I'm a total sucker for those year-end music lists that creep up everywhere. You can find 'em in magazines, on websites, on your average craptastic Infotainment program... it's an easy way to come up with content without really having to do any real work, and it guarantees an audience. Best album countdowns, music video festivals (back when they still made music videos)... who knows why on Earth they're so addictive, but they sure are! I guess it has something to do with a sense of completion, relief, or ridiculously shortsighted nostalgia. If a magazine says "Year In Review" anywhere on the cover, it's pretty much guaranteed to get my hard-earned cash. In any case, here's my third annual foray into the easy-to-write realm of "year-in-review" lists. Please note that this in no way reflects the views and opinions of Metaball.ca or its other writers, and is strictly a product of my own biases and tastes.

Before I get to the list of the top 40 albums of 2008, I'd like to take a paragraph or two and make a few casual, off-handed remarks about the past twelve months as far as music goes. Compared to 2007, I really think 2008 was a big leap forward in quality. I remember feeling really let down by 2007's batch of releases; While there were a few albums released last year that I'll be spinning for years to come, for the most part it was kinda lackluster. This year is radically different, I'm happy to announce. It was hard to place high this time around - 2008 albums 10-20 could have been top five finishers had they been released in 2007. Having said that, however, most of my favourite bands (all of whom seemed to release albums this year, making me nervous for 2009) kinda disappointed me (I'm looking at you, Beck). It was the NEW bands that really blew my socks off - it's nice to know that artists like Fleet Foxes, Does It Offend You, Yeah!, Nomo and Flight of the Conchords will be joining the pantheon of all-time faves.

Following last year's Radiohead and Saul Williams' fantastic "pay what you want" releases, 2008 saw the trend continue, with full-on FREE albums by Nine Inch Nails, Girl Talk, and The Charlatans, and several online-only releases by Peter Bjorn and John, Bloc Party, and Decomposure. Also of note, I continue to be influenced by blogs and online music recommendations / marketing... I wouldn't have ever heard of Does It Offend You, Yeah! had Pitchfork not given them a terrible review. There's also no way I would have paid for that Scarlet Johansson record had I not heard David Bowie's crooning voice backing her up via an online stream.

One more thing before I get to the list - I'm writing all this at the end of November... which means there is still a full month remaining in 2008. Of course, December is often pretty sparse when new album releases are concerned, but you just know that between now and New Year's, I'll hear something that should have made it onto this list. But what can ya do?

40. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
I was really slow to heed the hipster recommendations and appreciate these guys - and now, almost a year later, their music is on movie trailers, ads, and has completely saturated the mainstream media. My, how quickly things change. Anyway, the hipsters were right - it's a great album, if not somewhat sparse at times. Especially when you consider that it's their first album... maybe the 80s ska will get old, and they'll start 'filling out' their sound.

39. The Futureheads - This Is Not The World
This summer my wife decided to buy some patio furniture off of Craigslist. While we drove down to pick it up from the sellers, This Is Not The World was the album we blasted (really friggin' loudly) on the way. For that reason, I will always associate this album - which is nowhere near as good as its predecessor but still dripping with awesome late-70s era XTC pop-punk - with buying patio furniture. Rocking and rollicking indeed.

38. Kings Of Leon - Only By The Night
I implore anyone who has had the misfortune to watch Kings of Leon's video for Only By The Night's first single "Sex on Fire" to give the album a chance despite the video's hilarious atrociousness. A vast improvement over their previous album, it demonstrates the band at their best ability, which is now gravitating away from Strokes-meets-Skynyrd territory and approaching Coldplay or U2-levels of crowd-pleasing (yet decidedly not shitty) arena rock.

37. The Killers - Day & Age
Hot Fuss was good and Sam's Town was a step in the right direction, but it's Day & Age (an album not as good as either of its predecessors) that has solidified The Killers in my head as being a band I'll be faithful to as a fan for the next several years. They ditch the Springsteen affectations of Sam's Town and replace it with shades of early-80s New York funk/punk/pop (check out tracks like 'Joy Ride') and show a side of themselves that denotes range, aptitude, and a desire to not repeat themselves. That, plus it's abundantly clear than Brandon Flowers has taken some singing lessons.

36. Girl Talk - Feed The Animals
What hasn't already been said about Girl Talk's 2nd album, given away for free online to avoid the obvious barrage of lawsuits an album composed of illegal samples would clearly generate? A true artist, the guy has taken the mash-up and turned it into a real art form. Feed The Animals just might be the best party record of the year, and I challenge everyone reading this to give it a listen. I promise that by track five, you'll be hooked. C'mon... I dare you!

