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Trailer Bride – Jesco
Slim Cessna's Auto Club – This Is How We Do Things In The Country
Seasick Steve – Started Out WIth Nothin'
Scott H. Biram – Judgement Day
Micah P. Hinson – Diggin' A Grave
Jace Everett – Burn For You
Reverend Deadeye – Fuck_the_Devil
United Steel Workers Of Montreal – Three Hard Knocks
The Hackensaw Boys – Oh, Girl
Th' Legendary Shack Shakers – Old Spur Line
John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives – She'll Dance to Anything
Southern Culture on the Skids – Daddy Was a Preacher but Mama Was a Go-go Girl
Black and Whites – I Need A Good Girl
Throw Rag – Race With the Devil
The .357 String Band – Raise the Moon
The Steeldrivers – Drinkin' Dark Whiskey
Uncle Sinner – Gospel Plow
16 Horsepower – My Narrow Mind
Shortstack – Offer Still Stands
Star Anna – If Wishes Were Horses
Willem Maker – Red As a Rose
16 Horsepower – Haw
O'Death – Low Tide
The Agnostic Mountain Gospel Choir – Never Be Dead
William Elliott Whitmore – Old devils
Fire On Fire – The Orchard
Sparklehorse – Cow
The Builders and the Butchers – Hands Like Roots
Harlan T. Bobo – Mr. Last Week
Castanets – Cathedral 4 (The Unbreaking Branch and Song)
The Renderers – Deep Deep Sea
The Diamond Center – Cap'n Death
MD Wren & The Sick Kids – One Will Be Late
Left Lane Cruiser – Set Me Down
Scott H. Biram – Wildside
Slim Cessna's Auto Club – americadio
Charley Horse – Loco
Vince Ray – boneshaker baby
Mike Ness – I´m in Love w-My Car
The .357 String Band – Down On A Bender
The Kill Devil Hills – Nasty Business
Thee Oh Sees – Block Of Ice
Dark Meat – one more trip
The Pink Mountaintops – Bad Boogie Ballin'
The Black Angels – Bloodhounds on My Trail
The Blackwater Fever – Better Off Dead
The Fumes – Python For A Pillow
Two Cow Garage – Smell of Blood
Lucero – I Don't Wanna Be the One
Jr. Juggernaut – Another Two Weeks
San Saba County – Psalm 102
Jon Snodgrass – remember my name
John Schooley and His One Man Band – The Crooked Path
Bob Log III – Bump Pow!
Jerry Teel & The Big City Stompers – Hillbilly Boogie
Hank Williams III – Crazed Country Rebel
Trace Adkins – Marry For Money
The Devil Makes Three – Help Yourself
The Steeldrivers – Hear The Willow Cry
Yarn – Can't Slow Down
Blackstone Valley Sinners – Rainbows Are Back In Style
Agriculture Club – Cattle Ranch Girl
Jason & The Scorchers – If Money Talks
The Only Sons – We Will Get By
Th' Legendary Shack*Shakers – Bullfrog Blues
D-66 – goin mad
Scott H. Biram – Draggin' Down The Line
Hank Williams III – Drink It and Drug It
Deadbolt – Orange Blossom Special
The Singing Loins – Be Marry!
Reverend Horton Heat – Like a Rocket
Nashville Pussy – Piece of Ass
Throw Rag – Desert Shores
The Bonnevilles – Army of One
The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band – Mama's Fried Potatoes
Chuck Ragan & Austin Lucas – Darling Corey
The Agnostic Mountain Gospel Choir – 10,000 Years
John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives – Let's Get Gone
Phillip Roebuck – Travel Light
Chris Knight – my old car
Possessed By Paul James – No Windows
The Fox Hunt – Murder in My Heart
Matthew Dean Herman – Blackbird
Old Crow Medicine Show – Tennessee Pusher
Timber Timbre – Oh Messiah
Shiny Around the Edges – This Apocalypse
The Angels of Light – Not Here/Not Now
Arbouretum – Another Hiding Place
Marissa Nadler – River of Dirt

