Top Ten Albums of (insert decade here)!

(inspired by Mssr. Roxyharper.)

This blog entry is rather self-explanatory, kids. A Top Ten Ever list is always rather impossible for me, so I prefer to break it down by ten yizzears. To promote variety, I will not permit repeat artist entries on these lists, with one exception. Also, I cannot preach with any authority on the fifties, forties or beyond, so your grandma will have to be ignored. Also, no list for the two-thousands, as it's not over. With no further ado, buckle your seatbelts.

Part One: The Swingin` Sixties!

1. The Beatles - "The Beatles" We've been through this before and I supplied you with a plethora of reasons as to what makes this the fabulous, finest fab four f-release - and by "finest", I clearly mean most inventive, wacky and unrestrained. Duh.
Best track: "Wild Honey Pie"



2. Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention - "Uncle Meat"
This 1968 recording is one of the Mothers' wildest, yet most consistently brilliant recordings. Zappa lets every side of his uncontainable genius run free - the delicious free jazz (see "Uncle Meat" themes and variations, "King Kong suite"), warped pop songs ("Electric Aunt Jemima", anyone?), off-kilter spoken word tracks ("Our Bizarre Relationship"...bizarre!), and a fair bit more. It hurts my soul to choose this over the more concise, colorful "Hot Rats", yet it must be done.
Best track: "Mr. Green Genes"? "Electric Aunt Jemima"? You decide.

3. Miles Davis - "Bitches Brew" There's a wee bit of debate over whether this is a sixties or seventies release - Wikipedia claims it was recorded in `69 and released in `70. Allmusic lists it as `69 and I see it as a Sixties album that ushered in some of the magically strange vibes of the Seventies. Abstract and revolutionary, it was truly the record that got me into jazz and showed me that there was more than Kenny G. waiting for me. Shut off your perceptions of what jazz should be and let Miles' voodoo jams take hold. Also works as a bridge between the hauntingly moody drones of "In A Silent Way" and the straight-up jazz-rock corners of "A Tribute to Jack Johnson". The title track starts and stops, fumbles, breathes and farts like a psychedelic pancake on mongoose island.
Best track: "Bitches Brew"

4. The Rolling Stones - "Let It Bleed" It really is a pity the past thirty years of Rolling Stones history have stained their name so much. This seminal classic rock recording should be the true representation - filthy, dark and engrossing, "Let It Bleed" rocks harder than any other, yet still encompasses a grimy atmosphere that no other band seems to quite capture. Others may prefer "Exile on Main Street"'s druggy haze, or the more bluesy alleyways of "Sticky Fingers". These folks are merely incorrect. "Love In Vain" is the most heartbreakingly perfect Robert Johnson cover ever recorded, whereas "Monkey Man" is a furious romp of sensuality and passion. The opener "Gimme Shelter" is one of the finest rock songs ever recorded, as the dark side of '69, Altamont, Woodstock, Vietnam all bleeds right onto your very turntable.
Best track: "Gimme Shelter"

5. John Coltrane - "A Love Supreme" It appears on all those cutesy lists for a reason, sonny. Namely because it makes atheists see God. One of the most complete and rewarding touchstones of modern jazz, summing up Coltrane's spirit of redemption. Like Thelonious Monk before him, it's at once free jazz and bright `n listenable. A near perfect recording; fuck you, bass solo! I shall say no more.
Best track: It's all one song, really, isn't it?


6. Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - "Trout Mask Replica" My esteemed colleague has already discussed the mighty Beefheart in more than one blog entry, and "Trout Mask Replica" is most likely the height of Mr. Van Vliet's particular brand of avant-garde sensations. It's been said that he refused to wear the headphones while recording vocals, hence the awkwardly rhythm-less tension. The band often seems to be performing three songs at the same time, and yet some strange semblance of a melody somehow shines through.
Best track: "Moonlight On Vermont"

