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Best of 2008: Top 50 Albums of 2008

I’m an old soul. I’ve been reading reports about how the album format is dead, and that more and more people are choosing to buy a couple of singles from iTunes than cop a full album from your local mom and pop record store. Times have changed, and I’m sure that writing is on the wall for the album format, just like it is for newspapers, magazines, and broadcast television.

But as much as I love tracks and remixes, there is nothing that substitutes for an album. Sure, ANYBODY can create a track these days, but it still takes a true artist to create an album.

My top 50 albums of the year might surprise some of y’all. First off, there is a scarcity of hip-hop in the top 15 albums. Also, the biggest album of the year, Lil’ Wayne’s Tha Carter III is at 49. And finally, the album is missing some critical favorites, such as Black Milk’s Tronic. But hey, it is what it is. These albums are the one’s that I’ve listened to in 2008, and unfortunately Tronic slipped through the cracks. Also, to those who lament the lack of hip-hop, I offer no apologies. This list is compiled from how many spins each album got on my iPod, and just like that female at the club, I can’t help what I’m attracted to.

Without further adieu, here is the list. The top 15 is here with the rest after the jump.

15.) Wale - The Mixtape About Nothing

Even though he didn’t even drop an album, Wale has had a big year. The DC rapper has been on everybody’s “it” list in ‘08, and the 2009 debut is going to be massive. This year, the dude had the nerve to create a Seinfeld (a show which I’m boycotting because of you know who), and still retain his swag. Even if you question his 90s television refrences, you have to agree that he’s one of the best upcoming rappers in the game right now.

14.) Brittany Bosco - Spectrum EP

Brittnay Bosco is going to tear s*#t up in 2009. The Savannah/Atlanta artist’s EP showed a creativity and versatility that most R&B singers lack these days.

13.) Estelle - Shine

Performance wise Adele blows Estelle out the water, however, I found myself enjoying Estelle’s album Shine even more than 19. Producers like Kanye, Will.I.Am, and Wyclef created an album that not only had pop hits like “American Boy,” but more mellow tracks like “Back In Love.” This album isn’t no Miseducation, but a classic nonetheless.

12.) Solange - Sol Angel and The Hadley Street Dreams

While Beyonce was busy being Sasha Fierce, her little sister crafted one of the best R&B albums of the year. Whether Solange’s love of Dilla and Zero 7 is genuine or a record company ruse is yet to be known. However, Solange is taking the place of Kelis as the left-field R&B chick everybody wants to get with.

11.) Santogold - Santogold

Santi White’s first solo album carries over her rock sensibilities from her punk days while incorporating that Brooklyn hipster swag that is the big thing in music nowadays. This was a big year for Santi, who not only got sampled by Kanye (a feat usually reserved for 70s era soul singers), but also by licencing every track of her album for TV shows, movies, and commercials, ensuring that she will be getting paper well into 2009.

10.) The Black Keys - Attack and Release

Attack and Release started out as collaboration with Ike Turner until his death in 2007, which would have been off the chain. However, what remains is The Black Key’s finest album to date. The Danger Mouse produced disc is their first studio-recorded album and their best selling so far.

9.) Danny - And I Love Her

Danny Swain is still the most underrated hip-hop artist of the past decade. The Couch Sessions Approved artist has been creating hot tracksfor years now, and he’s past dude for his shine. And I Love H.E.R. is a concept album that was better executed than most, with Danny’s nonchalant rhymes and incredible beats (with some of the most random samples imaginable), make this album a hip-hop lover’s dream.

8.) Lykke Li - Youth Novels

I initially dismissed Lykke Li, but she had me at this one line from her track “Little Bit”: “For you I keep my legs apart/and forget about my broken heart.” From that moment I was sold. The album itself is a stripped down, organic affair with Lykke’s voice being the main instrumental. And the girl has cred with fans like David Banner, Kanye, and Q-Tip among others.

7.) TV On The Radio - Dear Science

As someone who simply hated TVOTR’s disjointed musical style and downright depressing lyrics, I was so presently surprised by their new album that it made the top 10. TVOTR made a downright upbeat and danceable album that still retains their trademark vocal styling and instrumentation.

6.) Kanye West - 808 and Heartbreaks

I had REAL low expectations for Kanye’s venture into experimental avant garde emo and thought that this album would be a dud. However, Kanye not only knocked this one out of the park but AGAIN flipped the script on Black popular music in America. You may hate Kanye all you want (and I still do), but let’s face it: Kanye West is Steve Jobs. He’s a outlier (props to Malcom Gladwell) who sees the future and where music is headed way before we can comprehend it. Just like Job’s said we wouldn’t be using floppy drives way back in 1998.

5.) Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple

Even though Gnarl’s sophomore release didn’t get the attention or sales numbers it deserved, the Atlanta duo’s return marked their best work so far. Their lead single “Run,” couldn’t match the juggernaut that was “Crazy,” but songs like “Can You Save My Soul?” and “Going On,” have cemented the duo as a musical force.

