The year 2008 saw the election of a new president, a financial meltdown and even the conviction of O.J. Simpson. The music world also saw its share of that ever-present political buzzword, "change." The Daily will attempt to sum up the 2008 calendar year in the music scene, from the good to the bad to the ugly, and offer up a list of notable future releases and performances to check out in 2009.
The past year supplied a number of very solid albums in several genres. Mash-up master Greg Gillis, a.k.a. Girl Talk, released his fourth LP "Feed the Animals," pleasing both hipsters and hip-hop fans alike with its zany and highly danceable remix medleys. The New Zealand comedic duo Flight of the Conchords of HBO comedy fame released their self-titled album of songs from the TV show, a hilarious compilation that tempered its tongue-in-cheek lyrics with genuinely infectious hooks.
Rock and roll offered up its share of solid material, both mainstream and indie. Hard rock legends AC/DC put out "Black Ice," their first album since 2000's "Stiff Upper Lip," with remarkable success. "Black Ice" made history by debuting in the No. 1 position on 29 countries' album charts. Indie pop rockers Death Cab for Cutie released "Narrow Stairs," a studio effort darker than much of the band's previous work but remarkably compelling.
Brooklyn-based classic rock revivalists The Hold Steady continued to build their fanbase with "Stay Positive," their fourth full-length studio album in as many years. Last but certainly not least, art rockers and fellow Brooklynites TV on the Radio released "Dear Science," voted the best album of 2008 by Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Spin Magazine and several other music publications.
Last year brought some strong offerings in hip-hop and rap as well. Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter III" set the 2008 record for highest first-week sales, topping one million units purchased. The jail-bound T.I. released "Paper Trail," notable for its club-swaying hit singles such as "Whatever You Like" and "Live Your Life." Rick Ross achieved success with his second album, "Trilla," which featured collaborations with Nelly, T-Pain and R. Kelly, who was acquitted this year of child pornography charges.
All of the aforementioned albums qualified as "good," with a few cases of remarkable work. But now it's time to take a look at the "bad" and even the "ugly." Topping this list was the unfortunately high-selling album "808's and Heartbreak" by Kanye West, on which the rapper/producer eschewed both rapping and decent production in favor of homogenous, monotonously synthesized beats overlaid with his own "singing" through an Auto-Tune. A close second was the disappointing "Chinese Democracy," the long overdue, overhyped and overproduced LP from Guns N' Roses, what Axl Rose likes to call his backing band, though none of the musicians were actually in the original Guns N' Roses lineup except him. Despite remarkable efforts by the band, the album was unable to live up to its own preceding reputation; the 15 years of production that pushed the idea of perfectionism to near-inhuman levels and the exorbitant budget of $13 million doomed this album from the get-go.
Meanwhile, Coldplay attempted, with limited success, to take their music in a new direction with "Viva La Vida (Or Death and All His Friends)." Many critics, however, felt that the album failed to significantly change the Coldplay formula from the previous three albums, which had resulted in Brits voting the band the most sleep-inducing of any music, according to a survey by the hotel chain Travelodge.
Lastly, Metallica's "Death Magnetic" attempted to recapture the metal giant's former 1980s glory but came off sounding more like a death metal mid-life crisis. With songs that many critics found to be interminably long and lyrics that were predominantly uninspired, this attempt at a comeback from 2003's "St. Anger" failed to save the band from a long, slow decline.
So what should music enthusiasts anticipate in 2009? Rock fans can expect new releases from U2, John Frusciante, Reel Big Fish, Third Eye Blind and The Fray. Bruce Springsteen will precede a Super Bowl halftime show performance with the January release of a new album, entitled "Working on a Dream," while Phish are planning to reunite for several shows in March. Rap and hip-hop listeners can look forward to both Eminem and Jay-Z coming out of retirement for new LPs, as well as a collaborative effort between Lil Wayne and DJ Drama. Lupe Fiasco has indicated that the first of three installments of what he implies will be his last studio work is scheduled to drop next fall.
So don't sell the iPod or Walkman for gas money quite yet; nothing brightens a horrific economic recession like some fresh tunes. And fear not: the year 2009 promises plenty of those.