35. My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges
Z was such an amazing record - my wife and I blasted that thing for month after month (and still do, on occasion). Expectations were high for MMJ's follow-up, which is good, but I shouldn't have built this release up in my head so much.... Z is a nigh-impossible act to follow. Evil Urges has highs, lows, folk jams, MOR ballads, and some pretty rocking tunes - not to mention Jim James' goofy (yet funky) falsetto on many an occasion.

34. David Byrne & Brian Eno - Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
A far, far cry from this couple's distant previous album (released over 25 years ago!), Everything That Happens Will Happen Today is a sweet piece of emotional pop music that finds both gentlemen at their most accessible and listenable. Byrne is lyrical, Eno is melodic and atmospheric, and when you put them together you've got a wonderfully joyous and lush piece of alt-gospel that has to be the warmest thing I've heard all year.

33. Squarepusher - Just A Souvenir
Tom Jenkinson does what I seem to think he always does here - he takes his bag of musical tricks, mixes it up, and produces his best album to date. Well... this time, I really believe it. Live drum n' bass (at least it sounds live) mixed with metal, acid jazz, and a full-on progressive rock band. This is hands-down my all-time favourite Squarepusher album, but I have a feeling that longtime fans will be REALLY put off by its pop affectations. Still, it's unlike anything I've ever heard. Unclassifiable.

32. The Thing Tings - We Started Nothing
The song in the iPod commercial didn't do it for me, but watching this crazy duo blow the roof off of several late-night talk shows drove the whole thing home. Fans of everyone from the White Stripes to the Pipettes should check 'em out - power-pop anthems that are sassy, cutesy, scrappy, dancy, and great for driving, too. In lieu of a new Annie record, this thing oughtta hold you over nicely.

31. Ben Folds - Way To Normal (Fake Version)
This took everyone by surprise - including Folds himself, who "leaked" it to the internet in an attempt to fool the public. Upon first listen, the 'new Ben Folds' album was absolutely awful... just pure shit. After a few listens, though, the horrendous tracks tends to grow on you, and as a result, Folds has incorporated them into his touring repertoire (even the hilariously atrocious "The Frown Song") alongside the real versions of the songs from the REAL album. For tracks written and recorded in a number of hours, they're actually pretty good.

30. Nada Surf - Lucky
This one is a grower, and not a shower. I wrote it off after the first few listens, but given the right amount of attention, the moody sadness and lonely earnestness bear beautiful fruit. While there are some 'up' songs throughout, it's the punctuating moments of sadness and regret that make this album stand out from the rest of Nada Surf's catalogue. The album cover suits the music - a starry nighttime sky lit from below by the glow of a city (?) and a hint at nature.

29. Okkervil River - The Stand-Ins
I know I'm in the minority here, but as a fan of bloated double-albums, I really think that Okkervil River shouldn't have held off a year and released The Stand-Ins so far away from its predecessor and prequel, The Stage Names. They're clearly two sides of the same coin, and I believe I can even hear a continuous narrative thread running between them, so... why not make it a double? Ah well. The Stand-Ins is great for the same reasons that The Stage Names was great (except this one has a better cover).

28. Chad VanGaalen - Soft Airplane
There's something for everyone here. If you like weird, arty noise-rock kaleidoscopes and feedback loops, look no further. Likewise, if you like either crunchy melodies and distorted sonic experiments or soft and gentle folk ballads, well - Soft Airplane has all of that stuff. Despite its apparent schizophrenia, it all somehow comes together and makes a really interesting mish-mash... it's kinda like looking like a really complicated, beautiful collage. There's always something new to hear, and the texture is really unique.

27. The Magnetic Fields - Distortion
I know that the whole point of this record was to take traditional Magnetic Fields-fare and drape them in layer after layer of distortion and feedback (hence the title), but I kinda wished frontman Stephin Merritt hadn't done that. Underneath the murky no-fi quagmire of terrible production values are some stellar tracks - easily some of the best the outfit have ever put to tape. Unfortunately, it's like reading a book through glasses smeared with muddy dishwater. In spite of all this, though, it is surprisingly listenable.

26. Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
Finally, a Death Cab for Cutie CD my wife can get behind. Tracks like lengthy first single "I Will Possess Your Heart" suggest that the band is moving away from post-emo pop misery, and is embracing a mature sexuality - I keep thinking I'm hearing jazz elements when I'm not. It does have a few 'up' moments throughout, but it's the heavier, moodier material that Death Cab has always been so darned good at capturing. It took them long enough to get out of that 'moody teen' phase, eh?

