Counting Down The '00s: The Best Of 2004

Our countdown of the '00s continues with 2004, a year that was particularly good for new bands. Among the top 10 albums of the year we find the debuts of Franz Ferdinand, TV On The Radio and Arcade Fire, three of the best new acts of the decade. Franz Ferdinand's self-titled LP played like a greatest hits compilation, as each and every song on it sounded like a potential number one single in an ideal hit parade. As a result, the album claimed the top spot in our end of the year list and this is what we had to say about it at the time: "...Scotland's Franz Ferdinand offer the latest classic debut of the '00s, following in the footsteps of The Strokes and Interpol before them. 11 songs with hit single potential, taking punk’s energy, '70s glam and '80s new wave and magically transforming them into 21st century power-pop splendor."

The other top album of the year, though, came from a seasoned veteran. Nick Cave started one of the most prolific periods in his illustrious career with the amazing double album "Abattoir blues / The lyre of Orpheus". Other heroes from the past who made triumphant comebacks in '04 included Morrissey (with his best solo effort in ages), Sonic Youth, Mark Lanegan and the Beastie Boys with one of the best hip-hop albums of the '00s, the New York-centric "To the 5 boroughs".

Among the best releases of the year we also find the excellent "Good news for people who love bad news" from the consistently brilliant Modest Mouse (the album that finally gave them some of the commercial success they deserved), "Louden up now", the punk-funk dynamite of !!!, "Pawn shoppe heart", the garage-pop masterpiece of The Von Bondies, "Antics", the sophomore Interpol album that solidified their position as one of the best bands of the decade and "Misery is a butterfly", a magnificent album that hinted that for Blonde Redhead the best was yet to come.

Top 30 Albums of 2004

1. Franz Ferdinand - FRANZ FERDINAND
2. Abattoir blues / The lyre of Orpheus - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
3. Good news for people who love bad news - MODEST MOUSE
4. Louden up now - !!!
5. Desperate youth, blood thirsty babes - TV ON THE RADIO
6. Pawn shoppe heart - THE VON BONDIES
7. Antics - INTERPOL
8. You are the quarry - MORRISSEY
9. Funeral - THE ARCADE FIRE
10. Sonic nurse - SONIC YOUTH
11. Misery is a butterfly - BLONDE REDHEAD
12. Bubblegum - MARK LANEGAN BAND
13. No cities left - THE DEARS
14. To the 5 boroughs - BEASTIE BOYS
15. Hot fuss - THE KILLERS
16. The power out - ELECTRELANE
17. Bows + arrows - THE WALKMEN
18. You're a woman, I’m a machine - DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979
19. Tyrannosaurus Hives - THE HIVES
20. Uh huh her - P.J. HARVEY
21. More adventurous - RILO KILEY
22. The Concretes - THE CONCRETES
23. Thunder, lightning, strike - THE GO! TEAM
24. The Futureheads - THE FUTUREHEADS
25. The royal society - THE EIGHTIES MATCHBOX B-LINE DISASTER
26. Audit in progress - HOT SNAKES
27. This island - LE TIGRE
28. The college dropout - KANYE WEST
29. American idiot - GREEN DAY
30. Shake the sheets - TED LEO + THE PHARMACISTS

Top 30 Singles of 2004

1. Float on - MODEST MOUSE
2. The rat - THE WALKMEN
3. Staring at the sun - TV ON THE RADIO
4. Take me out - FRANZ FERDINAND
5. Slow hands - INTERPOL
6. C’mon c’mon - THE VON BONDIES
7. Theme from Sparta FC #2 - THE FALL
8. Mono - COURTNEY LOVE
9. Somebody told me - THE KILLERS
10. Lost in the plot - THE DEARS
11. Equus - BLONDE REDHEAD
12. An open letter to NYC - BEASTIE BOYS
13. Irish blood, English heart - MORRISSEY
14. Nature boy - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
15. Reptilian - THE STROKES
16. Mister mental - THE EIGHTIES MATCHBOX B-LINE DISASTER
17. Johnny Cash - SONS AND DAUGHTERS
18. Single again - THE FIERY FURNACES
19. The letter - P.J. HARVEY
20. Beat your heart out - THE DISTILLERS
21. American idiot - GREEN DAY
22. Good reason - SEAFOOD
23. You can’t hurry love - THE CONCRETES
24. This deed - ELECTRELANE
25. Meantime - THE FUTUREHEADS
26. She’s hearing voices - BLOC PARTY
27. Hello? Is this thing on? - !!!
28. Absolute affirmation - RADIO 4
29. Ladyflash - THE GO! TEAM
30. Come to this - THE SLEEPY JACKSON

Listening Habits 10.2009

In this month's album selection we have a healthy dosage of hedonistic noise, an abundance of ingenious experimentation, inspired melancholic ballads, a bit of electro brit-pop, plenty of grungy guitars and even more ear-shattering noise.

The title of the second A Place To Bury Strangers album clearly states the band's intentions. They are after our heads and they have just the right guitars and effect pedals to achieve the critical mass of noise necessary for their sinister purpose. Peace and quiet-loving folks will be seeking injunctions but for noise-heads across the globe who love nothing better than to have their minds blown, this is a cause for celebration.

