15-6

15.Jamie Lidell – Jim

Multiply took me by surprise, and I listened to it so much over the next year that the expectations for a follow-up would become exceedingly high. But Jim is everything I wanted in a second Lidell album. Maybe to its detriment: without the shock of such a soulful album with glossy production, Jim went under a lot of radars this year, and still more people forgot about it. And December certainly isn't the time of year to be listening to it. I haven't forgotten, though, and Jamie has stayed solid on my list all year.
14.Little Joy – S/T
I wish the Strokes were still around and sounded like this. Why did they have to try to do so much after Is This It? Couldn't they just make fun rock albums? Isn't that revolutionary enough? I can't wait to listen to this album in the summer, preferably on a beach.
13.Yo Majesty – Kryptonite Pussy EP

I doubt anyone else has this or liked it much, but I LOVE this EP. Back since 2006, when the “Club Action” remixes started to appear, I have secretly enjoyed the dirrrty lesbian club anthems of this Tampa Bay duo. But the Kryptonite Pussy EP takes it to another level of dirrtyness, of flow, of booty-shaking beats. It's a shame that the girls' debut album, also released this year, didn't stick to the club atmosphere of this EP and the early singles. I didn't listen to much new hip-hop this year; this is the only appearance on my year-end list. But damn, I know I will be listening to “Hey There Girl” and “Monkey” for years in the future.
12.Tallest Man on Earth – Shallow Grave

It's amazing that this man can sound so much like early Bob Dylan. I did a double take the first time I heard it. Even more amazing, though, is that the songs are much much more than simple reductions of early Dylan, which would probably earn a low place on this list anyway. Shallow Grave has some of the best lyrics of any album I've heard this year, and the guitar work is dry and brings me back for more.
Just when I thought I was past my Dylan phase...
11.DJ /Rupture – Uproot

I really liked /Rupture's last album, Special Gunpowder, but this one takes him to the status of auteur.
10.Air France (EP)
Air + Avalanches? I must admit, when I first started listening to Air France on the blogs, very early thanks to my friend Dan, I wasn't overwhelmed. As I listened more and more, though, it became a soundtrack to my life, coming into my head as I walked to school, or took the Ubahn, whatever. No, it's no Studio, but this EP keeps me wanting as much Balearic music as I can handle.
9.Apes and Androids – Blood Moon

Yes Apes and Androids are in my top 10. No I'm not ashamed of it. Yes they sound like music for adolescent boys with Pink Floyd posters, Steely Dan records, and uncomfortable Monty Python obsessions. And I embrace that. The music is so proggy and joyous that sometimes I don't know what to do. Just when The Apes were getting a little too serious, Apes and Androids step in and take the spot of ridiculously fun, manic music.
8.Antony & the Johnsons – Another World EP

I didn't listen to much sad music this year; overall 2008 has been one of the happiest years in recent memory. But this album still moved me to tears on occasion, even with no negative emotions to dwell on. Lord knows what this would have meant to me some other more angst-ridden year. Antony is becoming one of the more important songwriters of the decade, I feel.
7.Okkervil River – The Stand Ins
I was really disappointed with The Stage Names, but I rediscovered it this year and liked it significantly more. Still, though, I see The Stand Ins as a superior album. “Lost Coastlines” is one hell of an indie rock single, and “On Tour With Zykos” has some of the best lyrics of the year, which is typical for Okkervil River. I see this album as the band's most direct commentary on indie/intellectual culture in our generation. Needless to say they are critical. Songs like “Singer-Songwriter,” I feel, are important for people like us to hear and identify with. Even as I become more and more disenfranchised with indie rock staples (Wolf Parade, TVOTR, etc), I can still rely on Will Sheff et al to draw me to a rock show.
6.Brian Wilson – Lucky Old Sun

I don't expect to win everyone over to this album. I will just say that in the context of SMiLE, this is one of the most happy/sad albums of the year, as only Brian Wilson can be. How can you not be creeped out when Wilson sings about watching a girl when she's sleeping? And how can you be singularly happy when he sings about “that good kind of love”? Once again, I take a pseudo-mystical approach to Brian Wilson's music, and once again, I am rewarded for it.