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By Ryan S.
Like Ryan wrote, this is a list of my favorite albums of the decade, not the best of the decade (obviously).
25. Of Montreal- Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
My vote for the most purely fun record of the decade. I feel like David Bowie would be proud of them.
24. Caribou- Andorra
I don’t think it would be possible for any fan of the Sgt Pepper/Magical Mystery-era Beatles to listen to “Eli” and say they didn’t like it. Hence, I like this record.
23. Beck- Sea Change
I am pretty sure it has been said, but this ranks up there with Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks as one of the greatest breakup records ever. “Guess I’m Doing Fine,” found on Sea Change and “For No One” by the Beatles are the truest break up songs I have ever heard. Does Sea Change deserve to be mentioned alongside Bob Dylan and the Beatles? Yes.
22. M83- Saturdays=Youth
The perfect mix of 80s pop and shoegaze. The album cover is among my favorite of the decade and “We Own the Sky” is probably in my favorite 25 tracks.
21. Iron & Wine- Our Endless Numbered Days
Our Endless Numbered Days is the perfect soundtrack for a Sunday afternoon in July.
20. Jimmy Eat World- Futures
As you will see at #12, Jimmy Eat World has had a big impact on my life as far as music goes. Well, Futures got me back into music after a time in which I got tired of the emo scene.
19. The Format- Interventions and Lullabies
From July 2006-March 2007, this album probably took up about 60% of the time I spent listening to music. One of my favorite college memories is of driving through the Twin Cities with my friends as we all sang along to “The First Single” and tried to clap at the correct times during the chorus. A great road trip album.
18. The Flaming Lips- Embryonic
Although Embryonic got good reviews, I cannot believe that it didn’t get amazing reviews. As someone at my local record shop said, “it’s like going to the future via the past.” In my opinion, this record is genius.
17. Animal Collective- Merriweather Post Pavilion
MWPP could have not been released at a better time. Its lyrics focus on the important things in life in the midst of one of the most difficult years the world has faced in a long time. The nearly 3 minute section from 2:27 into the end of “In the Flowers” is my absolute favorite section of music released in 2009.
16. Radiohead- In Rainbows
While the 90s established Radiohead as a great band, the 00s established them as one of the greatest of all time. While not their best release, if I had to introduce an average music fan to Radiohead with one album I would probably pick In Rainbows, because it is more versatile than The Bends, more accessible than OK Computer, less electronic than Kid A, more varied than Amnesiac, and simply better than Hail to the Thief. It is also great enough for me to pay for it not only on CD but then again on vinyl. Perhaps the worst part about In Rainbows is that it was somewhat overshadowed by its pay anything you want scheme.
15. Wolf Parade- Apologies to the Queen Mary
Is there a more interesting tandem in music than Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner? I dare anyone to listen to this without at least bobbing their head. Another great road trip record. “I’ll Believe in Anything” is only second to the Hold Steady’s “Stuck Between Stations” as my favorite track of the decade.
14. Grizzly Bear- Yellow House
Yellow House is a great example of a band that is developing their sound. It is almost a blend mix of the lo-fi Horn of Plenty and the meticulous Veckatimest. While I love their newest release, I miss some of the experimentation and randomness found on Yellow House.
13. David Bazan- Curse Your Branches
I have to be honest, I did not think I was going to like this record. I had heard some of Bazan’s other solo records was for the most part unimpressed. This record details the loss of David Bazan’s faith and the challenge that comes with changing how you identify yourself, especially when it comes to one’s religion. “Curse Your Branches” is an interesting look into a man who is not necessarily glad he has lost his faith, but sees too many holes in the religion he was taught to believe to make it fit together anymore. You get the feeling that he has not given it up completely yet, but has come to the conclusion that he will never truly know any answers. I am glad he is back to asking questions.
12. Jimmy Eat World- Bleed American
Without this record, I probably would not love music as much as I do today. This record immediately brings me back to the carefree days of the summer after my senior year of high school, in which it was the soundtrack to the pranks and road trips of the most enjoyable three months of my life.
