Best of the Oughts: Albums 21-30

The tens just keep getting better and better. We're nearing the realm where you cannot argue. Be forewarned.

We're back to a lot of older stuff, but I believe that will level off soon. I bet you can't wait to see what comes next.


30. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Stephen Malkmus
No Pavement this decade. So, SM's first solo album will have to do. It was really just leftover Pavement stuff that he needed professional musicians to play. I'm sorry, but it's true.

29. Radiohead - Kid A
OK Computer seemed so tame and normal when this came out. Both beauty and guts are on full display on this album. It's still hard for me to fathom that this was only Radiohead's fourth album. Wow.


28. PJ Harvey - Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea
Hey, looky what I found: another post-9/11 album. I feel a themed list coming on. Like the Cat Power album, this one was written and recorded prior to the attacks on September 11th, but the feelings and sentiments are profoundly dead-on. This makes two albums in a row in which Thom York appears.


27. Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out
Soundscapes and corn fields in summer are all you need to know.


26. Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning
This was Oberst's best folk album and it was accompanied by his Faint-inspired Digital Ash.


25. Caribou - Andorra
Drums. Drums. Drums. This album is so textured and perfect. #25 enters sacred territory on my list.


24. The Shins - Oh, Inverted World
Cluttered and whispered, this album should have been a hit, but no one heard it. That is, until Natalie Portman handed her headphones over to that guy from Scrubs.


23. Interpol - Turn on the Bright Lights
There must be a name for the syndrome in which bands record their best album first, leaving the remaining material unwanted. This album is so good, it would have ruined a lot of careers. Interpol was never the same.


22. Port O'Brien - All We Could Do Was Sing
This one is raw and full of life and emotion. I've said it before, but if you're not hooked after the first track, forget it.


21. Sufjan Stevens - Michigan
My family used to spend summers camping and traipsing around Michigan. This album doesn't just remind me of those days, it makes me long for them to return, awkward adolescence and all.