ShortWaveRockin

If’n I list’n to critics, it’s with a fucking pound of salt. Actually, more like a mound of salt and I got one up the street from me where the Parks Department keeps all its street salt for the Bronx. I think the expression needs grain because it implies it’s meaningless, but fuck, even that 2-story mound of salt doesn’t mean shit to me. Alright, brevity! The crickets say this is the fIREHOSE album where they came into their own, became “more cohesive and focused,” (Greg Prato from Allmusic.com) “their own thing,” and a blog I like (From Here To Obscurity) says “more personal, a little less political, but still funny and insightful.” I disagree with all that bull. I don’t think you can top how personal Watt gets on Ragin’ Full On. It’s uncomfortable how personal some of it is. If I had to describe it quickly, I’d say If’n, yes, shows a band that has figured out their sound, but its more about having fun (Which Obscurity says partly).

Now this is unfounded, but I get the feeling they made this album when they consciously or unconsciously decided this was going to be a band that would stick around. It wasn’t just something to do or an escape or for two of ‘em walkin into a band as a band member zombies ‘cus that’s what they had been doin hardcore for 5 years and they got used to it. Because of this decision, I think they took a deep deep breath and thought, really fuckin thought about how to mix up the whole rock roll drum/guitar/bass/vox thing, something I fear most bands don’t do because they are organic and run with the flow etc. etc. but Watt, as much as he is a dude who does go with the flow, in music he’s going against. Fuck with yer brain, get you thinkin, that’s the Watt way from my perspective.

Fun. If’n reeks of fun. Seeing the band tour these songs must have been awesome. From the Crawford penned “Sometimes” the happy way of singing the upbeat “Anger,” this is an album for good moods. While Ragin’ might be used if you are dealin with some shit and need to let loose, If’n is more for hangin’ out in the summer. Driving music? Maybe. This goes along with the album art. As opposed to the Ragin’ cover of a house burnin (which you could say it how Watt and Hurley must have felt like after D.’s death- the Minutemen house burnt to the ground), If’n’s got a cover of a bedroom wall(?) with some weird ass statue and a poster of Husker Du with Bob Mould smiling ear to ear. Instead of smeltin metal for chemical wires, we’re windmilling!

Less uniform than Ragin, but Watt’s never been about uniforms so why should I expect one here. What I mean is Ragin’ doesn’t have as many curveballs as If’n tho it’s still hits high and low peaks most bands above or under ground would not dare touch. Here’s what I mean: after the trippy “Me and you remembering” Watt-spiel, we get a folk Ed tribute to Elizabeth Cotton then a more traditional power trio rock song with Ed singin called “Soon.” When that wraps up the last song churns on and its “Thunder Child,” obviously a bass/tom heavy song and it’s got Watt growlin his best Beefheart growl. Man, forget the uniform, this album’s made of clothes from the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and even the goddam future. There ain’t the rhyme and reason you got on Ragin’ and even that was a little hard to swallow. In it’s categorizing ability, I’d call this the Trout Mask to Ragin’s Safe as Milk. Now, we’re all friends here so don’t take that the wrong way, fire or beef fans. It’s not insulting to either, rather it enhances each. Meaning through comparisons, like on the SATs because you all know how much I value standardized tests. Just fill in C and fill it in good. You’ll get a 20%, but at least yer consistent.

So say you were really into R.E.M. and you picked up a tape of Document and saw fIREHOSE and saw there was even a song for the singer of R.E.M. and you heard “Sometimes” played by the one good DJ at the college radio station so you buy it. I say you went home and put that on and checked out completely at “Making the Freeway” on side A. So turn it over to get the REM song and it sounds good. Then “Operation Solitaire” comes on and its a slow song with a good bass and some cool echoing guitar sounds. Watt talks about the weather and some other crazy shit. You hang on and it’s worth it because the best fucking happy song on the album is next, Windmilling. You aren’t sure what the hell the lyrics are about, but it sounds good. When Me and You Remembering comes on, you shrug. Elizabeth Cotton comes on and you make a nasty face. What the fuck are these dudes doing? Where did this song come from? And that’s why I like it. Pure fucko rock.

Now, I can’t verify this either tho I’ve been trying since yesterday and can’t get anything other than the Wikipedia fact which ain’t a fact at all cus some jerkoff in Australia could have written it, but here it is: the title If’n comes from from a song Samantha sings in Bewitched. Here’s the video.

