AggravatedYeti
User

Reviews 46
Approval 97%

Soundoffs 180
News Articles 8
Band Edits + Tags 57
Album Edits 125

Album Ratings 2179
Objectivity 81%

Last Active 05-18-11 7:40 pm
Joined 08-01-07

Review Comments 7,683

Average Rating: 3.45
Rating Variance: 0.79
Objectivity Score: 81%
(Well Balanced)

Chart.

Sort by: Rating | Release Date | Rating Date | Name


2018
Beach House 74.5

2017
Denzel Curry 134.0
Vince Staples Big Fish Theory4.5
2 Chainz Pretty Girls Like Trap Music4.0
Big Boi BOOMIVERSE4.0
Young Thug BEAUTIFUL THUGGER GIRLS4.0
SZA Ctrl4.5
Phoenix (FRA) Ti Amo3.5
alt-J Relaxer2.0
Lil Yachty Teenage Emotions3.0
Do Make Say Think Stubborn Persistent Illusions4.0
Logic Everybody2.5
Mac DeMarco This Old Dog4.0
Slowdive Slowdive (LP)4.5
Kendrick Lamar DAMN.4.5
Playboi Carti Playboi Carti3.0
Freddie Gibbs You Only Live 2wice4.5
Spoon Hot Thoughts3.0
Real Estate In Mind3.0
The Shins Heartworms3.5
Lil Uzi Vert Luv Is Rage 1.53.5
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah The Tourist3.5
Lupe Fiasco DROGAS Light3.0
The xx I See You4.5

2016
Danny Brown Atrocity Exhibition4.5
Young Thug JEFFERY4.5
Lil Uzi Vert The Perfect Luv Tape3.0
Lil Yachty Summer Songs 22.5
ScHoolboy Q Blank Face LP4.0
Lil Uzi Vert Lil Uzi Vert vs. The World3.5
Young Thug Slime Season 33.0
Lil Yachty Lil Boat2.5
Kendrick Lamar untitled unmastered.4.5
Wild Nothing Life of Pause3.5
Kanye West The Life of Pablo3.0
Young Thug I'm Up3.0
David Bowie Blackstar4.5

2015
Baroness Purple4.0
Pusha T King Push – Darkest Before Dawn: The Prelude4.0
Grimes Art Angels4.0
Young Thug Slime Season 23.0
Beach House Thank Your Lucky Stars4.0
Deerhunter Fading Frontier4.5
Majical Cloudz Are You Alone?4.5
Kylesa Exhausting Fire4.0
Deafheaven New Bermuda4.5
CHVRCHES Every Open Eye4.0
The World Is a Beautiful Place... Harmlessness4.0
Julia Holter Have You In My Wilderness4.5
Drake and Future What a Time to Be Alive3.5
Empress Of Me4.0
Young Thug Slime Season3.5
Destroyer Poison Season4.0
Beach House Depression Cherry4.5
Frog Eyes Pickpocket's Locket4.5
FKA Twigs M3LL155X4.0
Titus Andronicus The Most Lamentable Tragedy4.0
Tame Impala Currents4.5
Vince Staples Summertime '064.5
Thundercat The Beyond/Where The Giants Roam4.5
Jamie xx In Colour4.5
Holly Herndon Platform4.0
Passion Pit Kindred2.5
Young Thug Barter 64.5
Toro Y Moi What For?2.0
Waxahatchee Ivy Tripp4.5
The Go! Team The Scene Between3.5
Laura Marling Short Movie4.0
Earl Sweatshirt I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside4.0
Kendrick Lamar To Pimp a Butterfly4.5
The Amazing Picture You4.0
Susanne Sundfor Ten Love Songs4.5
Drake If You're Reading This It's Too Late3.5
Father John Misty I Love You, Honeybear4.0
Joey Badass B4.DA.$$3.5
Preoccupations Viet Cong4.0
Sleater-Kinney No Cities to Love4.0
Lupe Fiasco Tetsuo and Youth4.0
Panda Bear Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper4.5

2014
D'Angelo Black Messiah4.5
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead IX3.5
Grouper Ruins4.5
Big K.R.I.T. Cadillactica4.5
PVRIS White Noise2.5
Run the Jewels Run the Jewels 24.5
Stars No One Is Lost2.5
Pharmakon Bestial Burden3.5
Caribou Our Love4.0
Dads I’ll Be The Tornado4.0
Flying Lotus You're Dead!4.0
Ex Hex Rips4.0
Vince Staples Hell Can Wait4.0
Iceage Plowing into the Field of Love4.0
Tinashe Aquarius4.0
Perfume Genius Too Bright4.0
Mr Twin Sister Mr Twin Sister3.5
Gazelle Twin Unflesh3.5
Billy the Kid Horseshoes and Hand Grenades4.0
Blonde Redhead Barragan2.0
Sinkane Mean Love3.5
The New Pornographers Brill Bruisers4.0
Cymbals Eat Guitars LOSE4.5
Ariana Grande My Everything2.5
J Mascis Tied to a Star2.5
FKA Twigs LP14.5
Spoon They Want My Soul4.5
Shabazz Palaces Lese Majesty4.5
Alvvays Alvvays4.0
My Iron Lung Relief4.0
A Sunny Day in Glasgow Sea When Absent4.5
Frog Eyes Carey's Cold Spring4.5
First Aid Kit Stay Gold3.5
clipping. CLPPNG4.0
Fucked Up Glass Boys3.0
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Only Run3.0
Sharon Van Etten Are We There4.5
Hundred Waters The Moon Rang Like a Bell4.5
Emma Ruth Rundle Some Heavy Ocean4.0
tUnE-yArDs Nikki Nack3.0
Lykke Li I Never Learn4.5
Damon Albarn Everyday Robots3.0
Wye Oak Shriek3.5
Ought More Than Any Other Day4.5
Future Honest2.0
Iggy Azalea The New Classic2.5
Kelis Food4.0
EMA The Future's Void4.0
Smoke DZA Dream.Zone.Achieve3.0
Mac DeMarco Salad Days4.5
De La Soul Smell The DA.I.S.Y.3.5
YG My Krazy Life4.0
The War On Drugs Lost in the Dream4.5
Perfect Pussy Say Yes to Love4.5
Freddie Gibbs and Madlib Pinata4.5
Gazpacho Demon3.0
Le1f Hey4.0
Rick Ross Mastermind3.0
Son Lux Alternate Worlds3.0
Ava Luna Electric Balloon3.0
The Men Tomorrow's Hits4.0
Real Estate Atlas4.0
Pharrell Williams G I R L2.5
Liz Just Like You4.0
Kid Cudi Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon2.0
The Notwist Close to the Glass2.5
ScHoolboy Q Oxymoron3.5
St. Vincent St. Vincent4.0
The Hotelier Home, Like NoPlace Is There4.5
Neneh Cherry Blank Project4.0
Wild Beasts Present Tense4.5
Bayside Cult3.5
Currensy The Drive In Theatre3.5
Speedy Ortiz Real Hair3.5
Nicole Atkins Slow Phaser3.5
Marissa Nadler July4.5
Isaiah Rashad Cilvia Demo3.5
Alcest Shelter3.5
Against Me! Transgender Dysphoria Blues4.5
Warpaint Warpaint3.0
Rosanne Cash The River & the Thread2.5
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings Give the People What They Want4.0
Kid Ink My Own Lane2.0
Squadda B Back to Playtime3.0

2013
Childish Gambino Because the Internet3.0
Billie Joe Armstrong/Norah Jones Foreverly2.5
Raum The Event of Your Leaving3.5
Blood Orange Cupid Deluxe4.0
Eminem The Marshall Mathers LP 21.5
Yo can Em just start doing drugs again, already? I'm only about half kidding.
M.I.A. Matangi3.5
Yamantaka // Sonic Titan Uzu3.5
Moonface Julia with Blue Jeans On3.5
Los Campesinos! No Blues4.0
Sky Ferreira Night Time, My Time4.0
Arcade Fire Reflektor4.0
AFI Burials2.0
Friendzone DX4.0
Pusha T My Name Is My Name3.5
Danny Brown Old4.5
Mutual Benefit Love's Crushing Diamond4.0
Justin Timberlake The 20/20 Experience - 2 of 21.5
Yuck Glow and Behold2.5
Lorde Pure Heroine3.5
Drake Nothing Was the Same2.5
Au Revoir Simone Move in Spectrums3.5
CHVRCHES The Bones of What You Believe4.5
The Weeknd Kiss Land2.0
2 Chainz B.O.A.T.S. II #METIME2.5
Janelle Monae The Electric Lady4.0
Delorean Apar3.0
Factory Floor Factory Floor4.0
The 1975 The 19752.0
Volcano Choir Repave3.5
Neko Case The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight...3.5
Okkervil River The Silver Gymnasium3.5
Denzel Curry Nostalgic 644.0
Crocodiles Crimes of Passion3.0
Braids Flourish // Perish3.5
Dizzy Wright The Golden Age3.0
Julia Holter Loud City Song4.5
Nam Le Nam Le4.0
Thundercat Apocalypse4.5
Jay-Z Magna Carta... Holy Grail2.5
Run the Jewels Run the Jewels4.5
Swordplay and Pierre the Motionless Tap Water4.0
Kanye West Yeezus3.0
Sigur Ros Kveikur4.5
Deafheaven Sunbather4.5
Sorrow (UK) Dreamstone4.5
Boards of Canada Tomorrow's Harvest4.0
Camera Obscura Desire Lines3.5
Disclosure Settle4.0
Jon Hopkins Immunity4.5
Saint Pepsi Hit Vibes3.5
Kylesa Ultraviolet3.5
Laura Marling Once I Was an Eagle4.5
The National Trouble Will Find Me4.5
Daft Punk Random Access Memories4.5
Zebra Katz DRKLNG3.0
MS MR Secondhand Rapture3.0
Wild Nothing Empty Estate3.0
Vampire Weekend Modern Vampires of the City4.0
Bibio Silver Wilkinson3.5
Pharmakon Abandon3.5
Fitz and the Tantrums More Than Just A Dream2.0
Deerhunter Monomania3.0
Noah and the Whale Heart Of Nowhere1.5
!!! THR!!!ER3.0
Perfect Pussy I have lost all desire for feeling4.5
Phoenix (FRA) Bankrupt!4.0
Jenny Hval Innocence Is Kinky3.0
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Mosquito3.5
Ghostface Killah Twelve Reasons to Die3.5
Major Lazer Free The Universe3.0
Charli XCX True Romance4.0
Big K.R.I.T. King Remembered In Time3.5
Kurt Vile Wakin on a Pretty Daze3.5
James Blake Overgrown4.0
The Knife Shaking the Habitual4.0
The Besnard Lakes Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO3.0
The Strokes Comedown Machine2.5
Wavves Afraid of Heights3.0
Marnie Stern The Chronicles of Marnia3.5
Justin Timberlake The 20/20 Experience3.0
David Bowie The Next Day4.0
Blue Hawaii Untogether3.0
The Men New Moon4.0
Youth Lagoon Wondrous Bughouse4.0
Waxahatchee Cerulean Salt4.5
Shout Out Louds Optica3.0
Bilal A Love Surreal4.0
Doldrums (CAN) Lesser Evil3.5
Young Thug 1017 Thug4.0
Iceage You're Nothing4.0
Screaming Females Chalk Tape2.5
Eels Wonderful, Glorious2.5
The Bronx The Bronx (IV)3.5
Grouper The Man Who Died in His Boat4.0
My Bloody Valentine m b v4.5
The Ruby Suns Christopher2.0
Local Natives Hummingbird4.0
Ra Ra Riot Beta Love2.0
Walk the Moon Tightrope3.0
Christopher Owens Lysandre2.5
ASAP Rocky LONG.LIVE.A$AP4.0

2012
Circle Takes the Square Decompositions: Volume Number One4.0
Green Day iTRE!1.5
Big Boi Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors3.5
Departures Teenage Haze3.5
Green Day iDOS!1.5
School of Seven Bells Put Your Sad Down2.5
Motion City Soundtrack Making Moves3.5
Andy Stott Luxury Problems3.5
Titus Andronicus Local Business3.0
Main Attrakionz Bossalinis and Fooliyones3.5
Kendrick Lamar good kid, m.A.A.d city4.5
Benjamin Gibbard Former Lives3.0
Mac DeMarco 24.0
Godspeed You! Black Emperor 'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!4.5
Bat For Lashes The Haunted Man4.5
MellowHype Numbers2.0
Ellie Goulding Halcyon3.0
Tall Ships Everything Touching3.5
Why? Mumps, Etc.2.0
Tame Impala Lonerism4.0
Flying Lotus Until the Quiet Comes4.5
Young Dro Ralph Lauren Reefa3.0
Green Day ¡UNO!1.0
Mumford and Sons Babel1.5
No Doubt Push and Shove2.0
Lupe Fiasco Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album Pt.13.0
Dum Dum Girls End of Daze3.5
Freddie Gibbs Baby Face Killa3.5
Abel (NY) Make It Right3.5
Menomena Moms4.0
Grizzly Bear Shields4.5
GOOD Music Cruel Summer3.0
The xx Coexist3.0
Big Sean Detroit3.0
Animal Collective Centipede Hz3.0
Stars The North3.0
Deerhoof Breakup Song3.0
ASAP Mob Lord$ Never Worry3.0
I Am Carpenter My God Clara4.5
Wild Nothing Nocturne4.0
Yeasayer Fragrant World2.5
A lot of these new songs sound absolutely excellent in person.

On record?

Shit leaves so much to be desired.
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Mature Themes3.5
2 Chainz Based On a T.R.U. Story2.5
Yellowcard Southern Air3.0
The Antlers Undersea3.5
Passion Pit Gossamer4.5
Nas Life Is Good4.0
Frank Ocean channel ORANGE4.5
Azealia Banks Fantasea3.5
Twin Shadow Confess3.5
Dirty Projectors Swing Lo Magellan4.5
Dads American Radass (This Is Important)3.5
DIIV Oshin4.0
Fiona Apple The Idler Wheel...4.0
POP ETC Pop Etc1.5
this band was very good when they went by "The Morning Benders" and did not make shitty dance-pop.
Metric Synthetica3.0
SpaceGhostPurrp Mysterious Phonk3.5
Joey Badass 19994.0
The Walkmen Heaven4.5
Big K.R.I.T. Live From The Underground3.0
Crocodiles Endless Flowers3.0
Currensy The Stoned Immaculate3.5
Liars WIXIW3.5
Clams Casino Instrumental Mixtape 23.5
Zelienople The World Is A House On Fire3.5
Sigur Ros Valtari3.0
El-P Cancer 4 Cure4.5
Best Coast The Only Place2.5
Beach House Bloom4.5
lol Sam Feldman shut the hell up and blunt out to this sir.
Killer Mike R.A.P. Music4.5
Niki And The Dove Instinct3.5
Young L Enigma Theory4.0
B.o.B Strange Clouds2.5
Santigold Master of My Make-Believe3.0
Death Grips The Money Store3.0
Future Pluto3.0
Moonface With Siinai: Heartbreaking Bravery3.5
Pop Winds Earth To Friend4.0
Alabama Shakes Boys & Girls3.0
What up The Souff??

Sounds like y'all are pretty much the same.
Screaming Females Ugly4.0
Stalley Savage Journey To The American Dream3.5
Chromatics Kill for Love4.5
Crazily potent spring fever all up in this bitch.
Mac DeMarco Rock and Roll Night Club3.5
The Shins Port of Morrow4.0
Nedry In a Dim Light4.0
Julia Holter Ekstasis4.5
Xiu Xiu Always2.0
Kaiser Chiefs Start the Revolution Without Me2.0
US re-mix of a very, very slimy record. A few new tracks do little to solve the lack of focus on the part of the Kaisers. Surprising considering how (overly)streamlined their records have always been--and well Post-Punk is generally quite rigid. No one ever told the Kaisers apparently.
White Rabbits Milk Famous3.0
The Men Open Your Heart4.5
The Magnetic Fields Love At The Bottom Of The Sea3.0
Big K.R.I.T. 4Eva N A Day3.5
School of Seven Bells Ghostory3.0
Hodgy Untitled3.5
Sleigh Bells Reign of Terror4.0
Currensy Muscle Car Chronicles3.0
Tennis Young And Old3.0
Islands A Sleep and a Forgetting3.5
of Montreal Paralytic Stalks2.5
So apparently the drugs have stopped working -- I am at a loss.
Sharon Van Etten Tramp4.0
The Twilight Sad No One Can Ever Know3.5
Currensy Here3.0
Grimes Visions4.0
Cloud Nothings Attack on Memory3.0
Pop. 1280 The Horror3.5
Gonjasufi MU.ZZ.LE3.5
First Aid Kit The Lion's Roar3.5
ScHoolboy Q Habits and Contradictions4.0
The Big Pink Future This1.5
Snow Patrol Fallen Empires2.0
I'm really not sure why I believe this would be any different...
Rick Ross Rich Forever3.5

2011
The Weeknd Echoes of Silence4.0
The Black Keys El Camino3.5
The Roots undun4.0
Yelawolf Radioactive2.0
GANGSTA BOO SIGHTING!!! WTF is this Stankonia?

NOPE.
Childish Gambino Camp2.5
Los Campesinos! Hello Sadness3.0
Robin Smith hammering things home once more. Hello, sadness.
Drake Take Care4.0
G-Side Island4.0
And here I was believing the bullshit I had the unfortunate unloading of upon my ear in the form of: "G-Side dun fucked up." Apprehensive I kept my distance from the iSLAND too long until the barrage of flashing lights, copious laughter and fucking killer beats was too much to refuse.

Hello, we've arrived.
Atlas Sound Parallax3.5
Tycho Dive3.5
Johnny Foreigner Johnny Foreigner vs Everything3.0
Florence and the Machine Ceremonials3.5
This is what happens when artists are allowed to create a pastiche of epically bloated cine-pop. Ceremonials may all sounds like the same damn song but thankfully that tune is killer.
Freddie Gibbs Cold Day in Hell4.0
BLAKE WHAT THE FUCK QUIT HATING.

