2008: Overlooked

In anticipation of the annual year-end review coming later this month, here is a collection of 25 overlooked songs not included in last year's list. This is a recognition of tracks released in 2008 that either got a raw deal last December or simply weren't discovered until after the calendar changed.

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 10-1

iTunes

1. "OXFORD COMMA" - VAMPIRE WEEKEND
Why would you lie about something dumb like that?
Why would you lie about anything at all?
2. "WHITE WINTER HYMNAL" - FLEET FOXES
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads from fallin' in the snow
3. "ELECTRIC FEEL" - MGMT
She got the power in her hand
To shock you like you won't believe
4. "LITTLE BIT" - LYKKE LI
I think I'm a little bit in love with you,
But only if you're a little bit in love with me
5. "KIM & JESSIE" - M83
Somebody lurks in the shadows,
Somebody whispers
6. "JUMP IN THE POOL" - FRIENDLY FIRES
On the poolside staring into glowing blue,
Swimsuit issues with my toes curled in the grooves
7. "THE MODERN LEPER" - FRIGHTENED RABBIT
You are not ill and I'm not dead,
Doesn't that make us the perfect pair?
8. "GOLDEN AGE" - TV ON THE RADIO
Let it move right in, let it kiss your face,
Let it sow your skin in perpetual embrace
9. "LIGHTS OUT" - SANTOGOLD
Darling don't got to worry, you're locked in tight,
Darling don't got to worry, turn out the light
10. "GfC" - ALBERT HAMMOND, JR.
Inside me there's a sad machine,
Wants to stop movin'

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 25-11

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11. "NO ONE DOES IT LIKE YOU" - DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES
Out in the morning come,
You don't need to ask an alibi
12. "U.R.A. FEVER" - THE KILLS
Go ahead and have her, go ahead and leave her,
You only ever had her when you were a fever
13. "EVIL URGES" - MY MORNING JACKET
Evil urges baby, they're just part of the human way,
It ain't evil, baby, if ya ain't hurting anybody
14. "BALLOONS" - FOALS
Their weather storms are in your head
We fly balloons on this fuel called love
15. "FURR" - BLITZEN TRAPPER
So if you're gonna get made,
Don't be afraid of what you've learned
16. "GREAT DJ" - THE TING TINGS
Folks got high at a quarter to five,
Don't you feel you're growing up undone?
17. "LOST COASTLINES" - OKKERVIL RIVER
Look out, look out at each town that glides by,
And there's another crowd to drown in crying eyes
18. "IN THE NEW YEAR" - THE WALKMEN
Oh, I'm just like you, I never hear the bad news
And I never will
19. "HEART ATTACK" - LOW VS DIAMOND
Kiss the way we were goodbye,
Goodbye and farewell
20. "THE GOLDEN GLOWING MASK" - STATE BIRD
Fill your heart with love,
It's all we have
21. "FOG" - MASON PROPER
I found a crystal ball, but I lost it,
I bought a tea leaf to find out where you are, but I drank it
22. "SOME ARE LAKES" - LAND OF TALK
We've seen how sick wind blows,
But I've got your bovine eyes
23. "DAWN OF THE DEAD" - DOES IT OFFEND YOU, YEAH?
Today I stood and walked away,
I'm never coming back this way
24. "SEX ON FIRE" - KINGS OF LEON
If it's not forever, if it's just tonight,
Oh, it's still the greatest
25. "TEN DEAD DOGS" - WILD SWEET ORANGE
Am I running away from what
I've always been running towards?

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 40-26

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26. "HIT THE WALL" -  BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE PRESENTS BRENDAN CANNING
You're used to having it all,
And it's all gone
27. "BRUISES" - CHAIRLIFT
I tried to do handstands for you, but every time I fell for you,
I'm permanently black and blue, permanently blue for you
28. "DREAM FOR ME" - THE ACCIDENTAL
But yesterday was perfect and again it is tonight,
Let time begin at day
29. "VIVA LA VIDA" - COLDPLAY
I used to roll the dice,
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes
30. "INSIDE THE CINEMA" - CULTURE REJECT
Who fucking loves New York? Who is the biggest fan?
Who is a fiery cheerleader caught in some un-New York foreign land?
31. "THE HOLLOWS" - WHY?
This goes out to all my underdone, other-tongued, lung-long frontmen,
And all us earth growths, some planted and some pulled
32. "YOU STOOD ME UP" - BENJI HUGHES
I guess you got me, yeah you really got me,
Hundred million ways to break a heart and that's one you taught me
33. "AS TALL AS CLIFFS" - MARGOT & THE NUCLEAR SO AND SO'S
Oh, but I can't talk to you the way I've wanted to,
I've been tellin' lies but I'll tell you the truth
34. "RAT IS DEAD (RAGE)" - CSS
In the other side of town a car drives fast,
Hard to tell fear from happiness
35. "NO ONE'S BETTER SAKE" - LITTLE JOY
I can't defend you truly
When I worry about smoke instead of putting out the fire
36. "CAN'T SAY NO" - THE HELIO SEQUENCE
Captivate, cultivate, relegate and chalk it up to the basic needs
Dissipate, isolate, these days you can't run or believe all that you read
37. "SOON WE'LL BE FOUND" - SIA
Let's not fight, I'm tired, can't we just sleep tonight?
Turn away, it's just there's nothing left here to say
38. "GAMMA RAY" - BECK
If I could hold, hold out for now,
With these icecaps melting down
39. "I GOT MINE" - THE BLACK KEYS
I was a movin' man in my younger days,
But I've grown out of my ramblin' ways
40. "THE CROOK OF MY GOOD ARM" - PALE YOUNG GENTLEMEN
Run, run through the thicket and the barley,
Run, run for the sake of your good name