Sometimes its John Coltrane. Sometimes its Son House. And not just old jazz or older blues guys. Sometimes its Wire. Today and yesterday, it’s Skip James. I was cleaning house, the bi-annual check up, and I mean my computer, and while I was transferring files to my external hard drive and deleting shit I’ll never listen to, my iTunes Shuffle ran rampant. I tried to steer it in new directions but my computer was depressed and sluggish so it kept hitting those Elliott Smith and PJ Harvey tunes. The real depressing-want-to-kill-yourself tunes. I’ve never seen such a suicidal computer, and only 1 year old. Well, in the midst of the machine’s depression and my battle to save its life, “Devil Got My Woman” by Skip James came on. That was it. All the other songs were bullshit. That was it, something. Skip James. With one song he made every other song on the planet seem disgusting. Unworthy of existence. All of it cheap trash. I turned Shuffle Off and my computer didn’t put up a fight. I sat back and we listened to the entire Complete Early Recordings of 1930. “Hard Time Killin’ Floor Blues” bested “Devil” and “4 O’Clock Blues” topped ‘em both. When that was through I thought Lightnin’ Hopkins would follow it up nicely, but I thought wrong. Even Lightnin’ Hopkins was killed and nauseated by the great Nehemiah Curtis SKIP James. For now, nothing’s sadder except silence.

A Lazy Introduction to My fIREHOSE Project

I’ve got a credit card bill on my desk flipped over with ONLY FIREHOSE written in big black letters. It’s there to force me to listen to fIREHOSE instead of immediately turning to the Minutemen’s What Makes a Man Start Fires? or Double Nickels for my Mike Watt fix. The note is the result of a talk I had with my cousin-in-law. After telling him my favorite band, the Minutemen, he surprised me and said he always leaned toward the fIREHOSE side. The fIREHOSE side? I never knew there was a fIREHOSE side. I assumed every intelligent music listener was in love with the Minutemen and fIREHOSE was just the other band Watt and Hurley did after D. Boon was killed in a car accident in 1985. I had no response. I had never given fIREHOSE their due. I still thought he was crazy, but I had to give ‘em a legitimate shot. So I wrote the note and left it on my desk. It worked. The note’s been impossible to avoid. It travels around my desk area, inescapable. Right now it’s on the floor next to my new wiffle ball bat and my old 1 wood Golden Bear golf club I keep close by in case I need to fight off the fascists in my neighborhood. The note is my scarlet A, but dammit, it worked. The last month or so, half of my listening has been dedicated to the 5 righteous fIREHOSE albums. This is what I found out.

fIREHOSE is the dream realized. The Minutemen may not have wanted to sell a million copies of their records and become big rock stars, but they did want to reach as many open minded folks as possible. The Project Mersh EP and 3 Way Tie (For Last) LP poke fun at making commercial records with verses and choruses and fade outs, but it’s still the Minutemen doing exactly that and doing it well. And it’s not exactly commercial if you compare it to what was selling in the early 80s. They were givin’ it a try, but I don’t think they would have ever gotten the Warner Brothers Husker deal of 86 or the 91 Columbia deal fIREHOSE eventually earned. They weren’t made for the big guys. They just wanted to see if they could do it. It’s not sell out because they were singing about selling out and titling it that.

fIREHOSE weren’t sell out either. They were nicer. They still waved a freak flag, to use Watt-spiel, but they were able to drag in a bigger audience with poppier singles like the wonderful “Sometimes,” which may or may not have been one of their only actual singles before Columbia was their daddy. Songs like this walk the fine line between playing the basement and playing upstairs. It’s in the middle of the staircase, but it’s never uncomfortable. The Minutemen were always in the basement, just they were so fucking loud people upstairs heard em. AND they were louder because half the kids downstairs weren’t screaming for ‘em, they were waiting for Black Flag. fIREHOSE sat on the staircase so Minutemen addicts downstairs wouldn’t be upset and the guys upstairs could get a better listen. In other words, fIREHOSE was more successful because words like success are only used by people upstairs and they were in on the action.

The spirit of the Minutemen is there. Double Nickels is the extreme example of how much those guys did not give a shit about conventions. You’ve got acoustic instrumentals next to bongo rants next to live CCR covers next to punk rock anthems. So in fIREHOSE when you get a Hurley drum song next to an acoustic Ed Crawford folk drinking ballad next to a funky bass driven song with Mike Watt reading his stream-beat poetry you don’t question it. It’s chaotic, but it never gets boring. That’s the appeal of the Minutemen to me and also the reason why many people can’t get Double Nickels and why they might not like a fIREHOSE album. Even mid-song transitions that wander into new directions and never return is Minutemen philosophy. What’s nice about fIREHOSE is you get to soak it in a little more. It’s not gone before it gets going. That’s not a bash at the Minutemen, it’s just a common complaint. fIREHOSE are the epic alternative to the Minutemen. So why are most Minutemen fans, my past self included, reluctant to give fIREHOSE a shot. Here’s a comment from the YouTube “Down With the Bass” video.

iburl (3 months ago):
Some Minutemen fans always are harsh on Ed. It’s a shame…Ed was a great singer and player. He ruled, and I wish fIREHOSE were still around. Who the hell else should they have played with? Ronnie James Dio?

