[As always, when attempting this kind of exercise, familiarity and poignancy—as well as considerations of time, space, length, reader interest, etc etc etc—will inevitably lead to some favorites falling by the wayside. But such are the pitfalls of compiling a list of any kind, although slightly less stress is involved when the main criteria is favorites. And so, with that out of the way, and in alphabetical order by artist, have at them. Cheers. - KJ]
RYAN ADAMS & THE CARDINALS III/IV [Lost Highway-2010]
If you are of the faction that enjoys Adams’ alt-country
leanings but have more of a hankering for his rock and roll exploits—namely,
um, Rock n Roll
[Lost Highway-2003]—then the final Cardinals album is the one for you. Adams
and his mates are in full-on rock mode here and despite the common quality
control pitfalls of a double album, they amply succeeded in putting together a
batch of rockin’ tunes that don’t let up and coalesce into a consistent album.
The Cardinals’ final bow was quite the farewell and arguably one of Adams’ best
overall.
BECK Sea Change
[DGC-2002]
Returning to the full-on singer/songwriter mode he mined on
1999's Mutations [DGC] with even better
results, Sea Change was Beck’s
breakup album. And while the man is in fact grieving over the demise of a
long-time relationship on disc, Sea Change is not a dark, mournful listen. No. This is a slow, sadly beautiful
piece of music. A late night or Sunday morning record of the highest order with
simple, heartwarming songs driven by wonderfully recorded acoustic guitars and
supple arrangements. A classic.
BRIAN BLADE & THE FELLOWSHIP BAND Season of
Changes [Verve-2008]
A gifted drummer whose talents extend into composition as
well, Blade has played with many a great, including Charlie Haden, Herbie
Hancock, Daniel Lanois, Brad Mehldau, Joni Mitchell, Joshua Redman, and Wayne
Shorter. He also leads the Fellowship Band, one of the finest jazz ensembles
out there. Season of Changes, their third album, is incredibly accessible, pregnant with soaring
melodies that never pander, while firmly planted in the jazz realm yet
eschewing unwarranted instrumental indulgence. No gimmicks, tricks or nonsense,
this is the real deal.
JON BRION Meaningless [Straight to Cut Out-2001]
The Los Angeles-based
producer/multi-instrumentalist/composer is a name familiar to anyone who has
perused the liner notes to records by Fiona Apple, Eels, Jellyfish, Aimee Mann,
Rhett Miller and many more. And although he has only one album under his own
name at this point, it’s clearly a winner. Released on Brion’s own label and
almost guaranteeing it very limited exposure despite the artist’s high profile
production/session work, Meaningless is
a wonderful album in the singer/songwriter vein with a healthy dose of classic
pop chops definitely worth seeking out.
BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE Feel Good Lost [Arts & Crafts-2002]
One of the privileged few who have gone thru the reverse
sophomore slump—their second album, the Juno Award-winning You Forgot It In
People [Arts & Crafts-2002] was their
critical and commercial breakthrough and set the stage for members Leslie Feist
and Emily Haines to become stars in their native Canada—this beloved collective
started out as a 2-man operation on this, their debut album. Before the group
swelled to around a dozen or so members and became an indie rock powerhouse,
Brendan Canning and Kevin Drew put together dreamy, mostly instrumental
soundscapes that can be as effective a soundtrack for late night seduction as
for a sober Sunday morning.
ROBERT DOWNEY JR. The Futurist [Sony Classical-2004]
A
mostly piano-driven singer/songwriter album reminiscent of latter day Elton
John, The Futurist is a moving full-length debut from a talented
musician better known for his day job and past run-ins with the law, and one
that should appeal to anyone looking for mellow, more adult-leaning fare.
