Pitchfork Top 200 Albums of 2000

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  • their exposure to any genre may be limited to whatever promotional recordings the station receives
    That was my first thought when I scanned the list, with such an obvious limited label focus.
  • Rolling Stone list - no surprises.

    1 | Radiohead: Kid A

    2 | The Strokes: Is This It

    3 | Wilco: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

    4 | Jay-Z: The Blueprint

    5 | The White Stripes: Elephant

    6 | Arcade Fire: Funeral

    7 | Eminem: The Marshal Mathers LP

    8 | Bob Dylan: Modern Times

    9 | M.I.A.: Kala

    10 | Kanye West: The College Dropout

    11 | Bob Dylan: Love and Theft

    12 | LCD Soundsystem: Sound of Silver

    13 | U2: All That You Can't Leave Behind

    14 | Jay-Z: The Black Album

    15 | Bruce Springsteen: The Rising

    16 | OutKast: Stankonia

    17 | Beck: Sea Change

    18 | MGMT: Oracular Spectacular

    19 | Amy Winehouse: Back to Black

    20 | The White Stripes: White Blood Cells

    21 | Coldplay: A Rush of Blood to the Head

    22 | Green Day: American Idiot

    23 | D'Angelo: Voodoo

    24 | Bruce Springsteen: Magic

    25 | Radiohead: Amnesiac

    26 | Cat Power: The Greatest

    27 | The Flaming Lips: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots

    28 | Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Fever to Tell

    29 | Sigur R
  • I am utterly perplexed by the Rolling Stone list. Three U2 albums make the list? The only Johnny Cash American album that makes it is American III? The only New Pornographers is Electric Version? The Hives?

    So confusing. Ah well, that's Rolling Stone I guess.

    Craig
  • well, American III is my favorite of the American albums, and anyway the first 2 are pre-2000. American IV, in my opinion is < the other three.

    U2 is a big, well liked and important band, and pretty much right up Rolling Stone's alley, so I don't find that too confusing. Really they are the last band of that size that still makes things worth listening too, even if it's not always my favorite.

    I have no qualifications to talk about the New Pornographers because I have 0 of their albums. Someday, maybe. Is this something I need?

    But I agree about the Hives.
  • amclark2, listen to songs #2 ("Letter From an Occupant") and #4 ("The Bleeding Heart Show") at http://www.lala.com/#artist/The_New_Pornographers - I'd say those should answer your question either way. A big yes for me, but ymmv.
  • The New Pornographers are just great indie pop. A.C. (Carl) Newman, Neko Case, and Dan "Destroyer" Bejar making fun catchy music. I know Daniel, Esq. thinks Twin Cinema is one of the top albums of the decade, and both Mass Romantic and Challenger are excellent as well. I agree that "The Bleeding Heart Show" is one of their best.

    As for U2, I am about as a big a fan as you'll find, but to put all three of those (especially No Line on the Horizon) in a list of top 100 of a decade is incredibly lazy.

    Craig
  • So I thought Is This It was an absolutely terrible choice for emu's no.1, but I dug it out of storage and threw it on the ipod, and am surprised how much I'm loving it. Don't know if I'd call it number one, but I like it way more than I did before. Anybody else find any pleasant surprises from looking through these lists?
  • I put Kid A on after a long hiatus. There's more there than I remember. I liked it more than I remember liking it before, but still not more than their other albums. I don't know that it's a number one album, but it's hard to argue against one of the Radioheads being number one. They had a great decade. My guess is that some of these places simply decided to give the top spot to Radiohead's least accessible album. If some of these organizations don't separate themselves from the general public, they might get confused with it. That would be awful. No cachet in that, lol.
    It's a great question amclark2. I think you should start a new thread for exactly that subject.
  • I don't know that I agree with that jonahpwll. I have no hesitation in saying that Kid A is my favorite Radiohead album from this decade (and in my opinion it compares very favorably with OK Computer). "Idioteque," "Optimistic," and "The National Anthem" are all absolutely fantastic, and the rest of the album is solid. Whether it's their least accessible album or not, I don't know that I can take a list seriously that doesn't have it the highest of Radiohead albums.

    Obviously this is all personal preference though.

    Craig
  • I don't know that I agree with that jonahpwll. I have no hesitation in saying that Kid A is my favorite Radiohead album from this decade (and in my opinion it compares very favorably with OK Computer). "Idioteque," "Optimistic," and "The National Anthem" are all absolutely fantastic, and the rest of the album is solid. Whether it's their least accessible album or not, I don't know that I can take a list seriously that doesn't have it the highest of Radiohead albums.

