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/column/66667-the-best-metal-albums-of-2008/

That's a pretty good metal list.

Rolling Stone's Top 100 Singles

1. Beyonce, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)"
2. Santogold, "L.E.S. Artistes"

OTM

More like "L.O.L. Artistes"

How can you dislike that song?! I mean, the chorus!

What chorus? You seem to imply that there's some sort of hook there. I like it, just not that much.

i never thought a song could make me miss the real Gwen Stefani

Not sure how it sounds like Gweni? More like YYYs. Would probably be better off sounding like the former.

See, there's this part where the music explodes into this massive, beautiful wave of like guitars, keyboards and ahhhs. And then Santogold joins in: "I can say I hope it will be worth what I give up..."

That's called a "chorus" and, in this case, it's really gorgeous.

opinions4me

Anyway, Tape Store, I was more trying to make a cheap joke than express any coherent opinion. Lighten up, folk.

really hard to not see inclusion of Primal Scream, Oasis, Adele, Coldplay and even the KoL and Killers albums on that Clash list as just record label appeasement

The Vibe list is imperfect in places but it's the best list I've seen on this thread so far.

Including the Primal Scream record on any EOY list seems charitable in the extreme.

Resident Advisor needs to hurry the fuck up and get its lists out. I'm predicting an album win for Shedding The Past and deservedly so, but the singles list always throws up amazing stuff I've never knowingly heard.

I'm curious about that Shed record but there doesn't seem to be a thread about it.

Here are the top albums of 2008 chosen by Helsingin Sanomat, our biggest newspaper, it's a mix of Finnish and foreign albums:

http://www.hs.fi/kulttuuri/artikkeli/HS+listasi+kuluneen+vuoden+kiitellyimm%C3%A4t+levyt/1135241971157

(The blurbs are only available in Finnish.)

Here's the Helsingin Sanomat list without the blurbs:

Sam Amidon: All Is Well
Erykah Badu: New Amerykah, Part One
Buika: Niña de fuego
Children of Bodom: Blooddrunk
Coldplay: Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends
Cut Copy: In Ghost Colours
Dans les arbres: Dans les arbres
Toumani Diabaté: The Mandé Variations
Dido: Safe Trip Home
Duffy: Rockferry
Eleanoora Rosenholm: Älä kysy kuolleilta, he sanoivat
Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes
Glasvegas: Glasvegas
Hercules and Love Affair: Hercules and Love Affair
Herra Ylppö & Ihmiset: Sata vuotta
Frida Hyvönen: Silence Is Wild
Johanna Iivanainen & 1N: Outoja maita
Iiwanajulma: Tuhottu tila
Mikko Innanen: F60.8. Ilma Records
Verneri Pohjola & Joonas Riippa: Michelin Star
Ismo Alanko Teholla: Blanco Spirituals
Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever Ago
Kiki Pau: Let's Rock
Kuusumun Profeetta: Lyhtykuja
M83: Saturdays = Youth
Mariza: Terra
MGMT: Oracular Spectacular
Melingo: Maldito Tango
Opeth: Watershed
Portishead: Third
The Raconteurs: Consolers of the Lonely
R.E.M.: Accelerate
Ruudolf: Born in the U.S.A.
Kauko Röyhkä & Riku Mattila: s/t
Sigur Rós: Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
The Soundtrack of Our Lives: Communion
Bobo Stenson: Cantando
Stepa: MC
Sväng: Jarruta
Rokia Traoré: Tchamantché
Vampire Weekend: Vampire Weekend
Maija Vilkkumaa: Superpallo
Hank Williams III: Damn Right, Rebel Proud

Resident Advisor's Top 20 Compilations: http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature-read.aspx?id=997