GANGSTA GIBBS.
ASAP Rocky Live.Love.A$AP.4.0
Justice Audio, Video, Disco2.5
M83 Hurry Up, We're Dreaming4.5
Real Estate Days4.0
Bjork Biophilia3.0
Evanescence Evanescence2.0
Zola Jesus Conatus3.5
Yamantaka // Sonic Titan YT//ST4.5
Beautiful noise from the Great White North.
blink-182 Neighborhoods2.0
Youth Lagoon The Year of Hibernation4.0
Wilco The Whole Love4.0
Mr Twin Sister In Heaven4.0
Phonte Charity Starts at Home4.0
Dum Dum Girls Only in Dreams3.5
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Hysterical2.0
Of Monsters and Men My Head is an Animal3.0
The Kooks Junk of the Heart1.5
Blondie Panic of Girls2.0
Mates of State Mountaintops2.5
Neon Indian Era Extrana3.0
Das Racist Relax3.0
Cymbals Eat Guitars Lenses Alien4.0
St. Vincent Strange Mercy4.5
The Drums Portamento2.5
Girls Father, Son, Holy Ghost3.5
Laura Marling A Creature I Don't Know3.5
Julia Holter Tragedy4.0
Red Hot Chili Peppers I'm With You2.0
Male Bonding Endless Now3.5
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks Mirror Traffic3.0
The Game The R.E.D. Album3.5
"Speakers On Blast" will fuck up pretty much every other hip hop track from this year.
The Weeknd Thursday4.5
Mister Heavenly Out of Love3.5
Main Attrakionz 808s and Dark Grapes II4.0
The War On Drugs Slave Ambient4.5
Meek Mill Dreamchasers3.0
Jay-Z and Kanye West Watch the Throne4.0
Fountains of Wayne Sky Full of Holes2.0
Moonface Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I'd Hoped3.0
Danny Brown XXX4.5
Cerebral Ballzy Cerebral Ballzy2.5
Little Dragon Ritual Union3.5
Incubus (USA-CA) If Not Now, When?2.0
Washed Out Within and Without3.5
The Horrors Skying4.0
Teddybears Devil's Music2.0
Memory Tapes Player Piano3.0
Kendrick Lamar Section.804.0
Joy Orbison Sicko Cell/Knock Knock3.5
Limp Bizkit Gold Cobra1.0
Currensy Weekend at Burnie's4.0
Digitalism I Love You, Dude2.5
YACHT Shangri-La3.5
Bon Iver Bon Iver, Bon Iver4.0
Patrick Wolf Lupercalia2.5
Owl City All Things Bright And Beautiful1.0
Dananananaykroyd There Is A Way3.0
WU LYF Go Tell Fire to the Mountain3.5
Submotion Orchestra Finest Hour4.0
Battles Gloss Drop3.5
Cults Cults4.0
Fucked Up David Comes to Life4.5
Arctic Monkeys Suck It and See3.0
Sorrow (UK) Summer Of Love3.5
Kaiser Chiefs The Future is Medieval2.0
Hey if you consider how bad the last record was and this time around both US and UK fans were able to sift through a shit-storm of 20 boring riffs, sterile synth lines and snare onslaughts to create a record that still sucks--albeit slightly less than history would suggest. Bright side though? At least the Kaiser's are finally coming to terms with that truth that maybe they should take a step back from any and all producer(s) ambitions.
Death Cab for Cutie Codes and Keys2.5
Art Brut Brilliant! Tragic!2.0
The Men Leave Home4.0
Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi Rome3.0
this record is quite good and probably better than I am giving it credit for. high-five Jack.
Tyler, the Creator Goblin3.0
The Lonely Island Turtleneck and Chain3.0
The Antlers Burst Apart3.5
Gang Gang Dance Eye Contact4.5
EMA Past Life Martyred Saints4.5
Wild Beasts Smother4.5
Architecture In Helsinki Moment Bends3.0
Beastie Boys Hot Sauce Committee Part Two3.0
The Airborne Toxic Event All At Once2.0
Laura Stevenson Sit Resist3.5
Times New Viking Dancer Equired3.0
Submerse Mecha4.0
Currensy Covert Coup3.5
tUnE-yArDs w h o k i l l4.0
Vivian Girls Share the Joy3.0
Foo Fighters Wasting Light3.0
new Foos sounds a lot like a really good homage to old Foos. Plus the band is making good videos again (and ya know, having fun on record.)
TV on the Radio Nine Types of Light4.0
Panda Bear Tomboy4.0
lol Acad. Meaningless lyrics. YEAH I MEAN ITS NO ATREYU.
Ponytail Do Whatever You Want All The Time4.0
Grouper A I A4.0
Jamie Woon Mirrorwriting3.0
2562 Fever3.5
Wiz Khalifa Rolling Papers1.5
The Sounds Something to Die For2.0
Snoop Dogg Doggumentary2.0
Peter Bjorn and John Gimme Some3.0
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart Belong4.0
Swarms Old Raves End4.0
Big K.R.I.T. ReturnOf4eva4.5
Yellowcard When You're Through Thinking, Say Yes2.0
CunninLynguists Oneirology3.0
The Strokes Angles3.5
Acid House Kings Music Sounds Better With You3.5
Pusha T Fear Of God3.0
The Weeknd House of Balloons4.0
Joy Orbison Wade In/Jels4.0
Lupe Fiasco Lasers2.0
Defeater Empty Days and Sleepless Nights3.0
Wye Oak Civilian3.5
Raekwon Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang3.5
Make a reference to Tom Brady? Instant greatness. Easiest decision ever.
Noah and the Whale Last Night On Earth2.0
Elbow Build A Rocket Boys!3.0
Kurt Vile Smoke Ring For My Halo3.5
Stricken City Losing Colour4.0
oh look I'm the first one to rate this.
and I gave it a 4.
surprise, surprise.
Sorrow (UK) Existence4.0
Main Attrakionz 808s and Dark Grapes4.0
Eisley The Valley3.0
DeVotchKa 100 Lovers3.0
Beady Eye Different Gear, Still Speeding2.0
Dum Dum Girls He Gets Me High3.5
Lykke Li Wounded Rhymes4.0
Toro Y Moi Underneath The Pine3.0
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie XX We're New Here3.0
Radiohead The King of Limbs3.0
Jenny Hval Viscera4.0
Frank Ocean Nostalgia, Ultra.4.0
Saigon The Greatest Story Never Told3.0
Asobi Seksu Fluorescence4.0
Yuki pretty much kills it on each and every Asobi Seksu record.
Yuck Yuck4.0
Adam Downer you couldn't be more correct. Oh my.
PJ Harvey Let England Shake4.5
Slaughterhouse Slaughterhouse EP2.0
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead Tao of the Dead3.0
Esben and the Witch Violet Cries3.0
Akron/Family S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT3.0
Stalley Lincoln Way Nights (Intelligent Trunk Music)3.0
Nicole Atkins Mondo Amore3.5
Cut Copy Zonoscope4.0
brings the fucking womp womp womp.
James Blake James Blake4.0
Hercules and Love Affair Blue Songs3.0
The Go! Team Rolling Blackouts3.5
Cloud Nothings Cloud Nothings3.5
Iron And Wine Kiss Each Other Clean3.5
Destroyer Kaputt4.5
not really all that similar to Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti at all...
Cold War Kids Mine is Yours2.0
The Joy Formidable The Big Roar3.0
Adele 212.5
Talib Kweli Gutter Rainbows3.0
The Decemberists The King Is Dead2.5
Smith Westerns Dye It Blonde2.5
Tennis Cape Dory3.0
Braids Native Speaker4.0
White Lies Ritual2.0
Tapes 'n Tapes Outside3.0
MillionYoung Replicants2.5
Its like chillwave is almost trying not to remove itself from its own cookie-cutter sometimes. Album would make another great millionyoung EP if some fat were trimmed.
Iceage New Brigade4.0
I hate when Rudy Klapper rates albums that could vaguely be described as "skuzzy punk." He knows he won't like it, but listens anyways and: BAM! 2.5.

KILLIN' ME RUDEBOY.
The Hotelier It Never Goes Out4.0
Deerhoof Deerhoof vs. Evil3.5
G-Side The One...Cohesive4.0
TV Screens flippin down -- all you hear is tick n pound.

2010
M.I.A. VICKI LEEKX3.0
Foxes in Fiction Alberto4.0
Daft Punk Tron: Legacy2.5
Deadmau5 4x4=123.0
Teen Daze Beach Dreams3.5
Nicki Minaj Pink Friday2.0
Robyn Body Talk4.0
Girls Broken Dreams Club4.0
Currensy Pilot Talk II4.0
Kanye West My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy4.5
Girl Talk All Day3.5
Black Sun Empire Lights And Wires3.5
Kid Cudi Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager2.5
The Concretes WYWH3.0
Weekend Sports3.0
Cee Lo Green The Lady Killer4.0
N.E.R.D. Nothing1.5
And you make me touch your hands FOR STUPID REASONS.
Brian Eno Small Craft on a Milk Sea3.0
Destroyer Archer on the Beach3.0
Matt and Kim Sidewalks3.0
Joy Orbison BB/Ladywell4.0
MellowHype BLACKENEDWHITE3.5
Small Black New Chain2.5
I think I put too much faith in these guys back in the summer--oops.
Avey Tare Down There3.0
Kylesa Spiral Shadow4.5
Warpaint The Fool4.0
Danny Brown The Hybrid3.5
Squarepusher Shobaleader One - D'demonstrator1.5
Kings of Leon Come Around Sundown2.0
Well...after a few forced listens on my way to and from Halloween festivities all there is to say: Slightly better than the previous dregs.
Teebs Ardour4.0
A Sunny Day in Glasgow Autumn, Again4.0
Badly Drawn Boy It's What I'm Thinking - Photographing Snowflakes2.0
Belle and Sebastian Write About Love3.5
Gold Panda Lucky Shiner3.5
oOoOO oOoOO3.5
Waka Flocka Flame Flockaveli3.5
Sharon Van Etten Epic4.0
Bruno Mars Doo-Wops & Hooligans2.5
Rustie Sunburst3.0
Glasser Ring4.0
Deerhunter Halcyon Digest4.5
Women Public Strain5.0
Lil Wayne I Am Not a Human Being2.5
Truthfully? This is a pretty stupid ass record. Granted Wayne can still hit a punchline--too bad most of them suck. But then again...prison sucks. I'll continue to wait for Tha Carter IV and Wanye will continue to sell millions of records. So yeah basically nothing has really changed since 'Rebirth.'
Tricky Mixed Race3.5
James Blake Klavierwerke4.0
No Age Everything In Between4.5
John Legend and the Roots Wake Up!3.0
How to Dress Well Love Remains3.0
Flying Lotus Pattern+Grid World3.5
Weezer Hurley2.5
El Guincho Pop Negro2.5
The Vaselines Sex With An X3.0
certainly not bad but pales in comparison to their older recordings. It is nice to see that they can still write good pop tunes and Frances McKee can still sing.
of Montreal False Priest3.0
Screaming Females Castle Talk3.5
Amusement Parks On Fire Road Eyes3.5
Bilal Airtight's Revenge3.5
Kendrick Lamar Overly Dedicated3.5
Black Milk Album Of The Year4.0
The Walkmen Lisbon4.5
Crocodiles Sleep Forever3.0
Blonde Redhead Penny Sparkle3.5
Linkin Park A Thousand Suns1.5
Interpol Interpol2.0
Robyn Body Talk Pt. 23.0
The Thermals Personal Life3.5
Film School Fission2.5
Zola Jesus Stridulum II3.5
Philip Selway Familial3.0
Domo Genesis Rolling Papers3.5
The Pretty Reckless Light Me Up1.5
Ra Ra Riot The Orchard3.0
!!! Strange Weather, Isn't It?3.0
Eels Tomorrow Morning3.5
Teen Daze Four More Years3.5
The Magic Numbers The Runaway2.5
Les Savy Fav Root For Ruin3.0
Wavves King of the Beach3.5
Autolux Transit Transit4.0
Arcade Fire The Suburbs4.0
Freddie Gibbs Str8 Killa No Filla3.5
Best Coast Crazy For You3.0
Menomena Mines4.0
drumsdrumsdrums. pianopianopiano. this is a fine fine album indeed.
Submerse Streams4.5
Rick Ross Teflon Don3.0
School of Seven Bells Disconnect From Desire2.5
M.I.A. Maya3.0
Jr Jr Horse Power3.0
Currensy Pilot Talk4.0
I could write a whole spiel about how the kid has shown up multiple times before and how if anyone was doubting this, their head was firmly planted far up their own ass but, uhh -- JETS.
Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse Dark Night of the Soul3.5
Baths Cerulean3.5
Big Boi Sir Lucious Left Foot4.5
Blackbird Blackbird Summer Heart4.0
3OH!3 Streets of Gold1.0
ceo White Magic3.5
Wolf Parade Expo 864.0
Julian Lynch Mare4.0
Stars The Five Ghosts3.0
The Roots How I Got Over4.0
Eminem Recovery2.5
You could basically refer to this as Eminem's first real shot at recording something relevant in almost a decade -- and honestly it may echo the glory days, so much so that it's easy to just assume he's back. He's not, but I'll be god damned if it doesn't feel nice to hear Marshall drop a verse that doesn't induce painful cringes. So yeah, there's that.
The Gaslight Anthem American Slang3.0
Drake Thank Me Later3.0
Robyn Body Talk Pt. 13.5
Ratatat LP43.0
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Before Today3.5
Tokyo Police Club Champ3.5
Wye Oak My Neighbor / My Creator3.5
Tame Impala Innerspeaker4.0
The Drums The Drums2.5
The State Lottery When the Night Comes3.5
James Blake CMYK4.0
Male Bonding Nothing Hurts3.5
Marina The Family Jewels3.5
Shad TSOL3.5
First Aid Kit The Big Black & the Blue3.5
Wild Nothing Gemini4.0
Band of Horses Infinite Arms2.5
I wish I could sit in a studio and re-record my albums too...
Nas and Damian Marley Distant Relatives3.0
Reflection Eternal Revolutions Per Minute3.5
LCD Soundsystem This Is Happening4.0
Janelle Monae The ArchAndroid4.0
Guido Anidea4.0
CocoRosie Grey Oceans2.0
Why did I bother with this record? I mean it's probably their best, but...uuugghhhhhh.
Phosphorescent Here's To Taking It Easy3.5
Sleigh Bells Treats4.0
The National High Violet4.5
UNKLE Where Did The Night Fall3.0
OFWGKTA Radical3.0
The Hold Steady Heaven Is Whenever3.5
The New Pornographers Together3.5
Future Islands In Evening Air3.5
Broken Social Scene Forgiveness Rock Record4.0
Big K.R.I.T. K.R.I.T Wuz Here3.5
Flying Lotus Cosmogramma4.5
Kelis Flesh Tone3.5
Blue Hawaii Blooming Summer4.0
B.o.B The Adventures of Bobby Ray1.5
Frog Eyes Paul's Tomb: A Triumph4.0
The Futureheads The Chaos3.0
Team Ghost You Never Did Anything Wrong To Me3.5
Crystal Castles Crystal Castles II4.0
The Radio Dept. Clinging to a Scheme4.0
Dark Time Sunshine Vessel3.5
Caribou Swim4.0
Gucci Mane Burrrprint 2 (HD)2.0
MGMT Congratulations3.0
letlive. Fake History3.0
The Tallest Man on Earth The Wild Hunt3.5
The Wave Pictures Susan Rode The Cyclone4.0
Ghastly City Sleep Moondrifts3.5
Mike G ALI3.0
Hypernova Through The Chaos3.0
David Byrne and Fatboy Slim Here Lies Love3.0
Laura Marling I Speak Because I Can4.0
Jonsi Go3.5
NOISIA Split The Atom4.0
Wiz Khalifa Kush & Orange Juice3.0
Earl Sweatshirt EARL3.5
Dum Dum Girls I Will Be3.5
...this is pretty good. catchy but derivative as fuck sometimes. but Im not sure Ive heard a sweeter girl group surf rock thing, song than 'I Will Be.'
Black Tambourine Black Tambourine4.5
Mr Twin Sister Color Your Life3.5
Power Animal People Songs2.5
Serena Maneesh S-M 2: Abyss in B Minor4.0
Goldfrapp Head First2.5
Flobots Survival Story1.5
Robin Smith doesn't like my sound off.
This album is the definition of garbage indie-hop.
A Weather Everyday Balloons3.5
An absurdly successful conversion from acoustic to electric. A Weather's delicate bedroom pop is maintained if not heightened by the move.
Blackbird Blackbird Bye Bye Blackbird EP3.5
Delorean Subiza4.0
Stricken City Animal Festival EP4.0
On par if not better than their previous mega EP 'Songs About People I Know' -- half the length, but frrrreeeeee. Cannot wait for the full album this summer, also go DL this from their website. Now. Do it.
James Blake The Bells Sketch3.5
Ludacris Battle of the Sexes1.5
Broken Bells Broken Bells3.0
jj jj n° 33.0
The Morning Benders Big Echo4.0
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists The Brutalist Bricks4.0
Daughters Daughters4.0
The Besnard Lakes The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night4.0
Free Energy Stuck On Nothing4.0
Liars Sisterworld4.5
Titus Andronicus The Monitor4.5
Gorillaz Plastic Beach4.5
Gonjasufi A Sufi and a Killer3.5
The Ruby Suns Fight Softly2.5
Rogue Wave Permalight3.0
Frightened Rabbit The Winter of Mixed Drinks3.0
Harlem Hippies3.0
Ellie Goulding Lights3.5
ok this got a lot better on like listen 6 or whateverrr.
The Men Immaculada4.0
The Brian Jonestown Massacre Who Killed Sgt. Pepper?2.0
MellowHype Yellowhite3.5
Electric President The Violent Blue3.0
Fang Island Fang Island3.0
Toro Y Moi Causers of This3.5
Eluvium Similes3.5
Veil Veil Vanish Change in the Neon Light3.5
Shearwater The Golden Archipelago4.0
Sambassadeur European4.0
Foxes in Fiction Swung From The Branches3.5
Freeway & Jake One The Stimulus Package3.0
Field Music Field Music (Measure)3.5
Yeasayer Odd Blood3.0
Massive Attack Heligoland3.5
Currensy Smokee Robinson3.5
Nedry Condors4.0
The Knife Tomorrow, In a Year4.0
Lil Wayne Rebirth1.5
Hot Chip One Life Stand2.5
The Magnetic Fields Realism2.5
Oh No Ono Eggs3.5
Moonface Dreamland EP: Marimba and Shit-Drums3.5
Seriously the best fucking track that Sunset Rubdown have ever recorded.
Oh wait...
MillionYoung Be So True EP3.5
Los Campesinos! Romance Is Boring4.5
There was a time when the thought of Los Campesinos! would have sent me straight to the bathroom -- either to puke or to take a dump visually explaining my opinion of Garreth & co.'s bleak, asinine, above all annoying(ly voiced!) outlook on life. Those 2 days aside, Los Campesinos! have since proven those first inclinations wrong with a solid mix of glockspiel infused, string bevy, acid-tipped, hyper-literal indie rawk that is as infectious as it is funny/good/intelligent/honest/loveable. Over a mere 3 year span of life, LC! have released various EPs, 3 full length albums, toured the world a few times and even have seen the use(lessness) of mounds of critical praise, and backlash. But, in the end, what always mattered is that fact that really, they don't fucking care. The Campesinos were sincerely in it for themselves, and that we would listen, never mind dance around screaming their music like we couldn't do anything else better in our lives, was an added bonus. This first grouping of members will probably in years stand as an early era in an accomplished bands respected catalouge, but that's not to say there's nothing special about 'Romance Is Boring', furthermore, this specific Los Campesinos! While 'Youngster...' was pop savvy and fractured, and 'Beautiful' stronger, but still, in the end could not escape it's haphazard recording, and fissured sense, still feeling like an astounding collection of B-Sides by it's completion. 'Romance' finds the Campesinos! culminating everything they've done since their inception and throwing it together under one guise. Not a distaste for radio/modern living/douche bags, but the single thing none of them can fucking get over -- Love. Musically it sounds like the other LC! albums, but more focused, calmer, they play to their strength in pacing that made the breakneck speeds of their last 2 LPs endearing and fun, here is held down, almost hushed. You can feel the tension in the recording, not just concerning the record's content, but female lead vocalist Aleks Campesinos impending departure -- this is the sound of a band imploding upon itself, and finding a way to not only deal with that elephant in the room, but take it by the reigns. With nothing else to do, this group of Brits throw together yet another ramshackle collection of tracks that amount to an astoundingly repayable album. And for once, it all sounds cohesive. Garreth and Aleks finally seem comfortable speaking to one another via their microphones. Their best writing (which to begin with is hard to top, so stfu) is on display here, as well as musicianship, showcasing their talent with molding Twee and Punk legitimately, except now its honed, perfected to deliver that sugary jab at just the right moment. Many have stated that over the past few years watching this band grow up has been a pleasure. I wouldn't think I'm the first to say, but would like to reiterate wholeheartedly that personally, its been an immense pleasure to simply grow up with them.
Four Tet There is Love in You4.0
Beach House Teen Dream4.5
Eels End Times2.5
Spoon Transference3.0
Surfer Blood Astro Coast4.0
Lostprophets The Betrayed1.5
These New Puritans Hidden2.5
Ringo Starr Y Not2.5
Vampire Weekend Contra3.0
Kesha Animal1.0
So I've really only heard like 4, well I guess 5 tracks from this album. But, yeah, whatever. I'm not losing sleep over this one.
Memoryhouse The Years4.0
Run DMT Bong Voyage3.0
you nerd-faces this deserves a 3 based on cover art alone. yes I mean you Kiran and Ala.
Dirty Projectors Ascending Melody4.0
If you enjoyed 'Bitte Orca' in any way Ascending Melody is a must have (and it's free!) this 7" is pretty much a continuation of that albums skewed pop-sweetness. 2 new songs, of the same caliber, just visit their website for an official link.
More Than Life Love Let Me Go4.0
Race Horses Goodbye Falkenburg4.0
Damian Valles Bow Echoes4.0