7. Bob Dylan - "John Wesley Harding" Eat my shorts, general public. You can have your "Blonde on Blonde", your "Highway 61 Revisited". The truth is, this dark folk album, clocking in at under forty minutes, moves me a whole lot more. The oft-covered "All Along the Watchtower" saves it from obscurity. These are songs of claustrophobia, poverty and loneliness, and a stark contrast to the full-band explorations of the aforementioned records. "The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest" is particularly moving.
Best track: "I Pity the Poor Immigrant"

8. The Beach Boys - "Pet Sounds" Wall of noise. Wall of emotion. Can you believe he put "God" in the song title???
Best track: "God Only Knows"

9. The Band - "The Band"
I generally disapprove of non-debut self-titled releases, but I'll make an exception for an album of such rich personality and melody, a vaguely haunting southern masterpieces. From the funky singalongs of "Up On Cripple Creek" to the simply brilliant songwriting of "Jawbone", Levon Helm, Richard Manuel and otherbandmemberswhosenamesidontremember deserve massive amounts of recognition. Too bad about the stupid, un-Google-able band name.
Best track: "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down"

10. Johnny Cash - "At Folsom Prison" "There's a lot of strange men in cell block 10, but the strangest of them all was a friend of mine who spent his time staring at the wall..." The listener is suddenly transported to Folsom Prison, as Cash sings songs of crime, punishment and redemption...sometimes. The rowdy audience interactions only add to this effect. "Folsom Prison Blues" is an obvious classic, "Cocaine Blues" is dangerously fun and "25 Minutes Left to Go" is a fantastic account of a certain condemned prisoner's final hours, to name a few.
Best track: (Ah just don't know!)

Part Two: The Scrumptious Seventies!

1. Pink Floyd - "The Wall" I realize that my choice of favorite Pink Floyd album is unpopular and frowned upon by the indie types. Yet I don't care. The themes of alienation appealed to me as a child, as did the irresistibly theatrical format. Never does the double album seem anything but gripping and dark, from the classic rock staples to the dark little interludes. Roger Waters may be a jerk, but he sure knows how to turn it into an artsy concept album about being a jerk!
Best track: "Is There Anybody Out There?"



2. The Clash - "London Calling"
The Clash blew away their mediocre sophmore effort, "Give `Em Enough Rope", with a musical tour-de-force. Not just fans of punk apply; this is the time of record I imagine appeals to fans of..well, just music. Because it's musical, ya know? Tales of Spanish wars, revolutions, card games and Montgomery Clift set atop a rich musical tapestry of punk, pop, reggae and a whole lot more. The best song is "Lost in the Supermarket", a disco-tinged ode to anyone who just don't belong. "I wasn't born so much as I fell out.." Morrissey's got nothing on Strummer! A well-deserved classic.
Bestr track: "Lost in the Supermarket"

3. Neil Young - "Tonight's the Night"/"After the Gold Rush" (I seriously can't decide between these two. It depends on my mood.) "After the Gold Rush" gets the sentimental value, a singer-songwriter masterpiece. "Tonight's the Night" destroys me everytime, a horrifying taste of depression at the bottom of the barrel. The notes are cracked, the melodies are stolen and the performers are drunk as a skunk. It's a brutal recording.
Best track(s) respectively:
"After the Gold Rush" and "Mellow my Mind"

4. The Who - "Quadrophenia" Clearly, I've got a hard-on for the over-the-top seventies rock operas. This is quite obviously Townshend's musical height and Daltry's emotional peak, and it soars.
Best track: "Love, Reign O'er Me"

5. CAN - "Future Days" Hypnotic. Desperate. Flowing. Nipple. Foreign.
Best track: "Future Days"

6. Brian Eno - "Another Green World" Eno's best album successfully treads water between his pop persona and ambient compositions, encompassing the best aspects of both. The arrangements are far ahead of his time, though the melodies are timeless and golden. "Everything Merges with the Night" is like the sun seeping through the window at dawn, while "Golden Hours" is a delightful groover, reminiscent of a fluffy Eno dreamland filled with flying swordfish.
Best track: "The Big Ship"

