20. Lambchop – Oh (Ohio)
I couldn’t get past Kurt Wagner’s hushed baritone at first listen, but on a random shuffle I heard “A Hold Of You,” and I thought to myself, “Hmm, maybe I ought to listen to this album.” I did, and it is a nice album for chillaxing when you aren’t feeling so great. Kurt Wagner’s voice seems to say “I know how you feel. Let me tell you about it.”

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19. Portugal. The Man – Censored Colors
The best people to come out of Wasilla, Alaska have ditched the hard rock of 2007’s Church Mouth and made a softer, yet still wonderful album.

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18. of Montreal – Skeletal Lamping
Kevin Barnes takes us on the musical equivalent of an acid trip, where songs constantly shift styles, people get horny (see “For Our Elegant Caste,”) and things all go bad and we start freaking out, but we come down in the end and we take it again.

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17. TV On The Radio – Dear Science
TV On The Radio began as an experimental rock group, but with this album they’ve made very accessible rock songs that maintain TVOTR’s sensibilities, varying from fast-talking speak-singing (“Dancing Choose”) to poppy dance melodies (“Golden Age”) to slow ballads (“Family Tree”). A good listen any day.

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16. Islands – Arm’s Way
Arcade Fire are quite fond of walls of strings and guitars. Islands are fond of those things as well. The difference? Islands make good music with them. From the swirling “The Arm” to the 11-minute closer “Vertigo (If It’s A Crime),” Islands have made an album of songs that stick in the back of your mind and stay there.

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15. Crystal Castles – Crystal Castles
The first CD I ever bought with my own money was Daft Punk’s Human After All. I was a very passionate Daft Punk fan at the time, but since then I fell out of favor with electronic music. Then I heard this album. It is an awesome series of glitchy electronics and vocals that never ceases to please. It reminds me of an Atari having sex with an NES while a drum machine smashes a Speak ‘n’ Spell.

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14. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
One of the very very over-hyped albums of the year, but one of the few that’s very good at the same time. It starts off very strong with “Flume” and “Skinny Love” but after hearing the whole album, I feel as though people don’t like the whole album, they just like a few of the songs on it. So much, in fact, that it goes on top ten lists. Yet I feel like a hypocrite, since those same few songs nearly landed this in the #4 spot. In any case, this is still a good album, as is the forthcoming Blood Bank EP. I am eagerly looking forward to more stuff from Bon Iver.

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13. Coldplay – Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends
Possibly the second most hyped album of the year, (the first being Chinese Democracy) and one of the most overproduced, Viva La Vida… still shines. Although this album claims to be a “reinvention” of Coldplay’s style, it still retains many fragments of their earlier material (“Lovers In Japan” could have appeared on X&Y). And the album also shows some major steps forward (“Cemeteries of London,” “Strawberry Swing”), but the real gem here is closer “Death and All His Friends.” Possibly the first or second best thing Coldplay has recorded.

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12. Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs
Death Cab manage to recover from the disappointing Plans and produce a solid album of their familiar brand of indie/pop/rock. While there are some missteps (“Pity & Fear” is particularly weak,) there are tracks to make up for them. “Your New Twin Sized Bed” was my personal anthem for a while. Surely it could be somebody else’s.

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11. The Spinto Band – Moonwink
Poor, poor Spinto Band. Their new album was largely unnoticed and/or derided (see: Pitchfork), and their incredibly fun live shows were overshadowed by the up-and-coming opener Frightened Rabbit. True, this album doesn’t entirely match up to their breakout Nice and Nicely Done, but it delivers 11 tracks of happy-go-lucky bubblegum pop over a concise 33 minutes. My complaint: It’s too short.

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10. The Fratellis – Here We Stand
And now we reach the top ten! The Fratellis turned me into a fan with “Chelsea Dagger” a couple years back, and this year I was excited to hear this album, but I heard that it was a letdown, so I let it sit unplayed in my library. That is, until recently, when I decided I would give it a listen. I found my low expectations to be unfounded. This album is impressive from beginning to end, taking a more subdued turn from the hard rock that got tired near the end of Costello Music. Here We Stand manages to rock just as hard and inject a substantial amount of the blues.

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9. Fall Out Boy – Folie à Deux
You may hang your head in shame upon seeing this. How does an unattractive emo band make it onto a top albums list? Here’s how: By making catchy music. Fall Out Boy is an ugly-looking band, but then again, the Who weren’t the most dashing lads either. They can still make catchy hooks and write clever lyrics, and still have loads of fun playing their music. Listen to “20 Dollar Nose Bleed” and I think you’ll hear what I mean.

