Critics’ Picks of the Year

Adele, 21 (XL) How does such a gifted performer rule the charts when popularity and quality seem so at odds? Adele’s electrifying clarity was a gift to anyone trapped near the Auto-Tune swamp of hit radio. Charles Bradley, No Time for Dreaming (Daptone) If Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye had lived, they could hardly be […]

Bon Iver, Bon Iver (Jagjagwuar) Its cryptic lyrics make its densely layered vocals and thundering drums even more beautiful somehow, as if Justin Vernon is daring you to come back over and over, try to figure him out. Bright Eyes, The People’s Key (Saddle Creek) Conor Oberst is thinking out these days: “You and me, […]

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo) Available on Wii The Wii’s swan song may also be the greatest Zelda title on any platform, even better than the pivotal Ocarina of Time. This is pure adventure gaming at its finest, a real treasure. Dust off your Wii for one of the most magical games ever […]

Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest (Mongrel) Directed by Michael Rapaport Carlos (Mongrel) Directed by Olivier Assayas Daydream Nation (eOne) Directed by Michael Goldbach Everything Must Go (Maple) Directed by Dan Rush Will Ferrell straps on his serious face and succeeds as an alcoholic left jobless, wifeless and alone on […]

Alexander MacLeod, Light Lifting (Biblioasis) MacLeod’s evocative short stories capture the motion (athletic competition, youthful thrill-seeking, chasing after kids, working), the emotions, motivations and meanings to these movements. –SF Amy Sedaris, Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People (Grand Central Publishing) Amy, get your glue gun. Crafting for Jesus? Beer-cap and pipe-cleaner castanets? The queen of […]

Aloe Blacc, Good Things (Stones Throw) Apollo Ghosts, Mount Benson (independent) It’s criminal to have so many equally passionate and comical pop songs squeezed into 25 minutes, so I plug in my air guitar and press repeat. –RH Arcade Fire, The Suburbs (Merge) Mature and grown-up without losing their trademark energy, Arcade Fire take on […]

Blur Xbox 360/PC/Playstation 3 (Bizarre Creations) You know that feeling you get in Mario Kart? Dropping a banana peel or shooting a red shell? It’s similar to that but way more street. Call of Duty: Black Ops 360/PS3/Wii/PC (Treyarch) CoD is like that best friend who comes to visit once a year. They’re the perfect […]

Rachelle Goguen’s High Five Geoff Johns, Gary Frank and Jonathan Sibal, Action Comics (DC) The longest-running comic book title in history is the best one of 2008. Action Comics, one of two monthly ongoing Superman titles, has been damn near perfect since Geoff Johns took over the full-time writing duties in 2007. This year his […]

Sean F. Hamilton’s high fives Wii Perfect for families, casual gamers and my parents, the Wii has officially won the Next Gen war. Yet, I can’t get past the fact that it still feels like more of a toy than a game. The Wii is the board game of 2008—you pull it out when company […]

Why not listen to our playlist while you read? Mark Black’s high fives The Dopamines, The Dopamines (It’s Alive) From The Copyrights to Chinese Telephones to The Steinways, It’s Alive is putting out the best pop-punk records right now. Shouldn’t have been surprised by how good this record is, but the blend of early Fat […]

Our music critics give a big, wet smooch to the top 50 CDs of the year. Guess which local pick made the most fave lists. I’ll never tell. Plus, listen to ourTop 50 CDs playlist