7. Television - "Marquee Moon" Some of the greatest guitar performances ever laid on tape, married to some addictive, staccato riffs and melodic songwriting ability. The album is merely punk by association, considering the band's historic stint at CBGB's; musically, the album leans towards garage-rock rhythm and post-punk arrangements. The title track is the climax of one-note guitar solos and heavenly sexual intercou...interplay. Yes, that's the word.
Best track: "Marquee Moon"

8. George Harrison - "All Things Must Pass" The quiet Beatles comes straight of left field, delivering the great Beatles solo work to date. Spiritual, honest and yearning, this record employs Phil Spector's wall of sound techniques to produce an album of sublime richness. From the goofiness of "Apple Scruffs" to the loving ode of "I Live for You", the album is utterly flawless when we conveniently ignore those jams at the end. Hallelujah! Hari-krishna!
Best track: "My Sweet Lord"

9. The Stooges - "Fun House" This record is probably not safe for the car. If merely listening to a record can leave one breathless and exhausted, this is it. From the immediate roar of "Down on the Street", Iggy and the gang grabs the listener by the balls and takes him/her to hell and back. "Loose" is the sexual rocker, "Dirt" is a groove so sleazy it hurts and "1970" is like getting lost inside a hooker's livery at three in the morning, smothered in spiked orangeade. I love the pronunciation of "seventy". The trip is complete on the satanic saxophone vibes of the title track and the disgusting chaos of "L.A. Blues". Stay clear of the sliding doors and tip your hat to Satan upon entry.
Bestr track: "1970"


10. Leonard Cohen - "Songs of Love and Hate" Leonard Cohen is a master and "Songs of Love and Hate" is his masterpiece. He knows how to make a harp sound menacing and he knows how to make a "Lalalalalala" chorus sound at once rejoiceful and desperate. Desperate indeed. "You must learn, learn to serve me well..." Prepare for this dark universe; Cohen is at his most emotionally naked whether he's fascinated by Joan of Arc burning at the stake or moaning about cunnilingus "where the lions and Christians fight".
Best song:

Part Three: The Elegant Eighties!

1. The Pixies - "Doolittle" The album that kickstarted a revolution and frightened my Seventh Grade ears in the process. I wish more fat, balding men from Massachusetts were this cathartic. I also wish they could all produce albums with such rich diversity - from the bubblegum pop of "Here Comes Your Man" to the spaghetti Western theme of "Silver"...from the environmentalist spoken word anthem of "Monkey Gone To Heaven" to the gorgeous "Wave of Mutilation", which fantasizes about driving into the ocean. Believe the hype, as this is, indeed, the greatest album of its decade. Fun fact: "Hey" is my favorite vocal performance evah.
Best track: "Hey"



2. Talking Heads - "Remain in Light"
This isn't Brian Eno's first appearance on this (group of) list(s) and it won't be his last. The man is a world class superhuman, this time lending his magic touch to David Byrne's psychotic tendencies with mindblowing result. There's an old cliche about this type of album; namely, that the observant listener will notice something new each time. It may very well be true. Not quite "same as it ever was"! The very definition of a headphone album, do ya hear those bongos in "The Great Curve"? Or the Pacman solo in "Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)"? This music comes from up there. *points*
Best track: "Once in a Lifetime"

3. Sonic Youth - "Daydream Nation" A dissonant whir of sprawling guitar textures and awkward vocal spasms. It may very well be closer to noise soundscapes than "alternative rock", whatever the fuck that may be. It's an exhausting and rewarding listen, and a pity I didn't realize it right away.
Best track: "Cross the Breeze"

4. Tom Waits - "Rain Dogs"/"Franks Wild Years" (it's a tie)
"A few reasons why both of these records deserve a position on this list:
All the doughnuts have names that sound like prostitutes
And the moon's teeth marks are on the sky
Like a tarp thrown all over this
And the broken umbrellas like dead birds
And the steam comes out of the grill
Like the whole goddamn town's ready to blow..."

"They take apart their nightmares and they leave them by the door
Let me fall out of the window with confetti in my hair
Deal out jacks or better on a blanket by the stairs
I’ll tell you all my secrets, but I lie about my past"

"...in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king."

