Shocking absolutely no one, Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III has officially been crowned as 2008’s biggest selling album, with 2.9 million copies sold. Wayne’s album-which sold over a million copies in it’s first week-is the first album in Soundscan’s 17 year history to top the year end charts without selling more than 3 million copies. The rest of the year end Top 10 includes names like Coldplay (who claimed the runner-up position), Kid Rock, AC/DC, and Taylor Swift (twice!).
One thing worth noting about the year in music, according to this Billboard article, is that record sales were down over 14% between 2007 and 2008. Also worth noting is the fact that CDs still account for over 80% of record sales.
Happy New Year’s Eve, everyone. Our own Greg Harrell has passed on his own indie-tastic list of his favorites of 2008. Have a look-see, won’t you?
20.) Atmosphere – When Life Gives You Lemons You Paint That Shit Gold
19.) The Verve – Forth
18.) Raphael Saadiq – The Way I See it
17.) Ra Ra Riot – The Rhumb Line
16.) Coldplay – Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends
15.) Robyn – Robyn
14.) Bloc Party – Intimacy
13.) The Streets – Everything Is Borrowed
12.) Shearwater – Rook
11.) ohGr – Devils in my Details
10.) The Mars Volta – The Bedlam In Goliath
Were it not for a handful of shitty songs, this would easily be album of the year. “Metatron” is the greatest thing anybody recorded in 2008, and when this record’s on, it’ll give you seizures. Seriously, Curtis Mayfield could’ve written “Goliath” after a weekend of dropping acid in the desert. Occultist prog-rock doesn’t get any better.
9.) Sigur Ros – Med Sud I Eryum Vid Spilium Endalaust
This record is every bit as “Sigur Ros” as anything these crazy Icelandic bastards have done in the past: meaning it sounds very much like pop music from some beautiful alien civilization. Still, the band decided to throw in a few curveballs, and it definitely sounds much…earthier than anything else they’ve done, probably because the sweeping electric guitars of yore have been replaced with acoustics. Surprisingly, they pull the folky direction off beautifully. The sweet ballad “Illgresi” has made it onto just about every mixtape I’ve burned this year, “Gobbledigook” is a gleeful sprint through the woods, and the angelic explosion of “Ara batur” is just paralyzingly beautiful. I don’t know what the hell world these guys inhabit, but I’d sure like to visit it someday.
8.) TV on the Radio – Dear Science
Depending on whose reading this, you either have no idea who the fuck TV on the Radio is or you’ve had the brilliance of this record shoved down your throat so many times that you’re completely sick of it. So yeah, TV on the Radio experiments with dance / disco / afro-beat / new wave, everybody loves it and I’m already sick of talking about it.
7.) Kanye West – 808s & Heartbreak
I wasn’t as scared of this record as a lot of people were. I dug “Love Lockdown” from the get go, and figured if anyone could make a great record out of the autotune it would be Kanye. Sure enough, he proved me right. If for whatever reason you haven’t heard this yet, “808s & Heartbreak” finds Mr. West going a more somber route. Yeah, there’s singing; yeah, there’s heartbreak; yeah, there are 808s too incidentally enough. I don’t know if this as radical as some people have made it out to be, seeing as there are at least four great singles on this album, but whether you love the man or hate him, you’ve gotta respect his artistic daring. I mean, how many times has Kanye reinvented his style now? Exactly. I don’t really know where to place the sound of this record: somewhere between the “walking through the streets at night contemplating what an utter failure your life has become” sound of Burial’s last record, the catchier side of Depeche Mode and the more Eurocentric songs from “Graduation.” It’s a hell of a statement, and nobody other than Kanye West could’ve possibly made it.
6.) Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!
Imagine “Highway 61 Revisited” plowed into the Doors’ self-titled record. “Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!” is the result.
5.) Beck – Modern Guilt
Beck writes a bunch of apocalyptic songs and gets Dangermouse to provide some colorful and vaguely psychedelic beats. Naturally, the result is brilliance.
4.) Q-Tip – The Renaissance
The only legitimately great hip-hop record released this year (“808s” is a little too leftfield to qualify as hip-hop exclusively). Q-Tip does something that not too many pioneers of the genre are willing to do: he looks forward instead of trying to plagiarize himself. The result is an excellent hip-hop medley, sometimes jazzy, sometimes soulful, always electrifying. Tip puts everybody doing this to shame so astoundingly, and so effortlessly, it’s almost humbling.
3.) Portishead – Third
Speaking of leftfield comebacks, holy shit this record is amazing. Considering that trip-hop (which isn’t really a genre but let’s pretend it is for a sentence) has essentially been left to fester in a ditch, I can’t say I was expecting Portishead to pull off a masterpiece. But lo and behold they did. Beth Gibbons sounds as lovely as ever, and the other two guys still know how to convert dank and despair into beauty. From the shimmering “Hunter” to the bubbling “Rip” to the foggy “Small,” there’s not a bad song here. Proof that your musical idols aren’t always content to just sit on their asses and exploit their legacies.
