![[Fugazi - The Argument]](https://musicwhore.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/FugaziTheArgument2001185734_f-300x300.jpg)
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.
- AJICO, Fukamidori
- fra-foa, Chuu no Fuchi
- Quruli, Team Rock
- eX-Girl, Back to the Mono Kero
- ACO, Material
- the brilliant green, Los Angeles
- Cocco, Sangrose
- Res, How I Do
- Utada Hikaru, Distance
- 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
![[Madvillain - Madvillainy]](https://musicwhore.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/MadvillainMadvillainy2004167285_f-300x300.jpg)
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.
The first half of the 2004 list has remained unchanged. The last half has undergone extensive revision.
- Arcade Fire, Funeral
- Eluvium, An Accidental Memory in Case of Death
- Kicell, Mado Ni Chikyuu
- Dylan Rice, Wandering Eyes
- The Killers, Hot Fuss
- Madvillain, Madvillainy
- Loretta Lynn, Van Lear Rose
- The Streets, A Grand Don’t Come for Free
- Mindy Smith, One Moment More
- STRAIGHTENER, LOST WORLD’S ANTHOLOGY
Other favorites from the year:
- Pinback, Summer in Abaddon
- SUPERCAR, ANSWER
- Kanye West, The College Dropout
- ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION, Solfa
- Bonnie Pink, Even So
- Fuji Fabric, Fuji Fabric
- Sacha Sacket, Shadowed
- m-flo, Astromantic
- The Butchies, Make Yr Life
- Scissor Sisters, Scissor Sisters
- ZAZEN BOYS, ZAZEN BOYS II
A lot of these revisions are retrospective. I listened to SUPERCAR’s ANSWER when it was reissued on vinyl, and I didn’t find the album as engaging as I originally thought. I’ve come to like Hot Fuss more as time has passed, and I don’t feel as much attachment to Van Lear Rose.
My growing appreciation for hip-hop means Madvillain and The Streets knock Quruli’s Antenna off the list entirely.
I’m still a bit skeptical about keeping Mindy Smith in the Favorite 10, or bumping STRAIGHTENER into the upper echelon. I picked up Pinback’s Summer in Abaddon from Goodwill out of curiosity, and I have a sense that in short time, it will nudge Smith or STRAIGHTENER down to the extended list.
As we go further back to the start of the Aughts, the extended list grows longer. A lot of great music came out at the start of the century. If the Internet hadn’t splintered the mass market, it might have been a galvanizing golden age of popular music.
Tags: arcade fire, asian kung-fu generation, bonnie pink, dylan rice, eluvium, favorite edition, fuji fabric, kanye west, kicell, loretta lynn, m-flo, madvillain, mindy smith, pinback, rewind, sacha sacket, scissor sisters, straightener, supercar, the butchies, the killers, the streets, zazen boys
![[Shiina Ringo - Gyakuyunyu ~Kuukoukyoku~]](https://musicwhore.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/shiina-ringo-gyakuyunyu-kuukoukyoku-245x300.jpg)
December is usually a month when the release calendar winds down but not this year.
Miguel, War and Leisure, Dec. 1
I heard snippets of Miguel’s first two albums, and they we’re terribly striking. Then he released Wildheart, and upped his game.
Cocco, 20 Shuunen Kinen Special Live at Nihon Budokan -Ichi no Kan, Ni no Kan-, Dec. 1
Cocco has released a number of live DVDs, but this two-night concert is her first live album.
Shiina Ringo, Gakuyunyuu ~Koukuukyoku~, Dec. 6
Shiina Ringo offers a second self-cover album which finally includes “Shoujo Robot”.
Kicell, The Blue Hour, Dec. 6
I haven’t followed Kicell in years.
Vinyl
Idlewild, Hope Is Important, Dec. 1
Idlewild, 100 Broken Windows, Dec. 1
I picked up a number of Idlewild albums from Lifelong Thrift Shop and discovered Hope Is Important is the Scottish band’s roughest — and quite frankly most interesting — album. It gets reissued on vinyl along with the masterwork, 100 Broken Windows.
Tags: cocco, idlewild, kicell, looking ahead, miguel, shiina ringo