    That's interesting. So, you would have an issue if Amnesiac had been chosen for the top spot?
    And now re-reading your post, I also find interesting your comparison of Kid A to OK Computer, which I actually would compare more to Amnesiac. Definitely a preference thing. I don't have any real qualms with Kid A as number one. Aside from it being a good album, it has a quality that's so intricately indie that makes its choice as number one almost inevitable. I'm not saying its formulaic indie; nothing like that. More like a pedigree. I would make a Project Runway analogy, but I don't know you people that well; it might fall very flat.
  • In my view Amnesiac, while good, is not even close to being in Kid A's league. The depth and breadth of sound on Kid A simply overpowers what I see as the more straightforward Amnesiac, and given the choice between two similar sounds where one is just a bit more off kilter than the other, my preference will almost always move to the off kilter one. I think that's why for 2009 I rank Dirty Projectors and Wild Beasts over Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear. The former do a better job of keeping me slightly off balance than the later.

    The OK Computer comparison was mostly done because it is usually thought of as Radiohead's gold standard, and was meant to demonstrate how highly I think of Kid A. You're right that stylistically OK Computer is more similar to Amnesiac.

    As for "Project Runway", I'm aware of its existence, but that is about it. That said, don't worry about it falling flat. Thom and I discussed "So You Think You Can Dance" recently after someone (can't remember which of us) dropped a random reference. Of course brittleblood took away our hipster cred in response, so be wary.

    Craig
  • I feel like I lost mine just reading your mention of it.

    Your Kid A response sounds logical. Me, myself, these days I've been leaning toward the on-kilter side of things, whether it be rock or jazz or classical or whatever. Doubtlessly, it has much to do that I've flipped from having an all-nighter schedule to one that sees me getting out of bed before the sun does. Give me some ECM jazz, some Brian Eno, some Kranky drone to go with my coffee and irish cream.
  • edited December 2009
    In my view Amnesiac, while good, is not even close to being in Kid A's league. The depth and breadth of sound on Kid A simply overpowers what I see as the more straightforward Amnesiac, and given the choice between two similar sounds where one is just a bit more off kilter than the other, my preference will almost always move to the off kilter one. I think that's why for 2009 I rank Dirty Projectors and Wild Beasts over Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear. The former do a better job of keeping me slightly off balance than the later.

    Funny, because my taste generally goes the other way. I prefer straightforward to quirky every time. Give me verse/chorus/verse with a cool bridge and some killer hooks, and I'm happy. That's why I love power pop and hate Animal Collective. I used to think I just didn't "get" AC, so I kept listening, but now I've decided that I get it, I just don't like it. Maybe I'm just turning into a grumpy middle-aged guy bitching about all the crap those kids listen to these days. My tastes are all over the map, and I'm sure I like some stuff that others might consider quirky, but I'll take a Fountains of Wayne record over most of the indie stuff on these "best of the decade" lists with no regrets at all. And just to bring it back to Radiohead, my favorite record of theirs is The Bends, and it's not that close. I love that one. I'd put OK Computer second and Kid A third.
  • I've decided that I get it, I just don't like it
    That's my (current) feeling about Burial's Untrue.
  • I prefer straightforward to quirky every time.

    I pick quirky every time, and Kid A is definitely my favorite Radiohead album, and I have no argument with picking it as number one for the decade. I think I pick quirky because I pay zero attention to words, and there's only so much verse chorus verse chorus bridge etc. that my attention can hold. In fact when it comes to Animal Collective, I think Sung Tongs would have been my highest rated for the decade, which I think is a lot more twitchy and weird than Merrywether Post or Strawberry Jam, and my actual favorite is Spirit They've Gone, Spirit They've Vanished, which is weirder still.

    But that's just me, and I totally understand the opposite reaction.

    I think the great thing about Kid A was how different and new it sounded, and still sounds; nobody had ever really done that before, and nobody's quite done it as well since, including Radiohead themselves.


    As far as power pop, I'm going to blow my hipster cred again, and say that I was disapointed to not see Weezer's Green Album on more lists. I know I know, Blue Album's supposed to be the best and Pinkerton's the hipster choice, and everything else is supposed to suck, but have you listened to Green Album? I think it's perfect; perfect length, all perfect songs, perfect production etc. AND, it got them to play a song called "Hash Pipe" on TRL, sure they retitled it and blanked out the Hash, but everybody knew. I had so much hope for Weezer this decade. I feel sad they went the "Beverly Hills" direction.
  • Don't get me wrong, there is something incredible in a good straightforward rock song. Like I said earlier I'm a huge U2 fan, and they have become pretty darn formulaic over the years. If the formula works, though....

