20) Andy Duguid - Believe [Black Hole]
A classy blend of prog, house, techno, electro and excellent songwriting with the backbone of the genre made Scottish producer Duguid’s debut our trance-heads’ favourite LP of the year.
19) Wax Tailor – Hope & Sorrow [Atmosphéiques]
Released last year but only promoed in the UK this year, Hope & Sorrow saw the French DJ/producer serve up an irresistible album of cinematic trip-hop with Nightmares On Wax undertones.
18) Loco Dice – 7 Dunham Place [Desloat]
It might pass you by at first, but the more you listen to the subtle grooves and warm textures of El Loco’s debut album of subby minimal house, the more it grows on you. The crisp, delicate sounds herein rewarded patient listeners, and there were a few dancefloor bombs to enjoy too.
17) Rex The Dog – The Rex The Dog Show [Hundehaus]
A long-awaited debut from the former JX producer didn’t disappoint – full of big euphoric powerpop-meets-electro riffs and bubblegum attitude, it perfectly updated the sound of ‘80s synth campness for a dancefloor generation.
16) Black Grass – Three [Catskills]
Perfect for blue-skied summer days, Brighton-based Black Grass delivered a superbly catchy LP of party hip-hop, reggae, funk and soul on Three – perfect for anyone who enjoyed The Nextmen’s similarly-styled This Was Supposed To Be The Future in 2007.
15) Booka Shade – The Sun & The Neon Light [Get Physical]
It no doubt disappointed many with its largely subdued, less “clubby” styles, but those who felt so were foolish to ignore the beauty exuded by the German duo’s third LP throughout. Charlotte provided a surefire dancefloor winner, while elsewhere fragile, soft electronica sounded more akin to Trentemøller’s lush soundscapes.
14) Danny Byrd – Supersized [Hospital Records]
Most people have been raving about Chase & Status’ debut album, but as a whole we would rather have Bath-based Byrd’s debut – full of rousing, peak-time rollers and some really fresh moments that set him aside from most of his contemporaries.
13) The Bug – London Zoo [Ninja Tune]
Dark, apocalyptic digi-dub and dubstep stylings on The Bug’s second album - a bass-laden funeral march to accompany the decline of the Western economy. “This is the music I want to be listening to as the world ends” our reviewer gushed.
12) Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours [Modular]
A joyous album that combined shoegazey pop with uplifting electro synths, In Ghost Colours saw the Aussie trio reach new heights and score one of the loveliest albums of the year – file next to MGMT.
11) Metronomy – Nights Out [Because]
An acquired taste for sure, but we’re total suckers for Joseph Mount and co’s inimitable combination of electro and wistful, eccentric pop. A brilliant songwriter with a great ear for strong melody, his talent seeped out of every pore of this magical album.
10) Kraak & Smaak – Plastic People [Jalapeno]
After years of hard-slog and under-recognition, 2008 finally saw this inspiring Dutch trio breakthrough with the release of this, their second album. Fusing funk, hip-hop, breaks, fidget, house, soul and more into one infectious package, they created a sound with a heavy nod to the past, but with a classy modern sheen. Squeeze Me with Ben Westbeech should have been a huge chart hit, with its Mark Ronson style brass and soulful vocals, while tracks like Ain’t Gonna Take It No More and Plastic People gave their stunning live show some big-riffed party monsters to rock dancefloors with.
9) Flying Lotus – Los Angeles [Warp]
Maybe Los Angeles is just too ahead of its time, but Flying Lotus has remained at the fringes of popular conscious all year with a brilliant album that jumps from jazz to hip hop via Brazil and Berlin with the most spine-tingling off-kilter beat and eats any other album that dared to be released in the same year as it. Like many seminal records of the past, Los Angeles will only get better with time as more and more people uncover the textures of rich sounds locked away within the album and the new genre it belongs to begins to infiltrate mainstream music, most likely via hip hop. Then again, we wouldn’t want it any other way. For now, music’s best kept secret. Essential purchase.
8) The Whitest Boy Alive – The Whitest Boy Alive [Modular]
It was actually originally released in 2006, but it came to our attention when Aussie tastemakers Modular gave it a worldwide release. Ereland Øye and his fellow Norwegian mates went back to basics with this charming record, recording everything in one-take with no overdubs or FX – just vocals, guitar, bass, Rhodes piano and synth. The result is a gorgeous fusion of disco, funk, pop and mellow folktronica that’s full of character, groove and beauty, and warms you up like a cup of hot soup on a winter’s day.