The band's sound remains rooted in their love for the "Psychocandy" wall-of-noise with its buried pop melodies while paying close attention to Kevin Shields' guitar effects, Sonic Youth's sonic assault, Big Black’s shattering rhythms and the gothic new wave atmospherics of the early '80s. The main difference with their debut album is the superior production (perhaps the result of a cash injection from the Mute deal) that makes "Exploding Head" sound richer and more dynamic, while the songwriting is more consistent, avoiding the highs and lows of the first effort. The amazing "To Fix the Gash in Your Head" was the track that showcased what this band was really capable of, and this potential is fully realized this time around resulting in a thrilling noise trip that renews and revitalizes the genre.

Among our Top 3 albums of the month we also have the latest Flaming Lips psychedelic opus as well as the most pop friendly effort of The Fiery Furnaces.

The Oklahoma freaks have struck a rich new vein of inspiration and the imaginative sounds that burst out have filled a double album full of the most dazzling, wildly experimental music they’ve done since "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots". "Embryonic" is immersed in a creative chaos as the band proceeds in destroying and recreating its musical universe and by the time it reaches its conclusion with the magnificent "Watching the Planets" we are left observing a brand new cosmos that took shape in just seventy minutes.

As for the Friedberger siblings, they have managed to surprise us once again by presenting us their most accessible record since "Gallowsbird's Bark". In "I’m Going Away" they have simplified their unpredictable song structures without losing any of their inventiveness, creating a joyously melodic pop record that is not afraid to rock out when it’s necessary. Matthew’s piano sets the tone in most of the songs while Eleanor’s imposing delivery dominates proceedings as usual.

Top 10 Albums

1. Exploding Head - A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS
2. Embryonic - THE FLAMING LIPS
3. I'm Going Away - THE FIERY FURNACES
4. Dragonslayer - SUNSET RUBDOWN
5. Six - THE BLACK HEART PROCESSION
6. Broken - SOULSAVERS
7. There Is No Enemy - BUILT TO SPILL
8. King Of Jeans - PISSED JEANS
9. Backspacer - PEARL JAM
10.In This Light And On This Evening - EDITORS

Top 15 Tracks

1. In Your Heart- A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS
2. We Are Water - HEALTH
3. Death Bells - SOULSAVERS
4. Suicide - THE BLACK HEART PROCESSION
5. Watching The Planets - THE FLAMING LIPS
6. Charmaine Champagne - THE FIERY FURNACES
7. Heart Of Stone - THE RAVEONETTES
8. Pat - BUILT TO SPILL
9. False Jesii Part 2 - PISSED JEANS
10. You Go On Ahead (Trumpet Trumpet II) - SUNSET RUBDOWN
11. Morning Light - GIRLS
12. Quick Canal (feat. Laetitia Sadier) - ATLAS SOUND
13. Papillon - EDITORS
14. Give Blood - RAIN MACHINE
15. Got Some - PEARL JAM

In Your Heart - A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS


Charmaine Champagne - THE FIERY FURNACES

Counting Down The '00s: The Best Of 2003

In part four of our series of posts dedicated to the best music of this decade, we present today our 30 favorite albums and singles of 2003, a very rewarding year for those of us who enjoy loud guitars, strong female voices and discovering exciting new music.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs, who released the best debut of the year, had all those elements in place and so did The Kills. Karen O and Alison Mosshart are undoubtedly two of the most talented rock singers of their generation, while Nick Zinner and Jamie Hince are among the top guitar slingers. Other promising newcomers who released superb breakthrough albums in 2003 included The Sleepy Jackson, Metric, The Stills, The Bronx and The Rapture (who actually released their debut in 1999 but it was “Echoes”, their second LP, that put them on the map). The Postal Service, the project that came about through the collaboration of Death Cab For Cutie’s vocalist Ben Gibbard and Jimmy Tamborello of Dntel, released “Give up”, their first and only LP, that proved to be one of the best electro-pop albums of the decade. The Strokes, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Peaches and Broken Social Scene all released excellent sophomore records, Cat Power delivered perhaps her best work ever with “You are free”, while the old school was represented by amazing albums from The Fall and Wire.

For our top 3 albums of the year, I’m quoting from the original end-of-the-year review posted in the old Cool Music Central site (our previous World Wide Web incarnation):

“Coral Fang” by The Distillers: “The third Distillers album in just 4 years has been a true revelation, establishing Brody Dalle as the most powerful, inspired and inspiring front-woman in rock since the heyday of Courtney Love. “Coral Fang” is the disturbing, yet cathartic sound of Brody slashing herself up, sucking the venom out of her blood and spitting it back to the face of her detractors. The most gloriously manic punk rock album in years from a band that burns bright and fast! Let’s just hope they don’t burn out too soon.” (unfortunately, they did).


“Elephant” by The White Stripes: “If we try to be objective for a moment, and we rarely are, “Elephant” is the obvious choice for Album of the Year. “White Blood Cells” put them on the map, but “Elephant” is their defining moment, their very own “Nevermind”. The White Stripes managed to take blues influenced garage rock, that has been there forever as an underground movement, mix it up with country, punk and their very own rock ’n’ roll energy and spirit and turn it into a worldwide mainstream phenomenon. The garages are buzzing with life again and it’s all thanks to a soul brother & sister team!”