Well said. If you know the story, you can’t knock Watt and Hurley for getting a new singer and trucking on. It’s even wrong to say they got a new singer because as we all know Ed got them. He was 21 year old kid in Ohio and heard a rumor Watt and Hurley were auditioning new singers which wasn’t the case because Watt says he didn’t even pick up a bass let alone think about replacing his best friend D. Boon. I can see this dude packing his car up in Ohio and driving straight to Pedro like a madman listenin to the same CCR Greatest Hits tape. Instead of going to see the ocean for the first time in his life, he knocks on Watt’s door. I see Watt opening the door and this dude doesn’t even say, Hey Watt! or sorry bout D., he just jumps into it. “Let’s start a band! Right now, man!” AND Watt, heavy eyed and deflated and beaten looks at this kid and says, “Are you real, man?” Ragin Full On was released 9 months later. You can see this as sleeping with yer dead buddies wife while he’s still warm in the ground, but you can also see this as a victory for the music world because it got Watt and Hurley playing again. Watt is more popular than ever now. We can thank Ed for that. Who knows what Watt would have done if this dude from Ohio didn’t come knocking. He may have never recorded music ever again. He may have ended up workin the line in Pedro.

Now, the name. You probably know the band name is from a video of Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues” and he’s holding up cue cards with phrases on ‘em. Here’s the list of cue cards:

basement
medicine
pavement
government
trench coat
laid off
bad cough
paid off
kid
did
when
again
alley way
new friend
coon-skin cap
big pen
twenty dollar bills
ten
fleet foot
black soot
heat put
bed but
anyway
many say
must bust
D. A.
Look out
It Don’t matter
tip toes
No Dose
those
fire hose
clean nose
plain clothes
wind blows
get well
it’s hard
write braille
get jailed
fail
watch it!
here they come!
users
cheaters
theaters
whirlpool
new fool
leaders? ? ?
pawking meters
get born
Short pants- romance
get blessed
suckcess
Please her, please him
don’t lift
day shift
dig yourself
hid
man whole
scandals
bum
chew gum, no
the vandals took all the handles
what?

So I liked the idea of writing about fIREHOSE without talking about the Minutemen, but it’s impossible. fIREHOSE deserves to be talked about as their own band, but my obsession with the Minutemen doesn’t allow me to do this. They shouldn’t be thought of as an aftertaste. They should be thought of as a unique band, but I think it’ll be better to use the Minutemen as a launch pad. And so begins my project to write on each of the fIREHOSE albums in chronological order. I’ll work on my brevity, my enemy.

Ragin’ Full On

Ragin’ Full On is one of the most paranoid albums of the 80s. In that weird time, mainstream was cover up (as it usually is) and the underground was seething. To make an album that is so confident musically and heartfelt lyrically is an achievement. Sometimes the lyrics are so sad its uncomfortable. This balance of presenting art completely open and unstable with over-the-top-confidence is something that only best writers can pull off. They started from scratch and nine fucking months after Watt and Hurley met this fucko from Ohio, they had an album out and were touring it. That’s the best part. They wasted no time after D. Boon’s death and the death of the greatest power trio of all time. They mourned in these songs, yet its hard to even hear them mourning.

“Brave Captain” opens the album and sets the tone for the album. This album ain’t gonna cry about D. Boon, it’s gonna honor him by kickin’ ass. Facing the problem head on. The lyrics are nervous as hell. It’s 2/3 of the greatest punk band of all time and 1/3 this dude from Ohio no ones ever heard of. “There are doubts in your ability. There’s too many blanks in your analogies.” There doubt surrounding Ed as the new frontman and guitarist. There’s doubt about Hurley and Watt in a new band. The song doesn’t exactly solve this problem, but it definitely doesn’t make you want to turn the record off. It’s one of the more interesting choruses in all of fIREHOSE.

The following song is a 2 minute Mike Watt bass driven jam called “Under the Influence of Meat Puppets.” Ed plays a D. Boon riff timidly and the song is a dance song because Hurley makes it one. At the end, Ed talks about the uncertainty of the future and ends with the line “We want to make plans, but to make another mistake? So difficult we care enough to try. So crazy, so we sit and wonder…” Still unsure and look at the title. The second song on the first album for this band and it’s about playing like another band, the Meat Puppets. Weird start.

Lots of critics have written about Ragin Full On, fIREHOSE’s debut, as a completely different sound than the Minutemen. That ain’t true. It’s following through with what the Minutemen were doing on their last record, 3 Way Tie For Last. “Price of Paradise” and “Courage” could be on Ragin‘.

fIREHOSE carries on Watt-spiel. It’s different with Crawford singing it because he can actually sing. When Ed starts singing, actually singing better than Watt or Boon ever did in the Minutemen, it’s great because he’s still singing these weird ass lyrics about relating dudes to jazz and chemical wires. It’s odd for someone to sing these beat stream of conscious lines instead of spewing them. He’s not spurting out the words like D. Boon. He take his time and bellows. So when the lyrics are

I’m the paint on the road
the weight of your load
with the cracked glass ground
fuck it!
an itch in your brain
in the drain shootin’ rain
I’m the flame from the train
I’ve been smeltin’ rail
flood from the fire
a hot tub cool
mire
ticket to fly her? NO
then blaze chemical wire
blazin’ chemical wire

it’s hard not to laugh out loud. Here’s a guy, EdfromOHIO, who has a really great voice with a style that 6 years later every alternative rock singer on the planet had singing Mike Watt’s weird ass lyrics about chemical wires. What a trip. Fucking Amazing.

