Showing posts with label Jimmy Eat World. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jimmy Eat World. Show all posts
Some fans wondered if the lack of shows in the Grand Canyon state was a immigration related boycott, but Jimmy Eat World denied that.
"FYI, there WILL BE an AZ date. Details to come. We are not boycotting AZ!!" the band posted on their Twitter account. Hopefully that means they'll make a stop in Utah as well.
"Band practice. Rehearsing new songs. Can't wait to play these songs live," tweeted the band earlier today. Tour dates are to be announced shortly.
"Clocks"Coldplay
A Rush of Blood To The Head (2002)
In early 2008 Coldplay was voted The Band Most Likely to Put You to Sleep in the United Kingdom, seemingly a slap in the face. Although they’ve learned to “rock out” a little more than they used to, Coldplay has always had a knack for atmospheric dreamy music, and it’s not a bad thing.
"Clocks" is lighter than air. The gently tumbling piano is beautiful and its the kind of melody that's an instant classic. Our children and our children's children will recognize it their entire lives, even before they're old enough to know who Coldplay is. Despite the simplicity of the track, it feels larger than life. Chris Martin takes lyrics about clocks, tigers, and shooting apples of your head, and sells them more than he's ever sold a song before or since. "Am I apart of the cure or am I part of the disease?" Don't worry Coldplay, you're part of the cure.
"Banquet"Bloc Party
Silent Alarm (2005)
With syncopated guitars, unyielding drums, and Kele Okereke’s desperate and cathartic vocals “Banquet” is like a kick to the face. The snappy single is like a template for the band’s later hits, exploring themes of alienation, paranoia, and coming of age while mixing post punk with indie and dance rock. The song broke the band internationally and continues to be a must use track for MTV montages and extreme sports video games.
"Banquet" hits you like a machine gun with its lyrics about our disheartened generation and feelings of being underratted and suffocated. "I'm on fire so stomp me out," Okereke sings. The only deliverance comes from Bloc Party’s crisp and energetic performance. A perfect stick-it-to-the-man anthem and the best indie rock the decade had to offer.
"Run"Snow Patrol
Final Straw (2003)
In America at least, Snow Patrol will always be known for “Chasing Cars” thanks to its placement in the popular television show Grey’s Anatomy. For all the beauty and lovey-dovey feelings that song evokes, “Run” does it even better. Starting out as dark and moody rock and haunted by the protagonist’s love interest being “the only thing that’s right in all I’ve done”, the song is lifted by a sense of hope by the time the chorus comes around.
“Run” reaches hymn-like status as the strings kick in and singer Gary Lightbody proclaims “Light up, light up, as if you have a choice” and all of a sudden, running away from all this mess to a better place sounds like the answer to all of life’s problems. Leona Lewis covered the song in 2008, a version which Lightbody himself described as “phenomenal”.
"Since U Been Gone"Kelly Clarkson
Breakaway (2004)
Reality show pop stars have gained a notorious reputation for putting out crap, and in all honesty, they deserve that reputation. Inaugural idol Kelly Clarkson however, is one of the few exceptions. “Since U Been Gone” is perfect pop. Its as if it were crafted in a laboratory in Sweden bent on total domination of the world’s radio waves (which it was). Luckily, Clarkson decided the pop ditty needed a little edge and insisted on rocking out as much as Clive Davis would let her.
Released during a time when hip-hop ruled the charts, the song only managed to go No. 2, but it is arguably the most ubiquitous No. 2 hit of all-time. Destined for heavy rotation at karaoke bars for generations to come, "Since U Gone" struck a chord with listeners. It wasn't just a bitter break up song, it was empowering. She wasn't going to mourn the loss of her lover, she was going to move on, and be better than ever. If this was the only good thing to come out of American Idol, it was all worth it.