"Time is made from honey slow and sweet
Only the fools know what it means..."

"Never trust a man in a blue trench coat
Never drive a car when you're dead"
Best track: "Clap Hands" and "Temptation", respectively.


5. U2 - "The Joshua Tree" Say what you want about Bono now; before he tried to save the world, he sounded like he really could. The ringing guitars, the anthemic choruses, the restless lyrics...everything seems to be in place. "The Joshua Tree" is the type of album where everything just fits, especially if you find it at the right time. It won't go anywhere.
Best track: "Bullet the Blue Sky"

6. R.E.M. - "Document"/"Murmur" (tie again) It's true that "Document" rocks harder. It's true that "Murmur" embodies that Southern, folky college rock vibe like no other. You decide.
Best track: "The One I Love" and "Pilgrimage" respectively.

7. Leonard Cohen - "I'm Your Man" Adding drum machines, synthesizers and an increasingly hoarse ("golden"?) voice to his sonic palette could have been awkward and plodding for Mr. Cohen. Instead, it turned out to be a creative rebirth of sorts, and a damn wonderful album to boot. Cohen desperately offers his services over a vaguely Eastern keyboard riff in the popular title track, freaks out about "Jazz Police talking to my niece" in one furious song, converses with Hank Williams in another and exposes some social injustices that "Everbody Knows" in the track of the same name. Or, let's examine this couplet from "Tower of Song":
"Now you can say that I've grown bitter but of this you may be sure:
The rich have got their channels in the bedrooms of the poor
And there's a mighty judgement coming, but I may be wrong"
Bitter? Certainly. Old? Cranky? That's my Lenny, but he hasn't produced in album this rewarding in years.
Best track: "Everybody Knows" or "Jazz Police" or "Tower of Song" or "I'm Your Man"...Jesus, they're all brilliant.


8. Minutemen - "Double Nickels on the Dime" Forty-three tracks in all.
Me:Describe them?
Myself: Short. Funky as sin. Mostly political.
Me: In fact, they do all sound the same, don't they?
Myself: Yes.
Me: Doesn't matter. So short, well-written, well-performed and goddamn entertaining all around.
Myself: Too bad that guy died. What's his name?
Me: Brad Delp?
Myself: Sure.
Best track: Maybe it's "Corona". Yay, Jackass!

9. The Clash - "Combat Rock" The Clash recover surprisingly well from the train wreck of "Sandinista!" and record the Talking Heads tribute that it sounds like they always wanted to. Well, that's just the first half (err, two-thirds), featuring the classic "Should I Stay or Should I Go?", disco meltdown "Rock the Casbah" and accurately-titled "Overpowered by Funk". The end of the record takes some sharp left turns, from ambient instrumentals to awkward spoken word experiments. It's very surprising how well the whole thing holds up.
Best track: "Rock the Casbah"

10. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Mother's Milk" Yeah, yeah, I know. Anthony Kiedis is a goon, Flea smells of mustard, I've heard it all before. So flog me.

*bends over*

"Mother's Milk" was a creative rebirth for some, as Frusciante gracefully took over the late and great Hillel Slovak's guitar duties. The band covers Hendrix, cheers for Magic Johnson and screams about a "stone cold bush" in under forty-five minutes, with some excellent musicianship to boot. Then there's the psychedelic mini-masterpiece "Taste the Pain", the oddly sincere "Knock Me Down" (dealing with Anthony's experiences with drug addiction) and a pretty damn great closer. Oh, and "Sexy Mexican Maid"! Appreciate this couplet:

"The puts me in a bubble bath
She tickles me and I laugh"

Best track: "Johnny, Kick A Hole in the Sky"

Part Four: The Nefarious Nineties! (Each album described in nine words this time.)

