It’s hard to believe that we’ve nearly reached the end of another year, but alas, here we are. Musically, either on the national or local/regional fronts — many things happened. Or maybe they didn’t — it’s likely a matter of viewpoint.

Bands have broken up, reformed, moved away and otherwise cross pollinated into other projects quite a bit since January. We’ve lost some people that we may have thought would always be here. I’ve seen more “best of’s” and “repackaged/remastered with bonus material” releases over the last year than I can recall ever having seen before. Yes, this is indicative of a music industry that’s scrambling to find anything it can to throw at consumers to generate some kind of profit in these days of iPods, downloads, burning, ripping and ... stealing? Maybe that’s not for me to say. Then again, maybe it is, since I’m the one writing this thing.

The consumption of music as product is a simple truth — once a band or musician gets signed, the sounds they make and yes, they themselves, become a “product.” It’s just the way it works. But what I feel that I’m seeing, with the advent of this digital age of music acquisition, is an overall loss of respect for the music itself. Let alone an industry more driven than ever by image and style, rather than actual talent.

I’ve heard more people say over the last few years “I don’t want to buy the whole album for just one good song...”and every single time it annoys me. This flies in the face of how music is supposed to be appreciated, at least in my book. There’s a little bit of truth in the statement, indeed; if you’re a diehard Katy Perry or T-Pain fan, in love with the many faces and mostly miserable sounds of the “American Idol” pop star factory, and God forbid, if you still actually watch MTV, this piecemeal “music as a prepackaged twinkie” means of song collecting probably works exceedingly well for you.

I can’t help but fear, however, what kind of music will be made in the coming years by kids that grew up never learning how to dig into an artist’s back catalog to see how they developed into what they are today. I’m wary of the potential sounds produced by people that aren’t interested or motivated enough to uncover the influences of their favorite artists, in hopes of better understanding what makes them tick. There’s more to life than these confounded “hit singles,” you know. In short, I’m a little worried about music in general.

Ah, but before the tone of this particular article gets too dark and dreary to appreciate, let’s look at the things to be thankful for. Personally, I still enjoy as much as I did four years ago the food, folks and overall funkiness of Guadalupe Café. Even when there’s a show booked that defines the polar opposite of what I would usually listen to, I’ve attended and had a good time. Folk, punk, metal, blues, pop, jazz, fusion, funk, bluegrass ... really, what other venue in this town works this hard to represent such a wide spectrum of sounds to its patrons? There really isn’t any other answer. As well, I’m thankful to have met the musicians that I’ve gone on to perform with within Guad’s doors- bassists, percussionists, singers, guitarists and more. I don’t think the now defunct Triggerfish project would’ve happened were it not for Guadalupe and a guy named Rob Priebe. Once again, cheers to you, Rojo.

On the subject of newly formed local projects, CIA seems to have created quite a stir with a crafty mix of indie hip-hop, soul, funk and jazz. Michael O’Shea’s brainy collage of the digital and organic with his Kinjac endeavor is sure to perk up some ears, and seeing him take this challenging stuff into the live format will be intriguing, to say the least. Then there’s the mysterious U-Pass project, of which I can say little more than it’ll be noisy, somewhat offensive and most likely a whole bunch of fun.

The albums of 2008. Yeah, yeah- there was a fair amount of garbage, I’ll agree. But Sonny Landreth’s amazing From The Reach still rings in my ears. Not only is the Louisiana native the supreme master of all things slide guitar, he managed to collect the brightest stars of every other part of the guitar galaxy to contribute to this one. Jerry Douglas’s Glide is up there as well, and his recent appearance at the Garage in Asheville was one of the more inspiring and spectacular things I’ve witnessed in too long to remember. Getting to actually hang out and drink a beer or two with the guy doesn’t just ice the cake; it tossed some sprinkles on there as well. Gossip In The Grain, the latest from Ray Lamontagne, is a gorgeous collection of tunes from a singer/songwriter that has without a doubt come into his own. The Avett Brothers finally converted me from naysayer to fan with their mellow and intimate Second Gleam, and on the opposite end of the spectrum, Greg Howe’s uber technical (and surprisingly melodic) electric guitar work on Sound Proof was a potent reminder that the pursuit of excellence on one’s chosen instrument often yields stunning results. Though short, Peace Queer, Todd Snider’s anti-war release is still prompting weekly spins. The guy never fails to both surprise and deliver the goods with a style all his own. Matt Costa, Railroad Earth, Jakob Dylan, Brad Paisley, Jimmy Herring and a host of others made some remarkable music this year, and upon looking back on this list of personal favorites, I’m thinking that ’08 wasn’t really all that bad after all.

Now if it wasn’t so damn difficult to find one of those elusive “Tofurkey” things around here, my Thanksgiving would almost be complete...

(Chris Cooper can be reached at thumbpick43@yahoo.com)