jackhammer

They are doing a couple of anniversary dates and that is it as far as I know. I am seeing them in Birmingham (U.K).

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Crowe

84. Janis Joplin - Pearl (1971)
Someone had put this album on my iPod a long, long time ago... and I had never really listened to it until my freshman year at college, about 3 years ago. It was cold, really bone chilling cold in the city of Chicago and I had my 18 layers of clothes on and my iPod blaring as though it would help me to forget I was getting frostbite. All of a sudden in my giant headphones - a wail breaks out and at first I think that this is some... 80's hair metal singer that I wasn't familiar with and I look down and holy mother... it's Janis Joplin, the song; "Cry Baby". After the song finishes I go to the album and sit in a joint called Caribou Cafe to escape from the cold and listen to the entire thing drinking hot chocolate. A unique voice makes an artist for me. So it follows suit that I fell in love with Janis Joplin immediately. Me and Bobby McGee is on Pearl - her most famous song - but the album contains tons of raw emotion coming from the drug and alcohol soaked vocal cords of Janis before she finally left for the big party in the sky (or the bigger party in the ground).

Check out: Cry Baby, Trust Me, My Baby


83. Nirvana - In Utero (1993)
This is one of the first cds I ever bought for myself - and I had to settle for the K-Mart "clean" version (where instead of the song being called Rape Me on the back cover it was called Waif Me, lol). As a kid, one of my camp counselors was talking about how much better In Utero was than Nevermind - and he found out I had just gotten a CD player for Christmas and I had finally saved up enough allowance to go get a new CD. I think I wanted to get an Aerosmith album... but he inspired me to grab In Utero. At this time I was used to mostly hair metal, 50s and 60s stuff like Elvis and the Beach Boys and Hootie and the Blowfish. Imagine my surprise when I heard Nirvana in full for the very first time. I ended up shelfing In Utero for a few years because I didn't really like it to begin with. As I got older I began to appreciate a wider variety of music and was glad I kept this gem around. In Utero became the soundtrack of the summer after 6th grade and has never been too far away from my stereo (and has a permanent position in my car.. or did before I started using my iPod).

Check out: All Apologies, Heart Shaped Box, Milk It, Pennyroyal Tea


82. Matisyahu - Live at Stubb's (2005)
This is one of the few rap albums you'll find on my list. Matisyahu was introduced to me when I went off to college from the safe, sheltered, suburbs of St. Louis to a school full of pretentious art-school kids. The one good thing about these artsy kids though is that they have their fingers on the pulse of non-mainstream music... and they know everything about it (they know they know everything too, which is annoying). So when one of my new roommates heard I didn't like rap - he sat me down and popped in a burned copy of this... jamaican guy singing about God knows what. Except it wasn't a jamaican guy... it was Matisyahu... a hasidic jew. Imagine my surprise! We sat and listened to the album and my roommate explained the songs to me (which sucked, because he talked so much I couldn't hear the music). So I ripped the album onto my iPod and listened to it on the train that very same day... I was absolutely moved by the lyrical content and the island sounds of this... guy, Matisyahu. I found the album where most of this material came from and really ended up enjoying the live version better!

Check out: King Without a Crown, Heights, Close My Eyes


81. Devendra Banhart - Cripple Crow (2005)
This album and Live at Stubb's are really interchangeable. My introduction to Devendra came from the same guy in the same sit down. I really dig Devendra's crazy lyrics and his voice is awesome - it sets him apart from other folky artist in my opinion. I'm a big fan of making playlists and more often than not - half of Cripple Crow is on them (on the road trip playlists and the sort). Banhart's simplicity and his voice aching with freak-folk subtlety wins him a spot in the back 5th of the top 100. Make sure to listen to the exotic instruments in the background.. again very subtle. One of the big things that keeps this album out of the top 50 is it's leeengggth. Sometimes you are like... Come on, let's get around to finishing this thing... and just when it starts to lose points... it finishes nicely with Canela. Oh yeah, Devendra doesn't know it's not the 60's anymore... and it shows. And it's great.

Check out: Chinese Children, I Feel Just Like a Child (awesome lyrics), Canela, I Do Dig a Certain Girl

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pheurton

He proves they do make Jews like Jesus from time to time, instead of the fragile sort from the 20th Century. Good pick.

lucifer_sam

Excellent album. I find that I enjoy it more than Nevermind (probably because it's so overrated). Good choice!

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first.am

Crowe

80. Carl Orff - Carmina Burana (~1935)
"What's this? A neo-classical piece stuck into a list with predominately alternative rock albums from the 80s and 90s? What say you, Crowe?" As some of you old timers may know, I use to be very into the choral program in my pre-college schooling (where it was the "cool" thing to do). Carmina Burana was the first "Masterworks" piece I had ever done. As a Tenor I ( a voice part for those of you not in the know) I got to sing a bunch of really cool parts in this epic 59 minute piece. All of you have heard the opening track - even if you are not aware of it. O Fortuna is a haunting, powerful track that is used in a lot of advertisements nowadays. It is the theme song for the movie "Excalibur" if that helps at all. My personal favorite song from Carmina Burana is "Ecce Gratum"

Check out: ... as a classical album it works better as a whole, but... for the sake of continuity; O Fortuna, Ecce Gratum, Veni - Veni - Venias


79. Beastie Boys - Licensed to Ill (1986)
I almost put "Hello Nasty" here - Intergalactic was the song that got me into the Beastie Boys, but really it is the hits from Licensed to Ill that really kept the Beastie Boys around in my life. While the songs have never had impact on my personal life as much as some of these other albums so far have... I really, really have a lot of fun listening to it... and how can you blame me? Tracks like Brass Monkey, Paul Revere, She's Crafty.... Fight For Your Right for f's sake. Incredible.

