TOP 10 ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

I listened to a lot of music this year. It seems like no one really makes albums anymore. 2008 was the year of remixes and singles. I think most people said that about 2007. But with this great invention called the internet I was able to hear a lot more albums than I could have afforded to buy. But… uh… you should still go buy music. Click on the album to buy it on Amazon.

10. Midnight Juggernauts – Dystopia

So unfortunately we start off with a tie. I couldn’t dismiss either album so I posted both. This ELO inspired dance-rock band was everywhere in 2008. Killing it at Coachella, getting remixed and remixing everyone under the sun, and making an album so good it got me laid. Australia is owning the dance-rock world right now.

10. Santogold – S/T (Self-Titled)

Santogold owned 2008 as well. Not only did she release her much anticipated, much heralded debut album, she also worked on a sick mixtape with jack-of-all-trades Diplo. Everything she touched turned to gold, Santogold.

9. Ladyhawke – S/T

The first time I heard “Paris is Burning” on her Myspace I knew I had to pay attention to this chica. Yet another Aussie coming with some great music. Heavily inspired by Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac (my favorite rock band ever) every song is just as good as the one before it. Great full-length effort by someone I think is going to be huge in 2009.

8. The Cool Kids – The Bake Sale

Freaking real Hip-Hop… finally. Chicago is the only place making Hip-Hop; Kanye, Common, Kid Sister, Lupe, and more. Though technically an EP this album is better than almost every “LP” that came out this past year. With their throwback sound and style the Cool Kids had real Hip-Hop heads smiling.

7. Crystal Castles – S/T

It’s not really a full-length as much of a collection of songs they made over the past couple of years. If this album was full of original tracks recorded for this album, it very well might be #1. Next time CC. I’ll be up every night eagerly awaiting the Sophomore effort from Alice Glass and Ethan Katz.

6. Jamie Lidell – Jim

This guy right here. This guy right here. What can I say? The only white guy that can give Justin Timberlake a run for his money. His third solo release has flashes of, dare I say, Prince and Al Green??? Blasphemy! But it’s so good. This is some real soul with a hint of electronica. I am really feeling Mr. Lidell.

5. Little Dragon – S/T

To be honest I still haven’t heard the whole album. But that’s how good it is. 75% of this album beat 100% of almost every album I heard this year. It’s still on import so it costs a million dollars, but I’m sure its worth it. Yukimi Nagano of Koop spreads her wings on her own to make both the best electro-jazz and singer-songwriter album of the year.

4. MGMT – Oracular Spectacular

If you haven’t heard of MGMT yet you must have been hiding in a cave all year. They played every festival and their songs were on every radio station and TV show. Such a great pop album from newcomers MGMT. Produced by Dave Friedmann (Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev) this album was damn near perfect. I love every song. You can dance to it, make love to it, or play it on a rainy day. Trust me, go cop this immediately.

3. Q-Tip – The Renaissance

What do you know? Some more Hip-Hop. There was a huge push at the end of the year for some good mainstream Hip-Hop. Q-Tip released The Renaissance on Election Day in November. A few weeks later Kanye released his mediocre but unexpected album 808 and Heartbreaks and in December Common came with his Neptunes produced Universal Mind Control. Though I enjoyed all of them it was definitely Q-Tip’s third solo release that made the biggest impression in my mind. Every song is 4 or 5 out of 5 stars.

2. Hercules & Love Affair – S/T

My boy Jeremy played this album for me at Coachella this past spring. I heard it and immediately really liked it. Then I got it and listened to it. And it knocked on my ass. So good, so strange, so dancey. It was a perfect mixture of every genre it covered, disco, electronica, experimental. Every year I hear an album that gave me something I wasn’t expecting. Last year it was Koop’s Island Blues. This year it was Hercules and Motherfucking Love Affair.