My minutemen obsession has caused me to grab what’s good in a song and sink into it, then next song. More than any other band on the planet, the Minutemen understood that the majority of pop/rock songs produced make one point and play it over and over or set up for one big shining moment. Instead of repeating this point or hammering this moment over 3 or 4 minutes, the Minutemen do it for :48 seconds and move on. I can’t think this way when it comes to fIREHOSE. As much as people think they are walkin’ the line more than the Minutemen with verses and choruses, I’d say half the songs on Ragin‘ don’t fit that formula at all. Some songs are structured more like classical or jazz with codas and sometimes codas on top of codas. Yea, they have choruses, but with more time they have more weirdness.

“On Your Knees” would have been 2 different Minutemen songs – the first the slow angry chug of the first 1:45 and the 2nd the completely different ending from 1:45 to 2:19. “Perfect Pairs” is 2 Minutemen songs. It goes back and forth for 2 minutes.

The cover of 3-Way Tie has each of the guys heads mounted on a wall with a label. D. Boon’s reads Singer/Activist.  Mike Watt – Anti-War Sympathizer, Hurley- Dude/Local 357. If forced to give Ed a label, I’d give him Singer/Romantic. And this is what makes fIREHOSE fIREHOSE. While I’d argue the songwriting, talking mostly lyrics here, of the Minutemen is about immediacy in the moment spiel. fIREHOSE is more about reflection and wonder and the past and the future. On Ragin‘, the obvious reason is D. Boon’s death, but just as much it’s Ed. He’s a romantic wonderer. On slow songs like “This…” and “Things Could Turn Around,” Ed sounds like a father singing to his newborn son to ease his pain. If D. was for starting revolutions and changing shit, Ed was for easin the pain while the shit’s goin on. Comforting your soul in the shit.

The best song on Ragin is track 13, “Relatin’ Dudes to Jazz.” There aren’t many albums in the history of albums where that’s the case. I think its the best song because it’s the song on the album that Watt’s crazy story about talkin about jazz in New Haven or something is the most together for the trio. Ed has his own version of a punk spew down pat (something that is essential to the future fIREHOSE sound) while still letting loose and bellowing. In the second half, the guitar and bass and drums all have a few seconds to shine, interweaving just enough and then finishing. Without wallowing.

Check the name of the band in this MTV video. Fuckin’ MTV.

-ADAM

And no, I’m not exhausted with this. This is just the beginning. More art and If’n to come.

I had a whole other post mostly written then my phone deleted the whole thing but I decided to start another instead.
I’ve spent most of my day between listening to George Clinton (in honor and excitement of purchasing tickets for the Feb 21st show at BB Kings) and Kate & Anne McGarrigle. I was attempting to do a post dedicated to Kate McGarrigle but I just don’t know about the sisters work. It’s a tragedy that the world lost Kate this week, and an even greater tragedy is my lack of knowledge of the sisters music. I have the first two albums which I’ve only listened to a handful of times each. The second album doesn’t seem to get the notoriety that the first does for some reason. They’re both amazing records. Great folk albums. The two sisters have incredible voices that harmonize so well you’d be sure they were…well…sisters…and they are. But it’s Kate’s voice that caught my ear and keeps me coming back. Though this should be the other way around, her voice reminds me of Corin Tucker.
I’m tired.
This train rides just started.
So while I sit here watching Monty Python and the Holy Grail on a very small screen, remember: always look on the bright side of life…and now I’ll probably watch Life of Brian when I get home.

So here I am at work. I should be paying more attention to what I am supposed to be doing but I need a bit of a break. My mind is going crazy with database junk right now. As I try and build my first professional grade website with full original content management system, new design and coding by myself I find the water rising up a little bit over my head. So I need a break for a sec. Also I want to check out the database on the back end of SWR and see how its set up, and then pretty much just model my new site against that. Anyway, I was supposed to have some thoughts in here.
1) SWR needs a new design. We’ve had the same one for a while now and I think I have finally become comfortable enough to realize I won’t break the web and, if there is any downtime on SWR, no one cares. Hopefully Adam and I will talk about this tonight.
2) The future of the bedroom. I think this will be the final year of whatidoinmybedroom.com. We don’t use it and it could easily just be added to SWR. I’ve gone into job interviews and have been asked to leave after telling them about the bedroom. Others people have just laughed about…and then didn’t give me the job later. Either way, I think this will be the final months of the bedroom, so get your rest while you can. Ok that was lame.
3) We have a lot of lists, including this one. Is it just easier to think in lists? Maybe.
4) I want to listen to SMiLE right now. Not the Brian Wilson Presents version either.
5) I’ve worn a sweater to work every single day.