"Somebody Told Me"The Killers
Hot Fuss (2004)
It’s no surprise that “Somebody Told Me” would end up in the upper echelons of this list, after all, this blog gets its name from it (“17 tracks and I’ve had it with this game”). Blog names aside, this song stands on its own merits as one of the decade’s best tracks. It oozes Las Vegas glam more than any other song the band has done thanks to the dirty buzz of the synth lines that share space with good old fashioned rock and roll guitar and drums.
The lyrics hint at either bisexuality, sex changes, androgyny, or all three (“Somebody told me that you had a boyfriend that looked like a girlfriend that I had in February of last year”) and the sexual energy in Brandon Flower’s voice is palpable. Released as the Killer’s debut single, it failed to initially get any traction but took off as soon as the British music press got ahold of it.
"Toxic"Britney Spears
In The Zone (2003)
Mid-decade Britney Spears was a pop star in transition. She had shed every vestige of her former Mickey Mouse Club wholesomeness and traded her Max Martin produced teen pop in for cutting edge electronica. Her evolution might have been necessary but, it hurt her sales and popularity. Not even a symbolic passing of the baton in the form of a televised kiss with her icon Madonna seemed to be enough to get Spears back on top. She needed nothing less than one of the most inventive pop songs of the modern age.
“Toxic” sounded like the theme song to an anime James Bond movie from space. The bollywood strings were so good it was hard to believe they weren’t sampled, and alongside the surf guitar, synthesizers, and the stop and go beat, it was clear that producers Bloodshy and Avant had struck gold. The video featuring Spears wearing nothing but diamonds was a natural choice, and her tantalizing delivery brought us so high that we couldn’t come down.
"Disintigration"Jimmy Eat World
Stay On My Side Tonight (2005)
Jimmy Eat World did not peak in 2001. Their crowning achievement is this seven minute and forty four second epic released on their Stay On My Side Tonight EP in 2005. The percussion alone is capable of sending chills down the spine of a grown man as Jim Adkins asks, “I wonder why I’m so caught off guard when we kiss/I’d rather live my life in regret than do this.” Adkins portrays the emotions of grappling with a love once so real and sweet being lost and destroyed. The sleepless nights, the endless fights, the back and forth debating that goes on in the mind of someone trying to decide if all is lost or there is still hope is all captured in the song.
In the end, the band that spends most albums convincing listeners that everything is going to be alright comes to the conclusion that everything is not alright. The love that two people once knew can be destroyed beyond repair. “Hanging on a cigarette, you need me, you burn me” Adkins points out. The song reaches its crescendo as the refrain “lie, lie better next time, stay on my side tonight” is chanted amid building and dizzying guitar and drums before fading out and leaving the listener hopeless.
"Lose Yourself"Eminem
8 Mile (2002)
“Lose Yourself” justifies Eminem’s entire existence. You’d be hard pressed to find a song that can psyche you up as much as this one does. Eminem gives the best rap performance of his career over a building rock beat asking, “If you had one shot, or one opportunity to seize everything you ever wanted in one moment, would you capture it or let it slip?” His description of the protagonist who dreams of fame only to get booed off stage and return to his trailer park is so graphic and vivid that there was no need for a movie to tell the story.
The song’s strength comes from it’s overarching theme of overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Sure, it’s about a rapper, but the intensity and energy in Eminem's go-for-broke performance translate to any situation where you are the defeated underdog who refuses to be beaten again. Eminem never sounded as raw and believable as his did in "Lose Yourself".
"Umbrella"Rihanna
Good Girl Gone Bad (2007)
The first time you heard it you thought it was weird. The second time you heard it, you thought it might be kind of catchy. By the third time, you loved it. “Umbrella” isn’t so much weird as it is brilliant and ahead of its time. Built, around a slick drum and high-hat loop, Rihanna sings about umbrellas as a metaphor for friendship, the kind that you “take and oath and stick it out to the end”, a topic not routinely covered in pop music. Its not about lust, and not even necessarily about romance, its about offering shelter from the storms of life, a modern day “Stand By Me”.
