From time to time I like to check out the Billboard album charts to see what kind of music people are buying in mass quantities these days. This is one of those times.

I’m mostly pretty detached from the “pop” world (most of my favorite new music doesn’t sell huge quantities) so this is my effort to stay in tune with what is really popular on a bigger scale. I think it helps to bring perspective.

#001 – Eminem – Recovery

I’ve listened to some of this to give it a chance and it just doesn’t work for me. Musically it’s just too uninteresting. I know it’s a very snobbish thing to say, but I think this is for people who don’t really like music. They like lyrics. And that’s fine – it’s just not my thing. Clearly it’s the thing of many others as this album is at #1 and it’s been on the charts for five weeks now.

#002 – Rick Ross – Teflon Don

See, I had never even heard of Rick Ross. This is what I’m talking about. Checking out these charts connects me to the popular music world because otherwise I still wouldn’t know who Rick Ross is. I checked out a few of his tracks and now I know he’s another generic “bling bling” type rapper. Is my life really better because of this knowledge? Probably not.

#003 – Sheryl Crow – 100 Miles From Memphis

Yeah, I didn’t know that Sheryl Crow was still doing this well. I didn’t even really know she was still around releasing new albums. This album does feature a cover of “I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5 which is pretty awesome. Did you know she used to be a backup singer for Michael Jackson?

#004 – Drake – Thank Me Later

I’ve heard some songs from this guy. Truly generic garbage.

#007 – Jonas Brothers – Jonas L.A. (Soundtrack)

That this debuted at only #7 is probably a sign that these guys are headed on the way down. These types of preteen aimed groups tend to have a pretty short shelf life.

#009 – Lady Antebellum – Need You Now

Why am I torturing myself like this again? I listened to the title track single from this album on YouTube and I made it through one chorus before I had to head for the hills. Horrific country pop. This may just be my least favorite genre of music in the world.

#010 – Lady Gaga – The Fame

It’s actually up from #13 last week and it’s been on the charts for 91 weeks now so #10 is a very impressive showing. I’m not a huge fan of Lady Gaga, I don’t really listen to her music. But I still kind of like her. Out of all of the stuff on the top 20, I think Lady Gaga and Eminem are the only ones that really “matter” in the bigger picture look at popular culture in the year 2010.

#013 – Korn – Korn III: Remember Who You Are

I absolutely hated Korn back in the late ’90s when they first got really popular. I listened to about 10 seconds of one of their songs from this new album and it reminded me as to why. I hate this kind of music. It reminds me of dumb people. I can’t believe it debuted at #2 last week. Are there really this many people listening to Korn in 2010? Bad taste reigns in America.

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OK, my mood is changing for the worse. I shouldn’t really do this. I’m going to switch modes now and search the top 200 for something that I actually think is any good.

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#031 – The Black Keys – Brothers

This is refreshing. I’ve only listened to this album a couple of times so far but I’m really enjoying it quite. I don’t normally go for the whole blues rock thing (it usually gets boring to me very quickly) but there’s something about the way these guys do it that makes it interesting. I think it’s really cool that something this made it to #3 on the charts and is still as high as #31 after 10 weeks.

#093 – Broken Bells – Broken Bells

I’m not actually a huge fan of The Shins (although I think they are alright) But this combination of James Mercer (lead singer for The Shins) and Danger Mouse (as heard in Gnarls Barkley) really works for me. It reminds me a bit of my love for The Postal Service.

#108 – Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

I don’t love this album as much as the average hipster (it’s a bit “samey” for my tastes) but it is pretty darn good. I’m a big fan of “Love Like A Sunset.” It reminds me a lot of Air and doesn’t sound much like the other more straight ahead indie pop songs on the album.

#123 – Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse – Dark Night of the Soul

This is a really cool collaborative album where Sparklehorse (the performing name of the Mark Linkous who committed suicide on March 6) wrote the songs, Danger Mouse produced the songs, and a great variety of guest performers (including Vic Chestnutt who committed suicide on December 25, 2009) sang and played the songs.

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