2024 Had The Music

Hello! It's been a while. 

So for some housekeeping, here first is my 2023 list because I didn't get around to posting it other than a Stereogum comment. This year I also had a preemptive Stereogum comment with a premature list that I have since revised. So if I'd given myself time, perhaps I would've also edited this one accordingly. But it's still a good list for what was a good year I think. 

2023: 

1 Sufjan Stevens - Javelin 

 2 Yves Tumor - Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume 

 3 Jess Williamson - Time Ain't Accidental 

 4 Young Fathers - Heavy Heavy 

 5 Snooper - Super Snooper 

 6 Blonde Redhead - Sit Down for Dinner 

 7 JPEG Mafia/Danny Brown - Scaring the Hoes 

 8 Jessie Ware - That! Feels! Good! 

 9 Death Goals - A Garden of Dead Flowers 

 10 Doki Doki - Doki Doki 

 11 Belle & Sebastian - Late Developers 

 12 Esther Rose - Safe to Run 

 13 Indigo De Souza - All of This Will End 

 14 Alex Lahey - The Answer Is Always Yes 

 15 Margo Cilker - Valley of Heart's Delight 

 16 Chris Farren - Doom Singer 

 17 Anjimile - The King 

 18 Jeff Rosenstock - HELLMODE 

 19 Bat Boy - Fun Machine 

 20 Danny Brown - Quaranta 

 21 Aesop Rock - Integrated Tech Solutions 

 22 Light Beams - Wild Life 

 23 Ratboys - The Window 

 24 Vangas - Vangas 

 25 Fucked Up - One Day 

 26 Lol Tolhurst, Budgie, Jacknife Lee - Los Angeles 

 27 Algiers - Shook 

 28 US Girls - Bless This Mess 

 Yeah that's some good stuff but what about 2024? Well yeah, that's the main reason I'm posting this in late December 2024. 

Honorable Mentions:

There were a lot of honorably mentionable albums that could have been on this other list perhaps if I'd given them more of a chance or if they'd hit me at a slightly different angle or at a different time of day/year/life. Night Palace by Mount Eerie was lovely and super long and intimidating but enjoyable too. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds took on the challenge of creating an uplifting album out of tragedy on Wild God but I wasn't feeling it as intimately as the last few. Escape Forever by Soft Kill. BLUE LIPS by ScHoolboy Q. Wussy is a band I should've discovered earlier but Cincinnati Ohio became a favorite in December. Shannon and The Clams were a lot of fun and also interesting and also sad with The Moon Is In The Wrong Place. Big For You by Zsela. Sky Hundred by Parannoul. We Belong by Sinkane was surprising to me just in that I came upon it randomly and it banged so hard. Alan Sparhawk broke my heart with a 1 minute song on White Roses, My God. Hex Dealer by Lip Critic was fun and I feel like I should've liked it more. Tara Jane O'Neil doesn't miss and The Cool Cloud of Okayness was more than just okay. Couch Slut rocked pretty hard on You Could Do It Tonight. I'm very excited about any future Perennial albums after Art History continued to expand on their sound. Eazy Peazy by Man/Woman/Chainsaw. Karate made a super engaging reunion album in Make It Fit. Alligator Bites Never Heal by Doechii. St. Vincent had a bit of a "return to form" (i.e. she is rocking again, playing guitar like I love) with All Born Screaming. Dark Times by Vince Staples. Petrichor by 070 Shake was exactly what I hoped for with its genre hopping. WeirdOs by O. The return of Les Savy Fav was also what I hoped for on OUI, LSF. Love them. Jim White had a banner year and his album with Marisa Anderson called Swallowtail was a highlight. My Method Actor by Nilufer Yanya. Wow did you hear that Xiu Xiu album 13" Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips it rocked! Fearless Movement by Kamasi Washington. Kenny Segal & K-The-I??? just crashed into my life in December with Genuine Dexterity and it probably should've made the list. Comatose by Candy Apple was some great Denver hardcore I just discovered when I did some year end browsing. And I just discovered local Denver band Fainting Dreams when they played a sweet festival with Nina Nastasia; Those Left Untouched by the Light is absolutely gorgeous. Okay, that was a lot and here's a lot more.

