BoD: Albums [Top 10]

The aughts brought us all sorts of crazy stuff in music. From emo to iTunes to the death of the music video, things are much different now from when a lot of people still bought KoRn records. For our top 50 albums of the aughts, our diverse group of panelists tried to include as many different genres as possible. The top 10, counting down:

10. Mastodon, “Leviathan”: This album brought metal back into the mainstream by both predicting the direction metal was heading in and drawing inspiration from classic metal bands like Thin Lizzy and Black Sabbath. The raw production and incredible mixture of heavy metal and Yes-style prog rock laid the groundwork for Mastodon’s later crossover success, but it was “Leviathan” that paved the way for the next wave of metal bands.

9. Death Cab For Cutie, “Transatlanticism”: Death Cab’s lush, expansive “Transatlanticism” is a flowing 44 minutes of indie-pop goodness. Featuring two of the decade’s most memorable tracks – the title track and “A Lack of Color” – this one catapulted Death Cab into the mainstream, and we’re all better for it.

8. Sufjan Stevens, “Illinois”: Unlike other albums on this list, there is something about “Illinois” that doesn’t date it. Stevens freed himself to create an album that feels open, wandering and transcendent of conventional ties, yet also has the precision only found in the most deliberative of songwriters. It’s a truly beautiful work of history, wordplay and composition, deserving of more than one dedicated listening.

7. Modest Mouse, “The Moon & Antarctica”: They started off small, but with the delightfully mysterious “The Moon & Antarctica” in 2000, Modest Mouse came one step closer to solidifying its position as indie rock’s chosen one, the little band that could (and did) manage full-blown crossover success for the genre. Spectacularly eerie and equally intense, the record is a vast, murky landscape of hollow sounds that echo with vibes of both anxious seclusion and peaceful solitude.

6. Bright Eyes, “I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning”: Conor Oberst has had one hell of a decade, and this is his peak under the Bright Eyes moniker. Featuring a scathing commentary of America on some tracks and soundtrack-baiting melodies on others, “Wide Awake” is simply one of the most enjoyable listens of the decade.

5. OutKast, “Stankonia”: The duo of Andre 3000 and Big Boi blew up the music scene with “B.O.B.,” one of the best songs of the decade as well. Their music was diverse, slanging funky lyrics over all kinds of beats from heavy guitar riffs to samba music. Off the wall, yes, but every track was terribly catchy and the interludes between some tracks made the album a more cohesive work.

4. Arcade Fire, “Funeral”: Arcade Fire’s 2004 debut epitomized arena-ready indie rock for the 2000s. Not bad for a band with a penchant for accordion flourishes. Win Butler’s lyrics tackle life, death and the hereafter as the band spins tuneful, memorable hooks that always succeed in genre-hopping without feeling gimmicky.

3. Wilco, “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot”: After spanning countless genres, Wilco peaked in 2002 with its most ambitious release, a meticulously crafted album with a brand of explorative Americana never before touched by anyone. In the remarkably cohesive “Yankee,” bandleader Jeff Tweedy re-examines ordinary living through catchy and hopeful melodies that lie beneath a shadow of sonic fog, with songs that achieve chaos at times and anesthesia at others.

2. Radiohead, “Kid A”: If there was ever an album that sounded perfect for the era, there’s no question that Radiohead would be the band to make it. They call the shots before the rest of us have the faintest idea where they’re going, and “Kid A” epitomizes the sentiment of being ahead of its time.

1. Jay-Z, “The Blueprint”: The concept behind “The Blueprint” was straightforward: to create a template for how to succeed in the rap game. That guide has gone on to become Jay-Z’s defining work and perhaps hip-hop’s greatest masterpiece. Combining smoother, catchier beats with his never-ending fountain of lyrical excellence, Hova boldly ascended the throne as the 21st century’s greatest MC and refused to relent.