1. The Flaming Lips - "The Soft Bulletin" Error: Overload. It's my favorite album of all time.
Best track: "The Gash"



2. Radiohead - "OK Computer" "Weird creatures who lock up their spirits... just uptight."
Best track: "Karma Police"

3. The Flaming Lips - "Zaireeka" Most difficult and rewarding musical experience of the century, perhaps.
Best track: "March of the Rotten Vegetables"

4. U2 - "Achtung, Baby!" Bono becomes bored with perfection. Futuristic, stunning and elegant!
Best track: "One"

5. The Olivia Tremor Control - "Black Foliage: Animation Music"
Disgustingly complex pop music, reaching directly through your sub-conscious.
Best track: "The Sylvan Screen"

6. Talk Talk - "Laughing Stock" This album moves me like few others. So primal.
Best track: "After the Flood"

7. Weezer - "Pinkerton" Depression produces the finest music sometimes. Great drum sound!
Best track: "Across the Sea"

8. Nine Inch Nails - "The Downward Spiral" Reminds me of eigth grade. Dark and dangerously compelling.
Best track: "Piggy"

9. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Blood Sugar Sex Magik" Filthy. Vulgar, too. The way the Peppers should sound.
Best track: "Funky Monks"

10. Spiritualized - "Ladies & Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space"
Checklist:
-Get heart broken.
-Write masterpiece.
-Acquire 486,952,958 instruments.
Best track: "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space"

Thanks for reading. Close the door on your way out.

Top 10 Bands/Artists Of The 60s

To follow up my list of my favorite 10 Bands/Artists of the 90s I'm moving back in time to the 60s. Again this list will not be in any specific order and only represents my favorites not an argument that these are the 10 most important or the 10 most influential.

The Beatles - My favorite band of all time by quite some margin. I'm one of those Beatles freaks. I don't really feel I need to explain their inclusion on this list. It'd be a ridiculous list without them.

The Who - I think The Who are sometimes overlooked or under appreciated although many of their songs are staples of the classic rock radio stations. Possibly these songs are overplayed and it becomes harder to appreciate them? The Who had some great albums and songs but I think it's live where they really set themselves apart.

The Rolling Stones - I think the fact that they've been constantly in the media for 40+ years has actually hurt the appreciation of their really great music in the 60s (and 70s.) Not to say I'm one of those people who thinks they should have retired 30 years ago. I think it's fantastic that they are doing what they love at age 60+. I think we all should be. But I do think that the younger generations have a harder time getting into them than say the aforementioned Beatles because of the fact that they see The Stones still around looking like their grandfather. Sure you see the same thing with Paul McCartney but somehow that doesn't effect the Beatles legacy because of him being solo and not using the name. Anyway The Stones had many classic songs in the 60s that one cannot imagine rock n roll without.

The Pink Floyd - I love Syd Barrett's Floyd and Pipers at the Gates of Dawn is one of my favorite albums. A totally different Pink Floyd from the one that became huge in the 70s (and I'm a big fan of that Pink Floyd too.)

The Beach Boys - A ton of excellent pop songs and the masterpiece Pet Sounds. Good enough to get on this list. Hell just Pet Sounds alone would probably get them on the list!

Bob Dylan - Essential. You can't have a list of the best of the 60s without Bob Dylan obviously. I was just making you sweat a bit by having him lower in the list. See it's in no specific order. The order of a mad man, perhaps. Anyway Dylan was on fire in the 60s as I'm sure you know. He was releasing album after album of great material. If I had to choose just one it'd probably be Highway 61 Revisited or Blonde On Blonde.

Van Morrison - Unlike most music critic types I prefer Moondance to Astral Weeks. Perhaps thats partly nostalgia as Moondance was constantly being played by my parents when I was growing up but I think Moondance is a pretty perfect album. So many amazing songs. Astral Weeks is very cool but in comparison I have to be in the mood to listen to it. Although I just checked to make sure and Moondance was actually released in 1970. Well you know what, to hell with you. He's going on this list anyway. Astral Weeks came out in '68.

Jimi Hendrix - I think it's a bit hard to truly appreciate Hendrix because he's become so deified. That being said I've got a lot of joy out of listening to his music. I must admit I haven't been able to listen to him for quite some time having been thoroughly burnt out on most of his well known stuff. I do think I may be able to open my ears up to him again soon though.

