Why yes, I AM well aware that we're more than a week into 2009

But it's never too late for a 2008 music recap post!

So, for the XPN website, I had to come up with a top 10 list for the year...I added a few more since I made that list, too. These are in a very loose order, I guess? My opinions are constantly changing, though, so to be honest, the number order probably doesn't matter too much...and these are obviously not the most critically acclaimed/salivated over albums of the year, but they're definitely MY favorites! I've also included two songs from each album...which were SO hard to narrow down in some cases!

1. Raise the Dead by Phantom Planet - Oh, my boys <3 This was the Year of Phantom Planet for me (on so many levels.) In terms of the album release...it was an absolute joy and relief to get it in my hands. They had gone four years between studio albums and to be honest, I thought my love for them was waning a bit. But as soon as I took a listen to this, I remembered exactly why I love these boys so much. Over the course of four albums, their sound has definitely morphed into something amazing. I love how this album seems like the next natural progression for them...it's not like they totally changed their sound or tried to hard to do something ~*~edgy~*~ or totally different and new. It's got the heaviness of Phantom Planet and the sort of indie-pop sensibility of The Guest. Alex's voice has changed a great deal between albums too...it still has that absolute gorgeous tone to it that I've always swooned over, but there's a definite wild streak to it, too...it's a bit less perfect and pristine and clear and and a bit more gruff and edgy, I'd say. Unggg <3 I have to say, I was like a proud mama when these boys finally got this album out (especially with all the drama they had to deal with...switching labels, opening for kids almost a decade younger than them, etc)...and I am completely and totally holding on hope that this hiatus is not the total end of the band. The PBL is just too strong for them to split forever :)

Tracks: Raise the Dead (absolutely EPIC!) and I Don't Mind (I love Alex's voice on this track!)

2. Mercy (Dancing For The Death of An Imaginary Enemy) by Ours - I still get a little verklempt to think that this album actually, truly exists. I waited four years between Phantom Planet albums...but I waited nearly SIX between Ours albums. I fell head over heels in love with Jimmy and Co. right after the release of Precious....and waited as patiently as possible for a third album. Like I told Jimmy, though, the wait was absolutely worth it. I think this album is extra special because I KNOW this is the album Jimmy has always wanted to release. (I would have waited six more years for him to get it the way he wanted it, too.) It's definitely an Ours record and has a very Ours sound about it...but it sort of feels different, too. It's hard for me to explain, really. But I know this...as dark or brooding or whatever as the band/album may come off as...for me, this album is filled with such energy and life and hope. There are so many songs on the album that, when I listen to them, mae me feel absolutely alive and so happy to be there in that moment and listening to it.

Tracks: Saint (perhaps my new favorite Ours song EVER) and Moth

3. Lend Me Your Eyes EP/Love Your Ground EP by Mumford & Sons - I said it before and I'll say it again...these boys are by far my favorite musical discovery of 2008. I am still surprised by this, though. Who would have though I'd fall for four flannel wearing Brits toting banjos and mandolins and playing some distinctly bluegrass influenced indie-folk? Not me. :P But oh, how I have fallen...honestly, I haven't been this excited for a new act in quite a while and I love it. There's a barrage of hip, British folk acts out there right now but something about Mumford & Sons has really stuck out for me. They've got that country/Americana twist without being TOO jug band hoedown-ish...if that makes any sense. And I just cannot fully verbalize my undying love of Marcus's voice...it's distinct and gruff and powerful and brilliant, really. Now, unfortunately past few months have just been me listening to the same handful of songs over and over since all they officially have out right now are these two EPs....but they've been getting a fair bit of hype in the British music press/blog scene and I'm hoping 2009 brings about a full album and trip back to the states. And quite frankly...I am incredibly smitten with Marcus Mumford and I need to see him/fawn over him/ actually say more than two sentences to him ASAP.

Tracks: Liar and The Banjolin Song

4. Nothing Without You EP by Carney - Another favorite musical discovery this year! I really, really adore these boys, too...and was completely taken with my very first listen (which happened while I was loading three of the four tracks into our computer system at work several months ago.) These boys are a bit of a conundrum to me. The EP is totally heavy and rocking and a bit psychedelic...I get bits of Elton John and Queen and Led Zeppelin and some stompy southern rock. And Reeve's voice is just brilliant...it's got a really unique sound and damn, the boy can scream and wail with the best of them. And then I go and find out Reeve is pretty much singing about Jesus in every other song and I'm like "Oh..." Hahaha. There's no problem with that at all, but it's just an interesting combination! I think it also makes the boys (well, Reeve and his brother Zane, in particular) super down to earth. They all look like a bunch of indie hipsters...but they're all super nice and Reeve especially seems to toe that super indie adorable and the geeky adorable line, haha. I'm hoping 2009 brings a full length for them, too!

