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  • The Way I See It: Mike’s Favorite Albums of 2008 Part II

    No point in any long, drawn-out intros right? I posted #s 25-13 yesterday. Here’s my Top 12 for the year.

    12. Keane “Perfect Symmetry”

    Yep, Keane made a better album than Coldplay. Even if you pit the two bands’ signature piano ballads against one another, Keane wins based on Tom Chaplin’s near-operatic voice. However, for album #3, Keane flipped the script, adding a guitarist on some tracks and going for an Eighties’ dance-pop sound with songs like the excellent Spiralling. I’m amazed that this album didn’t do better than it did, this might be the year’s most underrated album.

    The Lovers Are Losing – Keane

    11. Raphael Saadiq “The Way I See It”

    It took me a long time to get into this album, because the former Tony Toni Tone’s Motown homage seemed like it was made with the specific intention to appeal to people like me who have major issues with current R&B music. However, unnecessary Jay-Z remix aside, The Way I See It won me over with grooves that recall the best of the Temptations, Tops and Miracles, not to mention the Chi-Lites and Delfonics. Seeing Saadiq perform these songs live a month or so ago only reinforced how good this album is.

    10. Kings of Leon “Only By the Night”

    Kings of Leon make their second straight appearance on one of my year end charts by expanding on the formula that’s brought them success so far. Caleb Followill still has that weird, haunting quality to his voice that makes everything he sings sound kind of spooky, but the rest of the band has stepped up their game to the point where they’re making real rock anthems. Sex on Fire was a winning single whose slightly dirty vibe justified its’ title.

    9. Gnarls Barkley “The Odd Couple”

    Best rapper/singer currently working? Cee-Lo Green. Although the rotund half of Gnarls Barkley dropped emceeing from his repertoire with this album, it wasn’t missed-Cee-Lo remains one of the most expressive singers in any genre. Oddball songs like Blind Mary and the haunting Who’s Gonna Save My Soul blended perfectly with dancefloor rave-ups like Run to successfully beat back the sophomore jinx. If I had trophies to give out, Danger Mouse would get one for best producer of 2008.

    8. Girl Talk “Feed the Animals”

    Remember back in the day when sampling was more creative than just dropping vocals over the instrumental to a popular song? Girl Talk certainly does, and this enjoyable collection of mashups-think Three 6 Mafia rapping over Avril Lavigne’s Girlfriend or BLACKstreet’s No Diggity over the beat from Kanye West’s Flashing Lights-is sure to get the party started every time. Although half the fun is sitting, listening and trying to figure out what samples are being used.

    7. Mike Doughty “Golden Delicious”

    The latest solo effort from the former Soul Coughing frontman has a loosey-goosey quality to it-like a bunch of dudes just showed up at the studio and decided to jam. The fact that it’s a little sloppy-sounding is part of it’s charm. My favorites on this album are the somber Wednesday (Contra La Puerta) and the politically-charged Fort Hood, which lifts the chorus from the Sixties classic Let the Sunshine In to create one of the most emotionally affecting songs of the year. One of my favorite moments of 2008 was being able to tell Doughty in person how much that song meant to me.

    6. Shelby Lynne “Just a Little Lovin’”

    Shelby Lynne was meant to sing to intimate arrangements like the ones on this album-a collection of Dusty Springfield covers that sounds like it was recorded in a smoky nightclub. Lynne’s readings of songs like Anyone Who Had a Heart and How Can I Be Sure are almost painfully direct-like she’s singing the songs to you alone. This album made me run out and buy Dusty in Memphis to hear where Shelby got her inspiration from.


    Anyone Who Had A Heart – Shelby Lynne

    5. Robyn “Robyn”

    Most females in pop these days have a sort of manufactured sassiness. With the exception of P!nk, it’s hard to find one American girl pop singer with an attitude that doesn’t seem put on. Thankfully, Swedish singer Robyn returned after a ten (ten!!) year absence to show the girls how it’s really done. Whether rapping or singing, these electro-bounce tunes had chutzpah to spare, and songs like Be Mine proved that Robyn could put across heartbreak just as easily as she could put across badassitude.

    4. Kanye West “808s & Heartbreak”

    And to think, I thought this album was going to be a huge disappointment. Kanye deserves your props just for abandoning a style that had earned him critical respect and commercial rewards for something a little more intimate. Maintaining his stellar production standards, Mr. West went all the way left and made an album influenced more by Thom Yorke than Jay-Z. While the lyrics could have used a bit more fine-tuning, 808s proves that Kanye is a master at setting a mood, and anyone that makes Auto-Tune tolerable deserves a hearty pat on the back from me.