Frank Zappa - The 60s are definitely my favorite Zappa period. While I enjoy some of his later stuff in smaller doses, it's the really freaky stuff with the Mothers that I really get into.

The Band - Music From The Big Pink and the self titled The Band are both really great albums.

I know I've left off some really great bands and artists but I can't find it in my heart to bump any of these to make way for The Velvet Underground. But I'm considering it. Where are The Kinks? As good as The Kinks are I've never been as into them as any of these bands/artists. Led Zeppelin? I and II were released in 1969 but I think of them as a 70s band. They're also a band I have a hard time listening to lately due to over exposure.

Well hopefully this list will start off some good debate with plenty of people calling me an ignorant knob head. Who's going to start it off?

Top 10 Bands/Artists Of The 90s.

A lot of people look back at the 90s and think of the grunge era of the early 90s with Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Others think back on the late 90s and the teen pop of N Sync, Britney Spears, and the Backstreet Boys. This is definitly not the case for me.

My favorite 10 bands/artists that were arguably at their "peak" during the 90s (no particular order):

The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin is one of my very favorite albums of the decade and the rest of their 90s output is almost as great. In fact I think every single album they released in the 90s is a great album from A Priest Driven Ambulance to The Soft Bulletin. One of the best things about these albums is how different they are from each other. As different as all of their albums are they all share the same spark of creativity. The same sense of true psychedelia. They were pushing themselves forward into new territory throughout the decade. They never allowed themselves to get into a rut.

For someone who has yet to hear the Lips I would recommend starting out with The Soft Bulletin and 2002's Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and then work your way back through gems like Clouds Taste Metallic. If you are more of a noisy rock guitar kind of guy or gal then you might want to start with A Priest Driven Ambulance and make your way towards the newer stuff.

Radiohead - I don't really like their debut album Pablo Honey much at all. To me it sounds too much like all the other bands in tired the "alternative" genre of the time. But The Bends is great and OK Computer is legendary. These two albums I consider to be so good that if I were ranking instead of listing my top 10 they would likely be #1. But choosing 10 is hard enough without putting them in order. My only reservation about placing them on this list is that I'm not really sure I consider the 90s to be the peak of Radiohead because I love their output from this decade so much.

Oasis - While this is an extremely unpopular choice among the type of indie snobs that this blog is aimed at (and I'm sure the other contributers on this site will be turning up their noses at this selection) I don't really care. I think they are an excellent band that writes insanely catchy tunes and certainly they were at their peak with 1994's Definitely Maybe and it's more poppy follow up 1995 (What's The Story) Morning Glory? I also like Be Here Now as much of a mess as it is. It's over the top nature I now find to be quite endearing. Especially in this era of emo nonsense.

Along with Noel Gallagher's perfect songwriting in the 90s his brother Liam brought the perfect rock voice to the band. To me Liam Gallagher is arguably the best rock singer of the decade. In fact I suppose I'm arguing it right now. His delivery can make the most insipid lyrics (and no doubt most of Oasis' lyrics are very insipid) and the most tired tune and turn them into something that grand. When he sings "Tonight I'm A Rock N Roll Star" I believe that he really means that. He's not being ironic, he really means it. To me this sort of attitude is what's missing from so much of the music of the past, I don't know, 30 years.

The Olivia Tremor Control - I didn't start listening to the Olivia Tremor Control until a few years ago but I now consider them to be near the very top of my list of great 90s bands. They've only released two albums and they came out in 1996 and 1999 so clearly they fit the criteria of their peak being in the 90s. While they only released two albums they were both so great and so epic in scope that I consider them to be one of my absolute favorite bands.

Their music is some of the most psychedelic pop rock music I've ever heard. There are seemingly infinite layers of sound going on in their tunes. The arrangements and instrumentation are always surprising. Certainly they take their cues from The Beach Boys and The Beatles and they often called retro but I never feel like I'm hearing any attempt to recreate the magic of an earlier time when I listen to them. I hear something far greater than just some recreation. I hear music that is timeless, from some place where time is just an idea.

