First Half Albums

Since we're coming up on the halfway point of 2008, I thought it might be interesting to take stock of the music I've been listening to so far this year. This isn't an official "Best Of" list, but more of an informal listing of my favorite music so far.

*Bon Iver, For Emma, Forever Ago
Chris Mills, Living in the Aftermath
Dead Confederate, Dead Confederate EP
#Earlimart, Hymn and Her
Frightened Rabbit, The Midnight Organ Fight
Grand Archives, The Grand Archives
#The Hold Steady, Stay Positive
The Jet Age, What Did You Do During the War, Daddy?
Julie Ocean, Long Gone and Nearly There
*Lightspeed Champion, Falling Off the Lavender Bridge
+Mystery Jets, Twenty One
Shearwater, Rook
The Whigs, Mission Control

* = originally released in 2007, released widely 2008
+ = U.K. release only (so far)
# = not officially released yet

Oh, and here are a few of the albums coming out later this year that I'm looking forward to most:

Birdmonster, From the Mountain to the Sea (8/5)
The Broken West, Now or Heaven (9/9)
Matthew Sweet, Sunshine Lies (8/26)
Okkervil River, The Stand Ins (9/9)
Robert Pollard's Boston Spaceships, Brown Submarine (9/9)
Shannon Mcardle (of The Mendoza Line), Summer of the Whore (8/5)
Takka Takka, Migration (7/29)
Wheat, Untitled LP #5 (tba)

Edited to add: OK, so I finally got the No Age album (Nouns) last night, and I may have to seriously think about adding it to this list. It kicks all kinds of ass.