25. The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
Before anything else, I think this marks the first time an album cover made me wanna go get a tattoo (love the 'Stay Positive' icon on the front!). Secondly - this is another consistently great Springsteen-esque rock record of road stories, confessionals, and troubador-like ballads of boys, girls, and the adventures they get into. Listening to this makes me nostalgic for the Midwestern-American teenage life I never lived.

24. Sloan - Parallel Play
Sloan's weakest album since Action Pact is still pretty frigging awesome. Continuing the thread of 2006's Never Hear The End Of It, this album finds Toronto's indie-pop kings writing somewhat disparate material individually and then mashing it together into a surprisingly cohesive unit. The biggest issue I have with it is that while it is a very strong album, it lacks the obvious breakout hits - but then again, maybe that's a strength and not so much a weakness.

23. The Dears - Missiles
Dears frontman Murray Lightburn must've been pretty flabbergasted when every member of his band (save one) quit on him. Now basically a twopiece, you'd think The Dears would struggle to find a new identity, but they pretty much continue on without missing a beat - whiny and miserable pop ballads that would make Morrisey proud, interrupted with moments of jazz, uplifting pop, and some pretty rich and textured guitar-driven rock. Like any Dears LP, there's something for everyone here, but it does lean towards catering to the clinically depressed.

22. Zappa Plays Zappa
I saw these guys rock the Hummingbird Centre in 2007 and believe me, it was hands down one of the single greatest concert-going experiences of my life. Watching Dweezil Zappa and some of the best musicians he could find perform his father's mind-bendingly difficult music and doing it justice is a sight to behold. Joined by Frank's celebrated sidemen Terry Bozzio, Steve Vai, and Napoleon Murphy Brock, this is a live album (and DVD) that captures the spirit and virtuosity of that amazing tour. I listen to it quite often.

21. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
These two guys, given their relative youth, should not have been able to put together an album this captivating, experimental, and sonically diverse, let alone a debut album. At times dancy, at times contemplative and melodic, and at times bizarre and weird, it skims the surface of electronic music and delves into honest-to-goodness progressive rock by way of ambient, techno, and spiritually uplifting funk and gospel. I shudder to imagine the sort of drugs these guys sound like they've been ingesting, but hey - it sure made for a great voyage for the ear.

20. Nine Inch Nails - Ghosts I-IV
If you told me that I'd get not one but TWO full Nine Inch Nails albums in 2008, and that one would be an experimental / instrumental semi-ambient double-sized piece, I wouldn't have believed you. Yet, here is Ghosts I-IV, a testament to Trent Reznor's adventurousness and willingness to experiment and explore tones, textures, and the oft-mentioned (but rarely truly realized) "sonic landscapes" hinted at in his previous music. Devoid of words or an overriding structure, Ghosts serves as the best rainy afternoon mood-piece you'll ever come across. A real treasure.

19. Sam Roberts - Love At The End Of The World
I don't dislike Sam Roberts or anything, but to say that I was shocked that this album (his third) was so darned good is something of an understatement. There isn't a single bad track on the album - and I've found Roberts to be hit-or-miss at best. Easily making up for his previous album, Chemical City (a real let-down), Roberts defies "Can-Con" expectations and delivers a handful of songs, each of which is unique and a very polished piece of rock n' roll.

18. Gonzales - Soft Power
The artist formerly known as Son / Chilly Gonzales / Jason Beck (and most recently famous for his songwriting and production work on Feist's two latest hit records) has made one of the world's weirdest concept records - an album that could sound as though it was released in 1978, replete with syrupy soft-rock affectations, disco grooves, funk throw-downs and enough soul to make Barry White roll over in his grave. I know that such a description should in theory make a record-buying public run screaming, but I implore you - please give it a chance. It's hilariously (and genuinely) awesome.

17. Eagles of Death Metal - Heart On
The best effort from Queens Of The Stone Age front-man Josh Homme's rockabilly side-project... is also the one that sounds the most like Queens of the Stone Age. Lead singer Jesse Hughes even manages to sound like Homme (or Mark Lanegan), and while it definitely retains its fun and goofy tongue-in-cheek EODM swagger, it sounds as though Homme and Hughes are taking things a lot more seriously and actually tried to make a go of it. That's not to slag their other records, but this oen blows them out of the water. It feels less like a 'side project', and more like the real deal.

16. Mates Of State - Re-Arrange Us
I caught a performance by this husband-and-wife duo on a late-night talk show (I believe it was Craig Ferguson) and immediately broke the internet in half trying to track down their fantastic album. (Their fifth! How have I not heard of these guys?!) Months later, I finally found a copy in a record store and played the crap out of it. Take the best of Tegan and Sara, add more pianos, subtract hipster indie street-cred and lesbian angst, and you've got this wonderful little gem that deserves WAY more attention than it's gotten.

