Does music get any better than this? Its like Zeppelin reincarnate. I put Broken Boy Soldiers at #2 in my 2006 list, this album edged out Blitzen and Franti just because I think I have warped the CD listening to it so much in my truck. The Raconteurs announced this album a week before it came out, they released both the album and the first single on their website (and I think iTunes) with pretty much no time before the announcement and also no media hooplah/advertising. I assume this was done because they wanted to get it out the door and let it stand on its own merits before it was written up by critics and psuedo-critics/bloggers (me-this list). Every single song on this album is just a beast of its own. Salute Your Solution was a great pick for the first single, but I think my favorite has to be the Ennio Morricone inspired The Switch and the Spur. Old Enough seems to be the song that most sticks in my mind that I find my self humming the most probably because of the fiddle at the beginning. There is also a version floating around I have heard that features Ricky Skaggs and Ashely Monroe that is great, although I probably have to say I like this album's recording the best. The cover of Terry Reid's Rich Kid Blues is awesome, but I think that Benson/Whites song writing really shines on Carolina Drama. Hold Up could have been a Pearl Jam song, and These Stones kinda sounds a bit out of place, but none the less a great song. Overall a great great album in a year where there was a lot of great competition.

Where the hell did these guys come from? We were in the car and I heard Black River Killer on XM and was just completly floored. A great song semi-disturbing lyrics, but very moving overall. I am sure most people will say that is the brightiest star on the cd, but I personally don't think one bad song exists on this album. Furr is a great track, it reminds me of The Shins mixed with a little Wilco. God & Suicide is excellent as is Stolen Shoes and a Rifle. Amazing CD, so glad I picked it up and can't really say enough about it. It was VERY VERY close to being #1 for me. Had it been released earlier in the year, it very well might have been my #1, as it continues to grow on me more and more each day.

A Little Bit Of Riddim' is THE Groove and beat of the year. There are soooo many wonderful beats on this album. There was a period this year when parts of this album were played every night after dinner in our kitchen and the wife, myself and the little one would just dance around. Franti/Spearhead have a great ability to take a politically charged message and amplify it with just insane music. I don't think people can listen to this album and not want to move in some manner. The tracks with Cherine Anderson are a highlight, I don't know that much about her but she seems to add a lot to each of those songs. I think Little Bit of Riddim' and Soundsystem (both with Anderson) are just built for head bobbing, there are also some laid back dub-ish tracks and some real slow gems (All I Want is You) on this album also. It was really tough not putting this album in the #1 spot, but I think it was just up against some tough competition.

If you don't own this album, go out and buy it. Although not my #1 this year, I have probably listened to this album more than any other album this year except Consolers. Parts of this record feel like I am listening to a late 90s garage rock band, and in others more jostling indie music. I heard their first album, but never purchased it. I went back and listened to it a few times and it doesn't hold a candle to this album in any way for me personally. This album doesn't really shine because of one part (lyrics/guitar/drums) it just seems to all work together very well.

Pretty much the comeback of the year in my opinion for me. I love Oasis. I have been a HUGE fan since Morning Glory and loved everyone of their albums up until Don't Belive the Truth. For some reason I don't think I 'got' Don't Belive The Truth. I gave it a fair shake and listened to it atleast 10 times all the way through. Lyla was a good song, but everything else just seemed hoo hum. So I was awaiting to see what Dig Out Your Soul ended up in my mind, and I am pleased to say it was easily in my top 5 albums of the year. It is an "all the way round" album with me in which I really don't think there is one song on it that I don't like. Highlights for me include Bag It Up, Waiting for the Rapture and Nature of Reality.

I bought this album on a whim a few months ago. Amazon had it as their 'deal of the day' for $2.99 and I had heard some of Landreth's guitar before, but never owned any of his albums. This was probably the best $3 I have ever spent in a long time. Blue Tarp Blues ( w/Mark Knopfler) should go down as one of the best songs/records of the year. Also The Goin' On (w/ Vince Gill) is an amazing amazing song. I would love to see some more collaborations between the two. Also Storm of Worry (w/ Slowhand) is great also. If you love guitar, this album is just phenomenal. I can't wait till he visits the ATL area again to try and see him live.

