Best and Worst of 2008: A Grand Undertaking

2008 just so happens to have been my first year with an iPod.  It goes without saying that this acquisition opened things up a bit.  The process by which we confront and filter overwhelming musical choices can be immensely frustrating, however.  In the face of ever-increasing accessibility, an interesting contradiction exists: Although there is a mind-numbing volume of music a mere few clicks away, how does one know where to begin?  There simply isn't enough time to taste it all.  While I would likely defend the channels I've come to depend on for the gathering of musical intelligence, the process is admittedly limited, flawed, and closed-minded.  Make no mistake, while I pride myself on a discerning and far-ranging ear, I am just as prone to misgivings as anyone else, though I would never admit this to you if were to have a discussion about you and the bullshit that pollutes your iPod.   Contradictions abound, our filters are perhaps as relevant as our musical choices themselves.  

People often try to have you listen to music they want you to like rather than introducing you to stuff they think you would like.  As part of an avoidance tactic, I use Pitchfork, The Onion's AV Club, my dad, brother, Ryan Mcree, Chris Cronin, Pete Albert, Ed Feldheim, James McCullagh, and Mike Mallen pretty exclusively.  My father is an opinionated avante-audiophile snob.  My brother has a penchant for singer-songwriters and math rock that no one has ever heard of. Mcree likes post-everything.  Cro specializes in older stuff I missed the first time around.    Ed has a handle on vintage jazz and blues.  Pete's taste greatly resembles my own.  Mallen's taste is endlessly intriguing.  James jams.  Pitchfork and The Onion's AV Club make up the balance of my musical cabinet.  Pitchfork cannot be trusted to help rule anything out.  With the exception of a few darlings and debuts, they hate almost everything.  Within this flaw, however, festers its strength: If Pitchfork likes it, you can bet it's worth your attention.  The Onion's AV Club is considerably more everyman in its approach and tone.  Disappointingly, however, the material they choose to review is decidedly pedestrian.    

It is through these channels -as well as the sparing use of a few others - that I have come to listen to the following over the course of the past year:  

Muse- Absolution

Elliot Brood- Ambassador

John Zorn- At the Mountains of Madness

                     Bar Kokhba

                     Invitation to a Suicide

Battles- Mirrored

               Battles

The Mars Volta- The Bedlam in Goliath

Modest Mouse- We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank

Band of Horses- Cease to Begin

                              Everything All of The Time

The New Pornographers- Challengers

Pelican- City of Echoes

TV On The Radio- Dear Science

Avett Brothers- Emotionalism

My Morning Jacke- Evil Urges

Fleet Foxes- Fleet Foxes

Trans Am- FutureWorld

Spoon- Ga Ga Ga

             Gimme Fiction

Les Savy Fav- Go Forth

                         Let's Stay Friends

Animal Collective- Here's The Indian

                                   Strawberry Jam

                                   Sung Tongs

M.I.A.- Kala

Wilco- Sky Blue Sky

Sigur Ros- Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust

Glenn Kotche- Mobile

Bloc Party- Silent Alarm

Kevin Drew- Spirit If...

Brazilian Girls- Talk to La Bomb

The Books- Thought for Food

Vampire Weekend- Vampire Weekend

Grizzly Bear- Yellow House

Ween- La Cuckaracha

Beirut- Gulag Orchestar  

In an attempt to account for our ever-dwindling attention spans, and to actively combat a recent lack of inspiration on my part, I am going to attempt to write concise reviews of the best and worst of my 2008.  Please stay tuned.