By the time New Year’s Eve rolled around, 2008 wasn’t looking so hot. The worst economic recession in years with an added bonus of record unemployment, a burgeoning war in the Middle East, horrific terrorist attacks that crossed international boundaries and hearts, Katy Perry getting nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for her single “I Kissed A Girl.” Yup, 2008 was the kind of year most would like to file under “forgettable” as quickly as possible, but there was, in fact, one bright spot amidst the dark.

For an industry that is constantly and prematurely declaring their own demise, the music business in 2008 was looking pretty swell. While you still had your ring tone one-hit wonders like Flo-Rida’s “Low,” (a song made 1000x better in Tropic Thunder), and some more prefabricated pop by the likes of Danity Kane and the Pussycat Dolls, not everything was doom and gloom. It was a fairly awesome year for (tasteful) music-lovers, a soothing antidote to the madness of an election year, and contained enough remarkable releases to numb the insulting pain of the most recent Grammy nominations.

Some great things, as always, had to come to an end: legendary guitarist and rock ‘n roll pioneer Bo Diddley died, as did funk founder Isaac Hayes a.k.a. “Shaft,” while bands such as the Long Blondes, Ministry, Junior Senior, and (no!) the Spice Girls called it quits. 2008 also showed that all hope was not lost in the music world: Hootie and the Blowfish disbanded, Scott Weiland continued his band-disrupting ways, Apple’s iTunes not only finally topped Wal-Mart’s global music sales but went DRM-free, and Flea enrolled at USC. Up-and-coming bands like Vampire Weekend, MGMT, and Ra Ra Riot proved that it was possible for groups lacking major label muscle to put themselves out there and let their music speak for themselves, garnering untold numbers of fans through the Internet and becoming blog sensations practically overnight. Old rock standbys like AC/DC, Metallica, the Offspring, and the Verve finally got around to releasing new material, with even Guns ‘N Roses (minus, uh, everyone except Axl Rose) finally releasing their long-awaited Chinese Democracy, a milestone most expected to arrive after actual Chinese democracy.

While a number of bands released music that was above and beyond the standard fare of the mainstream, the below best albums are those that deserve to be mentioned not only for their artistic merit, but also for their likelihood to withstand the test of time and be looked back on as defining moments in each band’s history, as well as of 2008 in music. So without further ado…

Klap4Music’s 20 Best Albums of 2008

20. The Hold Steady – Stay Positive

Hold Steady vocalist Craig Finn says the band’s fourth is about “aging gracefully,” but the righteous racket and vibrant storytelling these bar band rockers serve up seem to suggest that growing up is overrated. Slicker and better produced than their previous albums, it nevertheless retains the “Springsteen-ian” classic rock feel of their earlier work and Finn’s lyrics are as sharp and relatable as ever. 

19. Coldplay – Viva La Vida

Chris Martin and company were in danger of treading into soft-rock and piano drudgery on 2005’s X&Y, but Viva La Vida proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Coldplay wasn’t content to sit on their laurels for their fourth record. Incorporating world music styles, multi-movement epics, and some of Martin’s best lyrics yet, Viva might be Coldplay’s best album yet, and is certainly their most original and experimental.

18. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride

Indie troubadour John Darnielle’s continues an amazing streak of folk-rock successes with this, his 16^th record. Heretic Pride is a delicately produced work of gentle orchestration, acoustic finger picking, and Darnielle’s consistently insightful and evocative lyrics. His vocals have always taken a bit to get used to, and when he’s feeling particularly distressed they tend to grate, but Heretic Pride is another masterfully arranged work, and Darnielle’s expressive tales continue to elevate him to a level beyond most of his peers.

17. Taylor Swift – Fearless

My guilty pleasure of 2008, country-pop prodigy Taylor Swift’s sophomore effort is a well-written group of songs that deal with what Swift knows best: teenage heartache and high school life. Nostalgic, romantic, and endlessly catchy, Swift never indulges into (too much) power balladry and the earnest songwriting goes well with the assured, always-in-the-right-place production. Mainstream and commercialized to the extreme, but give her a chance; Swift is a talent that can’t be ignored. Afterall, she’s giving Beyonce a run for her money being #1 on the Billboards.

16. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago

If there was such a thing, singer-songwriter Justin Vernon alias Bon Iver’s debut record would surely win Most Depressing Record of the Year. Almost entirely recorded in an isolated cabin in rural Wisconsin, For Emma, Forever Ago is a cathartic expression of break-up and recovery in the bleakest terms. The minimalist instrumentation, lo-fi recording, and Vernon’s haunting vocals all paint a picture of forlorn grief and regret in the frozen north. Forget rainy-day music; this is music to listen to while snowed in by the biggest blizzard of the year.