Tracks: Imperial Lover and Testify

5. Animal!/Not Animal by Margot & The Nuclear So and So's - One of my favorite bands putting out TWO albums this year is pretty much made of win. I've been itching for new stuff from them and was given an absolute abundance! Admittedly...I did like Not Animal more at first (and obviously felt guilty, since that was the album the label wanted out) but Animal! has most definitely won me over...though both albums have their merits! Vocally, Richard is sounding as wonderful as ever...his is definitely one of my favorites out there currently. And really, lyrically and musically...the band is as interesting and intriguing and complex and amazing as ever. The great thing about an eight piece band is that every song has so many layers to make it what it is. Particularly, the orchestration and percussion on both albums are great...from the strings on "Mariel's Brazen Overture" to the various bangs and claps and plinky piano noises on "As Tall As Cliffs" it's all interesting and integral. Also? This band is absolutely KILLER live (especially Casey in all his percussive, bon vivanting and ascot wearing glory)

Tracks: O! What A Nightmare (Animal!), Real Naked Girls (Not Animal), A Children's Crusade on Acid (both albums)

6. A Larum by Johnny Flynn & The Sussex Wit - I think he's what started my semi-folksy Brit love affair. This was another case of me loading in music for XPN and falling in love with the artist in the process. Front to back, this album is wonderful...I rarely skip any tracks when I listen to it. There's a definitely variety to the sound of album...from straight up folksy fiddle jams to pretty, quiet songs to a few heavier (almost angry sounding) tracks. And lyrically, it feels like it comes from a different place and time than the UK in 2008. Johnny has a really unique voice, too (a bit Ray Davies-ish) that you maybe wouldn't expect coming from a twenty something blonde boy. Though I've only been listening to it for a few months, it most definitely had to make my favorites list.

Tracks: The Wrote And The Writ (I completely adore this song with ever fiber of my being) and Cold Bread

7. Alas, I Cannot Swim by Laura Marling - Despite that this album came out months and months ago, it's only been over the past few months that I've become completely obsessed with it. (Obsessed to the point where it literally stayed in my car CD player for nearly a month straight.) I've said it several times, but I go between adoring and completely envying Laura because she's only 18 years old and is crafting these amazing little songs (songs which, mind you, were nominated for a fucking Mercury Prize this year!). For being only 18...this girl writes some incredibly dour lyrics (things like "It's not like I believe in everlasting love" or, even better, "Cross your fingers, hold your toes, we're all gonna die when the building blows." LULZ LAURA MARLING) but for some strange reason with her, it doesn't seem like a typical teen angsty record or anything. Although the entire album is rather lovely...I most definitely prefer the more (sonically) upbeat tracks on the album (and contrary to popular belief, it's NOT just because you can hear Marcus Mumford doing backup vocals on the upbeat tracks, hahaha.) I hope, for Laura's sake, this is only the beginning of amazing things for her career...and that she doesn't succumb to a sort of Amy Winehouse-like burnout by 20.

Tracks: Ghosts (ok, you can totes hear Marcus on this song!) and Night Terror (which creeps me out in an absolutely delightful way)

8. Vampire Weekend by Vampire Weekend - Yea yea I know...all the hipster hype kinda killed this band for a lot of people, but not for me. These ivy league educated, Rayban sporting, boat shoe wearing ragamuffins sure do know how to write some catchy indie-pop tunes. I love the fun, upbeat, world music-y vibe they have throughout the album, I love Ezra's voice, I love that the lyrics can be so clever and quirky and, in some cases laughably absurd. (I'm sorry, but the prep school thread count Cape Cod type ~*~woes~*~ are lulzy for me, haha) But really, I don't think this is much you're supposed to take 100% seriously, and I like that.

Tracks: One (Blake's Got a New Face) and Walcott

9. The Silver City by Jeremy Messersmith - This one didn't make my XPN list...but I honestly should have put it in there. Because it is so fucking good. I guess I jumped on this one super late (despite the fact that I knew about him a few months ago.) As he put it in his World Cafe interview, he makes "acoustic music with nerd toys" and I absolutely love it. The entire album is so catchy and interesting for me...it has pretty, slow songs and some really upbeat, electronic infused songs. I absolutely adore Jeremy's voice...which is a bit reminiscent of Elliott Smith to me in spots, but definitely unique, as well. And lyrically, Jeremy is quite a talent...he doesn't write about the same old schmoopy schlock that a lot of singer/songwriters do. (He also seems to have an underlying fascination with transportation....several of the songs on the album talk about travel or commuting or things like that.) I just can't fully verbalize the reasons why I love this album, I just do. And yes, I'm a bit smitten with Jeremy, to be honest. He's absolutely darling and I can't wait to see him play live again!