Okay now the main event that all couple of you that read this are here for!

It's the Top 28 Albums of 2024 According to Me!

Bandcamp links provided where available. Support people who make cool music, now more than ever!

28. Gustaf - Package Pt. 2 - This super fun post punk band continued to be super fun and engaging. I dunno, it hits just like their previous album.

27. Finom - Not God - I just discovered them recently and the dual vocals and guitar licks are super catchy and just great. I'm doing a great job describing stuff aren't I.

26. Hamish Hawk - A Firmer Hand - Reminds me of the classic post punk dudes plus some homoeroticism, it's a lovely time.

25. This is Lorelei - Box for Buddy, Box for Star - This album is like if the evolution of folk music stemmed from The Charm of the Highway Strip by Magnetic Fields. It's that great sound, with a good dose of Merritt-esque wit, and some heartbreak thrown in as well.

24. Ekko Astral - Pink Balloons - Those drums, that intensity. The attitude. Kind of silly but intense?

23. Party Dozen - Crime in Australia - It may not be quite as hard hitting as The Real Work but almost. And that is made up for in groove. Vibes. It feels like a soundtrack to an old school Guy Ritchie movie (complementary...I haven't kept up with his career but his first couple had that cool factor and that's what I'm talking about). Crimes. Do Crimes. Go to a dozen parties. 

22. Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven - The punk hits hard, the pop hits hard, the feelings hit the hardest. This is a great album that hits a lot of different sounds and feels disorienting but in a way that only makes me want more.

21. Kendrick Lamar - GNX - I guess the only justification I have to put here is why it's so far down my list. I firmly believe he is the best rapper of the past 20+ years and I know that's a pretty cold take. My favorite thing Kendrick did this year was "Euphoria." Since then it's basically been a victory lap. It's a fun album but it really has me yearning for Mr Morale in its challenging of the audience and oneself. I look forward to the next one.

20. The Smile - Cutouts (note: Bandcamp link is for physical vinyl and doesn't include digital download for some reason. Second most polarizing thing The Smile did this year.) - I was always an Amnesiac > Kid A type of kid. Whatever that means. When these guys put out an album and then put out another album of outtakes from that first one, I like the outtakes better. I really don't know what that means or if it means anything. I like the songs on this one after Wall of Eyes did not really land for me. There are a few songs I love on Eyes but the concentration of bangers on Cutouts is high and it didn't really take any effort on my part for it to turn out that way.

19. Charli xcx - BRAT - I never even tried with her before. But the last couple years I've opened up a little bit to the pop music that's actually popular because it's gotten quite good in many instances. Then a combination of her bringing in Robyn for a remix and Stereogum getting all obsessive led me to giving Brat a chance. There's a certain vulnerability and honesty to this album that really pulled me in and opened me up to the bangers. Isn't it supposed to go the opposite way? Anyway, it's a great combo of two things.

18. Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You More - We haven't gotten a Breeders album in a bit but we got solo Kim Deal. Which makes it more personal. And it was the last time she worked with Steve Albini which makes it more personal. Her vocals are in the same sweet spot for me that always makes me feel good in a way that only she can. It's just a work of beauty that makes me feel good and sad but mostly good.

17. Tyler, The Creator - CHROMAKOPIA - It's just thrilling. The beats and the places it ventures. It almost seems like the rapping is beside the point even though it's great too and has some highly entertaining bits. This is compositions serving a higher purpose.

16. Font - Strange Burden - Reminds me of Liars when they'd go full dance punk. For a full "album" (that is almost an EP however that is defined). It takes me back to that dance club from 20 years ago but somehow doesn't feel out of time. Play it loud. Get in someone's face.

15. Ab-Soul - Soul Burger - I never listened much to Ab-Soul before but for some reason this one hit me right in the right spot. I can't really describe why other than to say it just feels so satisfying. It has a song that references Digable Planets and that's the vibe that it's working with for me.

