Music

Fucking in the Streets

The Dreaded Best of 2008 Lists

Some people around here don't like year-end best-of lists, but I'm not one of them. I love year-end lists. Yes, they're arbitrary and subjective. Yes, they can theoretically introduce elements of ranking and competition to artistic endeavors not really benefited by such hierarchies. (Respect to DJ/Rupture's "Top 5 Problems with Top 10 Albums of the Year Lists"—a must-read.) But fuck it, year-end lists are fun. Here, then, are some personally subjective (my faves don't have to be yours), nondefinitive (i.e., no token metal albums I didn't actually like just because I think I ought to), necessarily incomplete (for space), arbitrarily ranked (take that, hierarchy!) lists of Things I Don't Regret in 2008 (you can find the things I do regret on page 17):

1. The following albums (in no particular order): Of Montreal - Skeletal Lamping, Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend, Max Tundra - Parallax Error Beheads You, Why? - Alopecia, the Sight Below - Glider, Hercules and Love Affair - Hercules and Love Affair, Hot Chip - Made in the Dark, Flying Lotus - Los Angeles, No Age - Nouns, diskJokke - Staying In, M83 - Saturdays=Youth, Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours, the Hold Steady - Stay Positive, Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles, Vivian Girls - Vivian Girls, Girl Talk - Feed the Animals, Low Motion Disco - Keep It Slow, Alter Ego - Why Not?

2. The following individual tracks (again, in no particular order): the Juan Maclean - "Happy House," Lil Wayne - "A Milli," Matias Aguayo - "Minimal," Kid Cudi - "Day & Night (Crookers Remix)," MGMT - "Kids (Soulwax Remix)," Hot Chip - "One Pure Thought (Supermayer Remix)," Max Tundra - "Which Song," Vampire Weekend - "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Teenagers Remix)," Hercules and Love Affair - "You Belong," Alias - "Well Water Black (featuring Why?)," Cut Copy - "Out There on the Ice," Daedelus - "Fair Weather Friends," T.I. - "Swagger Like Us," M83 - "Kim & Jessie," Why? - "Good Friday," Of Montreal - "Women's Studies Victims," Wiley - "Wearing My Rolex," Shinichi Osawa - "Star Guitar," Deadmau5 - "Sometimes Things Get, Whatever"/"Complications," Eine Kleine Nacht Musik - "La Serenissima," Pink Skull - "Gonzo's Cointreau," the Death Set - "Selective Memories."

3. The following local acts, who make me feel lucky to live in Seattle (repeat caveat re: order, apologies to the many, many folks I'll inevitably forget here): Partman Parthorse, Throw Me the Statue, the Pica Beats, Truckasauras, the Dead Science (still technically local?), Bow + Arrow, Talbot Tagora, Past Lives, Flexions, the Sight Below, Jacob London, Emerald City Soul Club, Club Pop, FCS, the Saturday Knights, the (reunited for '09) Murder City Devils.

See you in 2009! recommended

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Comments (7) RSS

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1
wtf grandy? no YACHT? you fail.
Posted by YACHT CLUB on December 23, 2008 at 4:46 PM · Report
2
why the ? on the Dead Science being local? They all live here, but just tour a lot. And the fact that they are on Constellation (based in Montreal) doesn't change those two facts.
Posted by bookworm on December 26, 2008 at 1:09 PM · Report
3
Pretty sad non-effort. Nice to see you're still defensive about Of Montreal. M83 is sickly overhyped. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa, not even close to the best track on that album - it's probably Oxford Comma.

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin is far better at what Vampire Weekend is trying. Harvey Milk, the Kills and Dengue Fever are big omissions. Underoath had a great album out.

For songs, Virgins - One Week of Danger, Ministry - No Glory, Teenagers - Starlett Johansson, Thao & The Get Down - Bag of Hammers, Harvey Milk - Motown.

Suicide Jack is a great local act that gets no attention.
Posted by left coast on January 1, 2009 at 3:54 PM · Report
4
Mr Mickens from the Dead Science is living in NYC.
Posted by the romantic era on January 2, 2009 at 11:49 PM · Report
5
You know, the more I read your works, and hear your spin, the more I appreciate you as a person.

W
Posted by Homo Will on January 4, 2009 at 3:40 PM · Report
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