2009
Tyler, the Creator Bastard3.5
Young Money We Are Young Money2.5
Grouper and Roy Montgomery Split3.5
LizHarrisLizHarrisLizHarrisLizHarrisLizHarrisLizHarrisLizHarris
Roy Montgomery is sweet too.
Snoop Dogg Malice 'n' Wonderland1.5
Clipse Til the Casket Drops3.0
Gucci Mane The State vs. Radric Davis3.0
Charlotte Gainsbourg IRM2.5
Lupe Fiasco Enemy Of The State: A Love Story3.0
Birdman Pricele$$1.5
Animal Collective Fall Be Kind4.0
Felt (USA-MN) Felt 3: A Tribute to Rosie Perez3.0
Kid Sister Ultraviolet3.0
It's like if MIA and 36 Mafia had a baby and Spank Rock and Amanda Blank got down -- then those 2 babies fuuuuccckkedd.
That baby is Kid Sister -- even tho she's older than all of them.
Real Estate Real Estate4.0
Defeater Lost Ground4.5
50 Cent Before I Self Destruct3.0
Fitty spends the better half of the decade making more money and fucking more bitches than you. All the while making 1 good album and some great singles. I guess he was listening to all the shit people were talking about his skill cause here he goes making his best album since 'Get Rich'. 'Before I Self Destruct' is not groundbreaking by any means, but the beats are deep and mean and his syrupy flow has found it self again along with his pen. Its not an album full of a predominance of hip hip love songs and a couple of street worthy bangers here an there. It's actually got some kind of structure(albeit *loose*) and attention to the filler tracks as opposed to just the 4 hit singles.
Wale Attention Deficit3.0
Asobi Seksu Rewolf3.5
An absurdly successful 'acoustic arrangement' take on the effects laden, pedal pushing star punk of Brooklyn's Asobi Seksu. They break down the core of the songwriting and bring the focus onto Hanna's musicianship and Yuki Chikudate's beautiful, effervescent voice. Luckily it pays off and 'Rewolf' turns out to be more than just an acoustic fan service.
King Midas Sound Waiting For You3.5
Joy Orbison J.Doe/BRKLN CLLN3.5
G-Side Huntsville International4.5
Julian Casablancas Phrazes for the Young3.0
Local Natives Gorilla Manor3.5
Weezer Raditude1.5
Lil Wayne No Ceilings3.0
Flight of the Conchords I Told You I Was Freaky3.5
Atlas Sound Logos3.5
Ben Frost By the Throat3.5
Do Make Say Think Other Truths4.0
Charlotte Hatherley New Worlds3.5
Massive Attack Splitting the Atom3.0
Stricken City Songs About People I Know4.0
I must traverse the wilds on a grandiose expedition into foreign lands and find myself this Stricken City and shake their hands.
Lightning Bolt Earthly Delights3.5
Neon Indian Psychic Chasms3.5
The Flaming Lips Embryonic4.0
Air Love 23.5
Kurt Vile Childish Prodigy3.5
Warpaint Exquisite Corpse4.0
A Place to Bury Strangers Exploding Head4.0
The Clientele Bonfires on the Heath4.0
The Very Best Warm Heart of Africa4.0
If you have any inclination towards world music or African pop then this is pretty much the perfect place to go. a fun, warm, brilliant piece of electro pop with an Afro-funk twist.
Orphans of Cush White Noize4.5
Mumford and Sons Sigh No More1.5
"We were playing a festival in Dublin the other week. There was this other group like, warming up in the next sort of chalet, and they were terrible. I said 'shut them cunts up' and they were still warming up, so I threw a bottle at them. The bands said 'that's the Sons of Mumford' or something, 'they're number five in charts!' I just thought they were a load of retarded Irish folk singers." - The Immortal(ly Old) Mark E. Smith.
Pregnant Liquidation on Swans4.0
Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar4.0
The Drums Summertime!2.5
AFI Crash Love1.5
Ghostface Killah Ghostdini: The Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City2.0
Memory Tapes Seek Magic4.0
Islands Vapours3.0
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart Higher Than the Stars3.5
The price of admission is worth it for the remix alone.
The Twilight Sad Forget The Night Ahead3.5
Times New Viking Born Again Revisited3.5
The Big Pink A Brief History of Love4.0
Girls Album4.5
Kid Cudi Man on the Moon: The End of Day3.0
Drake So Far Gone3.5
A Sunny Day in Glasgow Ashes Grammar4.5
Philly ensemble's sophomore release 'Ashes Grammar' is a compulsively listenable, brilliant, fractured dance/ambient-pop album with heavy holds in shoegaze, dreampop, and freakfolk. Old news yes, but 'Ashes Grammar' just happens to do it so goddamn well, not to mention uniquely, and infectiously, that they find their own sound in the chaos of the past. In the loss of integral members (bass! vocalists!) and movement from a bedroom to a studio, Ben Daniels and drummer/guitarist Josh Meakim and newly recruited vocalist Annie Fredrickson create magic. A 22 track behemoth that is setup in movements as opposed to singular tracks, most 'real songs' sitting between mood setting ambient interludes that hold their own against the longer tracks. Really these interlude portions just help the flow of the album, as it's 60+ minutes wiz by accordingly and are just a logical setup for the next bit of songs. From the freakfolk/dance induced 'Failure' and 'Close Chorus', to shoegazer tour de force(s) 'Nightime Rainbows' & 'Blood White'', 'Ashes Grammar' delivers. Dream pop masterworks , 'Shy', 'Headphone Space', 'Starting at a Disadvantage' and 'The White Witch' top off the album as the (hard to chose) stand outs but let's not be picky here. Why be, when there' s so much about Ashes Grammar to love.
Jay-Z The Blueprint 33.0
Vivian Girls Everything Goes Wrong3.0
Raekwon Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt II4.0
BLK JKS After Robots4.0
Noah and the Whale The First Days of Spring1.5
Washed Out Life of Leisure4.0
Freddie Gibbs midwestgangstaboxframecadillacmuzik4.5
Mew No More Stories4.5
Arctic Monkeys Humbug3.0
Destroyer Bay of Pigs 3.5
The xx xx4.5
The Temper Trap Conditions2.5
Amanda Blank I Love You1.5
Modest Mouse No One's First, and You're Next3.5
Wild Beasts Two Dancers4.5
Blur Midlife: A Beginner's Guide To Blur4.0
Slightly tops the 'Best of Blur' greatest hits comp, which is saying something considering that usually comps suck, and there's enough quality Blur material to fill up two, two disc compilations. The fact that these songs continue to carry their essential punch even years after the fact doesn't hurt either. These dudes haven't released an album since 2003, and yet somehow there's a distinctly different feel to this as compared to 'Best Of'. 'Mid Life' carries a sense of accomplishment, a cannon of 90s Brit pop which the previous comp couldn't even hold a candle to. Now if Albarn, Coxon and co. could put down their swords, pick up their guitars and just rock again. Added bonus, everything here slays and it's not all album only tracks or singles. 'Woo hoo!' indeed.
Wye Oak The Knot3.5
YACHT See Mystery Lights4.0
Delorean Ayrton Senna4.0
Owl City Ocean Eyes1.0
Mount Eerie Wind's Poem3.0
Phil went crazy, and skuzzed up his already skuzzy music with heaps and heaps of 'metal'. 'Wind's Poem' proves that Elvrum is an extremely talented musician (duh...) and that genre hopping, as it always has been, is quite easy for him. Sadly though, 'Wind's Poem' delivers significantly less than the sum of it's parts. He seems to sacrifice his superior songwriting talent to fit genre conventions that he's less than adept at recreating. While about as easy to swallow as any of his albums, 'Wind's Poem' lacks that essential aftertaste that gave all his previous work it's legs. This bitch stumbles right out the gate and struggles to keep it together throughout the duration.
The Most Serene Republic ...And The Ever Expanding Universe3.0
We Were Promised Jetpacks These Four Walls2.5
If you put Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad into a supersonic gravitron at the local Glasgow city fair, they'd come out as We Were Promised Jetpacks -- and they wouldn't play their instruments as well as before.
The Alchemist Chemical Warfare3.0
Discovery LP3.5
Hodgy The Dena Tape2.5
Florence and the Machine Lungs4.0
jj jj n° 23.5
Wilco Wilco (The Album)3.5
Deer Tick Born on Flag Day2.5
Standard folk rock; delivered on nothing that 'War Elephant' had promised -- even though 'Little White Lies' and 'The Ghost' are pretty much boss, don't be fooled.
The Mars Volta Octahedron3.0
Sunset Rubdown Dragonslayer3.5
God Help The Girl God Help The Girl3.5
Major Lazer Guns Dont Kill People... Lazers Do3.5
The Black Eyed Peas The E.N.D. (The Energy Never Dies)1.0
Miike Snow Miike Snow3.0
Sonic Youth The Eternal3.5
Deerhunter Rainwater Cassette Exchange3.5
The Low Anthem Oh My God, Charlie Darwin3.5
tUnE-yArDs BiRd-BrAiNs3.5
Mos Def The Ecstatic4.0
Dirty Projectors Bitte Orca4.5
The Sounds Crossing the Rubicon1.5
Emery ...In Shallow Seas We Sail3.0
Eels Hombre Lobo3.0
Patrick Wolf The Bachelor2.5
I mean maybe it's just me but, if there is such a thing as 'too quirky' or 'forced pretension' Wolf has done everything in his power to infest every second of 'The Bachelor's run time with just that. Too much quirkiness and an array or forced, lackadaisical pretensions drown out what could have been a very solid release. Album cover is ill tho...
The Hotelier We Are All Alone4.0
Grizzly Bear Veckatimest4.5
Phoenix (FRA) Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix4.5
Method Man and Redman Blackout! 23.0
If you take it at face value (It's Wu-Tang...), and just appreciate that these two dudes got back together and created a sequel equal to it's predecessor, albeit a bit less surprising, you'll probably find something to enjoy here.
White Rabbits It's Frightening3.0
Passion Pit Manners4.0
Green Day 21st Century Breakdown1.5
Eminem Relapse1.5
Really good beats and the fact that Em still has a better flow than most modern rappers can't save 'Relapse' from imploding in upon itself. Bloated and almost sophomoric the songs never find their way out of Em's verses (which are just as quirky and disturbing as ever) to a hook that has any chance of paying off. Basically there are no hooks, or if there's an attempt (3am, Mother,Insane -- fuckit the whole album) "Relapse" gives them no room to breathe. Instead they chock up to a rushed Em continuing his lame, accented flow to a chorus about how many drugs he does, how fucked up he is, or how much he goes against the grain. If 'Relapse' is supposed to be that jolt that rockets Marshall sky high once more, you couldn't tell. It feels more like Eminem is still searching for his wings, never mind trying to soar.
De La Soul Are You In?: Nike+ Original Run3.0
St. Vincent Actor4.5
Burial and Four Tet Moth/Wolf Cub3.5
The Horrors Primary Colours4.0
Japandroids Post-Nothing3.0
Crocodiles Summer Of Hate3.5
Rick Ross Deeper Than Rap3.0
Currensy This Ain't No Mixtape4.0
Asher Roth Asleep In The Bread Aisle1.0
Camera Obscura My Maudlin Career4.0
Nicki Minaj Beam Me Up Scotty3.5
Silversun Pickups Swoon2.5
The Juan MacLean The Future Will Come4.0
The Thermals Now We Can See3.0
Metric Fantasies3.0
Micachu and the Shapes Jewellery3.5
Doves (UK) Kingdom of Rust3.5
Bat For Lashes Two Suns4.5
Dananananaykroyd Hey Everyone3.0
Snowing Fuck Your Emotional Bullshit3.5
UGK UGK 4 Life3.5
Dan Deacon Bromst4.5
MSTRKRFT Fist of God3.0
Kylesa Static Tensions4.5
Let's Wrestle In The Court Of The Wrestling Let's4.0
Handsome Furs Face Control3.5
Yeah Yeah Yeahs It's Blitz!4.0
BLK JKS Mystery EP4.0
U2 No Line on the Horizon2.0
Neko Case Middle Cyclone3.5
The Antlers Hospice3.5
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead The Century of Self2.0
Radio Rock + Booze worthy chanting + bad drumming + Strings + AFI - Emo x U2 = 'The Century of Self'
Asobi Seksu Hush3.5
Various Artists (Indie) Dark Was The Night4.0
Gavin Castleton Home4.0
Lily Allen It's Not Me, It's You3.0
The Lonely Island Incredibad3.5
The Fray The Fray1.0
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart The Pains of Being Pure at Heart4.0
A Camp Colonia3.0
Something just gets lost in those 8 years and 2 Cardigans' albums that split 'ACamp' and 'Colonia'.
Franz Ferdinand Tonight: Franz Ferdinand3.0
Cymbals Eat Guitars Why There Are Mountains4.5
Animal Collective Merriweather Post Pavilion4.5
Animal Collective mixes in some ambient electro pop, new wave along with some house and everybody wins.
MillionYoung Sunndreamm EP3.0
Universal Studios Florida Ocean Sunbirds3.5
Joy Orbison Hyph Mngo/Wet Look4.0
Julianna Barwick Florine4.0
Freddie Gibbs The Miseducation Of Freddie Gibbs4.5