4.) Q-Tip - The Renaissance

Q-Tip’s return to the rap game marked a return to the golden era rap that hip-hop needs right now. Q-Tip never really changed his formula from Amplified, yet crafted an album that that the grown and sexy can cling to without being ultra nostaglic about the past.

3.) Jazzanova - Of All Things

Jazzanova makes music for people who love music. I’m not talking about people who love to dance to music or those who simply just cop CDs or go to concerts, but for those who are simply obsessed with the art of music. The German collective has arranged some of the greatest heard and underheard talent this year–Phonte, Dwele, Jose James, Bembe Segue and Ben Westembach to name a few and created music around each artists’ personal style. This album should be in every music lover’s collection.

2.) Raphael Saadiq - The Way I See It

When I heard Raphael Saadiq was doing a Motown album, I dismissed it outright. I thought that he was yet another artist jumping on the bandwagon. Even if The Way I See It could be called “bandwagon jumping,” Saadiq has not only set a standard for what a revival album should sound like, but raised the bar so high that I doubt any artist will ever come close.

1.) Foreign Exchange - Leave It All Behind

When Foreign Exchange dropped their latest album, I almost felt like it spoke to me. Phonte’s soulful voice, combined with Nicolay’s always organic, smooth beats, made this album a must own for frustrated rap fans like myself that wanted something deeper in their music. Instead of played out cliche’s about poppin’ champange in the club, the duo made an album about breakups, and self deprecation. Billbord chart topper? No. But do we really care anymore?

Albums 50-16 after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Brittany Bosco, Danny Swain, Estelle, Foreign Exchange, Gnarls Barkley, Jazzanova, Kanye West, Lykke Li, Q-Tip, Raphael Saadiq, Santogold, Solange, The Black Keys, TV On The Radio, Wale

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Reader Best of 2008: Madeline

Sam Sparro

This year, instead of just having me yap on about my Best of lists, I reached out to several of our readers to give their Top 5 of the best releases of the year. I’ll be profiling a new reader each day until the end of the 2008. Today’s reader is Madeline, who resides in DC, and who you might remember provided us the pictures from U street on Election Night.

Name: Madeline
Location: Washington, DC

Albums:
Brazilian Girls- New York City
Raphael Saadiq- The Way I See It
Thievery Corporation- Radio Retaliation
Q-Tip- The Renaissance
Santogold- Santogold

Songs:
Ray LaMontagne- I Still Care For You
Sam Sparro - Black and Gold
MGMT- Electric Feel
Adele- Chasing Pavements

Tags: Brazilian Girls, Q-Tip, Raphael Saadiq, Santogold, Thievery Corporation

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Reader Best of 2008: Lizelle of Stereo Cupcake

J*Davey

This year, instead of just having me yap on about my Best of lists, I reached out to several of our readers to give their Top 5 of the best releases of the year. I’ll be profiling a new reader each day until the end of the 2008. Today’s reader is Lizelle of the music blog Stereo Cupcake, which is one of the best music sites I’ve stumbled upon in the past year.

Name: Lizelle
Location: Brooklyn/Switzerland
Blog: www.stereocupcake.com

Top 5:
1. Sam Sparro - Sam Sparro
2. School of Seven Bells - Alpinisms
3. J*Davey - Land of the Lost/Beauty in Distortion (even though technically the material isn’t from ‘08)
4. Santogold - Santogold
5. One Ting (Dabrye remix) - King Midas Sound

Tags: j*davey, King Midas Sound, Sam Sparro, Santogold, School of Seven Bells, Stereo Cupcake

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Reader Best of 2008: Ian of Different Kitchen

1. Santogold - Santogold album
2. Q-tip - The Renaissance album
3. The Game - LAX album
4. Jazmine Sullivan - “Need You Bad”
5. Lil Wayne - “A Milli”

Tags: Jazmine Sullivan, Lil' Wayne, Q-Tip, Santogold, The Game

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Reader Best of 2008: Lady Glock

Thunderheist

This year, instead of just having me yap on about my Best of lists, I reached out to several of our readers to give their Top 5 of the best releases of the year. I’ll be profiling a new reader each day until the end of the 2008.

Today’s writer needs no introduction. Lady Glock is a fixture on both sides of the Atlantic. Check out her website at ladyglockphotography.wordpress.com.

Name: Lady Glock
Location: Washington, DC
Website: ladyglockphotography.wordpress.com

Top Five (In no particular order)

1. Jerk It – Thunderheist
2. Walking on a Dream – Empire of the Sun
3. Going On – Gnarls Barkley
4. Lights Out -Santogold
5. Day & Nite (Crookers Remix) - Kid Cudi

Runners Up (In no particular order)

1. Magic – Robin Thicke
2. A Milli – Lil Wayne
3. Rolex It Up (The Heatwave Refix) – Beenie Man & Wiley
4. Inna Da Ghetto - Diplo & Buraka Som Sistema
5. Electric Feel – MGMT

Honorable Mention

1. Biko – Bloc Party

Tags: Beenie Man, diplo, Empire of the Sun, Gnarls Barkley, Kid Cudi, Lil' Wayne, MGMT, Robin Thicke, Santogold, Thunderheist, Wiley

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N.A.S.A. ft. Kanye West, Santogold & Lykke Li - Gifted

N.A.S.A. ft. Kanye West, Santogold & Lykke Li - Gifted

Lykke Li is a goddess. I haven’t posted about her (or my love for her) that much on this blog because I thought she would be a little bit to hipster for the hip-hop heads, but today I’m coming clean with my obsession with the Swedish songstress. I’ve got a heads up about this track from my boy in Brooklyn for about a month now, and it ended up leaking to the ‘net a couple months earlier than expected. N.A.S.A. (North America South Americal) is the new project from Sam Spiegel (brother of Spike Jonze) and DJ Zegon called The Spirit Of Apollo which drops on February 17th, 2009.