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8. Okkervil River – The Stand-Ins
Despite what other critics have said, The Stand-Ins is just as good as its predecessor, The Stage Names. Will Sheff is still a lyrical genius (“He’s the liar who lied in his pop song / and you’re lying when you sing along,” he chastises on “Pop Lie) and at the same time an orator. He talks to people, picks them apart, and puts them back together, but not in the same way.

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7. Ezra Furman and the Harpoons – Inside The Human Body
My brother heard “Big Deal” and asked me “Who’s this guy who’s trying to sing?” Sure, Ezra Furman may not have the most beautiful voice, but he and his harpoons make a great blend of hard-indie-folk-rock. Standout song “Take Off Your Sunglasses” recalls the speak-singing of The Hold Steady and is backed by Dylanesque harmonica. “The Faceless Boy” reminds me of Neutral Milk Hotel’s “Two Headed Boy.” And “Big Deal” is just plain fun. Like this album. It’s a real big deal.

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6. Los Campesinos! – Hold On Now, Youngster…
The seven Welsh youngsters that comprise Los Campesinos! are full of youthful exuberance and are not hesitant to make youth-culture references like “Ctrl-Alt-Deleting your face” or goosebumps that read like “A final, fatal LiveJournal entry.” They also win the award for “greatest song title of 2008″ with “This Is How You Spell, ‘HAHAHA, We Destroyed The Hopes And Dreams Of A Generation Of Faux-Romantics’” and then singing the title in the song. They are rebellious youths. They make rebellious youth music. Good music.

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5. Jukebox The Ghost – Let Live And Let Ghosts
Another relatively obscure band, this one from the Washington, DC area, makes amazing music and ends up on my list. It’s about time these guys came around. I’ve been listening to Elton John for so long and waiting for a different kind of piano rock, and along comes the classically trained Ben Thornewill and a couple of his buddies to make it. Maybe it’s because I have a weakness for the piano, but Let Live and Let Ghosts delivers song after song of rocking-cool goodness, bouncing lead vocal duties back and forth between the lovesick Thornewill and the angry, nihilistic Tommy Siegel. You won’t hear a piano rock album more fun or ebullient as this one this year.

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4. Wolf Parade – At Mount Zoomer
What is Mt. Zoomer? I think of it as the place where Spencer Krug and that other guy (Dan Boeckner) went and had a brutal musical cage fight. Spencer obviously wins this one (sorry Dan) and this album is the chronicle of the battle, with Dan and Spencer trading off lead vocal duties for songs that get longer until they trade verses on the epic finale “Kissing The Beehive.” Other standouts are Boeckner’s “Soldier’s Grin” (his best on the album) and Krug’s dirge “Call It A Ritual” and thundering rocker “California Dreamer.” Next year should be another year of battle between these two, as Handsome Furs (Boeckner’s side project) and Sunset Rubdown have albums slated for release. I can hardly wait.

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3. Sigur Rós – Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
Sigur Rós stripped away the soundscapes of Takk… and inject an element of pop into their music. Among the amazing poppy melodies like “Við Spilum Endalaust” are slow standouts “Festival” and “Ára Bátur,” all of which create a fully rounded album that is Sigur Rós at their very best.

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2. Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend
The ultimate breakout band of 2008 makes the ultimate breakout album. Vampire Weekend have justly earned their fame. This album does not have a bad song on it. There really is nothing more I have to say except that I can’t wait to see what else these Ivy Leaguers have up their sleeve.

And the number one album of two thousand and eight is…

…

…

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1. Frightened Rabbit – The Midnight Organ Fight
Poor, poor Spinto Band. Their new album was largely unnoticed and/or derided and their incredibly fun live shows were overshadowed by the up-and-coming opener Frightened Rabbit, and one listen to this album explains exactly why. The songs explode with angst and Scott Hutchison’s yearning vocals are like cries of pain and cries for help. Opener “The Modern Leper” is a study in self-pity, as Hutchison wonders aloud why she comes back to him, singing “You must be a masochist / To love a modern leper on his last leg” while “My Backwards Walk” paints a picture of a man stuck in a relationship he can’t leave. And “Keep Yourself Warm” proves to be the album’s epic, as well as an epic in their live show. Congratulations, Frightened Rabbit, you made my year.

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