“Throwing Muses” by Throwing Muses: “There have been many reunions lately, but none as necessary or deeply gratifying as this one. Kristin Hersh brought her old band together (including prodigal Muse Tanya Donelly) for one last (?) time and delivered an album as good as anything they've ever done - in other words, an instant classic! How many bands do you know that have at least one classic album in three different decades? The doors of our own private Rock ’n’ Roll Hall Of Fame are wide open! As for the future, Kristin is ready to start all over again with 50 Foot Wave. Respect!”

Top 30 Albums of 2003

1. Coral fang - THE DISTILLERS
2. Elephant - THE WHITE STRIPES
3. Throwing Muses - THROWING MUSES
4. Take them on, on your own - BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
5. Fever to tell - YEAH YEAH YEAHS
6. Echoes - THE RAPTURE
7. Room on fire - THE STROKES
8. You are free - CAT POWER
9. The new romance - PRETTY GIRLS MAKE GRAVES
10. The real new Fall LP (formerly ‘Country On The Click’) - THE FALL
11. Send - WIRE
12. Sumday - GRANDADDY
13. Keep on your mean side - THE KILLS
14. Fatherfucker - PEACHES
15. Give up - THE POSTAL SERVICE
16. Lovers - THE SLEEPY JACKSON
17. You forgot it in people - BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE
18. Old world underground, where are you now? - METRIC
19. Rock N Roll - RYAN ADAMS
20. Strays - JANE'S ADDICTION
21. Blackberry belle - THE TWILIGHT SINGERS
22. La musica negra - VERBENA
23. Electric version - THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS
24. Logic will break your heart - THE STILLS
25. The Bronx - THE BRONX
26. Rounds - FOUR TET
27. Speakerboxxx / The love below - OUTKAST
28. Hail to the thief - RADIOHEAD
29. The New Folk Implosion - FOLK IMPLOSION
30. This is the glamorous - NEW WET KOJAK

Top 30 Singles of 2003

1. Such great heights - THE POSTAL SERVICE
2. She kissed me (it felt like a hit) - SPIRITUALIZED
3. Drain the blood - THE DISTILLERS
4. Crawl home - DESERT SESSIONS
5. This is our emergency - PRETTY GIRLS MAKE GRAVES
6. Say hello to the angles / NYC - INTERPOL
7. Seven nation army - THE WHITE STRIPES
8. Maps - YEAH YEAH YEAHS
9. Stop - BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
10. First it giveth - QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
11. The seed 2.0 - THE ROOTS (ft. CODY CHESNUTT)
12. Bandages - HOT HOT HEAT
13. 12:51 - THE STROKES
14. My kind of soldier - GUIDED BY VOICES
15. Fight test EP - THE FLAMING LIPS
16. Dark wave - STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS
17. Black is the color of my true love's hair - THE TWILIGHT SINGERS
18. Just because - JANE’S ADDICTION
19. Way out west - VERBENA
20. Molly’s chambers - KINGS OF LEON
21. Kick it - PEACHES (ft. IGGY POP)
22. Hey ya! - OUTKAST
23. Bad day - R.E.M.
24. You were the last high - THE DANDY WARHOLS
25. (We wish) you a protein Christmas - THE FALL
26. Heartbreak stroll / The Christmas song - THE RAVONETTES
27. Bring it on - NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS
28. Pendulum EP - BROADCAST
29. Out of time - BLUR
30. Pass it on - THE CORAL

Willard Grant Conspiracy - Live @ Rodeo Club, Athens (October 23, 2009)

The first visit of Willard Grant Conspiracy in Greece was filled with stories about death, dreams and women. Robert Fisher is a gifted storyteller and on this last stop of his band’s current European tour supporting the release of the album “Paper Covers Stone”, he had plenty of good ones to tell. Stories and songs like the one about a snake-handling preacher trying to convince space aliens to save their mortal souls by hanging signs saying “Welcome to Earth, Get right with God” (“The Trials of Harrison Hayes”) or his recurring dreams about death where St. Peter is a game-show host giving the potential inhabitants of Heaven the chance to make amends in the short time before they disappear and become transparent. The sparse music accompaniment (acoustic guitar, violin and upright bass) gave Fisher’s deep voice the lead role in the unveiling of the evocative folk dramas that kept the small but devoted audience transfixed for the 80 minutes of the intimate show.


One of the best moments of the evening came before the start of the main set, when Willard Grant Conspiracy joined local support act Mitera Falaina Tifli (the name translates into Mother Whale Blind and is inspired by a Brian Eno composition) for a great rendition of the anti-war song “From A Distant Shore”. Other highlights included the cover of The Walkabouts track “This Rotten Tree”, “The Ashes”, “Drunkards Prayer” and “Ghost Of The Girl In The Well”.

