ON THE 2008 BRAMMIES - MUSIC

The following awards are for music that I heard for the first time in 2008. I realize that some if it came out before 2008.

FAVORITE SONG - "Better Things" by The Bouncing Souls

It's an uplifting punk song - I discovered it through Pandora, then downloaded it from iTunes within minutes. It never fails to bring a smile to my face when I poorly sing along.

FAVORITE SONG TO GET ME PSYCHED UP FOR IMPROV - "Smiley Face" by Gnarls Barkley

This was a close battle, but in the "what have you done for me lately?" style of ranking (popularized in college football), Smiley Face gets the edge. Strangely enough, I put this on a mix CD for a friend, who was in the midst of making me a mix...which included this song. Weird.

Honorable Mention - "No One" by Alicia Keys

FAVORITE MUSIC THAT I SHOULD HAVE DISCOVERED LONG AGO - Anything by Against Me!

My friend and often-mentioned fellow blogger Chuck slapped some Against Me! on a disc earlier in the summer. I put it in my CD Drive in my office and, since I'm lazy, it has laid in there since, providing me all kinds of joy throughout my office hours.

Honorable Mention - Girltalk

FAVORITE SONG I RE-DISCOVERED - "Presenting: The Dancing Machine" by The Lawrence Arms

After Chuck recommended The Lawrence Arms' CD "The Greatest Story Ever Told," I sorted my iTunes library by artist, and it included "The Dancing Machine" in with all the other Lawrence Arms songs.

FAVORITE LIVE BAND - Senior Discount

Of course.

FAVORITE CD OF THE YEAR - "The Feel Good Record of the Year" by No Use For A Name

On my flight to California, I listened to each of the discs I purchased this year. During this flight, I realized I hadn't purchased as many CD's as in years past. That having been said, I think the overall quality of the CD's is much higher. NUFAN gets the nod not only because of my favorite song on the album (The Trumpet Player), but just the overall beginning-to-end awesomeness of every song. Pick it up, you won't be disappointed.

Honorable Mentions - The Glass Passenger by Jack's Mannequin, The Gold Record by The Bouncing Souls