best of...

2008!
Since everyone else is doing it, I guess I'll go ahead and list my favorites of 2008. Categories will include albums, artists, tracks, and shows, I guess. Some of them I'll divide into the best that came out in 2008, and my favorites in 2008 (not necessarily released in 2008).

For this I used my Last.fm charts for the past 12 months, and filtered albums in my music player for 2008. Hopefully I didn't omit any.

(Well that's great, the list I was compiling was wiped out when I had to restart my computer because it stopped responding. Remember to save your fucking documents.)

Anyways on to the lists!

Released in 2008

Artists:

1. Fleet Foxes (last.fm) - Okay yeah I'll be unoriginal and say that the Fleet Foxes are the best new band this year. That's cause they are. Really. I personally like them better than MGMT because I feel that Fleet Foxes are a lot more authentic, less of a hipster fad, and the album is much stronger overall. I'll be talking about the album later on.
2. Land Of Talk (last.fm) - I might be slightly biased in Land Of Talk's favor because I saw them live, when they opened for Broken Social Scene. It doesn't hurt that they were pretty awesome live, and that was the first I'd heard of them. Also Elizabeth Powell gave an awesome rendition of Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl (watch) for BSS. (I think it was better when they played it at The Moon than in this video). Also their album has some really excellent songs for a variety of moods. More about that later.
3. She & Him (last.fm) - I found She & Him when I was in a folky mood, and instantly decided that they were worth listening to. She & Him is composed of Zooey Deschanel, an actress/singer (she's in a lot of new movies such as Yes Man) and M. Ward, a folk artist. I generally dislike actresses who try to sing, but I guess Zooey succeeded because she didn't try trashy pop music or decide to cover Sinatra.
4. MGMT (last.fm) - Haha so after trashing them for Fleet Foxes I decide to add them on the list. Irony, huh? Anyways their album had some good tracks like Time To Pretend and Kids, but they became such a hipster fad that I was turned off. The hype was definitely more than the music.
5. Bon Iver (last.fm) - On here simply because I loved the track Skinny Love. The rest of the album is ehh.
6. The Submarines (last.fm) - Only number 6 because technically they're not a "new" band, but they only came to prominence recently due to the Apple commercial I guess. They would definitely be either 1 or 2 for me if they weren't an honorable mention. On a cool note, Blake Hazard is the great granddaughter of F. Scott Fitzgerald.
   

Albums:

1. Sad Robots (Stars) - Sound the bias alarm! A new Stars album is basically guaranteed the number one spot, even if it's only an EP. However, I did listen to this album obsessively over a period of time, racking up 841 plays (for 6 tracks, 2 of which are mostly instrumental) since it's release. And I'm pretty sure most of that was in the span of a week or two.
2. Fleet Foxes (Fleet Foxes) - Okay tracks like White Winter Hymnal, Your Protector, Blue Ridge Mountains, and others show that this album is strong throughout, and though the tracks are all similar, they have enough distinguishing features to make each one unique and stimulating.
3. Honeysuckle Weeks (The Submarines) - I do like the previous album better because it is more thoughtful and sweet, but this album is still really good. Tracks like Swimming Pool (there's something about swimming pools that I adore. The Múm track and Banshee Beat by Animal Collective come to mind.), Submarine Symphonika, and You Me and the Bourgeoise were my favorite, though almost the whole album is enjoyable.
4. Something For All Of Us... (Broken Social Scene) - This is one of their albums in the "Presents..." series, this time featuring Brendan Canning. Though some people thought it was more of the same, I really liked Churches Under The Stairs, Hit The Wall, and Love Is New. The other tracks were good but did not stand out as much.
5. Some Are Lakes (Land Of Talk) - Sorry no link but this album is for a variety of moods. It's Okay when you're down, Young Bridge when you're not. Elizabeth Powell has a peaceful, pretty voice that completely suits the album.
6. Skeletal Lamping (Of Montreal) - One of my most anticipated albums, and it didn't disappoint. While each of the Of Montreal albums seems to have a distinct sound, this one has a lot of different sounds, from jazzy to edgy. Listen through the whole album for full effect.
7. Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum End (Sigur Rós) - Don't ask me what it means, I don't know. However it's a Sigur Rós album, and it's great. Also it has their first track that is sung in English. I've heard that Sigur Rós is a very "happy" band live, and I wouldn't doubt it.

8. Volume One (She & Him) - Folky, quirky at times, awesome most of the time. I'm definitely looking forward to Volume Two.
9. Censored Colors (Portugal. The Man) - I've listened to PTM on and off, and while I'm not completely familiar with this album I know that it's good overall. It has some interesting vocal effects not present in earlier albums.
10. Crystal Castles (Crystal Castles) - Some electronica that I actually like! Probably because it's not the generic indietronica that is so much more prevalent. Crystal Castles has some more experimental elements, which really helps it along.
11. Grow Up And Blow Away (Metric) - Again another honorable mention or else it would be much higher. Too bad it's not really a release, more of a rerelease or something.

Tracks (yeah I'm not going to describe individual tracks for you unless I have something interesting to say; I'll link them and let you listen):

1. 14 Forever (Stars) - Not a biased decision, really my favorite track of the year.
2. On The Sly (Metric)
3. Churches Under The Stairs (BSS) - hmm I also filmed this. It's on my Facebook video if you're looking for a more rock-driven version. However the sound quality isn't quite as good.
4. It's Okay (Land Of Talk) - Sorry couldn't find an original audio version. I have it on my computer but idk how best to link it. I'll put it up if I figure something out.
5. Skinny Love (Bon Iver) - <3
6. Your Protector (Fleet Foxes)
7. St. Exquisite's Confessions (Of Montreal)
8. All Alright (Sigur Rós) - Makes me think of somewhere cold and icy.
9. Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? (She & Him) - Weird video.
10. Swimming Pool (The Submarines) - A nice live version.
11. That's Not My Name (The Ting Tings) - Late addition, sorry!
    

Personal Favorites of 2008
well I'll probably just include some of the older thing I think should be mentioned. In no particular order also, cause it's not really as interesting as the new materials.

Artists:

1. Stars - Yeah. This one is really first.
   
2. Okkervil River - Probably second.
   
3. The Submarines - Probably third. After this there's no particular order.
   
4. Murder By Death
   
5. Modest Mouse
6. Broken Social Scene
7. Metric
8. She & Him
9. The National
10. Land Of Talk
    

Albums (ordered)

1. Sad Robots (Stars)
   
2. Set Yourself On Fire (Stars)
   
3. Declare A New State! (The Submarines)
4. Down The River Of Golden Dreams (Okkervil River)
5. Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See (Okkervil River)

Notice how much I like those 3 artists?

Tracks (no particular order, also probably omitted some, just wanted to name some other tracks I liked):

1. Galaxies (Laura Viers) - Thanks Mel!
2. 14 Forever (Stars)
3. Sometimes Stop, Sometimes Go (Ms. John Soda)
4. Skinny Love (Bon Iver)
5. Killbot 2000 (Murder By Death)
6. Churches Under The Stairs (BSS)
7. Peace & Hate (The Submarines)
8. Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1 (The Flaming Lips) - I heard this a long time ago, thought it was weird. Didn't know how good it was then.
9. It's Okay (Land Of Talk)
10. Calendar Girl (Stars) - probably my all time favorite track ever. EVER.

And there you go! Hope you enjoy it. Watch some vids and listen to some music.
Happy new year!