FREELOADER Cantina
Claqueur
[JSS-2005]
Sort of a more down home version of Wilco—2/3 of the band
were from the South—but edgier than Tweedy and company, on their sophomore release killer grooves and blissful vibes effortlessly share space with hooky, deep-fried licks. Of special note is "6 Train", a stunningly beautiful acoustic tribute to the band’s adopted home of NYC, courtesy of frontman Scott
Sinclair, a talented guitarist and vocalist, not to mention a keen lyricist, with a gift for atmosphere and observation. Why this kickass trio didn’t blow
up…
GUIDED BY VOICES Isolation
Drills [TVT-2001]
Amidst
a couple of lo-fi masterpieces, the Rob Schnapf-produced Isolation Drills has the highest
quality sound to quality song ratio in the GBV catalog, which also makes it a
perfect starting point for the uninitiated, as well as the studio album that
comes closest to capturing the energy of their legendary live shows. (Isolation
Drills features Elliott Smith playing keyboards on
a couple of tracks.)
JUMBO D.D. Y Ponle Play [BMG US Latin-2001]
The
exact opposite of what is commonly known as a sophomore slump, the follow-up to
the Monterrey, Mexico quintet’s tentative 1999 debut Restaurant [BMG US Latin] is quite a spirited affair. Chock
full of soaring choruses, solid playing and held together by a finely tuned
production approach that gives the proceedings its underlying fluidity, D.D. Y Ponle Play is a rousing rock and
roll record from start to finish.
THE LEMONHEADS self-titled [Vagrant-2006]
Released almost 10 years to the day after their last studio
album—the spotty but noteworthy Car Button Cloth [Atlantic-1996]—Evan Dando dusted off his nom de band and showed the
young’uns how it’s done. The old pop/punk pin-up (along with The Descendants
rhythm section of Karl Alvarez and Bill Stevenson, the latter also serving as
the album’s producer) was smart enough to rejoin us with a gem of a disc that
recalls the joyous, infectious sound of their '92 classic It's A
Shame About Ray [Atlantic]. As the All
Music Guide plainly states, this was "the right kind of return
for a band that should never have gone away in the first place."
AIMEE MANN Bachelor No.2 or the Last Remains of the
Dodo [Superego-2000]
With the exception of ‘Til Tuesday’s debut we’ve not been
big supporters of this lady’s work, before or since this album. But this one,
oh, this one…
JASON MORAN The Bandwagon: Live at the Village
Vanguard [Blue Note-2003]
Moran is tremendous. And The Bandwagon, recorded live with his trio in NYC, is a gem. His
covers of Brahms’ "Intermezzo, Op. 118, No. 2"—one of the most sadly
beautiful pieces of music we’ve ever
heard within the realm of jazz—and the standard “Body and Soul” are pure
genius; Moran’s own “Gentle Shifts South”—featuring sampled members of his
family narrating their genealogy—is
not be missed. Oh, and his reworking of “Planet Rock" is none too shabby, btw.
NADA SURF Let Go
[Barsuk-2003]
Avoiding the frequent comparisons to Weezer that plagued
them since the release of their hit single "Popular" (which was also
produced by former Cars frontman Ric Ocasek), Brooklyn-based rockers Nada Surf
returned from a 3 year hiatus with an engaging, gimmick-free collection of
top-notch guitar pop. Yes, the crunchy guitars are in the mix, but there’s a
lot more subtlety, maturity and definition to their sound on Let Go. That doesn’t mean the tunes don’t rock: au
contraire, mes amis. This is what a band sounds like when they’ve assessed
their gifts and weaknesses, balanced them out, and delivered their very best.
THE RACONTEURS Broken Boy Soldiers [Third Man/V2-2006]
Jack White always had our respect, if not necessarily our
admiration. That all changed when he teamed up with fellow Motor City
singer/songwriter/guitarist Brendan Benson and the eminently talented
Greenhornes rhythm section of Little Jack Lawrence (bass) and Patrick Keeler
(drums) for one of the most anticipated pairings of the ‘00s. Like it or not, Broken
Boy Soldiers answered the question, “What
would the White Stripes sound like with a rhythm section carried by a real
drummer?” (Sorry, Meg.)