2008
Weezer Christmas with Weezer1.0
You've got to be kidding me.
Let's chug through 6 lame ass Christmas songs. Sounds like they did this last night in a drunken stupor and mixed it through the morning.
Common Universal Mind Control1.5
The Twilight Sad Killed My Parents and Hit the Road3.0
The Killers Day & Age1.0
Coldplay Prospekt's March2.0
Kanye West 808s and Heartbreak3.0
The Fireman Electric Arguments4.0
Guns N' Roses Chinese Democracy2.0
This title track is fucking awesome
High five guys! You took over a decade to make 1 good song and successfully bastardized the rest of your catalog that has shown it's age immensely over the years.
Lil Wayne Dedication 32.0
Shiny Toy Guns Season of Poison1.5
Ditching almost all of their electronic sound and adopting a prominent guitar scheme right and ready to compete with the best of top 40 radio, Shiny's flunk. 'Season of Poison' is a dud, there's 3 good tracks -- good ones. Not great, or amazing, good ('I Owe You a Love Song' 'Season Of Love' & 'Turned To Real Life'). Rather than coming to the choruses and banging through on drop d power chords they create electronic bliss, unlike the rest of the 'Season'. Shiny Toy Guns were interesting because regardless of how much they played to cliches, they surrounded it with a truly sick electronica song. Couple that with decent verses and instrumental play and you've got yourself a solid album (We Are Pilots). Mix crappy industrial, bullshit grunge and a dose of rap rock (check new singer Sisley Treasure on 'When Did This Storm Begin') and you've got this balls follow up. They may have ditched Carah (The best part...) but Sisley can hold her own; but she's barely there (3 tracks!). Me thinks Chad doesn't trust her, but if 'Frozen Oceans' is any indication, they'll find their savior in her voice. 'Season of Poison' sees a talented band flounder with the loss of an obviously integral member. They mix many styles and jumble genres in trying to move away from their previous core sound. Shinys may think they're evolving -- honestly it just seems like they're running out of ideas.
Q-Tip The Renaissance4.0
Wild Beasts Limbo, Panto4.0
G-Side Starshipz and Rocketz4.5
Lady Gaga The Fame1.5
School of Seven Bells Alpinisms3.0
Deerhunter Weird Era Cont.3.5
Los Campesinos! We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed4.5
Year #1, Album #2(2!). 'We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed' sees the Campesino camp mature a little bit through acting just a bit more immature. As opposed to 'Hold On Now, Youngster...' their auspicious debut, where they seemed to be going over every line with red pen, 'We Are Beautiful,' is more haphazard. 'Youngster' saw all its lines end with just the perfect punch, just clever enough, and just enough emotion. Essentially showing they aren't involved as much as observing from the outside, basically they were too good for themselves; this time around they seem to feel right in their own skin. Gareth takes over the vocals predominantly, and he's basically crying about his ex, but he does it in such a way (You said he's got his teeth fixed/ I'm gonna break them!), that exemplifies a sense of here and now (Oh we kid ourselves there's future in the fucking!/but there is no fucking future!) that most other frontpeople can't attest to(My life was saved by a packet of 19 cigarettes/Held in my left breast pocket/for a closest friend). To say they have spirit is a bit cheap, they bombast through 10 tracks of glockenspiel infused, violin savvy indie rock. They keep the tensions high, the boy-girl interchanges sweet or biting and when they decide to slow it down on 'Heart Swells/Pacific Daylight Time' it pays off. It's one of their most touching tracks, they grow up just a little, enough to see their faults and deliver a fucking great follow up.
of Montreal Skeletal Lamping3.0
Kaiser Chiefs Off With Their Heads1.5
Gang Gang Dance Saint Dymphna4.5
Deerhoof Offend Maggie3.0
Oasis Dig Out Your Soul3.5
Fucked Up The Chemistry of Common Life4.5
Hardcore, infused with all the strings, horns and bells and whistles you could ask for, with a great lead singer, this is some boss shit. Yes, maybe it's a bit meandering, their instrumentals, though quite badass, are not highlights of the album. and yes, in a genre where technicality is held in an extremely high regard -- they're not. But Fucked Up excel in their arrangements, they know how to build tension, to explode, and more importantly how to rock the fuck out. Pink Eyes(Damian Abraham), has a vicious growl and a scream that shakes the earth. Coupled with clean vocals from both male and female band mates his gravel pit of a voice is pulled up from average, to powerful. This is where they shine, issues with God, modern society, family, and materialism are prominent themes, and they handle it with class. They skip the pretension by not taking themselves too seriously, as well as having a sick drummer and guitarist. Plus 'Son the Father' & 'Black Albino Bones' are easily some of the best tracks of 2008.
Empire Of The Sun Walking On A Dream2.5
Ben Folds Way To Normal3.0
Vivian Girls Vivian Girls3.0
Murs Murs For President3.0
T.I. Paper Trail3.0
Cold War Kids Loyalty to Loyalty2.0
Kings of Leon Only By The Night1.5
After hearing the atrocious 'Sex On Fire' plus all their other bullshit releases I'm not really sure why I bothered with this. Watching this band ascend past their supposed grass roots to arena status has been less than gratifying, at least on their part. Passing up the inspired instrumental play between band members and their old Southern feel for a plastic sheen ready to reflect the stage lights, they produce their biggest flop yet. It may seem that I'm bitching about them 'making it. No, I'm bitching about their new lack of inspiration on phone-in's like 'Closer', 'Use Somebody' and 'Manhattan', not to mention the worst offender, lead off single 'Sex On Fire'. A song about a lead singer's great sex life collapses with boring riffs, awful drumming and a clunky chorus. These problems plague the whole of 'Only By The Night' and leave it as a lack luster release from a band that, personally, is yet to find themselves, let alone reach a stride.
TV on the Radio Dear Science4.5
TV On The Radio pretty much ditched the complicated fuzz/anthem rock of 'Return to Cookie Mountain' for some dance hall, electronic, funk/fuzz rock, soulful balladry bullshit. And it was all for the better, not necessarily better than 'Return', but for the better of the band. 'Dear Science' is like 25 minutes and 8 tracks shorter, but whatever, it?s still some boss music. 'Half Way Home' 'Love Dog' & 'DLZ' are the best songs that never made it onto '..Cookie', 'Golden Age', 'Crying', 'Dancing Choose' and 'Red Dress' are funk infused, rap, indie masterpieces. While their dance songs and rockers shine, 'Dear Science,' really lets it all go when it's heart is showing. Tracks like 'Stork & Owl' and 'Family Tree' are gorgeous ballads, adorn with sweet horns and strings, while 'Lover's Day' is probably the best song about a raucous fuck ever. Ever.
Noah and the Whale Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down2.5
Raphael Saadiq The Way I See It4.0
Defeater Travels4.5
fffffffffffuuuuuucccccckkkk mmmmmmmeeeeee, this is so good.
If you like hardcore punk or (scr)emo, or post-hardcore, or whatever -- get this.
Stars Sad Robots EP3.0
Take out a few tracks from 'In Our Bedroom...' and plug these in, you've got yourself a hell of an album. For an EP it's pretty fully packed, and the live version of 'Going, Going, Gone' is haunting. But really, after many listens. 'Sad Robots' amounts to some bad ass cover art, 1 worthless instrumental, a live song, 3 great songs that should have been on the album instead, and 1 dud (Title Track).
Silence is Sexy This Ain't Hollywood3.0
Soundtrack (Television) Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog3.5
Damon Albarn Monkey: Journey to the West3.0
GZA Pro Tools3.0
Ra Ra Riot The Rhumb Line3.5
Deerhunter Microcastle4.5
'Microcastle' sees GA based Deerhunter turn down the fuzz and learn to pretty things up a bit. Granted, their rocker 'Nothing Ever Happened' is probably the best thing they've ever record, with all it's ferocity and beautiful instrumentation. 'Microcastle' has a kinder feel than 'Cryptograms', and really that's what pushes them past the mediocrity of their debut. 'Agoraphobia' & 'Never Stops' as well as enders 'Saved By Old Times' and 'These Hands' are quite gorgeous songs. Cox showed he was capable of such things with his Atlas Sound project, but I never saw these coming. 'Agoraphobia' and it's simple beat builds to beauty as Cox croons, 'Never Stops' and 'Little Kids' follow suit in their upbeat sound, seemingly alien to the (old)band but they produce nothing short of gold. Drawbacks can be found I'm sure, it's a bit too short, sometimes the whole album can just pass you by. The mid section can be a bit too wonky as they experiment their way around fractured riffs and weird drum beats all the while keeping it pretty minimalist. But, seriously, whatever, just sit back and enjoy 'Microcastle' and all its serene beauty.
The Walkmen You & Me4.5
The Gaslight Anthem The '59 Sound3.5
Jonas Brothers A Little Bit Longer1.5
I sat through this at my grandmother's usual Xmas Eve gathering. My little cousin loves it, the kid's a peach so I just kept my mouth shut and dealt with it.
Imagine if the seminal 90s boy bands were just *slightly* less corny and played their own instruments -- and were all ****ing related.
The Airborne Toxic Event The Airborne Toxic Event2.0
Brazilian Girls New York City3.0
Currensy Fast Times at Ridgemont Fly3.5
Black Kids Partie Traumatic2.0
Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
-That was my initial reaction, it hasn't changed much. 'Partie Traumatic' falls victim to boring composition, squeaky clean production, and indie-pop cliches. Reggie Youngblood sounds a whole hell of a lot like Robert Smith yes, and true his backing band can drop some pretty addicting/danceable beats, but as a whole it's trite and pretty boring.
Better luck next time.
Brendan Canning Something For All of Us...3.5
lol Broken Social Scene solo outings, they're always pretty good, but they're always pretty scattered. Canning is able to bring himself out beyond the shadow of his BSS counterparts, but he does this mainly by purveying his key (natural) sound. He's the community man, and he shows it in full here. Taking the core BSS sound and building upon it (much like Kevin Drew), Canning is electric. 'Something For All of Us', 'Chameleon' and 'Possible Grenade' are the stand out rockers, 'All the Best Wooden Toys are Made In Germany' is a heaping of prog-indie bliss while 'Churches Under the Stairs' is one of the best BSS associated tracks ever. Canning leans more towards the commune feel, as opposed to Drew's reserved whispers and croons. And while Kevin turned up his vocals, Brendan chooses to wash his voice much like his bands albums. He's softer, more pleasant even, and what seems to be the obligatory "girl spot" on these 'BSS Presents' is held by Amy Milian (elegant and powerfully). 'Something For All of Us' makes sense really, I'm yet to meet someone that finds nothing to love here.
Nas Untitled2.0
Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard The Dark Knight3.5
The Hold Steady Stay Positive3.5
The Bug London Zoo4.0
Made Out of Babies The Ruiner4.0
Sigur Ros Med Sud i Eyrum vid Spilum Endalaust4.0
Girl Talk Feed the Animals4.0
Coldplay Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends3.0
Wolf Parade At Mount Zoomer3.5
Krug didn't quite 'fail' me, but he's certainly the weaker half on '...Mount Zoomer'. Wolf Parade have seen themselves turn from a band, to a collective of musicians, two whom are very distinct. Boeckner wails with all the fury of Bowie and Black, his detest for the concrete jungle and modern living is still very prominent in his songs on 'Zoomer & he's almost *more* prolific this time around. Sacrificing blunt song writing for a streamlined product that comes out sounding slicker -- but that's not to say they don't indulge in their progressive inclinations. I mean pretty much all of Krug's songs sound like Sunset Rubdown B-sides he just happened to record with his other band. Talk about prog indulgences, every record that band (Sunset Rubdown) has produced could easily be called 'A Day at the Renaissance Fair'. This comes out full force on Krug's contributions to 'Mt. Zoomer', which can be good (California Dreamer) or asinine ('Animal in Your Care'). Really, when they just let it all go and rock the fuck out for 10 minutes on the closer 'Kissing the Bee Hive', (the album's original title, wtf?)Spencer and Danny finally decided to get together and just be Wolf Parade agai -- it's quite mesmerizing.
Ponytail Ice Cream Spiritual4.5
N.E.R.D. Seeing Sounds1.5
My Morning Jacket Evil Urges2.0
Flying Lotus Los Angeles4.0
Lil Wayne Tha Carter III4.0
Grouper Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill4.5
*drool inducing guitar leads and wayward riffing. frequently spellbinding, this is one of the better records of the previous decade. Yay Liz.*
Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes3.0
Air France No Way Down4.0
A group of Swedes mix high flying syth lines, great samples, a little heart and some bass that resonate heat. I honestly would listen to 'No Way Down', 2008's best EP, to feel like it was summer. Regardless of the temp outside, I was on an island, sipping away on ritas. I've heard it described as "post-rave bliss", and it's quite fitting. They fill their lush electronics, with full horn sections, great vocal samples and beautiful strings plus, the whistle on 'June Evenings' is where it's at.
The Ting Tings We Started Nothing1.0
Mates of State Re-Arrange Us2.5
Islands Arm's Way3.5
The Cool Kids The Bake Sale3.5
Death Cab for Cutie Narrow Stairs3.0
It's ok, well, the first 3 tracks and 'Your New Twin Sized Bed' are great, but everything else here is general Death Cab. Now that would be ok, if the instrumentation was a tight as it was on say 'The Photo Album' or 'Something About Airplanes', but even 'Plans' outplays this album. Gibbard's fantastic voice can't save him from imploding into his own sappy lyrics and the plastic encasing his band's tunes. 'Narrow Stairs' is a confusing and sometimes frustrating journey, but it's hardly a bad one. 'I Will Posses Your Heart' almost sells the whole thing, but sadly, DC decided, in the end, regardless of what they may want us to think, to play it safe.
Animal Collective Water Curses3.0
Another Animal Collective LP, another subsequent EP where the title track is the shit and everything else is filler. Woo.
No Age Nouns3.0
The Roots Rising Down3.5
The Roots on autopilot, thankfully autopilot = dark, dense, brooding, amazing hip hop. They don't top 'Game Theory', their 2nd best, but they do push themselves into a new area of sound that is at least as intriguing. 'Rising Down' offers up something somewhat new from the Roots, an ass load of distortion, each of 'Rising Down's songs are washed in it, they sound akin to listening to them as they play underground. It's pretty f'in cool. Thought's lines aren't as tight as before, but thankfully this is no 'The Tipping Point'. Granted, he does rhyme 'nigga' like 50 times on '75 Bars', but at least it's surrounded by a seemingly huge and inexistent, thick bass line. It plays to 'Rising Down', Black Thought may not always be hot, but ?uestlove and the rest of them will be damned if they're not on fire. The instrumentation on 'Rising Down' is enough to make this one of the best hip-hop albums of this year, thankfully Thought is still tight and their guests have honestly just gotten better (Mos Def, Peedi Peedi and Dice Raw slay), but Malik B is seriously missed. If they were smart, they'd just keep him around all the time, because it seems to work out all the time (see: Things Fall Apart & Game Theory).
Santigold Santogold4.0
So, this album is righteous, in the fullest sense of the word. 30 something, ex punk band singer(chick) living in NYC(via PA), DIY's a badass solo debut. She mixes mod rock, dub, reggae, electronica, punk and tops it off with a nice helping of distortion. Did I forget to mention she's badass? Or downright crazy? In cuts like 'L.E.S. Astistes' she hopes her art/career "will be worth what I give up" as she tries to "stand up for the things that she believes". While in "Creator"('Santogold's 2nd best) she exclaims she is just that(an artist? a god? whothefuckcares.); "setting friction to this bitch, creepin in just like an itch", by the end you're apt to take her word for it. This is of course after the songs mingling tribal beat and bird like cries in the beginning have already dropped and exploded into a bad bass line and a booming beat. By booming I mean 'Creator' will rock the shit out of any trunk you got, son. 'Creator' is followed by the acid washed 'My Superman', which is then followed by the high flying mod rock of 'Lights Out'. This is really where 'Santogold' pulls itself past the crowd. She seems to move effortlessly between styles, and she varies it up enough to keep every song interesting. Yes there are the "dub songs", and the "mod songs" and the "electronic bouncers", but they are all pretty separate from one another. Distinct in their own way, each track showing prowess in a differnt aspect of musical composition, plus they all rock, so, kudos lady.
Portishead Third4.5
'Third' is not only a reinvention of the genre (trip hop), but a logical progression for a set of some forefathers and that�s after only a 10+ year hiatus . 'Third' is less a return to form as it is a reminder of quality, quality that Portishead have always held themselves to, and it just so happens they took their damn time to remind us of just how viable they are(were). 'Third' is not the same Portishead, they've moved from the lounge club to the movie screen, crafting soundtrack gems that always manage to be as terribly frightening as they are beautiful. And Beth Gibbons, let it be said her voice has aged wonderfully, she masterfully sings over bombast beats (Silence, Machine Gun, We Carry On), acoustic strums (Small, The Rip) and even sways her way through the surf rock of 'Deep Water'. Her voice has deepened, she sounds heftier, weathered, less kitsch and naive, but this plays to her as all kinds of new strength. On cuts like 'Machine Gun' who's unsettling beat alone could be enough to turn some listeners away at first, that's before Beth grabs a hold of it, and matched with her croons it somehow becomes gorgeous. Or check 'The Rip' and it's slow build before it explodes from a great synth line to electronic bliss -- Gibbon's lights up giving her best performance on record. Exclaiming: "Wild white horses/They will take me away" leaving her mundane imagery behind for a little hope is an example of 'Third's core. A little darkness leads way to the light.
Tokyo Police Club Elephant Shell3.5
So, logical progression from 'A Lesson in Crime'? Yes. Is it good? Oh hell yeah, 30 minutes of bliss, awesome guitar work, still spacey and synth soaked, and Dave Monk's voice has got all it's Casablancas power and frustration. Could they have made a better record? With out a doubt. But doesn't mean that 'Elephant Shell' is anything less than f'in sweet. 'Sixties Remake' & "The Harrowing Adventures of...' are they only really weak tracks here, and that's only if you're being nit-picky. It's just you've heard it all before -- but with all these boring additions it somehow sums up into something quite interesting and re playable.
Flight of the Conchords Flight of the Conchords4.0
The Brian Jonestown Massacre My Bloody Underground2.0
Frightened Rabbit The Midnight Organ Fight4.0
M83 Saturdays=Youth3.0
Titus Andronicus The Airing of Grievances4.5
I wouldn't really call 'The Airing of Grievances' an album as much as a collection of 9 arguments, and front man Patrick Stickles is more giving a first-hand account than "singing". He yelps and screams over most of Titus Andronicus' debut disc, which is a gem of indie-emo self loathing, too smart for my surroundings (New Jersey!) bliss. His band mates do a very ample job of booming and blasting around his scream, twanging away on their guitars and smashing their drums and piano keys. Stickle's lyrics convey a hurt man, he may scream the odd "We can betray each other in dreams every night." Or "What could be the harm?/What a six week vacation from the use of my right arm?". Or maybe a chant of "Do do do do/Do do do do/Fuck everything/Fu-uck Me." Stickles is pissed sure, at himself, at god, at his parents, at the institutions he was forced to attend; but honestly, while he plays music, you couldn't tell. He couldn't be happier, even as his cries become blood curdling. It really shows in the band's music, it's fast (for the most part), fist pumping, chant worthy; it just so happens to be that their lead singer kinda sounds like Conor Oberst and he kinda whines a little. But whatever, they could give a fuck less, and that's why Titus succeed. 'Grievances' sounds like it was recorded in a submarine on shitty lowfi mics, as Stickles was in the next room screaming his lungs out. But this sound is fleshed out, real, and it works for them. They may be angry and bitter, but Titus Andronicus don't skip on the life affirming pop with a debut to be reckoned with.
Tapes 'n Tapes Walk It Off2.0
Fleet Foxes Sun Giant4.0
Cut Copy In Ghost Colours4.5
Cut Copy are more live action electronica I guess, they use real instruments, and they may perform with a load of people on stage, but this means each song really has like 3 separate back beats. It's pretty tight when you break it down, not to mention the infusion of shoegaze and samples only adds to the melodic quality of each song. For all of 'In Ghost Colours' bangers ('Feel the Love', 'Lights and Music', 'Hearts on Fire', 'Far Away', 'So Haunted' & 'Nobody Lost, Nobody Found') they have some straight up beautiful tracks. 'We Fight for Diamonds', 'Unforgettable Season' and 'Midnight Runner' are a gorgeous suite in the mid section merging you between the organic beginning & the sample full, pure electronic finish. 'Midnight Runner' is brimming with pretty fuzz as it fades into the beat of 'Unforgettable Season' which calls out to a lover to remain faithful during the distance. 'Midnight Runner' comes in softly with a warped beat and a guitar strumming as Whitford croons 'It's a secret I've been keeping from you' a few times as the song builds into a flowing beat and piano. It's all those little things that give 'In Ghost Colours' it's edge, it's tangible, you feel Whitford as he sings and yelps and you live in his beats as they beg you to get down.
The Breeders Mountain Battles3.0
Clinic Do it!3.5
The Long Blondes Couples3.5
A solid follow up to equally as solid debut. The songs may have rocked harder before and the writing could have done with more quick quips and flowing narratives. but hey -- at least it's cohesive this time. The Long Blondes are able to keep their feet firmly planted in the post-punk that got them through 'Some One to Drive You Home' so successfully, and allow their hands to dabble around. The pulp they find this time is not mod life or 50s nostalgia, but lush lounge grooves and electro-pop of the disco floor. Kate Jackson's laissez faire croon spurt out tales of modern romance, nearly all soar, some fall flat on their face, but most of the time "Couples" is a little number that just keeps you coming back for more -- even though you know you shouldn't.
Los Campesinos! Hold On Now, Youngster...4.0
What could've been a haphazard mix of indie pop, punk spirit and a heap of distortion ends up working out as an well crafted, insightful album. Los Campesinos! hold true their roots, embracing much of what made their genre enjoyable in the first place, this being said nothing here is fantastically original. They just play to their strengths, handle themselves with class and honestly don't craft a single bad track on this album. 'Death to Los Campesinos!' starts of 'Youngster' strong & EP winners 'Don't Tell Me to Do the Math(s)' & 'You! Me! Dancing!' hold up as album highlights. Though the crown goes to '...And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison'. With pop sensibility, tight, intelligent song writing and the best tongue-in-cheek spirit seen in a while, 'Hold On Now, Youngster...' is an extremely strong debut.
Peter Bjorn and John Living Thing2.5
PB&J come back with all the heart, but this time they seem to have forgot the tunes. 'Living Thing' is about as interesting as tofu -- as a slug -- or maybe a rock. Basically every song, no matter what the intention of it might be, trugs along with an annoying ebb and flow that does nothing but bore the shit out of you. Even when they almost get it (I Want You!, Lay It Down, Stay This Way), the songs still seem to get lost in their own 'experimentation'. By that I mean a boring blast of distorted vocals here, or a total lack of a rhythm (section) in the song there. A hiccup in an otherwise great catalog of music, 'Living Thing' is the Swedish groups certifiable dud, and here's to their next outing having a bit more longevity and spirit than 'Living Thing'
Guilty Simpson Ode to the Ghetto3.5
The Middle East The Recordings of the Middle East3.5
Be Your Own Pet Get Awkward3.0
'Get Awkward' is good, no doubt about that. That is of course if you're down for BYOP's style of punk rawk with a little jammy/indie flair mix it all around Jemina Pearl's southern fried spunk and snarl and you've got yourself a hell of an album. Kind of...I mean you had a hell of an album, with their self-title debut. 'Get Awkward' sees the same slick riffs (a lot slicker than anyone this young should be putting out), an unquenchable punk spirit and, well, immense disdain for at least one boy in particular, but it can't hold it all together as well. 'BYOP's strengths were found in it's tongue-in-cheek lyrics, powerhouse guitar work and a nice dose of punk chord crunch. It's all still here, it's just not as new, fresh, or interesting. They seem to overcook it sometimes ('You're a Waste', 'What's Your Damage'), or not cook it enough ('Food Fight') , but I mean, then there's always the fist 9 tracks which are solid as hell. And Pearl's voice/scream/snarl can still carry the band on it's own, thankfully her backing band kicks major ass, so, she needn't worry.
The Dodos Visiter3.5
Destroyer Trouble In Dreams3.5
DeVotchKa A Mad & Faithful Telling4.0
Devotcka, a Denver group of Mexican/Eastern European Gypsies (lol, no) put out their 2nd best album with their 4th effort. 'A Mad and Faithful Telling' is a little less epic, and a little shorter than their previous, better, effort, but it still floors. 'Brasso Profundo' starts off 'Telling' with a bang, it's violins and Spanish guitar floating over the bouncing upright base as Theo Urata cries out for his fellow revolutionaries. Now this is not very alien to them, it's the mid song jam out they do before picking it right back up again to finish off. The song shows right away that this is no 'How It Ends', and really is better for it. Had they just rehashed their Little Miss Sunshine album, it would've been a waste, they dig deep into their southwestern influences and Urata digs into his theme of a South American revolutionary. Their form of bouncy gypsy punk works best on songs like 'Clockwise Witness' and 'Undone' and their 'No Cars Go' remake of 'Head Honcho' bears similar results. The slower songs like 'New World', 'Blessing in Disguise' and 'Along the Way' shine as highlights while Urata croons and cries over beautiful string, horn and bell arrangements. Urata also has that voice -- and their drummer is boss; mm mmm good.
Elbow The Seldom Seen Kid3.5
Rick Ross Trilla1.5
Snoop Dogg Ego Trippin'3.0
Why? Alopecia3.5
Hercules and Love Affair Hercules and Love Affair4.5
Well looks like I misjudged another one. This lush, beautiful piece of modern dance music is nothing less than flooring. Mixing disco flair with a taste for soul and free jazz rarely used so well in modern electronica, Andrew Butler and his bandmates create a masterpiece. mixing infectious grooves, heart warming "ballads", and some straight up bangers that will get even the most rigid Jane and John shaking their asses. 'Hercules Theme' is the clear winner here, but nothing is short of amazing. It may take repeated listens but what gives 'Hercules and Love Affair' it's legs is that beyond all things, these tracks are purely danceable. Add the fact that they're gorgeous, fully realized pieces of music with a defined, interesting narrative and the singers slay -- it is pretty much that good.
A Weather Cove3.5
Lykke Li Youth Novels4.0
Adele 191.5
Beach House Devotion4.5
Goldfrapp Seventh Tree3.5
Well...wow, ok didn't see this coming. Honestly I expected another heaping pile of electronic bullshit with a few awesome tracks hidden beneath the sonic vomit. I was wrong! It's pretty awesome. The electronic acoustic sound Goldfrapp has adopted for 'Seventh Tree' shines through out. 'Clowns' mutters in an out of beautiful, barely discernible verses, while 'Caravan Girl' and 'Cologne Cerrone Houdini' find them adopting an almost vast/epic feel unseen in any other Goldfrapp LP. Plus 'Eat Yourself' is fucking awesome. They got more laid back, though I'm not sure how exactly, but it works tremendously. A truly beautiful album, with few missteps, but few innovations as well.
Atlas Sound Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See...3.0
Average noise
That's it.
Good for some occasions, but, even then, there's better.
'Scraping Past' & 'Small Horror' are pretty good, while the first 6 tracks are pretty much trash. It's an alright experiment and could be pretty cool live...maybe.
Drake So Far Gone3.5
Laura Marling Alas, I Cannot Swim3.5
The Mars Volta The Bedlam in Goliath3.5
Yyyesss!! It doesn't suck, oh man, thank god this time it doesn't suck. 'Ilyena', 'Calvalettes' and 'Soothsayer' are actually some of the tightest Volta tracks ever. 'Bedlam' much like 'Frances' has the tendency to jam the fuck out on the distortion, but not in a good way, in more of a stupid white noise way; and unlike 'FTM' everything else isn't absolutely killer. The first two tracks are alright and the mid section starts to drag out a bit. But, at least it's a great LP.
The Flashbulb Soundtrack to a Vacant Life3.5
Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend4.0
Replay, replay, replay. There ya go, that's why this biatch works. Slick rips of Police style vocals/riffs mixed with some understated strings and a nice Afro twist - Vampire Weekend are pretty sweet. Too bad a good chunk of the album sounds all like the same song/verse/gimmick. It's pretty good though, regardless -- and the album kicks it up substantially after 'M79' and the last three tracks almost make up for everything on the album, but not quite.
Have a Nice Life Deathconsciousness3.0
Times New Viking Rip It Off4.0
Soundtrack (Film) Juno2.5
Junkie XL Booming Back At You2.0
His beats became repetitive, his interlays asinine and his voice recordings/samples are just plain aggravating now. He sounds like he sought out to make another 'bombastic, booming classic! yeah!', but instead the Dutchman collapsed under his own weight. Just see him live, or get 'Big Sounds of the Drags'.
Women Women4.0

