The 50 Best Albums of the 2000s: Numbers 28

The 50 Best Albums of the 2000s: Numbers 28 – 27

December 15th, 2009 MUSIC Cory Maidens

The double oughts are about to be over. Featured author and music obsessive Cory Maidens takes a look back at the first decade of the 21st Century in music, and lists his picks for the 50 best records to be released during its ten years

28. P.O.S. – Audition (2006)
Hailing from Minneapolis, Minnesota, Stefon Alexander hardly fits the preconcieved notion of what makes a great rapper. Coming up as a youth in the Twin Cities’ punk rock scene, Alexander had little love for hip-hop as an artform and as a result, the music he makes defies genre conventions while adding to its rich tradition. The fact that P.O.S.’ music has nothing to do with the streets, the hood or the unrelenting pursuit of wealth and women may suggest that he falls into the often obnoxious category of alternative rap but in actuality, Alexander’s honest discussion of his life and experience is akin in spirit to most of rap music’s greats. P.O.S.’ uncommonly versatile and expressive flow is a good companion to his equally wide range of subject matter as he references everything from 90′s hardcore greats Refused to Nas and De La Soul. Most of the album is a showcase for Alexander’s lyrical prowess but there are a handful of tastefully chosen guests include the Hold Steady’s Craig Finn, Bouncing Souls frontman Greg Attonito and fellow Minneapolis underground hip-hop hero Slug from Atmosphere on two tracks. Aesthetically, the album’s music is as consistent and impressive with a focus on gritty drum beats, varying tempos, live instrumentation and the frequent inclusion of melody. Single “P.O.S. Is Ruining My Life” transforms a few seconds worth of samples from Christian rock act Underoath into a spare, sludgy sing-along while other tracks like “Paul Kersey To Jack Kimball” and “Living Slightly Larger” turn conventional hip-hop fare into rich social commentary. Audition is a classic because it is an intelligent, personal and carefully-constructed declaration of cultural identity that defies the genre’s social conventions.

27. Radiohead – Kid A (2000)
Though critics and fans alike were split at the time of its release, the past decade has been unusually kind to Radiohead’s Kid A. What seemed outrageous or unusual ten years ago has simply proven prescient. The band intentionally rewrote their own rules for making music, experimenting with electronic instrumentation and unconventional textures and the result was more than just an interesting album. Kid A was a forward-facing record that has undeniably influenced the course of music itself. The success of their 1997 masterpiece OK Computer and the stress of following it effectively destroyed the band’s ability and desire to work within their previous stylistic confines. Throwing out the rule book allowed Thom Yorke and company to explore and examine just what a Radiohead song was and in doing so, the group was able to create some of their strongest work to date.

Visit Website

Cory Maidens

Cory Maidens is a proud son of the American Midwest, a man of letters and an incorrigible bastard. Since acquiring his BA in English Literature, he has proudly avoided non-comic books as an apathetic eye-roll at intellectual elitism. He thinks that arguing is highly underrated as sport and engages in it more often than might be advisable to compensate for that perceived deficiency. He believes in gay marriage, The Daily Show and Bruce Springsteen. He enjoys hearing Southern voices read Civil War-era correspondence aloud.

Did you enjoy this post?

If so, would you please consider sharing it with the world

Digg

Del.icio.us

Mixx

Stumble

User Responses

17 Responses and Counting...

Nick
December 15, 2009

You just lost all credibility with me. Kid A is a terrible album. It is unlistenable(I don’t care if this is a word or not) garbage from an overrated band.
This isn’t supposed to be an attack on you, Cory, but rather a rant on how much I hate that CD. I nearly gave up listening to music after listening to that CD.
Cory Maidens
December 15, 2009

I would’ve agreed with you a year ago. It definitely wasn’t what anyone wanted at the time but in retrospect, it was visionary. I’d recommend giving it another shot or two.
Tom Nix
December 15, 2009

The Red Circle apologizes for not including 50 laid-back guitar albums, Nick Helferich.

BTW, Radiohead is what Jack Johnson would sound like if he had talent, vision, and the ability to do anything besides surfing and producing boring music.
Cory Maidens
December 15, 2009

Jack Johnson is the most worthless thing to happen to music since Jason Mraz.
Nick
December 15, 2009

So, now it’s a tag team? Why bring up Jack Johnson? I know he isn’t going to do anything to change the course of music, but when I listen to music I don’t always need my mind blown. Besides, I like David Gray and Ben Harper more than Jack Johnson on the whole.

And Tom, I haven’t complained about the column on any of the prior entries, so I wasn’t bitching about not seeing a listing of music I like. If I wanted that, I would’ve written my own list and posted it up some where. I like the list overall, I just really dislike Kid A.

Ok Cory, if I manage to dig out my copy of Kid A from storage I will put it in my cd rotation and give it another try. But no promises on changing my mind about the album.
Nick
December 15, 2009

I realize there is still time, but if there isn’t a Frames album on this list I will be more than a little disappointed. And the Swell Season doesn’t count.
Tom Nix
December 15, 2009

aren’t you supposed to relentlessly flame people who comment on message boards? isnt that how it works?
Tom Nix
December 15, 2009

also, it is weird that KID A repulses you that much. It probably would have made #1 on my list. but, different strokes, you know.
Nick
December 15, 2009

Yes, but don’t you also like to lick monkey nuts? I guess they go hand in hand, I don’t like monkey nuts so I don’t like Kid A. I understand now.
Cory Maidens
December 15, 2009

Unfortunately, there are no Frames albums on this list. I’m not going to say that they don’t belong, simply that I haven’t spent enough time with their material to declare it worthy of this sort of honor.

As I said before, I was initially of the same opinion on Kid A, but time has been exceedingly kind to it and has definitely shown that Radiohead were just blazing a trail that many listeners just weren’t ready to follow at the time. Nine years later, a record that I once thought was composed of half-baked concepts and gibberish turned out to be well thought out and constructed, just in ways I wasn’t able to recognize then.
Tom Nix
December 15, 2009

This comment has officially placed this article at the top of our Most Popular snapshot. Congrats.

I love ONCE, but have found it hard to get into a lot of the other Frames albums. I know the man is capable of owning a song, but I, like Cory, just haven’t allowed those albums as much time as I probably should have.
Nick
December 15, 2009

their best studio album(that I have listened to) doesn’t even qualify so I will let you off the hook. But, The Set List is a live album and it completely rocks. I understand that it doesn’t even capture the raw energy of one of their shows.
Axl
December 15, 2009

The Frames are nothing. Just like jack johnson is Nothing, Jason Mraz is nothing and Ben Harper, though previously something, is now nothing. They may all have some talent somewhere in them and be pleasant but they just don’t matter at all. Kid A is at least something and had an impact, if only on popular music listeners dying to be alternative inbetween U2 and Muse concerts.
Nick
December 15, 2009

You, sir, are a festizio.
Nick
December 15, 2009

I gave Kid A a listen today, and while it is not as bad as I remember, I couldn’t help but be reminded of this, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLa8Br569gA
Cory Maidens
December 15, 2009

Ahh, then I think we have found the problem. You are bad at engaging with music. There is unfortunately no cure yet but the good news is that as long as you stop making ignorant comments about good music, you can live a happy and productive life listening to Jack Johnson and David Gray.
Nick
December 15, 2009

I will say that I definitely do not like the type of “rock” on display in Kid A. I get that what they are doing is probably amazing to a lot of people, but it all rings empty to me.
Honestly, it sounds like a talented band having a laugh at their fans and just fucking around.