    I've never heard any Burial. I should do that at some point.

    Craig
  • amclark - The Green Album is a good album, and I won't let anyone tell me otherwise. Unfortunately I've become so disillusioned with Weezer over the last few months that I'm having trouble even enjoying "Undone" and that's a brilliant song!

    Craig
  • Someday someone will have to explain Amnesiac to me. I keep reading that it's the more "accessible" follow-up to Kid A. But I tried listening to it 2 or 3 times and found it dreadful.

    I can go in any direction. I have some ridiculously inaccessible/quirky music in my collection that I enjoy, but typically it all comes back to pop sensibilities sooner or later. The thing with Animal Collective for me is that I don't understand the near universal praise - even if I disagree with picks like Radiohead it makes sense that they are so popular. I remember watching AC perform on some late night show and thinking it was a joke, then a couple years go by and they're on practically every best of list. Even the songs of theirs that I like have a tendency to annoy me after awhile - it starts to feel like 4 minutes of waiting for the big crescendo when that's the only good part...

    Burial's Untrue is a great album, but definitely not for everyone.

    @Craig - You watching this season? Not as good as last, but I'm pulling for Russel. The first krumper that made me feel like it was a real dance movement.
  • edited December 2009
    I don't understand the near universal praise

    I like Animal Collective and I totally don't understand the near universal praise either. It doesn't make sense to me that they are as popular as they are, except that they got the right traffic in the right circles; i.e., Pitchfork loves 'em, and for better or for worse, this was Pitchfork's decade.
  • Someday someone will have to explain Amnesiac to me. I keep reading that it's the more "accessible" follow-up to Kid A. But I tried listening to it 2 or 3 times and found it dreadful.

    It's like they condensed the view of a rainy day landscape from a bay window and somehow filtered it through my speakers. Some great albums are comparable to a long road trip (the scenery always changing between city and country, mountains and lakeshore, stop and go) and others are like a majestic view from a solitary spot that goes on forever but never as long as you'd like. Amnesiac is in the latter group. Also, I like how the music on Amnesiac drives ahead just below the surface of the songs, giving the impression of vague shapes of aquatic life seen dimly below the surface of the water darting about in all directions or just floating in place.
    Also, Yorke is too hyper on Kid A for my tastes. He sounds like an OCD on a bad day (not saying that's always a bad thing for an album...).
  • That is quite the review jonahpwll!

    I enjoy Animal Collective, but enjoy is as far as it goes. MPP is not making my Top Ten for the year, but I listen to it now and then.

    thom - I haven't seen any of this season. It was simply too soon. If they do another summer version this year, though, I'm sure I'll be watching.

    Craig
  • The New Pornographers are just great indie pop. A.C. (Carl) Newman, Neko Case, and Dan "Destroyer" Bejar making fun catchy music. I know Daniel, Esq. thinks Twin Cinema is one of the top albums of the decade, and both Mass Romantic and Challenger are excellent as well. I agree that "The Bleeding Heart Show" is one of their best.

    Yep. Tho, at this point, I'd say Burial's Untrue -- or maybe The Knife's Silent Shout -- is my favorite of the decade.
  • No thread for other publication's best-of-the-decade lists? Hm. Well, here's The Stylus Decade. (The writers reunited for a one-off best-of list). Good list imo.
  • This thread more or less became the "best of the decade list" thread. The sad thing is how the discussions died so quickly before the decade even ended. I really wish people would just wait until January to start this stuff.
  • C'mon, thom, by January, the previous decade is old hat! :) And really, anything from the very end of a decade is pretty suspect in a list formed at the same time, so I don't see the jump start as a practical "problem".
  • As a fan of The Avett Brothers' I And Love And You, I must politely disagree.
  • Fan or not, anyone lucid about cognitive bias should be skeptical about recently heard recordings placed in long-term "best of" or "essential" lists - and that's irrespective of how one eventually judges it. That's all I'm saying.
  • This thread more or less became the "best of the decade list" thread. The sad thing is how the discussions died so quickly before the decade even ended. I really wish people would just wait until January to start this stuff.

    I'm still happy to discuss it!
  • I'm trying to come up with own "Best of the Aughts" list. It's kinda hard considering I have significantly more music from the second half of the decade to choose from. 2000 already seems a bit disappointing to me - although that will change slightly if I decide to include Ágætis Byrjun.

    I'd love to see other people come up with some lists, too.
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