2007
Lupe Fiasco The Cool4.0
Wu-Tang Clan 8 Diagrams3.5
Wyclef Jean The Carnival Volume II (Memoirs of an Immigrant)2.5
the difference between Carnival I & II is a crevasse about as wide as the one separating 'The Last Crusade' from 'The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.'
Daft Punk Alive 20074.5
Jay-Z American Gangster4.0
Grizzly Bear Friend3.0
Burial Untrue4.0
Puscifer "V" Is For Vagina1.0
I would go so far as to say I'm a Tool fan, and that I have been for a while. I was one of those nerds buying 'Lateralus' on the day it came out, prompted from my 12th and 13th years of life where 'Undertow' and 'Anemia' were in heavy rotation. I even went so far as to pick up every Maynard side project I could and I would even call myself a fan of A Perfect Circle. Recently though I've acquired his Pussifer albums and to quote Sean Rizzo from our very own Sputnik review (*ahem*): 'unless borderline spoken word vocals fronting repetitive and primitive beats tickles your fancy, the album is a complete bore fest.'
They don't
He's right,
this album is atrocious.
Nicole Atkins Neptune City3.5
Muscles Guns Babes Lemonade2.5
Yeasayer All Hour Cymbals4.0
Jimmy Eat World Chase This Light2.0
Radiohead In Rainbows4.5
Now 'In Rainbows' has risen from the pile of shit that is a lot of modern music to remind us what we should expect (demand?) from our artists. Not a single track is wasted,('Bodysnatchers', 'All I Need', 'Jigsaw Falling Into Place' & 'Reckoner' being highlights). Best part? There's no 'downside' here, there's no filler, and they still manage to sound distinctly like themselves, but still a drastic change from their previous effort. Problem? No -- It's all gravy.
Jens Lekman Night Falls Over Kortedala3.0
Band of Horses Cease to Begin3.0
Sunset Rubdown Random Spirit Lover3.5
MGMT Oracular Spectacular3.0
The Most Serene Republic Population3.5
Running with the success of 'Underwater Cinematographer', MSR add a little Flaming Lips, & a lot of Polyphonic Spree for their second record, 'Population'. Still wearing their influences on their sleeves, proudly at that, it almost makes it forgivable that their sound is really a culmination of many of their contemporaries. It all adds up to a fantastic end product though, somehow, I'm really still not sure how. 'Population' boasts it's BSS and New Pornographer song style with flair, and two lead singers that pretty much sound exactly like Ben Gibbard and Amy Milian -- and yet they're able to find a sound that is distinctly them. The swooping melodies, jazzy interludes/drumming and varied vocals give the Republic something of their own, independent of their peers. Their musicianship really isn't where their weakness lies, they're quite good at layering sounds and their song composition at times is really fucking impressive (or just sweet) -- but man those lyrics get pretty vapid. Their heart is in the right place, 'Population' is full of fantastic alterations to suburban life, big brother, modern living and the quest for happiness. Then there are gems like 'Suffers breasts - and the dryness of climatic milk' - what the fuck guys? 'Population' is still a beast of a record, The Republic are able to sprawl over nearly an hour of flowing, fantastic tunes. Though sometimes, you just need a break.
Wintersleep Welcome To The Night Sky3.5
will.i.am Songs About Girls1.0
Foo Fighters Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace2.0
Welcome to the world of phoning in albums. This, much like 'In Your Honour',is just the Foos making another Foos album. Some acoustic songs, some harder rock ones, a few 'singles' here and there. Whatever, 'The Pretender' is bullshit. 'Summers End' and 'Ballad Of The Beaconsfield Miners' are the few redeemable tracks on this disc. I'm still not sure what the big deal is.
Stars In Our Bedroom After The War3.5
Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer Schematics3.5
Iron And Wine The Shepherd's Dog4.5
PJ Harvey White Chalk3.5
Kevin Drew Spirit If...4.0
Kevin Drew makes a break up album, that pretty much sounds like another Broken Social album -- but it's brilliant. 'Spirit If...' on it's own is hardly a Kevin Drew album, it's still created much in the vein of his other band (who technically "present" this record). A bunch of established artists come together to create some all around rock goodness. But something about it all seems distinctly him, like no one else could create this sound, it all comes back to Kevin Drew. 'Farewell to the Pressure Kids', 'Tbtf', 'Fucked Up Kid' are on spot BSS tracks, while 'Safety Bricks' and 'Lucky Ones' sound like a nice mix of The Boss and Dinosaur Jr. All the tracks here are stand out, though as a whole, the album can run a bit long (66 mins) and Drew's ideas at times, can't be saved from his own eccentric experimentation. Other times, it's just that which makes it beautiful.
Les Savy Fav Let's Stay Friends4.5
And to think I spent the better half of my teenage years seeing and hating these fools. Brooklyn by way of Rhode Island art-punk stalwarts, Les Savy Fav drop their, late Flaming Lips, meets early Talking Heads, post-punk-hardcore-twee masterpiece with 'Let's Stay Friends'.
A Place to Bury Strangers A Place to Bury Strangers3.5
Soundtrack (Film) Across the Universe1.0
Excuse me while I take a big shit all over the years and years of tried and true accomplishment of this group of musicians.
Wait? Someone already did?
Oh...
Flobots Fight with Tools1.5
Film School Hideout2.5
Kanye West Graduation3.0
Kanye created a shambled masterpiece -- at his worst lyrically but his best song composition by far. The risks he takes with his production seemingly make up for the fact that his writing, is well, not great. Realistically though, did you really appreciate Ye for his writing in the first place? No, you appreciate Mr. West because he creates sonic masterpieces, overall songs, and there's yet to be a single person in modern music that can do it better.
Gang Gang Dance RAWWAR3.0
The Go! Team Proof of Youth4.0
Fun and uplifting, The Go! Team strike again! Really though, quality album, still a controlled mess of sheer pop rapture, but this time around they seem a bit more tangible. I guess that's what happens when your kitchen sink project turns into an actual band. Though when you have a slew of quality guests, and Ninja at your helm, there's a certain quality to be expected, luckily they deliver. These songs sound like they could be done live to a resounding success -- which is why, on a whole, Proof Of Youth will rock you particularly hard.
Dirty Projectors Rise Above4.0
What could have easily been a bullshit phone it, comes out breathing new life into a classic. Though not really too similar to Black Flag's 'Damaged', save lyrical similarities, 'Rise Above' is still, a faithful re imagination of the hardcore classic. The Projector's Dave Longstreth wails and quivers his way around 'Rise Above', and at first, it's his off putting voice that is the albums biggest detractor. The tripled choir of female voices that join Longstreth's particular croon is nothing but a delightful break and really a fantastic contrast. Its in this that the Projector's really sell 'Rise Above', amongst it's awry guitar twangs and walls of distortion, a certain balance and groove is found in the vocals. The brash, almost annoying voice of Longstreth is compliment by the softer choir of women and in turn his voice really becomes quite beautiful. 'What I See', 'No More', 'Depression', 'Gimme Gimme Gimme' are standouts on a fantastic retread.
Animal Collective Strawberry Jam4.5
in person, 'fireworks' and '#1' are transcendental.
G-Side Sumthin 2 Hate4.0
Black Kids Wizard Of Ahhhs2.5
Liars Liars4.0
Talib Kweli Eardrum3.0
M.I.A. Kala4.0
Fauxliage Fauxliage3.0
Architecture In Helsinki Places Like This2.0
Blargh, what the fuck happened? Now I understand that 'In Case We Die' is a mixed bag for most -- for me is was a damn near perfect experience. I even really really enjoy some 'Fingers Crossed' and it's twee goodness from time to time, but 'Places Like These' is without a doubt, by far, the biggest disappointment of '07 for me. Album starts off pretty well too, 'Red Turned White' is a pretty good Architecture song, 'Heart it Races' is easily one of their strongest tracks ever -- then it stops, then it's shit.
UGK UGK (Underground Kingz)3.5
Flight of the Conchords The Distant Future4.0
The New Pornographers Challengers3.0
Yellowcard Paper Walls2.0
The Smashing Pumpkins Zeitgeist1.5
Reel Big Fish Monkeys for Nothin' and The Chimps...2.5
Interpol Our Love to Admire3.0
Spoon Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga4.0
St. Vincent Marry Me4.0
Justice †4.5
Kidcrash Jokes4.5
Bon Iver For Emma, Forever Ago3.5
Velvet Revolver Libertad1.5
T.I. T.I. vs. T.I.P.3.0
Los Campesinos! Sticking fingers Into Sockets4.0
The Chemical Brothers We Are the Night3.0
Metric Grow Up and Blow Away3.5
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Is Is4.5
This may be the best stuff the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have put out. Something about this just strikes me right, 'Rockers to Swallow' and 'Kiss Kiss' just bite, while 'Down Boy' and 'Isis' are dark and cavernous. Karen O sounds her best, ever really, while Zinner and Chase pretty much keep pace with O. High hopes for the up coming album.
The White Stripes Icky Thump3.0
Paramore Riot!2.5
Paul McCartney Memory Almost Full3.0
Stars Do You Trust Your Friends?1.0
The Bravery The Sun and the Moon1.0
The National Boxer3.5
Gang Gang Dance Retina Riddim3.5
White Rabbits Fort Nightly4.5
A wonderful blend of Ska and Indie rock The White Rabbits look to take you back to the time of Model T's and Great Gatsbys -- trust me it works. The Rabbits are able to handle this interesting concept by packing each one of their superbly composed, instantly catchy songs with more depth and drama than most artist fit into a multitude of LPs. By the time you reach 'March of the Camels', Fort Nightly's stand out track, you think the Rabbit's have pulled out all the stops...very very wrong. If the rest of the album wasn't convincing enough, 'Camels' is masterfully layered and blisteringly catchy. Did I mention cool as hell? Check the creepy kid choir on the chorus.
Wilco Sky Blue Sky3.0
Battles Mirrored4.0
Badass robot rock, Battles clearly crafted something all their own here. Acceding past their 'math rock' confines, they are able to transcend the cliches found in their genre of choice and really etch their own spot in modern music. Evolving their sound from early, instrumental, EPs and giving Tyondai Braxton's 'vocals' a dominant presence, they've created a nice musical balance amongst all their beeps, effects and single string plucking. Mostly indeterminable, Braxton's voice is more machine than man, going through a mess of filters before finally reaching the speakers. Thankfully, it only adds to the robotic feel they handle so well, plus John Stanier is a maniac drummer. 'Race In' - 'Atlas' - 'Rainbow' and 'Leyendecker' are personal favorites. They jam out a bit at times, and it's never quick. Sometimes the music just tends to mesh together, but more often then not it just astounds.
Linkin Park Minutes to Midnight1.5
This is one of the stupidest albums I've ever heard. Their songwriting has become extremely base, and well, the chug-chug guitar after a while becomes very grinding. Nothing is a worthwhile listen, the only reason this shit floats even a little bit is the slick production, and I'm not exactly sure the Rubin Touch really made this better.
Bjork Volta3.5
1990s Cookies2.5
Feist The Reminder3.5
Frog Eyes Tears of the Valedictorian3.5
The Nightwatchman One Man Revolution1.5
Joanna Newsom Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band3.0
Arctic Monkeys Favourite Worst Nightmare4.0
CocoRosie The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillbo1.0
The Rosebuds Night of the Furies3.0
Blonde Redhead 234.5
A ridiculously strong album from a very very good band. Blonde Redhead have been running on over a decade of already amazing material and then culminate all their influences into a single, different entity from anything else they've produced. There's not a single weak track here, the opener '23' is the stand out, by far, but nothing else really falls far behind -- it's all pretty amazing. Adopting a prominent shoegaze aspect tacked on to their already rough Sonic Youth like sound, mixed with the atmospheric, deep mood rock of 'Misery Is a Butterfly' (their best until '23') they create something quite beautiful an unique. I guess you could call '23' a shoegaze album, most tracks, even the dance cuts, reek of MBV, Ride & Slowdive, and really, sometimes they're better than all 3. Very small stretches of course, but it's those pristine highs that bring '23' it's lasting effect and efficient hook that keeps you coming back.
Timbaland Timbaland Presents Shock Value2.0
The Field From Here We Go Sublime2.0
The Twilight Sad Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters4.5
Completely miscalculated this one too -- I seem to be making a habit of that recently. *shrugs* More to come soon, but safe to say there's more to "Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters', than wah-wah guitar, distortion, Grahams gorgeous yelp and Post-Rock grandeur. Tho The Twilight Sad will be damned if they let you know that.
Gowns Red State4.0
Kaiser Chiefs Yours Truly, Angry Mob1.5
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists Living With the Living3.0
Stephen Marley Mind Control3.5
Modest Mouse We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank4.0
El-P I'll Sleep When You're Dead4.0
LCD Soundsystem Sound of Silver4.0
Panda Bear Person Pitch5.0
Bright Eyes Four Winds3.0
Arcade Fire Neon Bible4.5
If 'Funeral' was a masterpiece of youth, hope and family, 'Neon Bible' is The Arcade Fire's declaration of maturity and loss -- thankfully the spark is still there. The Fire bombast through out 'Neon Bible' with images of lost humanity, and a desolate future, outcries for action and reformation before we're overtaken by our own weight...some crazy shit. Though comparatively, the Fire were more joyous and bouncy on their last release, the deep dark caverns of 'Neon Bible's more reserved yet grand style shine through the wash and distortion that covers it's sound. There's something to be said though, with the loss of their youthfulness (only on record thankfully), something always feels a bit empty about it all. Not enough to detract from all the highlights of an absolutely fantastic album.
The Horrors Strange House2.0
Air Pocket Symphony2.5
!!! Myth Takes3.0
Explosions in the Sky All of a Sudden, I Miss Everyone3.0
Eluvium Copia4.0
The Besnard Lakes The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse4.5
Do Make Say Think You, You're a History in Rust4.0
I was reluctant as first to pick this up, the I heard 'The Universe!' and well that's all it took. Brooding, dark, and yet epic and glistening Do Make Say Think have crafted a fantastic album.
Deerhunter Cryptograms3.5
Lily Allen Alright, Still4.0
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Some Loud Thunder4.0
Field Music Tones of Town3.5
Animal Collective People3.0
Deerhoof Friend Opportunity3.0
The Good, The Bad and The Queen The Good, The Bad & The Queen3.5
of Montreal Icons, Abstract Thee3.5
of Montreal Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?4.0
The Shins Wincing the Night Away4.0
Menomena Friend And Foe4.5
The Magnetic Fields Distortion4.0
Lifehouse Who We Are1.0
The Raveonettes Lust Lust Lust3.5
The Cool Kids Totally Flossed Out EP3.5
Tiesto In Search of Sunrise 3: Panama3.5
Times New Viking Present the Paisley Reich3.5
Sambassadeur Migration3.5
Lil Wayne Da Drought 34.0

2006
Nas Hip Hop Is Dead3.5
Incubus (USA-CA) Light Grenades3.0
Clipse Hell Hath No Fury4.5
Jay-Z Kingdom Come2.5
Snoop Dogg Tha Blue Carpet Treatment3.0
Swan Lake Beast Moans4.0
The Beatles Love4.0
Oasis Stop the Clocks2.5
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead So Divided1.5
Tenacious D The Pick of Destiny3.0
Foo Fighters Skin and Bones3.0
Joanna Newsom Ys2.5
The Long Blondes Someone To Drive You Home3.5
Ponytail Kamehameha3.5
Various Artists (Hip Hop) Eminem Presents: The Re-Up1.0
Amy Winehouse Back to Black2.0
My Chemical Romance The Black Parade3.0
Shiny Toy Guns We Are Pilots3.5
Cold War Kids Robbers and Cowards3.5
Fucked Up Hidden World4.0
Jet Shine On1.5
Evanescence The Open Door3.0
The Hold Steady Boys and Girls in America4.0
Beach House Beach House4.0
Tycho Past is Prologue4.0
The Killers Sam's Town1.5
Emily Haines and the Soft Skeleton Knives Don't Have Your Back3.5
Lupe Fiasco Food & Liquor4.5
Yo La Tengo I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass3.5
Brazilian Girls Talk to La Bomb4.0
TV on the Radio Return to Cookie Mountain5.0
Bat For Lashes Fur and Gold4.0
The Mars Volta Amputechture2.5
Justin Timberlake FutureSex/LoveSounds3.0
Audioslave Revelations2.0
Grizzly Bear Yellow House4.5
It takes no less than the first minute of 'Yellow House' to see that Grizzly Bear have stripped themselves down from their 'recorded in a submarine' sound to something more palpable, but no less expansive, cavernous and beautiful.
Said minute, which belongs to the opener 'Easier' is nothing other than gorgeous, a few chords and piano chimes fade into a nice acoustic/hummed rhythm. Then the 40th second hits, and 'Easier' opens wide into an expansive, glorious tunnel of sound. The song continues, it's a flood of folky-spacey pop accompanied by any number of guitars, drums, pianos, banjos, synth boards -- it's pretty amazing. 'Easier' is a standout (along with 'Knife', 'On a Neck, On a Spit', 'Little Brother' and 'Colorado'), and it would be easy to judge the rest of the album based on this track, but it would be a waste. Grizzly Bear transcend the usual freak-folk, star-pop and indie-rock cliches and build, an immediate, yet reserved -- expansive, yet focused, beautiful but albeit disjointed masterpiece with 'Yellow House'.
The Roots Game Theory5.0
Stars of Track and Field Centuries Before Love and War2.5
Teddybears Soft Machine3.0
Easy Star All Stars Radiodread3.5
OutKast Idlewild3.5
Kelis Kelis Was Here3.5
Reel Big Fish Our Live Album Is Better Than Your Live 4.0
Ratatat Classics4.0
The Thermals The Body, The Blood, The Machine4.5
The closest this Yeti can get to a religious experience now that the old gods boarded the ghost-clipper and sailed it into the tempest maelstrom. Good stuff.
Rick Ross Port of Miami1.5
Breaking Benjamin Phobia2.0
Lil Wayne Dedication 23.5
Monty Are I Wall Of People3.5
The Knife Silent Shout4.5
Peaches Impeach My Bush1.0
CSS Cansei de Ser Sexy2.5
Muse Black Holes & Revelations3.0
Thom Yorke The Eraser3.5
Lostprophets Liberation Transmission1.5
Sonic Youth Rather Ripped4.0
AFI Decemberunderground3.0
Camera Obscura Let's Get Out of This Country3.0
Boards of Canada Trans Canada Highway4.0
Asobi Seksu Citrus4.5
I stupidly wrote this off as average for quite a long time. Then I sat down, and gave it some deserved spins.
wow.
one day Ill probably bump this up again.
Phoenix (FRA) It's Never Been Like That4.0
Less Than Jake In with the Out Crowd2.0
Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium3.0
Girl Talk Night Ripper4.0
Serena Maneesh Serena-Maneesh4.5
DeVotchKa Curse Your Little Heart 4.0
Tool 10,000 Days3.0
Sunset Rubdown Shut Up I Am Dreaming3.0
Gnarls Barkley St. Elsewhere4.0
Tokyo Police Club A Lesson in Crime3.5
I'm From Barcelona Let Me Introduce My Friends3.5
Buckcherry Fifteen2.0
The Streets The Hardest Way To Make An Easy Living2.5
The Flaming Lips At War with the Mystics3.5
Islands Return To The Sea3.5
T.I. King3.5
Ghostface Killah Fishscale4.0
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Show Your Bones3.5
Be Your Own Pet Be Your Own Pet4.0
We're on two wheels baby! Rawk Out!!
At least that's what Be Your Own Pet would hope(demand) of us. And with this clusterfuck of sound that is their debut, BYOP find a nice niche for themselves. It's just a question of if you appreciate that niche or not. Armed with a young punk spirit, bad ass instrumentation, a long play into a tongue-in-cheek and, well, Ms. Jemina Pearl, these kid's are looking to knock you onto your ass. Let it be their extremely loud sound, or Pearl's extremely dirty mouth, BYOP are out to attract a little attention, as well they should. They've got some shit to say (albeit sometimes it can be a bit stupid...) -- but maybe it won't hurt to listen just a little. I mean lines like 'Have fun and be safe with it -- Just kidding! Fuck shit up!' probably couldn't fly if BYOP saw themselves as god's next gift to rock and roll. A little pulp here and there is alright, which exactly what BYOP are all about. Stop taking yourself so seriously, chill the fuck out, and enjoy being young/allow the youth to have their fun. Simple.
Mates of State Bring it Back2.5
Band of Horses Everything All the Time3.5
My Chemical Romance Life on the Murder Scene2.0
Destroyer Destroyer's Rubies4.0
Liars Drum's Not Dead4.5
Belle and Sebastian The Life Pursuit4.0
Eels Eels With Strings - Live At Town Hall3.5
Yellowcard Lights and Sounds3.0
Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not3.0
The Strokes First Impressions of Earth3.0
Ludacris Release Therapy1.5
Cold War Kids Up In Rags3.0
The Radio Dept. Pet Grief3.5

