All Songs Considered, December 15, 2008 - When the votes started pouring in from NPR listeners for the year's best albums, two things became clear immediately: It was going to be tight, and many of the top spots would go to new, smaller bands and their debut albums. Bigger, more established acts (Coldplay, My Morning Jacket) were well represented, but listeners seemed more inspired by the year's quieter, more intimate albums.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=98092448
thanks for the link, lisamarie!
and: happy new year! [smiley=beer.gif]