    3. Ne-Yo “Year of the Gentleman”

    The guy with one of the sharpest pen games in pop music sharpened that pen even more for his excellent third album. If you’re looking for an album that discusses relationships with more realism than the average album, you wanna check this out. If you just suffered a breakup and you want to wallow a little, check this album out. If you just want to hear well-crafted pop/soul music, check this album out. Year of the Gentleman vaulted Ne-Yo far above the Chris Browns, Ushers and Timberlakes of the world. Those guys have a lot of catching up to do.

    2. Q-Tip “The Renaissance”

    Another artist returning after nearly a decade-long break was Q-Tip, former leader of A Tribe Called Quest. As a member of that groundbreaking hip-hop outfit, Tip was responsible for two if not three of the greatest albums in rap music history. The Renaissance‘s smart rhymes and booty-shaking beats proved that Tip didn’t need Phife Dawg or Ali Shaheed Muhammad to make a classic.

    1. Vampire Weekend “Vampire Weekend”

    Four Columbia University undergrads, armed with a handful of Afrobeat records (and I’d imagine copies of Paul Simon’s Graceland and Talking Heads’ Remain in Light), decide to make an African-influenced indie pop album that references the M-79 bus, Lil’ Jon’s Get Low, Peter Gabriel and oxford commas, while giving shouts out to the “bears in Provincetown”. Sounds like a recipe for the best album of the year? Not quite. However, Vampire Weekend made 2008’s most enjoyable album by following one very simple rule-HAVE FUN. Their self-titled debut brought a smile to my face and a wiggle to my hips every time I heard it, and sometimes, that’s all you need.

    So there you have it, folks. My favorite albums of 2008. Here’s hoping that 2009 brings you all that you wish for. Happy New Year!

  • Mike’s Best Albums of 2008-Part One

    Before I actually sat down and decided to write this up, I thought “wow. What a crappy year 2008 was for music”. Such a crappy year, in fact, that I thought I was gonna have trouble coming up with a list of even 10 albums that I thought were worthy of mention.

    Well I’ll be…by the time the dust had cleared, I had a shortlist large enough (is that a double negative?) that I wound up with a Top 25. I would have edited down further, but I just couldn’t remove anything. My apologies to Adele, Anthony Hamilton, Ben Folds, Eric Benet and My Morning Jacket, who just missed the final cut.

    Enough of the prelude. Let’s move on to the first part of my list.

    25. “Santogold” Santogold

    Most people say Santogold reminds them of M.I.A., I beg to differ. Those of you who remember Res, who recorded one album seven or eight years ago, will realize that she and Santi White are sisters in music. Indie pop with a hint of soul, and Go Hard was just fine before Jay-Z decided to sample it for a Biggie tribute.

    Shove It – Santogold

    24. “Here I Stand” Usher

    Now 30, married and a dad of two, the former prince of teen pop grew up on this collection of (largely) midtempos and ballads. Songs like His Mistakes and the title track won’t satisfy those who were grooving to Yeah! a couple years back, but will speak to anyone trying to mature in a committed relationship. Besides, Love in This Club, which I hated at first-largely due to the presence of Young Jeezy-turned into one of 2008’s biggest earworms for me.

    23. “Something Else” Robin Thicke

    Usher’s sometime collaborator Robin Thicke returned for Round 3 with a collection that sits somewhere between the slightly obtuse Prince-isms of his first album and the smoother Marvin Gaye-esque sounds of his breakthrough sophomore release. Songs like Tie My Hands and Dreamworld reveal a burgeoning social conscience, while Sidestep is the best grown-folks dance song since R. Kelly’s Step in the Name of Love.

    22. “A Long Time Coming” Wayne Brady

    Never in my life would I have imagined ever featuring a Wayne Brady album on a year-end list, but the actor/comedian/Renaissance man showed me a thing or two with his debut effort. Whether smoothing out a Beatles classic (Can’t Buy Me Love) or reminiscing about his childhood, Brady’s smooth and effortless vocals carried this solid collection of soul-inflected pop.

    Back in the Day – Wayne Brady

    21. “Lay it Down” Al Green

    With some stellar assistance from ?uestlove, Corinne Bailey Rae, John Legend and Anthony Hamilton, the world’s greatest living male soul singer stepped in the wayback machine, and suddenly, it was 1974 all over again-minus the hot grits. Not many folks eligible for AARP and ordained in the ministry can make records that sound this sexy.