1. Fire On Fire – The Orchard
2. The Steeldrivers – Blue Side Of The Mountain
3. Deadbolt – Orange Blossom Special
4. Hank Williams III – Lovin' & Huggin'
5. Alison Krauss – No Place to Hide
6. Blackstone Valley Sinners – Fraulein
7. Charley Horse – Eastbound & Down
8. Left Lane Cruiser – Justify
9. Seasick Steve – Started Out WIth Nothin'
10. Scott H. Biram – Judgement Day
11. American Relay – Weekend
12. Chris Knight – my old car
13. Chuck Ragan & Austin Lucas – Bloody Shells
14. Shortstack – Offer Still Stands
15. John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives – Pure Cane Sugar
16. The Dead Brothers – Closer To You
17. Jerry Teel & The Big City Stompers – Hillbilly Boogie
18. John Schooley and His One Man Band – The Crooked Path
19. Creech Holler – Raymond Lee
20. O'Death – Low Tide
21. The Builders and the Butchers – Hands Like Roots
22. The Fumes – Python For A Pillow
23. The Kill Devil Hills – Nasty Business
24. The Blackwater Fever – Lovesick
25. The Agnostic Mountain Gospel Choir – Preaching Blues
26. United Steel Workers Of Montreal – Three Hard Knocks
27. Gillian Welch – Pass You By
28. The Steeldrivers – Drinkin' Dark Whiskey
29. The Broken Prayers – Little Black Heart
30. Scott H. Biram – Draggin' Down The Line
31. Two Cow Garage – Come Back To Shelby
32. Lucero – I Don't Wanna Be the One
33. Mr. Badwrench – Gasoline
34. Reverend Horton Heat – Like a Rocket
35. Jason & The Scorchers – Lost Highway
36. Mike Ness – Crime don´t pay
37. The Fumes – Cuddle Up With The Devil
38. The Only Sons – Drew Blood
39. Nine Pound Hammer – Black Sheep
40. Jello Biafra and Mojo Nixon – Love Me, I'm A Liberal
41. Hank Williams III – Drink It and Drug It
42. John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives – Pure Cane Sugar
43. Th' Legendary Shack*Shakers – County Of Graves
44. Jay Munly – Tried and True Against The Law
45. Slim Cessna's Auto Club – children of the lord
46. Chuck Ragan & Austin Lucas – Darling Corey
47. Stevie Tombstone – Folsom Prison Blues
48. The .357 String Band – Darleen
49. Howard Eliott Payne – Come Down Easy
50. Chatham County Line – Whipping Boy
51. Gillian Welch – Tear My Stillhouse Down
52. Anderson, Lynn – Take Me Home, Country Roads
53. Lucinda Williams – Come On
54. Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women – California's Burning
55. Phillip Roebuck – Be My Little Widow
56. 16 Horsepower – My Narrow Mind
57. Reverend Deadeye – Fuck_the_Devil
58. Jon Snodgrass – remember my name
59. Mike Ness – I´m in Love w-My Car
60. Throw Rag – 08 - Table 4 3
61. John Schooley and His One Man Band – Wildcat Tamer
62. Lucero – San Francisco
63. The Blackwater Fever – Better Off Dead
64. The Moaners – Foxy Brown
65. Bob Log III – Bump Pow!
66. O'Death – Down to Rest
67. William Elliott Whitmore – Old devils
68. The Devil Makes Three – Help Yourself
69. Shortstack – Good Intentions
70. John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives – If I Were You
71. Wanda Jackson – Tunnel of Love
72. Willem Maker – Red As a Rose
73. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy – Madeleine-Mary
74. Scott H. Biram – Sinkin' Down
75. The Deep Dark Woods – river in the pines
76. The Steeldrivers – Hear The Willow Cry
77. The .357 String Band – Little Black Train Of Death
78. Phillip Roebuck – Travel Light
79. Southern Culture on the Skids – Fried Chicken and Gasoline
80. Throw Rag – 09 - Days That End In 'Y'
81. Reverend Horton Heat – One Time For Me
82. Vince Ray – boneshaker baby
83. Nine Pound Hammer – I'm on Fire
84. Slim Cessna's Auto Club – All About the Bullfrog in Three Verses
85. Michael Dean Damron – Blame it on the Whiskey
86. Hank Williams III – Crazed Country Rebel
87. Agriculture Club – Cattle Ranch Girl
88. Charley Horse – Loco
89. Jason & The Scorchers – Help There's a Fire
90. Th' Legendary Shack*Shakers – Help Me
91. Jerry Teel & The Big City Stompers – Mosquito Scratch Reprise
92. Scott H. Biram – Raisin' Hell Again
93. Seasick Steve – Thunderbird
94. Left Lane Cruiser – Set Me Down
95. Slim Cessna's Auto Club – Hold On
96. The Builders and the Butchers – Vampire Lake
97. Jello Biafra and Mojo Nixon – Let's Go Burn Ole Nashville Down
98. Th' Legendary Shack*Shakers – Easter Flesh
99. Reverend Deadeye – Bless my soul
100. The BossHoss – Jesus Built My Hotrod
101. Reverend Horton Heat – 09 - Bales of Cocaine
102. Nero Burns – Caffeine Shake
103. Southern Culture on the Skids – Hittin' on Nothing
104. The Devil Makes Three – Do Wrong Right
105. Yarn – More
106. The Sacred Shakers – Taggin' Along With Jesus
107. Drakkar Sauna – Don't Laugh
108. Blackstone Valley Sinners – Rainbows Are Back In Style
109. The Fumes – Cuddle Up With The Devil
110. The Only Sons – Drew Blood
111. Those Poor Bastards – Old Pine Box
112. Whiskey & CO. – Nightlife
113. Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson – Your Day Will Come

Better late than never. In alphabetical order.

Here are 25 albums that changed my life, or had an impact anyway. This is a list I made for facebook.

1,2. Lester "Roadhog" Moran and His Cadillac Cowboys "Alive at the Johnny Mac Brown High School" & Midnight Star "No Parking on the Dance Floor". These were the first two albums I bought with my own money. I earned a couple bucks cutting grass and my dad took me to The Music Room in Greer. I don't know what made me pick these two but I spent all my money that day and I think it set the stage for the wide range of music I've enjoyed since then.

3. The Beastie Boys "License to Ill" I remember getting ready for school one morning I was in the the kitchen and the radio was on rock 101 WCKN. I was just about to walk out when "Fight for Your Right" came on. It was the best song I'd ever heard! I like Paul's Boutique" better but "License to I'll" was so new and I think had a bigger effect.

4. Metallica "Master of Puppets" Years ago there was a bad ass metal band called Metallica. They put out some amazing music. "Master of Puppets" was their greatest achievement. Then in 1986 disaster struck. While on tour the bus wrecked, the entire band was killed. Metallica, however, was still under contract. The record label allowed Cliff Burton's death to be reported but pretended the rest of the band was alive. Disney was hired to build robot Metallica. Fortunately the band had a record 90% finished. "...And Justic for All" was the last real Metallica album. One of the ways to tell the difference between Metallica and Robot Metallica is robot James Hetfield ends every line with raaaahhhh. That and robot Metallica sucks!

5. Violent Femmes "Violent Femmes" I think Matt Fischer turned me on to this one. He had an older brother and was able to introduce me to tons kinds of bands. This was an album that seemed to be written about the same feeling, insecurities, and awkwardness that I felt on a daily basis.

6. Pink Floyd "The Wall" Vince Harris and I failed Geometry because of albums like this. I think this is the first album I studied. We spent class time discussing which Pink Floyd album was best, was Syd Barret or Roger Waters Floyd better, what the lyrics meant, and all the voices and sounds you could hear with headphones. Today, I don't like Pink Floyd and I cannot listen to "The Wall". I can only listen to so many songs about dad dying in the war.

7. Slayer "Reign in Blood" I think Aaron Smith introduced me to Slayer. At the time it was the most evil, the heaviest, the fastest, most badass music I'd ever heard. If my folks didn't like Iron Maiden, they were gonna HATE Slayer! At some point I grew out of my metal phase. Just a few months ago I dug up my copy of "Reign in Blood". Holy shit! How did I not listen to this cd for so long? It is once again one of my favorites! This one held up over all those years. I've been listening to them a lot lately. Even the new stuff is good. Slayer is a band that just didn't change, sure they evolved but you can still tell its Slayer.