Originally offered to Britney Spears, and Mary J. Blige, it’s hard to imagine either doing a better job than the Barbados-born pop star. Her vocal delivery, while not technically superior to her peers, is unique and unmistakable as she glides along to the mother of all hooks, “ella ella ella eh eh eh”. Her Alanis-like pronunciation of the word umbrella gives it more syllables than previously thought possible.
"Hey Ya"OutKast
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003)
Once every decade, a song comes around that defies genre placement. It transcends gender, age, and racial barriers to receive critical acclaim, commercial success, and be crowned an instant classic. “Hey Ya!” is such a song and it couldn’t have gotten there in a more non-traditional way. A pop song performed by one half of a hip-hop duo combining two of the most commonly used words in the English language that name checks Beyonce and Lucy Liu. It seemed like every lyric became a catch phrase (“What’s cooler than being cool? Ice cold! Shake it like a Polaroid picture!”). To this day, whenever “Hey Ya!” comes on, everyone, and I mean everyone from George W. Bush to Barack Obama, from Mick Jagger to your grandma, everyone within hearing distance will begin to tap their feet and I don’t think we’ll ever get sick of it. It’s that good.
It’s secret was sounding like everything in the history of rock and roll while sounding like nothing you’ve ever heard before. It’s an electrifying funk-dipped, pop-drenched, soul-infested three minutes and fifty-five seconds that sounds like a mash-up of the Beatles, Prince, and the Supremes from the future. The smooth acoustic guitar glides alongside the funky synth before crashing into handclaps and Andre 3000’s back up singing and one of the most poignant questions of the decade: “If what they say is “nothing is forever”, then what makes love the exception?”
"Poker Face"The Fame (2008)
"Who'd have thought the greatest popstar of the noughties would appear in the decade's final 18 months?" wrote Popjustice. It is pretty phenomenal. After ten years of America being fed pop puppets, Lady Gaga emerged as a true pop artist. She wrote her own songs. She sang. She played instruments. She had a vision of her art and her image. She became famous through hard work and playing at dingy clubs in New York, not the Mickey Mouse club. Of the amazing impact she's had in such a short time, "Poker Face" is her supreme single.
"Who'd have thought the greatest popstar of the noughties would appear in the decade's final 18 months?" wrote Popjustice. It is pretty phenomenal. After ten years of America being fed pop puppets, Lady Gaga emerged as a true pop artist. She wrote her own songs. She sang. She played instruments. She had a vision of her art and her image. She became famous through hard work and playing at dingy clubs in New York, not the Mickey Mouse club. Of the amazing impact she's had in such a short time, "Poker Face" is her supreme single.
"I Will Follow You Into The Dark"Death Cab for Cutie
Plans (2005)
Nominated for Best Performance by a Duo or Group at the 2007 Grammys, Death Cab's "I Will Follow You Into The Dark" was beat out by the Black Eyed Peas' "My Humps". No, I'm serious. Obviously, the Grammys aren't always the measuring stick for music's cultural value as they would have us believe, because this song's beauty and simplicity beats out the Peas' brash schoolyard ditty any day. In what amounts to a Ben Gibbard solo track, the Death Cab front man ponders love, life, and death.
"Rehab"Amy Winehouse
Back To Black (2006)
In the decade's best neo-soul song, Amy Winehouse managed to reference Motown without ripping it off. Winehouse's brassy rebellious "Rehab" is also the decade's best example of art imitating life, as the singer soon became more famous for her addictions and wild behavior than her music. Her frank lyrics and Etta James style crooning won Winehouse a slew of awards and kickstarted the modern retro revival.
"The Middle"Jimmy Eat World
Bleed American (2001)
Jimmy Eat World has always had a knack for taking lyrics that others would sound corny singing, and pulling it off. "The Middle" is filled with motivational lines like, "don't write yourself off yet," and "everything will be alright," that Jim Adkins flat out sells. It's little wonder J.E.W. can make music like this though, after all, they were dropped by their record label and recorded their airtight power-pop smash of an album, Bleed American, on their own dime and had labels begging to sign them. Don't write yourself off yet is right.