    20. “Modern Guilt” Beck

    You’ve gotta give Beck props for being, along with The White Stripes, The Roots and Kanye West, this decade’s most consistent artist. Modern Guilt is his fourth consecutive strong effort, and finds him joining forces with Danger Mouse for a collection that matches maturing lyrics with bouncy (for the most part) instrumental backing without the massive genre-jumps that marked his most recent two albums.

    19. “It is Time for a Love Revolution” Lenny Kravitz

    Lenny almost lost me for good with the travesty that was 2004’s Baptism, but the four years off did him a world of good. Dancin’ Til Dawn was a groover, even as it shamelessly ripped off The Rolling Stones’ Miss You. Songs like A Long & Sad Goodbye pushed emotional buttons while I’ll Be Waiting was the lighter-waving devotional ballad of the year, a fact reinforced when I found myself in a situation in which the lyrics applied perfectly.

    18. “Rising Down” The Roots

    It says something when The Roots’ least-essential album of the decade still winds up in my year end Top 20. Although I could have done without the abundance of guest appearances, Mos Def, Talib Kweli and Styles P are among the featured artists who bring their A games, while the criminally underrated Black Thought is dependable as ever. Fellow Philly emcee Peedi Peedi defines himself on one track as “W.E.B. Dubois mixed with Heavy D & the Boyz” and that perfectly describes the sound of Rising Down.

    17. “Gossip in the Grain” Ray LaMontagne

    2008 was the year that the heart-on-sleeve singer/songwriter loosened up. Gossip contained the usual plaintive ballads, but Ray shined most on loose, country-flecked songs like Hey Me Hey Mama and the slightly disturbing love letter Meg White, a tribute to the distaff half of The White Stripes. If I was Meg, I’d make sure my doors were locked, but I’d still let Ray sing outside.

    16. “Everything is Borrowed” The Streets

    The States will never “get” Mike Skinner, so his success will never match up to the quality of his records, but oh well. He can continue being my (and the U.K.’s) secret. Skinner’s fourth effort finds the rapper tackling life, death and all the other big issues with the matter-of-fact cheekiness that’s become his trademark. The Escapist is unquestionably one of the year’s best videos.

    15. “Viva La Vida or Death & All His Friends” Coldplay

    Whether giving Lost! some hip-hop flavor (even before the Jay-Z remix), rocking hard on Violet Hill or getting all majestic with the title track, Chris Martin and company expanded their sound on Viva La Vida and wound up with their best effort since their debut. Credit some of that to the addition of Brian Eno in the producer’s chair and credit the rest to Martin’s commitment to quality songwriting and his decision to save the weepy piano ballads for the end of the album.

    14. “Shine” Estelle

    Shine is the first worthwhile album by a female artist who raps (at least part-time) since The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, and while the Brit can’t step into L-Boogie’s high heels, she does pretty good for herself. American Boy is yet another earworm (and finds Kanye at his most charming), Just a Touch has swagger to spare, and Pretty Please (Love Me) suggests she should do a whole album with Cee-Lo.

    13. “Evolver” John Legend

    Thankfully, Evolver was not exactly John Legend goes crunk. Despite the addition of a slightly more uptempo element, Legend’s dedication to classy R&B remains intact. Jumping from subgenres from light reggae to near-orchestral balladry (This Time suggests that an album-length John Legend/Trevor Horn collaboration would be magical), Legend takes yet another baby step towards justifying his name with his third album.

    Next up-the mother of all mash-ups, my favorite Swedish cupcake, the year’s best covers album…my 12 favorite albums of 2008, coming up next.

  • GG’s Top 10 Albums Of 2008

    I will never pretend to be the complete music connoisseur that others on this site are. I like certain styles of music and will continue to buy those styles all year round. I’m the guy who bought LL Cool J’s latest album even though I expected it to be trash (and it was). I will give new artists a chance only if they are suggested to me by people I know and trust. You can say I’m in my own musical bubble. Thus, my top 10 albums are very much in the pop/R&B/hip hop genres and even in those genres, you won’t find any surprises. With that kind of introduction, how can you not want to read this list?

    10. Day26 – Day26

    Diddy’s new New Edition was probably a bit overrated coming out because their musical debut was marketed through the television show Making The Band, but I think they have a chance to succeed as long as Diddy sticks with him. Diddy has shown that he’s willing to drop members of the group like he did in Danity Kane. But I think these guys have the right chemistry necessary in today’s fickle music world. Not to say that they’ll become legendary, but I think they have a chance to make a few more albums. On their debut, they show definite promise. Give me more Co Star, Got Me Going, and Exclusive and I think I’ll continue buying their records.

