10. Siena Root – Far from the sun (Transubstans)
Graveyard and Witchcraft get all the acclaim, but Siena Root is the better band.
09. Nitad – Ibland kan man inte hindras sig själv (Kranium/Deranged)
Fucked Up, another band who put out one of 2008’s best releases (“The chemistry of commmon life”), have moved far beyond the realms of hardcore. Nitad have stepped up to take their place.
08. Park Hotell – Free for friends (Ultra Radio Records/BD Pop)
I can’t stand Morissey, yet somehow some Swedish acts are able to take his influence and turn it into something wonderful. If only more indiepop bands were as good as Park Hotell.
07. Katzenjammer – Le pop (Propeller Recordings)
I fully expected Detektivbyrån to be my favorite folk-crossover act, but these ladies from Norway snuck in ahead of them.
06. Hello Saferide – More modern short stories from Hello Saferide (Razzia)
Even better than I hoped. The perfect follow-up to the first album.
05. Johan Heltne – Vetenskapliga bevis för att Jesus lever (Raffaella)
A beautiful and beguiling album. So weird and mysterious, so absolutely entrancing.
04. Montys Loco – Farewell Mr Happy (NONS)
Of all the bands on my list, these ladies are the only ones to truly create something new and unique sounding. Sweden’s most consistently underrated and underappreciated band.
03. Haust – Ride the relapse (Fysisk Format)
If there’s a more pissed-off, evil sounding album in 2008, I haven’t heard it.
02. Lukestar – Lake Toba (Phone Me Records)
A full year later and I still love this album just as much when it first came out.
01. The Goner – H-Trilogy: Hind hand, Hallartrallar, Haven (Svarta Markaden)
I realize it’s pretty lame to put a series of limited cult releases at #1, yet no other artist this year has intrigued me as much as The Goner. “Hind hand” blew me away when I first heard it, the following two were even better.
- Avi Roig, It’s a trap
