Albums Of The Year (Alex)

To be honest, we here at BW didn't really discuss the logistics of posting individual Best Of lists in a year that saw us agree firmly on the releases of a certain few bands. Which is rarer than you might think. To avoid redundancy, see Nat's post for two albums which will probably make a heap of Best Of lists worldwideweb-wide, with mine no exception:

Passion Pit - Chunk Of Change EP

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago

There were albums this year that had moments of sheer individual brilliance, from people as diverse as T.I and Bob Dylan, but it only seems fair to include the albums which got the most overall burn. So, as dictated by my iTunes play count, I present you the other 3 best albums of 2008 :

Kanye West - 808s and Heartbreak

Kanye's decision to move beyond his comfortable, highly successful mould as a hip-hop producer is demonstration of a commendable ambition, and largely unsurprising for someone with an ego as healthy as his. Like him or hate him for his bold claims about being 'the voice of a generation', with 808's, Kanye has managed that rare feat that is sporadically achieved in pop music: the ability to craft an album that will influence the sound of pop music for the immediate, and perhaps lasting future.

(On a sidenote, anyone unconvinced by the new material should try to catch a live show, as some of the BW family did last night. Moments of earnest indulgence from Mr West did nothing to stymie a concert that at times reached obscene levels of fun.)

Kanye West feat. Kid Cudi - Welcome To Heartbreak

The Hood Internet - Lykke Li minimix

I thought Lykke Li's album was amazing in and of itself. But it seems to have been the most fertile ground for people wanting to do mash-ups or remixes since Paper Planes. The Hood Internet's signature approach pairs her transcendent vocals with a range of sweetly tessellated beats, from the beautiful ambience of The Field and Gui Boratto to dancefloor bangers with Hercules & Love Affair and Booka Shade. When quite often mash-ups can be merely "oh that's kinda clever," these six little gems leave you more "oh woah that's better."

The Hood Internet vs Lykke Li - minimix (via The Hood Internet)



Air France – No Way Down EP
This was my go-to ‘in transit’ choice. It works equally well as background music to a book on the train, or when I’m skating somewhere, or when I’m just walking. Which is not to say it’s a white noise thing: the songs all just have a way of being present and feeling so appropriate to being in motion. Sort of like when a song sounds right at the beach, and you zen out a little.

Air France – Collapsing At Your Doorstep

More Fire

In the wake of mash-ups becoming genuinely good (we were all surprised), The Hood Internet are leading the charge. The switched-on pair of ABX and STV SLV have a crazy accurate ability to combine stuff, with a focus on dropping raps over prime tunes, old and new. BW recently claimed these guys would blow up in '08 (if they haven't already), and when they're dropping Clipse over Cat Power or making R. Kelly actually reasonable by mashing him on "7/4 Shoreline" you'll see why. There's an attitude that simple 2-song mash-ups using rap are bullshit because rap is so 4/4 and easy, but when you do it this well, who cares?

The duo drops new tracks fairly regularly, so there's a wealth of stuff. Just to be even more balla, they've linked EVERY SINGLE MIX (there's like a million) plus a whole bunch of mixtapes at their site. Here's a few flavours anyway:

Clipse vs Cat Power - I Don't Blame You For Grinding And Shining
T.I vs Fujiya & Miyagi - What You Know About Transparent Things
Lykke Li mini-mix (individual tracks in a 30MG zip via Sendspace)

Head over already!

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