8. The Gourds "Ghosts of Hallelujah" I was working and had 88.7 WNCW on the radio when "Fine Leather Truck" came on. I don't know what it was about that song but it made me a country fan. I never gave country a chance, it was one of the things I rebelled against. The Gourds opened a whole new world of music to me. Although I don't listen to them much anymore, when they come on I don't change it. Their albums up to "Bolsa De Aqua" are great!

9. Dr Dre "The Chronic" I remember riding around in Todd Verdin's Pathfinder listening to "The Chronic" for the first time. Most rap albums have 3 decent songs at best, this one was good all the way through. I don't think gangtsa rap made any of us feel any harder but it did make us laugh. The drug references, and ridiculously violent lyrics were perfect. There are a couple tracks from that one I can still listen to and enjoy. Every time though I think about riding in Todd's truck with Matt and Jeremy..... good times.

10. R.L. Burnisde "Ass Pocket of Whiskey" I was living in Boone NC and a guy named Greg played it at his place. I had gotten tired of blues. Most of the blues I heard were Chicago blues, which for the most part sucks. Its just way too polished and clean. Then comes RL Burnside, Jon Spencer plays on this album, it is one of the rawest, dirtiest, most rockinest blues albums ever. I love every song on this disc. I quickly bought every RL album I could find. That wasn't enough, I started buying every Fat Possum album I could get my hands on.

11. The Dead Kennedys "Bedtime For Democracy" Jonathan Dobson and I used to skate in high school. We argued music all the time. He was the one that turned me on to tons of punk and hardcore bands. One of the first was the Dead Kennedys. I didn't get what they were talking about, it was all this political stuff that wasn't covered in Coach Flemming's Government class. What sticks with me about this album in particular is that it made me start to ask questions. I logged hours in detention, study hall, and i.s.s. trying to figure out what the hell Jello Biafra was trying to tell me. Oh and the cover of that tape pissed people off and I kinda dug that part too.

12. The Cramps "Bad Music for Bad People" I remember buying tapes based on the band name and album cover. When I saw this, I thought this is going to be some of the most hard core music out there. I played the tape and was horribly disappointed. It wasn't hard at all. Later I gave it a second chance and it was... ok. This one grew on me and after about 3 or 4 times I loved it! I still love it. I think I like The Cramps more today than I did when I first got into them.

13. Jane's Addiction "Nothing Shocking" This is another album I have Matt Fischer to thank for. I have a distinct memory of being at his house with Vince Harris listening to this album and singing along while Matt Played guitar. There wasn't a song on this album that I didn't like.

14. Nine Inch Nails "Pretty Hate Machine" I wore this tape out more than once. Again this is an album I could relate to. I remember head like a hole being played at Church Hill's. Now days, NIN seem to whine a little too much and Trent Reznor gets on my nerves a bit, but at the time it was exactly what I needed.

15. Rage Against the Machine "Rage Against The Machine" Monty Reece first played this tape for me. It was so new and different that there was a sticker on the tape that said there were no keyboards used. I loved it! Like the Dead Kennedys, Rage sang about a lot of stuff I knew nothing about so I had to start reading up. They hit such awesome grooves and were angry as hell! It was the first time I heard rap and rock mixed since Anthrax "I'm the Man" and before that was probably Run DMC "Walk This Way". I was sold. Some of those bass lines still get stuck in my head. I recently listened to this one for the first time in years and was surprised I knew every word.

16. Tom Waits "Night Hawks at the Diner" This is the first Tom Waits album I bought. I'd heard of him for years. Judging by album covers of Bone Machine, Mule Variations, and Blood Money I figured he'd be pretty twisted. I don't know why I picked up Night Hawks, maybe it was a recommendation. Anyway it floored me! The stories, the beat influence, the jokes, just everything about it was beautiful! I don't know who to compare him to so, I ended up with 40 Tom Waits albums. I still love Night Hawks.

17. The Pixies "Doolittle" This one holds up better than most. I wanted Kim Deal and I wanted to be Frank Black, sorry I meant Black Francis. I worked at a a camp and a kid I worked with, I think his name was Scott? He turned me on to this album now 20+ years later it is still in regular rotation. 20+ years ago? WTF? That doesn't sound right at all... I'm gonna need to lay down for a while.

18. Bongwater "Too Much Sleep" WNCW used to have an overnight show called ARC (Alternative Radio Coalition). I'd fall asleep listening to that show. They played so much stuff that I'd never heard before that I started recording the show as I fell asleep at night that way the next day I'd remember the bands. That's where I heard Bongwater. They made me want to write. I love the way Ann Magnuson writes. Songs like "Bad Review", "Talent Vampire", and "Then the Babies Return" are smart and funny and sarcastic. "Too Much Sleep" isn't even my favorite I prefer "The Power of Pussy" but it was the first Bongwater tape.

19. Angry Johnny and the Killbillies "Hankenstien" I picked this disc up without knowing anything about the band at all. I dug the cover and the band name. I just wanted something different. What I got was the most violent, angry, country cd ever. Every song is about love gone wrong, killin, drinkin, prison, and the devil. It was like they took what I liked in metal lyrics and put it in a country song.

20. Louis Prima "Capitol Collector's Series" I first remember hearing Louis Prima on the soundtrack for "Smoke!". This disc is so much fun! I wish big band would come back for real not in a gimmicky way. Louis Prima rocks, his band is so solid and his voice is awesome. He sounds like he's having fun, you can almost hear his smile.

21. Drive By Truckers "Gangsterbilly" / "Pizza Deliverance" It's hard to say which one made the bigger impact. I got them both at the same time. I think I got them the day I bought Angry Johnny's disc. I didn't know anything about DBT either. Turns out they are pretty damn good. These two disc are pretty much country, after this they started playing the southern rock more. Just more of that awesome songwriting. Patterson Hood talked about growing up rebelling against the music around him and later on he gave it a chance only to find he loved it. I guess that's kind of where I was when I picked these up and maybe some of that came through in the songs.

22. Wu-Tang Clan "Enter the 36 Chambers" There was a time all I listened to was the rap music. It became frustrating because typically there are 2 or 3 good tracks out of 20-25 on a rap cd. Wu Tang was different, they had 57 people in the group. For a summer Nate, Roundy, Shane and I communicated through Wu-tang lyrics and mostly Old Dirty Bastard. Old Dirty Bastard was a profit. A lot of the things he rapped about happened! Those were some good days.

