dhpdesign (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} dhpdesign) wrote,@ 2008-12-31 12:55:00 |
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| Entry tags: | music |
The Year in Music 2008: Best Shows & Artists of the Year
Writing for a website or two, being a DJ, and doing my own hunting and digging affords me (a.) the opportunity to experience a lot of music and (b.) enough ego to think people who come across my drabblings might actually be interested in -- or even trust -- my opinion about What's Good. With that in mind, read on for some (mostly) one-liners about some of what I considered to be the best music of 2008.
BEST SHOWS/PERFORMANCES OF 2008 (all Philadelphia venues unless otherwise indicated)
Individual Artists:
Vampire Weekend (First Unitarian Church) - Intimate late-winter revival before the festivals and backlash.
A Place to Bury Strangers (Johnny Brenda's) - A scorched-earth policy just got applied TO YOUR EARS.
The Roots (Roots Picnic @ Festival Pier) - Three monstrous band-of-hip-hop sets, heat on top of summer heat.
The Breeders (TLA) - The Deal sisters and their friends executed controlled weirdness with a smile!
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Electric Factory) - After 14 years away from Philly, we'd have stayed for more.
Bob Dylan (EF) - A show for just 2,000 people? You don't even pass up old-and-in-the-way Keyboard Bob.
James (Trocadero) - A great show supporting a solid new album, and yes, he hit the high note in "Laid."
The Gutter Twins (TLA) - So much indie-rock pedigree at this show, it's like Eukanuba in there!
Wu-Tang Clan (Troc) - Overlong, overstuffed, no Method Man -- but they perform like the rock stars they are.
Hercules & Love Affair (Making Time @ Transit) - Music to embrace your inner gay man to.
Tricky (Troc) - So little actual rapping but so much energy expended; he's his own hype man!
The Raconteurs (Lollapalooza day 1, Chicago) - Blew up a pedestrian second album. Better than Radiohead.
Nine Inch Nails (Lollapalooza day 3, Chicago) - 2008's show-to-see-before-you-die.
Multiple Artists/Lineups:
Editors/Hot Hot Heat/Louis XIV (EF) - The Y-Rock Freezetival! They played the hell out of MOR indie.
The Bravery/Switches/Your Vegas (TLA) - A show for local station 104.5 FM. More playing-hell-out-of.
DJ Shadow/Cut Chemist/Kid Koala (TLA) - The "Hard Sell" tour, a turntablist clinic/double dare.
The Cure/65daysofstatic (Spectrum) - A front-row seat for goth royalty and math-rock wunderkinder.
Cut Copy/Black Kids/Mobius Band (Making Time @ Pure) - 8th anniversary dance and rock goodness.
Cut Copy/The Presets (Troc) - 2nd Cut Copy appearance, the Australian tour remix!
The Helio Sequence/Pattern is Movement/Ravens & Vultures (JB's) - Artsy-fartsy triple bill.
TV on the Radio/Dirtbombs (EF) - Super-interesting rock updates, TVOTR especially leaving nothing behind.
The Sea and Cake/Death Vessel (First Uni) - Chicago post-rockers team up with acoustic tremolo. Magic.
Diplo/Blaqstarr/Boy 8-Bit/Abe Vigoda/Telepathe (Starlight Ballroom) - A mad decent birthday, indeed.
Neil Young/Wilco (Spectrum) - Neil was in spectacular voice on hits, early '90s tracks I first encountered.
The Ting Tings/Gogol Bordello/Dan Deacon (Popped! Festival @ Drexel U.) - Now that's what I call hipster!
Special Commendation: Lollapalooza Day 2, Chicago
I've seen better individual sets on other days in other locations, but the Saturday in the middle of the 2008 edition of Perry Farrell's pet music festival may very well have been the greatest single day of concert-watching that I've personally witnessed. In the span of 14 hours I ended up watching performances by Witchcraft, Tiny Masters of Today, Does It Offend You Yeah?, Dr. Dog, The Gutter Twins, Booka Shade, Perry Farrell & Slash, Spank Rock, Okkervil River, Battles, Rage Against the Machine, Moby, and VHS or Beta (DJs).
BEST ARTISTS OF 2008
Revenge of the '90s: Portishead's Third album and the return of My Bloody Valentine to inadequately soundproofed stages made us remember why the UK kicks so much musical ass.
Dance Like Everyone's Watching: The self-titled debut from Hercules & Love Affair saw DFA Records getting behind revivalist beats and imagery of New York Studio 54-style disco as old DFA hands Hot Chip put together Made in the Dark as a tough, touching follow-up to The Warning. Meanwhile, Cut Copy led an infusion of great electronic music from Australia and New Zealand.
The Hype Machine: Pretty to look at in addition to being fun to bounce along to, The Ting Tings incessantly pushed faint disillusionment and the drums, the drums, the drums on We Started Nothing. Then there were the hip prepsters of Vampire Weekend, managing immediate-nostalgia backlash as they channeled the chirpy pop worldview of artists from Paul Simon to XTC to Peter Gabriel, too.
Viva la Revolucion: No, this is not a reference to Coldplay. Instead, liberated from ties ranging from substance abuse to major-label commitments, Trent Reznor allowed Nine Inch Nails -- and Saul Williams by extension -- to open up and breathe during an incredibly productive, fan-first period.
