raised by robots | the OCMD

best-songs-20082

As many of you who read this blog already know, I’m mostly indie rock girl but I do dabble in a little indie pop/electronica from time to time. I am attracted to that Euro/ambient/dub pop/downtempo groove. However, it’s the rare album in this genre that can hold my interest all the way through. Which is why you won’t find many (if any) electro/pop albums on my top 20 list for 2008.

But there were many great songs of this variety that stood out to me this year. And here is a compilation of some of those tracks that moved me. I love listening to this mix and hope you will too. Enjoy!

Listen to Best Songs of 2008 – Electro/Pop:

Koushik, ‘Lying in the Sun‘
Air France, ‘Collapsing at Your Doorstep’
Martina Topley-Bird, ‘Phoenix’
The Black Ghosts, ‘Full Moon’
Nightmares on Wax, ‘195LBS.‘
The Notwist (Panda Bear Remix), ‘Boneless’
Tobacco, ‘Hairy Candy’
Lemonade, ‘Sunchips’
Raised By Robots, ‘I Love You/U Luv Me 2′
Starf**ker, ‘Florida’
Rafter, ‘Juicy’
Cut Copy, ‘Lights & Music’
Nightmares On Wax, ‘Da Feelin’
Rainbow Arabia, ‘Omar K’

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Raised by Robots

San Francisco/Oakland-based Raised by Robots pays homage to a multitude of musical influences – among them early 90s indie, soul, post punk, country, and hip hop. Sort of a multiple personality disorder perhaps, but I really like this track.

Listen to ‘I Love U/U Love Me 2′

Scrabbel

Bay Area indie pop rockers, Scrabbel, are highly influenced by all things ’65-’75 and you can hear it in their music. Sunny, sweet songs that have a bit of that Belle and Sebastian feel. On the dark side, they also do a nice cover of My Bloody Valentine’s ‘Sometimes‘.

Listen to ‘Emily and I‘:

The Blacks

Described as ‘the love child of Karen O and Jesus and Mary Chain,’ The Blacks flat out rock. I completely fell in love with them this year at SXSW. It was tambourine player JDK Blacker that did it for me. He plays the tambourine like he’s exorcizing demons. It’s spellbinding. The SF/NY based trio are known for their short, blistering stage shows and laser-beam intensity. Their debut full-length “Nom de Guerre” was released in 2007 on Tricycle Records. “Tiger Songs” is their latest EP.

Listen to ‘Raincoat‘: