Below is a list of my favorite records from 2008. I could have easily made a list of 50. It was pretty hard to narrow things down and most of the records after #10 could move up or down depending on my mood. The same could be said for the “honorable mentions” at the end of my list. So, check out my 30 favorite records of 2008 and make sure to click through at the end to check the favorites of our contributors as well! Thanks for a great 2008, we’re looking forward to 2009. Enjoy the holidays! As always, drop a comment with your favorites, things you liked, things we missed, etc.

30. The Celebrated Workingman – Herald The Dickens

29. Q-Tip – The Renaissance

28. No Kids – Come Into My House
MP3: No Kids – “The Beaches All Closed”

27. Throw Me the Statue – Moonbeams
MP3: Throw Me The Statue – “About To Walk”

26. The Felice Brothers – The Felice Brothers
MP3: The Felice Brothers – “Frankie’s Gun”
MP3: The Felice Brothers – “Wonderful Life”

25. Deerhunter – Microcastle

24. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals – Cardinology

23. Jason Collett – Here’s To Being Here

22. Alejandro Escovedo – Real Animal
MP3: Alejandro Escovedo – “Always A Friend”

21. Hot Chip – Made In The Dark

20. Centro-matic/South San Gabriel – Dual Hawks
MP3: Centro-Matic – “I, The Kite”
MP3: South San Gabriel – “Trust To Lose”

19. The Cool Kids – Bake Sale

18. Matt Bauer – The Island Moved in the Storm
MP3: Matt Bauer – “Don’t Let Me Out”

17. Drive-By Truckers – Brighter Than Creation’s Dark

16. MGMT – Oracular Spectacular

15. Girl Talk – Feed the Animals

14. Black Mountain – In The Future
MP3: Black Mountain – “Tyrants”

13. TV on the Radio – Dear Science,

12. Justin Townes Earle – The Good Life

11. Of Montreal – Skeletal Lamping

10. Horse Feathers – House with No Name
MP3: Horse Feathers – “Curs In The Weeds”

9. Langhorne Slim – Langhorne Slim
MP3: Langhorne Slim – “Restless”
MP3: Langhorne Slim – “Rebel Side of Heaven”

8. Dr. Dog – Fate
MP3: Dr. Dog – “The Old Days”
MP3: Dr. Dog – “The Ark”

7. The Hold Steady – Stay Positive

6. The Walkmen – You & Me

5. David Byrne & Brian Eno – Everything That Happens Will Happen Today

4. Frightened Rabbit – The Midnight Organ Fight
MP3: Frightened Rabbit – “Modern Leper”

3. Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes

2. My Morning Jacket – Evil Urges
MP3: My Morning Jacket – “Evil Urges”

1. Blitzen Trapper – Furr
MP3: Blitzen Trapper – “Furr”

Honorable Mentions: The Rosebuds – Life Like, The Gaslight Anthem – The ’59 Sound, The Henry Clay People – For Cheap Or For Free, Spiritualized – Songs in A&E, Hayes Carll – Trouble in Mind, Sun Kil Moon – April, The Black Keys – Attack & Release, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Dig, Lazarus, Dig, Lykke Li – Youth Novels, Conor Oberst – Conor Oberst, Shearwater – Rook, Pale Young Gentlemen – Black Forrest (Tra La La), Megafaun – Bury the Square

CLICK HERE TO READ 2008 FAVORITES FROM Jodi, Dan, Ed, Eric, & Pete (more…)

2008 provided plenty of memorable nights of live music in Madison, Milwaukee, Chicago, and at various festivals and cities across the US. Below you’ll find my 30 favorite concerts of 2008 [*]. Inevitably, there are probably ones I forgot about, didn’t attend, or straight up didn’t know about. That being said, the 30 shows listed below represent some of the best times had this year.

1. Tom Waits – Moren Theater, Jacksonville (Muzzle of Bees Review)
2. Bruce Springsteen – Lakefront/Harley-Davidson 105th (Muzzle of Bees Review)
3. Bon Iver/AA Bondy – Pabst Theater, Milwaukee (Muzzle of Bees Review)
4. My Morning Jacket – Riverside Theater, Milwaukee
5. David Byrne – Austin City Limits, Austin (Muzzle of Bees Review)
6. Radiohead – Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa (Muzzle of Bees Review)
7. R.E.M. – United Center, Chicago (Muzzle of Bees Review)
8. Steve Earle – Barrymore Theatre, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
9. Fleet Foxes – UW Terrace, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
10. Jens Lekman – Music Hall, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
11. The Swell Season – Overture Hall, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
12. Black Mountain – Headliners Music Hall, Louisville (Muzzle of Bees Review)
13. The Avett Brothers – Monolith Music Festival, Red Rocks (Muzzle of Bees Review)
14. Bruce Springsteen – Bradley Center, Milwaukee (Muzzle of Bees Review)
15. Sigur Ros – Chicago Theatre, Chicago (Muzzle of Bees Review)
16. Of Montreal – Pabst Theater, Milwaukee
17. DeVotchKa – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaukee (Muzzle of Bees Review)
18. White Denim – The Mohawk, Austin (Muzzle of Bees Review)
19. Band of Horses – Austin City Limits, Austin (Muzzle of Bees Review)
20. TV On The Radio – Monolith Music Festival, Red Rocks (Muzzle of Bees Review)
21. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals – Overture Hall, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
22. David Byrne – Pabst Theater, Milwaukee
23. The Hold Steady – Majestic Theatre, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
24. Girl Talk – Lollapalooza, Chicago
25. Wilco – The Riveria Theater, Chicago (Muzzle of Bees Review)
26. Dark Meat – SXSW Vice Party, Austin
27. AA Bondy – Austin City Limits, Austin (Muzzle of Bees Review)
28. The Rosebuds/Megafaun – High Noon Saloon, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
29. Langhorne Slim – High Noon Saloon, Madison (Muzzle of Bees Review)
30. Drive-By Truckers/The Felice Brothers – Pabst Theater (Muzzle of Bees Review)

* We will be seeing a handful of shows before the year comes to an end. We reserve the right to edit this list with consideration to those performances, but also want to give you something to talk about and discuss for the rest of the month.

That’s our list kids. What did we leave out? What did we miss? Leave your favorites, memories and thoughts in the comments!