We are the Creators: As Kanye West guested and produced on others' hit releases through 2008, he took time out to question his own fame, status, and surroundings on the flawed but ultimately brave 808s and Heartbreak. The Roots continued to silence the sample-based competition with another winner album (Rising Down), a self-curated festival (The Roots Picnic) and a gig on Jimmy Fallon's late-night talker (fewer tours/albums? booooo!). And another Philly native, Santogold, won over critics and beer-drinkers alike with a smooth multikulti pop album.
BEST SHOWS/PERFORMANCES OF 2008 (all Philadelphia venues unless otherwise indicated)
Individual Artists:
Vampire Weekend (First Unitarian Church) - Intimate late-winter revival before the festivals and backlash.
A Place to Bury Strangers (Johnny Brenda's) - A scorched-earth policy just got applied TO YOUR EARS.
The Roots (Roots Picnic @ Festival Pier) - Three monstrous band-of-hip-hop sets, heat on top of summer heat.
The Breeders (TLA) - The Deal sisters and their friends executed controlled weirdness with a smile!
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Electric Factory) - After 14 years away from Philly, we'd have stayed for more.
Bob Dylan (EF) - A show for just 2,000 people? You don't even pass up old-and-in-the-way Keyboard Bob.
James (Trocadero) - A great show supporting a solid new album, and yes, he hit the high note in "Laid."
The Gutter Twins (TLA) - So much indie-rock pedigree at this show, it's like Eukanuba in there!
Wu-Tang Clan (Troc) - Overlong, overstuffed, no Method Man -- but they perform like the rock stars they are.
Hercules & Love Affair (Making Time @ Transit) - Music to embrace your inner gay man to.
Tricky (Troc) - So little actual rapping but so much energy expended; he's his own hype man!
The Raconteurs (Lollapalooza day 1, Chicago) - Blew up a pedestrian second album. Better than Radiohead.
Nine Inch Nails (Lollapalooza day 3, Chicago) - 2008's show-to-see-before-you-die.
Multiple Artists/Lineups:
Editors/Hot Hot Heat/Louis XIV (EF) - The Y-Rock Freezetival! They played the hell out of MOR indie.
The Bravery/Switches/Your Vegas (TLA) - A show for local station 104.5 FM. More playing-hell-out-of.
DJ Shadow/Cut Chemist/Kid Koala (TLA) - The "Hard Sell" tour, a turntablist clinic/double dare.
The Cure/65daysofstatic (Spectrum) - A front-row seat for goth royalty and math-rock wunderkinder.
Cut Copy/Black Kids/Mobius Band (Making Time @ Pure) - 8th anniversary dance and rock goodness.
Cut Copy/The Presets (Troc) - 2nd Cut Copy appearance, the Australian tour remix!
The Helio Sequence/Pattern is Movement/Ravens & Vultures (JB's) - Artsy-fartsy triple bill.
TV on the Radio/Dirtbombs (EF) - Super-interesting rock updates, TVOTR especially leaving nothing behind.
The Sea and Cake/Death Vessel (First Uni) - Chicago post-rockers team up with acoustic tremolo. Magic.
Diplo/Blaqstarr/Boy 8-Bit/Abe Vigoda/Telepathe (Starlight Ballroom) - A mad decent birthday, indeed.
Neil Young/Wilco (Spectrum) - Neil was in spectacular voice on hits, early '90s tracks I first encountered.
The Ting Tings/Gogol Bordello/Dan Deacon (Popped! Festival @ Drexel U.) - Now that's what I call hipster!
Special Commendation: Lollapalooza Day 2, Chicago
I've seen better individual sets on other days in other locations, but the Saturday in the middle of the 2008 edition of Perry Farrell's pet music festival may very well have been the greatest single day of concert-watching that I've personally witnessed. In the span of 14 hours I ended up watching performances by Witchcraft, Tiny Masters of Today, Does It Offend You Yeah?, Dr. Dog, The Gutter Twins, Booka Shade, Perry Farrell & Slash, Spank Rock, Okkervil River, Battles, Rage Against the Machine, Moby, and VHS or Beta (DJs).
BEST ARTISTS OF 2008
Revenge of the '90s: Portishead's Third album and the return of My Bloody Valentine to inadequately soundproofed stages made us remember why the UK kicks so much musical ass.
Dance Like Everyone's Watching: The self-titled debut from Hercules & Love Affair saw DFA Records getting behind revivalist beats and imagery of New York Studio 54-style disco as old DFA hands Hot Chip put together Made in the Dark as a tough, touching follow-up to The Warning. Meanwhile, Cut Copy led an infusion of great electronic music from Australia and New Zealand.
The Hype Machine: Pretty to look at in addition to being fun to bounce along to, The Ting Tings incessantly pushed faint disillusionment and the drums, the drums, the drums on We Started Nothing. Then there were the hip prepsters of Vampire Weekend, managing immediate-nostalgia backlash as they channeled the chirpy pop worldview of artists from Paul Simon to XTC to Peter Gabriel, too.
Viva la Revolucion: No, this is not a reference to Coldplay. Instead, liberated from ties ranging from substance abuse to major-label commitments, Trent Reznor allowed Nine Inch Nails -- and Saul Williams by extension -- to open up and breathe during an incredibly productive, fan-first period.
We are the Creators: As Kanye West guested and produced on others' hit releases through 2008, he took time out to question his own fame, status, and surroundings on the flawed but ultimately brave 808s and Heartbreak. The Roots continued to silence the sample-based competition with another winner album (Rising Down), a self-curated festival (The Roots Picnic) and a gig on Jimmy Fallon's late-night talker (fewer tours/albums? booooo!). And another Philly native, Santogold, won over critics and beer-drinkers alike with a smooth multikulti pop album.