I stayed up till midnight waiting for this album to hit Amazon MP3. In case anyone is wondering I think it has to be midnight across the entire US before they will release it to download because I remember being up till about 2 and then saying forget it and went to bed. Although it isn't a Cold Roses (#1 in my 2005 list), this was still a great release. I have seen this album advertised as "Ryan Adams & The Cardinals", "Ryan Adams", and "The Cardinals" so I assume that there is a meshing of him with the band that might end up (as the case of the last one) as just one band. I think that sounds a bit like the direction of this album just because this album feels like it was made by a band. I really wish I would have saw them on tour this year because I would have loved to seen them perform this album (or parts of it live). Magick should be the next single. Great song.

I don't know if there is a day that has gone by since this album was released in which I haven't hummed "More Bacon than the pan can haaaaandle". Doughty just has such a unique voice that people that don't know who he is can listen to this album and say "hey is that the guy from Soul Coughing"? the album is very similar to a SC album, great distinctive drums, no overbearing guitar, great lyrics and just all around fun to listen too. Best song on album: I Wrote a Song About Your Car.

This is one of those albums I never really know how to clasify if someone asks me. It is kinda bluesy but also has some biting rock in parts. A lot of people compare them to the White Stripes which is fair I guess, but I think they sound a little more blues. Psychotic Girl is probably the highlight on the album just for the Banjo intro and then a great drum beat. As odd as it sounds every time I play this record I always think to myself, "self, this would be some great yard work music". I am not sure what exactly that means, nor if the band would enjoy me saying that about their creation, but I choose my yard work music seriously (when I do it) so I think it should be considered a compliment. I think. If they don't think it is, then I hope placing them here at #9 is.

It seems like forever ago this album came out. I had to go back and make sure that it was released in 2008 as opposed to 2007. It was the hearlded come back by what is, in my humble opinion, one of the top 10 bands of the 90s. Overall I really liked this album a lot just because it really didn't sound like it treaded any new ground with me (with maybe the exception of Whoa mule) It just sounded like it could have fit well in the middle of Southern Harmony, and personally I love that. Goodbye Daughters is an awesome single, I don't listen to too much terestrial radio so I don't know how well it faired in radioland but it sounded like the "net critics" really enjoyed it also. I wouldn't be surprised to see it popping up on a bunch of top X lists this year.

We first heard Zach Gill at a Jack Johnson show a few years ago playing with A.L.O. (and also with Jack Johnson's band) and I remember thinking about how unique his voice was. I picked up Fly Between Falls / Roses & Clover (ALO) and enjoying them but I really didn't think to much about thema after a few spins. When I heard he had a solo cd coming out, I was intrigued and very glad I picked it up. It is very similar to Johnson's laid back surf vibe but his voice and the piano give it a new twist. Lyrically I absolutely love the album. I think Don't Touch My Stuff, Bettina and Watch Them Grow lyrically rival any song on any of the albums in this list.

I remember when The Black Kids released their first EP on the net 'The Wizard of Ahs' and after listening to it I knew their debut was going to be big. I think these guys have been playing on awards shows and a whole mess of other stuff. This was a fantastic album all the way through. I think some of the songs start to blend in my head a bit, some of them do not have a distinctness, but I bet that probably just comes with writting/putting out more records. Hurricane Jane is and will always probably be my favorite song on the album. I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance and Hittin' the Heart Breaks are also stellar though.