I feel better.

Ah Fuck it, I’m doing a top 10 for 2009. If anything, it’ll be something nice to look back on to see how twisted my brain was and is and will be many years from now. A jumping off point, right? I tried to think of a list of top anything films of the decade but I realized not many people would care because my list would go like this: Transporter 1, Transporter 3, Transporter 2, Crank 1, Crank 2, Kill Bill 1, Kill Bill 2, Born After This, We Jam Econo and Punch Drunk Love (actually that would be #1. Move backwards, maybe).

I know no one will notice, but they don’t match up to my top 100 of the decade at ALL. Maybe the last month has given me perspective. Probably not, though.

I’ve written on every one of these bands in some capacity this last year, except Grant Hart, but you all know Grant Hart. He’s the poppy one.
1. Screaming Females – Power Move
2. Children – Hard Times Hanging at the End of the World
3. Dark Meat – Truce Opium
4. Death – For the Whole World to See
5. Slayer – World Painted Blood
6. Nutsak – Failed Musician
7. Sonic Youth – The Eternal
8. Stupid Party – S/T
9. Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers – A Fish Hook An Eye
10. Grant Hart – Hot Wax

Honorable Mentions that I liked a lot, but didn’t fit in:

Double Dagger – More

Cymbals Eat Guitars – Why There are Mountains

Krallice – Dimensional Bleedthrough

Isis – Wavering Radiant

So I’ve been thinking, with all these lists flying around everywhere, why not put together a top films of the decade list. I’ve been thinking a lot about this one, films have come and gone from the list. I’ve decided to keep this at 10, it’s in some sort of order. I’m sure this will change soon but for now:

Waking Life
Mulholland Dr
End of the Century: The Story of the Ramones
In the Mood for Love
High Fidelity
Synecdoche, New York
Almost Famous
American Splendor
The Devil and Daniel Johnston
Wet Hot American Summer

Chris here, uploading my top 100 albums of the 2000s on Adam’s user name (thanks, Adam).

When it comes to a great album, I was thinking the most important thing is that I be able to listen to it start to finish and love every second of it.  I can’t claim expertise on every single song on every single album on this list, but I tried.  And another quality of the utmost importance was the idea that the band was having fun or enjoying making the music.  Like anything in life, it’s a lot more fun to watch or listen when it sounds like the performer is really into what they’re doing.  I’ve been fortunate enough to see most of the bands on the list in concert and can safely say that they’re usually having a blast.

Anyways, here’s my top 100 from the Zeroes.

1. Cold Roses, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals: I didn’t know this album very well when it came out in 2005, but it’s never stopped growing on me and is Adams’ finest album since he went solo.  So many songs on here that I love.

2. Sky Blue Sky, Wilco: I always knew Wilco was supposed to be good, but I never really got into them until I got handed a face value ticket to a super-sold-out showof theirs at the Warsaw in Brooklyn (thanks Tigs and Alex).  That’s the same year that this record came out, and it’s Wilco in absolutely top form.  They recorded this one live in the studio for the most part, and it shows.  And Nels Cline is on it.  Wow.

3. The Eternal, Sonic Youth: After nearly thirty years of making music together, the most recent record stands out as the best SY of the decade.  I can listen to this one straight through and on repeat.

4. The Woods, Sleater-Kinney: Loud, fuzzy, kick ass rock n roll.  Crossing my fingers they get back together for more, but if not, this album had them going out on top of Mt. Everest.  If “Let’s Call it Love” doesn’t get your juices flowing, you’ve got no juices.

5. Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea, PJ Harvey: Hey, PJ Harvey’s looking pretty stylish and sexy on this album cover.  Don’t worry, she’s just making one of the best albums of her career.  And the opening riff has got to be one of my favorites of all time.

6. Songs for the Deaf, Queens of the Stone Age: It’s a shame that my first thought about this album is that it should have come with a “This band will self-destruct before making another record” note.  Having said that, nearly every song on here is great in its own way, it appropriately mocks the radio, and it slightly edges out Rated R in my book.

7. White Blood Cells, White Stripes: It wasn’t easy to pick my favorite White Stripes record of the decade, but this still sounds the loudest and has too many gems to go anywhere else but the top ten.  The guitar on this record often sounds dark and intimidating and makes me proud I named my first pet shrimp (yep, a pet shrimp) after Jack White.

8. White Lies for Dark Times, Relentless7: I went through two phases of really liking Ben Harper.  I never disliked him, but there was a little gap in my paying attention.  Well, this record grabbed my attention months before it even came out.  I was fortunate enough to see these guys play at the Mercury Lounge, a satellite radio taping, and thanks to a personal invite from Ben Harper, at a recording session for WFUV at Electric Lady Studios.  Needless to say, I got hooked.  Oh and it’s the most rockin’ album Ben has ever made.  Enjoy.