11. Arcade Fire- Funeral
As soon as I hear the first note of “Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)” I still get goose bumps. You know this record is great when over-the-hill rock stars started name dropping it to feel like they had relevance again and when Coldplay changed themselves in an attempt to mimic the band who made it.
10. Deerhunter- Microcastle
I have become a huge fan of Bradford Cox, and not just because he helped me learn about Marfan Syndrome. Deerhunter’s blend of shoegaze and 50’s pop is infectious.
9. Brand New- Deja Entendu
It’s arrogant, raw, too honest, immature, and a great one to sing along to in the car- emo at its best.
8. Sufjan Stevens- Illinois
The best record from my overall favorite artist of the decade, Illinois is the perfect blend of Steven’s unique instrumentation, pop sensibility, and take on Americana. “John Wayne Gacy Jr,” a haunting song about the serial killer who would dress up as a clown for the kids at his local hospital, is easily one of the best songs I heard this decade.
7. Pedro The Lion- Control
This is a record tells a story about an affair and it finds David Bazan at his best and most depressing. Within Control, Bazan takes on cheating spouses, corporate America, political spin, Global Warming detractors, and Christian arrogance. Instead of offering hope, at the end he sings “Wouldn’t it be so wonderful if everything were meaningless? But everything is so meaningful and most everything turns to shit.” For some reason I love his honesty.
6. The National- Boxer
“Slow Show” and “Mistaken For Strangers” by themselves are probably good enough to get this record in my top 25. When you add the perfect lyrics for my middle 20-something life and their amazing melodies and hooks you get one of my favorite records.
5. Grizzly Bear- Veckatimest
Veckatimest had the mixed blessing of hype before it came out. When music sites such as Stereogum are saying that it is a “game changer and a cause for celebration” two and a half months before its release, there is really no way that any album will live up to the hype. I admit that Veckatimest is not a perfect album, but it is a masterpiece. Veckatimest is an album about the space between relationships, as Stereogum pointed out. Neither melancholy nor celebratory, it is about the space that we all feel between us in all of our relationships, from perfect strangers to our closest loved ones. This became brutally clear to me as I stood next to my ex-girlfriend as of one week as Chris Taylor performed “I Live With You” a mere five feet or so in front of us. Needless to say it was one of the most powerful musical moments of my life and I enjoyed every measure of it.
4. Destroyer- Destroyer’s Rubies
There are very few albums I have heard on which I would not change one note. This is one of them.
3. Sunset Rubdown- Random Spirit Lover
Random Spirit Lover literally took me two years to like, but once I got it, RSL quickly became one of my favorite records. This is Sunset Rubdown’s weirdest record, and is full of gems. “Winged/Wicked Things” is among the best non-religious songs on religion I have ever heard. “Colt Stands Up, Grows Horns” and “Stallion” are my favorite songs that appear in succession on an album of the decade.
2. Radiohead- Amnesiac
I admit that my main initial draw to Amnesiac was my background in jazz music and I know that having listing this as my favorite Radiohead album of the decade may not sit well with many people, but it is honestly my favorite of theirs since OK Computer. Due to the fact that it was recorded at the same time, I think Amnesiac unfortunately suffered from a preconceived notion that it was a record of B-sides from the Kid A sessions. Why is it my favorite? I am not quite sure, but it contains my favorite Radiohead song, “I Might Be Wrong” and “Pyramid Song,” “You and Whose Army?,” Knives Out,” and Hunting Bears” are all simply beautiful tracks.
1. Bon Iver- For Emma, Forever Ago
I agree with a Yahoo music critic, who wrote that For Emma…”sounds like a record that’s always existed. It was simply waiting for the right moment, and the right person, to pull it out of the nether.” Thanks to the year that was 2008, I felt a connection to this record that I had never felt to music before.
By Alex
This is a list of the top 11 movie scenes I can think of from the past decade. I often watch movies simply for their aesthetic charm, and a number of these scenes make the cut for that reason alone. Others feature phenomenal acting and directing. I’m sure I missed a number of excellent scenes, so let me know what you think.