20. Carl Craig – Sessions [Studio !K7]
19. Adam Beyer - Fuse Presents... [Music Man Records]
18. VA - Circoloco @ DC10 - 10 Years Anniversary [Moon Harbour Recordings]
17. Matthew Dear - Body Language Vol. 7 [Get Physical Music]
16. Dave Clarke - Back in the Box [NRK Music]
15. Basic Channel - BCD-2 [Basic Channel]
14. Stefan Goldmann - The Transitory State [Macro]
13. Sascha Funke - Watergate 02 [Watergate]
12. Wighnomy Brothers - Metawuffmischfelge [Freude Am Tanzen]
11. VA - Soundboy's Gravestone Gets Desecrated by Vandals [Skull Disco]
10. Andy Stott - Unknown Exception: Selected Tracks Vol. 1 (2004 - 2008) [Modern Love]
09. Âme - Fabric 42 [Fabric]
08. Robert Hood - Fabric 39 [Fabric]
07. Gas - Nah und Fern [Kompakt]
06. Luciano - Fabric 41 [Fabric]
05. DJ /rupture - Uproot [The Agriculture]
04. Metro Area - Fabric 43 [Fabric]
03. Appleblim - Dubstep Allstars: Vol. 06 [Tempa]
02. Efdemin - Carry On, Pretend We're Not in the Room [Curle Recordings]
01. Marcel Dettmann - Berghain 02 [Ostgut Ton]

kinda good, kinda sketchy list from MTV News' mixtape monday:

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1601236/20081212/lil_wayne.jhtml

28 In '08: Commercially Released Hip-Hop Singles

1. Lil Wayne - "A Milli"
2. Kanye West - "Flashing Lights"
3. Shawty Lo - "Dunn Dunn"
4. M.I.A. - "Paper Planes"
5. Fat Joe (featuring J. Holiday) - "I Won't Tell"
6. T.I. (featuring Rihanna) - "Live Your Life"
7. Lil Wayne - "Lollipop"
8. Snoop Dogg - "Sexual Eruption"
9. Young Jeezy (featuring Nas) - "My President"
10. Rick Ross (featuring T-Pain) - "The Boss"
11. Plies (featuring Ne-Yo) - "Bust It Baby Pt. 2"
12. The Game (featuring Keyshia Cole) - "Game's Pain"
13. Young Jeezy (featuring Kanye West) - "Put On"
14. David Banner (featuring Chris Brown and Young Joc) - "Get Like Me"
15. Maino - "Hi Hater"
16. Shawty Lo - "Foolish"
17. Rick Ross (featuring Nelly) - "Here I Am"
18. T.I. - "Whatever You Like"
19. Lil Wayne (featuring Babyface) - "Comfortable"
20. The G-Unit - "Rider Pt. 2"
21. Busta Rhymes - "Don't Touch Me"
22. Lupe Fiasco - "Hip-Hop Saved My Life"
23. Jay-Z - "I Know"
24. Kanye West - "Heartless"
25. Lil Wayne (featuring Bobby Valentino) - "Mrs. Officer"
26. Red Cafe (featuring Fabolous, Fat Joe and Jadakiss) - "Paper Touching" remix
27. Ron Browz and Jim Jones (featuring Juelz Santana) - "Pop Champagne"
28. Busta Rhymes (featuring Ron Browz) - "Arab Money"

"Dunn Dunn" over "Foolish"? "I Won't Tell" in top 5!?

Pitchfork start their countdown
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/147998-the-100-best-tracks-of-2008

oh let's not even care about that one

04. Metro Area - Fabric 43

shows you what i know, bored me rotten that one.
tried several times - but never made it to the end - even though there is a devo track as a payoff treat.

For the sake of completeness

P/Fork - yet another website that needs to enrol in At A Glance classes.

the metro area fabric mix bored me as well - actually some of the mixes on the RA list are real head-scratchers. didn't think a great deal of the efdemin one either - my own favourite techno mixes of 08 were probably fuse presents deetron, ellen allien's boogybytes vol 4 and the robert hood fabric which made the RA list. the marcel dettmann one at no 1 was...ok, i guess? i have absolutely no idea what makes it the best mix of the year though.

The Pfork singles lists are usually pretty good for discovering a new song or two, IMHO

Eiene Kliene Nacht Musik is #50 in Au Magazine, #33 in Clash Magazine, and #1 in Culturdeluxe. Listening to it now, Krautrocking goodness.

The Torygraph albums list was unexciting, but their Best Films Of 2008 list is wtf enough to deserve linking to:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3776706/Best-films-of-2008-films-review-of-the-year.html