2.) Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
The sound of a white wolf pawing at the moon. Music don’t get much sadder and wintry than this.
1.) Elbow – The Seldom Seen Kid
How the hell have these guys not blown up yet? Seriously, “Grounds for Divorce” alone should have made them a household name. Well, unless Judd Apatow decides to use one of their songs to promote his next movie, I guess these guys are gonna have to remain a secret. “The Seldom Seen Kid” goes everywhere: one track you’re soaring through space, the next you’re getting stretched through a funhouse mirror. One minute you’re sitting on top of a skyscraper, the next you’re walking past a friend’s grave. And so on. Guy Garvey is an absolutely brilliant songwriter, and the lyrics wash through you as if the feelings were your own. As a singer, he’s capable of evoking both the tenderness of Chris Martin and the swagger of Peter Gabriel (who I guess could be tender too but…um…). If you’ve yet to hear this, then look up the dazzling “Mirrorball.” If that song doesn’t move you then I don’t want to share the same…planet as you. Get out.
Over the next week, the team here at SonicClash will be posting lists of their favorites from this year. First up to bat is our rock ‘n roll renaissance man, Mikey Hersh. Take it away, Mikey.
Keep in mind that this Top 10 list is not about the greatest tunes in terms of musical integrity.  These are the ten songs of 2008 that brought a smile to my face. These ten songs have great melodies, great guitar riffs, or a great dance beat. My list probably isn’t going to match up to all of the critics, but I determined my list on what songs really made an impact on me regardless of whether it’s cool or not to admit.  I have no shame in including songs from the Pussycat Dolls and New Kids On The Block on my list. Remember to understand my warped tastes in music, and don’t take me all that seriously on this list. Music is very subjective, and just because a song has three chords or is formulaic doesn’t mean it isn’t quality.
1) Rock & Roll Train:AC/DC- AC/DC not only put out a killer album after making me wait eight years, but they also contributed another song that will be a classic in the same vein as Highway To Hell and Back In Black.  Rock & Roll Train was AC/DC’s first ever song to be nominated for a Grammy, and has been
kicking ass on the modern rock charts. Â The song even peaked at #47 on the dance charts.
2) Never Walk Away:Journey– Â Journey also returned in full fashion going back to the sound that made them famous, even if Steve Perry is no longer in the picture. Â Never Walk Away, the first track on the album, is a killer tune that sounds like Be Good To Yourself from the Raised On Radio album. Â A song so good, that I got chills upon listening to it for the first time.
3) Use Me:Hinder–  I thought Hinder would be a here today, gone tomorrow band.  Their first album was okay, and that Lips Of An Angel song was definitely not as great as it was hyped up to be.  Use Me, the first single from Hinder’s sophomore album sounds just like an 80’s hard rock song.  It has a great opening guitar riff, and a fun chorus.
4) Summertime:New Kids On The Block– This is the first song on my list that I’m sure to get shit for.  I don’t care, this song has a great dance beat, and was the perfect comeback tune for a group who I wanted to die quickly back in 1988.  It’s a song that defined the summer, and a song I wish I would have heard more of at the clubs.  The New Kids surprised many, and especially me with a catchy pop song that works.
5) My Apocalypse:Metallica–  I was very impressed with Metallica’s new album, and the fact that they decided to go back to their old sound.  My Apocalypse was not officially released as a single, but was one of the tracks you could download before the album was released.  The song is a full-out kick-ass song, and a song that works well when you are having a bad day and want to take your aggression out.
6) I Will Be With You (Where The Lost Ones Go):Sarah Brightman & Paul
Stanley–  Not a well-known hit, but anytime Paul Stanley from KISS goes outside the box, I’m going to take notice.  On this track, he collaborates with Broadway star Sarah Brightman for a fun little pop song.  It’s always fun to hear Paul try to sing songs that are outside the rock and roll style we are used to from him.
7) Troublemaker:Weezer–  I truly believe this should have been the first single, although as the second single of the Red Album, it’s been a huge hit on the modern rock charts.  Rivers Cuomo is the king of writing these 3 minute rock songs with that noticeable melody.  The lyrics are fun, and this might just be my new theme song.
8) When I Grow Up:Pussycat Dolls–  I’m getting to get heat for this one also!  I thought nothing would best Don’t Cha, but I was wrong.  When I Grow Up has a fun dance beat, and the “When I Grow Up, I want to have boobies†line in the song is the lyric of the year.  Ha ha ha ha ha!
9) Rise Above This:Seether– Â It might be formulaic, but still good. Seether knows how to write songs that get ingrained in your head. Â My eyes light up whenever I wake up to WDHA in the morning and hear this song as I try to wake up.
10) Hot N Cold:Katy Perry–  I know I’ll also get shit for this one, but I prefer Katy Perry’s second single.  I Kissed A Girl got old really quick, but Hot N Cold is a fun song that brings back memories of rollerskating back in the 80’s for some reason.