    9. Kanye West – 808s & Heartbreak

    It’s really a crime that I have to score Kanye’s latest album so low. It’s creative, inventive, emotional, introspective, and he should get credit for stretching his boundaries. But the singing is terrible. The song writing is good in spots though terrible in others. The production is top notch and you won’t catch everything unless you listen closely and with headphones. But I can’t get over the overuse of Auto-tune and simple bad singing.

    8. Brandy – Human

    Though I think she’s naked without the likes of Wanya and Mase around her, I do still like Brandy. With this album she opens up a lot about relationships of yesteryear and there’s a lot that I can relate to, including the song Long Distance. Having been in a long distance relationship myself, she taps into all the emotions you go through when you love someone who doesn’t live close to you. Right Here (Departed) and The Definition are also really good songs.

    7. John Legend – Evolver

    This is one of the few albums that I liked far more when I heard it the first few times than I do now. There’s something about Legend with this third album that slightly bothers me. His last album was near perfect and I guess I expected too much from him. Green Light was a fun single with Andre 3000, but It’s Over with Kanye West was a miss. There is definitely good stuff on this album including Everybody Knows, Cross The Line, and I Love, You Love, but what’s missing from this album is the non-skippability his last album had. I found myself skipping through the album a lot more than most albums on this list. I kept telling myself, “But this is John Legend.” But it didn’t work. I still skipped.

    6. Q-Tip – The Renaissance

    Being a huge fan of A Tribe Called Quest, this album was right up my alley. There’s just something about Tribe. Q-Tip has always been an original kind of MC and you can’t paint him into any corner. Many former hip hop fans came out of the woodwork and just loved this album. And the reason for that? This album is fun. I want you to find a more fun song this year than Move.

    5. Raphael Saadiq – The Way I See It

    When this album came out, Money Mike said that the reason he likes it is because he’s supposed to like it. I feel somewhat the same way. However, it can’t be the only reason I like it. While this album has the old Motown feel all over it, it’s not only for that reason either. I guess I just like the throwback vibe to the simpleness of music. I’m a sucker and a half for a nice slow jam and Oh Girl does it for me.

    “I promise I won’t let you down
    I’m gonna make you so proud
    I’ll keep you here next to mine
    And I’ll be everything you need
    Believe me girl”

    Usher's album - Here I Stand
    Usher’s album – Here I Stand
    4. Usher – Here I Stand

    I spent much of 2008 telling Mike how disappointed I was with Usher’s new album and here it sits at number four on my list. And then I got it. The gaudy dance singles are missing. He’s still on the freaky tip a bit too much for my taste. But what you see is individual growth. You can hear it in Moving Mountains and even in the interlude to his son, Prayer For You Interlude. I think the gem is the hidden track Will Work For Love.

    “Excuse me you two, got love to spare?
    Search my whole heart, ain’t none in there
    Pardon me sister, I’m on my last
    Don’t have no love, that’s OK, God bless”

    3. Robin Thicke – Something Else

    Robin Thicke came out of the box strong with Magic and stayed strong with The Sweetest Love. In a perfect world, Dreamworld would blow up and be a strong single for 2009, but somehow I don’t see that happening. What this album suffers from is too much of the same. You hear the same Thicke for much of the album, which is fine for those who can sit there in the zone with him. Thankfully, I can.

    2. The Roots – Rising Down

    This isn’t anything new. I think the last three Roots albums that were released were either my first or second favorite hip hop album of the year. They are definitely the most consistent hip hop act going and you could argue that they are the most consistent performer in all of music when it comes to quality. Though they missed with Birthday Girl (I still liked it), they hit huge with Rising Up which is probably one of my five favorite songs of the year.

    1. Ne-Yo – Year Of The Gentleman

    I’m sold. I always wondered if he was going to be the type of recording star that he could become or if the fact that he writes a lot of material for others would cause him to never have that one great album. Well, in only his third try, he’s found that great album. It’s one of the best relationship albums I’ve ever heard. He hits on a bunch of different angles in love and loss and love again. There are even two bangers in Closer and the Michael Jackson-esque Nobody to fit around all the love and heartbreak. I keep coming back to this album when I get tired of new music and I imagine it will be in heavy rotation come 2009 as well. In The Way has a special tug on my heart.

    “Baby the world keeps getting in the way
    With you is where I wanna be, but it just won’t let me
    Cause it keeps getting in the way    ”