With the Comeback 5th anniversary party on Friday night, USE on Saturday and now Ratatat on Sunday night, Seattle is having one weekend-long dance party.

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It has now been 2.5 years since I moved out of Seattle for the Golden State. I've slowly drifted out of the NW music culture, so sometimes I wonder if I know what to say on TIG these days.

Combine that with the fact that I was so distracted from music for a lot of 2008, this year's "best of" lists were especially difficult. Heck, I don't even think I can make a Best of NW music list this year, not because there was insufficient music, but because I just missed so many of those important-but-not-well-known releases that make these lists. I did enjoy Fleet Foxes, Common Market, Colin Meloy live, Malkmus and the like, but really, that isn't a "Best of the NW" list but rather a list of albums I liked that happened to be from the NW.

That being said, I did get a last minute music revival for the year. Maybe it was the election being over (and the good guys winning), maybe it was finally getting a faculty position after many years of trying (lets just say Erik will be moving east in 2009), maybe 2008 just didn't mesh with me musically. Who knows? However, there was a lot of great music anyway, and here are my top 20 (for your praise or fist shaking). Feel free to read the full commentary. 

 

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The Ratatat sound is less "look at me" and more introspective.

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at Showbox at the Market

The interaction with the crowd was minimal but the point was to get the crowd to move – which they did.

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Call it Free Music Friday (look! I just did!)

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Classics might be an overstated title for Ratatat's second album, but it's far from a disappointment.

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Remember that episode of Friends when Ross decides to play his 'sounds' for the gang?

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