2005
Lil Wayne The Dedication3.0
Lil Wayne Tha Carter II4.0
Fort Minor The Rising Tied2.5
Jens Lekman Oh You're So Silent Jens3.0
Radiohead The Astoria London Live (DVD)3.5
Tapes 'n Tapes The Loon3.5
Lightning Bolt Hypermagic Mountain4.0
Animal Collective Feels5.0
Easily my favorite Collective release, and the album that put me to bed many nights in 2006, 'Feels' is breathtaking. Leaving behind the mess of folk craziness(genius?) that was 'Sung Tongs', they go for focus and pop sensibility over washy Beach Boys inspired melodies and experimental mayhem. 'Did You See The Words', 'Grass','Banshee Beat' and 'The Purple Canoe' bring in the albums brilliant, well crafted, lively first half, which is pure bliss. 'Bees' serves as a mild, almost mono tone transfer into the albums fantastic, second portion. That is where 'Feels' really shines, the ballads in the albums later minutes, 'Banshee Beat', 'Daffy Duck' are memorizing and absolutely gorgeous. While 'Turn into Something' fades out of it's acoustic strums, horse neighs and swirls of distortion into whispery melodies and croons to end what truly is a frantic pop masterpiece.
Boards of Canada The Campfire Headphase4.0
The Cardigans Super Extra Gravity4.0
Deerhoof The Runners Four3.5
Broken Social Scene Broken Social Scene4.5
Metric Live It Out4.0
Bullet for My Valentine The Poison1.0
Panic! at the Disco A Fever You Can't Sweat Out1.0
Wolf Parade Apologies to the Queen Mary5.0
Mew And the Glass Handed Kites4.5
Coheed and Cambria From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness2.0
Paul Van Dyk The Politics of Dancing, Vol. 23.0
The Fray How to Save a Life1.0
Damian Marley Welcome To Jamrock4.0
Sigur Ros Takk...4.5
Death Cab for Cutie Plans3.0
Kanye West Late Registration4.5
Sambassadeur Sambassadeur3.0
The New Pornographers Twin Cinema4.5
Goldfrapp Supernature3.0
311 Don't Tread On Me1.5
Gang Gang Dance Hillulah3.0
Soundtrack (Film) Garden State2.5
James Blunt Back To Bedlam1.0
Felt (USA-MN) Felt 2: A Tribute to Lisa Bonet2.5
The Most Serene Republic Underwater Cinematographer3.0
Missy Elliott The Cookbook3.0
Dropkick Murphys The Warrior's Code4.0
Foo Fighters In Your Honor2.0
The Black Eyed Peas Monkey Business1.0
Coldplay X&Y2.0
The White Stripes Get Behind Me Satan2.5
Oasis Don't Believe the Truth3.0
The Raveonettes Pretty In Black3.0
Audioslave Out of Exile1.0
Common Be3.5
At the Drive-In This Station Is Non-Operational4.0
Gorillaz Demon Days4.5
Never have I been so unimpressed with an album upon first listen, I mean I heard this once, then just basically put it down for a solid month before even remotely flirting with the idea of giving it a second shot. I'm a fucking idiot. 'Demon Days' is fantastic, an eclectic mash of utter madness somehow organized into 15 tracks. Pretty much leaving behind whatever the Gorillaz were, Albarn and co. restructure this animated 'super group' into something truly quite unique. I mean the idea of mixing cool verses and hooks with some sick rhymes is hardly new, it's just few do it better than these guys here. Armed with Damon Albarn's own musical insanity and a slew of excellent guest stars, 'Demon Days' is a party album, introspective character piece and twisted/fun labor of love all at once. The album really doesn't falter from start to finish, every song seems in it's right place. It's successful as a whole, but at times can be a bit goofy, but 90% of the time, you can just roll with it and let 'Demon Days' have it's fun.
M.I.A. Arular4.5
Monty Are I The Red Shift3.5
System of a Down Mezmerize2.0
Weezer Make Believe1.5
It's hard at times, I feel, to write about albums that suck, mostly because, how much do you really have to listen before you realize, 'enough is enough'. Here, it took about 4 full listens and a handful of spins in a friends car before Weezer's 'Make Believe' was just too much. That being said, you know my experience with this album -- it sucks. 'Beverly Hills' was a sweet single, that's cool, but umm, where's the rest of this album? You call the remaining 11 tracks of utter bullshit songs? Damnit...you do. Well I guess I might I was just pop out the CD and toss it. Yep, and that's exactly what I did.
Dave Matthews Band Stand Up1.5
Gospel The Moon Is a Dead World4.5
Spoon Gimme Fiction4.5
Fall Out Boy From Under the Cork Tree1.5
The Hold Steady Separation Sunday3.5
The Receiving End of Sirens Between the Heart and the Synapse2.0
Ben Folds Songs for Silverman2.0
Eels Blinking Lights & Other Revelations4.0
Mike Jones Who Is Mike Jones?1.0
The National Alligator4.5
Reel Big Fish We're Not Happy 'Till You're Not Happy3.0
Gang Gang Dance God's Money4.5
The Bravery The Bravery1.5
Lifehouse Lifehouse1.5
cheesy and Lame. That's it really, they lost their sense of conviction. Wade's lyrics sound false and almost a farce of what they once were. Lifehouse made a 'Lifehouse Album', or, a standard adult contemp album. Snoozefest.
Queens of the Stone Age Lullabies to Paralyze2.0
Architecture In Helsinki In Case We Die4.5
Kaiser Chiefs Employment3.0
Daft Punk Human After All3.0
Stars Set Yourself On Fire4.5
Jack Johnson In Between Dreams3.5
The Mars Volta Frances the Mute4.0
Electric Six Senor Smoke3.0
Bloc Party Silent Alarm3.0
Brazilian Girls Brazilian Girls4.0
Roots Manuva Awfully Deep4.0
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead Worlds Apart2.0
Bright Eyes I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning2.0
M83 Before The Dawn Heals Us4.5
LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem3.5
CocoRosie Noah's Ark2.0
El Pus Hoodlum Rock, Vol. 13.0
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Clap Your Hands Say Yeah5.0
Modern Life Is War Witness4.5

2004
Ludacris The Red Light District2.5
Jay-Z and Linkin Park Collision Course1.0
T.I. Urban Legend3.0
Evanescence Anywhere But Home1.5
U2 How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb3.0
Snoop Dogg R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) - The Masterpiece3.5
Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer The Popsicle EP3.5
The Beatles The Capitol Albums, Vol. 14.0
Eminem Encore2.5
A Perfect Circle eMOTIVe1.0
I'm like
'lol, this poor excuse for a turd is an album?'
Maynard is like
'Yah dude, totally is the best cover album ever -- probably the best thing I've done'
Then he went off and formed Pussifer. Oops.
Kidcrash New Ruins2.5
Kings of Leon Aha Shake Heartbreak2.5
Grizzly Bear Horn of Plenty3.5
Brian Wilson Smile4.5
Autolux Future Perfect4.5
Robotic domination anyone? Nearly perfect, from start to finish. 'Turnstile Blues', 'Subzero Fun', 'Robots in the Garden' & 'Here Comes Everybody' are standouts in this twisted and twitchy mini masterpiece.
Le Tigre This Island2.0
Jimmy Eat World Futures2.5
Straylight Run Straylight Run2.0
The Blood Brothers Crimes4.0
Massive Attack Danny the Dog3.0
Fatboy Slim Palookaville3.0
DeVotchKa How It Ends4.5
Interpol Antics3.0
Talib Kweli The Beautiful Struggle3.5
Panda Bear Young Prayer4.0
Green Day American Idiot4.0
The Prodigy Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned2.5
Arcade Fire Funeral5.0
Modern Classic. That being said, it's arguable (mostly because I know many who would argue this), but in time I feel that 'Funeral' will shine through as a brilliant statement of loss, growth and family that cannot be denied. Beyond sheer song structure and power, 'Funeral', I feel, finds itself beyond the pack in ways of overall structure, and tone. The deep sadness in 'Une Annee Sans Lumiere' and 'In The Back Seat' is near heartbreaking. Just as the hope and wonder in 'Wake Up' and 'Neighborhood#2(Laika)' reach unheard heights. This, almost, 'legitimacy' tacked onto what would normally be 'pretty good' lyrics adds a sense of beauty and earnest. The Fire's overall musicianship soars as well, past all boundaries of 'Pop Music' to create something really quite gorgeous. They did it, really they fucking did.
Tiesto Parade Of The Athletes3.5
Menomena I Am The Fun Blame Monster!4.0
Frog Eyes The Folded Palm3.0
Destroyer Your Blues4.0
Bjork Medulla3.0
The Libertines The Libertines3.0
ATB No Silence3.5
Rilo Kiley More Adventurous4.0
The Roots The Tipping Point2.0
This was one of the stupidest records from one of hip-hops shining lights. 'Don't Say Nothing', 'Guns are Drawn' and 'Boom!' sound essentially like dumbed down Roots songs. Which if anything is worse than just being bad, they kind of just remind you of what you're missing in the first place. Everything else pretty much goes over as 'meh', boring beats and surprisingly lame rhymes. Nothing really fantastic, but at least some of the Roots signature laid back jazz & live music feel kind of hang around -- kind of.
The Fiery Furnaces Blueberry Boat2.5
Sparta Porcelain2.0
The Futureheads The Futureheads4.0
Breaking Benjamin We Are Not Alone2.0
Lil Wayne Tha Carter3.5
Midtown Forget What You Know2.0
Dungen Ta Det Lugnt4.0
Beastie Boys To the 5 Boroughs3.0
The Killers Hot Fuss3.0
My Chemical Romance Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge2.5
Velvet Revolver Contraband2.5
The Cardigans Long Gone Before Daylight3.5
Blonde Redhead Misery is a Butterfly4.5
The Thermals Fuckin' A3.0
Feist Let It Die3.5
Cut Copy Bright Like Neon Love3.5
Asobi Seksu Asobi Seksu3.5
To look back on this now after listening to both 'Citrus' and 'Hush' at length almost give's the New York shoegaze band a sense of history and place. Asobi Seksu's 2004 self titled debut presents a band with a clear set of skills and an honest vision but the lack of any direction. Tracks like opener 'I'm Happy But You Don't Like Me' or 'Walk On The Moon' present clear indications that band members Yuki Chikudate (vocals, keyboards) and James Hanna (guitar, vocals) know what they'd like to do, just not exactly how to get there. The songs are accessible, containing fun loving bouncy grooves, coupled with 1-2-1, verse-chorus-verse build ups that all have extremely satisfying ascensions and conclusions, 'Asobi Seksu' is a gem. It is however a gem because on subsequent albums the band showcases their maturation with not only layering tracks (see 'Citrus' and the 10 levels of sound in each song) but handling chaos with beauty. While 'Asobi Seksu' is hardly a bad album, it feels misplaced, unfinished and a bit cranky at times. This is all however mixed with the bands obvious prowess of distortion control & song structure plus they make some truly amazing music here -- other times it sounds like 'It's Too Late'.
Radiohead COM LAG (2plus2isfive)3.0
of Montreal Satanic Panic in the Attic4.0
The Magnetic Fields i3.5
Pixies Best of Pixies: Wave of Mutilation4.0
Les Savy Fav Inches4.0
Modest Mouse Good News for People Who Love Bad News4.0
Wilco A Ghost Is Born3.0
Snow Patrol Final Straw2.0
N.E.R.D. Fly Or Die2.5
Iron And Wine Our Endless Numbered Days4.0
Madvillain Madvillainy4.5
The Hold Steady Almost Killed Me3.5
Deerhoof Milk Man2.0
El-P High Water3.5
Liars They Were Wrong, So We Drowned3.0
Air Talkie Walkie4.0
Lostprophets Start Something3.5
Incubus (USA-CA) A Crow Left of the Murder...4.0
The Walkmen Bows + Arrows4.5
Architecture In Helsinki Fingers Crossed3.5
Camera Obscura Underachievers Please Try Harder4.0
Circle Takes the Square As the Roots Undo4.5
if ever given the chance never pass up the opportunity to see these guys play in a basement. intense.
The Streets A Grand Don't Come For Free3.0
TV on the Radio Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes3.5
Animal Collective Sung Tongs4.0
Murs Murs 3:16: the 9th Edition4.0
Sonic Youth Sonic Nurse4.0
TV on the Radio New Health Rock4.0
PJ Harvey Uh Huh Her4.0
Gang Gang Dance Gang Gang Dance4.0
The Go! Team Thunder, Lightning, Strike4.5
Kanye West The College Dropout4.5
John Legend Get Lifted4.5
2003
M83 Dead Cities, Red Seas and Lost Ghosts5.0
My favorite soundtrack music ever -- M83's 'Dead Cities, Red Seas and Lost Ghosts' is an electronic masterpiece. Mixing equal influences from Air & My Bloody Valentine, Anthony Gonzalez creates an eclectic masterwork of epic proportions. Add MBV's fuzzed out guitars with a French love for synths and you've pretty much got M83 in a pigeon hole -- or so it would seem. They go more rough, less pretty -- frightening as opposed to serene, this is not dream pop. Vocals are mostly kept to indeterminable male (Gonzalez) or robot, almost completely electronic female ones -- or a spoken word story here and there (see 'America'). Really though, this is mostly an instrumental album, along the lines of an Air, or Eluvium. Air is a fair (heh) choice for a comparison seeing as both electronic duos are French, and pretty much sound like it. The music broods with romantic turmoil, bevies of emotion as well as those awesome, awesome synths. Regardless of all M83's obvious comparisons, Gonzalez is able to bring his music to something totally different. With a soundtrack quality to his epic inclinations his music comes out sounding tried and exuberant, yet beautiful and serene. It always sounds HUGE, and really, benefits from that fact. 'Unrecorded', 'Run into Flowers' and 'In Church' -- hell every track is stand out. Get this.
Kelis Tasty3.5
Missy Elliott This Is Not a Test!4.0
blink-182 Blink-1823.5
Jay-Z The Black Album3.5
Explosions in the Sky The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place4.0
Element Eighty Element Eighty1.5
The Strokes Room on Fire4.0
Something Corporate North2.5
The Unicorns Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?2.5
The Shins Chutes Too Narrow4.0
Peaches Fatherfucker1.0
The Distillers Coral Fang4.0
Coheed and Cambria In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 32.5
Death Cab for Cutie Transatlanticism3.0
Jet Get Born3.0
The Besnard Lakes Volume 13.0
Ludacris Chicken-n-Beer3.5
Belle and Sebastian Dear Catastrophe Waitress4.0
Muse Absolution3.0
Metric Old World Underground, Where Are You Now3.5
Nickelback The Long Road1.0
I can't really even begin to express the hatred and detest I feel for this album. The unfortunate fact I was even remotely convinced that 'The Long Road' was 'so much better than the last one' was incredibly foolish on my part. Mostly because I've actually heard this all the way through...more than once. Some people can handle 'Flat on the floor' and 'Feeling way too damn good' or 'Another hole in the head' and other assorted asinine song titles, I can't. Not one song is really independent from the other, it's all the same boring riff, the same lame Kroger croon. That's really their biggest problem, the cheese factor, Nickleback really succeed best at being as lame as humanly possible, and I guess if you're into that, well give this a spin. If not, steer clear.
The Fiery Furnaces Gallowsbird's Bark2.0
OutKast Speakerboxxx/The Love Below4.0
Mates of State Team Boo3.0
A Perfect Circle Thirteenth Step3.5
Viktor Vaughn Vaudeville Villain4.5
Limp Bizkit Results May Vary1.0
If I took a HUGE dump, and recorded it, burnt it onto a CD for a full 2 hour album, the sounds of my butt hole -- I'd be very interested in listening to this should you tell me my other option is 'Results May Vary'. I felt like this when I was 15, I don't feel much different now(7 years later). That stands for something in my mind, that this is one of the worst albums ever recorded. Nice one Fred!
Pretty Girls Make Graves The New Romance3.5
The Wrens The Meadowlands5.0
The Raveonettes Chain Gang of Love3.5
The National Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers4.0
Beat Happening Music to Climb the Apple Tree By4.0
Rancid Indestructible2.0
Kings of Leon Youth and Young Manhood2.5
T.I. Trap Muzik3.5
Dashboard Confessional A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar1.5
I Would Set Myself On Fire For You I Would Set Myself On Fire For You3.0
311 Evolver1.5
TV on the Radio Young Liars4.5
The Darkness Permission to Land1.5
I love Queen; Justin, you sir, are no Freddie Mercury and your band is no Queen. Stop it.
Delerium Chimera4.0
The Mars Volta De-Loused in the Comatorium4.5
Listening to 'Son et Lumiere' take place then subsequently fade into 'Inertiatic Esp' pretty much put to rest my worries that this record would come close to being sub par upon first listen. Little did I know it would become a defining record of my teenage years. Safe to say I hold 'De-Loused in the Comatorium' particularly high and (almost sadly) I probably judge each Volta, or any ex-ATDI member's release in comparison. A barrage of notes and sound will flood your ears almost from the get-go, like almost any Volta release since, but 'De-Loused' has a particular magic to it, that they've yet to ever grasp again. The epic, noise-prog holds together here a lot more cohesively than anything they've produced, and granted, their best song may be on their sophomore release, it's in their debut that their masterpiece record lies. Their prog/virtuoso ambitions aren't drowned out by their need to be different, they just seem to be having more fun on this record. There's no wasted track, they all deliver in the utmost sense.
Dizzee Rascal Boy In Da Corner3.0
Animal Collective Ark3.0
Mew Frengers4.5
Arcade Fire The Arcade Fire3.5
Dropkick Murphys Blackout3.5
Radiohead Hail to the Thief4.0
Metallica St. Anger1.0
It's like if 'Kill em All' really sucked, maybe it would sound almost as bad as this. I had just thought 'St. Anger' was a weak single, not the strongest track on the album(it's total shit for Christ's sake!). 'Shoot Me Again','Invisible Kid' and 'Purify' are worthless, I understand all the pain & frustration in bedded here, it just sounds so contrived. Metallica sacrifices their skill with lightning riffs and sick licks for the 'chug-chug' guitar method -- what the hell.
Eels Shootenanny!2.5
Led Zeppelin How the West Was Won3.5
Electric Six Fire2.5
Less Than Jake Anthem3.5
Jack Johnson On and On3.0
The New Pornographers Electric Version4.5
Blur Think Tank5.0
At the point of writing this, I am completely convinced that Damon Albarn is a musical genius, and have been for quite some time. From start to finish, 'Think Tank' is achingly gorgeous and entirely inventive and unheard. 'Ambulance', 'Out of Time', 'On the Way to the Club' may be some of the most potent, pretty, unexpected love songs ever crafted. In 'Brothers and Sisters', Albarn yearns for us to lay off the stimulants among the extremely insightful spoken word verses. 'Good Song' is self explanatory, really it's very good, underselling. Among 'Think Tank's' pretty melodies, clings and clangs lies a masterpiece of modern music. If it remains the final album of Blurs fantastic career, at least it's a glorious send off.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Fever To Tell4.5
Goldfrapp Black Cherry3.0
The White Stripes Elephant3.0
Caribou Up in Flames (as Manitoba)4.0
Linkin Park Meteora3.5
Deerhoof Apple O'3.5
AFI Sing the Sorrow3.5
Evanescence Fallen3.0
The Radio Dept. Lesser Matters4.0
The Thermals More Parts Per Million4.0
American Hi-Fi The Art Of Losing1.5
The Notwist Neon Golden4.0
Easy Star All Stars Dub Side of the Moon3.5
The Postal Service Give Up4.0
Massive Attack 100th Window4.0
Stars Heart4.0
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists Hearts of Oak4.5
The Knife Deep Cuts4.0
The Black Eyed Peas Elephunk2.5
Yellowcard Ocean Avenue3.0
Lightning Bolt Wonderful Rainbow3.5
DeVotchKa Una Volta3.5
Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer Jalopy Go Far4.0
The Blood Brothers ...Burn, Piano Island, Burn4.5
The Weakerthans Reconstruction Site4.5
Sam Cooke Portrait Of A Legend 1951-19645.0