14. ShrapKnel - Nobody Planning to Leave - I don't remember how I discovered this one; I'd never heard of Curly Castro or Controller 7 before. They haven't gotten a ton of press. They did get Open Mike Eagle on a track so it could've stemmed from that. Anyway, these guys bring such a vibe. It feels like The People Under The Stairs in its adoration for the old school hip hop that came before and an inventiveness that looks forward. This album is just really good and I'm excited to see what else these guys come up with.

13. Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood - I became a huge fan with Saint Cloud, as maybe the first "going country" thing that an artist pulled off in a way that worked to go straight to my heart. Then there was Plains with Jess Williamson, who you may see very high on my 2023 list. So this was bound to be a favorite. And it was my second most listened to album behind only my #1 album that you will see below. So why down here in the double digits? It's a great album that I feel got overly praised/hyped. Slightly. I mean, it's still up here in a very busy year. It's super pleasant and it's got some great love songs. Everyone loves "Right Back to It" but I'm team "365" which is one of my favorite Waxahatchee songs yet, if not my favorite. 

12. Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future - It's just got the songs. Just a bunch of perfect songs. I only recently got into Big Thief for it's kind of silly but authentic fun beautiful messy songs. This solo stuff is so minimalist so all we've got are the songs. And they are immaculate.

11. Father John Misty - Mahashmashana - The way this kicks off is kind of funny. Huge sweeping sounds. A 9+ minute epic that feels even bigger than that. I am a defender of Chloe and the Next 20th Century because of how it emphasized his great vocals and beautiful lyrics. But here, he's back to swinging for the fences and it's a full album of that in different ways. Saxophone solos. No songs under 4 minutes, only a couple under 5. All showstoppers. It's ridiculous and amazing. And those vocals and lyrics are still right up front.

10. Beings - There Is A Garden - I'm not sure how to categorize this. I consider it jazz I guess because of its inventive instrumentals but it's got this skronkiness but it's got these great pop vocal parts but it's so many things. Legendary drummer Jim White was involved in a lot of great projects this year from a supergroup with Steven Malkmus to solo material to something on my honorable mentions list to a reunion with The Dirty Three, but this feels like the best use of his talents. He holds this odd project together while the real star is probably Zoh Ambra on vocals and sax who makes all these exciting elements just pop. To say nothing about Steve Gunn and Shahzad Ismaily (whom I know nothing about but am interested in discovering further) who add some very interesting textures to the mix. People on Bandcamp compare this to the Velvet Underground and I'll allow it. 

9. Clothing - From Memory - Another project that's some people I'd never heard of before (Dawn of Midi and Mobius Band/Cookies) but once I started digging into it I'm finding a lot to love about both of them. I did end up also buying the Cookies album on vinyl. I was first piqued by the presence of Amber Coffman and L'Rain. Coffman in particular who you may remember as one of the main vocalists for Dirty Projectors in their prime. My favorite DP songs featured her extensively, and this album features her extensively. It's some great beat makers and that voice. And L'Rain and Elliott Skinner and Anna Wise. There's something to be said for an album with only four guest vocalists where all the tracks have guest vocalists. There's something to this. Off kilter, gorgeous, catchy, danceable. 

8. Foushee - Pointy Heights - I was compelled to check this out by the album artwork that included some black and white checkerboard flooring. And the single "War" had a very ska beat to it. It ended up hitting really well with its combination of ska beats and joy and great vocals and some very relatable lyrics. A drink of coffee and we'll be 100 bux. This is beautifully produced by Steve Lacy and I think I like it more than his solo album. It was on a major label I believe but I feel like it was super slept on so here is me trying to wake you up. Check out this awesome album!

7. Bacchae - Next Time - You know, when Stereogum first described it, I wasn't so sure about it. They compared vocalist Katie McD to musical theater in how she enunciated her words. But I checked it out anyway because it was a complimentary review and the other elements and political parts seemed to be something I'd like. Songs like "Dead Man" about the dehumanization of corporate living. The DC-ness of it all. And that was right on. The only thing I'd like to add is that the vocals remind me more of Jello Biafra in  the prime Dead Kennedys era. I remember him being described as an opera singer doing punk music and there is a theatricality there but it works in a similar way. It's a real pity this band broke up this year. I hope they continue the DC tradition of starting up new projects from their ashes that end up being equally compelling because there is a lot going on with this album. I adore it.