15. T.I. – Paper Trail

Everyone knew house arrest couldn’t stop T.I. Going back to old-fashioned pen and paper to write down lyrics and finishing with around 50 songs for the album, Paper Trail’s 16 final cuts are some of mainstream rap’s best of the year. Hard-hitting beats combine with T.I.’s inimitable vocal dexterity and lyrics that fairly drip with venom to make an album of surefire commercial hits as well as a few that stand up to any cerebral rapper’s catalogue. And, of course, that Numa Numa sampling on “Live Your Life” was true producing genius.

14. Thrice – The Alchemy Index, Vol. 3 & 4: Air and Earth

Former hardcore punks Thrice have come a long way from their screamo days, and the promise shown in their early albums comes to full fruition on the second half of their Alchemy Index project, a two-disc magnum opus that takes Thrice out of post-hardcore territory and firmly establishes them as art-rock auteurs. Air is some of Thrice’s most uplifting, musically accomplished work, and vocalist Dustin Kensrue’s voice has never sounded finer. Earth, meanwhile, is an out-of-left-field experiment into acoustic folk that sounds almost like an entirely different band. Both, however, show the best of a band that is progressing well beyond the abilities of many of their peers.

13. British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music?

A simple question that British Sea Power answer in a suitably grand twelve tracks and fifty-five minutes. Intensely atmospheric art-rock that sounds more like the work of an orchestra than a band, Do You Like Rock Music? travels from guitar heroics to Britpop to U2-esque anthems to punk rave-ups to oddball instrumental works. The synchrony between the album’s beginning and ending tracks, meanwhile, is simply beautiful.

12. Vampire Weekend – Self Titled

I always try really hard to ignore blogosphere hype that seems way too blown out of proportion, and after hearing the somewhat underwhelming opener “Mansard Roof” I thought I could safely file Vampire Weekend under “over-hyped Internet sensations.” But this is a record that grows on you, and while initially I found it amateur-ish, I can safely say that this is one of the great debuts of the year. Ivy League pedigree be damned; Vampire Weekend is a record that can be enjoyed by anyone with an appreciation for simple, catchy chamber-pop tunes.

11. M83 – Saturdays=Youth

Anthony Gonzalez, the brainchild behind electronica group M83, has always had a fetish for taking discarded, old sounds and turning them into something new. The group’s shoegaze approach to electronica, soothing sounds built atop waves and waves of sound and layers of production, are twisted into M83’s most accessible outing on Saturdays=Youth, a record that hearkens back to that cultural touchstone everyone wants to forget: the ‘80s! Lyrically focused on teen love and emo angst, the music is a blend of synthtastic new-wave pop and frothy, bubbling techno all buoying Gonzalez’s wispy voice. It would’ve made a hell of a soundtrack to the Breakfast Club.

10. Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs

When I first reviewed this album, I thought it was disjointed, uneven, and lacking the sort of overall melodic pop sensibilities and good songwriting that Death Cab had been founded on. Undoubtedly, however, Narrow Stairs is a grower for the ages, and one that has only continued to improve with every listen. A record that is certainly challenging for those expecting a retread of Plans, but one that rewards its fans with a collection of Death Cab’s most thoughtful and innovative songs yet.

9. Okkervil River – The Stand Ins

The Stand Ins, folk-rockers Okkervil River’s second half of a project that delves deep into the psyche of a performer, is a bipolar tableau of musicians killing themselves slowly on the road for the joy of their fans, celebrating the road and damning it at the same time. You have to give props to lyricist Will Sheff, who includes references from the Kinks to the Angkor Wat in Cambodia to French playwright Antonin Artaud in a single song (and makes it sound entirely normal to boot). Oh, and the music, a potent synthesis of pop-rock and country-influenced, rootsier sounds, is just as good as you would expect from the band.

8. Fleet Foxes – Self Titled

Seattle fivesome take rock back to its roots; and by roots I mean down in the country, woods, and backroads of Americana folk. After My Morning Jacket’s Evil meltdown, it’s reassuring to see a fresh band take up the mantle of good ole-fashioned country rock. Taking more of a pastoral angle than MMJ’s blazing guitar solos, Fleet Foxes is an album that calls to mind more the Appalachian Trail than the Pacific Northwest, complete with church-gathering harmonizing, various wind instruments, and frontman Robin Pecknold’s unearthly howl. Yet another of 2008’s great rookie records.

