Vanished (Nasty Nav Remix)

Let's revisit one of my favorite tracks of 2008. Taking a similar approach to Jesper Dahlback's remix of "Romantic Rights," the Nasty Nav remix of "Vanished" by Crystal Castles turns the Rad-Racer-night-on-the-town-circa-2024 into a club banger. It's not a complete transformation, but that's what makes it so good.

Listen!

Best Songs of 2008 (Part 2)

Today, we're continuing on Stoplight Sleep's countdown of the best song of 2008. Here's 7 through 5.

7. Single Frame  "Cold Mining" from S F E P

Coming in under 10 minutes, Single Frame's S F E P from January of this year could almost qualify as a song itself. The release is a power punch of post-punk energy for those still interested in that whole dance revival thing. "Cold Mining," riddled with Joy Division, barely sneaks ahead as the stand-out track. The hangover anthem poses the Myspace-survey worthy refrain of the year: "If you don't dream, does that mean / that you have not got one? / Or if you don't dream, does that mean / that you are living it?"

6. Frightened Rabbit  "Fast Blood" from The Midnight Organ Fight

On the surface, "Fast Blood" is standard post-millennial mope rock in the vein of Interpol, The Twilight Sad, and Arcade Fire. It could also be a pedestrian retelling of one sexual encounter. However, Scott Hutchinson's emotional conviction and extended metaphors about hurricanes and resurrection make the track the rock equivalent of impressionist poetry.

5. Crystal Castles  "Vanished" from Crystal Castles

I have a soft spot in my heart for the soundtracks of the Nintendo games of my youth. I've enjoyed covers of NES themes from The Advantage, Minibosses, and Motherbrain!, but those acts could only dictate the actual experience. On their debut album, Crystal Castles capture my remembered impression of playing games like Metroid and Astanyx  by combining an 8-bit aesthetic with a 21st-century worldview. "Vanished" is the moodiest song of the album.

Top 10 Albums of 2008 (Version 1.0)

This list may be a bit premature, but I always find albums in the following year that would have made my year-end lists. Most recently I've found albums from 2007 (Electrelane's No Shouts, No Calls), 2005 (The Meligrove Band's Planets Conspire), and 2001 (Mirah's Advisory Committee) that probably would have made at least my top 25 list. Sometimes it takes awhile for me to give an album the chance it deserves. I've only this week listened to all of Lightspeed Champion's Falling off the Lavender Bridge, possibly because I saw it as too gimmacky following my summer 2006 affair with Test Icicles.

I've poured over this list and I don't think it's going to change anytime soon. Unlike last year, there's a definite divide between the top ten and the rest of my list (which I'll post later). These ten albums really stood out in my 2008 as musical achievements. 

 

1. Why?  Alopecia
2. The Dodos  Visiter
3. M83  Saturday = Youth
4. Los Campesinos!  Hold On Now, Youngster
5. The Kills  Midnight Boom
6. Hot Chip  Made in the Dark
7. MGMT  Oracular Spectacular
8. Crystal Castles  Crystal Castles
9. Ra Ra Riot  The Rhumb Line
10. Adele 19

Like 2007, you'll find a good mix of veteran acts (M83, The Kills), sophomores (Hot Chip, The Dodos), and rookies (Lost Campesinos!, MGMT). However, Ra Ra Riot are the only act completely off my radar before 2008.  Crystal Castles, Adele, and the other first timers all had some kind of release (either an EP or import) that I was at least aware of before this year.

Following another interesting trend, all of these albums, with the exception of Ra Ra Riot's The Rhumb Line appeared on my mid-2008 list, although some have received a better evaluation with time. 

So what do you think? Post your lists. Do you violently disagree with any of my picks?

3-Way Electro Yr Face

1. Get the new album from Kansas City's Ssion /shun/, Fool's Gold. Previous incarnations of this band have spliced the New York take on new-new garage punk and po-mo'd it up to hit all the freaky right notes, including a Rocky Horror reinterpretation ("Opportunity Bless My Soul") and a Minute Man parody ("What Make a Man Start a Band?"), both from the apparently out-of-print-but-worth-hunting-down Opportunity Bless My Soul.

The band has become more electronically oriented in the last couple years, like some of their peers. Mo' money--mo' circuits, i 'pose.

From what I could find, the album is currently only available on iTunes, which I've seen happen before. Who'd have thunk Apple would be bringing the cutting-edge indie tunes to the kids? Luckily, it's an iTunes Plus album. You can also sample some tracks on myspace. Ug.

[mp3] Ssion - Street Jizz
from Fool's Gold (2008)
[mp3] Ssion - Opportunity Bless My Soul
from Opportunity Bless My Soul (2003)

2. Check out the live Klaxons / Rihanna mashup from the Brit Awards. Laser shows are cool!? Or is it lazer in England?


As advertised on Pitchfork.

3. Crystal Castles official release of their self-titled album has been pushed back, but you can pick up the Crystal Castles v. Health - Crimewave single all over the place.

[mp3] Crystal Castles - "Alice Practice"
from Crystal Castles (2008)

Download Crystal Castles v. Health - Crimewave: Emusic Amazonmp3
Preorder Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles: insound

Bonus Track!
[mp3] Klaxons - "Atlantis to Interzone" (Crystal Castles Remix)