My friend Matej is doubly blessed: he knows a lot about great bands most people don’t know about, and is a great writer. I am thus tickled to present a happy combination of the two for your Friday reading enjoyment. A more comprehensive list you are unlikely to find.
The Oughts
The only thing harder than cataloguing your favourite music is writing an introduction to a catalogue of your favourite music. According to iTunes, I have almost 800 albums from the period between 2000 and 2009. That’s not almost 800 complete albums, but it means I have at least one song from that many — and in many cases, many more. This is by no means meant to comprehensive, exhaustive or otherwise complete. In fact, I’m sure I’ve forgotten something. And were I to make this list again in a month (or even a week), it would probably be different. Nevertheless, here are 50 of my favourite albums since 2000:
Alexisonfire | Crisis (2006)
It’s amazing to me how seamlessly this band blends soaring, beautiful melodies with desperate, screaming vocals. Or maybe it’s not seamless at all. Maybe it’s the harsh juxtaposition that makes it work. It’s also amazing that I couldn’t get into it at all at first, but now it’s a staple from the last decade.
…And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead | Worlds Apart (2005)
The title track begins, “Random lost souls have asked me, ‘What’s the future of rock ’n’ roll?’ I say, ‘I don’t know, does it matter?’ This and that scene, they sound all the same to me, neither much worse nor much better.” This might not be the future of (alt-prog-art) rock, but it’s certainly a welcome evolution. Powerful.
The Aquabats! | Charge! (2005)
Costumed poppy punk rock (is that even a genre? Sure, why not) at its fun, energetic, campy best. Every song title ends with an exclamation point. I find it hard to listen to this album and not smile. Read the rest of this entry »
