The Top Albums of the Decade!!!

Who survived the turn of the century?


Seth Diamond (The Gods of Fire)

Anthrax - We've Come for You All

Mclusky - Do Dallas

Radiohead - Kid A

King Diamond - The Puppet Master

Children of Bodom - Follow the Reaper

The Hold Steady - Almost Killed Me

David Bowie - Heathen

Mastodon - Crack The Skye

Primal Scream - XTRMNTR

Nine Inch Nails - Year Zero

Andrea Sicco (My Happy Gun)

PJ Harvey-Stories from the city...
Grandaddy-The Sophomore Slump
Belle & Sebastian-Fold your hands child you walk like a peasant
Primal Scream-XTRMNTR
Coldplay-A rush of blood to the head
Queens of the Stone Age-Songs for the deaf
Clinic-Walking with Thee
Morrissey-You are the Quarry
Band of Horses-Everything all the time
The Crystal Stilts-Alite all night

("also... if the list allowed extra ones, this is why it was so hard to select just a few")
The Raveonettes-Whip it on EP
Grinderman-Grinderman
Mark Lanegan & Isobell Campbell-Ballad of the broken seas
Beck-Sea Change
Radiohead-In Rainbows
Portishead-Third
Franz Ferdinand-Franz Ferdinand
The Strokes-Is this it?
Interpol-Turn on the bright lights

Ben Odell (Writer, Director)

Grizzly Bear - Vectatimest
Daft Punk - Discovery
Grandaddy - The Sophtware Slump
Johnny Cash - American III
Smog - Dongs of Sevotion
Blonde Redhead - 23
Elliott Smith - Figure 8
Radiohead - Kid A
The Strokes - Is this it?
Modest Mouse - Good news for poeple who love bad news
Gorillaz - Self-titled


Mark Cyst, Brian Naas, Brian Hospital (Birthing of Millions)

Bjork - Vespertine

Battles - Mirrored

Radiohead - Kid A

Meshuggah - Nothing
Avishai Cohen - Gently Disturbed

Constantines - Shine a Light

Aereogramme - Sleep and Release

R.E.M. - Accelerate
Shock Radar - Shark Shirt Motherfucker

The Wrens - The Meadowlands

Larry Hess (Hunters, Run!)

Fugazi - The Argument

Radiohead - Kid A

Shellac - 1000 Hurts
Shock Radar - Shark Shirt Motherfucker
The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday

The Knife - Silent Shout

Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped

Flaming Lips -Embryonic

!!! - Louden Up Now

Destroyer - Rubies

Notwist - Neon Golden

("These are ones I'd like to add")

LCD Soundsystem- Sound of Silver

Super Furry Animals-Rings Around the World

Decemberists-Picaresque

Shins-Chutes Too Narrow

M83-Saturdays=Youth

Portishead-Third

The Wrens-The Meadowlands

Burial-Untrue

Calexico & Iron & Wine-In the Reins EP

Richard Drouin (Iridesense)

1. Combinations - Eisley

2. Snakes & Arrows - Rush
3. 10,000 Days - TooL
4. Raising Sand - Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
5. Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV. Vol. I - Coheed & Cambria
6. De-Loused in the Comatorium - The Mars Volta
7. Live at the Palace - Blind Melon
8. Try! - John Mayer Trio
9. X & Y - Coldplay
10. Thirteenth Step - A Perfect Circle

Adam Lippman (Automatic Children)

Arcade Fire - Funeral
Radiohead - OK Computer
Interpol - Turn on the Bright Lights
Joseph Arthur - Come to Where I'm From
Pete Yorn - Musicforthemorningafter
Band of Horses - Everything All of the Time
White Stripes - White Blood Cells
The Strokes - Is this It?
The Postal Service - Give Up
Cymbals Eat Guitars - Why there are mountains

("My list is based on what i listen to and have since the beginning of the decade, and not necessarily everything that's come out since jan 1 2000")

Blake Ian (Singer/Songwriter)

1. Fire Theft – Fire Theft

2. Kid A – Radiohead

3. Love and Theft – Bob Dylan

4. Tallahassee - The Mountain Goats

5. Ease Down The Road – Bonnie Prince Billy

6. Now You Know – Doug Martsch

7. Riot Act - Pearl Jam

8. Don’t Believe The Truth - Oasis

9. Devils and Dust – Bruce Springsteen

10. Takes - Adem / Walks on his own – Eddie Vedder

("10 is shared because one is a cover record which has no original material written and the other is a live record which has no real production")

Benjamin Hedin (Writer, Editor)

1. Bob Dylan - Love and Theft

2. Gillian Welch - Time (The Revelator)

3. The Strokes - Is this it?

4. Neil Young - Chrome Dreams 2

5. Pearl Jam - Backspacer

6. Radiohead - In Rainbows

7. The Black Crowes - Warpaint

8. Eddie Vedder - Into the Wild

9. U2 - No Line on the Horizon

10. Coldplay - Viva La Vida

Brian Tetrault (The Nude)

Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
Sonic Youth - Sonic Nurse
Sonic Youth - Murray Street
Oasis - Standing on the Shoulder of Giants

Oasis - Heathen Chemistry

Oasis - Don't Believe the Truth

Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul

Bob Dylan - Love and Theft
Radiohead - Kid A

Bruce Springsteen - Devils and Dust

The Accidental Genius

Primal Scream - XTRMNTR (This is the best album of the decade. Nothing's more adventurous, and "Evil Heat" was just as good, but I had to pick one, and it's "XTRMNTR", for its instant shock value and the perfect coming attraction for the future of Rock and Roll. No one's caught up to it yet. It's still ahead of its time)

