Musicwhore.org Music and memory

A decade ago, I wrote a series of entries ranking my favorite albums from 1985 to 2004. My collection has expanded greatly since then, particularly in the last five years. So I wanted to see what has changed in 10 years.

As I mentioned in the original entry for the 2001 list, 75 percent of the year was actually really decent, especially where music was concerned. The Favorite 10 from that year remains unchanged.

1. AJICO, Fukamidori
2. fra-foa, Chuu no Fuchi
3. Quruli, Team Rock
4. eX-Girl, Back to the Mono Kero
5. ACO, Material
6. the brilliant green, Los Angeles
7. Cocco, Sangrose
8. Res, How I Do
9. Utada Hikaru, Distance
10. Onitsuka Chihiro, Insomnia

Other favorites from the year:

• Hajime Chitose, Kotonoha
• MONO, Under the Pipal Tree
• Fugazi, The Argument
• Low, Things We Lost in the Fire
• Death Cab for Cutie, The Photo Album
• bloodthirsty butchers, Yamane
• Kicell, Yume
• Shea Seger, The May Street Project
• Rufus Wainwright, Poses
• Semisonic, All About Chemistry
• Missy Elliott, Miss E … So Addictive
• Gillian Welch, Time (The Revelator)
• The Shins, Oh, Inverted World!
• soulsberry, The end of vacation
• Sigur Rós, Agætis Byrjun
• Guided By Voices, Isolation Drills

Like 2002 and 2003, the extended list for 2001 overruns with quality stuff, and I’ve only added to it.

I got Gillian Welch’s Hell Among the Yearlings as part of a gift bag from a Waterloo Records holiday party. I didn’t get around to listening to it till about 15 years later, and I had to play catch-up.

I’ve known about Low for years, but I didn’t hear them till MONO shared a bill with them in concert.

The annual Friends of the Library Book Sale hooked me up with Fugazi’s End Hits for $1, so I sought out The Argument to round out my collection. I vaguely remember the news of Fugazi’s hiatus upsetting my Waterloo coworkers. I hadn’t yet jumped on the bandwagon.

Tags: aco, bloodthirsty butchers, cocco, death cab for cutie, ex-girl, favorite edition, fra-foa, fugazi, gillian welch, guided by voices, hajime chitose, kicell, low, missy elliott, mono, onitsuka chihiro, quruli, res, rewind, rufus wainwright, semisonic, shea seger, sigur ros, soulsberry, the brilliant green, the shins, utada hikaru