6. Heems & Lapgan - LAFANDAR - I can't even properly explain how entertaining this album is. How is such a silly album so high on my list? It's just Heems talking shit. He put out another album this year that was more serious but this one here is just so much fun. What else is there to it? There are great guest vocal turns from some notables like Open Mike Eagle and Kool Keith and Quelle Chris and they all work because they all adapt to the silly smart wordplay style that Heems brings. And I feel a real beautiful cultural unity when he rhymes Vinyasa with Piazza, Rasta, pasta, and kielbasa.

5. Shellac - To All Trains - In a year full of musician deaths that I took personally, Steve Albini's stands out. Shellac was an amazing band with three amazing musicians playing off each other, and starting in 2007 I just felt lucky we were getting any new music from them, as it was more of a side project for all of them. It was a combination of great wit and great musicianship and impeccable production. This final album fits that lineage. How the beat cuts him off when he's screaming "we'll be pirates!" or his delivery of "pow! you're pregnant!" it's maybe the most entertaining Shellac album this side of "Prayer to God." I don't know if he knew the end was near when he recorded the perfect send-off in "I Don't Fear Hell" but it is the perfect capper in its context and humor. It's exactly what I'd want to hear from him if he were literally speaking from beyond the grave. Requiescat. 

4. Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk - Another highly praised album that I absolutely bought into when I gave it a chance myself. The people were right on this one. It's kind of like if Goldfrapp or Kylie Minogue sang for The Go! Team? But maybe even more hard in its forays into experimental blasts, kind of like prime Sleigh Bells. So you know, a lot of the best stuff of the late '00s/early '10s but in a way that still feels fresh in '24. If you haven't given the a chance yet, here's another person in the chorus urging you to give it a go.

3. Sprints - Letter to Self - I have a good amount of punk rock fronted by women in my list which makes me happy. This album came out January 5, the first Friday of 2024. And it kicked so much ass that it immediately made its way to my shortlist for the year and I took it off some playlists for a while because it was not in question. Then I came back to it in late November after a long break and it knocked pretty much everything down a peg in my list. It's catchy and has range and rage. The fuzz and the vocals. The beat. The builds. This is why I want to share music with people. Listen to THIS.

2. The Cure - Songs of a Lost World - I always loved and respected The Cure. Disintegration is a contender for best album ever. But I was still awestruck at what they pulled off here. This is just beautiful, sorrowful, pointed music. Almost every song has lyrics referencing "the end." It came out right before the election and it stands as a beautiful piece of music on its own, but after the election, it was my piece of the world I could hold onto. This beautiful sorrowful pointed composition was my reassurance that someone understands things. As tough as it gets going forward, we're not alone. We have the most beautiful man Robert Smith in our corner and that feels good. Whatever happens, we have these 8 perfect anthems to help us remain human as we mourn what is ending.

1. Hurray for the Riff Raff - The Past Is Still Alive - Speaking of perfect anthems, Alynda Segarra has created a full album of perfect anthems for those who fight hard just to survive, those who thrive, and those who did not make it. They're singing for the weirdos and the junkies and the lovers and the barrel of freaks and those who are just trying to get out in one piece. Truth bombs ranging from the poetic ("No one will remember us like I will remember us") to the literal begging for survival ("test your drugs, remember Narcan. There's a war on the people, what don't you understand?") they know when and where to drop what. This record feels simultaneously like a survival guide and a place to meet in the not too distant future when maybe we can smile again.

An Ear For An Era: 2000

In the year 2000...

I remember when 2000 was far away. And then not so far away. And then the past. And Conan continuing the "In the year 2000" skits regardless. It's just a number. An idea. It used to be the idea of the future. So whatever the number is. It's just a number. When everybody was freaking out about Y2K and apocalypse and whatnot I just kind of laughed it off because of how arbitrary numbers are anyway.

2000 was the year I started my senior year in high school, it was a year I started off by being blown off by my friends but hanging out with my brother so it's fine, it was the year I got a serious girlfriend and went to school dances instead of making movies on school dance nights.