Willard Grant Conspiracy with Mitera Falaina Tifli (Live @ Rodeo Club, Athens 23/10/09)

From a distant shore - Willard Grant Conspiracy with Mitera Falaina Tifli (Live @ Rodeo Club, Athens 23/10/09)

This rotten tree - Willard Grant Conspiracy (Live @ Rodeo Club, Athens 23/10/09)

And here is a video from Mitera Falaina Tifli, playing a cover of Low's "Murderer" - the greek version is called "Dolofonos":

Mitera Falaina Tifli (MFStrings!) - Dolofonos (cover of "Murderer" by Low) from MFTV on Vimeo.

Counting Down The '00s: The Best Of 2002

Part three of our tribute to the best music of the '00s and this time we turn the bright lights on 2002, a year dominated by the stunning debut of Interpol, the blitzkrieg rock of Queens Of The Stone Age and the epic, apocalyptic noise of … And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead.

Here’s what I wrote about "Turn on the Bright Lights" at the unveiling of C.M.C.’s "Best Albums of 2002" list: “For a second consecutive year, the "Album of the Year" title is awarded to a newcomer from New York City. Last year it was The Strokes who took the top honor by reinventing '70s punk and reintroducing vital underground rock music into the mainstream. This year the honor goes to Interpol, who are taking inspiration from early '80s new wave stalwarts like Joy Division and The Smiths and putting their own spin to the dark atmospheric sound frequently associated to that era. What’s important though (and what separates the inspired artists from the plagiarists), is that they’re able to make that sound their own and give us a debut album that feels as inspired and timeless as those of their heroes.”

As for Queens Of The Stone Age and … And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, both delivered their best albums for this decade. The former had turned into a bona fide supergroup with the addition of Dave Grohl and Mark Lanegan to the fold for "Songs for the Deaf" and rocked harder than common sense and common law should allow, giving us no choice but to join the deaf club. The latter raised their elaborate wall of noise to new levels with "Source Tags and Codes", adding more texture and nuance to the brutal intensity of their explosive sound. "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots", the psychedelic masterpiece of The Flaming Lips, and the ambitious and sophisticated punk of Sleater-Kinney’s "One Beat" complete the list of the most memorable records of the year.

Top 30 Albums of 2002

1. Turn on the bright lights - INTERPOL
2. Songs for the deaf - QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
3. Source tags and codes - ...AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD
4. One beat - SLEATER-KINNEY
5. Yoshimi battles the pink robots - THE FLAMING LIPS
6. Evil heat - PRIMAL SCREAM
7. Highly evolved - THE VINES
8. Original pirate material - THE STREETS
9. You can't fight what you can't see - GIRLS AGAINST BOYS
10. Title TK - BREEDERS
11. They threw us all in a trench and stuck a monument on top - LIARS
12. Gotham! - RADIO 4
13. Fantastic damage - EL-P
14. Murray street - SONIC YOUTH
15. Suicide invoice - HOT SNAKES
16. Chat and business - IKARA COLT
17. Good health - PRETTY GIRLS MAKE GRAVES
18. Plastic fang - THE JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION
19. Kill the moonlight - SPOON
20. Walking with thee - CLINIC
21. All artists are criminals - CHA CHA COHEN
22. Phrenology - THE ROOTS
23. The remote part - IDLEWILD
24. One by one - FOO FIGHTERS
25. The way I feel today - SIX BY SEVEN
26. Scorpio rising - DEATH IN VEGAS
27. To everybody - 90 DAY MEN
28. Free so free - J MASCIS + THE FOG
29. Universal truths and cycles - GUIDED BY VOICES
30. Since we've become translucent - MUDHONEY

Top 30 Singles Of 2002

1. Hands around my throat - DEATH IN VEGAS
2. Losing my edge - LCD SOUNDSYSTEM
3. Miss Lucifer - PRIMAL SCREAM
4. Interpol EP - INTERPOL
5. Everywhere with helicopter - GUIDED BY VOICES
6. House of jealous lovers - THE RAPTURE
7. Emerge - FISCHERSPOONER
8. Black rooster EP - THE KILLS
9. Yeah Yeah Yeahs EP - YEAH YEAH YEAHS
10. Speakers push the air - PRETTY GIRLS MAKE GRAVES
11. Get free - THE VINES
12. Fell In love with a girl - THE WHITE STRIPES
13. Relative ways - …AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD
14. No one knows - QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
15. Sister surround - THE SOUNDTRACK OF OUR LIVES
16. Do you realize?? - THE FLAMING LIPS
17. Jonathon Fisk - SPOON
18. Love burns - BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
19. Someday - THE STROKES
20. Hate to say I told you so - THE HIVES
21. Morning has broken - THE EIGHTIES MATCHBOX B-LINE DISASTER
22. Ghetto mom - THE JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION
23. Come on - THE D4
24. Walking with thee - CLINIC
25. Let's push thing forward - THE STREETS
26. Dance to the underground - RADIO 4
27. Attack of the ghost riders - THE RAVEONETTES
28. We laugh indoors - DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE
29. All my life - FOO FIGHTERS
30. Used for glue - RIVAL SCHOOLS

Listening Habits 08-09.2009

We’ve had quite a few great releases in the two months since the last “Listening Habits” post and at least half of them may well find their way in our end of the year Top 50 list. We have already praised the excellent "Get Color", Health’s second album (or third if you also count last year’s remix job), and especially the stellar first single "Die Slow". Dream-pop vocal melodies and layers of My Bloody Valentine-style guitar feedback clash with menacing industrial beats to create what I could only describe as noise-death-disco. Not a catchy name for a musical style, I know, but I think that Health along with a few other acts like their pals Crystal Castles are creatively recycling '80s noise rock, industrial and electro into a brand new, highly volatile hybrid.