Another phenominal album, with a phenominal price point for people who want to try out a NIN album. After Ghosts I didn't think we would see any other albums from NIN/Reznor until next year then The Slip came out and was full on NIN. Excellent album, I love the promotional tieins with fans and it also is great that whenever I see stuff like Amazon's Best Sellign MP3 Albums of 2008 and see one of his albums at the top. The Slip is a great album, I really enjoyed Year Zero I think a slight bit more, probably because of the ARG and other more storyline-ish sequence of the songs on it. I didn't find that much cohesiveness in this album, but the songs are all steller, my favorites: Echoplex and The Four of Us Are Dying. Also as odd of a detail as it is, I really enjoy that if you downloaded the official version then each song has a different album image in it. There is probably a lot more to it (another game?), probably more worth looking into.

From the opening salvo of Chinese Blues I knew I was gonna love this CD. It feels a lot like U16 Girls ish Good Feeling Era Travis. I started listening to Travis when The Invisible Band came out and then went and filled in their back catalog and really found myself listening to Good Feeling more than anything. I rated The Boy With No Name at #13 last year, J Smith sounds like a different album than that though (only 1 year apart). Boy With No Name sounds more slower tempo in line with The Man Who, where, like I mentioned previously, this is more rockish. I like both sounds out of Travis and would certainly suggest this album to anyone.

I really wanted to put this higher in my list, but there are just some spots on the album that while not bad, just didn't hit me like previous Verve albums have. I am a huge Richard Ashcroft fan and expected a lot out of this album and while I wasn't let down, but I think I have listened to so much more solo work of his that I am not used to the full bands sound. It sounds like a downing this album though and that could be farther from the truth, I just expected I would like it so much more than I did. As compared to most albums it is still a stellar release and Love is Noise is a winning single. Also Sit and Wonder and Judas are phenomenal songs.

Seal? On My top 20? So for the first time Seal releases an album of non original material. I knew I would probably like it once I saw the song selections, but I was surprised to see how much they actually parallel the originals. I expected him to put a lot more of a newer twist on a lot of them, but after listening to this CD probably 12+ times so far this year I have to say that I think that I am glad he didn't go off the deep end with any of the songs. Best cover on the album: BY FAR I Can't Stand The Rain. I think i have listened to it at least a 30 times in my truck. Great cover, the album as a whole was a surprise for me honestly, I have always been a huge fan of his original stuff, but generally not his covers (Fly Like An Eagle, etc).

I don't know if I would say I have always been a big Elbow fan, but I did pick up and enjoy Asleep in the back right as I got out of college and remember playing it a whole mess of rotations when I was programming at my first 'real' job out of school. It was a great record, but I remember hearing Cast of Thousands a few years later and not being all that impressed. The lead singer certainly has a voice that lends itself to certain songs for me, but I think that with Seldom Seen Kid they hit every single song on the album with the matchup. Again, not sure if it is just something happening with albums now or what, but this album definitely sounds a lot more "fuller" where as I get the feeling like certain songs are getting recorded in a large empty room (Loneleness of a Tower Crane Driver, etc). But to me if you are going to pick up one Elbow album out of the 4 I would certainly go with this one.

Keane stole my #1 spot in 2005 with Hopes & Fears and then their album Under the Iron Sea I ranked #4 in 2006 so it is only natural that Perfect Symmetry would show up here, although not ranked as high this year I think Perfect Symmetry is a great album albeit a bit different to me personally as their 2 previous albums. It seems A LOT more upbeat and almost "ready for remix" in parts. The beats are great, lyrically I don't think it is as good as Hopes & Fears, but still very very good and better than 90% of whats out there. I think this album is probably full of more pop/radio friendly music than their two previous albums and I am honestly surprised it has not gotten more popular than it has here in the states.

Coldplay just always seems to be a staple on my lists, I think they are a great band and this was a great album. There is only one bone I have to pick with this album as compared to their previous albums though is the number of interludes bother me sometimes on this album. Sometimes they just seems to come out of no where, and the one at the end of Lover in Japan sounds I dislike a lot for some reason, but other than that I really like the rest of the album as a whole. I think Cemeteries of London and Strawberry Swing might be some of their best work to date. I think some small things are really what kept me from ranking this album higher, but I certainly think it is an album worthy on its $12 even with all its hype and controversy.