9. The Year is One, Comes With the Fall: The year was 2001, but this line from the Scrabble board in Rosemary’s Baby was a perfect fit for this record.  When I discovered this band and this record, it forever changed my outlook on music.

10. In Rainbows, Radiohead: In Rainbows is a lot like Season 7 of Curb Your Enthusiasm.  The perfect blend.  Just the right amount of each element that makes Radiohead as great as they are.

11. Consolers of the Lonely, The Raconteurs: Building upon their first album of Jack White plus a full band, these guys really delivered on their sophomore effort.  It’s god loud songs, fast songs, slow songs, and songs with a touch of bluegrass, and I love them all.

12. Rather Ripped, Sonic Youth: Just a notch below the Eternal.  Incinerate and Pink Steam are two of my favorite Sonic Youth songs of all time, and there’s not much of a letdown anywhere else on this album.

13. Elephant, White Stripes: Jack White’s third appearance in the top 13.  Did I mention that as recently as freshman year of college I actively disliked the White Stripes?  I remember telling someone they needed more guitar solos, and I was so, so wrong.  It’s just a notch below White Blood Cells and has some of my absolute favorite Stripes tracks.

14. Down II, Down: My metal album of the decade.  When these guys played these songs at Ozzfest, a stage monitor burst into flames, and they hadn’t lost any intensity playing these songs when I saw them several years later.  Down-tuned guitars at their finest.

15. Thickfreakness, The Black Keys: The Black Keys used to be an awesome band, and Thickfreakness was my favorite of their three album run of awesomeness.  It still takes a good amount of booze to get me dancing, but this album makes me want to.

16. Onoffon, Mission of Burma: When I first heard of Mission of Burma, they had just put out this record.  After a nearly two decade break, this one was better than almost anything coming out at the same time.

17. Rated R, Queens of the Stone Age: It’s loud, fast, slow, melodic, trippy, quirky, and everything that made QOTSA the band I had seen the most times through the first few years of this decade.

18. Penance Soiree, The Icarus Line: I think the Icarus Line might still technically exist, but they pretty much toured this album and stopped being the band that they were.  So in my mind, album-wise, they went out on the absolute top.  I remember driving around with this one blaring for an entire summer and loving every second of it.

19. Jacksonville City Nights, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals: The most country album Adams has produced, and if you’re into that kind of thing, it won’t disappoint.

20. Beyond the Last Light, Comes With the Fall: My favorite band of the decade hands down.  Not even sure how to describe this one, but the opening track “Rockslide” and the closing track “Fire Come Down” and everything else in between are superb.

21. A Ghost is Born, Wilco: The most Nels Cline sounding Wilco album that actually didn’t have Nels Cline on it.  Love Spiders.

22. Trees Outside the Academy, Thurston Moore: It’s almost as good as the Sonic Youth records on here, and something about Frozen Gtr pulls me in.  After that, the album never lets go.

23. Heartbreaker, Ryan Adams: His excellent solo debut.  As much as I love when the Cardinals play with him, it’d be a treat to see him play all of these songs in one night.

24. Graveyard, Graveyard: Try listening to this album and not getting hypnotized.  When I started this list, I wasn’t thinking, “Gotta put Graveyard in my top 25!”  But every time I’ve put this on, the riffs have been amazing and the mood is perfect.

25. Cocaine Rodeo, Mondo Generator: If you’re like me and you think Queens of the Stone Age aren’t quite so good as they used to be, you might also wish they’d never fired Nick Oliveri.  They may have been justified in doing so, but Cocaine Rodeo is a great showcase of the style and talent that this guy brought to that band.  If you like the loud, fast Queens songs, you’ll thoroughly enjoy this album.

26. Wilco, Wilco: Hey, Jack White, you’re not the only one with three appearances on this list so far!  Though these songs may not turn out to be classics, every one of them is at the very least good.  It doesn’t stray too far from what I expected, but I didn’t need it to.  Just more really good Wilco songs, and I can’t complain about that.

27. Free and Easy, Bad Wizard: I’ve mentioned live shows a lot in these blurbs.  Bad Wizard’s live show was (and if they play another show, still is) the best of the best.  A few times, they tried to put that sound on a record, and this time was the closest thing you’ll get to a show if you turn it up really loud and turn off the lights in your room.  Bonus points for the singer being a Mets fan.

28. Tenacious D, Tenacious D: Probably one of the albums I’ve known for the longest period of time, it’s still hilarious, great music to this day.

29. Pink, Boris: Boris puts out lots of albums, and I admittedly don’t know all of them front to back.  But the high points on this one are great enough for me to put this album up here.

30. Insects with Angel Wings, Dropsonic: The album when this fantastic band from Atlanta hit its stride. Listen to this one really loud, and if they come around your town, see them play a show.  You may want to bring earplugs, or if you’re a regular at Piano’s, you may just want to beeline through that fancy glass door and find a super cool couch to sit on to talk about your beard.

