Top 10 Albums of the 2000’s and Album of the Year

The “noughties” have concluded and with that I have compiled a rough list of my favourite albums that brought me through the decade I grew up in.

The top spots were somewhat easy, I know my absolute favourites and so filling out those most important records required less thinking. But when it came to the back end of the top 10 it was a struggle to separate a few from about 20 possibilities.

In time I will probably publish a top 30 or so, because I feel it really unfair that some albums don’t get a mention here

But anyway lets get into it, starting from the top.

1. Queens of the Stone Age – Songs for the Deaf

This album opened up a whole new world of music for me. Before QotSA and Songs for the Deaf, it was all what I heard on the radio or saw on the charts. Thanks to this album, those days are long gone and my rock boundaries have widened dramatically. I will never tire of listening to the crazy drumming belted out by Dave Grohl or the heavy and infectious riffs. Josh Homme is a dead set genius and is now all but my favourite musician. Songs for the Deaf is a cracker, and we can only hope that QotSA will return in the teens to produce something else just as good.

2. Linkin Park – Meteora

Linkin Park were a huge part of my first half of the decade. At times they were all I listened to, when I couldn’t decide on anything else to listen to LP was the easy choice to revert to. Despite thousands of listens the songs still spark immediate excitement in me when hearing them. A mash of hip hop and rock, LP were something different. You got a feast of good music in every song and I related with them all. The difficult thing for me was separating Meteora and Hybrid Theory. They are very similar albums, and most prefer Hybrid Theory. In the end (unintended pun) I rated more songs in Meteora 5 star. That is pretty much what it came down to. A new Linkin Park album is approaching (I think) and it would be great if they moved back closer to the sound of the first two albums.

3. The Living End – State of Emergency

It is only fair that my favourite 3 bands (not including The Who, but obviously they don’t fit into the time period!) have an album in the top 3 spots. State of Emergency was an unbelievably good album. Every Friday for months I would come home after school, plonk myself down in front of the telly, boot up the PS2 and rock along to this perfect feel good album. Even now I love to hit play on “Long Live the Weekend” when I rush out of work on Friday arvo. A dead set anthem.

4. Linkin Park – Hybrid Theory

And so this is where the other LP album slots in. In the End – what a great song. It will always be a favourite. I remember seeing it on rage for the first time and it sent shivers down my spine, just an incredible track.

5. Queens of the Stone Age – Rated R

C-c-c-c-c-cocaine! While Songs for the Deaf is my favourite QotSA album as a whole, R provided me with some of my favourite tracks. I loved Auto Pilot from the second I heard the main riff for the first time. In the Fade is another cracker and I Think I Lost My Headache is a great song to drone along to. The whole album is just great.

6. Queens of the Stone Age – Era Vulgaris

Misfit Love – probably the best beginning to a song I have ever heard. The way it builds up is great. Another complete QotSA album, with this they marked 5 albums with not 1 negative point, an astonishing effort.

7. Them Crooked Vultures – Them Crooked Vultures

I had to think twice before adding this in. I thought, the fact that it is new might affect my opinion. But when it all boils down, the album is great from beginning to end. A great hard, clean rock sound that involves the QotSA influence that I love. Perhaps after I see them late this month I might be wishing I put it even higher!

Them Crooked Vultures also snag the album of the year, quite easily.

8. The Living End – Roll On

The Living End get a second spot. For mine, Australia has never produced better music. An album that is always fun to sing along to, with the catchiest songs imaginable.

9. Metallica – Death Magnetic

This Metallica album assured fans (well most) that they were still alive. Their classic thrash sound returned and more masterpieces were created. The Unforgiven III capped of a great trilogy of songs and along with The Day That Never Comes, they were two songs that I couldn’t stop myself from listening to over and over.

10. The White Stripes – Elephant

And finally something a little different! The White Stripes are a great band and Elephant is a great album. Again they are quite different, they provide more of an old unpolished sound. This album opens up with probably the most well known bass riff ever. Who doesn’t recognise Seven Nation Army…. At the end of the year that I got this album in I looked at the amount of times I had listened to the album and was shocked when I saw over 30.

And that is my top 10. I hated leaving some albums out and I will be sure to give them recognition somehow. What will the teens bring? Will it be more of the same? Will there be awesome new stuff? Bring it on!