RADIOHEAD
Kid A [Parlophone-2000]
With a couple of classics under their belt,
Radiohead once again surprised fans with a new musical direction on their next
album. Disturbed by the legion of groups copping their style and disillusioned
with the traditional parameters of rock music, vocalist and main songwriter Thom
Yorke was motivated to go for a change of musical scenery. (Although, it must
be said, "The mythology around [rock music] has run its course" is truly one of the most pretentious statements ever made by Yorke or
any other rock star.)
Despite experimenting with an electronica-based sound, Kid
A managed to retain much of the majesty of their
previous album and undisputed landmark, OK Computer [Parlophone-1997], and reach the top of the album charts shortly after its
release, later winning a Grammy for Best Alternative Album on the strength of
"Everything in its Right Place", "The National Anthem",
"How to Disappear Completely", "Treefingers",
"Optimistic" and "In Limbo", among others.
SUN
KIL MOON Ghosts of the Great Highway [Caldo Verde-2003]
The
debut album under the former Red House Painters frontman/main songwriter Mark
Kozelek’s third moniker was universally acclaimed and for good reason. Nary a
cover nor a duff track anywhere, Ghosts of the Great Highway is at times an
acoustic elegy while also mining a Crazy Horse revisited terrain. Regardless, this is simply a hauntingly
beautiful record by a talented artist who has been toiling in the
not-so-bright spotlight while making some of the most timeless music of the
last couple of decades.
MATTHEW
SWEET Kimi Ga Suki [Superdeformed-2004]
Sweet and the land of the rising sun have conducted an equally requited love
affair for some time now. So, four years after his previous official release, In
Reverse [Volcano-1999], Sweet got together with most of the crew from his
landmark album Girlfriend [Zoo-1991]—except the late guitarist Robert
Quine—returned to the studio and delivered this power-pop valentine to his
Japanese fan base. Recorded in a week and produced, engineered and mixed at
home by Sweet, Kimi Ga Suki is a raw, loose and wonderful showcase for the
man’s plentiful songwriting talents.
TEARS FOR FEARS Everybody Loves a Happy Ending [New Door/Universal-2004]
With their classic panoramic production and a strong
late-period Beatles influence in place, this album is nothing less than prime
TFF. Granted, in an era of segregated musical tastes mainstream pop fans did
not care and indie rock fans stayed away in droves. Which is a shame, since
this is pop music of the highest caliber; written, performed and arranged with
precise attention to detail but with enough kick to please pop purists and
rockers alike. Nobody makes records like this anymore, but thankfully Roland
Orzabal and Curt Smith made sure that at least one band still did.
VAN HALEN A Different Kind of Truth [Interscope-2012]
After the Van Hagar era and the lone album with Gary
Cherone, to expect a classic Van Halen record was nothing short of foolishness.
That a damn good one appeared 14 years after the band’s last studio album and
almost three decades since they’d parted ways with Diamond Dave was, well, as
close to a miracle as anyone could aspire to, in this case.
THE WEBB BROTHERS Maroon [Warner Bros-2000]
Virtual unknowns here in their homeland—they got
their first record deal in the UK and even snagged a slot at the Reading
Festival—the Chicago-based sons of legendary songwriter Jimmy Webb haven’t had
much commercial success in these United States. The critically lauded Maroon is undeserving of such neglect for, among other things,
its catchy, sophisticated pop occasionally suggests a cross between Ben Folds
and latter day Flaming Lips (especially on the last third of the album).
Engaging and rewarding, Maroon may
be just one more in a long line of hidden gems out there, but its dreadful
commercial fate does not diminish its power and beauty one bit.
WILCO Yankee Hotel Foxtrot [Nonesuch-2002]
It’s been long enough that one can easily listen to the
fourth Wilco album while forgetting all the inherent drama surrounding YHF. It
also served, at the time, as the basis for an interesting thought experiment:
What kinda record would Radiohead’s OK Computer have been if they’d hailed from
the Midwest and had alt-country roots?