A different but equally refreshing musical mix seems to be brewing in London lately. The Big Pink, this year’s winners of NME’s Philip Hall Radar Award for best new act, combine cutting edge electronic dance sounds with dark pop melodies and menacing late '80s-early '90s guitar noise of The Jesus And Mary Chain-A.R. Kane variety in order to tell us "A Brief History Of Love" - one of the most exciting debuts of the year along with Telepathe’s "Dance Mother". Among the many highlights of the record are the singles "Too Young to Love", "Velvet" and "Dominos", as well as "Crystal Visions" and "Frisk". Interesting facts about The Big Pink: Their name comes from the title of The Band’s first album "Music from Big Pink" while Milo Cordell (one half of the band that also includes Robbie Furze) is the boss of Merok Records, responsible for some great releases by the likes of Salem, Telepathe and Crystal Castles (as you can guess by now, I really have a soft spot for these last two groups!).

And if you are in the mood for even more dark songs about love, you can find them in abundance in the fine debut of another very promising and very young London band, The XX. Initially they impressed us with their highly addictive cover of Womack and Womack’s '80s hit "Teardrops". This song is not included in their album but its melancholic air and seamless blending of soul, electro pop and icy '80s guitar style is all over "XX", making it the perfect choice for late night listening. As Romy and Oliver exchange verses in hushed tones, you often get the feeling of eavesdropping in the intimate conversations of a couple falling in or out of love, while the music’s beat follows that of the lovers’ hearts. "VCR", "Crystalised", "Basic space" and "Infinity" are the standout tracks of the record and along with "Teardrops" give you five very good reasons to make your acquaintance with The XX.

The third London-based act to have its debut album among our top picks this month is Florence + The Machine. "Lungs" is a big sounding, grand gesturing, passionate pop record with bright tunes like "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)" or "Dog Days Are Over" which showcase the great vocal talent of Florence Welch. The album was stopped only by the ghost of Michael Jackson from claiming the top of the UK album chart and in a year when the divorce of commercial music from quality seems to be final, this fact alone is enough to justify the buzz surrounding Florence and her band.

Another act that managed to break the embargo against decent music in the pop charts is Arctic Monkeys. For the recording of "Humbug", their third full-length, the band visited Josh Homme’s studio in the California desert looking for a change of scenery and a different sound. Although you cannot really say that they’ve gone stoner rock all of a sudden, the new album is certainly slower and heavier than its predecessors, making also room for the mellower orchestral pop influences evident in Alex Turner’s work with The Last Shadow Puppets. "Humbug" may not be the instant classic that their debut was, but it does show a band willing to take chances, experiment and evolve, the traits that distinguish all great artists.

And while we’re on the subject of brave artistic experimentation, here’s one of the most adventurous records you’re going to hear this year: White Denim’s "Fits". The Austin, Texas group seamlessly incorporates all kinds of influences in its latest work, going from acid rock to garage punk and from freak folk to free jazz in the drop of a hat. The flow of the record, however, remains flawless, offering us a thrilling joyride in rock’s less travelled back roads, the paths carved by groundbreaking innovators like Meat Puppets or The Minutemen.

Yo La Tengo can certainly be counted among the few truly originals of the last 20-something years, a band that is not afraid to mix things up and kick your ass in the process. In "Popular Songs" we can hear the more "easy-listening" side of the band for the album's first 9 tracks while for the final 3 they get lost in extended jams without losing the plot too much. "Here To Fall", "Avalon Or Someone Very Similar", "Nothing To Hide", "Periodically Double Or Triple" and "If It’s True" are the latest gems in the continuing, fascinating story of Yo La Tengo.

Our Top-10 also includes the best record that will not get an official release this year (another sign that record companies have completely and utterly lost the plot), the star-studded "Dark Night Of The Soul", product of the collaboration between the omnipresent Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse, David Lynch and a cast of, well, dozens. We've also listened and enjoyed "Wilco (the album)", the finest record in recent years by Wilco (the band) and "Spinnerette" by Spinnerette, the next step in the tumultuous career of Brody Dale in collaboration with Alain Johannes of Queens Of The Stone Age fame. Not as fierce as her work with The Distillers but with enough fine tracks ("Ghetto Love", "Baptized By Fire", "Distorting A Code", "Rebellious Palpitations") to keep us satisfied 'till we meet again (I don't know where, I don't know when)...