The future.

Now 15 years gone.

Music blog.

I'm going to start off the actual portion of this that is not a meaningless/meaningful introduction by talking about hip hop. 2000 was an insane year for great hip hop. I didn't know at the time because my mind was still closed, but there was a lot.

Soon to be one of my favorite MCs Del The Funky Homosapien had a very fantastic album Both Sides of the Brain that for a long time was the most recent Del solo album so it always felt like latter era Del. He's really upped his productivity in recent years, however, and now I guess I'd call it "mid period" because it is still pretty far removed from his early 90s repertoire. Same attitude, new production. But of course the big one was Deltron 3030, his project with Dan the Automator and Kid Koala. The future! Not sure how much I need to explain to this audience, but this concept sci-fi album is so much fun to listen to, as Del seems to bring out the best in Automator and vice versa (Koala's input is somewhat limited in comparison to his solo stuff...). It's just vivid, it's catchy, and impeccably done all around.

Deltron 3030 "Virus"

More hip hop, quick rundown style...
Ludacris, whom I would pretty soon discover for myself, has been historically viewed by me as just a fun, funny MC without too much to say. I think he's broken that stigma but he was very entertaining on Back for the First Time. De La Soul's Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump is a great showcase of a band still at the top of their game a decade in. Quality Control by Jurassic 5 is kind of a peak for the group creatively as a bunch of MCs that manage to find a level of harmony rarely heard in this century's hip hop, and also exemplified by the dual-DJ attack and "Swing Set," an awesome track of a couple DJs just showing off in a way that usually only MCs attempt. Speaking of DJs (producers?), Quasimoto is an interesting showcase of Madlib's behind-the-mic skills. I don't have the Wu-Tang Clan album The W, but I have "Gravel Pit" and yeah. You know that one is grand. Umm, Train of Thought by Reflection Eternal starring Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek is master class 2000 hip hop.

And of course Outkast. Stankonia was the last super collaborative album they put out together and pretty much the best. "Ms. Jackson" and "B.O.B." and other songs I haven't given their proper due. But "B.O.B." will always get me going nuts. I hated Eminem at the time but he's grown on me a little. The homophobia is pretty awful but he's not the only one with awful homophobia in his music from this time, so I guess he shouldn't have been singled out as much as he was...I know Common was guilty of some homophobia as well but Like Water For Chocolate is praised. And it should be for most reasons.

And now the stuff from the genres I really listened to back in 2000.

I hate being one of those guys that gets mad at a band for going in a new direction or whatever because you're the artist/follow your muse/etc, but The Suicide Machines really pissed me off when they put out their self-titled album in 2000. My saviors, a band that helped me understand this complicated world and work through it, put out some awful pop music and I was pissed. I took it personally. They kind of made up for it later, realizing their mistake and signing to an indie label and being punk again, but my relationship with what was once one of my favorite bands was never the same.

One of my oldest shirts is what I now kind of use to prove my punk rock credentials. It's from the CD release show for Problematic by All. You can barely read it, but it spells out the show date in 2000. At the time it seemed like I was late to the party on it, but at this point 15 years are a lot of years.  I don't listen to Problematic all that often but it does take me back. Not my favorite All record but still good.

The Impossibles got back together while I was still into their ska stuff. And became sort of power pop, in a way that outside observers said they sounded like Weezer (in a good way). I had not really listened to much Weezer, but you can give The Impossibles credit there, for directing me that way. Because Return is a fantastic pop album with great hooks and great heartbreak. "Never Say Goodbye" was my anthem when I was graduating high school. Not that I see any of those people anymore (with approximately 1 exception), so maybe I should have said goodbye?

I don't know how many friends I introduced to the brilliant Shellac when I discovered them, but people did not need to be post-rock/math-rock/experimental music followers to follow the message on "Prayer to God." Profane, hilarious, but so true to the raw emotions that people have, when I was faced with a similar situation the song just got stronger and stronger to me (but still funny, because I'm not a psychopath that takes it seriously). The rest of the album 1000 Hurts is part of what got me into the post-rock stuff later on, but it's easy if you've had a broken heart to latch right on to this song.