This record is just all over the place. There are songs I would call Disco, songs I would call Rock and even some jazzier stuff and for some reason it just all seems to fit. I didn't really follow My Morning Jacket during their early stuff, the first album I had ever heard from them was Okonokosm a live Album, but after the first few listens of this album it started to sound more and more like the Flaming Lips (and it isn't just do to James voice). This was a really well put together album though and like I said if you took each song and put them randomly on an album I don't think you would be wondering where the cohesiveness is, but with the order they are in it just seems to work.

I am a huge Arctic Monkeys fan, Alex Turner with The Arctic Monkeys has been in 2 of my last top 25s (Favourite Worst Nightmare at #17 / 2007 and Whatever People Say I am.. at #9 in 2006) so when I heard that he was doing a side project with a former friend from the Rascals and a composer I was certainly intrigued. Everything I read on this album when it came on was compared to early Bowie, having not listened to too much early Bowie I don't really know how to compare it to it, but it is certainly more groove to me than the general bite of an Arctic Monkeys record. But it works really well with Turners voice (you probably would have had a hard time convincing me of that before I heard the album). Great album though, I hope the three continue to work together on new material (but Turner doesn't do anything rash with the monkeys).

This album will end up having 4 or 5 singles on the teeny bopper charts and terrestrial radio. It is that good and I think it deserves all the critical acclaim throw at it also. Me and my wife fell in love with Mraz (and Toca!) music back when we first picked up Waiting For My Rocket. Lyrically I didn't know if he would ever surpass Rocket and honestly I am not sure that this album did (with maybe the exception of Love For A Child), BUT musically I REALLY enjoy not only how much more lush and full this album sounds as compared to his older albums. Making him sound more full would be really hard in my opinion because I think most of the time that i listen to Mraz it is in an acoustic setting and that is the way I have gotten used to listening to it. This album was a HUGE turning point on a national stage I think for him, and gratz to him on it. He deserves it, he was very underrated before.

I started listening to Common when he put out Electric Circus. Something about that album was just so different than a lot of the non-gangster rap I was listening to at the time. Since, I have picked up all his new albums as each one is usually on an extreme as to how much I like it. Be was a great album, but then after purchasing Finding Forever last year i kinda was bummed in the direction it sounded like he was headed with the album. This album was a breath of fresh air though. redonkulous beats, great lyrics. It has the artisitc cred of electric circus, but has a groove of its own.

I remember when I first heard Supergrass' "Moving" off their album and decided that I jsut had to have it off their self titled album (which at the time thought was their only record). I was in college at the time and literally kept my fingers crossed that I would find the entire album at the used record shop near Wuxtry in Athens, I was in luck after flipping through their plastic cd covers and found that wicked xray looking cover and although I don't think I enjoyed the rest of the album as much as moving, still thought it was a great album overall. I also remember picking up their next album Life on Other Planets and not really being that impressed by it, I didn't feel like it had the soul that Supergrass/Supergrass had. I was actually really impressed with Road to Rouen which I thought was a kinda a departure for Supergrass. Then I picked up Diamond Hoo Haa this year. This was a really different Supergrass album for me. I honestly think it is more rock driven than previous and the guitar is great, well the whole album is great to be honest. After their greatest hits album I thought they might be close to calling it quits, but after this album I can only expect more good things from them.

I fell in love with Final Straw when it came out in 2003, I had never heard of Snow Patrol before then and honestly thought they were going to be as big as coldplay for awhile there. Eyes open was a good follow up, but I think they were a victim of their own popularity after they were featured on Gray's Anatomy. It seems that songs on that show blow up to mega proportions and then get radioplay-driven and subsequently driven into the smallest cells of people's brains via repetitive playing and then people start to turn on them. I think that this album followed pretty much the same formula musicly as Eyes Open, but 2 things have made it stand out for me personally. I think that there has not been as much fanfare for this album as Eyes Open and also I think that lyrically this album is Snow Patrol's best so far. Most center around love (go figure) but I think that the choice of wording in the songs is more artistic than previously. A great album.