Top 15 Albums

1. A Brief History Of Love - THE BIG PINK
2. Get Color - HEALTH
3. Fits - WHITE DENIM
4. Popular Songs - YO LA TENGO
5. Humbug - ARCTIC MONKEYS
6. XX - THE XX
7. Dark Night Of The Soul - DANGER MOUSE AND SPARKLEHORSE
8. Lungs - FLORENCE + THE MACHINE
9. Spinnerette - SPINNERETTE
10. Wilco (The Album) - WILCO
11. Julian Plenti Is… Skyscraper - JULIAN PLENTI
12. Varshons - THE LEMONHEADS
13. Travels With Myself And Another - FUTURE OF THE LEFT
14. No One's First And You're Next - MODEST MOUSE
15. JJ No2 - JJ


Top 20 Tracks

1. Die Slow - HEALTH
2. Dominoes - THE BIG PINK
3. Little Girl (ft. Julian Casablancas) - DANGER MOUSE AND SPARKLEHORSE
4. Teardrops - THE XX
5. Ecstasy - JJ
6. Pinball (ft. Telepathe) - SIMIAN MOBILE DISCO
7. Rabbit Heart (Raise it Up) - FLORENCE + THE MACHINE
8. These Are My Twisted Words - RADIOHEAD
9. The Whale Song- MODEST MOUSE
10. Rats - THE BLACK HEART PROCESSION
11. Crying Lightning - ARCTIC MONKEYS
12. Baptized By Fire - SPINNERETTE
13. Games for Days - JULIAN PLENTI
14. Periodically Double Or Triple - YO LA TENGO
15. Bull Black Nova - WILCO
16. I Start To Run - WHITE DENIM
17. You Need Satan More Than He Needs You - FUTURE OF THE LEFT
18. The Fixer - PEARL JAM
19. Dirty Robot - THE LEMONHEADS
20. Le Flying Saucer Hat - CHAIRLIFT

Counting Down The '00s: The Best Of 2001

Our countdown of the ’00s continues with the presentation of our favorite albums and singles of 2001, a year that will always have a futuristic glow in the eyes of 20th century children since this was the year that usually signified the future in sci-fi literature and cinema.

The new music that dominated in 2001, however, was anything but futuristic. The main influences of the new rock aristocracy were deeply rooted in last century's sounds: garage echoes from the '60s, punk energy from the '70s, new wave and electropop from the early '80s. The major difference between them and the bands of previous decades that had also based their sound on a similar blueprint was the existence of a larger audience willing to listen this time around. A new generation of music lovers who grew up in the '90s listening to Nirvana and with easier access to information, thanks to the internet and the mp3 revolution, was ready to embrace groups like The Strokes or The White Stripes and lead them to a level of success that was unthinkable for the bands that came before them.

The album of the year for 2001 was one of the most impressive debuts of the ’00s, the calling card of New York’s coolest new gang, The Strokes. As I was writing at the time "…"Is This It" is one of the best debut albums in years and one that reminds us how exciting punk rock was 25 years ago, when it started. But we are not talking about nostalgia here. The Strokes, along with other new bands like The White Stripes, The Hives and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club are reintroducing raw, powerful, back-to-basics rock music to a new generation, bringing rock'n'
roll into the 21st century".

Next to this new rock breed, we also had several astounding efforts from older bands that, in most cases, didn’t receive the attention that they deserved but their importance is evident by their influence on the new scene. Guided By Voices, the kings of lo-fi from Ohio who count The Strokes among their fans, were in top form in 2001 and in a more power-pop mood than usual. Rocket From The Crypt took no prisoners for their powerful last record and the same is true for Fugazi. Mercury Rev and Spiritualized presented their finest records for the decade while Pavement front-man Stephen Malkmus kicked off in style his solo career with his eponymous album.

Top 30 Albums of 2001

1. Is this it - THE STROKES
2. Group sounds - ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT
3. Isolation drills - GUIDED BY VOICES
4. All is dream - MERCURY REV
5. Let it come down - SPIRITUALIZED
6. Stephen Malkmus - STEPHEN MALKMUS
7. White blood cells - THE WHITE STRIPES
8. Black rebel motorcycle club - BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
9. The argument - FUGAZI
10. Iron flag - WU-TANG CLAN
11. Ancient melodies of the future - BUILT TO SPILL
12. Are you are missing winner - THE FALL
13. No more shall we part - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
14. Ease down the road - BONNIE PRINCE BILLY
15. It's a wonderful life - SPARKLEHORSE
16. Get ready - NEW ORDER
17. 604 - LADYTRON
18. Souljacker - EELS
19. Change - THE DISMEMBERMENT PLAN
20. Behind the music - THE SOUNDTRACK OF OUR LIVES
21. The cold vein - CANNIBAL OX
22. #1 - FISCHERSPOONER
23. Song yet to be sung - PERRY FARRELL
24. Sound-dust - STEREOLAB
25. The red thread - ARAB STRAP
26. Rain on lens - SMOG
27. Sunny border blue - KRISTIN HERSH
28. Girls can tell - SPOON
29. When do we start fighting - SEAFOOD
30. The photo album - DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE