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 55-41

iTunes

41. "WHY DO YOU LET ME STAY HERE?" - SHE & HIM
Why don't you sit right down and stay a while?
We like the same things and I like your style
42. "CURS IN THE WEEDS" - HORSE FEATHERS
It's like marrow without bone,
To live in a house with no home
43. "ROOKS" - SHEARWATER
When the swallows fell from the eaves and the gulls from the spires,
And starlings in the millions will feed on the ground where they lie
44. "THE OLD DAYS" - DR. DOG
Trigger when you pull it, go home with a bullet,
No birds in the birdcage, flew off in his old age
45. "WHO'S GONNA SAVE MY SOUL?" - GNARLS BARKLEY
Did I never stop to wonder,
Was it possible you were hurting worse than me?
46. "NORTHWESTERN GIRLS" - SAY HI
They seem so nice,
It must be in the air here
47. "SILVER STALLION" - CAT POWER
We're gonna ride, ride like the one-eyed
Jack of Diamonds with the Devil close behind
48. "SLEEPYHEAD" - PASSION PIT
They couldn't think of something to say the day you burst,
With all their lions and all their might and all their thirst
49. "GHOST UNDER ROCKS" - RA RA RIOT
Here you are, you are breathing life into ghosts under rocks,
Like notes found in pocket coats of your father's, lost and forgotten
50. "HAPPINESS" - GOLDFRAPP
Join our group and you will find harmony and peace of mind,
Make you better, we're here to welcome you
51. "THE TURNING" - OASIS
When the rapture takes me,
Will you be by my side?
52. "FOOLS" - THE DODOS
Now he lies on his back, and they tell him it's that,
It's just a heart attack, it's just a heart attack
53. "CONFESSOR" - ANNUALS
Pack up and leave every day
I plant the seed to rip the roots away
54. "INSIDE A BOY" - MY BRIGHTEST DIAMOND
We are clouds, we are whispers, like fawns and shape-shifters,
Our edges can never be found out, no, our edges keep moving further out
55. "TO THE COUNTRY" - ARON WRIGHT
We could trade the pavement for a pasture to graze on,
I'd love a new frontier

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 70-56

iTunes

56. "SOLD! TO THE NICE RICH MAN" - THE WELCOME WAGON
Rich man came to change our minds and change our plans,
Take our things, take our nights, tonight we fight 
57. "SUMMER GROF" - THE SPINTO BAND
I won't lie, I won't lie, I won't lie to your face any more,
So goodbye, so goodbye, so goodbye, so goodbye 
58. "BUILDINGS AND MOUNTAINS" - THE REPUBLIC TIGERS
We drink our wine and wonder why we're really here,
What's the point of even asking?
You take the good and bad and make the best of it
59. "LORD" - SLEEPY SUN
Oh Lord, I've been left unnoticed,
I'll set sail all without a ship
60. "TOP DRAWER" - MAN MAN
You need a haircut, you need a shoeshine,
You need aristocratic glow-in-the dark erotic magnet
61. "MADE IN THE DARK" - HOT CHIP
Every night in motion, together, apart,
Apart from the moments so dear to my heart
62. "ALWAYS WHERE I NEED TO BE" - THE KOOKS
'Cause I'm always where I need to be and I always thought,
I would end up with you, eventually
63. "ACID TONGUE" - JENNY LEWIS
I beg your pardon, I'm not looking for a cure,
Seen enough of my friends in the depths of the godsick blues
64. "THE DAY YOU FELL APART" - THE NEW FRONTIERS
With your head up high, would you try,
Try to place your feet back on the ground?
65. "IN A CAVE" - TOKYO POLICE CLUB
All my hair grows in, wrinkles leave my skin, but still don't fade,
I'll be back again when the tide is in someday
66. "EMPTY HOUSE" - PAPER ROUTE
Somebody's at the door,
I don't believe they live here anymore
67. "CAN'T GO BACK NOW" - THE WEEPIES
But in the end the only steps that matter
Are the ones you take all by yourself
68. "I'VE SEEN ENOUGH" - COLD WAR KIDS
I've seen enough of nothing news,
The blackest stain on history or last laugh blues
69. "SOUL ON FIRE" - SPIRITUALIZED
Baby, set my soul on fire,
I got two little arms to hold on tight and I want to take you higher
70. "TOMORROW" - CLINIC
Joy of living, joy of giving,
Before tomorrow comes