23. Lou Reed "New York" Again Matt introduced me to this album. I think before this "walk on the Wild Side" was the only Lou Reed I'd heard. If you're ever feeling too good, put this album on and sit back. He has the most depressing songs on this album but its written so well. The liner notes say that it is meant to be listened to in one sitting like a book or a movie. It is a complete album with a beginning a middle and an ending.

24. Bruce Springsteen "Nebraska" I felt like I'd already seen Natural Born Killers when it came out because of this album. The title track alone. "They wanted to know why I did what I did/Well sir, I guess there's just a meanness in this world". It also includes songs that Johnny Cash covered.

25. 16 Horse Power "Sackcloth n Ashes" This album kind of got my dark gospel kick going. From this one I got Slim Cessna's Auto Club, Munly, Woven Hand, and Reverend Glasseye. Really good stuff. With 16 HP I've gotta be in the right mood for it. At times there is nothing else that sounds as good. You've just gotta check them out.

Really though I think the mix tapes we used to pass around in high school influenced me more than anything.
list, influential, lester road hog moran, midnight star, the beastie boys, Violent Femmes, Metallica. pink floyd, slayer, the gourds, r.l. burnside, the cramps, janes addiction, anthrax, dr dre, drive by truckers, 16 horse power, bruce springsteen, lou reed, wu-tang clan, louis prima, angry johnny and the killbillies, bongwater, the pixies, tom waits, rage against the machine, nine inch nails

1. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
2. White Denim - Workout Holiday
3. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
4. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
5. Department of Eagles - In Ear Park
6. The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
7. Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - Real Emotional Trash
8. Okkervil River - The Stand-Ins
9. The Black Keys - Attack & Release
10. Woven Hand - Ten Stones

Not sorted:
Slim Cessna's Auto Club - Cipher
Shearwater - Rook
The Mojomatics - Don't Pretend That You Know Me
The Black Angels - Directions To See A Ghost
DeVotchKa - A Mad And Faithful Telling
Kings of Leon - Only by the Night
Calexico - Carried To Dust
Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
Black Mountain - Into The Future
Silver Jews - Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea
Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer
The Fall - Imperial Wax Solvent
Motorpsycho - Little Lucid Moments
No Age - Nouns
TV on the Radio - Dear Science
Mercury Rev - Snowflake Midnight
Spiritualized - Songs in A&E

1. Giant Sand - Provisions
2. Ray LaMontagne - Gossip n the Grain
3. ALI ESKANDARIAN - Nothing To Say
4. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
5. Portishead - Third
6. Erykah Badu - New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)
7. Clutchy Hopkins - Walking Backwards
8. L'Enfance Rouge - Trapani-Halq Al Waady
9. Micah P. Hinson - Micah P. Hinson and the Red Empire Orchestra
10.John Mellencamp - Life, Death, Love and Freedom

Altri degni di nota: Lambchop - OH (Ohio), Eli 'Paperboy' Reed And The True Loves - Roll With You, Flying Lotus - Los Angeles, The Rolling Stones - Shine a Light, Slim Cessna's Auto Club - Cipher, Hank Williams III - Damn Right and Rebel Proud, Ryan Adams - Cardinology, Seasick Steve - I Started Out With Nothin' and I Still Got Most of It Left, The Fall - Imperial Wax Solvent, Woven Hand - Ten Stones, Four Tet - Ringer, Tricky - Knowle West Boy

Così così: The Roots - Rising Down, The Baseball Project - Volume 1: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails, Cesare Basile - Storia di Caino, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, Bohren & der Club of Gore - Dolores, Guilty Simpson - Ode to the Ghetto, Black Mountain - In the Future

Delusioni: Charlie Haden - Family & Friends: Rambling Boy, Calexico - Carried to Dust, dEUS - Vantage Point, Willard Grant Conspiracy - Pilgrim Road

I will be kind and post my year-end mix at the top of this journal with my ranked list and commentary afterward for those who want to read it.

2008 Year-End Mix

As always, my year-end mix consists of one volume of two songs from each of my top 10 albums and another volume of one song from each of my next 20 (actually, this year it’s 22; I just couldn’t trim it any further). In case you don’t want to download the entire thing, I tagged the songs which, as of this writing, are available on last.fm in full.

THE BEST http://www.[spam] Lie - Okkervil River
2. Reasons Not To Be An Idiot - Frank Turner
3. Love Ire & Song - Frank Turner
4. People C'mon - Delta Spirit
5. Trashcan - Delta Spirit
6. I Don’t Always Know What You’re Saying - Ladyhawk
7. Fear - Ladyhawk
8. The Snow Leopard - Shearwater
9. On The Death Of The Waters - Shearwater
10. Damn Me - Otis Gibbs
11. Ain't Nothin Special - Otis Gibbs
12. this land is our land redux - Slim Cessna’s Auto Club
13. Everyone Is Guilty #2 - Slim Cessna’s Auto Club
14. Iowalta Morningside - Twilight Hotel
15. Sand in your eyes - Twilight Hotel
16. Semaphore - James
17. Waterfall - James
18. In My Arms - Teddy Thompson
19. Slippery Slope (Easier) - Teddy Thompson
20. Bruce Wayne Campbell Interviewed On The Roof Of The Chelsea Hotel, 1979 - Okkervil River


THE REST http://www.[spam]
1. On a Saturday - Herman Düne
2. Fight Fire With Fire - Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan
3. Story Of The Grandson Of Jesus - Cloud Cult
4. We Couldn’t Tell - Lonesome River Band
5. What Do You Do When You're Lonesome - Justin Townes Earle
6. Death Take Your Fiddle - Spiritualized
7. Down On The Ground - British Sea Power
8. I Got Ideas - The Whigs
9. Hey Clown - Firewater
10. Garden Suite - Have Gun, Will Travel
11. Make Her Fall In Love With Me Song - George Strait
12. It Came Out Of The Wilderness - Pete Molinari
13. The Sound Of Life - The Coal Porters
14. Swashbuckler Blues - The Theater Fire
15. Army of Ancients - Dr. Dog
16. Suffering Jukebox - Silver Jews
17. Today's Lesson - Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds
18. Fire In The Western World - The Dirtbombs
19. Lost In The Light - The Heavenly States
20. Good Days Bad Days - Kaiser Chiefs
21. My Cousin - Frida Hyvönen
22. I Keep Faith (solo) - Billy Bragg


FAVORITES OF 2008

My top 5 were easy picks; there’s rarely been stronger top 10 contenders in my book. After that it got harder, with so many albums that I think are really great. In fact, though the albums are listed in roughly descending order, as I got lower, the room for movement got larger so that on any given day things in the bottom half of my top 10 may move one or two positions and by the time I get to 20 or 30 an album may move as much as 5-8 spaces depending on my mood and what I’ve most recently listened to. There are still so many albums I like that didn’t even make this list. I bought almost 100 albums released this year and heard another 75-100 that didn’t interest me enough to buy them.