1. Portishead – Third

Let’s be honest Beth Gibbons could sing over waves crashing and I would put it at #1. You know what, that’s not a bad idea. But she didn’t need too because she returned after 11 YEARS!!! to join her former band mates and release Portishead’s third album, aptly titled Third. It took a while for it to grow on me, as I was hoping every song would sound like “Machine Gun.” But the more I listened to it the more I fell in love with it. And after seeing them perform the album live, I knew there could be no other #1 album of the year.

TOP 10 MOVIES OF 2008

I don’t talk about movies much on Golden Bloggen. I keep it mostly music based, but I am indeed a huge film geek. It is my second love after music. Actually its more like 1B. So in honor of my movie geekdom I am posting my Top 10 movies of 2008. Again I can only post what I saw, but I saw a lot.

10. Let the Right One In

Sometimes I feel like movies are made just for me. And then I wonder how the hell they got funding cuz who is going to see them. This was one of them. A very small, quiet Norwegian film about a 12 year-old vampire girl (she only looks 12) who befriends her 12 year-old neighbor boy. This movie is quiet and dark with a lot of snow. But watching  the little girl eat people made it all worth it.

9. Speed Racer

By far and away the most disrespected movie of the year. Everyone hated on this movie, and to me it was for no good reason. Someone said it was “too cartoony.” That’s cuz Speed Racer was a FUCKING CARTOON! And it was a goofy one too. The movie was exciting and really goofy and cartoony. It was everything I wanted it to be. And it was geared to kids, hence the PG-rating. People, what did you want? I realize the creators of the Matrix made this, but this was Speed Racer. 

8. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I loved this movie but I had really high expectations. The previous occasions in which Brad Pitt and David Fincher worked together they made Seven and Fight Club! This was a much lighter affair but damn it was sad. One of the most beautiful love stories I’ve seen in some years. The first 30-45 minutes hold this film from being ranked higher. It starts of very slow, and though the set up is much needed, lets be honest we were all waiting for Brad Pitt to join the movie (even though he is technically in it from the beginning). Such an original piece of work. See it for yourself, but be patient.

7. Pineapple Express

Danny McBride Star of the Year! Franco nominated for a Golden Globe! This Apatow produced movie was pretty damn good, though it was no Knocked Up or Superbad, it was still really funny. Danny McBride who had a co-starring role was great as always. The other two movies he starred in this year, The Foot Fist Way and Tropic Thunder, would probably be #11 and 12 on my list. Just a good stoner buddy comedy. Definitely good for a night at home if you want to laugh.

6. Vicky Christina Barcelona

Maybe the sexiest movie I’ve ever seen. The gorgeous Penelope Cruz and Scarlett Johansson sharing some steamy screen time together. I don’t want to give too much away but they make out! Hott! And the sexy, freckly Rebecca Hall playing the prudish engaged girl on vacation n Spain (what was she thinking) gave one of the best female performance I’ve seen all year. I love Woody Allen and though he has steered away from comedy more and more recently his dramas have been just as good, if not better.

5. Get Smart

A very pleasant surprise. I was on the fence going into this movie and I enjoyed every second of it. Steve Carrell was hilarious and Anne Hathaway was amazing as always. The supporting cast was as good as the main stars with The Rock, Masi Oka (Hiro from Heroes), and the great Alan Arkin all playing their roles perfectly. Another remake of a show I watched as a kid. So many remakes these days. But this was a good one.

4. W.

This movie was also very disrespected. I thought Oliver Stone making a movie about our bumbling president would be the biggest news of the year. There seemed to be a lot of buzz leading up to the movie, but everyone was upset that Stone chose to portray W. as a human being. Weak excuse. And give the Oscar to Thandie Newton as Condie. Damn, she was completely unrecognizable, she just became Condie. Great cast from top to bottom. Great movie from start to finish.

3. The Dark Knight

What can I say about Batman 6 that you don’t know? It made a billion dollars. It was better than I expected and Heath Ledger gave the best performance of the year. I love when actors can transform into other people (see Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder). If you didn’t see this movie in IMAX… YOU DIDN’T SEE THIS MOVIE! Pray they re-realease it. Pray goddamnit!