Shellac "Prayer to God"

I was always a few steps behind my friends on The Weakerthans. Not sure why. I love their music. Pretty astonishing that this was a guy from Propagandhi being poetic and not political. But John K. Samson is among the greatest lyricists not only in indie rock but in rock. "How I don't know what I should do with my hands when I talk to you, how you don't know where you should look...so you look at my hands." Oh yeah, the album is called Left & Leaving. Fantastic stuff.

Speaking of lyricists, Stephin Merritt. This is the right-after-69-Love-Songs Stephin Merritt and even though the 6ths album Hyacinths and Thistles was not as well received critically, I feel like he was still on a roll. There are plenty of songs on this album that could have been 69 Love Songs standouts, particularly "As You Turn to Go" and "You You You You You."

Cursive's Domestica was one of my favorites. An examination of a bitter divorce with nothing held back. A modern Here, My Dear. But emo or whatever. I just always loved how Tim Kasher seemed to know exactly what he did wrong and acknowledged his weaknesses on here, not really pointing the blame in any direction but exploring the roots of the problems. It's uncomfortable but everything from his wife's point of view is the most poignant and you can see that he understands it. This will always be my favorite Cursive album because it taught me to look at myself and examine my own flaws in this area, and hopefully avoid making some of the same mistakes. This song I take very personally because it echoed the mistakes that I would eventually learn from in my relationship at the time to be a better partner today.

Cursive "The Martyr"

When I introduced my friend to the music of The Broadways, he said they reminded him of this other band that I should check out. So I was really excited to hear this band that sounded like The Broadways. But then when I heard them I couldn't really figure out the similarities he'd drawn between the bands. But it didn't matter because this was one of the most intense, aggressive, energy creating bands I'd ever heard. I made an analogy a while back on this blog about a band creating all this potential energy and releasing it and I don't remember who I was talking about, but the same could be said for At The Drive-In. Then I saw them on Letterman and knew I HAD to see them live. Then they broke up.

At The Drive-In "One Armed Scissor" Live on Letterman

I saw a very early The Mars Volta show a little while later but it just was not the same.

In the summer of 2000, Asian Man Records put together the Plea for Peace tour featuring all of the great bands on its roster. Maybe the best lineup I have ever seen. And my family was going to fly out to Florida on vacation the day before the show got to Denver. Somehow I convinced my brother to wait back with me so I could go to this show and convinced a friend who wasn't really interested in that type of music to go with me so I wouldn't be driving to Denver alone. And I SOMEHOW convinced my parents to let me and my brother drive across the country to meet up with them in Florida. All of those pieces fit together and I got to go to this show. And I will never forget that experience. The skapunk of the past (MU330! Mike Park doing Skankin' Pickle songs with them!) met the melodic punk of the future (Alkaline Trio! The Honor System! The Lawrence Arms!) and it was an amazing experience.

Alkaline Trio quickly became one of my favorite bands when they put out Maybe I'll Catch Fire, an album I could get and not feel awkward about its title. While not as great of an album as Goddamnit, it was special and it showed me some dark visions and introduced me to their world. The Honor System was close enough to The Broadways that I was immediately hooked. Single File was their debut and really echoes "Dan songs" by The Broadways. The passion in the political. Similar guitar licks.

And of course The Lawrence Arms. Ghost Stories is still my favorite album of theirs. Walking out of the concert I saw Brendan talking to some dudes in the alley and I told him he'd played a great show. And that was the first time I addressed him at a Lawrence Arms show. This practice would lead to him recognizing me and remembering my name and having longer conversations as the years went on. Anyway, a few years later I was talking to Brendan in one of our longer conversations about Ghost Stories. How it was my favorite and people don't seem to get it. And it was so validating when he agreed with me and said that it's kind of the measure of the real fans, because it really takes time to get it but then it comes together. This is a cold and distant record. The production is "gritty," I guess you could say. I like the word cold for it though. You need to embrace it and warm it up and then it speaks to you. Personal stuff. Poetic stuff. I could pick any song to play for you here because they are all special to me. This was when I really got into Chris' songs in particular. I'd appreciated him in The Broadways but he sounded quite a bit like Dan. He was unique here. I could really feel that he meant what he was singing. I don't know man, what do I say about this album? Criminally underrated. They don't even play these songs anymore. That's fine, you move on. But it will always be my special gem. Due to a fluke on my ipod this played twice and for the first time in the project I did not skip the repeat because I just couldn't stop it. I just had to let it play, once I heard the opening chords, through the secret tracks without skipping past the silence. Because even the silence between "The Last One" and its bonus tracks is part of the experience to me.

