Here’s how I came up with my list of the twenty most disappointing songs of 2008.

First off, let’s acknowledge that this isn’t a list of the 20 worst albums of the year, rather it’s a list of albums that disappointed me. My expectations were high or I was interested in hearing these records for one reason or another and in the end felt let down. Let me go album by album and try and explain myself.

20. Chinese Democracy - Guns N’ Roses The reason this isn’t number one on the list is that I’ve had fourteen years to come to terms with them not having Izzy Stradlin as their lead songwriter. The thing that makes this album a true disappointment though is that it actually has six or so tracks that could have been really good if you stripped away the awful production and those extremely long and insufferable opening build-ups on every track.
19. Partie Traumatic - The Black Kids The stars of CMJ 2007 had all the hype but delivered on none of the talent with this underwhelming and flat record.
18. Electric Arguments –The Fireman Under the name The Fireman, Paul McCartney and Youth quietly released two excellent ambient records, Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest in 1993 and Rushes in 1998. Those albums were released without any promotion and found an audience before anyone found out who was twiddling the nobs. For Electric Arguments, Macca and Youth wrote more straight-forward songs and did a little p.r. push, but the results don’t come close to the power of their past two efforts.
17. Weezer (Red Album) - Weezer I continue to wait for them to release something on par with their first two albums and I continue to be let down. At this point, I’d be happy with something that just didn’t suck.
16. Untitled Nas Album - Nas Nas’ long-delayed and much-hyped album was to be called Nigger, but was changed after obvious controversy ensued. No matter what the album would’ve been named this “Untitled Nas Album” is weak beyond belief. Nas’ rhymes are off and his usual-poetic lyrics are weaked by the constant use of the N-word. Nas tried to make a statement, but ended up making a pile of shit.
15. Go Away White - Bauhaus Bauhaus are brilliant. Ignore this album and continue to respect them. Honestly, you’d be better off digging out a Love & Rockets lp from the remainder bin.
14. LP3 - Ratatat There was a time when I looked forward to a new Ratatat album, not I’m more interested in their hip-hop remix albums, which always seem far superior to their standard albums.
13. ¿Cómo Te Llama? - Albert Hammond Jr. I know this is only the second official Strokes side-project, but I’ve already had enough of The Strokes side-projects that sound like Stroke albums that aren’t their 4th studio lp.
12. Donkey - CSS I was hoping I was really hoping that Cansei de Ser Sexy would build if their self-titled debut into something that would be inventive, or at least more ambitious. Instead they released a donkey.
11. 808s & Heartbreak - Kanye West The album where Kanye’s ego outshines his rhymes and beats.
10. Death Magnetic - Metallica Metallica lost their magic and even Rick Rubin couldn’t squeeze some inspiration out of them. Rick has been able to get Neil freaking Diamond to record two excellent albums. Hell, he even made the Dixie Chicks into an excellent band.
9. Couples - The Long Blondes This album explains why they broke up. It’s the sound of a band falling face first out of the giddy stratosphere.
8. Santogold – Santogold After all the commercials and the hype and the rave reviews, what you’re left with a good album. Nothing great. A solid, fun album. But is this really worth all the hype?
7. The Age of the Understatement - The Last Shadow Puppets I thought that I’d get sick of the Arctic Monkeys because of the Arctic Monkeys, but they surprised me witha strong seecond album, which I liked better than their debut. I thought this side-project would be inventive and show that those kids really got some magic in them. It didn’t.
6. The Bedlam in Goliath - The Mars Volta Can’t At The Drive-In just reunite already so we can be done with this prog-rock Mars Volta shit.
5. Cardinalogy - Ryan Adams & The Cardinals Ryan has been really good at holding his “A” material for his proper releases. Somehow, Cardinology is nowhere near up-to-par with Cold Roses or Easy Tiger. It sounds like something he should have released for free.
4. Mountain Battles - The Breeders I love all things Pixies and have a soft spot for Kim Deal, but it’s hard to ignore that this album is no Safari or Last Splash…or event Title Tk. I don’t know what Kim was going for with this album and I spent a lot of time trying to dig it, but never could get into it. When I saw them live over the summer, the Mountain Battles tracks were such low-points in the set that it really set in how disappointed I was with the album.
3. Diamond Hoo Ha - Supergrass Here’s the thing with this album, it will likely be on my best albums of the year list. The thing is, it won’t be top ten, which to me means it’s a disappointment. I love Supergrass and think they hit a real high point with 2005’s Road to Rouen . Diamond Hoo Ha, though, sounds like the band trying to do their best Franz Ferdinand. It sounds like nothing inventive or esential. It sounds, argh, generic. It has tracks that still rock, but I’ve caught myself skipping over these tracks whenever they come up on shuffle.
2. Beautiful Future - Primal Scream Bobby G’s 9th studio album with Primal Scream is such a mess that it was almost number one on this list. In a career that has been hit and miss, this album is clearly a major miss. First off, when I first heard the album, I was convinced that I had gotten an unfinished demo or that the label sent me a messed up copy where all the tracks accidently looped. Every time I think a song is in a groove, I’m disappointed to find out that every track goes nowhere. The lyrics are shit and the beats are annoying. Everything on this album is wrong. This album needs a flux capacitor.
1. Forth - Verve The mighty comeback of The Verve was supposed to be the highlight of the year. Richard Ashcroft and guitarist Nick McCabe getting back together was supposed to rock my socks off. When they played two nights at the WAMU Theater at Madison Square Garden, they were amazing. The new songs they debuted got me so stoked for their upcoming album. I was very excited. Then I heard the album and it was just a let down. It’s hard to blame any one track or even say the album doesn’t work as a whole. I still can’t quite put my finger on what makes this album just not live up to its potential. Somehow, The Verve finally failed me.