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Music Picks of 2008

An end of year list, because I am a musical nerd and enjoy compiling these kinds of delights. So nah. Anyway, this list is for the best new musical albums I have heard in 2008. They're not in any particular order, because that's too difficult again.
It's been an odd year for me, as I haven't bought as many records as I normally do, and thus haven't listened to some albums I would have liked to have got my ears wrapped around.

Martha Wainwright - I Know You're Married...
Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Hercules & Love Affair - Hercules & Love Affair
Lindstrom - Where You Go I Go Too
Devon Sproule - Keep Your Silver Shined
REM – Accelerate
NEON NEON – Stainless Style
Spiritualized - Songs in A&E
No Age - Nouns
Portishead - Third
Fuck Buttons - Street Horrrsing
Sigur Ros - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust

I've probably listened the most to Martha Wainwright's album, due to my inherent obsession with all things Wainwright connected. It's an excellent record, as ever very much recommended. It was also great to see REM back to form with Accelerate, their best album since the criminally underrated New Adventures on Hi-Fi. And it was good to see Portishead return to the scene with Third. Their last album was 11 years ago, incredible. And they didn't disappoint with this new record. Hoorar.

Vampire Weekend were new to me, but their album is ace, and one of the few acts that gets regular airplay on Radio 1 that I actually enjoy. It's pop-up beat-rock-ivy-league-without being overly quirky into naffness or even worse, pretension. Actually, Fleet Foxes' folk-haunting-rock have also been given a bit of Radio 1 play too...had better watch that. Super band though.
A new discovery was also the folksy Devon Sproule, who was at the Cambridge Folk Festival this year. And she rockz. (On an entirely unrelated note, I also think her name is rather cool). Speaking of names, Fuck Buttons is possibly my new favourite name for a band ever. The best electronica album I heard was probably Lindstrom, well, it's one of the most listened to. While Hercules & Love Affair are still ridiculously far too unknown in the UK.

I enjoyed the new Sigur Ros album, but it does kind of merge into their last record somewhat. But I've just plonked (technical term) them into the list on reflection. Their film from 2007 Heima, was amazing though and definitely worth watching for not only some fantastic live performances but for some quite breathtaking cinemaphotography of Iceland.

I beg to the musical Gods that 2009 will bring a brand new Kate Bush album.
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