TOP 10 ALBUMS (* artist heard for the first time this year)

1. Okkervil River - The Stand Ins
These guys are moving into Billy Bragg territory for me now. By that I mean that the love has a permanent depth rather than an exciting newness. Like the courtship is over yet the person (or band in this case) has now become a part of you that you couldn’t live without. I love every single one of these songs (though I do believe the original version of “On Tour With Zykos” -- called “Girl I Knew, Guy I Met” when performed solo at Schubas in Feb ’06 (all Okkervil fans should listen to this recording) -- was better than the final). I'm still not sure about the interludes. I read or heard an interview with Sheff that indicated something along the line that their melodies are contained within songs in that portion of the album, but I need to listen with better ears to get that. They aren’t as exciting as the interludes from the BSB Appendix, but not unpleasant either. When I first listened to the album there were two things I didn't like. Repeated listens have changed my opinion regarding "Lost Coastlines," in which I initially thought the bass was way too loud; it now works for me. However, the one and only thing I ever hated on an Okkervil recording was the sleigh bells linking “Singer Songwriter” and “Starry Stairs;” I think it’s totally out of place and am really, really curious who decided to put it there and why. I absolutely love every other aspect of this album. I know this is something I regularly repeat, but I’m not a person who is totally blind and deaf to those I love. I will be ready to admit and accept when something less than stellar comes out of these guys, but thus far I have seen absolutely no evidence of that happening (with the exception of the sleigh bells). I have rarely, if ever, experienced a band that I felt I could so objectively defend against any naysayer. The changes that happened within the band this year were very sad for me. Fortunately, based on the one song that has been created since then -- “Singer Songwriter” -- I think the band will survive just fine, even if I greatly miss Brian's and Jonathan’s roles in this band.

2. Otis Gibbs - Grandpa Walked A Picket Line
I’ve been listening to this since February and have listened to it far more than any other album this year except Okkervil. And I love it more and more as time goes on. In fact, this probably should be ranked 1.5 instead of 2. As much as I loved his earlier albums, Otis’s writing has really developed here. The album contains so many of my favorite lines this year (Caroline lives her life inside a daydream; the hardest thing about living is getting by day to day; it’s hard to believe what you don’t know; etc.). He had a great bunch of players join him on this recording: Don Dixon (bass), Al Perkins (pedal steel, dobro), Will Rigby (drums), Chris Carmichael (fiddle), Tim Easton (mandolin, harmonica, vocal), and Amy Lashley (vocals), making the fantastic songs sung by Otis’s rough/smooth voice become even more outstanding. It also has my favorite kind of production -- thanks to producer Chris Stamey -- letting the songs speak for themselves yet polishing it enough that it sounds like more than a home recording. Oh, and for those interested in buying, it’s had a complex release date (which seems to be happening with albums more and more). It is currently released in England and The Netherlands (maybe all of Europe, not sure), and you can currently buy it from cdbaby in the US (http://cdbaby.com/cd/otisgibbs4), but its official US release date is January 20, 2009. (I chose to include it in 2008 because I’ve been listening to it for 11 months and it is available for purchase now.)

3. James - Hey Ma
The past three albums by James have been hit and miss for me. Though there are some songs I like on Whiplash and Pleased to Meet You, overall they don’t do much for me and I don’t listen to them. Now consider this band basically split up 7 years ago, and I didn’t have great hopes for the new album. Boy was I wrong. In fact, when I got it there were a few songs I loved right away, but many I thought were just okay. I really wish I had noted which ones, because I now love every song on the album and can’t imagine which ones took me awhile. I know I loved “Hey Ma” right off the bat, though admit it comes a bit late (they simply didn’t release anything since 9/11/01). Like Okkervil (among other bands), they put depressing or solemn lyrics to a punchy beat. It’s a mix I’ve always been partial to. Sure Hey Ma hasn’t stood the test of time yet, but I can easily see it sitting among my favorite James albums years down the line.

4. Frank Turner - Love, Ire & Song
I guess I should start with the fact that I don’t read much about Turner so while I believe his songs have a strong autobiographical bent, I don’t know that for certain. I do know there’s a group of people who don’t like autobiographical songs. I don’t get that. Maybe my mind just expands enough to find that the singer isn’t so different from me and the experiences that I or people I know have, but they speak to me as much as songs that aren’t autobiographical. In fact, I’m not sure why it matters whether something is true or made up if the lyrics are interesting. On the one hand there is kind of a youthful, life philosophy to most of Turner’s songs, but on the other there’s the complexity brought about by age. The title song is one of the best at showing the dichotomy as he wants to revisit his ideals of youth but can’t shake his cynicism even as he attempts to do so.

5. *Teddy Thompson - A Piece of What You Need
A very bipolar album with songs swinging back and forth between loneliness and being in love. I don’t really pay much attention to what’s popular or not, but it seems to me like this guy should be pretty big. Musically I think it could fit in with the MOR crowd. I know that doesn’t sound very appealing to your typical music geek (e.g., last.fm user), but this is the best of what that can offer. It reminds me quite a bit of Josh Ritter’s Historical Conquests in that way.