Top 30 Singles of 2001

1. Glad girls - GUIDED BY VOICES
2. Whatever happened to my rock 'n' roll (punk song) - BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
3. Hard to explain - THE STROKES
4. Hotel Yorba - THE WHITE STRIPES
5. Street gang - A.R.E. WEAPONS
6. NYC's like a graveyard - THE MOLDY PEACHES
7. Souljacker pt.1 - EELS
8. Piano fire - SPARKLEHORSE
9. Capitalism stole my virginity - THE (INTERNATIONAL) NOISE CONSPIRACY
10. The hook - STEPHEN MALKMUS
11. Love detective - ARAB STRAP
12. As I sat sadly by her side - NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS
13. Last nite - THE STROKES
14. Furniture - FUGAZI
15. Splinter - SEAFOOD
16. Imitation of life - R.E.M.
17. Crystal - NEW ORDER
18. Clint Eastwood - GORILLAZ
19. Nite and fog - MERCURY REV
20. Out of sight - SPIRITUALIZED
21. Hashpipe - WEEZER
22. Song yet to be sung - PERRY FARRELL
23. Uzi - WU-TANG CLAN
24. Androgyny - GARBAGE
25. Grace - RUBY
26. Playgirl - LADYTRON
27. Bang bang you're dead - EXPERIMENTAL POP BAND
28. Any day now - ELBOW
29. New York, New York - RYAN ADAMS
30. It is important throughout your life to proclaim your joy - MARK EITZEL

Killer Tracks: Die Slow by HEALTH

HEALTH, from Los Angeles, is one of the most blogged about bands at the moment and rightly so, since their recently released second album "Get Color" is one of the most exciting records of the year so far. The cataclysmic noise of their 2007 self-titled debut is now kept under control, creating the building block of their well-structured industrial-electro assault. "Die Slow", the first single of the album, is perhaps the best track in the band's brief history, a massive noise wave that rises driven by hurricane-force gusts of electro beats and My Bloody Valentine siren vocals. Let the death-disco dance start here...

HEALTH - Die Slow

MGMT & Future Of The Left - Live @ Technopolis, Athens (September 8, 2009)

MGMT, live @ Technopolis, Athens

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MGMT has been one of the biggest sensations of 2008, with their major-label debut "Oracular Spectacular" finding its way in all the respectable end of the year "Best Of" lists and their singles "Kids" and "Time to pretend", getting non-stop airplay everywhere. While the recording of their next album "Congratulations" is underway, the band hit the road for a few shows this summer and we were lucky enough that this road led them here in Athens for their first Greek show at the Technopolis venue.

The night started with local act Cyanna playing an energetic set that included cover versions of The Stooges classic "I wanna be your dog" and The Dubrovniks 1989 cult hit "Like fire" (mixed with a bit of Franz Ferdinand's "This fire").

Future Of The Left, live @ Technopolis, Athens

After Cyanna, it was time for Welsh punk-rockers Future Of The Left who have recently released their fine second album "Travels with myself and another". It was this album's opening track "Arming Eritrea" the one that also started the band's first ever performance in Athens. Unfortunately, they were playing for an audience not familiar with their music who had come for the headliners and was not in a punk rock mood. As a result, and despite the band's best efforts, crowd participation was minimal, leading them to wryly observe "you guys dance a bit better than the Swiss" and to express the wish to play in more intimate surroundings next time they are in town. The few of us who do appreciate their edgy punk sound, enjoyed a tight 45-minute set which included some of the best tracks from their two albums, most notably "Small bones, small bodies", "My gymnastic past" and current favorite "You need Satan more than he needs you".

Future Of The Left, live @ Technopolis, Athens

The much anticipated main act came on stage about a quarter past ten to loud cheers from the sizable audience and kicked off their 70-minute set with "The Youth". As expected, almost all the songs from "Oracular Spectacular" were included in the set along with a few new ones, with "Song for Dan Treacy" being the most notable among them (apparently a tribute to the Television Personalities leader). The loudest cheers were reserved for the hits "Time to pretend", "Electric feel" and of course the triumphant main set-closer "Kids" which drove the fans into a frenzy. MGMT's impressive performance ended with an extended 15-minute jam as the encore, leaving their fans entirely satisfied and hoping to see them again as soon as the Pete Kember (Sonic Boom) produced new album drops in 2010.

MGMT, live @ Technopolis, Athens (Sept. 8, 2009)

MGMT - Kids, live @ Technopolis, Athens (Sept. 8, 2009)

Future Of The Left - My Gymnastic Past, live @ Technopolis, Athens (Sept. 8, 2009)

Counting Down The '00s: The Best Of 2000

Not much to go for the end of the decade and various "best of" lists are already starting to appear. Our own album list for the '00s is going to be finalized early next year because we feel that we should concentrate on 2009's music for now. However, starting this month, we shall dedicate two or three of our monthly posts to the presentation of our 30 favorite albums and singles for each year of the '00s (detailed lists for these years are going to be posted on Cool Music Database as soon as we finish with the '90s).

Starting our countdown of the '00s, we have today the best of 2000, a year dominated by some of our favorite artists of the past two decades. It didn't take much thought to give P.J. Harvey's "Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea" the "Album of the Year" title and I don't think it is much of a spoiler to say that this timeless rock record is also a strong candidate for "Album of the Decade". To quote myself when I was ranting and raving about it at the time: "...This is her best work since the 1993 classic "Rid of Me", a more mellow and mature effort that sounds just as captivating and powerful. The 50ft Queenie is growing up in style. "Good fortune", one of the many highlights of this record, is also one of Y2K’s greatest singles. Definitely the most uplifting album of the year".

