The first year of The Music Lobby was an interesting one. Writers came and went, as did musical trends. Dubstep dominated our radar for the first half of the year, and nearly fell into oblivion after as promised releases were delayed and other artists continued to pump out the same sounds instead of innovating. Modern classical was one of genres that continued to grab increased attention throughout the year though, as more and more youngsters broke out with demonstrations of instrumental knowledge and composition way beyond their years. And we can't forget the hip-hop scene in 2008. Wonky, post-Dilla, or whatever you want to call it - 2008 was simply the most creative year for the genre since the mid 90s, if only on the instrumental side. But for most, the increasingly generic "indie" genre dominated the conversation, both deservedly and undeservedly at times. I think you'll find all four of these movements well represented below, as we take a look back at our favorites from the year that was 2008. 

50

iTAL tEK, Cyclical [Planet Mu]

This is yet another one of those genre-bleeding "dubstep plus something else" albums. in this case the "something else" is ... Radiohead? At least if you're listening to the album closely, it is. But seriously, this is one of the more sonically interesting albums released in 2008, and certainly one of Planet Mu's better moments of the year. Emotive, orchestral dubstep with an IDM slant.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Wind Tunnel

49

Subheim, Approach [Tympanik Audio]

Tympanik Audio has been especially active in 2008. But out of its twenty releases in just one year, no one shines like Subheim. The organic elements of piano, cello, and ambient atmospheres are struck with slow building crispy beats and bitcrushed digital sounds. This is an excellent marriage of crunchy industrial-influenced IDM and gorgeous cinematic modern classical. The sound is sometimes chaotic, often urban, and always melancholic. Subheim jumped to the top among my favorites like Lusine Icl, Kattoo, Hecq, and Arovane. With this release, Tympanik rapidly gained grounds and established itself among my beloved Hymen and Ad Noiseam. I am pretty excited for the output scheduled by the label in 2009. 

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: One Step Before The Exit

48

Ras G & The Afrikan Space Program, Ghetto Sci-Fi [Poo-Bah]

OOOOOH RAAASSSSS followed by an airhorn is a characteristic overlay throughout Ras G’s work. “Ghetto Sci-Fi” is a nice LP put out by a label that has quickly become a favorite of mine in the past few years, Poo-Bah. I love Ras’ beats, they are full of dirty, soulful, and electronic sounds that are on the verge of a traditional boom bap sound that can transform into reggae rhythms or even free jazz dimensions. The L.A. producer has quickly honed a highly recognizable sound in the past few years, becoming accomplished among many; he even remixed Flying Lotus’ “Sleep Dinosaur” on the L.A. EP 2x3.

~ gravelheadwrap

MySpace

Download: Beyond The Sky

47

Osborne, Osborne [Spectral]

What I like the most about Osborne’s self-titled release is that it covers a lot of ground in the techno and house genres. There are hints of electro, African dance, Chicago house, and New York techno, etc. I love how clean the production is and how much energy each track is built on. It's nice to hear an artist do a release like this. By hearing a vast array of sound, the listener can easily understand the angle the artist is coming from with regard to influences.

~ gravelheadwrap

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Download: Downtown

46

The Sight Below, Glider [Ghostly]

Entering the roster of ambient techno artists is a newcomer to the scene, recently signed to Ghostly International and going by the name of The Sight Below. Lush reverberated guitars and atmospheric pads are complimented by a pulsing heartbeat within a hollow ribcage. Flowing smoothly within the vacuum of sounds, the waves twirl and resonate into an endless carpet of a soundscape, free of sharp textures and fluctuating temperatures. The gated thumping punctuations of a kick drum are especially tasty when you tune into its effect on dynamics in the background curtain. Following in the footsteps of Gas, Yagya, and Echospace, the music of The Sight Below is a true marvel, dominating the ambient techno domain of 2008. 

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: At First Touch

45

Intrusion, Intrusion/Reflection [Echospace]

Magisterial dub techno from the best magisterial dub techno label currently operating. Modell's Echospace imprint has been relatively quiet this year, with little in the way of strictly new releases (though plenty of expanded re-releases, most of which we've recommended here at TML). "Intrusion/Reflection" is the exception: the gloriously simple beats and bass of reggae/dub, filtered through Chicago house, Detroit techno, and the entire Basic Channel back catalog. This is the best dub/techno album of the year: cavernous and expansive.

~ playbynumbers

Echospace Detroit Official Site

Download: Intrusion (Phase90 Reshape)

44

Dungen, 4 [Subliminal Sounds]

All I have to say is that I was quite stunned to learn that Gustav Ejstes’ Dungen was putting out a release in ’08 after having already released the wonderful “Tio Bitar” in ’07. “4” really caught me off guard. The jazz fusion oriented psychedelic folk sounds of The Soft Machine or Hatfield & The North is reborn here. I love this release from start to finish, there is so much warmth and groove all over it. Plenty of Gustav’s guitar shredding is present.

~ gravelheadwrap

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Download: Det Tar Tid

43

Vampire Weekend, Vampire Weekend [XL]

To be honest, I'm more than a little concerned that Vampire Weekend are going to pull an Interpol and start sucking after their first (impeccable) album, but at least we've gotten this one out of them. The band members all seem more than worthy of being punched in the face, for sure---and their videos are pretty annoying---but don't believe the backlash: this album is very listenable and replayable (I even unearthed my acoustic guitar to learn how to play some of these songs), full of glorious orchestral pop music. Apart from maybe the Crystal Stilts album, I listened to this record more than any other in 2008.

~ playbynumbers

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Download: Campus

42

Library Tapes, A Summer Beneath The Trees [Make Mine]

This year, David Wenngren of Library Tapes returns with a little help from Peter Broderick. On A Summer Beneath the Trees, the subtle melodies are woven in between Wenngren's soft piano and Broderick's singing violin, and upon numerous listens begin to implant themselves among the nostalgic memories. The music is of contemplative nature, reminding us once more of our meager existence, and begging to just pause and listen, for once in a while. This album became one of the top on my list to listen to as I go through my daily routines, mundane processes, and truly ordinary tasks that somehow add up to this thing we call "life". Another score for the modern classical community.

~ Headphone Commute

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Download: Above The Flood

41

Kelpe, Ex-Aquarium [DC]

How Kelpe transformed from his pretty straight-forward (and solid) IDM debut to this I'll never figure out. Ex-Aquarium is a strange mix of instruments and electronics, with an undercurrent of hip-hop beats and vocal samples riding throughout the record. This sounds like Four Tet if he had continued on the same wavelength as Rounds, just dipping all of the instruments underwater before use. Overall, it straddles the lines between instrumental hip-hop and what we call indielectronic music beautifully. There are many different sounds and samples here it's easy to see why Kel McKeown took his sweet time releasing this one. Three years in the making Ex-Aquarium more than displays that much work being put into it.

~ onecaseman

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Download: Whirlwound