6. Shearwater - Rook
If you happened to read my “favorite shows of 2008” post you know that I’m incapable of describing this band. So I’m going to cheat and quote the Faronheit blog: “What particularly sells this band and this album is Meiburg himself, both in the verbose lyrical tales he writes and the theatrically compelling vocal performances he gives on every single song. The man sells his pompously overblown verbiage by belting it to the rafters and inflecting such emotion he could make the telephone book sound like a thrilling novel. And I haven't even gotten to the gorgeously tempered instrumentation, where pianos and acoustic guitars and violins and clarinets and horns mix together and make sweet, sweet love to your ears. Perhaps the best way to describe "Rook" as an album is to say it sounds like the soundtrack to a movie where a man takes an extensive journey through the woods and encounters horrible weather and dangerous animals. It's epic, it's sweeping and gorgeous, and most of all, it feels completely organic.” What drops it down to number 6 is that I think Jonathan's falsetto is over-used. I love his entire vocal range, including the falsetto, but would prefer if he had more of his "other" voice on this.

7. *Twilight Hotel - Highway Prayer
It’s a very long album, but the songs are so diverse that I never get bored. In fact picking two songs for my mix became difficult because I often try to pick something that’s representative of the overall sound of the album -- unless there’s one song that stands out so far from the others -- but in this case there is no overall sound. In broad terms they’re a Canadian folk duo consisting of Dave Quanbury and Brandy Zdan both of whom do the vocals, though the album has a full band. It was produced by Colin Linden of Blackie & The Rodeo Kings, who also plays on it. Another contributer was Richard Bell, this being the last album he played on before he died. In fact, an interesting final, unnamed track on the album is an instrumental duet of Bell and Linden -- I'm not sure I own any other album containing a song where the album's artist doesn't play on it.

8. Slim Cessna's Auto Club - Cipher
The album is held together with four brief songs all titled “An Introduction To The Power of Braces:” but changing after the colon to include Arms, Legs, Teeth, and Faith. This is gothic country in all it’s terrifying religious fervor. I love “Children of the Lord,” but I took pity on anyone who may listen to my year-end mix and omitted it so they could avoid its insidiousness. The whole album is filled with extremely catchy melodies alternating with the dark gloom.

9. Ladyhawk - Shots
They’re from the same area (Vancouver) and on the same label (Jagjaguwar) as Black Mountain and I wouldn’t even say their music is entirely dissimilar, but I find Ladyhawk’s songs to be much punchier. Stated another way, it seems as though Ladyhawk mixes in hard rock or post-punk, while BM has a strong metal influence. At the same time, however, Ladyhawk (and BM for that matter) has a very contemporary (or indie) sound. I’ve read comparisons to Neil Young, which I really hear on some of their guitar solos -- I’ll take a melodic guitar over a screeching metal one any day. Like their previous work, I think the lyrics on Shots are very good, even if they’re simple. It’s music that you can rock out to, but you can also sit and really listen to it.

10. *Delta Spirit - Ode To Sunshine
Start with loads of 60’s rock, throw in a bit of soul, a dash of modern indie rock (particularly in the very-screamy vocals), and a pinch of Americana. It’s a beautifully paced album. And I love the lyrics, though if heavy-handed bothers you, you may find fault there.

The next group of favorites:
11. *Justin Townes Earle - The Good Life
12. Lonesome River Band - No Turning Back
13. *The Coal Porters - Turn The Water On, Boy!
14. Frida Hyvönen - Silence Is Wild
15. Billy Bragg - Mr. Love And Justice
16. *The Whigs - Mission Control
17. *Spiritualized - Songs In A & E
18. George Strait - Troubadour
19. The Theater Fire - Matter And Light
20. Silver Jews - Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea
21. *The Heavenly States - Delayer
22. Cloud Cult - Feel Good Ghosts
23. Nick Cave - Dig! Lazarus, Dig!
24. Firewater - Golden Hour
25. Dr. Dog - Fate
26. *Herman Düne - Next Year In Zion
27. British Sea Power - Do You Like Rock Music?
28. Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Sunday at Devil Dirt
29. Kaiser Chiefs - Off With Their Heads
30. *Pete Molinari - A Virtual Landslide
31. The Dirtbombs - We Have You Surrounded
32. *Have Gun, Will Travel - Casting Shadows Tall As Giants

Albums I bought within the past couple weeks, have listened to one time or not at all, and thus weren’t considered for my year-end list (after all, I’ve got to stop sometime):
Colour Revolt - Plunger, Beg, and Curse
Local H - Twelve Angry Months
Jez Lowe and the Bad Pennies - Northern Echoes
Romi Mayes - Sweet Somethin’ Steady
Mudcrutch - Mudcrutch
Old Crow Medicine Show - Tennessee Pusher
Submarine Races - Hard To Look At And Easy To See

TOP 5 SONGS OF 2008

1. "Damn Me" - Otis Gibbs (it would probably have been my song of the year anyway, but the violin part makes it unquestionable)
2. "Pop Lie" - Okkervil River (it’s actually impossible for me to pick a favorite Okkervil song so I picked the one with my favorite moment on the album, Will's voice singing "week by week it climbs up and comes on, and we're feeling alright though we know it's all wrong" at 2'11"-2'17" -- most especially the word "all.")
3. "Lost In The Light" - The Heavenly States (white soul mixed with old-fashioned rock 'n' roll? whatever it is, it's one of the catchiest songs I heard all year with the best hand claps)
4. "Slippery Slope (Easier)" - Teddy Thompson (devastating live, brought a lump to my throat and tear to my eye)
5. "The Sound of Life" - The Coal Porters (banjo love and a mention of Don Reno, oh yeah!)

After coming up with my list, I noted with an asterisk the artists on my list whom I hadn’t listened to prior to this year. I did this because sometimes I feel like I pay too much attention to new (to me) artists and at the same time, especially as I age, I don’t want to be the kind of person who never listens to anything new. I’m pretty pleased with the distribution I found.

Miscellaneous thoughts on non-top 10 albums:

Kaiser Chiefs - I guess these guys are my Matchbox 20. They’re mainstream and get little to no respect among the music fans I spend time with (or critics, for that matter), but I love them greatly. The one popular Brit band of recent years I can say that about, while I miss what others see in bands like Bloc Party, Franz Ferdinand, or Arctic Monkeys. In addition to greatly liking their sound, which hasn't changed much over their three albums, their songs have a rather unique characteristic of frequent repetitiveness which I think they make work.

George Strait - George seems to have the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” mentality. This album is nothing new from what he’s been doing for over 30 years: different very good songs, same sound, same gorgeous voice, and same wonderfully modest production.