2. Cloverfield

You would think that after 100 years of film making they would run out of shit to do. But every year I get surprised by what someone does. Last year it was Grindhouse. This year it was Cloverfield. I had never seen anything like it in my life. Yeah Blair Witch Project…blah blah blah. But this is a gripping action movie from start to finish that puts you inside the action with the characters. Jaw-dropping.

1. Forgetting Sarah Marshall

And of course my favorite movie of the year Forgetting Sarah Marshall. If you talked to me at all this year, you heard me bring up Sarah Marshall to you at least 5 times. Unbelievably funny, unbelievably truthful. Jason Segel tells his true story of dating actress Linda Cardellini and their break up. The ridiculous sexy Mila Kunis and Kristin Bell steam up the movie screen, Russell Brand as Aldis Snow was hilarious, Jack McBrayer from 3o Rock, Jonah Hill, great cast. And Jason Segel finally gets his own damn movie! Freaks and Geeks rules the world!

BEST SONGS OF 2008: #11-30

So here is the very important “Best Of the Year” list. Those who know me well know I am a compulsive list-maker. But this is the only list people actually read. Here are my picks for BEST SONGS OF THE YEAR

I can only rank what I’ve heard. So if your favorites aren’t up here, please don’t fuss and fight. Maybe I didn’t hear it, maybe I forgot about it, or maybe your music sucks. Ha. Just write a comment.

Come back tomorrow for the TOP 10!

30. Treasure Fingers – Cross the Dancefloor

Treasure Fingers just makes a really great groovy disco track.  There were also about a dozen remixes done for this  . It’s always good for a DJ to have a lot of dancefloor bangers that mention dancing that you can sing along to.

29. Shelby Lynne – Anyone Who Had a Heart

I couldn’t find the track so enjoy the video. I love Shelby. I am not a big fan of Country music but Shelby has my heart. I get everything she makes. This song is real fucking sad yet really fucking beautiful. It’s taken from her Dusty Springfield inspired album “Just a Little Lovin.” Sing it Shelby! 

28. Kid Sister – Pro Nails

Another Chicago Hip-Hop artist really coming thru. I could have picked a number of Kid Sister tracks but I picked the now epic “Pro Nails.” An appearance from Kanye West on the remix really put Kid Sister on the map. Another one of those songs that got about a dozen remixes but the best has got to be Rusko‘s heavy Herve-esque bass drop on his remix. Get all the Kid Sister you possibly can.

27. N.E.R.D – Anti-Matter

N.E.R.D. came with some real dance music on a few tracks on this album. This song had some real deep bass. Feeling this more than their strange “Everybody Nose.” I was a little disappointed by their latest full-length release. Even though it was still really good I expect more from my favorite band of the last 10 years.

26. Portishead – The Rip

THE greatest Eletronica band of all time came back after an 11 year hiatus just for me. Beth Gibbons gives us her slow, sexy vocals on this one. I could have put Portishead‘s whole album on this list but I’ll be fair to the others.

25. The Cool Kids – Mikey Rocks

This Chicago Hip-Hop group gave me a glimmer of hope when I thought Hip-Hop had up and died on me. It’s in the struggle, but Cool Kids are doing what they can to revive the genre.

24. Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head – L.A. Noir

Winning my award for most memorable band name of the year is Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head. Taking their name from when Natalie Portman actually shaved her head for her role in “V For Vendetta.” I love this song cuz its smooth as hell and they give my hometown some love. If you like this one, check out Hercules & Love Affair.

23. The Ting Tings – That’s Not My Name

The Ting Tings are a new pop band that made a big splash in ’08. They got a lot of attention when their song “Shut Up & Let Me Go” showed up on an iTunes commercial. But it was this first demo I heard earlier this year that made me take notice of this duo.

22. Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts [zSHARE]

Kylie is back! Her sound is so good. Like a Madonna-lite. Just good pop dance songs you don’t have to think about.

