1. Brian Wilson - SMiLE
The child of a life of hardship and toil, SMiLE, which was finally released in 2004 is an absolute masterpiece of pop, and arguably the best of the genre.
2. XTC - English Settlement
Sprawling and masterfully crafted, English Settlement is the only time XTC's signature formula ever truly worked. Not to mention the top songwriting present with Senses Working Overtime and Jason and the Argonauts. Suffice to say that XTC was doing most of what is present on Animal Collective's "Merriweather Post Pavilion" decades earlier.
3. Scott Walker - Scott 4
Forget his later work of the avante-gard and consider that the mysterious musical mastermind crafted perhaps the best pop record of the 60s. One can praise Scott's eclecticism to no end, but also note the gorgeous production and vocal deliveries here.
4. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
Animal Collective's pop record has been called the future of pop music. That may be a far-fetched claim, but that is not to negate how great this album is. MPP is a perfectly crafted mix of XTC complexity, Beach Boys vocal arrangements, and more than a touch of originality (of which the Maryland group has much). Brothersport is the jam of the decade.
5. The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin
1999 was a hopeful year. On the edge of a millenium, everybody wanted to know what the next thousand years would hold. The Flaming Lips' masterpiece "The Soft Bulletin", released that year, should have been the future of music. Shame it won't be.
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