"Somewhere Only We Know"Keane
Hopes and Fears (2004)
There's something about Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know" that reminds me of a Disney movie. It's an epic power ballad that would fit perfectly in the scene right before the climax where the prince and princess declare their love for each other, and reprised as the credits begin rolling. The insistent fluttering piano and Tom Chaplin's promise that there is a paradise somewhere out there is pure magic.
"Like I Love You"Justin Timberlake
Justified (2002)
"Sometimes people just destined, destined to do what they do," Justin Timberlake muses at the end of his debut solo single, "Like I Love You". Becoming the next Michael Jackson wasn't exactly a sure thing though. Timberlake had a massive task in front of him, having to shed his boy band image and rebrand himself as the new king of pop. With the help of Pharrell, this funky R&B song was crafted, and the rest is history.
"A Thousand Miles"Vanessa Carlton
"This must be the white song that all black people like, you know every year there's a song that black people like and this is that," said Kanye West about Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles" on his iTunes celebrity playlist. Kanye, don't kid yourself, this is a song everyone likes. The track managed to retain its beauty even with made-for-radio percussion and guitar slapped on, making it perfect for both pop and adult contemporary radio.
"Chicago"Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Steven's "Chicago" is a life affirming celebration of a song. It begins soft and understated before blossoming into a kaleidoscope of sound. Rich strings, sleigh bells, xylophones, trumpets, and a choir weave in and out to set the backdrop the Steven's tale of driving to Chicago and New York in a van. He repeats the phrase "I've made a lot of mistakes," but its drowned out by the choir triumphantly singing the spiritual line, "You came to take us, all things go to recreate us."
"B.O.B."
OutKast
Stankonia (2001)
When OutKast released "B.O.B." in 2000, there were no bombs over Baghdad. By decade's end, Iraq's capital has seen more than enough bombs. "B.O.B." was like a crystal ball, foreshadowing not only a global war on terror (and a "White House painted black" according to Pitchfork , in reference to the cover of Stankonia featuring a black and white American flag), but the disorienting collision popular music would face in the coming ten years.
"Last Nite"The Strokes
Is This It (2001)
"Say It Right"Nelly Furtado
"Be Mine"Robyn
"Everything Is Everything"
Phoenix
"B.O.B."OutKast
Stankonia (2001)
When OutKast released "B.O.B." in 2000, there were no bombs over Baghdad. By decade's end, Iraq's capital has seen more than enough bombs. "B.O.B." was like a crystal ball, foreshadowing not only a global war on terror (and a "White House painted black" according to Pitchfork , in reference to the cover of Stankonia featuring a black and white American flag), but the disorienting collision popular music would face in the coming ten years.
"Last Nite"Is This It (2001)
By the end of the 1990s, the term "alternative" had been hijacked, appropriated, and warped beyond all recognition. A decade later, the term "indie" found itself in a similar position. Still, there are a few songs that stand for what those words mean. For alternative, its "Wonderwall" or "Save Tonight". For indie, "Last Nite" by the Strokes takes the crown. Bursting into the scene in 2001 with incredible amounts of goodwill from the rock press, the Strokes deserved every bit of it.
"Say It Right"Loose (2006)
Nelly Furtado emerged as an innovative earthy folk pop singer in 2000, but after interest faded with her second album, she turned to Timbaland to re energize her career. Her album Loose was a smash hit, but its 80s inspired electro-pop veered away from her organic sound. "Say It Right" was the one exception. Emerging from a jungle soundscape, the song employed Timbaland's trademark yelps and percussion as Furtado tried to convince herself that, "you don't mean nothing at all to me".
Nelly Furtado emerged as an innovative earthy folk pop singer in 2000, but after interest faded with her second album, she turned to Timbaland to re energize her career. Her album Loose was a smash hit, but its 80s inspired electro-pop veered away from her organic sound. "Say It Right" was the one exception. Emerging from a jungle soundscape, the song employed Timbaland's trademark yelps and percussion as Furtado tried to convince herself that, "you don't mean nothing at all to me".