21. MGMT – Electric Feel 

Like The Ting Tings, this band came out of nowhere this year and made some noise. Now their songs are household tunes. They were like the 2008 Peter, Bjorn, and John. Lets just hope people actually remember MGMT next year. Definitely won’t be the last mention of this band on the ‘Best Of’ lists.

20. Jamie Lidell – A Little Bit of feel Good (Mr. Oizo Remix)

In the original Jamie came with some old soul flavor. On the remix Oizo makes it sound oh so funky, and well… just crazy with those strange sounds. But it always makes for a much better remix when the original is so damn good.

19. Santogold – L.E.S. Artistes

I played this track out for months at a time this year, especially when I first got the single on vinyl. I don’t think that there was another new artist who got more exposure than Santo this year. Her face was all over Adidas adds, she killed it at Coachella, she’s chilling in M.I.A.‘s “Paper Planes” video (song is from 2007 or else it would be up here), and her music was in every commercial from beer to douche. 

18. Empire of the Sun – Walking on a Dream

Another one of those songs I listened to several times a day when I first heard it. I couldn’t get enough of this Empire song, it was so damn catchy. 2008 was the year I discovered Pnau, which led to me hearing this track. Lucky me.

17. Lykke Li – Little Bit

Lykke Li came with some really good Slow Girl in the year Slow Girl broke through. The full album is actually really good too, but Lykke still needs a little work to get to that Feist status. But this track is about as good as it gets.

16. Santogold – You’ll Find A Way (Switch & Sinden Remix) [zSHARE]

Ooh-wee. The bass drop on this song is so Goddamn good. Dance music made a big splash this year. Crookers made it to mainstream radio and the indie queen of 2008 made it to superstardom. Dance remixes were so big, especially this one, so much so that Santo even performed this version live instead of the original.

15. Jamie Lidell – Figured Me Out [zSHARE]

Jamie is back this time on his own. Just another great track from his unbelievable album “Jim.”

14. The Virgins – Rich Girls

I love this song. Another Blue-eyed soul song like Jamie Lidell. This strange Rock/R&B group really came correct on their first big single. For a year filled with the new type of boy band (MGMT, Vampire Weekend), I think the Virgins are gonna actually stick around.

13. Chemical Brothers – Electronic Battle Weapon 10 (Midnight Madness Extended)

This extended version came out after the initial Midnight Madness single. This one however is over 8 minutes long, and its so good. Chemical Brothers, the second greatest dance band after Daft Punk, are always at the forefront of music. Even after about 15 years in the game they still seem to WOW me every year.

12. Robyn – With Every Heartbeat (Punks Jump Up Remix)

Now all the songs from here on got worn out in my iTunes as well as on my turntables. I’m oh so glad to see Robyn back. For all of us young boys who had crushes on Robyn when she hit the scene back in the mid-90’s, we were glad to see her back. I’ve seen this track posted as far back as 2 years ago but this didn’t really get to the states until earlier this year, so I’m counting it. It’s just so dancey. Ugh!

11. Faker – This Heart Attack (Miami Horror Remix)

Miami Horror you had me at hello. One of the catchiest songs of the year. Miami Horror, another Aussie dance band that kept me dancing in ’08 (see Pnau), had a few good tracks this past year, but none was as good as this one. Try getting it out of your head. I dare you!

MVM – A TRIBUTE TO HERB RITTS

Normally around this time people do their top videos of the year. But I would just be reposting the videos I already posted from 2008, since there is not really a lot of quality videos to pick from anymore. Internet killed the video star. I will however be spending the next few days this week posting my top songs, albums, and movies. Please stayed tuned!

So instead of posting old shit I am going to pay tribute to my favorite photographer of all time… Mr. Herb Ritts. December 26th marked the 6-year anniversary of Ritts’ death. Not only was Ritts a great photographer but he made a few of the sexiest music videos of all time. Literally, his video for Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Games” was voted sexiest video of all time by 

VH-1.