If you are new to the Olivia Tremor Control I would start off with their first album 1996's Dusk At Cubist Castle and once that has been thoroughly digested move on to 1999's Black Foliage. I suggest this because if you get both of them at once I think you may be overwhelmed. Both of their albums deserves it's own gestation period so to speak. I think they are equally great with Dusk At Cubist Castle probably being easier to get into at first but Black Foliage being even more layered and intricate.

Beck - Beck was undoubtedly one of the most innovative and important artists of the 90s. 1994's Mellow Gold is widely known mostly for it's hit single "Loser" but it's actually filled with great inventive tracks that have a delicious DIY type weirdness to them. If you want to get really weird and really DIY with Beck then you should check out his lesser known album Stereopathetic Soulmanure which is brimful with insanity.

Of course Beck became known as more than a one hit wonder with 1996's Odelay which was more polished than his earlier work and won much wide acclaim. While my friend Mozart Breath doesn't care for it much I think it's quite a wonderful album and it holds up quite well with time.

Believe it or not I'm one of the few Beck fans who doesn't love 1998's Mutations. For some mysterious reason I've just never been able to get into that album.

Primal Scream - To me Primal Scream is one of the most underrated bands in the world. It doesn't seem like many people here in the US listen to them or even know who they are. Admittedly their last couple of albums haven't been mind blowing but Screamadelica and Vanishing Point are two of my very favorite albums of the 1990s. 2000's XTRMNTR is awesome too, but I'll keep this focused on the 90s, alright?

As you may gather from my list I'm quite the "psychedelic" music fan. Not psychedelic as if it's some specific genre of music from the 60s but in the sense that I enjoy music that tickles the brain a bit. Using this wide open to interpretation definition of psychedelic I'm not sure there are many albums that are more psychedelic than Screamadelica and Vanishing Point. Primal Scream's music is often a trip, even if you're not tripping. Although that may help your appreciation.

Spiritualized - Ladies & Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space is an album of pure Godliness. It's one of my top 10 albums of all time and it's the main reason I am including them on this list. Like Primal Scream I feel that they have lost the edge that made them great with their recent albums but back in 1997 not too many could touch them.

Their earlier albums are fantastic too and I know they are preferred by some hardcore Spiritualized fans but to me Ladies & Gents is some sort of perfect culmination. Spiritualized is another British band that is too often overlooked here in the US.

Blur - Yes I've got both Oasis AND Blur on my list. Got a bit of a hard on for the "Brit Pop" do I? Aye. Blur is a bit hit and miss for me but I really like a lot of their stuff and I find myself enjoying them more and more as time goes by. I prefer their late 90s albums Blur and 13.

Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea is just a tremendous album. There's something about it that's magical and timeless. While I'll always choose Olivia Tremor Control over Neutral Milk Hotel when it comes to a clash of the Elephant 6 titans (which I'm sure will be an event at the next Wrestlemania.) I really love both of them for different reasons. I'm not usually someone who cares much about lyrics but Jeff Mangum has a way with words that really draws me in. It's actually a lyric from On Avery Island that may be my all time favorite lyric. It's "How Strange Is It To Be Anything At All." Somehow that sums it all up for me.

Ween - An extremely underrated band. Too many people think they are merely a "joke" band. While some of their songs are funny, they are far more bizarre than hilarious. Bizarre being much more interesting to me. They are the combination of extreme musical talent with even more extreme imagination. This combines to create masterpiece albums like 1997's The Mollusk. If you've never given Ween a real shot before I suggest you really listen to their music with an open mind starting with the aforementioned The Mollusk.

You may have noticed I've named quite a few albums from 1997 on this list and for some reason quite a few albums from that year really stand out for me above all others. Definitely my favorite year of the 90s as far as music goes with albums like Radiohead's OK Computer, Spiritualized's Ladies & Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, Primal Scream's Vanishing Point, Ween's The Mollusk, The Flaming Lips' Zaireeka, Bob Dylan's Time Out Of Mind, and Cornershop's When I Was Born For The 7th Time.