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 85-71

iTunes

71. "BOARDED DOORS" - THE MORNING BENDERS
There's nothing left inside this town that'll keep me here,
A little change comes to a heart that's frozen in fear
72. "HORIZONS" -  SON AMBULANCE
Now that you've come this far,
Can you accept who you are?
73. "STARLETT JOHANSSON" - THE TEENAGERS
When I noticed for Jared Leto, I felt sad for 30 seconds,
When I noticed for Josh Hartnett, I prayed for 40 nights
74. "BEAT (HEALTH, LIFE, AND FIRE)" - THAO
I'm never gonna leave and you're never gonna leave,
But you're never gonna love me like I need
75. "TORN BLUE FOAM COUCH" - GRAND ARCHIVES
Over and over the lines you memorized in time,
Now you're so tired and the telephone's too far away
76. "I'M NOT GONNA TEACH YOUR BOYFRIEND HOW TO DANCE WITH YOU" - BLACK KIDS
One! I'm biting my tongue, Two! He's kissing on you,
Three! Oh, why can't you see?
77. "AFTER HOURS" - WE ARE SCIENTISTS
And if we have to go now, I guess there's always hope
Tomorrow night will be more of the same
78. "DONE WITH LOVE" - THE WHISPERTOWN 2000
And I know there's gonna come a time when you walk away,
I'll curse the day, I'll curse the sun, tell everyone I'm done with love
79. "RIGHT HAND ON MY HEART" - THE WHIGS
In another week, promise?
In another year, promise?
80. "ROLL THE DICE" - KOUFAX
Troubled times, they're not hard to find,
Eric Blair was right with his black and white
81. "THE RESOLUTION" - JACK'S MANNEQUIN
And you hold me down and you got me living in the past,
Come on and pick me up, somebody clear the wreckage from the blast
82. "EVERYBODY SAY" - TAKKA TAKKA
You say, everybody say
Who died, who died, you?
83. "LIGHTS AND MUSIC" - COPY CUT
I'll be waiting by in time but your dream's away,
You're holding hope open for the one making you wait
84. "THE PUZZLE" - ANE BRUN
The pieces were quite difficult to distinguish from each other,
They were tiny and the clear blue sky went on forever
85. "CONSOLER OF THE LONELY" - THE RACONTEURS
Conversation's getting dull, there's a constant buzzing in my ears,
Sense of humor's void and numb, and I'm bored to tears

100 Favorite Songs of 2008: 100-86

iTunes

86. "HANG ON" - ILLINOIS
Life's so long but almost gone,
Just give me something to hang on
87. "NEVER MISS A BEAT" - KAISER CHIEFS
What did you do today? I did nothing
What did you learn at school? I didn't go
It's cool to know nothing
88. "BODY OF YEARS" - MOTHER MOTHER
It's just a body of years that I leave all alone,
It's just a pile of years, now a pile of bones
89. "CATH..." - DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE
Soon everybody will ask what became of you,
Your heart was dying fast and you didn't know what to do
90. "HANG THEM ALL" - TAPES 'N TAPES
With your hearts set high, it's a marriage made for condescending,
Are you gonna hold that line?
91. "I WOKE UP TODAY" - PORT O'BRIEN
Yes, I understand I cannot live on this land,
But does that truly mean I have seen all that can be seen?
92. "HERCULES THEME" - HERCULES AND LOVE AFFAIR
We took him to town, pushed him around,
Little boy Hercules
93. "FOR HALLOWEEN" - NO KIDS
Why remind me of how things are sure to turn out for me?
When I can feel it with every gust that moves the willow trees
94. "SEE THESE BONES" - NADA SURF
Try as they might, no one's immune to misfiring and acting
on the wrong clues and thinking it's time to redo and redo
95. "CREEPER" - ISLANDS
Right from the start I was stabbed in the heart,
Didn't know I wasn't breathing, didn't know I had been bleeding
96. "BEING HERE" - THE STILLS
And there's blood on the lines of every page I turn,
When the ones you love are the ones you burn
97. "HUMMINGBIRD" - BORN RUFFIANS
"You're running down my thigh," she said, "He's such a wonderful guy," she said,
"There's pride in wanting to die, I think I'll give it a try," she said
98. "CALL IT A RITUAL" - WOLF PARADE
They will swing swing their swords for show,
While you turn your flower petals so slow
99. "RESERVOIR PARK" - THE DUTCHESS AND THE DUKE
How many times have I defied the cold clutches of death?
And how many times have I stopped short from taking that last step?
100. "MY ONLY OFFER" - MATES OF STATE
I always wanted to be the face in front of me,
Debating a life, sipped out the energy

Ineligible due to inclusion on 2007 list:
Bon Iver ("Skinny Love," No. 1)
The Virgins ("Rich Girls," No. 71)
Delta Spirit ("Trashcan," No. 93)