"Be Mine"Robyn (2005)
Dance-pop doesn't get more emotional than "Be Mine" by Swedish singer Robyn. Her anguished lyrics are suffocated by frantic orchestral arrangements and racing beats, creating a desperate soundscape. If her declaration that, "you never were and you never will be mine," doesn't get you, the bridge detailing her man having his arm around, and get this, tying the laces of "whatshername", will. Robyn's stripped down performance of the track at the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize show will bring a grown man to tears.
Dance-pop doesn't get more emotional than "Be Mine" by Swedish singer Robyn. Her anguished lyrics are suffocated by frantic orchestral arrangements and racing beats, creating a desperate soundscape. If her declaration that, "you never were and you never will be mine," doesn't get you, the bridge detailing her man having his arm around, and get this, tying the laces of "whatshername", will. Robyn's stripped down performance of the track at the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize show will bring a grown man to tears.
"Everything Is Everything"Alphabetical (2004)
Using rapidly chiming triangle better than anyone else has all decade, Phoenix crafted a catchy ditty that harkens to the soft-pop of the late 1980s with "Everything Is Everything". "Things are gonna change, and not for better," sings Thomas Mars. The lyrics are all that ambiguous, which only adds to the track's carefree atmosphere. The guitar, reveling in staccato neo-disco, is ever present, but at times understated.
Using rapidly chiming triangle better than anyone else has all decade, Phoenix crafted a catchy ditty that harkens to the soft-pop of the late 1980s with "Everything Is Everything". "Things are gonna change, and not for better," sings Thomas Mars. The lyrics are all that ambiguous, which only adds to the track's carefree atmosphere. The guitar, reveling in staccato neo-disco, is ever present, but at times understated.
"When You Were Young"Sam's Town (2006)
Brandon Flowers boldly declared that his band's sophomore album Sam's Town would be "one of the best albums in the past twenty years". Whether the Killers did it, or even if they managed to top the ridiculously good Hot Fuss is questionable, but "When You Were Young" is without a doubt one of the best songs in the past twenty years. Channeling Bruce Springsteen, the band wrote the great American rock song complete with Jesus, highways, and riding on the backs of hurricanes.
Brandon Flowers boldly declared that his band's sophomore album Sam's Town would be "one of the best albums in the past twenty years". Whether the Killers did it, or even if they managed to top the ridiculously good Hot Fuss is questionable, but "When You Were Young" is without a doubt one of the best songs in the past twenty years. Channeling Bruce Springsteen, the band wrote the great American rock song complete with Jesus, highways, and riding on the backs of hurricanes.
"Sex On Fire"Only By The Night (2008)
"Fire" is a word bands love to throw around. It evoke edginess, unpredictability, and a general feeling of hardcore-ness, but if everyone else is doing it, how do you use it and stand out? Kings of Leon threw in "Sex". Can you get any edgier than that? "Sex on Fire" isn't actually about sex though, don't worry, it was just a filler word the Followills used until they decided it would make a good song title. The track is a stirring rock anthem made for the arenas.
"Fire" is a word bands love to throw around. It evoke edginess, unpredictability, and a general feeling of hardcore-ness, but if everyone else is doing it, how do you use it and stand out? Kings of Leon threw in "Sex". Can you get any edgier than that? "Sex on Fire" isn't actually about sex though, don't worry, it was just a filler word the Followills used until they decided it would make a good song title. The track is a stirring rock anthem made for the arenas.
The album was a diluted art form by the turn of the century. Greedy record executives reasoned that if a hit song was big enough, they could slap it onto an album with 11 other tracks of filler and people would pay $14 to buy it instead of just selling a physical single. That's how Vanilla Ice, Chumbawamba, and Natalie Imbruglia sold so much. That model worked fine in the booming economy of the 1990s, but it wasn't feasible.Another nail in the album's coffin came in the form of Napster, which by 2000 was only a few months old. As the site grew larger, illegal downloading began to chip away at album sales, foreshadowing the eventual havoc it would wreck on the industry. When the iPod debuted just over a year and a half later, the single was resurrected as consumers could spend 99 cents to get a solitary song instead of buying an entire album.
