'08's Music to Love More Than Music: Love, Pt. 3

Love (<)
The Dodos - Visiter
People went absolutely gaga over this album, and I still think that it is very good, but not the best thing ever. I think the methods of songwriting are very inventive, and the drumming is fantastic, but I was overall kind of underwhelmed, especially considering all the hype surrounding the group. Even live the songs were kind of more drab than I had expected. That said, the songs themselves are heart warming, soothing, and masterfully composed.
The Dodos - Red and Purple

The Alligators - See Ya Later (it might just be called "EP" though...)
Ever since I saw Seve vs. Evan (one of my all time favorite bands), I've trusted anything they think is awesome. The Alligators are on that list. Also from Provo, this group makes some pretty cute electro power pop. It's not the best formed music ever, but that adds to the quaintness of the Alligators and, man, they show a lot of promise, and each song has it's own cutsie qualities that cannot be denied.
The Alligators - Oh Oh Oh

The Heartbreak Scene - The Szabo Songbook
Destroyer's Dan Bejar and Marcy Emery (from various other projects) came together to perform the songs of Mark Szabo, a friend of Marcy's. The songs are very good, and the performance of them doesn't lack depth at all. Yeah, it's an album of guitar songs and sweet singing, and it's honestly only incredibly interesting to fans of Destroyer, but it's still a great little album.
The Heartbreak Scene - Love Outside Movies

Tall Firs - Too Old To Die Young
A great example of stellar musicianship, but ... I dunno ... it didn't grab me as much as I think it ought to have. I really enjoyed parts, but as an album I found it sort of forgettable. Still, when the right parts hit, they were fantastic.
Tall Firs - So Messed Up

Sian Alice Group - 59.59
Long, ambient stretches between songs, but they set the mood for gloriously underwhelming performances. I mean for that to be a compliment, but I just can't phrase it to say what I want it to and say it nicely. I think the slower points of the album are some of the high points, and it always seems like its heading toward a huge build up that it never quite makes it to, but for some reason I really like that.
Sian Alice Group - When...

Showbread - Anorexia
I honestly think this is what Showbread has been building up to for a while. This is their best album by far. Considering the hooky nature of the songs and the energy that they have put into everything I've ever heard by them, there's no way I could have given this album a poor rating. It was awesome. I think it may be the best that this get up can produce considering their sound.
Showbread - The Sky