About a month ago, my friend Michael issued a challenge - come up with a mix comprised of albums I'm excited about that will be released in 2008. I've been trying to put something together for a few weeks now, but the challenge has proved to be trickier than I expected. The one rule Michael gave me was that the tracks had to be from the new albums in question - which is tough, because bands/labels/promotions companies don't always release an initial mp3 before they distribute promo copies of the record (and by the time they distribute the promo copy and I hear the whole thing, I'm not really "looking forward to" that album anymore, now am I?).
But after some digging, some falling in love with new tracks and a whole lotta staring longingly at release dates that are weeks (and sometimes months) out in the future, here's my Anticipation Mix - reflecting the albums I'm looking forward to in 2008. You can download all ten tracks in a .zip, but I'm also breaking the mix down song by song to tell you why I'm so excited about these releases.
[ download .zip ]
And the playlist:
#1. Guillemots - "Kriss Kross"
(from Red, out in the UK on March 24 on Polydor; in the US as an import March 25)
The phenomenal Guillemots record Through the Windowpane was my absolute favorite in 2006, so Red is absolutely my most highly anticipated release of 2008. This track, which the band decided to give away for free via their myspace page for a bit, wasn't quite what I expected, but after a few listens I'm head over heels for all the drama. Can't WAIT to hear what this album has to offer.
#2. Hotpipes - "Future Bolt"
(from Future Bolt, out February 29)
I'm cheating a little by including Hotpipes and their new album, Future Bolt, on this list. After all, I have a promo copy of the CD and I've been playing it incessantly since last week. But because they're my favorite Nashville band and I'm pretty much convinced that this is the release that will put them on the map, I'm excited for YOU to hear the whole thing. Oh and did I mention they're going to be visiting my show again March 1st?
#3. Frightened Rabbit - "The Modern Leper"
(from Midnight Organ Fight, out April 15 on Fat Cat)
I fell a little in love with Frightened Rabbit and their excellent Sing the Greys last year, so I snatched up this mp3 from Midnight Organ Fight as soon as it started making the promo rounds. The song makes me super excited to hear the band's new album, and it has also convinced me to make absolute sure I manage to catch Frightened Rabbit at SXSW next month.
#4. She and Him - "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here"
(from Volume One, out March 18 on Merge)
Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward? Sign me up. To be honest, I wasn't madly in love with this track the first few times I heard it, but the more I listen the crazier I am about this pairing. I'm really hoping this album lives up to the lofty expectations I'm starting to form.
#5. DeVotchKa - "Transliterator"
(from A Mad and Faithful Telling, out March 18 on Anti-)
My appreciation for DeVotchKa keeps getting deeper and deeper - first I kind of randomly saw them at their magical Nashville performance at the Basement, then their contributions to Little Miss Sunshine brought the band back onto my radar, and last year I listened to "Til the End of Time" about four thousand times after I included it on my Whistle While You Work Mix. After hearing "Transliterator" I'm thinking A Mad and Faithful Telling will ruin my chances of ever seeing DeVotchKa at a venue as tiny as the Basement ever again.
#6. The Envy Corps - "Wires and Wool"
(from Dwell out ? on Vertigo)
This is another album I'm cheating with a little bit - I've actually heard all of Dwell (I think anyway, I'm not sure if I have the final version) and many of the songs on the album actually appeared on I Will Write You Love Letters If You Tell Me To, which I featured on my show back in October of 2006. This album is in a little bit of label limbo right now, but it looks like it will be out in April, and I promise it's worth the wait.
#7. The Black Keys - "Strange Times"
(from Attack and Release, out April 1 on Nonesuch)
I adore the Black Keys, and there's already a 99.99% chance this is going to be one of my favorite albums of 2008. Hope this new release means they'll be swinging through Nashville again sometime very, very soon.
#8. Supergrass - "Diamond Hoo Ha Man"
(from Diamond Hoo Ha, out in the UK on March 24 on Parlophone; in the US March 25 as an import)
To be honest, "Diamond Hoo Ha Man" has a bit more cock-rock swagger than I'm usually a fan of, but since I loved the last Supergrass release, Road to Rouen, so much - I'm still really looking forward to this new record.
#9. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - "Glue Girls"
(from Pershing, out April 8 on Polyvinyl)
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin does the shuffling indie pop stuff very, very well, as indicated on their initially self-released Broom - an album I'm still going back to quite a bit. Now that it's been more than two years since I first saw the band at a smoky, sweaty show at Grand Palace - and now that they've been scooped up by Polyvinyl - I'm really interested to hear what they've assembled for Pershing.
#10. Elbow - "Grounds for Divorce" (mp3 removed by request - stream at myspace)
(from The Seldom Seen Kid, out in the UK on March 17 on Fiction)
Of all the songs on this mix, this has to be the one I love the most - and I feel like I can't stop listening to it. Sure, I really liked Leaders of the Free World back in 2005 (the album was pretty much my introduction to Elbow), but it wasn't like I was counting down the days until Elbow's next release. That is, until I heard "Grounds for Divorce." This song is unbelievably awesome, and I'm hoping the rest of The Seldom Seen Kid is as well.