As the decade drew to a close, one of the album's leading supporters, Radiohead's Thom Yorke announced that his band was done making albums. Recording a full length had become a "drag," and in this digital world, instantly available singles and EPs were the way to go. Another popular although less critically acclaimed group, the Black Eyed Peas, made similar comments, saying that the album was dying, that in its place would be a living breathing musical creation that would live online.
Even 17 Tracks is feeding this notion as our best albums of the decade list is only 25 creative works while our singles list is a sprawling seven-day-100-entry affair. Still, its easier to latch onto three minutes and 30 seconds of music rather than a 45 to an hour long piece of work. So many of todays albums are nothing more than a collection of songs anyway, strung together with no thought of making something that is lasting and can be called art.
What this list represents is 25 albums that are art. They aren't just a few radio hits slapped onto a disc filled with filler, they are a collection of songs that collectively mean something. They are proof that the album is not dead. You can hop onto iTunes and download the 'must download tracks' that are listed below each album description, but if that's all you listen to, you're doing yourself a disservice. Consider those songs something to whet your appetite, these albums were meant to be listened to in their entirety.
25. American Life (2003)
Madonna
[Maverick/Warner Bros.]
Nowhere near as successful as Green Day's similarly themed album, Madonna tore apart Bush-era America in her forray into folk pop.
Must download tracks: "American Life", "Hollywood", and "Easy Ride"
24. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)
Arctic Monkeys
[Domino]
The Arctic Monkeys faced intense pressure as the hyperbolic British rock press labeled them the next big thing. They delivered with the fastest selling debut album in UK history.
Must download tracks: "I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor", "Dancing Shoes", and "When The Sun Goes Down"
23. Futuresex/Lovesounds (2006)
Justin Timberlake
[Jive/Zomba]
Justin Timberlake's sophomore solo effort teamed him up with Timbaland for what would become the producer's creative and cultural peak. The Tims blew our minds with ridiculously good pop.
Must download tracks "My Love", "SexyBack", and "What Goes Around...Comes Around"
22. Plans (2005)
Death Cab for Cutie
[Atlantic]
For Death Cab's major label debut, Ben Gibbard and company created a sprawling soundscape that spanned "the length of the isle of Manhattan" and reflected on the meaning of love, life, and death.
Must download tracks: "Marching Bands of Manhattan", "Soul Meets Body", and "I Will Follow You Into The Dark",
21. The Emancipation of Mimi (2005)
Mariah Carey
[Island]
Mariah's mid-decade comeback album showcased the voice just as strong as ever, but more reserved. It remains Carey's classiest album to date.
Must download tracks: "We Belong Together", "Shake It Off", and "One and Only"
20. 808s & Heartbreak (2008)
Kanye West
[Roc-A-Fella/Island Def Jam]
Kanye ditched his four year college theme plan and rapping when his mother died and his fiance broke it off all in the same year. His emo-pop art masterpiece became his most divisive release.
Must download tracks: "Welcome to Heartbreak", "Heartless", and "Love Lockdown"
19. Breakaway(2005)
Kelly Clarkson
[RCA]
Kelly Clarkson let the real her show in her sophomore album, rocking out to some of the best pop rock tunes this decade has heard. Still the best release by an American Idol alum.
Must download tracks: "Breakaway", "Since U Been Gone", and "Behind These Hazel Eyes"
18. Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)
Coldplay
[Capitol/Parlophone]
Coldplay became the world's biggest band, but they needed an album to justify that to themselves and everyone else. Ditching a formula that had already sold millions of albums, they teamed up with Brian Eno and ruled the world.
Must download tracks: "Violet Hill", "Viva La Vida", and "Lost!"
