Best albums of 2008: Hermann's picks

The Raconteurs (Credit: Stephen Berkman)

For whatever reason, the music that really stood out for me in 2008 didn’t come, for the most part, from newcomers, but from veteran acts that seem to be hitting career peaks—or, in the case of one legendary hip-hop artist, staging an improbable comeback. Despite all the bad news about tanking album sales, there are still a lot of artists out there sustaining solid careers, even as they continue to take risks and elevate their game. That kind of good news is more than enough to outweigh the bad.

1. The Raconteurs, “Consolers of the Lonely” (Warner Bros.)
On their second album, this quartet lived up to its “supergroup” billing: Jack White hasn’t sounded this inspired since the White Stripes’ “Elephant,” and Brendan Benson has shed his sensitive singer-songwriter shtick and blossomed into a worthy foil to White’s most raucous riffs. Hands down, the year’s most fully realized and exhilarating rock record.

2. Atmosphere, “When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That S--- Gold” (Rhymesayers)
The genius of Twin Cities duo Sean “Slug” Daley and Anthony “Ant” Davis lies in their ability to take hip-hop’s traditional formulas and push them one step beyond cliché into something new, nervy and thrilling. On their sixth and best studio album, Slug explores the real emotional fallout of sexual jealousy, drug use and the party-hardy lifestyle, while Ant finds new ways to deconstruct classic hip-hop’s raw materials, paring down funk, R&B and blues into stark, mesmerizing hooks.

3. Girl Talk, “Feed the Animals” (Illegal Art)
Saying that Gregg Gillis’ fourth album of breakneck mash-ups is the same old trick is like complaining that Michael Phelps always swims in the same goggles. You try sampling up to six tracks at once and see if you can make it this much giddy fun.

4. Death Cab for Cutie, “Narrow Stairs” (Atlantic)
After sounding a bit tentative on 2005’s “Plans,” their first album for a major label, Ben Gibbard and company rediscovered what made them such a great band in first place: a near-perfect mix of aching emotionalism, indie-pop hooks and their secret weapon, a flair for repetitive, incantatory riffs. It’s good to have you back, guys.

5. Q-Tip, “The Renaissance” (Universal Motown)
The legendary leader of A Tribe Called Quest has been wandering in the “misunderstood artist” wilderness for over a decade, so it was a pleasant surprise when this long-delayed album served up the kind of jazzy, groovy beats and unpretentious rhymes he hasn’t delivered since Tribe’s heyday. A welcome reminder that the sounds of hip-hop’s golden age still haven’t been fully explored.

6. Amanda Palmer, “Who Killed Amanda Palmer?” (Roadrunner)
Amanda Palmer’s brazen songwriting—equal parts Tori Amos, Stephen Sondheim and “Bat Out of Hell”–era Meat Loaf—always seemed too big for the Dresden Dolls’ claustrophobic piano/drums setup. On her solo debut, producer Ben Folds gives Palmer all the orchestral bombast a goth-punk gal could ask for—and the results are gob-smacking.

7. Blitzen Trapper, “Furr” (Sub Pop)
A lot of bands ape the ‘70s these days, mixing California country-rock with glammy guitar riffs and psych-rock embellishments, but none do it better that this Pacific Northwest six-piece, led by the astonishingly brilliant Eric Earley, who can channel Neil Young, Tom Petty and David Bowie in the same song, and occasionally even in the same lyric.

8. Tobacco, “F---ed Up Friends” (Anticon)
Who could have predicted that the lead singer of Black Moth Super Rainbow would make one of the year’s most fascinating electronica albums? Tobacco’s fuzzy analog synths and digitized loops resemble Boards of Canada on steroids, approximating that duo’s gorgeously dreamlike quality but adding a welcome dose of BMSR’s restless, stoner-rock energy.

9. Starling Electric, “Clouded Staircase” (Bar None)
Maybe the year’s most overlooked record, this little masterpiece of majestic yet cozy retro-rock is what Badly Drawn Boy might sound like now if he were obsessed with the Beach Boys, Peter Gabriel–era Genesis and “Meddle”–era Pink Floyd instead of Bruce Springsteen. Seek this one out.

10. The Ting Tings, “We Started Nothing” (Columbia)
My favorite pure pop album of 2008. Beneath their very thin veneer of hipster cool, songs like “Great DJ” and “That’s Not My Name” could be outtakes from the last Gwen Stefani record—and yes, that’s a compliment.

Honorable mention (in no particular order):
Ben Folds, “Way to Normal” (Epic)
Marah, “Angels of Destruction!” (Yep Roc)
The Felice Brothers, “The Felice Brothers” (Team Love)
Goldfrapp, “Seventh Tree” (Mute)
Grand Archives, “Grand Archives” (Sub Pop)
Jim Noir, “Jim Noir” (Barsuk)
The Morning Benders, “Talking Through Tin Cans” (+1 Music)
The Whigs, “Mission Control” (ATO)
John Tejada, “Where” (Palette)
The Break and Repair Method, “Milk the Bee” (bluhammock)