31. De Stijl, White Stripes: Jack White shows off his slide guitar abilities and write some really great original songs.  Can’t go wrong here.

32. Cuts Across the Land, Duke Spirit: A phenomenal record start to finish and one of the best albums from the United Kingdom.

33. Universal Indians, Dark Meat: Another band that’s hard to capture on a record, but listen to “One More Trip” and you’ll have a little idea.

34. What if Someone is Watching Their T.V.?, Screaming Females: Everything on here is good and blows away most of the competition, but “Boyfriend” is the signature song of this album and maybe of this band.

35. The Obliterati, Mission of Burma: Almost as good as Onoffon, it’s the 2^nd album of the 2^nd part of their career.  Most bands would kill to make music this good at this stage.   Much like Sonic Youth, they’re making music today that’s better than 99% of what’s out there.

36. Hail to the Thief, Radiohead: I’ll stay forever where 2 and 2 always makes a 5…  OK Computer always seemed like the soundtrack to 1984 to me, but I love the additional reference on this record.  And the songs, too.  They’re pretty damn good.

37. One Beat, Sleater-Kinney: I almost forgot how good One Beat was until I sat down to make this list.  Another band that clearly kept growing and making better music as it got older.  It’s good to have faith in music.

38. Kid A, Radiohead: I didn’t quite get why this topped so many lists for the decade, but I do really enjoy it.  Optimistic is probably my favorite from this one but a lot of the electronic-trippy stuff is perfect if you’re in the mood for it.

39. Mer de Noms, A Perfect Circle: When I listen to this stuff now, it’s the best sounding Maynard James Keenan record.  Though I was probably more into Tool at the time, this one seems to stand the test of time a little better for me.

40. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Wilco: The critically acclaimed masterpiece, I’ve got it fourth on my list of Wilco albums from this decade, but the generally subdued and often experimental sound soothes and challenges at the same time.

41. Uh Huh Her, PJ Harvey: She sounds angry.  These were the core of songs that made me go back to see her play a second show at Hammerstein ballroom one night after seeing the first one.

42. The Low Life, Dropsonic: If you are still reading this list, listen to Dropsonic.  I think you’ll enjoy it.  This is the only album I’ve ever purchased digitally, and I missed the tour around that time, but it’s so much better than most of what came out in 2008.

43. Broken Boy Soldiers, The Raconteurs: Catchy as hell, and though it’s got a few semi-weak spots, it’s still a good collection of songs from Jack White’s first trip outside of the White Stripes.

44. The Big Come Up, The Black Keys: Incredible debut with one of my favorite covers of all time.  It’s a raw recording, which seems the most appropriate for the type of music the Black Keys play.

45. The Life Aquatic, Seu Jorge: Speaking of covers, aren’t all of these just great?  I’m not an expert on David Bowie or Brazilian music, but they seem to go really well together.

46. Smile, Boris: They keep making loud and crazy songs and putting them on records.  Need I say any more?

47. Rubber Factory, The Black Keys: Almost as good as Thickfreakness and one hell of an opening line: “What about the night, makes you change, oh from sweet, to deranged?”

48. Gold, Ryan Adams: Though the sound changed a lot through the decade, this was the record that got me into his music in the first place and holds up pretty well several years later.

49. Black Gives Way to Blue, Alice in Chains: After 14 years and with a new singer, the sound of this album is undeniably Alice in Chains.  You can’t replace Layne, but damn this is great.

50. Blood Visions, Jay Reatard: Simple, fast, 29 minutes of fun.  And bonus points for an incredible album cover.

51. Pick of Destiny, Tenacious D: Almost as good as the self-titled album and a hell of a lot of fun to listen to.  Master Exploder is the highlight, but nearly every other track on it was an instant classic.

52. There Will be a Light, Ben Harper & the Blind Boys of Alabama: Saw these guys at the Apollo, and the entire time Ben Harper was looking at the Blind Boys with as much amazement as anyone in the room.  You can hear that he’s doing that on the record, too.

53. Awesome Color, Awesome Color: Lots of dirty rock n roll fun.

54. Cardinology, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals: When it came out this was my go to album for about six months.  Born Into a Light and Cobwebs stand out, nothing else disappoints.

55. Mono, The Icarus Line: More raw than Penance Soiree, but still the same band making some really good loud music.  They were touring this record when I saw them open for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.  And by that, I mean I watched their set and left before the Yeah Yeah Yeahs played.

56. Stankonia, Outkast: Believe it or not, I spray painted my high school parking space with the Outkast crown.  Going back and listening now, I can definitely still enjoy this one.  Ain’t nobody dope as me, I’m just so fresh, so clean.

57. Icky Thump, White Stripes: The White Stripes at their weirdest, but obviously in a good way.

58. Consonant, Consonant: Mission of Burma’s incredible bassist/songwriter Clint Conley’s side project.  The album came out around the same time Burma got back together, but it’s not to be missed amidst all of the other great music he helped make with his better known band.

