20) “Tha Carter III”- Lil Wayne (2008)Weezy F Baby…and don’t forget the baby! Let me just say this, before “Tha Carter III” came out, I would listen to and enjoy Lil Wayne, but he was never really an artist I would take seriously…kind of like ludacris or other rappers of that ilk. However, after this album, myself and the rest of the world had to take notice that this wasn’t just your run of the mill rapper, but a talented and creative songwriter and musician. In my mind there are many rappers, who claim to represent one thing, such as being from the streets, the inner-city, or whatever. Lil Wayne, simply transcends all of that. He simply represents the anarchy and free-flowing nature of hip-hop in its most elemental form, not unlike Heath Ledger’s Joker in the “Dark Knight.” He keeps you guessing at every turn, almost as if he’s asking the listener, “you want to know where I got these tattoos on my face?” only to come up with a different story every time.
19) “Good News for People Who Like Bad News” - Modest Mouse (2004)“Good News…” makes this list not only because it’s a terrific collection of catchy songs (who can forget “Float on”?) but because this was the album by which the indie rock movement really became mainstream. It used to be that you could easily define indie rock as any band that played alternative music, and released its music on independent labels. You can’t really say that nowadays, because those bands have all gone mainstream, and it’s to the point that you can’t really define what indie rock is. It’s become sort of a catch-all term, much like the term alternative rock in the 1990s, after the Seattle grunge rock scene took over mainstream music. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that the indie rock take-over was led by another Seattle based band, Modest Mouse, who had played on an independent label for 10 years before breaking through with their 2004 mega-hit, this time on the Sony label. The album was widely hailed as the best album of 2004, and it’s tough to argue with that statement. The overriding theme of this album seems to be death, but it’s ok because lead singer Isaac Brock's quirky voice and the old-fashioned bass and guitar makes the topic seem less oppressive.
18)“Hail to the Thief”- Radiohead (2003) Alright, time to test your brains with an obscure analogy that you probably wouldn’t find on the SATs. Here it is: Cris Carter is to touchdowns, as Radiohead is to __________. Stumped? The correct answer is perfect albums, because that’s all they do (and if you don’t remember Cris Carter, shame on you, that guy was a touchdown scoring machine with Warren Moon and Randall Cunningham throwing to him).
Anyways, I’ll spoil some of the intrigue and tell you that Radiohead made 4 amazing albums this decade. I decided to put 3 of them in my top 25 (the fourth, which was 2001’s “Amnesiac” deserves mention, and would probably make my top 30 if I made such a list). “Hail to the Thief” makes this list because primarily because it’s one of Radiohead’s most unique albums. Throughout the album there’s this eerie sense of dread, as if something sinister is waiting around the corner. You can hear it clearly in songs like “2+2=5”, “Go to Sleep”, and “Wolf at the Door.” Whether Thom Yorke was trying to comment on political turmoil going on in the world (could the title of the album be a swipe at George Bush?), or commenting on more personal problems in his life, I don’t really care. The point is, true to Radiohead form, the album captures this sense of dread with a vividness and expansiveness that’s unrivaled by any other musicians out there. “Hail to the Thief” is an album that haunts you, and it keeps you coming back for more, and each time that you do, you find something new, just because the music is so densely layered (I’ll come back to that point when I discuss the next two Radiohead albums on my list later on).
17) “Cross” - Justice (2007)
If you want to hear the pinnacle of electronic music from the past decade, I’ll point you in the direction of the French duo “Justice”, and not their fellow countrymen, Daft Punk. This is saying a lot, because I love and respect Daft Punk, but in terms of albums, Justice’s debut, “Cross” blows away any album Daft Punk has ever put forward. Sure, none of their songs have become immortalized by being sampled in a Kanye West song, but make no mistake, these guys put together an amazing collection of pulse-pounding dance beats. With biblical sounding song titles like “Genesis” and “Waters of Nazareth” intermixed with songs like “D.A.N.C.E.” and “THHHEEE PPAARRTTYY”, the album is the sound of a strange and mesmerizing mix of the fury of a fire and brimstone sunday sermon and the exhilaration of the friday night dance-floor.
16) “Bright Like Neon Love”- Cut Copy (2004)“Time stands still when I think of you…” is how this unforgettable album kicks off. From that point on it’s an entrancing and atmospheric journey back through 1980s electro-pop, courtesy of this Australian band. Even though the album was released back in 2004, I didn’t really discover the group until about a year ago. Ever since then, this album has been in heavy rotation on my ipod. The songs seem to be seamlessly intertwined, especially at the top of the album, with songs like “Time Stands Still,” “Future,” and “Saturdays” just melting into one another. There’s not one weak link on this album (they also released another terrific album in 2008, titled “In Ghost Colours”), and I can’t help but think that these guys should be bigger than they are.
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