7. The Raconteurs – Consolers of the Lonely

Consolers of the Lonely takes the Raconteurs’ power-pop promise shown on their sub par debut and blows it up in every direction imaginable. The title track is a bluesy, pulsating piece of blazing guitar work, while single “Salute Your Solution” is an up tempo rocker with an unrelenting bass line and a solo that would put White’s work with the Stripes to shame. From Americana to rustic country-rock to theatrical Southern-rock operas to good old-fashioned blues, Consolers has something for everyone.

6. The Roots – Rising Down

The Roots retain the throne of alternative hip-hop with their eighth studio album, a record that continues this collective’s remarkable run of intelligent and socially conscious rap. ?uestlove’s beats and production as polished and stimulating as ever, but Rising Down modifies their traditional jazzy sound with murkier synths and more digital techniques that embrace a fairly dark mood. It’s appropriate for the often-political and critical lyrics of MC Black Thought, and the album as a whole comes off as a logical evolution in the sound of a band that is constantly growing.

5. She & Him – Volume One

Most actresses who turn toward the music realm in order to diversify their image and develop yet another revenue stream usually are predestined for failure (see: Johansson, Scarlett), but indie heartthrob Zooey Deschanel’s first album has gone a long way toward dispelling that notion. She’s not the best singer, and the lyrics occasionally veer towards the simple and sentimental, but her heartfelt vocal approach and M. Ward’s (the Him) excellent backing arrangements and occasional vocal work create a timeless album of ‘60s Brill Building pop and twangy folk that bodes well for future releases.

4. The Walkmen – You & Me

Few bands can produce a studio record of such vintage sound and with such vivid feeling as the Walkmen. You & Me is a veritable kaleidoscope of sounds, from the Walkmen’s signature upright piano to swelling brass to the clattering drum work on any number of songs. It’s an album, above all else, that strives to create a genuine mood in the listener for each piece. And singer Hamilton Leithauser is one of a kind; his whiskey-soaked howl is at times affecting and at others grating, but for the most part, it fits in perfectly as another emotive instrument in painting the band’s canvas.

3. The Dodos – Visiter

The Dodos do it all on their second album, an hour-long kaleidoscope of psychedelic folk, world music beats, and an constantly-shifting array of melodic ideas and lyrical thoughts that fairly blow one away on first listen. Drummer Meric Long’s training in the West African style of Ewe drumming pays off incredible dividends here, as his hard-driving beats and ridiculous sense of syncopation turns nearly every song into a clinic of talent. Add to that guitarist/vocalist Logan Kroeber’s mellower Ben Gibbard-ish pipes and talented strumming and you have a largely acoustic world-folk record that makes for one of the strangest and most exciting releases of the year.

2. Everest- Ghost Notes

Everest’s debut Ghost Notes is as timeless as the influences it clearly draws from, namely ‘70s-era Neil Young, ‘60s pop, and contemporary guitar-rock bands like My Morning Jacket. Vocalist/guitarist Russell Pollard’s yearning vocals are perfectly suited to the band’s music, and their seemingly effortless playing belies a strict adherence to the tenets of solid melodic songwriting and hooks that latch on and refuse to let go. It’s usually easy to find fault somewhere on a band’s debut release, but Ghost Notes is a nearly flawless indie rock/country/pop record, perhaps a result of the members’ long time spent in other L.A.-area bands. Just as amazing live as it is on record, Ghost Notes is appealing, honest, and, above all, refreshing. Everest has made the debut of the year.

The top spot?

1. Conor Oberst – Self Titled

Bright Eyes’ frontman and songwriter continues to make his case as our generation’s Bob Dylan with his first “solo” record, an album written and recorded in a scenic Mexican town and featuring country-rock and guitar-driven folk similar to Bright Eyes’ 2007 release Cassadaga. Lyrically Oberst is in top form as usual, singing about cancer-stricken children, road trip adventures, and life in the barrios with the ease of a natural-born poet. Never has Oberst sounded so relaxed and so carefree; while some of the songs are necessarily serious, Conor Oberst is at its core a fun and relentlessly entertaining album. When you hear an unidentified female voice suddenly come in early before the chorus on “Souled Out!!!” and Conor laughs in response before launching into the chorus himself, you can’t help but to smile. A record that deserves the “best of ’08 label.”