Dirtbombs - It was really hard deciding what to do with this one. I absolutely love most of it -- a top 15 album, maybe even top 10. But I really, really dislike “Pretty Princess Day” and “They Have Us Surrounded.” Enough to initially make me think this album wouldn’t be represented on my year-end mix. But then I re-listen to the album and fall in love with the beginning of it again before it moves to the spottier back half.

Frida Hyvonen: It was a hard choice between "Dirty Dancing" and "My Cousin," but I fell hard for the line “would you be the dad of the children I most likely won’t have, is that how much you like me or is it not even close” the first time I heard her sing it live two years ago so I had to go with that one on my mix. This album took longer than her first two for me to love (the melodies on many of the songs aren’t as catchy), but I now think all of it is really great except the last song, “Why Do You Love Me So Much.” Who knows, maybe in another couple weeks I’ll love that one, too; it's already beginning to grow on me.

Billy Bragg - This may not be songwriting at a pre-Mermaid Avenue level, but it’s a whole lot better than England, Half English. Some really great songs mixed in with some mediocre. This isn’t an album I’d use to try and show why he’s my all-time favorite artist, but it’s one I can definitely recommend to people. I have the deluxe version, which includes the regular album as well as a disk of all the songs performed solo (à la Okkervil’s The Stage Names last year). Depending on which song it is, I sometimes prefer the band and other times the solo versions.

Firewater - I like it a lot, but it’s too long. If I randomly pick any song I like it, but listening straight through -- as I do -- it tends to lose my attention about 2/3 of the way through.

Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Another very long album, but it’s so beautiful that I don’t tire of it. Like many others, I'm a sucker for Lanegan's voice. I found the first collaboration of these two to be too boring and never bought it, but, vocally, Mark has a much larger role in this album and it makes all the difference. It’s been so long since I listened to the first one that I’m guessing on this, but I think I also like the songs better on this new album.

Pete Molinari - Skiffle makes a comeback!! At least, that’s what it sounds like to me.

1/3/09 edit: I just want to have Okkervil's postcard history at my fingertips; this won't be of much interest to anyone else. 120 people voted in this year's poll. I'm thrilled Okkervil got first place this year, despite the fact that the next highest any of my top 10 placed was 35 and only 5 of my top 10 made it to the top 100.

Okkervil’s history in Postcard's Top 100 poll:
2000 Stars Too Small To Use - didn't make list
2002 Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See - 4 votes (69th place; 0 1st place votes) 171 ballots
2003 Down The River Of Golden Dreams - 5 votes (72nd place; 1 1st place vote) 165 ballots
2005 Black Sheep Boy - 23 votes (10th place; 4 1st place votes) 132 ballots
2007 The Stage Names - 41 votes (2nd place; 7 1st place votes) 133 ballots
2008 The Stand Ins - 43 votes (1st place; 9 1st place votes) 120 ballots

Hi and die

EPs and other shitlike stuff worth mentioning:

Electric Wizard and Reverend Bizarre - The House On The Borderland
Very nice, indeed. Btw. I can't see the reason for Reverend Bizarre here.

Blind Guardian - Sacred

Digital Mystikz - Shake Up Your Demons
Perfect playing with rhythm.

The Field - Sound of Light
Fortunately, right now I am surrounded by nature. Without it this piece of music is useless.

Burial - Remixes
I'm not interested in new versions of old Burial's pieces. But Wayfaring Stranger and "And it rained all night" keep me in strong conviction that this guy is still a master.

LPs:

3/10
Thursday and Envy Split
I regret every single second of listening to it.

Coma - Hipertrofia
Jak zachwyca, kiedy nie zachwyca? Szeroko dostępny ochandach omija mnie szczęściem równie szerokim łukiem. Od zapomnienia wypada ocalić:
Osobowy

Madonna - Hard Candy

Moonspell - Night Eternal
Once, upon a time I used to love this band. And believe me - I am sentimental.

4/10
Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band
- 13 Blues for Thirteen Moons
Call me deaf, if you want. I still can't get through.

Elvenking - Two Tragedy Poets
Same story as Moonspell, but... I like'em more.

Quantec - Thousands Of Thoughts

Pyramaze -Immortal
Even Matt Barlow can't save this piece of... something.

5/10
Steve Kilbey -Painkiller
Wasted talent, but some parts are impressive.

Opeth - Watershed
Some people shouldn't play some things.

Metallica - Death Magnetic
Riffs give me electric shivers. Compositions make me sick. 50/50 then

52 dębiec - Deep Hans
Wystawiając tę ocenę czuję jednak pewną przykrość. Płyta chyba miała być smutna i dojrzała. No i jest, ale tylko smutna. Plus za płytę na necie i sample wokalne, tudzież wszelkie zaśpiewy w podkładach - na mnie robią wrażenie.

Iced Earth - The Crucible Of Man
Even Matt Barlow can't save this piece of... something. Just kidding of course. There's something fresh about this album and according to it I am longing for another one.

Disturbed - Indestructible

Hey. This is where nice music starts.
6/10
Fokus - Alfa i Omega
Największy tegoroczny przegrany. Płyta nierówna jak tynk pod mikroskopem. I nie, nie mam nic do skitów, co więcej bardzo mi się podobają. Teksty zachwycają i teksty odstręczają. Na szczęście nie można powiedzieć złego słowa o technice i większości podkładów. Album okroiłbym do skitów i: Lista ,Lajt , Spacer , Super Sayian , Przetrwasz

Dead Emotions - Pathways To Catharsis
They told me that this is nice piece of death metal. They were so wrong.

Ania Dąbrowska - W Spodniach Czy W Sukience
Jestem pozytywnie zaskoczony. Krążek może nieco monotonny, ale z przyjemnością wysłuchałbym jego fragmentów po włączeniu radia.


Evergrey - Torn
Can't figure out why they comitted this thing. Mix literally heavy melodic music with gaylike vocals (sorry Tom and don't worry cause you're still my master :] ). The weakest Evergrey ever.

The Mars Volta - Bedlam In Goliath
At least better than the previous one...

Bauhaus - Go Away White

Kyrck - Cherno
Great idea is not enough.

Portishead - Third
This is not a rate. This is a punishment.