17. Sam's Town (2006)
The Killers
[Island]
Brandon Flowers boasted that Sam's Town would be one of the best albums in 25 years. It's actually the 17th best of the decade. Toning down the synth-glam, the Killers made a the great American rock album.
Must download tracks: "When You Were Young", "For Reasons Unknown", and "This River Is Wild"
16. Back To Black (2006)
Amy Winehouse
[Island/Universal Republic]
Amy Winehouse captivated the world with her bizarre behavior and catchy neo-retro sound. Filled with drug and alcohol references, her album mirrored her tabloid life, which didn't stop her from winning a slew of awards.
Must download tracks: "Rehab", "Tears Dry On Their Own", and "Love Is A Losing Game"
15. Transatlanticism (2003)
Death Cab for Cutie
[Barsuk Records]
Death Cab's breakthrough album took snapshots of life, a New Year's party, rummaging through a glove compartment, making out in the back of a car, and it found the drama, beauty, and pain that exists in those moments in time. Ben Gibbard's lyrics are pure poetry.
Must download tracks: "The New Year", "Title and Registration", and "The Sound of Settling"
14. Intimacy (2008)
Bloc Party
[Wichita]
Bloc Party is the sort of band that assaults your ears with raw visceral guitar and rapid-fire percussion. Not exactly intimate. They managed to craft a deep and emotional record however, one with songs that perfectly describe the rage, anger, and sadness in losing love.
Must download tracks: "Mercury", "Halo", and "Signs"
13. Blackout (2007)
Britney Spears
[Jive]
Britney Spears is shockingly absent on her greatest album. Her voice is shredded through vocodors to become another instrument in her producer's arsenal, but its haunting, danceable, and dark vibe is a frighteningly accurate soundtrack to her self destruction.
Must download tracks: "Gimme More", "Piece of Me", and "Break the Ice"
12. The Blueprint (2001)
Jay-Z
[Roc-A-Fella/Island Def Jam]
Jay-Z wowed the world with his soul sampling The Blueprint, an album that became the blueprint for hip-hop in the 2000s. Without it, Kanye West would never had made it big (he produced several songs), sampling wouldn't have become the default option in rap, and the "-izzle" phenomenon would have never happened.
Must download tracks: "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)", "Girls, Girls, Girls", and "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)"
11. A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)
Coldplay
[Capitol/Parlophone]
Coldplay's second album cemented their status as one of the biggest bands of the decade. More rocked out than their debut, they still managed to produce some beautiful, lighter than air tracks that resonated with the hopeless romantic in all of us.
Must download tracks: "The Scientist", "Clocks", and "Green Eyes"
10. Give Up(2003)
The Postal Service
[Sub Pop]
When Death Cab's Ben Gibbard and electronic artist Jimmy Tamborello teamed up, the results were breathe-taking. Their one time Postal Service gig was an indie laptop daydream, and the biggest selling album for the Sub Pop label since Nirvana.
Must download tracks: "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight", "Such Great Heights", and "Brand New Colony"
9. Richard X Presents His X Factor Vol. 1 (2003)
Richard X
[EMI/Astralworks]
If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That was the attitude EMI took after bootleg mash-up artist Richard X was caught illegally distributing mash-ups. This authorized compilation of mash-ups rerecorded by a slew of Europe's biggest pop acts made for the decade's best pop album.
Must download tracks: "Being Nobody", "Finest Dreams", and "Freak Like Me"
8. Kid A (2000)
Radiohead
[Parlophone/Capitol]
Radiohead welcomed the new century with a disc that oozed millennial fears and paranoia. An alternative rock band using electronica was something new and unheard of, but it won over critics and fans alike.
Must download tracks: "Everything In Its Right Place", "The National Anthem", and "Idioteque"
7. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003)
OutKast
[LeFace/Arista]
This wasn't an OutKast album, it was two solo records stitched together, sort of a reverse White Album. The Speakerboxxx side is classic old school hip-hop, a fitting successor to OutKast's body of work at the time. The Love Below was a psychedelic freak-out that drew its influences from the entire history of pop, rock, and rap.