1. Atonement – Dunkirk Beach scene
I’m a sucker for uncut tracking scenes, and though this 5 ½ minute scene might have jumped away from the filming style of the rest of the film, it was definitely the scene that struck me most in the Aughts. The constant turmoil taking place throughout the intricate set was awe-inspiring and technically impressive. Furthermore, the graphic results of war were evident and compelling, augmenting the strong sense of despair the film seeks to provide.
2. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford – Prologue
This film is probably the most beautifully photographed movie I’ve ever seen, but the opening narrated scene sets the tone by humanizing the 17-time murderer and serial robber allowing the viewer to empathize with the criminal that leaves said viewer feeling slightly uncomfortable. The musical score is excellent and somehow the strange tunneling lens distortions seem right.
3. No Country For Old Men – Coin Toss at Gas Station
This scene probably made me feel more uncomfortable than any other scene in recent memory. Chigurh’s dialog with the gas station clerk is chilling, pushed to the limit, and hard to watch, which is exactly why I love so much to watch it.
4. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford – Petty Theives and Rubes/Blue Cut Robbery
Originally I had five or six scenes from this movie on this list, but I decided I shouldn’t include more than two. This scene, makes it in for exactly the same reasons the Prologue Portrait does, beautiful cinematography and a fantastic musical score (honorable mention for Imagining Himself/April 3, 1882 near the end of the film).
5. There Will Be Blood – Final Scene
Daniel Day-Lewis is such a fantastic actor, he had to make this list somewhere… There are probably a number of scenes in this movie or Gangs of New York that deserve consideration. But it is this scene’s successful culmination of the undoing of both Day-Lewis’ and Paul Dano’s characters in a disturbingly brilliant movie that place it here.
6. V for Vendetta – V’s Turn/Gift of Love/All of Us
First of all, the matrix-style fight scene is great, but when Torentino-esque graphic blood is introduced it makes it all the more exciting. Then, the parliament detonation is set to music; it’s like the ultimate firework display, and who doesn’t like fireworks?
7. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou – The Belafonte
Exposing the fourth wall, this short scene gives us a tour of the boat by panning from room to room in the large set. It is fun and strikingly Wes Anderson-esque, and who doesn’t love Wes Anderson?
8. The Dark Knight – Pencil Trick/Opening Robbery
The opening scene of this film gives us an early glimpse of the Joker’s diabolical genius and sets the tone for an excellent movie, but then the pencil trick is just great—funny and surprising while forcing the viewer to cringe at the same time—and it exposes the acting genius of the late Heath Ledger.
9. Punch Drunk Love – 99 Cent Store
I just love the reference to the Andreas Gursky photo, and the film as a whole is very well shot too.
10. Children of Men – Last Battle
There are a number of technologically innovative scenes in Children of Men, but I was most impressed by the long tracking scene near the end in which the camera follows the protagonist through the war-torn city, in and out of buildings while gunshots blaze by and blood splatters everything including the camera.
11. Kill Bill Vol. 1 – The Bride vs the Crazy 88
One of my flaws is that I’ve only seen the first installment of the Kill Bill movies, and wasn’t even paying attention for most of it. However, this fight scene still sticks out to me as one of the more impressive fights I’ve seen in my lifetime. Though borderline gimmicky, Tarantino’s token over-the-top gore and excellent choreography were impressive enough to stick out when I started this list.
Honorable mention: Fantastic Mr. Fox – battle scene, American Psycho – exchanging business cards, Up – opening montage
By Sonja
At least those that I read and were written at an accessible (read: high school) reading level
His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman, last book published 2000,
It’s a trilogy, so I don’t count it as a series. Pullman, like most good sci-fi writers, pushes the boundaries. Instead of talking about space travel though, he talks about the end of religion and how we express our emotions and how much a family can hurt you. I’m surprised the fans of the Left Behind Series didn’t put more energy into banning this book.
Sailing Alone Around the Room, Billy Collins, 2001
I wish I would have read poetry like this when it came out my junior year in high school; maybe it wouldn’t have taken me so long to enjoy verse. His poems are written for older readers who get his views of death and solitude, but they’re still so read-able, that it makes enjoying a whole book of poetry plausible in a decade where far more people are writing poetry than reading poetry. He deserves the salary that Uncle Sam paid him for a year.
