Working in an office, countless custom Pandora stations and an EMUSIC.COM account made 2008 a year of non-stop music. 2008 also marks the first year that my music purchases went all digital. As a result of I ended up spending more money on music then I probably had in the past two years.

	10. FOALS – Antidotes (Sub Pop) It’s amazing that Antidotes isn’t showing up on more “best of” lists, but I suppose that is a result of the short term memory / infatuation timeframe of the blog world. In a sea of soundalike, FOALS did something truly distinctive. What isn’t there to love about this album? They’ve firmly mastered the art of mixing finger tapping with well crafted core songwriting while throwing in horns to boot!
	9. ANATHALLO – Canopy Glow (Anticon) I would have never expected this album to end up on my top ten list. While it is hampered by their bloated songwriting, the bright spots on this album are too fantastic to ignore. My favorite songs are the ones that are uncharacteristically minimalist (“The River”, “Northern Lights”).
	8. HEADLIGHTS – Some Racing, Some Stopping (Polyvinyl) Talk about criminally underappreciated! Some Racing, Some Stopping isn’t my favorite of their three albums, but this album and band shouldn’t be toiling in semi-obscurity. Perhaps it was bad single selection (“Cherry Tulips” – snooze) or perhaps the world just works in terrible ways. Need proof? Listen to “Market Girl” and “Get Your Head Around It”.
	7. CUT COPY – In Ghost Colors (Modular) It was 1AM, I’d been awake for 24 hours, had been carrying a 20lb backpack all day, but I still made it to CUT COPY’S first SXSW ’08 performance. Why? Because In Ghost Colors is such a diverse, well crafted electronic album. The album doesn’t beat you over the head with hooks and it isn’t the danciest album, but it hits all the right places at all the right times.
	6. LONGWAVE – Secrets Are Sinister (Original Signal) I think I saw LONGWAVE more times this year than any other band. I was a huge fan of their previous album, There’s A Fire, and although Secrets Are Sinister is far more arena rock, it is flawless in every way. I don’t like instrumental bands, but I do love bands that merge lush instrumentals with great core songwriting and this is one of those records.
	5. THE WEEPIES – Hideaway (Nettwerk) I have a strange relationship with albums released by my employer; I don’t get into them until I hear about them from third party. In this case it was the Paste sampler that got me on board with THE WEEPIES. My dad said that this album is “perfect for grocery shopping.” It was a knock, but it is true. The songs are light, subtly hooky acoustic-Greys Anatomy fare and I love it. Full disclosure: I work for the company that released this album.
	4. CSS – Donkey (Sub Pop) Donkey was a commercial flop compared to CSS’ ’06 debut, but it is one of the best dance-rock albums I’ve heard all year. Everything is a cut above their debut from the songwriting, to performances to production. The strongest aspect of the album may be the variety. Every song is upbeat and energetic yet distinctive. The lyrics may still be a little silly, but there isn’t a song on this album that I’d skip.
	3.) LEMURIA – Get Better (Asian Man) I heard Get Better late last year on Punknews.org and it has made it all the way to the end of ’08. The music meshes THAT DOG with The LEMONHEADS and couples it with Sheena Ozzella’s powerful high notes that just kill it. The performances are extremely rough, but the rawness makes it endearing. I suppose this means I should never count Mike Park / Asian Man Records out.
	2.) THE ARKELLS – Jackson Square (Dine Alone Records) Jackson Square is a soul rock album that is as much Grohl as it is Springsteen. While their label mates ATTACK IN BLACK ended up on countless top ten lists in ’07, THE ARKELLS have been largely ignored by the stateside music press. They operate in the same space as SPOON, WHITE RABBITS and THE WALKMEN, but don’t share the restricted air of cool reserve. Expect to see this on many “albums from ’08 I overlooked” lists.
	1.) UNDEROATH – The Sound of Separation (Tooth & Nail) The fourth album from the Florida Christian emo-turned-metalcore band logically picks up and moves beyond where Define The Great Line left off. The sheer unrelenting brutality initially turned me off, but my iTunes play counts speak for itself. The album lyrically documents Spencer Chamberlain’s experiences with drug addiction adding a layer of genuine struggle to their praisey lyrics. After three outstanding albums, UNDEROATH have earned a place in my “favorite bands of all time” list.

EP OF THE YEAR:

THE SUMMER SET – …In Color (Militia Group) A pop punk album comes along every year that I honestly shouldn’t like, but somehow love. I have no clue what it is about …In Color, but this album totally does it for me. They don’t do anything original and the vocals are very boy band pop punk, but every song is undeniably hooky.

OKAY-ISH FULL LENGTH ALBUM THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN PERFECT EP:

FALL OUT BOY – Folie A Deux (Island) I give the Chicago quartet credit for not resting on their laurels and trying new things with each album. The net result of said experimentation is that some songs are spot on (“Disloyal Order of Water Buffalo”, “Coffee Is For Closers”, “Headfirst Into Cooperstown”, “Tiffany Blews”) while others fall flat (every other song on the album).

FAVORITE SINGLES ON OKAY-ISH ALBUMS: THE BROKEN WEST – “Auctioneer” FRANK TURNER – “Photosynthesis” COPELAND – “The Grey Man” BRAZILIAN GIRLS – “Good Time” DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE – “Cath” PASSENGER – “Night Vision Binoculars” WALTER MEEGO – “Girls” ALBUM FROM ’07 I FINALLY GOT INTO IN ’08: PARAMORE – Riot (Fueled By Ramen) I’ve known about this band from their days playing the “girls stage” on Warped Tour ’05 and they never did it for me. It wasn’t until they released the single “That’s What You Get” that I finally got on board. LET DOWN ALBUMS OF THE YEAR: THE FAINT – Fasciinatiion (Blank.Wav) After two flawless albums, I had to wait four years for this? I’d love to comment more on it, but I was so bored by it that I only gave it one or two listens and promptly forgot about it. MARGOT & THE NUCLEAR SO & SOS – Animal / Not Animal (Epic) This was the album I was looking forward to more than any album this year. It was released in two versions (their version / the label’s version), but both were snoozy. I got it a little more when I saw them perform the songs live, but the recordings fell flat. Ultra let down!