Eagles of Death Metal - Heart On

7/10

Zeus - Co Nie Ma Sobie Równych
Za wyśmienity klimat i dobór sampli. Teksty trafiają dopiero wtedy, gdy podkręcę sobie poZiom w sobie. Bardzo pozytywny krążek - biję brawo z szerokim uśmiechem i czekam na więcej.
I byłbym zapomniał: Chce Ciebie

Belleruche - The Express
Very nice and relaxing and joyfoul and dancing and thebasslinesaresopleasant.

Blood Ceremony - Blood Ceremony

The Accidental - There Were Wolves
My perfect setting for falling asleep. Nice and gentle.

Anathema - Hindsight
Reminds me about two things:
1. How good can be this band. - Leave No Trace
2. How deep can they fall.
Quite educative then.

Warrel Dane - Praises to the War Machine

Earth - The Bees Made Honey In The Lion's Skull
Sounds are extending and extending... Love it ;]

Karl Hector & The Malcouns - Sahara Swing
Wicked thing - try it as soon as it's possible.

Venetian Snares - Detrimentalist

Nomo - Ghost Rock
Try "Brainwave" here

Giant Sand - Provisions
1st thought - Hey, he can't sing omg lol rotfl lmao and so on...
2nd thought - Hey... they can play.
3rd though - Hey, they can play and he can sing.
Buzzing pieces of country, jazz and blues.

Prurient - Time Began in a Garden

Novalis Deux - Ghosts Over Europe
Too weak for 8, too strong for 6. Rome can show you how to play it properly.

Manilla Road - Voyager
Let's say that I am satisfied.

Jarboe - Mahakali
Let's say that I am not satisfied.

In Ruin - A Ghost To Be Forgotten
Clever combination of well-known neofolk bands and projects.

The Herbaliser - Same As It Never Was

Grails - Take Refuge In Clean Living

8/10
Deadbeat - Roots and Wire
Inspiring.

Lunatic Soul - Lunatic Soul
I have a feeling that this cd was written and recorded by wrong man.
It should have been done by J. M. Keenan.

Mogwai - The Hawk is Howling
At last.

Thievery Corporation - Radio Retaliation
What can I say? They're just classy.

Melvins -Nude With Boots
They know the art of making only good albums.

Meat Beat Manifesto - Autoimmune

Headhunter - Nomad
The creatures of Abyssal zone listen to this album.

The Black Angels - Directions To See A Ghost
Trippy shit...

Woven Hand - Ten Stones
Good and solid.

Ufomammut - Idolum
Good and solid.

A Storm of Light - And We Wept The Black Ocean Within

Scott Kelly - The Wake
Played from the bottom of his heart I suppose. Some sounds, simply sounds are really intresting or rather striking.

This Will Destroy You - This Will Destroy You
I am NOT destroyed. Good and solid.

Rome - Masse Mensch Material
Surrounding. Romantic.

O.S.T.R. - Ja tu tylko sprzątam
Niby perfekcja, a perfekcja to taka podła, zimna suka...

Lair of the Minotaur - War Metal Battle Master

Laibach - Laibachkunstderfuge
"Like Bach for machines"
Oh my God - she's so smart. Thank you.

The Fantomas Melvins Big Band - Millennium Monster Work
Fucked up enough to interest me.

Dillinger Escape Plan - Ire Works
I enjoy and look forward to the lighter side of the band.

Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
Fun and more fun. Much more fun. More than you expect.

Contemporary Noise Sextet - Unaffected Thought Flow

Contemporary Noise Quartet - Theatre Play Music
Cause the rhythm section makes this band so special.

Made Out of Babies - The Ruiner
This is... correct.

Meshuggah - obZen
Meditative.

Murder by Death - Red of Tooth and Claw
This one is the example of perfect light rock album. I pay homage to you boys.

9/10
Matt Elliot - Howling Songs
Rezső Seress of the 21st century.

Ocoai - Breatherman
My private discovery.

Volbeat - Guitar Gangsters And Cadillac Blood
The most enjoyable album of the year.

Hail of Bullets - Of Frost And War
Volume up!!!

Clark - Turning Dragon
Oh. My. God.
This thing is hard and hard is not a level of difficulty. Hard means heavy and pounding like forty tons pumpjack. Nocking on your head and asking: have you gone out already?
Try this .

Lao Che - Gospel
Dlaczego nie 10? Bo nie smyra dostatecznie po neuronach. Poza tym wszystko perfekcyjnie.

Autechre - Quaristice
Puzzling.

Afro Kolektyw - Połącz kropki
Najzabawniejsza płyta roku = pełen luz i odjazd.

Across Tundras - Western Sky Ride
I am really sorry for you guys. You get close to the genius for inches.

5ive - Hesperus
I've been waiting for so long to hear the playing on THIS level.

Gojira - The Way Of All Flesh
From Mars to Sirius was just "The Heaviest Matter Of The Universe". Don't get confused by the first song title "Oroborus" - they definitely don't devour their own tail ;]
Try this and get smashed.

Russian Circles - Station
Dynamic and better than the 1st one - what seemed to be impossible ;]

Shearwater -Rook
I admire the sensitivity.

Steve Von Till - A Grave Is A Grim Horse
So beautiful...

Textures - Silhouettes

L.U.C - Planet L.U.C

Burst - Lazarus Bird
I hear a lot of Mastodon in it, but still awesome and mindblowing. Heavy and spatial enough.

10/10 (these albums don't need any recommendation ;] )
Intronaut - Prehistoricisms

Gaiser - Blank Fade

dEUS - Vantage Point

Black Mountain - In The Future

Roszja I Lu - Przez Ścianę

Cult of Luna - Eternal Kingdom

Slim Cessna's Auto Club - Cipher - album of the year

thank you for your attention

Credits:
big danke schön goes to:

Aen. for: KYPCK, Lunatic Soul, This Will Destroy You, Russian Circles, Rome, 5ive, different sight on music and "idontgiveafuck for your strange analytic attitude"

Miss E. for: Murder by Death, dEUS, L.U.C, Roszja i Lu, Laibach, listetning to this endless shitfuckshit music talk.

Lilandrah for: Jarboe

Jim for: Slim Cessna's Auto Club

KOSS Corporation for: my fine headphones

Genius for: my fine loudspeakers

Iriver for: my fine mp3 player

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart for: opening my ears

Looking Glass Studios for: creating Thief games, which give me this short opportunities to avoid listening to music and doing nothing at the same time.