15. The Week That Was - The Week That Was
Field Music's Peter Brewis has coughed up a side-project that in my humble opinion blows the co-called "main project" out of the water in pretty much every respect. This huge group of talented musicians has evoked the sound of Peter Gabriel 3 to closely that I had to stop and make sure that they weren't covering it. Heavy drums, walls of solid synths, and Orwellian, paranoid melodies turn from stoic apartment-block-sized boot-stompers into lush, beautiful blooming flowers. It evokes the best of the 80s mixed with the strongest today's musicians have to offer. Thunderously stupendous.

14. Max Tundra - Parallax Error Beheads You
How do I describe a Max Tundra record? I guess it sounds the way you'd imagine something a guy holed up in a studio composing a pop masterpiece on a Commodore Amiga 500 for six years would sound. FRIGGING AWESOME! At times it sounds like Mozart, at times like Prince, and at times like XTC or... I dunno... El Debarge. Basically you can hear the work that went into this, in between every bleep, every electronic drum beat, and with every word. I promise you've never heard anything as wonderfully rich and spastic in your entire life.

13. Blitzen Trapper - Furr
Between this album and Fleet Foxes' debut, you can really tell that 2008 was a banner year for folk-based Americana revivals. Sure, the album cover looks like something hearkening to a death metal band, but it sounds like a sonic criss-cross of American music. You've got folk, gospel, weird Sonic Youth-ish feedback experiments, and even fast-drivin' silly grooves that would make a Cake fan smile. There's a surprise around every corner of Furr, and it just keeps on surprising.

12. Jamie Lidell - Jim
I wasn't really sold on Lidell's previous album Multiply. I was expecting an awesome DJ album, and instead I got a white Englishman singing R&B. I'm now willing to admit that I may not have given it enough of a chance (and that maybe I shouldn't have sold it) because the follow-up, Jim, is simply more of the same - but about a million times more awesome. The first song alone has got to be one of the best tracks of the year, but just let the record loop while you're throwing a party (or just wanna feel funky) and you've got the recipe for good times. I'll never sell another Jamie Lidell album again!

11. Coldplay - Viva La Vida or Death And All Of His Friends
Ugh, I really really want to loathe this band, because they're so popular all over the planet, and anyone who gets as much radio play, fills as many stadiums, and appeals to the unwashed masses as much as they do CAN'T be any good, right? Well, dammit, here they go again, making another fantastic record that I end up loving, despite my best efforts to hate it. Granted, there's more filler on this album than on the previous, but the peaks outshine the best they've ever done previously. Big shout out to producer Brian Eno, who will always entice me into buying a record, even if I want to hate it.

10. Nomo - Ghost Rock
After Pitchfork gave this record a solid review (especially seeing how they rarely review Jazz albums) I figured I'd pick it up for my wife as a nice surprise, seeing as how she loves Jazz and stuff. Of course, I couldn't resist sneaking a listen to it first, and... well, let's just say that it took a few weeks before the album reached its originally intended recipient. One part Miles Davis, one part Quincy Jones, and several parts Peter Gabriel mixed with the Go! Team, and you've got a unique sonic experience melding world music with rock with electronic acid jazz.

9. Sigur Rós - Með Suð Í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust
Do these guys just keep on getting better and better, or what? I know, I know - some dyed-in-the-wool fans haven't moved past (), but screw them - this album (which I'm not even gonna attempt to pronounce aloud) shows them embracing more popular forms of crowd-pleasing music, and moving away from the atmospheric navel-gazing of previous material (not that there's anything wrong with that). That's not to say that you'll ever hear great tracks like "Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur" or "Ára bátur" on the radio, though.

8. Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains - Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains
The half of Death From Above 1979 that didn't put out one of my favourite dance albums (MSTRKRFT) emerges from his studio with one hell of an amazing record that will hopefully satisfy DFA fans and Cars fans alike. At times ear-blisteringly heavy, and at other times ten thousand times more melodic than anything he'd recorded in the past, Grainger goes from screaming at the top of his lungs to crooning with the best of them. You can dance, fight, drive, screw, or code actionScript to this album and enjoy every moment.

7. Does It Offend You, Yeah? - You Have No Idea What You're Getting Yourself Into
If the holier-than-thou indie-rock pricks at Pitchfork (due respect) hadn't given this album such a horrible review - and described it as something I'd like in the process - I'd have never heard of these guys. On one hand, it sounds a lot like Death From Above 1979 (Sebastian Grainger even lends his ear-splitting screech), while on the other hand, you've got instrumental pieces about a gigantic lesbian octopus that sound derived from a mid-90's video game soundtrack, and emotionally-charged dance pieces that would make New Order proud. Very diverse, very fast, and really really great.