2002
Nas God's Son4.0
Common Electric Circus3.0
System of a Down Steal This Album!1.5
Snoop Dogg Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$3.0
Matchbox Twenty More Than You Think You Are1.0
Audioslave Audioslave2.0
Talib Kweli Quality4.5
3 Doors Down Away from the Sun2.0
Jay-Z The Blueprint²: The Gift & the Curse2.5
Missy Elliott Under Construction4.0
Justin Timberlake Justified3.5
Sigur Ros ( )3.5
The Donnas Spend the Night2.0
Foo Fighters One by One3.0
Broken Social Scene You Forgot It in People5.0
Had you heard 'Feel Good Lost' before the release of this LP; how the fuck could you see this coming? Start to finish 'You Forgot It In People' is a fantastic ride through the experimental, awkward, and very human world of Broken Social Scene. This collective of Canadian musicians came together as a single mastermind and produced (continue to) some of the greatest pop music ever created. Kevin Drew, Leslie Feist, Brendan Canning and Emily Haines at the helm, of roughly 11, float their way through walls of pop mayhem, serene beauty and superb grooves. 'Stars and Sons', 'Anthems...' and 'Lover's Spit' are particularly gorgeous, while 'Almost Crimes' & "Pacific Theme' are pretty much perfect. 'You Forgot It In People' is a shambled masterpiece, that in my opinion, should not be missed.
Jurassic 5 Power in Numbers3.5
Destroyer This Night4.0
Rilo Kiley The Execution of All Things4.5
CKY Infiltrate Destroy Rebuild1.5
Beck Sea Change3.5
Disturbed Believe1.5
Lifehouse Stanley Climbfall3.0
of Montreal Aldhils Arboretum3.0
Queens of the Stone Age Songs for the Deaf3.0
Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head4.0
Clipse Lord Willin'4.0
Interpol Turn on the Bright Lights4.5
Spoon Kill the Moonlight4.5
It clocks in at just slightly over 30 minutes, and the band has since become more adventurous with their sound as their budget for albums increases -- but 'Kill The Moonlight' slays. Every song has it's hook and damn do they ever catch, you'll be hard pressed not to get these little indie rock gems stuck in your head. Daniel's lyrics and the song writing are at their peak here, straying from studio tricks and epic inclinations. Songs like 'Small Stakes', 'The Way We Get By', and 'Jonathan Fisk', bring forth your standard verse-chorus-verse structure. But the songs are jam packed with memorable 1 liners, slick guitar riffs, great drumming and keyboard fills. Plus the riffs on 'All The Pretty Girls Go To The City' and 'Something To Look Forward To' are almost too infectious. Spoon came out of the gates swinging with their debut ('Telephono') and continued with a string of great releases. But not until 'Kill The Moonlight', their opus of catchy, concise and intelligent yet accessible rock music, did they understand how to make a complete, fulfilling listen from start to finish -- thankfully they never forgot.
N.E.R.D. In Search Of3.5
Linkin Park Reanimation2.5
My Chemical Romance I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love2.5
The Flaming Lips Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots4.0
Red Hot Chili Peppers By the Way2.5
Roots Manuva Dub Come Save Me3.0
Gorillaz Laika Come Home3.0
The Used The Used1.0
Reel Big Fish Cheer Up!3.5
Sonic Youth Murray Street4.0
Weezer Maladroit2.5
New Found Glory Sticks and Stones1.0
Raphael Saadiq Instant Vintage4.0
The Distillers Sing, Sing Death House3.0
Deerhoof Reveille3.5
The Breeders Title TK2.0
Eminem The Eminem Show3.5
Monty Are I Heart's Bleeding EP4.0
Something Corporate Leaving Through The Window2.5
Blackalicious Blazing Arrow4.0
Midtown Living Well is the Best Revenge2.0
mclusky McLusky Do Dallas4.5
The Walkmen Everyone Who Pretended To Like Me Is Gone3.5
Simple Plan No Pads, No Helmets... Just Balls1.0
Flogging Molly Drunken Lullabies3.0
Clinic Walking With Thee4.0
dredg El Cielo2.0
Felt (USA-MN) A Tribute to Christina Ricci3.0
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead Source Tags and Codes4.5
It may have been a near perfect fluke, but 'Source Tags and Codes' is nothing less than a beast of a record. Band wistfully moves between moments of ear assaulting walls of sound to relaxed, almost jammy beauty. 'It Was There That I Saw You', 'Another Morning Stoner', 'Source Tags and Codes' are amazing, and even 'Homage' is a nice blast down AFI lane.
The Blood Brothers March On Electric Children3.5
Gorillaz G-Sides3.0
Boards of Canada Geogaddi4.5
Iron And Wine The Creek Drank the Cradle4.0
Damien Rice O3.0
The Chemical Brothers Come with Us3.5
Good Charlotte The Young And The Hopeless1.0
Oasis Heathen Chemistry2.5
The Streets Original Pirate Material3.0
Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer3.5
The Roots Phrenology4.5
Pretty Girls Make Graves Good Health4.5
El-P Fantastic Damage4.5
Korn Untouchables1.0
Goo Goo Dolls Gutterflower3.0

2001
Nas STILLmatic2.5
Wu-Tang Clan Iron Flag3.5
Ludacris Word Of Mouf3.5
Delerium Poem4.0
Radiohead I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings3.0
Ghostface Killah Bulletproof Wallets3.0
Oasis Familiar To Millions3.5
Kelis Wanderland4.0
Liars They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top3.5
Le Tigre Feminist Sweeptakes2.5
Lostprophets The Fake Sound Of Progress3.5
Death Cab for Cutie The Photo Album4.0
Garbage Beautiful Garbage2.0
Tenacious D Tenacious D4.0
The Strokes Is This It5.0
Eels Souljacker3.5
Incubus (USA-CA) Morning View3.5
Broken Social Scene Feel Good Lost4.0
Wilco Yankee Hotel Foxtrot5.0
Nickelback Silver Side Up1.0
Ben Folds Rockin' The Suburbs3.5
Jay-Z The Blueprint4.5
The Microphones The Glow Pt. 24.5
System of a Down Toxicity3.5
Explosions in the Sky Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die...4.0
Radiohead Amnesiac3.0
Bjork Vespertine3.5
Adema Adema 1.0
Roots Manuva Run Come Save Me4.0
Soundtrack (Film) Moulin Rouge! - Music From Baz Luhrmann's Film1.5
Rilo Kiley Take-Offs and Landings4.5
Cake Comfort Eagle3.5
Jimmy Eat World Bleed American4.0
Muse Origin of Symmetry3.0
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Yeah Yeah Yeahs3.5
The White Stripes White Blood Cells3.5
311 From Chaos3.0
The Shins Oh, Inverted World4.0
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists The Tyranny of Distance4.5
pg.99 Document #84.5
blink-182 Take Off Your Pants And Jacket3.5
Air 10,000 Hz Legends2.5
Sum 41 All Killer No Filler2.5
Weezer The Green Album3.5
Missy Elliott Miss E… So Addictive4.0
Tool Lateralus4.5
chuggachuggachuggachuggachugga drum drum drum ddddrrruuuummmm. Makes me feel like I'm 12 again.
Modest Mouse Sad Sappy Sucker2.5
Gorillaz Gorillaz4.0
Dashboard Confessional The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most1.5
Pretty Girls Make Graves Pretty Girls Make Graves4.5
Buckcherry Time Bomb1.5
Caribou Start Breaking My Heart (as Manitoba)3.5
Daft Punk Discovery4.0
Pixies Complete B-Sides3.5
American Hi-Fi American Hi-Fi1.5
Stars Nightsongs3.5
pg.99 Document #113.5
This EP is only 9mins long, but it's some of the most epic 9 minutes you'll ever experience.
Plus 'Diagram For A Suicide' is essentially the shit.
Spoon Girls Can Tell4.0
Jack Johnson Brushfire Fairytales4.0
Dropkick Murphys Sing Loud, Sing Proud!4.0
A Camp A Camp4.0
Dave Matthews Band Everyday2.0
Camera Obscura Biggest Bluest Hi Fi3.5
M83 M833.5
Fugazi The Argument4.5

2000
Snoop Dogg Tha Last Meal2.5
The White Stripes De Stijl2.5
The Avalanches Since I Left You4.5
Boards of Canada In a Beautiful Place Out in the Country4.5
Blur The Best Of4.0
The New Pornographers Mass Romantic4.5
The Beatles 13.5
Fatboy Slim Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars2.5
blink-182 The Mark, Tom and Travis Show3.0
Lifehouse No Name Face3.0
OutKast Stankonia4.5
'Stankonia' is a beacon for all artists -- this is how you make an album. 'B.O.B.', 'Ms. Jackson'. 'So Fresh, So Clean', 'Gasoline Dreams', 'I'll Call Before I Come', are brilliant, OutKast are miles beyond their competition. The world's best MC's -- Andre 3000(then), and Big Boi(now), prove their worth with an opus of southern rap. Stankonia, everyone should be so lucky to visit.
U2 All That You Can't Leave Behind3.0
Godspeed You! Black Emperor Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven4.5
Linkin Park Hybrid Theory3.0
Less Than Jake Borders and Boundaries3.0
Ludacris Back For The First Time3.5
Green Day Warning3.0
Radiohead Kid A4.5
Monty Are I Thanks for the Metal Sign3.0
New Found Glory New Found Glory1.5
Good Charlotte Good Charlotte2.5
The Black Eyed Peas Bridging the Gap3.0
Hooverphonic The Magnificent Tree3.5
Clint Mansell and Kronos Quartet Requiem for a Dream4.0
The Microphones It Was Hot, We Stayed In The Water4.0
Phoenix (FRA) United3.5
AFI The Art of Drowning4.5
At the Drive-In Relationship of Command4.5
Beware! Be-ware!!!rOr don't -- I mean I wouldn't -- you'd be missing a lot. r
Goldfrapp Felt Mountain4.0
Peaches The Teaches of Peaches1.5
Something Corporate Ready...Break3.0
The Weakerthans Left and Leaving4.0
Jill Scott Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 14.0
Coldplay Parachutes3.0
Sum 41 Half Hour Of Power2.0
Paul Van Dyk Out There and Back4.0
Modest Mouse The Moon & Antarctica5.0
Glorious as it is haunting, The Moon & Antarctica is Modest Mouse's masterpiece. The ethereal, cold feeling that resonates from this music is amazing, and Brock's off-kilter vocal style shines amongst the guitar twangs and deep caverns his band mates create around him. Is there seriously any better starting 3 than this? '3rd Planet', 'Gravity...' & 'Dark Center...' are superb, and thats not to say the second half isn't as enthralling. Actually it's pretty fantastic, really the entire album is, if a bit overlong at times -- it's easily made up for by a large collection of extremely strong tracks.
Blonde Redhead Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons4.5
Grandaddy The Sophtware Slump4.0
A Perfect Circle Mer de Noms3.0
Matchbox Twenty Mad Season3.0
Eminem The Marshall Mathers LP4.5
Primal Scream XTRMNTR4.0
Clinic Internal Wrangler4.5
The Distillers The Distillers3.0
Rage Against the Machine Renegades4.0
Common Like Water for Chocolate4.0
Eels Daisies Of The Galaxy3.5
Disturbed The Sickness1.0
Flogging Molly Swagger2.5
The Smashing Pumpkins Machina/The Machines of God2.5
Air The Virgin Suicides4.0
Oasis Standing on the Shoulder of Giants2.5
3 Doors Down The Better Life2.0
The Microphones Window3.5
Ghostface Killah Supreme Clientele4.0
Godsmack Awake1.5
D'Angelo Voodoo4.5
Limp Bizkit Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water1.5
DeVotchKa SuperMelodrama3.5
The Blood Brothers This Adultery Is Ripe4.0
pg.99 Document #54.0
PJ Harvey Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea4.5
Explosions in the Sky How Strange, Innocence4.5

1999
Jay-Z Vol. 3: Life and Times of S. Carter3.5
Les Savy Fav The Cat and the Cobra4.0
Kelis Kaleidoscope4.0
Eiffel 65 Europop1.0
Nas Nastradamus1.0
Metallica S&M3.0
Korn Issues1.5
Crazy Town The Gift Of Game1.0
Foo Fighters There Is Nothing Left to Lose3.0
The Faint Blank-Wave Arcade2.0
311 Soundsystem3.0
Mos Def Black on Both Sides5.0
American Football American Football3.0
The Magnetic Fields 69 Love Songs4.5
Basement Jaxx Remedy4.0
all those naked bodies stacked on top of each other is a pretty decent visual representation of how you should feel after a Jaxx live set. Especially if any of this album is present during the show.
Junkie XL Big Sounds Of The Drags4.0
Incubus (USA-CA) Make Yourself3.5
Sigur Ros Agætis byrjun5.0
Limp Bizkit Significant Other2.5
Soundtrack (Film) South Park (Original Soundtrack)3.5
The Chemical Brothers Surrender3.5
Muse Showbiz2.5
Red Hot Chili Peppers Californication4.5
blink-182 Enema Of The State3.5
AFI Black Sails in the Sunset4.0
The Flaming Lips The Soft Bulletin4.0
Buckcherry Buckcherry1.5
Nas I Am...1.5
pg.99 Document #43.5
Dropkick Murphys The Gang's All Here4.0
The Olivia Tremor Control Black Foliage: Animation Music Volume 14.0
Blur 134.5
Roots Manuva Brand New Second Hand4.5
CKY Volume 12.5
Jimmy Eat World Clarity3.5
Eminem The Slim Shady LP3.5
The Roots Things Fall Apart5.0
of Montreal The Gay Parade4.0
Bush The Science of Things2.0
The White Stripes The White Stripes3.0
Wilco Summerteeth4.0
pg.99 Document #14.0
Orchid Chaos is Me4.5
Rage Against the Machine The Battle of Los Angeles5.0
Rage have painted a picture of a grim, gray world, filled with lies, treachery, murder, famine, genocide and a loss of hope. The Battle of Los Angeles unloads upon you like no other, De La Rocha backed by Morello and the boys is intense, yet they take time to build. 'Maria', 'Born Of A Broken Man' and 'Voice Of The Voiceless' seem to revel in their rising action and Rage knows all the right spots to hit to make the climax a pay off. 'Guerrilla Radio' and 'Mic Check' dig deep and rock hard, while 'Sleep Now In The Fire' is as frightening as it is jarring. LA is a battlefield, and Rage is at the helm.

1998
Metallica Garage Inc.2.0
The Offspring Americana2.5
Oasis The Masterplan3.5
The Cardigans Gran Turismo4.0
Fatboy Slim You've Come a Long Way, Baby3.5
Eels Electro-Shock Blues4.5
What was at first, very hard on my ears, save a few songs, has since become my favorite Eels album, and really one of my favorite albums period. 'Electro-Shock Blues' is so achingly painful at points it can defer some listeners, but really, there are a lot of gems here. E's loss of family and well, hope is what crafted this album, and it is morose at times, but more often than not in his sadness there's a lot of beauty to be found. 'Elizabeth on the Bathroom Floor', 'Elfi's God', 'P.S. You Rock My World' are gorgeous, while 'Last Stop: This Town' is a nice light hearted break from the albums slower tones. Everything here is great, no song really falters in my opinion, though as a whole 'Electro-Shock Blues' can run a bit long, and it's not an album for any time. But it's beauty is really found in it's soft but hauting tones, morose themes and E's aching voice and lyrics.
Less Than Jake Hello Rockview4.0
PJ Harvey Is This Desire?4.0
OutKast Aquemini5.0
Goo Goo Dolls Dizzy Up The Girl2.5
Boards of Canada Music Has the Right to Children4.5
Black Star Black Star4.5
Godsmack Godsmack1.5
Lauryn Hill The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill5.0
Korn Follow the Leader3.0
Death Cab for Cutie Something About Airplanes3.5
Hooverphonic Blue Wonder Power Milk3.5
The Black Eyed Peas Behind the Front3.5
Garbage Version 2.03.5
Massive Attack Mezzanine5.0
An essential masterpiece, 'Mezzanine' is a brooding triumph that grabs you, slaps you around, reminds you it loves you, and then caresses you down to sleep. From the fantastic opener, 'Angel', Massive Attack is unrelenting in their sheer quality and scale. Each song brims with tension, tunnels of sound envelop washy vocals, the beats are borderline evil & always fantastic. Nothing is skimped on, 'Mezzanine' is some of the best you'll ever hear.
Dave Matthews Band Before These Crowded Streets3.0
Saint Etienne Good Humor4.0
band basically should have never been allowed to make music strictly based on the fact that what they would subsequently produce would be the kind of stuff that simultaneously fills in your 'its really good' and 'its infectious' meters to full at the same time. Screw you Saint Etienne.
The Faint Media2.5
Fastball All the Pain Money Can Buy3.0
Neutral Milk Hotel In the Aeroplane Over the Sea3.5
Pearl Jam Yield3.5
Air Moon Safari4.5
Penfold Amateurs and Professionals2.5
Tricky Angels With Dirty Faces3.0
Reel Big Fish Why Do They Rock So Hard?3.5
Jay-Z Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life3.5
Beastie Boys Hello Nasty4.0

1997
Metallica Reload1.5
Modest Mouse The Lonesome Crowded West4.5
A bold statement of modern 'Americana', 'The Lonesome Crowded West' could/would easily stand as Modest Mouse's crowning achievement of lonesome travel and desolate landscapes. This is of course if 'The Moon and Antarctica' had not shattered it with it's brazen outlook and ethereal tones. But -- that's not to say that this album is anything less than amazing. With 'Lonesome Crowded...", MM created a bleak outlook on the idea of modern, expansive America with it's frayed morals, uneven persona's and earthen tones. Brock's reference's to the characters of 'Jesus/God','the dogs', 'the woman' and 'the long bitter road' first really arise here on their sophomore release, but hardly play out their time. At 70+ minutes too, 'The Lonesome Crowded West' is quite the listen, but, everything flows together pretty flawlessly. MM's, Pixies-esque style is taken for a full ride, and really expands upon itself to give the first, real inkling of what sound this band would soon adopt for the remainder of their career (up until this point). Song's like 'Heart Cooks Brain', 'Convenient Parking', 'Trailer Trash' and 'Out of Gas' are standouts but that's like saying anything here is sub-par. 'The Lonesome Crowded West' is a masterpiece, it's a truthful/expressive/forgiving/unrelenting outlook on what it's like to live as an American, as well as what it was like for this one - Brock - in specific.
Led Zeppelin BBC Sessions3.5
Jay-Z In My Lifetime, Vol. 13.5
Flogging Molly Alive Behind the Green Door2.5
Deerhoof The Man, the King, the Girl3.0
Green Day Nimrod3.0
Portishead Portishead3.5
Incubus (USA-CA) S.C.I.E.N.C.E.4.0
Oasis Be Here Now3.5
Godspeed You! Black Emperor F♯ A♯ ∞4.5
Limp Bizkit Three Dollar Bill Y'all1.5
Wyclef Jean The Carnival3.5
I'm pretty sure I had this 5'd when I first joined sputnik based solely on the first three songs and 'Gone Til November.'
blink-182 Dude Ranch3.0
Radiohead OK Computer5.0
To say that this is 'a classic' is understated, 'OK Computer' is the most essential record of the 1990s. It's easily in contention for the best piece of music I've ever heard and no matter how many times I listen to it, it hits me the same way. 'Airbag', 'Paranoid Android' & 'Subterranean Homesick Alien', are all fucking amazing. 'Climbing Up The Walls' may be the scariest pretty song I've ever heard while, 'No Surprises' & 'Exit Music' are some of the most beautiful. Plus there's really no better closer than 'The Tourist'. Radiohead achieved something really special here, and no matter how close they've come, can't seem to quite match it. But thats fine, might just be better that way.
Foo Fighters The Colour and the Shape4.0
Delerium Karma4.5
Ben Folds Five Whatever and Ever, Amen4.0
Blur Blur4.0
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Let's Face It4.5
U2 Pop2.5
The Offspring Ixnay on the Hombre2.5
Daft Punk Homework4.0
Harvey Danger Where Have All The Merrymakers Gone?3.0
Some good tracks, and a whole lot of bullshit -- but the good tracks contain 'Flag Pole Sitter' which merits this album a 3 on its own.
Sigur Ros Von3.5
Arab on Radar Queen Hygiene II3.5
Les Savy Fav 3/54.0
The Prodigy The Fat of the Land4.5
Grandaddy Under the Western Freeway4.5

