a.m.p.m.'s favourite albums of 2008

Aside from the obvious quartet of MGMT, Bon Iver, Vampire Weekend and TV on the Radio, here are 10 albums (in no particular order) that knocked my socks off in 2008:

1. Born Ruffians - Red Yellow and Blue
Born Ruffians - Badonkadonkey

2. Why? - Alopecia
Why? - These Few Presidents

3. Titus Andronicus - The Airing of Grievances
Titus Andronicus - Arms Against Atrophy

4. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes - Tiger Mountain Peasant Song

5. Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
Crystal Castles - Air War

6. Grand Archives - The Grand Archives
Grand Archives - The Crime Window

7. Frightened Rabbit - The Midnight Organ Fight
Frightened Rabbit - Old Old Fashioned

8. Lindstrom - Where You Go I Go Too
Lindstrom - Grand Ideas

9. Chad VanGaalen - Soft Airplane
Chad VanGaalen - Cries of the Dead

10. The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
The Hold Steady - Constructive Summer

FR1D4Y 51V3

Behold several tracks that have been spinning on high rotation, both on my computer and in my head.


After boasting about how great Crystal Castles are and how good 'Death' by White Lies is, why not post that remix the Castles did of said track.

White Lies - Death (Crystal Castles remix)

New stuff from Sebastien Grainger's self-titled LP. More rock than dance, but I'm feeling it.

Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains - (Are There) Ways to Come Home?

Aparently Iran (the band) is nothing new, but I first heard them recently with their track 'Buddy'. TV on the Radio's Kyp Malone is a member of the band and Dave Sitek, of TVOTR, helped to create those layers of noise that permeate his work.

Iran - Buddy

DJ Z-Trip, who I am totally unfamiliar with makes just the right tweaks to this Motown staple. The results are a crisp, funky mix of Michael at his pre-pubescent best.

Jackson 5 - I Want You Back (Z-Trip remix)

Epic. Space. Disco. Three of my favourite things, and they all exist on Lindstrom's latest 55 minute, 3 song, Where You Go I Go Too.

Lindstrom - Grand Ideas

Contest: Sally Shapiro, DJ Set in Toronto

There are few greater niceties in life than the elements of Swedish culture which manage to spill over onto the North American radar: delicious meatballs, ideal human specimens, and pretty pop music.

On the topic of the latter, Sweden's Sally Shapiro (alongside producer Johan Agebjorn) makes a kind of euro-disco-house pop perfectly prescribed for a Volkswagen commercial or a delightful spring day. And, as the weather has just recently begun hinting at greener pastures here in Toronto, it can't be more suiting that they're on their way here.

Sally Shapiro & Johan Agebjorn play a DJ set at Wrongbar next Tuesday, March 4th. And thanks to our new best friends at ATG, we've got a pair of tickets to give away. To enter, simply email us with "Sally Shapiro the Swedish Sensation" in the subject, and include your full contact information. Contest closes at noon on March 3rd.

The fact that they've opted for a DJ set isn't terribly surprising to anyone who is remotely familiar with the mystery surrounding Ms. Shapiro. She's never once performed her own songs live, and her real name (Sally Shapiro being a pseudonym) is a complete mystery.

Sally's album, Disco Romance, is available across the globe on Toronto's own Paper Bag Records. Also available is a full remix album, Remix Romance Vol. I, featuring the revamping skills of Junior Boys, Holy Fuck, Lindstrøm, and others. Both are really super great.

Sally Shapiro - Jackie Jackie (Dylan's Subzero Remix)
Sally Shapiro - He Keeps Me Alive

- bbbykmbrly.