Best albums of 2008: Pais' picks

TV on the Radio (Credit: Michael Lavine)

For anyone who likes to shake it, 2008 was a good year for music. I wasn't searching for a handful of records that could help a room get moving and sweaty, but as it turns out, that's what several of the discs on this year's top 10 will do, and do well. Without further ado, the year's best albums, several of which—but not all, of course—are likely to shift your hips into overdrive.
 
1. TV on the Radio, "Dear Science" (Interscope)  
A brilliant, jaw-dropping achievement that discovers something rousing and even fun in the complex and depressing. The group is ready for the world to change, and welcomes it with ears wide open.
 
2. The Mars Volta, "The Bedlam in Goliath" (Universal)
Bedlam is an understatement. After 1,276 listens, I think I'm starting to get this doozy of a doozy. A labyrinth of fascinating peaks and detours that's challenging but never feels like work.
 
3. Ra Ra Riot, "The Rhumb Line" (Barsuk)
Distinctive indie pop that cascades from devastation to bliss, from sweet sadness to wistful melancholy. They've got hooks, they've got drama and they know how to pull one from the other.
 
4. Atmosphere, "When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That S--- Gold" (Rhymesayers)
Devastating hip-hop stories of near-survival, as Ant's beats chill while Slug's verses crush the ice. Each track takes you through tough lives and tough choices, with only minimal optimism strewn about. It's a downer and a stunner.
 
5. Frightened Rabbit, "The Midnight Organ Fight" (Fat Cat)
Singer Scott Hutchison dissects the remains of a broken relationship in the most unsentimental way possible, stretching regrets, sadness and self-deprecating humor across melodies far sunnier than his words. Translation: an album packed with simply great songs that actually mean something.
 
6. Fleet Foxes, "Fleet Foxes" (Sub Pop)
Pop in this Seattle quintet's gorgeous folk-rock record and watch the room go totally silent. As it should: it's nearly impossible to get anything done while listening. Just focus and float away.
 
7. Friendly Fires, "Friendly Fires" (XL Recordings)
English dance-rockers' debut is so much fun that you should throw your own dance party just so your friends can hear it. We've tried to tell ourselves to stop grooving to songs like "In the Hospital" and "Paris," but our damn moneymakers just won't listen.
 
8. Those Dancing Days, "In Our Space Hero Suits" (Wichita UK)
Mood-improving Swedish pop from girl group that makes you want to bounce up and down or cry "Weeeeeeeee!" while zipping down a slide. Available as an import.
 
9. Okkervil River, "The Stand Ins" (Jagjaguwar)
A band that isn't terribly famous delivers another great album about the perils of fame. Picking up where 2007's "The Stage Names" left off, singer Will Sheff explores the many physical and emotional landmines of hitting it big—or being close to someone who does—while the music swells and sings with the sort of bittersweet happiness felt by someone who discovers that having everything isn't enough.
 
10. Shearwater, "Rook" (Matador)
A lovely, trembling piece of unusual indie rock, which impressively stacks its many concepts without falling over. It rocks, it scares, it seduces.
 
Honorable mention:
Girl Talk, "Feed the Animals" (Illegal Art)
Fall Out Boy, "Folie a Deux" (Island)
My Morning Jacket, "Evil Urges" (ATO)
HEALTH, "HEALTH//DISCO" (Lovepump United)
The Raconteurs, "Consolers of the Lonely" (Warner Bros.)
The Week That Was, "The Week That Was" (Memphis Industries)
Blitzen Trapper, "Furr" (Sub Pop)
High Places, "High Places" (Thrill Jockey)
Why?, "Alopecia" (Anticon)
Duffy, "Rockferry" (Mercury)