Check out: Paul Revere, Girls, No Sleep Til Brooklyn


78. Tripping Daisy - Jesus Hits Like an Atom Bomb (1998)
With Sonic Bloom receiving some airplay in the late 90's, I always had Tripping Daisy's one major hit in my head as a kiddo going to school. It wouldn't be until years later watching some "I Love the 90's" thing on Vh1 that I would even remember Tripping Daisy. Using my internet powers, I went and downloaded Jesus Hits Like an Atom Bomb. Unlike most albums on my list - I almost never listen to this album and it's not because I don't like it... I mean, I like it a lot - I just always seem to forget about it. I call it the Tripping Daisy Phenomena and it's awful because whenever I hear it - I'm like "OHHHH yeeeahhhhh!" I'm sure you all have your own version of the "Holy hell I forgot about this!" noise. Mine manifests as the "oh yeaah". Singer Tom DeLaughter, Bassist Mark Pirro and old drummer Dryan Wakeland would go on to form the Polyphonic Spree and drummer for this album, <insert name here> would go on to drum for the Secret Machines

Check out: Sonic Bloom, Field Day Jitters, Tiny Men


77. Walt Mink - El Producto (1996)
I am a well known Pitchfork basher, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that they've lead me to some great music. The reviewers piss me off though with their pretentiousness. But whatever. I found Walt Mink with a coveted Pitchfork "10" score. Later I would find out that PF would blame this rating on a writer they fired. Walt Mink, if anything, is just good indie rock coming out of grunge era of the early 90s. There isn't really a weak track on the album - but there is nothing spectacular as it were. I got everyone at my old job hooked on this group - and every time I had a shift - I'd hear, "Crowe, did you bring your iPod... think we could put on some Minkage?" - really a great album to make Sub sandwiches to. I've read that they sound like a poor man's Matthew Sweet, which I can see - but don't necessarily agree with.

Check out: Stood Up, Settled, Sunshine M.

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Crowe

haha, I don't know what to make of this comment :O.

GravitySlips - which is your favorite album of Motorpsycho? You think Black Canvas is overrated?

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sleepy jack

Jesus I thought I was the only Sun Kil Moon fan on here, nice pick on all of them. Except Van Halen ;D

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15Steps

Red House Painters ftw

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Crowe

76. Hum - Downward is Heavenward (1997)
What a fantastic way of doing shoegaze Hum achieves on this album. Hum was one of those bands that should have been big... but... gave up? Broke up? Don't know for sure. They had one radio-hit with the song, "Stars", which is not on Downward is Heavenward - and after failing to make any headway with that gem... they disappeared into the Bermuda Triangle of great bands. Hum's distorted riffs and clever lyrics (usually about space) made them truly standout from their mid-late 90's peers. If the Smashing Pumpkins and The Catherine Wheel had a row late one night after getting smashed at a pub - Hum would be their beautiful, beautiful mistake. Make sure to give Hum a listen. I really want to put them higher. I see this placement as a future regret, but I think I am making the right choice.

Check out: Green To Me, Apollo, If You Are to Bloom (read lyrics when listening to this)


75. Big Black - Songs About F*cking (1987)
Auditory havoc. Roar. Festering Blister of Semen pus. All things that could describe this raunchy, loud, incredibly inventive album. Big Black's flagship album (arguably of course) was a great outlet for my anger somewhere in between 8th grade - 10th grade. Heard it from some stoner neighbor of a good friend of mine. The story of its existence in my life is rather unspectacular - typical, in the garage and it came on kind of thing. I tried to go buy it and couldn't (thanks Mom) when she saw the cover she nearly shat her stockings. So, like the good little child of the internet age is wont to do... I downloaded it and burnt it to a CD (as this was before iPods came along). The insane guitar sounds produced on this album is only part of the reason you should have listened to it by now... I mean, it sounds like the band took a portable recorder, strapped it to their guitars and did a concert in the 7th circle of Hell. The lyrics are not suitable for children. Please... do not try this at home.

Check out: L Dopa, Kitty Empire, He's a Whore


74. The Books - The Lemon of Pink (2003)
This is one of those albums that forced me to change my definition of "music". One has to sit back and appreciate it for the music it is making, rather than the music that it IS - if that makes any sense. Creative and simple sampling mixed in with relatively unadvanced electronic/folk stylings make this album a very lush... spacious sounding album that makes absolutely great background music. Think... Animal Collective on Ritalin.

Check out: Take Time, The Lemon of Pink I and II, Tokyo


73. The Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)
I'm not going to waste my breath defending the Monkeys from the backlash of that INSANE media hype they got when they released their debut album here. What I will say is; that the Monkeys delivered a beautifully fresh, garage rock revival album right when I needed something to quench my White Stripes fix. This was right after the Stripes released Get Behind Me Satan - and I had played that album until I knew it better than the sound of my mother's voice. I needed something similar, but different. And the Monkeys were there. Now, they were/are not the new Blur, Oasis, Pulp, or whatever that NME hoped they would be... but damn, this is just fun, dance music. Someone called this a "modern classic" on some other forum... and while I'm not sure you can say that yet without some time passing... I know that the Winter of 2006 was the season of the Arctic Monkey.

Check out: Mardy Bum, and all of the other singles that came off of this bad boy.

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jackhammer

The Books album sounds intriguing. I may have to give that a listen.

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