Tracks: Dead End Job (the lyrics and his voice just absolutely kill me) and Miracles

10 Wicked Man's Rest by Passenger - One song got me hooked on this band...and funny enough, that one song sounds very different from anything else on the album! Passenger is pretty much the project of musician Mike Rosenberg...yet another singer I've fallen for that has a very distinct and unique voice! (And he's yet another amazing lyricist I've fallen for, too.) The album is generally a blend of acoustic music mixed with electronic elements...but in a different way than Jeremy Messersmith's music, I'd say. I don't know...the Passenger album has always been a hard one for me to describe, but I do love it. And I had the pleasure of seeing Mike play twice this year. Hearing the songs completely acoustic was definitely a change from the album but I did enjoy it very much!

Tracks: Night Vision Binoculars (Who knew a song about stalkers could be so catchy?) and Walk In The Rain

11. Kingdom Underground by Matt Duke - Ok...I sort of wanted to hate this album, as petty as that sounds. But I just couldn't because in all honesty...it's really good. (It definitely has grown on me a lot since I first heard it!) Matt Duke got himself some time in LA and got himself a bigger producer and turned out an album that is distinctly different than his first. As much as I adore Winter Child, I do like the route he's taken with this album, as well. The overall sound is a lot heavier and fuller...or "meatier" as he put it, which is to be expected considering the expanded resources he had this time around. (God, I wish I could find that absurd six pages of notes I wrote down when I first listened to the album, ha.) His voice sounds great (to be expected) and lyrically...it's classic Matt. There are these completely angry and dour songs...songs that are totally lyrically quirky...songs based off Kurt Vonnegut stores and other pieces of literature. (Funny enough the one song I dislike most on the album is the closest thing he's written to a love song that I know of, ha.) If he keeps going in the direction he's going in, I have a feeling that he has the potential to at least somewhat crack into the big music scene. He's got the talent and ability and, admittedly, he deserves it.

Tracks: The Father, The Son and the Harlot's Ghost and Spilt Milk

12. Aiming for Honesty by Jesse Ruben - Jesse Ruben's a local boy who put out a pretty solid debut album earlier this year. I mean...to be honest, there's nothing groundbreakingly incredible about the album. Jesse's your standard singer/songwriter I'd say...but something about this album really caught me earlier this year. The songs are pretty and simplistic and catchy as hell, his voice is pretty, he's a pretty good guitarist. Like I said, nothing absolutely remarkable about it but it's a nice album...and sometimes that's completely OK :) I have to say though I do prefer him live! He's got a bit of a Matt Nathanson-esque story telling ability...but definitely PG rated in comparison haha :)

Tracks: Advice and Point Me In The Right Direction

Honorable Mention: Songs For The Road by David Ford - I think this album technically was released last year, thus I didn't include it (It would have been quite high on my list, to be honest) but I have to mention it because I discovered it in early 2008 and am forever grateful, seriously :) David Ford is such an incredible and unique talent...every time I saw him live this year, he made me think to myself "Why do singers even bother touring with bands anymore when they can do this and this?" :P But yes...outside of his amazing live show, his album is also great. A bit dour, perhaps (which is funny because he seems to be quite a pleasant, cheerful person off stage) but great. He's yet another one with a quirky kind of voice...a bit reminiscent of a much gruffer voiced, folksy and British Damien Rice, maybe? Whoever he sounds like, though, it's definitely all excellent. Hopefully I'll catch him a few more times in 2009...especially since he has said time and time again how much he enjoys playing in Philadelphia!

Tracks: Decimate and Song For The Road (this song is so insanely lovely and adorable and sweet and unggg).

I'm sure as that went along, it got less and less coherent, ha. It seriously took me about two full days to write this, though, and I'm just glad it got finished! Having it fully coherent, as well, would have been a miracle.

Aaaaaand, despite that this took me forever, there may be a part two to follow. I also made a list up of things that were released in 2008 that I kinda dug that, for one reason or another, I didn't really give as much attention to as I should have or fully listened to...or things that I discovered later in the year that I only just now getting really in to.