59. The Dresden Dolls, The Dresden Dolls: Really catchy song that remind me of what I envision cabaret would be like if I ever went and saw it.  It’s not on the record, but they did a really sweet cover of War Pigs by Sabbath at a show.

60. Sonic Nurse, Sonic Youth: A pretty good album by Sonic Youth is better than lots of other albums by other bands.

61. Van Lear Rose, Loretta Lynn: If I’m really in a country music mood, this one’s a go to, but the songs with blatant evidence of Jack White are good any time.

62. Pearl Jam, Pearl Jam: Blew away Riot Act and Binaural in my book, even if it’s not going to be a classic or anything.  Cool Avocado cover earns bonus points.

63. Dig Out Your Soul, Oasis: The only Oasis record from the last ten years that I’ve really spent any time listening to.  The first three tracks alone are good enough to get them on this list.

64. Los Valientes de Mundo Nuevo, The Black Lips: Man, these guys sound like they’re having fun.

65. Love is Hell, Ryan Adams: This used to be two EPs, and I remember buying the first one, but it all turned out pretty good in the end.

66. Paralyzed, Witch: Their other album and live show were okay, but they got it together big time for Paralyzed.

67. California Crossing, Fu Manchu: What’s not to like about cars, surf boards, and stoner rock?

68. Who is This America?, Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra: One very big band making a very big sound and on a political mission that never came off as anything less than genuine to me.  “Indictment” was a favorite of mine when Bush was still president.

69. Easy Tiger, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals: A few real gems on here.

70. 100 Days, 100 Nights, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings: The sound could be from decades ago, but it stands out as a modern classic.

80. Bubblegum, Mark Lanegan: Guest star PJ Harvey probably help put this one on my list.

81. Brant Bjork and the Operators, Brant Bjork and the Operators: Ghettoblaster rules.  So does the rest of the album.

82. Degradation Trip, Jerry Cantrell: For a good part of freshman year of college, this was my go to album.   I may not listen to it all that often these days, but there was and still is plenty of Cantrell signature songwriting and guitar playing on here.

83. The Argument, Fugazi: Admittedly, I got this album way too late in the decade, so it might be way higher up if you ask me again in a year.  But if only a few listens make it to the top 100, that’s pretty damn good.

84. Lateralus, Tool: I was so into this album at one time that I found a mathematical analysis of the track order and listened to it in its original order and in the re-arranged order many times.

85. St. Elsewhere, Gnarls Barkley: Catchy, fun, and it’s got a good Violent Femmes cover on it.

86. Head for the Shallow, Big Business: Loud bass and drums.  And this reminds me I’ve still not seen these guys live.

87. Source Tags & Codes, Trail of Dead: I hadn’t listened to this in years, but once I did it took me a few songs for it to click.  I really liked Source Tags and can still listen to it today.  Not too shabby, Trail of Dead.

88. Get Behind Me Satan, The White Stripes: Not my favorite White Stripes record, but Blue Orchid, My Doorbell, and Little Ghost are as good as anything by Jack White.

89. Horehound, The Dead Weather: And speaking of Jack White, he should stick to guitar.  That doesn’t stop me from really liking some of the dark sounds he made while on the drums.

90. This is Somewhere, Grace Potter: She can sing and write.  Kinda country-ish.

91. Good News for People who Love Bad News, Modest Mouse: Yeah, the critically acclaimed record, but this was the one they were on when I was into them for a few months or so.  Still a good record.

92. All Hands on the Bad One, Sleater-Kinney: Thought I remembered loving this album on a top-20 level, but it’s still really good.  You’re no rock n roll fun is the best.

93. Gasoline, the Hard Lessons: This band is way, way, way better live, but there’s some good rock on here if you’re in the mood.

94. Kiss of Death, Motorhead: Because they still sound great and you can’t have a best of anything list without Motorhead on it.

95. Peace Love Death Metal, Eagles of Death Metal: One the many QOTSA-related bands on this list, Eagles of Death Metal made a catchy album and clearly had a good time in the process.

96. Reinventing the Steel,Pantera: Maybe the weakest Pantera album, but Yesterday Don’t Mean Shit is a hell of a song and they’re still Pantera, damnit.

97. Roots and Wings, Neal Casal: Super country type songs by the other guitarist in Ryan Adams’ Cardinals, but if that’s your thing, check this out.

98. Fall of the Plastic Empire, Burning Brides: When Lollapalooza came back, I thought this band would take the world by storm.  I was wrong about that, but I wasn’t wrong about this album.

99. Into the Wild, Eddie Vedder: Didn’t think Eddie would pull off great songs without Pearl Jam, but guess I was wrong.

100. King of the Road, Fu Manchu: Stoner rock at its best with well executed music and song titles like Hell on Wheels, Boogie Van, and one of my favorite hook lines of all time:  King of the road says you move too slow.

And once again, this is Chris’ list, even though it was posted by Adam.