Pink Skull - Endless Bummer (They released it just in time to make this list! I can listen to it on repeat for days, weeks, etc.. it's on right now)

Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul (The fans didn't know this would be their "Abbey Road", but it's an appropriate farewell from the most entertaining band of the decade. Plus, they mixed Kraut Rock with The Beatles, My Bloody Valentine with The Stooges, it encapsulates all of their influences. RIP Oasis)

PJ Harvey - Uh Huh Her (I think this is the best PJ Harvey record of the 2000's. It was recorded at her home on a 4 track cassette recorder, then she added instruments later in million dollar studios. Nothing sounds like it.)

Portishead - Third (Comeback albums usually suck. This one sure as hell didn't!)

RZA - Birth of a Prince (All of RZA's stuff of the decade have their moments, but I got to see him DJ this one live, and the energy in the room elevated to an unexplainable level.. check out "The Grunge")

Silkworm - Lifestyle (THE most underrated Silkworm album, possibly better than Firewater and most of their 90's material. Cool version of The Faces- "Ooh Lah Lah")

Amorphous Androgynous - A Monstrous Psychedelic Bubble Vol. 1 (Greatest Re-mix album EVER.)

Pearl Jam - Binaural (The last flawless Pearl Jam record. It's the darkest one, the most experimental, with Progressive Rock elements mixed with Neil Young's cryptic, melodic wisdom. "Binaural" marks the end of their ten year Grunge residency. They became a band with many filler songs on their subsequent albums- e.g. The Rolling Stones)

Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped (It's the most focused of this decade's SY records. I had to pick one, and "Ripped" stands out apart from the rest. It's also the most normal of all their records, which is a remarkable achievement for a band that intentionally avoided 'normal' Rock and Roll songs for an entire career)

Jay Z - Blueprint 3 (I had to add it, 'cause it's so God damn famous for a reason! Every song's a single, and the beats are out of this world. Sometimes, when a record's so popular, it's clearly because of its undeniable brilliance (and its funky as hell!))

Coldplay - Viva La Vida (The band you love to hate, right? This one had an impact on me. I don't think I listened to a Top 40 album as much, since Michael Jackson's "Thriller". I loved them when they came out with "Parachutes", had no idea they'd be able to dig their way out of the biggest band-backlash of the decade. They did, with a little help from Brian Eno. I don't think they'll ever top this record, we'll see...)

Mark Lanegan - Field Songs (Whiskey-induced pure Soul Music from the guy I saw puking on Capitol Hill in Seattle around the time of its release. I always think of this album when I'm down and it always comforts me, since he's always depressed to shit)

Smashing Pumpkins - Zeitgeist (Amped up and energized, with the exact same production sound they got on "Siamese Dream". The guitars are detuned to C and the drumming is totally ridiculous, so much that Jimmy Chamberlain had to quit the band again)

Radiohead - Kid A (I don't really give a shit about "OK Computer", and I hated their 1st and 2nd albums. "Kid A" won me over, 'cause it was fresh, and sort of killed the sound of the 90's at the time. Whenever an overrated, pretentious Rock band like Radiohead creates something I love, it's gotta be astonishing)

Fugazi - The Argument (They had gotten into Beatles melodies on "Red Medicine", and maybe they started smoking pot, but the records since then were less Emo-core, and more experimental Pop music with Punk/Funk ingredients. Obviously, they had gotten comfortable with the fact that they were extraordinary musicians beyond their Punk roots reputation)

Blur - Think Tank (Any Blur fan that avoids this one because Graham Coxon's barely on it, is just ignorant. Of all the Blur records, this is possibly the best, and completely unexpected from Damon Albarn. Who knew he could do it on his own? I believe this record's as revolutionary as "Kid A", but the band's appeal didn't work. Albarn put out ten other records at the same time. His other project- Gorillaz, stole the spotlight)

Elliott Smith - Figure 8/From a Basement on a Hill ("Figure 8" and "From a Basement on a Hill" are essential Elliott Smith records from 2000-2004. "Basement" is crazy awesome, a what-could-have-been collection)

Scott Weiland - Happy in Galoshes (Rock and Roll chameleon collaborates with Steve Albini and the Indie world frowns. But this is one of the coolest records Albini has worked on. Weiland goes into Scott Walker territory, exploring British Glam-Pop with diary entries of a bi-polar fashion bulimic)

Spiritualized - Let it Come Down (Though their best music was released in the 90's, "Let it Come Down" put a cap on their Pink Floyd-ish sound, before they entered their Garage-Rock/Gospel phase. Now their records tend to sound the same, but this was the last one to really blow my mind)

Clearlake - Cedars (This band is far out!! Their biggest influence is obviously The Smiths, but The Smiths are dated. That's not a bad thing, but The Smiths will always fit into the 80's sound. Clearlake comes from a similar approach songwriting-wise, with all the evolutions and movements in Rock since "Strangeways, Here We Come". If I had to bet money on a band blowing up bigger than the Strokes, I'd put it on these guys. Too bad I would lose that bet... I guess the majority wanted a new Iggy Pop over a new Morrissey. oh well, Morrissey's still kickin ass)