If I say these are the top tracks of 2008, you would agree.

Best Christmas Ever. Animal Collective leak. In between listening to an early front-runner for album of the year (2009), I took a look back and compiled this list. Now, for you, it's like the best New Year's ever, am I right?

I'm always behind on these things. December has marked the month every year where I tediously scower the interweb for music that I've missed the previous eleven months. It's been tradition every New Year's Eve to post my favorite tracks, so here I am, on time. Of course, I meant to be earlier. I always do. It certainly took longer than I remember to compile and narrow down my top fifty tracks. I had to neglect tracks by the likes of High Places and others who may not secure a place in my top albums list. I also shunned a few tracks from albums that will certainly make the top albums list with the notion that they hold up better as an album. To me, there isn't a clear winner on Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III, so you won't find any of his stuff here. And as much as I'd like to include some of my favorite tracks from Blitzen Trapper, The Cool Kids, Harlem, The Ruby Suns and others, they will have to settle for album nods. Here's the lineup, and as per usual, there's some room for rank movement. Last year, I'd argue my list was flawed. Bon Iver's "Skinny Love" should've been higher, for instance, and others should've been lower, but there is a quasi-comical parody of hit songs afterwards. Check that out, then check out this year's list, and feel free to follow the links to download the track. You'll thank yourself later, and if you're nice, maybe even me too.