1996
Bush Razorblade Suitcase2.5
Belle and Sebastian If You're Feeling Sinister5.0
Snoop Dogg Tha Doggfather3.0
Ghostface Killah Ironman4.5
Korn Life Is Peachy1.5
Matchbox Twenty Yourself or Someone Like You3.0
Tool Ænima4.5
Weezer Pinkerton4.0
The Roots Illadelph Halflife4.5
Cake Fashion Nugget4.5
The Cardigans First Band on the Moon5.0
Back when disco was the thing, in space.
OutKast ATLiens4.5
The Olivia Tremor Control Music From The Unrealized Film Script 4.5
Eels Beautiful Freak4.5
Reel Big Fish Turn the Radio Off4.0
UGK Ridin' Dirty4.5
Sublime Sublime4.5
De La Soul Stakes Is High3.5
AFI Very Proud of Ya3.0
Beck Odelay4.5
Metallica Load1.5
Jimmy Eat World Static Prevails3.5
Dave Matthews Band Crash3.0
Modest Mouse This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About4.0
Rage Against the Machine Evil Empire4.0
The Beatles Anthology 23.0
Lush Lovelife2.5
Cocteau Twins Milk and Kisses2.5
DJ Shadow Endtroducing.....4.0
Jay-Z Reasonable Doubt4.5
Fugees The Score3.5
Boards of Canada Boc Maxima3.5
Less Than Jake Losing Streak4.0
Nas It Was Written4.0

1995
The Beatles Anthology 13.0
Goodie Mob Soul Food5.0
GZA Liquid Swords4.5
The Smashing Pumpkins Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness3.0
The Magnetic Fields Get Lost3.5
Rancid ...And Out Come the Wolves2.5
Green Day Insomniac4.0
No Doubt Tragic Kingdom4.5
Red Hot Chili Peppers One Hot Minute3.0
Garbage Garbage3.5
311 3113.0
Ben Folds Five Ben Folds Five3.5
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony E 1999 Eternal4.5
Foo Fighters Foo Fighters3.5
D'Angelo Brown Sugar4.5
Pavement Wowee Zowee4.0
Blonde Redhead La Mia Vita Violenta4.5
Oasis (What's the Story) Morning Glory?4.5
Blah blah blah, they desperately want to be The Beatles -- who the fuck cares? They got it right at least 2 times (3 1/2 in my opinion), and this, an argument for 90s rock and how absolutely phenomenal it *could* be. Morning Glory's strengths are played through in every song, every lick, every verse, every groan of Liam's brash, almost Lenon-esque voice. The band just knew how to sell their slick, insightful rock with a hint of modern peace and love. Moving from moments of sheer badassery to complete and utter beauty ('Wonderwall', 'Champagne Supernova', 'Don't Look Back in Anger' and 'She's Electric' please stand up) or just straight rock you to the core (Everything else). Oasis crafted a truly stupendous piece of music -- here's to hoping they can do it again.
Tricky Maxinquaye4.0
Radiohead The Bends4.5
Ol' Dirty Bastard Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version3.5
Big L Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous4.5
Guided by Voices Alien Lanes4.5
PJ Harvey To Bring You My Love4.0
blink-182 Cheshire Cat3.0
The Roots Do You Want More?!!!??!4.5
Boards of Canada Twoism4.0
Goo Goo Dolls A Boy Named Goo2.5
Slowdive Pygmalion3.5
Sonic Youth Washing Machine4.0
Blur The Great Escape4.0
The Cardigans Life4.5
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Question the Answers4.5

1994
Bush Sixteen Stone2.5
Nirvana MTV Unplugged in New York3.5
The Magnetic Fields Holiday4.5
Common Resurrection4.5
Korn Korn2.0
The Cranberries No Need to Argue3.5
Radiohead My Iron Lung3.0
Dave Matthews Band Under The Table And Dreaming3.5
Massive Attack Protection4.5
Essentially taking their successes from 'Blue Lines' and running, Massive Attack's second album 'Protection', is a deep, beautiful album. With 9 tracks that will floor you, and well, 'Light My Fire'. 'Protection', 'Euro Child', 'Sly' and 'Three' are fantastic. The diverse group of brilliant Brits, again, were able to create a fantastic, fluid success with their mix of deep dub beats, evil distortions and truly beautiful voices.
Oasis Definitely Maybe4.5
UGK Super Tight...4.0
Jeff Buckley Grace3.5
Portishead Dummy4.5
311 Grassroots3.5
The Prodigy Music for the Jilted Generation4.5
Saint Etienne Tiger Bay4.0
Ride Carnival of Light3.0
Guided by Voices Bee Thousand4.0
Lush Split3.0
Stone Temple Pilots Purple3.0
Weezer Weezer4.0
OutKast Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik4.5
Nas Illmatic4.5
The Magnetic Fields The Charm Of The Highway Strip4.5
I could probably 5 this with assistance from just the right bourbon.
The Offspring Smash2.5
Blur Parklife4.5
Codeine The White Birch4.0
Pavement Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain4.0
Green Day Dookie4.0
The Notorious B.I.G. Ready to Die4.5
blink-182 Buddha3.0
Beastie Boys Ill Communication4.0
The Cardigans Emmerdale4.0

1993
Guns N' Roses The Spaghetti Incident?2.5
Snoop Dogg Doggystyle4.0
Wu-Tang Clan Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)4.5
A Tribe Called Quest Midnight Marauders4.5
Cocteau Twins Four-Calendar Cafe2.5
Pearl Jam Vs.3.5
Nirvana In Utero4.0
The Breeders Last Splash4.0
The Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream3.0
Catherine Wheel Chrome4.0
Lovesliescrushing Bloweyelashwish2.5
Bjork Debut3.5
Slowdive Souvlaki5.0
Blur Modern Life Is Rubbish4.5
PJ Harvey Rid of Me4.5
Radiohead Pablo Honey3.0
The Cranberries Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?3.5
Bailter Space Robot World4.0
Tool Undertow3.5
Saint Etienne So Tough4.5
De La Soul Buhloone Mindstate3.0
The Mamas and The Papas California Dreamin'4.5

1992
Pavement Slanted and Enchanted4.0
Dr. Dre The Chronic4.0
Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine4.5
Sonic Youth Dirty3.5
Unrest Imperial ffrr4.0
Catherine Wheel Ferment4.5
The Vaselines The Way Of The Vaselines4.0
PJ Harvey Dry3.5
Tool Opiate3.5
Ride Going Blank Again3.5
Lush Spooky3.5
The Magnetic Fields The Wayward Bus3.5
Sublime 40 Oz. to Freedom4.0
Beat Happening You Turn Me On4.0
Grenadine Goya4.0
The Magnetic Fields The House Of Tomorrow4.0
It must have been surprising for Susan Anway to hear: "You're fired." If she ever even did, one would imagine those words would slide out the gab of Magnetic Fields' leader and new lead-vocalist Stephin Merritt in his distinct baritone. Before the Merge signing on the heels of two successful exercises in twee that were Distant Plastic Trees (1991) and The Wayward Bus (1992--both with exclusively Anway on vocal duty--this was a stepping out party of sorts for Magnetic Fields. Stripping down their sound from the dreamy mini-orchestrations of their first two records to a more punk-based form of synthesizer-pop; The House Of Tomorrow EP was titled aptly as this would shift would reflect the second incarnation of this ever evolving project. Developing the looping, rhythm based songwriting that Holiday (1993) and The Charm Of The Highway Strip (1994) would adopt so successfully. "Alien Being" and "Love Goes On To Paris In The Spring" being the high points of bouncy chamber-pop but Merritt's austere baritone is on full display along with his inherent Pop savvy that would help build so many excellent gems as he was nestled away in the Back Bay.

1991
Green Day Kerplunk3.0
U2 Achtung Baby4.5
Talk Talk Laughing Stock4.5
My Bloody Valentine Loveless5.0
Beautiful, in every sense of the word. Loveless, though not completely flawless, achieved heights not only never attained, but never even revealed. MBV's lush, flowing, chaos has no comparison, simply because there's nothing else that sounds quite like it. Many have recreated the sound slightly to much success, but none sound quite like MBV's layers of distortion. Bilinda Butcher's otherworldly voice drifts in an out of layers of sounds so beautifully, while Kevin Shields pushes every last bit of gorgeous melody out of the fuzz that surrounds him. When Shield's decides to lend his vocals to the fray some of the album's best tracks are produced. 'Loveless' is not something that should be missed, it is a rigidly beautiful classic piece of music.
The Field Mice For Keeps4.0
Swervedriver Raise4.0
Nirvana Nevermind4.0
A Tribe Called Quest The Low End Theory4.5
Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik4.5
Guns N' Roses Use Your Illusion II3.0
Guns N' Roses Use Your Illusion I3.0
Saint Etienne Fox Base Alpha4.5
Pearl Jam Ten4.0
Blur Leisure3.0
Massive Attack Blue Lines4.5
De La Soul De La Soul Is Dead 4.5
Ride Today Forever3.5
Slowdive Just for a Day4.0
Primal Scream Screamadelica4.5
Slint Spiderland4.0
My Bloody Valentine Tremolo4.0
Chapterhouse Whirlpool4.0
The Magnetic Fields Distant Plastic Trees4.0
Beat Happening Dreamy4.5

1990
Ride Nowhere4.5
Cocteau Twins Heaven or Las Vegas5.0
Pixies Bossanova4.0
Sonic Youth Goo4.5
The Field Mice Skywriting3.5
The Breeders Pod4.0
Galaxie 500 This is Our Music4.0
My Bloody Valentine Glider3.5

1989
The Field Mice Snowball4.0
Galaxie 500 On Fire5.0
By the end of the day this will probably be a 5.
Also; see Yotimi's sound off --
Red Hot Chili Peppers Mother's Milk3.5
Operation Ivy Energy4.5
The Cure Disintegration4.5
thanks Robert Smith for reminding me what it sounded like when I rode to the coast skipping class in senior year of high school. Thanks.
The Field Mice Sensitive3.5
Pixies Doolittle5.0
My Bloody Valentine Ecstasy and Wine3.5
Beat Happening Black Candy3.5
The Field Mice I Can See Myself Alone Forever3.5
De La Soul 3 Feet High and Rising4.5
Beastie Boys Paul's Boutique4.5

1988
Journey Greatest Hits3.5
The Field Mice Emma's House4.0
My Bloody Valentine Feed Me with Your Kiss4.0
Sonic Youth Daydream Nation5.0
The ultimate, the king of distortion, 'Daydream Nation' is beautiful as it is brilliant. To really describe the merits of this LP is harder than it seems at first, because really what makes it so essential is well, how fucking weird it really is. On first listen it may seem harsh, if a bit unfocused -- SY's vocals are less than entrancing and they spend a lot of time jamming out their distortion. This, unappealing as it may seem, is where the brilliance lies -- amongst these rough, chaotic lead voices lies the cries of a generation, on the verge of what they know is not a bright future. Sonic Youth detest the commercial world of double speak, but they understand that it's inevitable, and maybe, preferred. Beyond the phenomenal writing, lies the song structure, the composition -- it's amazing. There's no wasted note, no stray bit of distortion, everything has it's place, it's purpose there. This is why the distortion works, why, 'Daydream Nation' is a success. To encompass the full effect, full result of this album in words is futile, there's not enough time. I bought it when I was 14, and it changed the way I listen to music.
Talk Talk Spirit of Eden4.5
My Bloody Valentine You Made Me Realise4.5
Pixies Surfer Rosa4.5
Talking Heads Naked2.0
Galaxie 500 Today4.0
Beat Happening Jamboree3.5
Public Enemy It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back4.5
My Bloody Valentine Isn't Anything4.5

1987
The Jesus and Mary Chain Darklands3.5
Guns N' Roses Appetite for Destruction3.5
Sonic Youth Sister4.5
U2 The Joshua Tree4.5
Big Black Headache3.5
Big Black Songs About Fucking4.0

1986
Beastie Boys Licensed to Ill4.5
Talking Heads True Stories2.5
Sonic Youth Evol4.5
Big Black Atomizer4.0

1985
The Jesus and Mary Chain Psychocandy4.0
Talking Heads Little Creatures3.0
Prefab Sprout Steve McQueen4.5
Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square Club, 19635.0
My Bloody Valentine This Is Your Bloody Valentine2.0
Sonic Youth Bad Moon Rising3.5
Beat Happening Beat Happening4.0

1984
Cocteau Twins Treasure4.5
Prince Purple Rain4.5
Echo and The Bunnymen Ocean Rain4.5

1983
Metallica Kill 'Em All3.5
Wipers Over the Edge3.5
Talking Heads Speaking in Tongues4.0
David Bowie Let's Dance2.5
U2 War4.5
The Police Synchronicity4.0
Pylon (USA-GA) Chomp4.0
Echo and The Bunnymen Porcupine4.5

1982
X (USA) Under The Big Black Sun4.0

1981
The Police Ghost in the Machine3.5
Echo and The Bunnymen Heaven Up Here4.5
X (USA) Wild Gift4.5
Gang of Four Solid Gold4.0
Wipers Youth of America4.0
Tom Tom Club Tom Tom Club4.5
1980
Talking Heads Remain in Light5.0
The Police Zenyatta Mondatta4.0
Joy Division Closer4.5
Wipers Is This Real?4.0
Magazine The Correct Use Of Soap4.0
X (USA) Los Angeles4.5
Echo and The Bunnymen Crocodiles4.5

1979
Pink Floyd The Wall4.5
The Police Reggatta de Blanc3.0
Fleetwood Mac Tusk4.0
Led Zeppelin In Through the Out Door3.0
Talking Heads Fear of Music4.0
Joy Division Unknown Pleasures4.5
David Bowie Lodger3.5
Magazine Secondhand Daylight4.0
Gang of Four Entertainment!4.5

1978
The Police Outlandos d'Amour4.0
Blondie Parallel Lines4.5
Talking Heads More Songs About Buildings and Food4.0
The Cars The Cars4.0
Magazine Real Life4.5

1977
David Bowie "Heroes"4.5
Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols2.5
Talking Heads Talking Heads: 774.0
Ramones Leave Home3.5
Fleetwood Mac Rumours5.0
Inner band turmoil, divorces left and right, Fleetwood's misery & marital issues sure as hell birthed some fantastic music in the process of ruining some lives. 'The Chain', 'Go Your Own Way', 'You Make Loving Fun', 'Dreams' are just the highlights on an album that is really quite near flawless. I've had this album with me for a very, very long time & it's at least one of my favorites, if not my favorite. Fun, inventive, brooding, at times extremely heart breaking, all the while remaining completely badass.
Pink Floyd Animals5.0
David Bowie Low5.0
Brian Eno Before and After Science4.5

1976
Stevie Wonder Songs in the Key of Life4.5
Ramones Ramones4.0
Led Zeppelin Presence3.5
David Bowie Station to Station4.5
Eagles Hotel California4.0

1975
Queen A Night at the Opera4.5
Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here4.5
Brian Eno Another Green World4.5
Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac4.0
David Bowie Young Americans3.5
Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti4.5
Eagles One Of These Nights3.5
Al Stewart Modern Times4.5

1974
Al Stewart Past, Present and Future4.5
David Bowie Diamond Dogs4.0
Nico The End...4.0

1973
Fleetwood Mac Mystery to Me2.0
The Who Quadrophenia4.5
David Bowie Pin Ups2.0
Stevie Wonder Innervisions4.5
David Bowie Aladdin Sane4.0
Led Zeppelin Houses of the Holy5.0
Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon5.0
The best progressive album ever. Pound for pound some of the finest music ever crafted. My favorite Floyd, has been forever, it's truly an amazing album.
Fleetwood Mac Penguin2.0
The Stooges Raw Power4.5
Eagles Desperado3.0
Serge Gainsbourg Vu De L'Exterieur3.5

1972
Tangerine Dream Zeit4.0
David Bowie The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars4.5
Fleetwood Mac Bare Trees3.0
Nick Drake Pink Moon3.5

1971
David Bowie Hunky Dory4.5
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin IV5.0
Fleetwood Mac Future Games2.5
Tangerine Dream Alpha Centauri4.0
Serge Gainsbourg Histoire de Melody Nelson4.0

1970
The Kinks Lola vs. Powerman and the Moneygoround4.5
David Bowie The Man Who Sold the World3.5
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin III4.5
'III' was easily my favorite Zeppelin album years ago when I was first really introduced to them, since I've move more towards other LP of theirs, but it'll always have a spot. 'Immigrant Song' being over-licensed and over-played as it is, is still, well -- awesome. 'Since I Been Loving You', 'Gallows Pole' & 'Tangerine' are some personal favorites. Even though they have a more folk/acoustic sound this outing, it's still Zeppelin and still rocks pretty hard considering.
Fleetwood Mac Kiln House2.5
The Beatles Let It Be4.0
Nico Desertshore4.0

1969
The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground4.5
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II4.5
The Kinks Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)4.5
King Crimson In the Court of the Crimson King5.0
The Beatles Abbey Road5.0
Fleetwood Mac Then Play On3.5
David Bowie Space Oddity3.0
The Who Tommy4.5
The sweetest fucking concept album/rock opera ever. The movie -- not so much, but can't win 'em all. The Who are the ultimate in successful artistic excess, 'Tommy' is the key argument that sometimes a little erratic indulgence is best.
MC5 Kick Out the Jams4.5
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin4.0
Jefferson Airplane Volunteers3.5
The Temptations Cloud Nine4.0
Serge Gainsbourg Jane Birkin & Serge Gainsbourg4.0

1968
The Kinks The Village Green Preservation Society4.5
The Beatles The Beatles4.5
Nico The Marble Index4.0
Fleetwood Mac Mr. Wonderful1.5
Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison5.0
Fleetwood Mac Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac3.5
The Velvet Underground White Light/White Heat4.5
The Millennium Begin4.0
Serge Gainsbourg Bonnie and Clyde4.0

1967
The Who The Who Sell Out4.0
The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour4.0
The Moody Blues Days of Future Passed5.0
The Beach Boys Smiley Smile3.5
Etta James Tell Mama4.5
Pink Floyd The Piper at the Gates of Dawn4.0
The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band5.0
The cover alone has me feeling 10/10 all day every day.
David Bowie David Bowie2.0
Love Forever Changes4.5
Beautiful, engrossing, reflective, haunting, heartbreaking, reaffirming, brilliant -- amazing. 'Forever Changes' is a gorgeous chronicle of Arthur Lee, lead singer, as he was living during the late 60s, the cusp of the 'hippie revolution' and a time he was convinced he was going to die. The lyrics are morose, but the music itself is lush and even upbeat. The horn sections that roar throughout the album only compliment the pristine string arrangements and soothing riffs. The fantastic instrumentation only brings forth the beauty of Lee's voice, and his lyrics. Bits like "Sitting on a hillside -- Watching all the people die -- I'll feel much better on the other side." become all the more haunting and long lasting. A pinnacle of American music.
The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground & Nico5.0
Beautiful, Frantic, Haunting, Serene all that and it'll rock you to the fucking core. 'The Velvet Underground and Nico' is a blast of pure brilliance that floats it's way into your heart with 'Sunday Morning' and brashly exits in a storm with 'European Son'. That right there is really the album as a whole. It'll softly find it's way past your guard, giving you a sense of serenity before it strips downs to a blaze of reverb, but somehow maintains it's charm. Few other's can do it, and really the VU pioneered it. Plus, Nico's full, brooding voice is something really quite gorgeous.
Jefferson Airplane Surrealistic Pillow4.5
Nico Chelsea Girl4.5

1966
The Beatles Revolver4.5
The Beach Boys Pet Sounds5.0
The most complete and beautiful collection of American music ever produced, and quite frankly could be the best album ever, period. 'Wouldn't It Be Nice', 'Dont Talk', 'I'm Waiting For the Day', 'God Only Knows', are each arguably the best love song(s) ever penned. 'Sloop John B', 'That's Not Me' & 'I Know There's an Answer' are all amazing. The Wilson vocal harmonies that so many try (and fail) to mimic are at their peak here, and they're second to none. Deep into drugs and self seclusion, Brian Wilson pulled something extremely unique and beautiful out of this 'ego music' of his. The arrangements are beautiful, the songs resonate with heat and warmth, 'Pet Sounds' is really a thing to behold.

1965
The Beatles Rubber Soul4.5
The Beatles Help!4.5
The Beach Boys Today!5.0

1964
The Beatles A Hard Day's Night4.0
Sam Cooke Ain't That Good News5.0

1963
Sam Cooke Night Beat4.5

1961
Sam Cooke My Kind of Blues4.5
1960
Etta James At Last!5.0

1959
Sam Cooke Tribute to the Lady4.0

1958
Sam Cooke Encore4.0

1957
Sam Cooke Sam Cooke4.5

Unknown
Cold War Kids With Our Wallets Full3.0
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