With so much talent on the track, I’m not feeling it as much as I should. Hopefully it will grow on me after several listens. The Kanye haters are gonna have a field day with this one.

Tags: Kanye West, Lykke Li, N.A.S.A., Santogold

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Video: Jay-Z Feat Santogold - Brooklyn Go Hard

I know that “the streets” might not feel this one, but as someone who is a Senior IT professional and a self-confessed computer nerd, it warms my heart to see that the video for the hot new single “Brooklyn Go Hard,” is actually an open source word cloud done by Evan Roth. And yes, even though this looks like the doings of a random computer nerd, it’s apparently official:

“Last week I was contacted to make a video for a new Kanye West produced Jay-Z song for RED & the Global Fund to Fight AIDS in Africa. It launched today (World AIDS Day) at red.msn.com. And while I’m happy to be able to help the cause I’m also more than a little bit excited about getting a chance to make something for the likes of Jay-Z and Kanye.”

Even also provides a link to download the source code, so nerds like me can create their own videos.

Personally, I feel that this is very dope and very creative, but I understand people who don’t get it. Even so, is this the first open source rap video?

Jay-Z on iLike - Get updates inside iTunes

Tags: jay-z, Santogold

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Hip-Hop, Negroclash!

New Music: Jay-Z feat Santogold - Brooklyn Go Hard

Jay-Z feat Santogold - Brooklyn Go Hard

Even though the verdict might still be out on Kanye’s latest project, Mr. West proves that at least his production game is still top notch. Ye flips Santogold’s “Brooklyn we go hard” line from her song” Shove It,” to perfection, topped off with a dub beat, which I didn’t even think Kanye could mess with. And of course, the “retired” MC is still better than most so-called rappers even when he phones it in, which he does here. Unfortunately, this will renew the Santogold vs. MIA rumors that plague the internet. Which hipster female had the best hook on a Kanye-produced track? That’s up for internet nerds to debate. Until then, enjoy the music. “Brooklyn Go Hard,” is going to be on the Notorious soundtrack which drops on January 16th.

Tags: jay-z, Kanye West, Santogold

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Hip-Hop

Zion I Drops New Remixes With Talib, Santogold

Zion I feat. The Grouch - One(Santogold Starstruck Remix)

Zion I feat. Talib Kweli - Gotsta Chill (Temperature RMX)

Tapes N Tapes- The Dirty Dirty (Amp Live Recession Remix)

Zion-I, the potent Oakland duo of Amplive and Zumbi have been out of the spotlight since around 2006. Amplive, generated interest his own news for his Radiohead Rainydayz Remixes which drew cititcal acclaim from the blogs and scrutiny from Radiohead’s publisher Warner Chappelle. In January, the duo will release their long awaited album The Takeover, which drops in January. However, before that happens, the duo is dropping the Search and Seizure Mixtape on limited edition cassette this month.

Cassette? Seriously? Do we really NEED to be this old school?

Anyway, even though the nature of releasing material on a long dead format can be questioned, the music cannot. The three tracks I’ve heard so far from the mixtape are fire. Amplive does a decent job of flipping Santogold’s “One,” and Talib stop by to drop a verse on a remix of Zion I’s “Temperature.” I really like the remix of “Recession Remix,” of Tapes n Tapes’ (a band that I really didn’t mess with until today) The Dirty Dirty but I can do without the whole “recession” part.

What do you think?

Tags: Amplive, Santogold, Talib Kweli, Tapes N Tapes, Zion I

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Santogold Tour Dates

Santogold, who dropped one of this years best albums is going on tour and headlining this time. Even though her album didn’t do stellar numbers, she’s still getting that ad money–there are two new ads for the Ford Flex (aka  the uglest ass car I’ve seen this year) that features a new remix of “”L.E.S. Artistes”by Squeak E. Clean.

Unlike some of her performances, Santi will be fronting a full band.

Tour Dates

09/19: New York, NY @ Fillmore at Irving Plaza
09/20: Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
09/23: Philadelphia, PA @ TLA
09/24: Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre
09/25: Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
09/27: Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall
09/28: Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
09/30: Lawrence, KS @ Liberty Hall
10/01: Denver, CO @ Gothic Theatre
10/04: Seattle, WA @ Showbox
10/05: Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
10/07: San Francisco, CA @ Fillmore
10/10: San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
10/11: Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues
10/13: Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues
10/14: Los Angeles, CA @ Wiltern

Tags: Santogold

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