I know I can’t speak for everyone, but this year went by really quickly for me. So much so that I’ve been a dismally absent blogger in recent months. Work has been hectic and I found little time away from it to come up with original thoughts to share, since I’d hate to regurgitate what you already know or can easily read about elsewhere. For 2009, I’ll make a conscious effort to return to form, assuming I had a form at one point or another. I’ll add it to my list of New Years’ resolutions…making it the only thing on the list at the moment.
Until then, let’s carry on with an annual tradition of mine – listing my favourite albums released in the past year. 2008 saw a deluge of albums from indie rockers who were either a) skinny indie rockers from England with tight pants and black-rimmed glasses producing watered-down jangle that would make 1980’s R.E.M. puke or b) bearded American indie rockers who look like they could fell you with a single swing with an axe, but instead choose to sing some Belle and Sebastien-inspired twee pop. Thankfully, my list contains none of those. I proudly present my “Album of the Year” award to Scotland’s Glasvegas. Their self-titled debut album packs plenty of emotional punch (if “Flowers and Football Tops” doesn’t make you pause to reflect on those you care about, you’re a prick) and wraps it in glimmering walls of reverb. Voici la liste dans l’ordre alphabétique pour toute le gang:
Bloc Party – Intimacy
The Breeders – Mountain Battles
Broken Social Scene Presents: Brendan Canning – Something For All Of Us
Constantines – Kensington Heights
The Cure – 4:13 Dream
Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs
Deerhoof – Offend Maggie
Deerhunter – Microcastle
Glasvegas – Glasvegas
Her Space Holiday – XOXO, Panda And The New Kid Revival
The Hold Steady – Stay Positive
Local H – Twelve Angry Months
M83 – Saturdays = Youth
Mercury Rev – Snowflake Midnight
Mogwai – The Hawk Is Howling
Mudhoney – The Lucky Ones
Nada Surf – Lucky
Nine Inch Nails – The Slip
No Age – Nouns
The Notwist – The Devil, You + Me
R.E.M. – Accelerate
Sigur Rós – Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
Sloan – Parallel Play
Spiritualized – Songs in A & E
Tokyo Police Club – Elephant Shell
TV on the Radio – Dear Science
2008 had its share of disappointing albums for me, too. I normally love Stephen Malkmus, but Real Emotional Trash did nothing for me; I preferred the deluxe re-release of Pavement’s Brighten the Corners. Also, both Wolf Parade‘s At Mount Zoomer and Tapes ‘n’ Tapes‘ Walk It Off were boring sophomore albums, and Weezer‘s “Red Album” seems too content to try produce “hits” in the hopes of amassing MySpace and YouTube views it seems.
My hopes for 2009? A new My Bloody Valentine album!