The Lawrence Arms "Ghost Stories"

They also put out a split EP with Shady View Terrace in 2000. It was the first step in a brand new direction for the band that is considered the classic, favorite era. A little "better" produced but still amazing. Especially those damn Chris songs...

I remember when Elliott Smith died (I know, not way back in 2000 but this is apparently his last album). I hadn't been a huge fan but one of my friends had. We heard he'd stabbed himself in the heart! We listened to a lot of depressing music but that kind of sealed the deal as him being the pinnacle of that. And from there, it seemed too real for me to approach it without taking it seriously and with the highest amount of respect. This has always put a certain amount of elusiveness on his catalog for me.

Elliott Smith "Can't Make A Sound"

Also Noted.

• Planes Mistaken for Stars! I had the "Fucking Fight" 7" and its intensity was just ridiculous. I only saw the band live a handful of times despite them being all over the Denver indie/emo/whatever scene but every time was very memorable and intense and terrifying. Legends around these parts. The Knife in the Marathon EP was fantastic as well but didn't have the insane intensity of that 7".
• The Dandy Warhols' Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia is kind of a classic of urban Bohemia. That's pretty much what I'd call it.
• Hot Hot Heat certainly was different in these days.
• The first Jill Scott album is fabulous. I wouldn't discover her until around '07.
• I haven't listened too much to Sufjan Stevens' debut A Sun Came, but it's quite pleasant.
• Yeah White Stripes, thisclose to legendary status...
• The distant warmth of Kid A is a brilliant album that I couldn't think of what to write about, so it's just "noted" even though many would consider it the best album of 2000. Take that, expectations!
• Once all of Coldplay's albums were on Amazon for like 50 cents each or something so I got them, thinking "ha! Take that, Coldplay! That's what your catalog is worth!" But now I have to actually listen to them in this thing so who's laughing now? They have a couple decent songs though.
• I saw The New Pornographers last year for the first time in concert (I know!), and they neglected to play the standout track from their debut album Mass Romantic, "Letter From An Occupant." I know, right??
• And Neko Case solo. So country back then. But she's always had that voice!
• Flogging Molly is entertaining.
• Cat Power's deconstruction of a covers album is really cool and really frustrating. Just sing the chorus!
• Don Caballero, one last hurrah of the classic lineup.
• Add Float by Aesop Rock to that hip hop list above. Good year indeed.
• Enon was one of my favorite bands and I'm throwing their debut down here?? Believo! was awesomely diverse and catchy yet only hinted at their future prowess.
• The last Man or Astroman album for a while was A Spectrum of Infinite Scale and for a long time it was the only one I had of theirs on CD. Anyone who can make a compelling track by recording the sound of a printer printing something that they programmed is pretty brilliant in my book.
• There's too much to write about! Daisies of the Galaxy by Eels!
• American III by Johnny Cash!
• Avalanches! Since I Left You is a party!
• Ghostface Killah! Supreme Clientele! I told you it was a year of hip hop!
• I didn't listen to much Modest Mouse in 2000. I know my girlfriend liked their 90s stuff but I didn't get The Moon & Antarctica until later on. Kind of a new direction for them but a fascinating one.

Next Time...
2001 was a big year of changes in my life and in the world. But this is about music. 2001 had some good music by artists such as Beulah, Built to Spill, Dilated Peoples, Ee, the last Fugazi album, Gorillaz, Jay-Z taking over, The National, Polysics, Pulp, The Strokes, Tom Daily, and !!!, among other things. Happy new year!