Time for one last music wrap up from 2008 from your man Angri.  First of all if you are not interested in the music recommendations, well Happy New Year; you can stop reading now.  As for the rest of you I decided that ranking lists are so 2004.  So no ranking top 40 or 14 or 88 or 420.  I figured I would just pass along the music that I enjoyed this year.  I would be happy to copy any music that you are interested in.  With that, here is the music Angri enjoyed in 2008. 

 

Of course there are the top albums.  This is only based on what I listened to the most:

            Boris – Smile – duh, anything they release is stellar to me.

            Fuck Buttons – Street Horrrsing – combination of rhythmic electronic dance noise rock that works and rocks.

            The Mae Shi – HLLLYH – there is always one pure pop masterpiece a year for me, this was it – could not stop listening all year.

            Genghis Tron – Board Up the House – incredible electronic thrash metal – huge bursts of frenetic metal, balanced with psych electronic soundscapes

            Oneida – Preteen Weaponry  - why bands like this are not dominating the jam band community just reflects their (people who are into the jam band scene) inability to look outside the box – Oneida has been around for years, developing their brand of psych rock, but on this album (the first in a series called “Thank Your Parents” – the next – Rated O will be coming out early 2009) one extended jam is presented, split into three parts.  ”Each part was recorded at different times and in different states of mind, but all on the same day.” 

 

Albums that were at the top of everyone’s 2008 list and for good reason:

            Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago – quiet and emotional beauty but so much more

            Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Dig Lazarus Dig – still an incredible song writer and musician

            Portishead – Third – 11 years and blew away all expectations – song of the year with The Rip

            TV on the Radio – Dear Science – the idea that this band is the best band on earth only second to Tenacious D still holds true.

            Of Montreal – Skeletal Lamping  - enjoyed other albums of theirs, but this dance rock gender masterpiece was awesome

           

Albums released by bands that I already loved and my love only grew stronger:

            Wilderness – (K)now (W)here – third album by incredible post indie rock band – patient melodic rock – album is divided into songs but all fit together.

            Black Mountain – In the Future - first great release of the year – awesome psych rock – Amber Webber’s voice is haunting.

            Blood on the Wall – Liferz – ferocious post punk rock, Pixies style.

            Elbow – The Seldom Seem Kid – screw Coldplay – these guys should be the biggest band out of the UK second to Radiohead – real emotions, real music – they are better with every album.

            Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks – Real Emotional Trash – Malkmus continues his quest to move away from indie lo-fi and embrace psych classic rock; it is successful – Janet Weiss from Sleater Kinney on drums.

            Volcano! – Paperwork – an explosive rock band, anybody interested in new exciting rock should check this out.

           

Noise albums no one cares about but should:

            Excepter – Debt Dept. – experimental noise band that continues to put out interesting captivating beats and music.

            Moha! – One Way Ticket to Candyland  - recent discovery from Norway – supposed to be the leading avant jazz rock noise band – this album does nothing to negate that idea.

            Alan Licht & Aki Onda – Everydays – interesting collaboration between a guitarist and an electronic tape manipulator with outstanding results. 

 

Albums that prove that metal as a genre is dominating much of the music scene:

            Harvey Milk – Life… the Best Game in Town – Harvey Milk’s return to music recently is even harder better stronger than before – slow core blues metal with a growl and a bite

            Meshuggah – Obzen – my first introduction to this Swedish band that’s been around for 20+ years – this is a metal masterpiece

            Torche – Meanderthal – it’s awesome that one of the most exciting accessible metal bands is from Miami.

            Caina – Temporary Antennae – metal genre does not do this justice – one man wonder touches on black metal, folk, shoe gaze, experimental, even pop.

            Melvins – Nude Boots  - metal, heavy rock, hard rock, grunge – whatevs – the Melvins are still schooling most bands half their age – the two drummers propel this album’s heaviness – greatest cover of the year – Dias Iraea – a 13th century Latin hymn that was featured in the opening scene of the movie The Shining.

           

Metal albums that deserve their own category – doom (slow sounds of the earth drones) (i love this stuff):

            Angel – Kalmukia – maybe not metal but dark enough instrumental multi-layered soundscapes.

            Lustmord – Other – supposedly dark metal godfather – this is my first listen – deserves the title.

            Monument of Urns – Absence – 20 minute EP that is a model representation of outstanding doom metal.

            Sunn O))) – Domkirke – live recording of piece commissioned to be played in 12th century medieval church based on Gregorian monk hymns (LP only).

 

Metal album that deserves its own mention:

            Earth – The Bees Made Honey in the Lion’s Skull – this is an incredible album – so far beyond the original drone doom metal of early 90’s Earth – this is dark melodic Americana end of the world beauty – a must listen – made even better with guitarist Bill Frisell guesting,

           

Experimental, ambient, electronic, soundscape albums that should excite those interested in tone:

            Basinski, William & Richard Chartier – Untitled – this is the sounds that are between the notes.

            Growing – All the Way – not as good as the Fuck Buttons or the Yellow Swans but a worthy effort.

            Nine Inch Nails – Ghosts Volume 1-IV – way underrated – great instrumental experimental pieces – sure some ideas could have been expanded – but 32 pieces, along with guitar work by Adrian Belew.

            Windy & Carl – Songs for the Broken Hearted – lovely, melancholy, and woozy.

            Fennesz – Black Sea – a masterpiece of the genre.

            I Heart Lung – Interoceans – this shit is awesome – requires patience

 

Band that put out not one but two great albums in 2008:

            Grails – Take Refuge In Clean Living & Doomsdayer’e Holiday – 4 albums into their career and not a bad note yet – combining psych rock, kraut rock, hard rock, metal with eastern sounds, like Oneida in the sense that these are the bands that should be on all those summer festivals instead of Tea Leaf fucking Green.  

 

Great live albums (probably the only two I listened to this year)

            The Clash – Live at Shea Stadium

          Neil Young – Live at Caturbury House

 

Other great releases by genre:

 

Psychedelic/Classic Rock

            The Black Angels – Directions to See A Ghost

          Howlin Rain – Magnificent Friend

          Dungen – 4

         

Dance

            Lindstrom – Where You Go I Go Too

          Santogold – s/t

          The Bug – London Zoo

 

Avant prog rock

            Marnie Stern – This Is It and I Am It and You Are It and So Is That and He Is It and She Is It and It Is It and That Is That – just incredible guitarist and way forward thinking rock songs.

            Zach Hill – Astrological Straits – drummer from Hella and on Stern’s album above – 2nd disc is a 30 minute locomotive with Marnie Stern on guitar.

            Scorch Trio – Brolt! – more avant jazz – insane band out of Norway – share label with Moha!

           

Hip Hop

            Black Milk – Tronic

          Subtle – Exiting Arm – indie rock hip hop

 

and some more…

            Fucked Up – Chemistry of Common Life  - post punk

            Boduf Songs – How Shadows Chase the Balance  - dark folk

            Johann Johannsson – Fordlandia – contemporary classical, electronic

            Helena Espvall & Masaki Batoh – s/t – cellist and guitarist from Japanese band Ghost

            The Magnetic Fields – Distortion – favorite live show of year, Gnarls Barkley close 2nd

 

and more…

            Spiritualized – Songs in A & E

          Wooden Shjips – Volume 1

          The Gutter Twins – Saturnalia

           

First great release of 2009:

            Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavillion

 

Thanks for paying attention.  Love to all and a fabulous 2009.  Go low.