A highly selective survey of 2005's best albums
I always look forward to The Onion AV Club's year-end best albums feature, and usually end up buying a bunch of CDs based on its recommendations. I'm too lazy to compile a top-ten list myself, but here are my thoughts on some albums that made AV gang's lists:
The Go! Team, "Thunder, Lightning, Strike"
Bright Eyes, "I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning"
Probably my favorite albums of the year. The first was an unexpected delight. Listening to it for the first time on the bus on the way to work, I repeatedly caught myself wearing a stupid grin. "Wide Awake" turned me onto Bright Eyes.
Broken Social Scene, Eponymous
Four Tet, "Everything Ecstatic"
Kanye West, "Late Registration"
All disappointing follow-ups by artists whose last albums I loved. At least the first two got the middling reviews they deserved. The critics who said "Late Registration" is better than its predecessor are guilty of wishful thinking, although I was grateful for the relative lack of moronic skits.
Sigur Ros, "Takk..."
The Decemberists, "Picaresque"
Kings of Leon, "Aha Shake Heartbreak"
These albums, on the other hand, delivered on the promise of their predecessors, and arguably improved on them. All worth buying, if you don't have them.
Calexico with Iron & Wine, "In the Reins"
Of Montreal, "The Sunlandic Twins"
The Mars Volta, "Frances the Mute"
Three great albums that didn't get a lot of ink this year. "Frances" didn't even make the Onion's feature, in fact. I assume it got overlooked because of its unfashionable progginess, but the third song is probably the awesomest rock song of the year. I'm guessing the Mars Volta programmed the disc the way they did specifically so people would have to listen to it as an album rather than as discreet songs, but in a nation of iPod users the tactic backfired. Also, "Frances" dropped early in the year, in January or February -- never a good tactic for making it onto year-end lists.
Common, "Be"
My Morning Jacket, "Z"
Two pleasant, middle-of-the-road albums that critics mysteriously worshipped. I ran out and bought both, only to find them each worth three stars (out of five).
Fiona Apple, "Extraordinary Machine"
The album I'll probably have to go buy on the strength of its reviews, "Be" and "Z" notwithstanding.
The Go! Team, "Thunder, Lightning, Strike"
Bright Eyes, "I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning"
Probably my favorite albums of the year. The first was an unexpected delight. Listening to it for the first time on the bus on the way to work, I repeatedly caught myself wearing a stupid grin. "Wide Awake" turned me onto Bright Eyes.
Broken Social Scene, Eponymous
Four Tet, "Everything Ecstatic"
Kanye West, "Late Registration"
All disappointing follow-ups by artists whose last albums I loved. At least the first two got the middling reviews they deserved. The critics who said "Late Registration" is better than its predecessor are guilty of wishful thinking, although I was grateful for the relative lack of moronic skits.
Sigur Ros, "Takk..."
The Decemberists, "Picaresque"
Kings of Leon, "Aha Shake Heartbreak"
These albums, on the other hand, delivered on the promise of their predecessors, and arguably improved on them. All worth buying, if you don't have them.
Calexico with Iron & Wine, "In the Reins"
Of Montreal, "The Sunlandic Twins"
The Mars Volta, "Frances the Mute"
Three great albums that didn't get a lot of ink this year. "Frances" didn't even make the Onion's feature, in fact. I assume it got overlooked because of its unfashionable progginess, but the third song is probably the awesomest rock song of the year. I'm guessing the Mars Volta programmed the disc the way they did specifically so people would have to listen to it as an album rather than as discreet songs, but in a nation of iPod users the tactic backfired. Also, "Frances" dropped early in the year, in January or February -- never a good tactic for making it onto year-end lists.
Common, "Be"
My Morning Jacket, "Z"
Two pleasant, middle-of-the-road albums that critics mysteriously worshipped. I ran out and bought both, only to find them each worth three stars (out of five).
Fiona Apple, "Extraordinary Machine"
The album I'll probably have to go buy on the strength of its reviews, "Be" and "Z" notwithstanding.
posted by Jeff at 10:41 AM
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