6. Amanda Palmer - Who Killed Amanda Palmer
Let's be clear here - even though I loathe the way Palmer sings with every fibre of being and the sound of her over-earnest voice and the ridiculous theatricality of her delivery is like the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard - I still loved this record, and not just because Ben Folds produced it. I'm a Dresden Dolls fan and everything, but this blows any of Palmer's previous work out of the water. 'Runs in the Family' is one of the most accomplished, well-written, perfectly-produced single tracks of the year, and fun pieces like 'Astronaut', 'Leeds United', 'Guitar Hero' and 'Ampersand' demonstrate a nascent kinship with Tori Amos as well as to Elton John. But yeah, if not for her singing, this would be the #1 album of the year.

5. Ben Folds - Way To Normal
One divorce, one marriage, one Amanda Palmer record, and a new drummer later, and Folds follows up 2005's Songs for Silverman with a better record - but still not his best. At times this album really seems to re-discover and embrace the rollicking fun and humour of his old Ben Folds Five output, while still indulging in his willingness to experiment with new sounds (for example: what happens if you put Altoid tins on all the strings inside a piano?). The true gem of the record, however, can only be found on the special edition, which includes the DVD Normal People Do It Too, on which you can watch the Piano Orchestra-version of 'Cologne.' It's a sad, powerful piece of choral chanting - and my single favourite song of the year (despite the line about the diaper).

4. TV On The Radio - Dear Science
Return to Cookie Mountain, while being a great record, was far too lauded a TV On The Radio album in my humble opinion. Dear Science is far more deserving of everyone's accolades - the production is much better, the overall tone and atmosphere is more welcoming and positive in nature, and most significantly, the songs are just better. Seriously - any one of the tracks on this LP would make for a great single, and blows anything off of Cookie Mountain out of the water. 'Family Tree' became my personal theme song for the 2008 American Presidential Election, and will most likely forever be emotionally linked to the sense of hope, legacy, and history-in-the-making we all felt at the time (regardless of how things pan out).

3. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
I have a feeling that this album is most likely gonna top every other 'Best Albums of 2008' list on the net and elsewhere, and I'm fine with that, because it totally deserves it. It's most likely one of those zeitgeist / signpost albums... I have a feeling we'll be hearing a lot more Fleet Foxes-inspired material over the coming years. These guys embrace oft-forgotten American traditional music (folk, rock, and Brian Wilson) and meld them into a beautiful symphonic collage that conjures memories of Crosby, Stills & Nash, Simon & Garfunkel, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Sufjan Stevens, and lots more in-between. The abundant beauty contained in this album pours out of the speakers and will fill any room it's played in. I dare you to listen to this and not smile. I'll always remember lying on the beach in Cannes this year, listening to this album on repeat.

2. Nine Inch Nails - The Slip
Yay! This album was free! And free is the best!
But seriously, Trent Reznor take notice: Dude, you don't need to take a year to make a great album (granted, The Fragile is my favourite record)... because he can pull off great work in a week, as evidenced here. First single 'Discipline' is pretty surprisingly weak, if you ask me, but so many of the other tracks ('1,000,000', 'Letting You', 'Lights in the Sky', 'Echoplex') are right up there with the best Nine Inch Nails has ever accomplished. The entire instrumental second half of the album is great in its own right, and really compliments the band's efforts on Ghosts I-IV in a more traditional sense. Now, obviously, I'm an enormous fan of Nine Inch Nails (always have been) and most likely less objective in my appreciation for Reznor's work. However, I'll stand by my biases and declare this my second favourite album of the year.

1. Flight Of The Conchords - Flight Of The Conchords
There are a lot of reasons why this was my favourite album of the year, but those reasons individually usually exclude something from my list. First - it's the soundtrack to a TV show. Second, it's a comedy record. Third, one half of the band was the star of Eagle Vs. Shark. Fourth, these are just re-recorded versions of the New Zealand duo's best songs from past decade. On the other hand - when you put all of those things together and consider the fact that I haven't stopped listening to this album on a weekly basis since March, and you've got the definition of the best album of the year. If you haven't heard it, do yourself a favour - not only are the songs funny, but they're great. If you removed the silly lyrics to tracks like 'Foux Du Fafa' or 'Ladies of the World' or 'The Most Beautiful Girl (In The Room)' it'd be hailed by critics as a pop masterpiece more than it already has been. If it takes these guys another decade to record a follow-up... well, I'll wait as long as I have to. It'll be worth it.

- Evan Long

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