#0073 – MMVIII CE MF

My Best Albums of 2008 Show!

These are the albums I have decided are the best albums that a) I’ve listened to, b) have an official 2008 release date, and c) are full-length LPs, not EPs or compilations.

Since I listen to a broad variety of music, some of the segues are a little jarring. Some voiceovers might help there but since my microphone isn’t currently available that’s not going to happen. Since the mix clocks in around 80 minutes, you don’t need me babbling on anyway.

I’ll be playing one song from each of my 20 favorite albums of the year, counting down from #20 to #1.

Play

20. Girl Talk – Feed the Animals
Wild fun mashups. No source is sacred. For instance, in the sample track, Queen, the Police and the Jackson 5 are shaking their asses along with Busta Rhymes and Wu Tang. Can’t beat that.
Song: What It’s All About

19. Drive-By Truckers – Brighter Than Creation’s Dark
Perennial favorites of mine. This won’t go down as one of their true classics but there are some darn fine songs on here.
Song: 3 Dimes Down

18. The Gaslight Anthem – The ’59 Sound
Rocking Boss worship
Song: Miles Davis & The Cool

17. Darkestrah – The Great Silk Road
Kryg black metallers, second year in a row they’ve appeared on my list
Song: Cult Tengri

16. Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy – Lie Down In The Light
Will Oldham’s back, didn’t care too much for his last one but plenty to make up for it here.
Song: So Everyone

15. Kiuas – The New Dark Age
Finnish Heavy/Power Metal favorites of mine, they typically use elements of more extreme metal but the sample track is more of a straightforward acoustic powerballad.
Song: After The Storm

14. Neuraxis – The Thin Line Between
Melodic Technical Death Metal with progressive elements
Song: Oracle

13. Clutchy Hopkins – Walking Backwards
Mysterious purveyor of chill beats
Song: Song for Wolfie

12. Amon Amarth – Twilight Of The Thunder God
Swedish Melodic Viking Metal. And of course as you know, Vikings are awesome. Also wins for best album cover of the year and best video of the year.
Song: The Hero

11. Blitzen Trapper – Furr
Fantastic blend of pop and Americana, alternately channeling the Beatles, Neil Young, Tom Petty…
Song: Saturday Nite

10. Spiritualized – Songs in A & E
Intense psychedelic rock, I was blown away by their set at Pitchfork
Song: I Gotta Fire

09. Justin Townes Earle – The Good Life
Just some good old-fashioned country music
Song: South Georgia Sugar Babe

08. Harvey Milk – Life… The Best Game In Town
Chugging churning sludge metal that still manages to contain some surprising pop hooks
Song: Motown

07. The Rural Alberta Advantage – Hometowns
Canadian Americana? fuzzy low-fi energetic rock/pop with eager vocal harmonies, just very pleasing to the ears.
Song: Don’t Haunt This Place

06. Elliott Brood – Mountain Meadows
More Canadians, they call their sound “Death Country” This album seems to combine the things that worked in their Tin Type EP and their last full-length Ambassador
Song: The Valley Town

05. Cynic – Traced In Air
Progressive Tech Metal with robot singers? Actually less of the robotic voices this time around, and the sound is a little more prog and a little less metal but still musically sound and deftly performed.
Song: Evolutionary Sleeper

04. Guillotine – Blood Money
Swedish thrash metal that brings to mind some great older German thrash metal. Tight, energetic. Great riffs, pummeling drums.
Song: Welcome To Dying (Death, Destruction, and Pain)

03. Týr – Land
Faroese Viking Metal, calling heavily on traditional poetry and Viking choruses.
Song: Valkyrjan

02. Akimbo – Jersey Shores
Epic hardcore, reminiscent of Oceanic-era Isis, a concept album about sharks. Sharks, like Vikings, are awesome.
Song: Great White Bull

01. Murder By Death – Red of Tooth and Claw
Southern Gothic, deep-voiced crooner singing over rich instrumentation. I’ve described it as Nick Cave singing an Ennio Morricone western soundtrack with cellos.
Song: Ash

#0049 – Strong On His Mountain

Play

Gen1us iconI think the reason Aaron even asked me to do some shows here on Radio Gen1us in the first place is ’cause he was hoping I’d do a metal show. ‘Cause I am totally metal. Believe it. Anyway, now I’ve gone and done it and god help those of you who listen. Metal is not an easy genre for many people to listen to; it’s more often ugly than beautiful and it celebrates things we don’t normally like to think about, like aggression and malevolence. But it can also be very rewarding. In this mix, I try to ease you into it, but overall I’m not pulling many punches.

  1. Amon AmarthPursuit of Vikings
  2. Rebellion Ynglinga Saga (To Odin We Call)
  3. Dissection Retribution – Storm of the Light’s Bane
  4. Primordial Gallows Hymn
  5. October FallsFuneral Pyres
  6. Kroda Gnarled Cudgels of Thunder
  7. Darkthrone Paragon Belial
  8. Immortal Within the Dark Mind
  9. Mastodon Crusher Destroyer
  10. Gojira The Heaviest Matter in the Universe
  11. High On FireDevilution
  12. Arsis Wholly Night
  13. Carcass Incarnated Solvent Abuse
  14. Decapitated The Eye of Horus
  15. Kiuas Warrior Soul

Also, scattered throughout the mix are snippets of audio from one of the most metal movies of all time. You have probably already guessed what the movie is just based on the title of the mix.