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.

If you want an explanation for the length of this list, see 2002: An important year in music for the 2000s. This 2002 list has gone through a few ranking changes and added even more titles.

1. Hem, Rabbit Songs
2. … And You Will Know Us by the Trail Of Dead, Source Code and Tags
3. Kronos Quartet, Nuevo
4. The Streets, Original Pirate Material
5. Hajime Chitose, Hainumikaze
6. NUMBER GIRL, NUM-HEAVYMETALLIC
7. Quruli, THE WORLD IS MINE
8. Zoobombs, love is funky
9. Hatakeyama Miyuki, Diving into your mind
10. Patty Griffin, 1,000 Kisses

Other favorites from the year:

• UA, Dorobou
• Queens of the Stone Age, Songs for the Deaf
• Damien Jurado and Gathered In Song, I Break Chairs
• Pedro the Lion, Control
• Wilco, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
• Missy Elliott, Under Construction
• The Decemberists, Castaways and Cutouts
• Sonic Youth, Murray Street
• Sleater-Kinney, One Beat
• Kylie Minogue, Fever
• The Roots, Phrenology
• ISIS, Oceanic
• The White Stripes, White Blood Cells
• The Hives, Veni Vidi Vicious
• Catilin Cary, While You Weren’t Looking
• BUGY CRAXONE, Northern Hymns
• N.E.R.D., In Search Of …
• The Books, Thought for Food
• Nappy Roots, Watermelon, Chicken & Gritz
• Minako, Suck It till Your Life Ends mata wa Shine Made Sono Mama Yatte Iro
• The Flaming Lips, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robot
• Shiratori Maika, Hanazono
• The Back Horn, Shinzou Orchestra
• Joan Jeanrenaud, Metamorphosis

I picked up Original Pirate Material for $1 at Lifelong Thrift Shop, and now I understand why it was all over the place in 2002. I couldn’t open a music magazine without seeing Mike Skinner mentioned in it. I’m pretty sure the sample of Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 sealed my admiration for the album.

THE WORLD IS MINE is something of a mea culpa. At the time of its release, I recognized the album as being Quruli’s most complex, but I just couldn’t get into it. I probably felt that it didn’t go far enough if it was going to be ambitious.

Well, the joke’s on me. I listened to it again before its reissue on vinyl, and I really dug it, much more than Antenna, which I praised effusively at the time. So it knocked Minako’s one and only album off the Favorite 10. UA also had to make room for the Streets.

The extended list includes albums I originally dismissed: Murray Street by Sonic Youth and One Beat by Sleater-Kinney.

I remember stocking Nappy Roots during my shifts at Waterloo Records and wondering what the big deal was. A $1 copy from Lifelong Thrift Shop  16 years later educated me. I probably wouldn’t have been exposed to Nappy Roots, The Decemberists or ISIS without having worked at Waterloo.

Tags: and you will know us by the trail of dead, bugy craxone, caitlyn cary, damien jurado, favorite edition, hajime chitose, hatakeyama miyuki, hem, isis, joan jeanrenaud, kronos quartet, kylie minogue, minako, missy elliott, n.e.r.d., nappy roots, number girl, patty griffin, pedro the lion, queens of the stone age, quruli, rewind, shiratori maika, sleater-kinney, sonic youth, the back horn, the books, the decemberists, the flaming lips, the hives, the roots, the streets, the white stripes, ua, wilco, zoobombs