20

Crystal Stilts, Alight Of Night [Slumberland]

A band is never just a sum of influences, of course, but for some reason Crystal Stilts keep compelling me to try. Try to imagine Ian Curtis fronting Jesus and Mary Chain, covering The Velvet Underground ... or Kevin Shields fronting the Beach Boys, covering Echo and the Bunnymen? Anyway, there's reverb and guitar hooks and ethereal vocals and eleven very, very good songs: certainly the best rock album of the year, at least according to me.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Departure

19

Fennesz, Black Sea [Touch]

Honestly I've always thought Fennesz was a little overrated, but this album made me a believer. Granular, shimmering drone music, and very well done. It sounds like he's been working on the album for years (and I suppose he has, between side projects). Profoundly evocative and atmospheric, and perhaps the best matching of sleeve art to music in 2008 - for those of us who care about that sort of thing!

~ playbynumbers

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Download: The Colour Of Three

18

Lone, Lemurian [Dealmaker]

Lone has arrived. His slept on debut started like an intense version of Boards of Canada influenced IDM. Traditional synths you'd expect from the Boards were sped up and amplifed, as if remixed by Chris Clark. Over the course of the record, a hip-hop motif replaced the initially overwhelming IDM sound, transforming the album into an instrumental hip-hop record by the end. Lemurian picks up where Lone's debut left off, with a wholly unique instrumental hip-hop sound that's as much Madlib as Boards of Canada, with some added influence from Artists' Valley collective member Bibio thrown in for good measure. It's a confusing listen as the sound is undeniably hip-hop, but also completely alien from any previous hip-hop you've heard. Much like Lukid's innovations with last years's Onandon (and this year's Foma), Lone has come up with something completely off the map from current hip-hop trends, and it's going to change hip-hop's geography.

~ onecaseman

Download: Phthalo Blue

17

Pivot, O Soundtrack My Heart [Warp]

Sure, Warp's been inconsistent over the last few years, but it's easy to forgive them when they take risks that pay off like the second album from Australian synth-rockers Pivot. After a lackluster debut, Pivot hit on a tremendous formula with O Soundtrack My Heart, the Vangelis meets Battles collision of 80s synths and hard rock guitar and drums. Just when you start to get an idea what they're doing with the record, they throw you for a loop with outliers like "Didn't I Furious", "LOve Like I", and the vocal work of "Sing You Sinners". This album is a new idea and a creative achievement that cn certainly be classified as a "weird and radical project".

~ onecaseman

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Download: Sweet Memory

16

Helios, Caesura [Type]

Caesura is easily Keith Kenniff's best release since "Unomia." The sound of Helios began as hushed IDM with plenty of live instrumentation such as drums and guitar, but has since branched out into vocals (briefly and unsuccessfully) and now seems to have left behind electronics almost entirely. This release is all the better for it - a cohesive set of effortlessly beautiful downtempo pieces, full of acoustic guitar,drums and piano.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Mima

15

The Alps, III [Type]

The Alps are a hard band to describe. Their third album, fittingly titled "III," opens with Grizzly Bear-esque folk guitar, but instead of segueing into vocal folk-pop, the instrumental builds, morphing into material more suitable for score work than the front page of Pitchfork. The album then continues as variations on the theme established as the patterns build and re-emerge on later pieces. Guitar feedback alternates with acoustic, and the guitar work is accompanied by vocal tones, piano, and steady bass. The album becomes increasingly psychedelic for a while, and then digresses and comes back. This mix of psychedelic folk and krautrock tendencies makes the album sound like a forgotten gem from the 70s, rather than something contemporary; ultimately it sounds like the score to a classic foreign film that I've not yet seen.

~ onecaseman

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Download: Echoes 

14

Department Of Eagles, In Ear Park [4AD]

I’m a huge fan of Grizzly Bear. Words cannot describe how happy I was to hear that Grizzly Bear were coming to Iowa City, IA to play, a city that many indie acts pass through, but not many on a scale as large as Grizzly Bear. “In Ear Park” has been a great album since its release; it has treated me very well this year. The warmth and dreamy melodies found throughout are stunning. At times I wish the release came with a bonus disc full of instrumentals for outtakes of the tracks.

~ gravelheadwrap

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Download: Teenagers

13

Hecq, Night Falls [Hymen]

An absolute grandiose orchestral performance fusing acoustic modern classical elements with cinematic dark ambient landscapes. In Night Falls, Hecq drops the rhythmic structure altogether. There is a continuous cinematic tension of something hiding right beneath the shadow of a thinly layered sonic veil. This is a deep and haunting experience that never fails to add pressure to my tear ducts. Hecq has taken a leap into musical composition and immediately established himself among the prominent contemporary neo-classical composers. An absolute must for anyone daring to descend down a stairway of grim and capital despair. Hymen should be proud.

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: Come Home

12

Clark, Turning Dragon [Warp]

Chris Clark turns it up a notch. With a heavy set of pumping beats, Turning Dragon blends dark IDM rhythms with an onslaught of ferocious techno beats. In this tight and superb production, the abstract elements will keep your neurons firing at their peak. I really like the direction that Clark is going in, spawning into a grittier territory which is still dance-floor oriented. This is another win for Warp Records, and the top album for a rocket blasting car ride, turning every pedestrian's head in fright.

~ Headphone Commute

Download: For Wolves Crew

11

Autechre, Quaristice [Warp]

Sean Booth and Rob Brown continue to reinvent themselves and their pioneering experimental sound. Quaristice is once again ahead of the curve. This time, it's a bit more melodic, warmer, and accessible to less trained ears than their previous, noisier and darker Untilted LP. No one sculpts the landscape of glitchy abstract IDM as much as Autechre, and their prominent stance within the evolution of electronic sound is re-established once again here. This is a wild ride into the realms of digital processing and audio engineering. Recommended for newcomers and long time fans alike.

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: Paralel Suns