Breathing Underwater, Alex Flinn, 2002
When I first read this book, I thought it was a dated, feminized male character who becomes a case study for abusive relationships. Now I see those as good things. Flinn’s time in the justice system of Dade Co, Florida give this novel the backbone of authenticity to build into a clear snapshot of how slippery fairness and equality between an abused boy and an insecure girl can be. Now the fact that Nick pages Catlin simply tells of how timeless verbal abuse is, and how many ways it can be communicated.
Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi, 2003
Remember that song that came out right after September 11th from Allen Jackson and the chorus goes, “…I’m not sure I can tell you the difference between Iraq and Iran”? After Iran was listed as part of an “Axis of Evil,” Satrapi wrote this book to show the complexity of Iran as a country full of history, and yes, different from Iraq. She writes in comic book form (she doesn’t like the phrase “graphic novel”). This book did more for explaining Iran’s more recent history and current state to me than NPR did and certainly better than Toby Keith or Alan Jackson. Plus, I met her, and she’s hilarious.
Blue Like Jazz, Donald Miller, 2003
Some question his theology, others question his appropriateness. I recommend it as a re-introduction to Christianity.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon, 2003
The choices people on the spectrum of autism and aspergers make seem totally normal and logical in this book. The style lets you get to know the characters closely, if scientifically, even though the character in the book lets few other characters get to know him. Plus, the book successfully incorporates math.
I am the Messenger, Mark Zusak, 2005
Read this book. Stop whining. Go live the life you have, not the life you always wanted. Zusack also wrote The Book Thief, a novel about WWII Germany that’s narrated by Death (and you like him), which is notable in itself, but Messenger hits closer to home. After all, this is a book list about accessibility, and Death talking to you is less accessible than thinking your job sucks.
Freakenomics, Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner, 2005
Not teen angst, but written at practically at a high school reading level for the Americans that might like economics, except they still aren’t sure what happened with Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac. A favorite chapter turned into the book Gang Leader for a Day by Sudhir Venkatesh. (It’s not nearly as sensational as the title makes it out to be.)
Flight, Sherman Alexie, 2007
Most “best of” lists will include Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, and justly so. But you start out feeling sorry for the character in that story. In Flight, Alexie doesn’t let you pity this kid because he’s too smart and too dangerous. Alexie uses great pop culture/youth culture references without sounding like product placement, and he has excellent historical references without sounding like either your history books or someone with a vendetta against history books. Where else can you find an author who references the Indian Child Welfare Act and the White Stripes?
My Life As a Rhombus, Varian Johnson, 2008
This book should not be notable, it should be average. Both Johnson and the main character are African American, and while the characters are not whitewashed, they aren’t “on the wrong side of the statistics.” The books isn’t about gangs, drugs, or how tough the ghetto is. We already have Sharon Drapper, Walter Dean Myers, and seemingly a quarter of the graduates from the Teach for American program telling us that story. I’m excited for his next release in 2010, Saving Maddie. Here’s hoping the next decade of publishing delivers.
5 Notable Series
An extra bonus
A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
Notable in the sheer volume of things that could happen to one sibling group, and the unapologeticly obvious vocabulary building, Snicket wrote this decade’s “Boxcar Children.”
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
This book went viral in the best way, with mostly girls passing it around and skipping important things to finish it. The first one is the best, and truthfully deals with weight, sex, part-time jobs, and family and with the delicacy and humor that Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul–Tough Stuff only wishes it could do.
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
These books went viral in the worst way, with most girls passing them around and skipping important things like independence and interest in humans. Still, nobody gets this much press or this many hater websites without a real understanding of their audience and what they want to hear. See Also: Sarah Palin
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
If you didn’t read the books, you shouldn’t be reading this list, because apparently you won’t take anybody’s recommendations. Trust me, the movies will fail you if you expect to understand the next decade’s references back to these books. If you didn’t read the books, accio Remedial Reading.
The Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Perfect people thinking they’re awesome, but they’re not. Walls giving you what you ask for. Current technology looking archaic. Microchips being implanted into a teenager’s impressionable brains. This has all the makings of a sci-fi thriller, and it delivers a perfect distopia.
Reactionary Century 