1. Fleet Foxes- "White Winter Hymnal" (Early 2008 there was little to be found on Fleet Foxes. Before the Sun Giant EP and the self-titled LP, there was this sole track on the artist's myspace. Attempting to hold my excitement after this brief glimpse of a band with a sparse Fleetwood Mac feel accompanied by a folk-leaning My Morning Jacket, I patiently waited for any further information on this band. Soon enough, I was greeted with the EP, then the LP. Then, it hit me. These guys had something. I saw them twice in 2008: once, before their LP hit the shelves, and once at Pitchfork's Music Festival, long after the hype had reached its pinnacle. As great as their mountainous double threat is, this track still stands as the highlight among the pack of wolves at harmony's doorstep.)
2. Air France- "Collapsing at Your Doorstep" (Walking the east coast beach on a warm, windy summer evening provided the ideal setting for this shimmering cut on Air France's No Come Down EP. The jittery electronics and soft female vocals add to the euphoria. The vocal sample says it all: "Sort of like a dream? No. Better.")
3. Hercules and Love Affair- "Blind" (Antony's vibrato is unlike any other, and if I had known before listening that they were to be put to the backdrop of some sort of new disco track, I would've politely puked on your new carpet. Thankfully, it's quite the opposite. Whatever that may be. This is one of the best dance tracks of the year, the sort of stuff you wish the bars you frequent played. A close call is "Hercules Theme".)
4. Cut Copy- "Hearts on Fire" (With the exception of the obscure Gang Gang Dance, it seemed like all the great electronic dance tracks came out in the first half of the year. This particular one outshines all of them sans the previous two aforementioned tracks.)
5. The Walkmen- "Four Provinces" (Sure, many will argue that the raucous "In the New Year" is their album's finest moment, but I'd argue that it's the whispy yearning of "Four Provinces". And, I've heard other arguments as to the album's watermark, but whichever way you lean on this album, it only reinforces the comfortable space this album inhabits.)
6. Portishead- "The Rip" (A darling highlight on a triphop act-cum-psychrock/folk/krautrock/electronica outfit. Also, take a look at Thom and Jonny's acoustic cover. A close-call would be the paranoid clatter of "Machine Gun".)
7. Hot Chip- "Ready for the Floor" (A bit of a disjointed album that doesn't demand listens, but did manage to toss out a few tracks of the fun electropop we expected from them. Also, check out "Wrestlers", by far the best thing associated with wrestling in years.
8. Beach House- "Gila" (Warm chamber pop vocals never felt as good as they do here with the elongated syllable of the track title over tinty keys. Ah yes, just like it "Used to Be".)
9. Erykah Badu- "Soldier" (Cut straight to the neo-soul of this track and you'll find exactly what you came for- a good time despite the grim topic of war.)
10. Gang Gang Dance- "House Jam" (As bizarre as this group can be, this is as danceable and listenable as anything else out there.)
11. Wolf Parade- "Call It a Ritual" (It might not reach the singalong standing of numerable tracks on Apologies to the Queen Mary, still their best album, but this is as close as it gets to matching their previous fire. Thankfully, the rest of the album wins you over anyway in a less structured prog-rock fashion.)
12. Why?- "Fatalist Palmistry" (Why? I'll tell you why "I sleep on my back 'cause it's good for the spine and coffin rehearsal." As a listener, we may feel like the artist's notebook worth of terrific lines, but damned if he doesn't make about a hundred loosely great ideas memorable. Most artists are lucky if they pull off a couple decent statements per album, let alone several per track.)
13. M83- "Kim & Jessie" (M83 turn up the 80's nostalgia with the love-struck keyboards of this standout track on one of 2008's standout albums.)
14. Chad VanGaalen- "TMNT Mask" (Do I really have to say anything else here? It's a song that somehow lives up to its rediculous title.)
15. Vivian Girls- "Where Do You Run To" (I'll tell you where, sweet Vivian Girls, the stereo to turn it up.)
16. Q-Tip- "Move"
17. White Denim- "Shake Shake Shake"
18. Deerhunter- "Nothing Ever Happened"
19. Brian Eno & David Byrne- "Strange Overtones"
20. Silver Jews- "San Francisco B.C." (Favorite lines: "She said you don't make enough to provide for me / I said what about the stuff that we quote 'believe'? / She said I left that on the sands of history / I found a new man to take care of me / He dresses for success and emergency and he moves a lot of concrete on the QBC.")
21. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds- "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!"
22. Shearwater- "Century Eyes"
23. Crystal Castles- "Untrust Us" (Dance on, Nintendo geeks, dance on.)
24. Max Tundra- "Which Song" (If you're wondering which song is the best on Max Tundra's eclectic latest/greatest, it's this one.)
25. Animal Collective- "Street Flash"
26. Department of Eagles- "No One Does It Like You" (Until Grizzly Bear, in 2009, when they do it better than Daniel Rossen's original music project, Department of Eagles. And, here's an idea of what Grizzly Bear can do in "Two Weeks" or what seems like forever until their album releases.)
27. Amadou & Mariam- "Sabali" (Damon Albarn produced, and impressive to boot.)
28. Jamie Lidell- "Little Bit of Feel Good"
29. The Dodos- "Fools"
30. Wale- "The Kramer" (I'm going to be honest with you, I am intimidated by this track. On this Washington D.C. rapper's Mixtape About Nothing, he confronts you with Seinfeld samples that setup his off-topic/on-topic rants. I attempt to avoid and/or ignore race issues whenever they are presented, and this track forces us to reflect on them. However, instead of offering trite solutions or maxims, Wale offers damn good reflection, and his mixtape for free.)
31. WOMEN- "Black Rice"
32. Videotape- "Underwater" (Thanks CokeMachineGlow for this album complete with this standout track featuring Arcade Fire style propulsion and downright fun.)
33. No Age- "Eraser"
34. The Very Best- "Kamphopo" (Listen and download, too.)
35. My Morning Jacket- "I'm Amazed" (You know, I'm amazed, too. And, now, doubtful of MMJ's ability to construct a truly solid album. Z was close to bliss, and now Evil Urges is just hit and miss. This one, however, is in the hit range.)
36. The Tallest Man on Earth- "I Won't Be Found" (I love the irony of this when you read the artist name and song title together. How can the tallest man on earth not be found, anyway? That's rediculous. On the other hand, I found this track just in time to enjoy it, and include it here.)
37. The Mountain Goats- "Autoclave" (I can't help but swoon over a song with these lines: "No one in her right mind would make her home my home / My heart's an autoclave.")
38. Deframe- "Single in a Small Town" (A friend's home recorded track; decipher the lyrics here.)
39. Empire of the Sun- "Walking on a Dream"
40. Santogold- "L.E.S. Artistes"
41. Born Ruffians- "I Need a Life (Four Tet Mix)" (For more Born Ruffians action, turn to "Foxes Mate for Life".)
42. Au- "RR vs. D"
43. The Clientele- "Share the Night"
44. Frightened Rabbit- "The Twist"
45. Okkervil River- "Pop Lie"
46. The Zou- "Forget My Name" (And so local Youngstown, Ohio band, The Zou, hope you don't forget theirs, or their new album title, Archaeo-somethingorother.)
47. Panda Bear- "Boneless (Notwist)" (To de-confuse my track title, it's a remix of a Notwist track by Panda Bear.)
48. Cadence Weapon- "In Search of the Youth Crew"
49. The Black Keys- "Strange Times"
50. Annie- "I Know UR Girlfriend Hates Me"

Phew. And, now for some extras.

First, these are my favorite covers of the year.

Bell- "It's Oh So Quiet" (Björk cover)

Death Crazed Teenage Superheroes- "Down from Dover" (Dolly Parton Cover) -- Download their EP here.

Some young Swedish girls cover Fleet Foxes convincingly, and prove what pastoral folk should be. MP3 here, plus video:


If you're like me, you're exhausted by now from all the links. Here's one more, so have a laugh with Patton Oswalt at the There Will Be Blood film. If I had more time, I'd perhaps talk up a few more tracks, and I still might another day. Next time, expect my top albums of 2008, and more!