Similar raves were in store for the next two records on the list, Primal Scream's "XTRMNTR" (their best work ever, for my money) and The Fall's "The Unutterable" (their best for the '00s along with "Fall Heads Roll"). Quoting from the old Cool Music Central site (before its reincarnation here on Blogger): "..."XTRMNTR" is truly the first 21st century-sounding album. A chaotic, mind blowing head-on disco-punk collision that can make you dance ’til your ears bleed...The best ever Primal Scream record and also the perfect ending to the Creation legacy". As for "The Unutterable", this is what I had to say at the time: "...The Fall phenomenon continues. It is truly amazing that after 24 years and thirty-something albums, Mark E Smith can still marshal his latest recruits so masterfully and deliver an album as astonishing as this. "Two Librans" and "Serum" are just two of the instant Fall classics included here. The sound of a rejuvenated band that is determined to remain a force to be reckoned with in the new century".

Other notable releases of 2000 included the second Queens Of The Stone Age album (Josh Homme taking his work with cult '90s desert-rockers Kyuss to the next level), the last one for At The Drive-In (one of the greatest punk records of the '00s) and the fifth for Sleater-Kinney (as I wrote in Blast From The Past Vol.5, they were perhaps the best new band of the late '90s and continued being amazing in the '00s). Sleater-Kinnney also had some involvement in the album that proved to be the most important comeback of the year and, perhaps, of the '00s (which says a lot, in a decade that was full of comebacks and reunions). Robert Forster and Grant McLennan rejoined powers for the first Go-Betweens record since the '80s (with Janet Weiss providing the beats) with the end result being among their finest moments. Modest Mouse released "The Moon and Antarctica", the record that made me realize just how great Isaac Brock's band really is, while Grandaddy and Idlewild reached their pick with their 2000 releases. The best debut of the year was the electroclash classic "The Teaches of Peaches", Peaches' naughty introduction to the world, equally shocking and exhilarating - just like great sex. Here's what the Top 30 albums and singles of the year look like:

Top 30 Albums of 2000

1. Stories from the city, stories from the sea - P.J. HARVEY
2. Exterminator - PRIMAL SCREAM
3. The unutterable - THE FALL
4. R - QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
5. Relationship of command - AT THE DRIVE-IN
6. All hands on the bad one - SLEATER-KINNEY
7. The friends of Rachel Worth - THE GO-BETWEENS
8. The moon and Antarctica - MODEST MOUSE
9. The sophtware slump - GRANDADDY
10. 100 broken windows - IDLEWILD
11. The teaches of Peaches - PEACHES
12. Automatic midnight - HOT SNAKES
13. More light - J MASCIS + THE FOG
14. Good news for modern man - GRANT HART
15. God says no - MONSTER MAGNET
16. Thirteen tales from urban bohemia - THE DANDY WARHOLS
17. Golden lies - MEAT PUPPETS
18. The W - WU-TANG CLAN
19. Got it made - BRASSY
20. Will save us all! - CHICKS ON SPEED
21. Melody of certain damaged lemons - BLONDE REDHEAD
22. Dongs of sevotion - SMOG
23. And then nothing turned itself inside-out - YO LA TENGO
24. NYC ghosts and flowers - SONIC YOUTH
25. 1000 hurts - SHELLAC
26. Pound for pound - ROYAL TRUX
27. Whiteout - BOSS HOG
28. Stankonia - OUTKAST
29. Good looking blues - LAIKA
30. Chore of enchantment - GIANT SAND

Top 30 Singles of 2000

1. Good fortune - P.J. HARVEY
2. Going blind - THE GO-BETWEENS
3. Kill all hippies - PRIMAL SCREAM

4. Little discourage - IDLEWILD
5. Mistakes and regrets - …AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD

6. One armed scissor - AT THE DRIVE-IN

7. The lost art of keeping a secret - QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE

8. You’re no rock'n'roll fun - SLEATER-KINNEY

9. Bohemian like you - THE DANDY WARHOLS
10. Whiteout - BOSS HOG
11. Work it out - BRASSY
12. Kaltes klares wasser - CHICKS ON SPEED
13. Hip hop - DEAD PREZ
14. Lovertits - PEACHES
15. Uneasy - LAIKA
16. The crystal lake - GRANDADDY
17. Up with people - LAMBCHOP
18. Son of Sam - ELLIOTT SMITH
19. Melodie citronique EP - BLONDE REDHEAD
20. Radio video EP - ROYAL TRUX
21. B.O.B. - OUTKAST
22. Gravel pit - WU-TANG CLAN
23. A song for the lovers - RICHARD ASHCROFT
24. Ballad of Cable Hogue - CALEXICO
25. Disillusion - BADLY DRAWN BOY
26. You can have it all - YO LA TENGO
27. Forbidden love EP - DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE
28. Mr. E’s beautiful blues - EELS
29. Music is my radar - BLUR
30. The Coney Island of your mind - THE WISDOM OF HARRY