Must download tracks: "Hey Ya!", " Happy Valentine's Day", and "Love In War"
6. Is This It (2001)
The Strokes
[RCA]
There was a lot of pressure on the Strokes when their debut album came out, so much so that they ironically named their album Is This It. Fortunatley, it was it. The group deserved all the accolades the rock press threw on them and they kickstarted the garage rock revival with this energetic debut.
Must download tracks: "Last Nite", "Someday", and "Hard To Explain"
.
5. Interventions and Lullabies (2003)
The Format
[Elektra]
.
The Format
[Elektra]
.
The Format's 60's inspired guitar pop is the kind of music that you hear for the first time but you swear you've heard it before. Its so catchy and so familiar, yet so original. Exploring themes of youth, coming of age, and both finding and falling out of love to roll-your-windows-down rock is a beautiful combination.
Must download tracks: "The First Single", "Tie The Rope", and "On Your Porch"
4. Silent Alarm (2005)
Bloc Party
[Wichita]
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Don't let the title fool you, there is nothing silent about Silent Alarm. But alarm? Yes. As the premier band in the post-punk genre, Bloc Party introduced themselves with a dance rock debut featuring hard hitting rhythmic friction and pointed lyrics that moves at breakneck speeds. It's an album about growing up in the modern, cold, uncaring world, something every teenager and twenty-something can relate to.
Must download tracks: "Banquet", "Helicopter", and "Like Eating Glass"
3. Bleed American (2001)
Jimmy Eat World
[Dreamworks]
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Jimmy Eat World was dropped from their record label following their criminally underappreciated Clarity, but the band refused to let that get them down. They went on a grueling touring schedule and recorded their next album on their own dime. The airtight Bleed American was a perfect pop rock album, so perfect in fact, that labels were tripping over themselves to sign the band. Retitled Jimmy Eat World after September 11, this album is a prototype that both J.E.W. and other bands have unsuccessfully tried to replicate.
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Must download tracks: "Sweetness", "The Middle", and "Hear You Me"
2. Hot Fuss (2004)
The Killers
[Island]
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2. Hot Fuss (2004)
The Killers
[Island]
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The Killers were an American rock band who tried to sound British but were raised amind the glam and glitter of Las Vegas. The result was one of the most exciting debuts, not only of the decade, but in the entire history of rock and roll. They fit it all into Hot Fuss. There is sex, mystery, love, pain, synth, and a gospel choir. It couldn't have been pulled off without the knowledge and ambition of front man Brandon Flowers. Flowers understands rock and roll. He understands where it's come from and what it means. He has ambition rivaled by few in the music industry. It's evident in Hot Fuss, an album that so desparatley wants to be numbered among the greats, and pulls it off without sounding like it tried too hard.
Must download tracks: "Mr. Brightside", "Somebody Told Me", and "All These Things I've Done"
1. The College Dropout (2004)
Kanye West
[Roc-A-Fella/Island Def Jam]
Kanye West's debut is a concept album about what it meant to be an African-American in turn of the century America, a successor to The Miseducation of Lauren Hill. Ye touched on drugs, religion, family, and working out so you could get yourself an NBA player and quit your day job at the mall. West appeared in the liner notes wearing a striped rugby shirt with the collar popped, not a basketball jersey and backwards hat. He refused to conform to the stereotypes of who a rapper is supposed to be. In doing that, he opened up the genre to a whole new audience. Capitalizing on what OutKast had already done for rap, Ye took it a step further, and soon, indie kids and rock snobs were certified Kanye West fans. West has proven himself to be one of the decade's most important and influencial artists, and one of the most important rappers of all time, but he has yet to come close to the grandeur of his debut album.
Must download tracks: "Jesus Walks", "New Workout Plan", and "Never Let Me Down"
td:ar albums number 25-1
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