haakon ellingsen

A Retrospective Top 33 and 1/3: Best Albums of 2008

Andy Fenstermaker
December 23, 2009May 18, 2023

When I compiled my original Best Of 2008 list last December, it was a snow day. The sky dropped about a foot, maybe a foot and a half of fluffy white stuff and we lowly sub-compact drivers could go nowhere. Between ranking albums and locating album art, I took a stroll around town with my camera. The above image comes from that trek. Overall, I was pretty happy with last year’s list but, in revisiting all the albums from 2008, I now see quite a few that I left out.

Andy Fenstermaker
February 25, 2009April 11, 2009

Itâ€™s about 50 in the office and I had the brilliant idea of wearing flip-flops and a short-sleeve dress shirt today. Damn appendages are freezing off. I can think of a few cures to remove the chill. Sometimes all you need is a little folk-pop; today, I turned to Haakon Ellingsen. Read More »Haakon Ellingsen [Feature Band]

Best of 2008: Fense’s Top 33 & 1/3 Albums of the Year

Andy Fenstermaker
December 23, 2008May 18, 2023

The year is over. We have a new president about to take office, a failing economy, and out of control weather. The good news is that last year saw some amazing albums hit and, thanks to the rampant oppression of hard times, next year should prove just as fruitful music-wise. After all, difficult times, depression, etc. can often breed above average achievements in the arts… right?

So here it is, my top 33 and 1/3 albums of the year and the last post of 2008. The 33 is for the top 33 albums (with a few EPs included) of the year, while the 1/3 is an honorable mention 7″ single. We’ll begin with the latter…

Andy Fenstermaker
October 22, 2008October 22, 2008

Written by Fense

Like Sweden, Norway churns out some pretty great pop bands and one of those is Haakon Ellingsen. Ellingsen’s music is a mixture of pop and folk that is occasionally reminiscent of The Beatles, but not in an distracting or negatively impacting, overtly-influenced manner; maybe a hint of The Polyphonic Spree’s epic nature, as well. Read More »Haakon Ellingsen: The Plum Album [Album Review]