WDR Reviews 2008 in Music: Part 2

We covered Part 1 earlier in the week, and now it's time for part 2. I am one of the few people on this planet that still believe in the artificial construct of the album, so coming up with a top ten list is a big deal for me. That being said, I was able to come up with the 10 titles pretty easily--the ranking however took at least 27 seconds however.

Nic Ouzo's Top Ten Albums
10. Kings of Leon - “Only By The Night”. I’ve been a fairweather fan (I have all their albums, but it’s not like I get happy when they show up on iTunes), but over half of the tracks on this album are fantastic. In the end, I liked this album so much that I went back into my collection and listened to all their old stuff with renewed vigor.

9. Beck - “Modern Guilt”. Even though he put on an overall disappointing show when I saw him, Beck still puts out great new material (and the new stuff sounds great live). It’s an interesting mix of sadsack Beck and funky Beck, and I think I like it. Note: This won’t be the last time that a Danger Mouse album ends up on here.

8. Portishead - “Third”. The wait was just about worth it. Fantastic comeback, picking up where they left off, just like the reunited-Dinosaur Jr. did with “Beyond” last year. Some of the most dynamic and interesting songs made this year, and done by the wily veterans.

7. The Walkmen - “You & Me”. The Walkmen are finally getting some credit after being initially hyped and then pretty much ignored. The band is now four for four with awesome records (I'd also include their fun "Pussy Cats" cover album as well as a a success). How can a band that purposefully tries to sound kind of shitty sound really good?

6. Vampire Weekend - “Vampire Weekend”. I didn’t hear anything about the hype, so don't yell at me. I just saw the video for “A-Punk” on Subterranean, and I had to check out the rest. Though I doubt any followup will be any good, I’ll still be playing their debut years later.

5. Tokyo Police Club - “Elephant Shell”. I was kind of disappointed with this release at first, because it didn’t have some of the diverse sounds that “A Lesson in Crime” did, but in the end it’s still a very good group of songs and I find myself listening to the album very regularly.

4. Sigur Rós - “Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust”. Whenever these guys put out an album, it’s going to end up in my top ten--they haven't steered me wrong yet. These guys have mastered the art of repeating past successes while moving in new directions. It's a thrilling combination of the euphoric and the epic, and hey, they even sing in English on this one (for a song at least)!

3. British Sea Power - “Do You Like Rock Music?”. There are some fantastic songs on this album, and I thought it might help break these guys into the mainstream. Then I realized that if “Remember Me” couldn’t do it, I don’t know what would. It's everyone else's loss that they can't appreciate fantastic songs like "Waving Flags" and "Atom". Also, one of the best shows I saw last year.

2. The Black Keys - “Attack & Release”. Yes we know what to expect from The Black Keys, but the addition of Danger Mouse and other instruments helped expand their sound in fantastic ways. Very underrated effort, but that just seems to describe the group for the past few years. And yes, the rating might be inflated due to seeing two fabulous shows with these guys.

1. Gnarls Barkley - “The Odd Couple”. Brilliant front-to-back. None of the standouts like “St. Elsewhere” (nothing could live up to "Crazy"), but also not as uneven. It runs the gamut, mixing great high-energy tracks like "Going On" and "Run" with fantastic ballads like "Who's Gonna Save Your Soul?" and "Blind Mary". I’m just kind of bewildered that this isn’t getting the acclaim that it deserves. The lesson is: Joe Reefer is an idiot.

New Guys who caught my eye (but I need to listen more of):
Los Campesinos! - “Hold on Now Youngster” (and "We Are Beautiful. We Are Doomed.")
Ra Ra Riot - “The Rhumb Line”
No Age - “Nouns”
Dapunksportif - "Electro Tube Riot"
Fleet Foxes - "Fleet Foxes"

Special Mention:
One Day As A Lion - “One Day As A Lion” [EP]. With 5 songs, Zack de la Rocha showed more creativity than 3 Audioslave albums. And I say that as a guy who didn’t totally hate Audioslave.