7) Santogold – Santogold [Atlantic]
When we first heard her screeching tones on the sonic bonecrusher that is Creator, we thought she was actually M.I.A. Her links and similar style on this and other tracks drew inevitable comparisons – but her debut showed that her range and depth were wider and deeper than the Sri Lankan starlet. From Grace Jones style vampiness to Blondie style pop-punk, her palette on this album is wide, and her exuberant, indominatable attitude shone throughout. This album’s a grower – which means it’s likely to have more longevity – and will still sound great 20 years down the line, with its unique blend of influences and styles.
6) Hot Chip – Made In The Dark [EMI]
Made In The Dark is the sound of everyone’s favourite geeky indie electro rockers going mental in the studio and having a whole lot of fun playing with their new toys. It’s the sound of a band whose gentle, almost naïve-sounding attitude is still there, but backed now by a very confident and accomplished air. Energetic thumpers like Out At The Pictures helped the group to reach new peaks as a live act, while LP-only curious like Bendable Poseable showed that they’re still one of the most unique, innovative acts in electronic music.
5) Butch – Papillon [Great Stuff]
A cruelly overlooked album, Papillon was by a long shot the best album of 4/4 house and techno we heard all year. The German-Turkish producer deftly combined cool deep house grooves (not dull ploddy ones, but sexy, snappy ones) and jacking minimal techno with lush string and organ riffs and lashings of wonderful minor-key melodies to create an LP that’s as at home on the dancefloor as it is at…er…home. Some people say that house & techno can’t work in an album format – but this pulls off that trick with aplomb.
4) Hercules & Love Affair – Hercules & Love Affair [EMI/DFA]
Just when you thought nu-disco might be a passing fad/revival, this New York outfit appear with a genius-like album that updates the disco diva sound immaculately and shows that this movement has got a lot to offer the world. Full of life-affirming energy and several powerful vocal turns from Anthony Hegarty as well as plenty of cheeky brass, it’s a unique album for our day and age, and one pulled off so convincingly and in such an uncontrived fashion that you could be mistaken for thinking it was from another era entirely. An album to unleash your inner diva too.
3) Late Of The Pier – Fantasy Black Channel [Parlophone]
The ghost of nu-rave came back to haunt us in 2008 – and thankfully a more refined ghoul altogether. The electro/rock crossover sound that dominated 2007 took a stunning new turn this year thanks to this sprightly 4-piece from Castle Donnington, whose general remit was to turn the “dance music played like a rock band” that the likes of Prodigy do on its head – and instead play rock music like a dance act. Their huge, hyperactive, youthful sound was tempered by a maturity of ideas beyond their years, and was all brought to glorious technicolour life by studio wizz Erol Alkan.
2) MGMT – Oracular Spectacular [Columbia]
It’s not exactly a dance album, but it’s laden enough with synths and tinges of psychedelic electronica to fall inside our remit. Besides, we bleedin’ love it. It’s great when an act comes out of nowhere and stuns you with a superb debut album, and MGMT’s deftly combined a naïve, shoegazing, ‘70s sound that evokes memories of Dazed & Confused (the film, not the magazine stooped) with anthemic synth lines, and a timeless, youthful energy that made this record both dream-like and full of vitality. Two huge paeans to the inebriation (both metaphorical and literal) of youth came in Time To Pretend and Kids, while Electric Eel’s adorable sentiment made for one of the most gorgeous choruses anywhere in years. Our new favourite four letter acronym/abbreviation that starts with an M.
1) Ralph Myerz – Ralphorama! Appetite 4 Self-Destruction [Beatservice[
Yes, the vast majority of you are sitting their scratching your heads and saying “who?” We were too when this super-talented Norwegian producer’s new LP arrived on our desks – but after one listen, it was clear that this was a unique, amazing piece of work. Ralphorama! touches on so many different styles, each with complete success; feel-good electro pop on Sometimes, pumped-up G-funk on We Don’t Give A Fuck, Trentemøller-style dub on Sandviken, Annie-esque wistfulness on Heatwave (Summersong), Royksöpp instrumentalism on Smokey, discofied-pop on Summertime Heat, phat hip-hop and more.
The album is structured brilliantly, produced to perfection, and every vocalist from Talib Kweli and Mos Def to the Norwegian rapper and the lovely Caroline Ingeberg give superb performances. There will be albums from 2008 that will be better remembered in years to come and perhaps more culturally significant – but we don’t care. Ralph Myerz deserves your attention and we want him to get the success he deserves – and this superb album is a complete joy from start to finish. Something special.
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