Here’s the aforementioned Chris Isaak video with the supersexy supermodel Helena Christensen.

Chris Isaak – “Wicked Game” (1991)

This video from Mariah Carey is perfect. Herb’s classic black & white photography, Mariah is looking oh so sexy, and the lyrics of this song are amazing. “My All” is off of Mariah’s album “Butterfly,” easily one of the best pop albums of the 90’s.

Mariah Carey – “My All” (1998)

We here at Golden Bloggen love us some Justin Timberlake. And I am willing to forgive the fact that he was in N’Sync, because on their last album EVER (Thank God) they made some quality tracks, like the Neptunes produced “Girlfriend” and this accessible Blue-eyed Soul song “Gone.”

N’Sync – “Gone” (2001)

Here I am posting yet another Janet video. What can I say… she works with everyone. I love old-school Janet’s pop-dance songs. This one is a little more cheesy, but Janet and Herb make a great duo.

Janet Jackson – “Love Will Never Do Without You” (1990)

It don’t get no better than old school Madonna. Here’s is Herb Ritt’s first video! How pimp do you have to be to land Madonna for your first video?

Madonna – “Cherish” (1989)

MVM – CHRISTMAS VIDEOS

Snoop Dogg – Santa Claus Goes Straight To The Ghetto

Merry Christmas all! I’ll make this short and sweet. It’s Christmas time. Here are some great Christmas videos.

Run DMC – Christmas in Hollis

This is one of the funniest, strangest Christmas songs ever. I remember this one growing up.

Dr. Elmo – Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer

This is silly Xmas song, some would even say it’s terrible, but its No Doubt!

No Doubt – Oi To the World

No Doubt – Oi To The World
Uploaded by No-Doubt

Look at Mariah Looking All Sexy

Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas is You

All I want for Christmas is You Mariah
Uploaded by gandon708

It’s blasphemy using any version besides the Donnie Hathaway version but Mr. Hathaway didn’t make a video. This is my favorite Christmas song ever so I HAVE to post it, even if it is Chris Brown.

Chris Brown – This Christmas

And here is the smoothest G of them all. The original Black playboy who paved the way for all the commercial Black musicians that followed.

Nat King Cole –  The Christmas Song

HAPPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME

It was my 25th bday this weekend so me and some friends did it up. Thanks to all those who came out to party with me. Here are some great birthday songs to make your day as awesome as mine.

Royksopp – Happy Birthday

Stevie Wonder – Happy Birthday

FAKE BLOOD @ THE VANGUARD

Fake Blood AKA DJ Touche of the Wiseguys AKA Theo Keating producer of the Black Ghosts finally made his way to the states. He ripped the dance floor up at the free Scion House Party last night. I saw The Count and Sinden (without The Count) at the same Scion party last month and I haven’t been too impressed with the crowd. These are some big DJ’s and the crowds have been underwhelming. The disco has only been about half full and I don’t see the crazy moshing and grooving that I see at shows sponsored by HARD or at Dim Mak Tuesdays at Cinespace. Don’t know what that’s about. But none the less Golden Bloggen favorite Fake Blood did not disappoint. He dropped his unique basslines all night and I finally got to see dude drop “Stuck on Repeat” live. Highlight of my week! Pick up some of his heaters below or grab some from an older blog post here.

Hot Chip – Touch Too Much (Fake Blood Remix)

South Rakkas Crew – Mad Again (Fake Blood Remix)

Speaking of The Count and Sinden here is a Fake Blood remix of their great but overplayed song “Beeper.”

The Count and Sinden – Beeper (Fake Blood Remix) [Savefile]

Closing out the show was Tommie Sunshine, who looks like DJ Jesus from Lucy, Daughter of the Devil. He played some hard hitting electro his whole set. Shit was hot. This is a rip from a mix so it is not the complete original but its still really good.

The Ashton Shuffle ft. Tommie Sunshine – Stomp Your Shoes (Sessions Five Rip)