The Superfantastisch 8 of 2008

It may not meet the same standards as the NME Cool List, but now here's my Superfantastisch list of musicians of 2008.

1. Alex Turner - One of the wittiest song masters around,the Arctic Monkeys front man paired with Miles Kane of The Rascals for side project The Last Shadow Puppets.

2. Matt Bellamy - for existing. Oh and for Muse releasing the DVD of their Wembley gig, 'HAARP'.

3. Kele Okereke - Bloc Party released their third album 'Intimacy' late this year and announced an Australian tour, including Adelaide in their line-up of gigs.

4. Caleb Followill - Kings of Leon released their 4th album and follow-up to 'Because of the Times'. Could he beat the banshee cry on Charmer? You bet he could.

5. Russell Lissack - the floppy-fringed Bloc Party guitarist. What, "two members from Bloc Party?!" you say. It was double the 2008 action for these lads - an album and Australian tour in as many months. Also, try saying his name 10 times fast.

6. The Wombats - the Australian tour in 2008 may have been stymied mid-run by Murph's laryngitis, but the gig seen by this writer was higher in energy than a stint on cough syrup. The absence of Cherub the wombat was palpable, but they doggedly played on.

7. Andrew Van Wyngarden - half of the MGMT duo. Even though it was released digitally in October 2007 before a 2008 hard-copy release, their album 'Oracular Spectacular' was, well, spectacular (any further rhymes would just be corny).

8. Yannis Philippakis - Foals. 2008 was the year bringing us 'Antidotes'. An appearance by Yannis on Season 2 of English TV series Skins was nice, too.

The bonus track in all this (you know, the one where you fast-forward 20 minutes after the last song) is:
Carl Barat - Dirty Pretty Things broke up and The Libertines will never reform, but Carl Barat is still as cool as ever.