Mittwoch, 2. Dez 2009, 8:22

As I've mentioned before, I've been thinking about the music I liked in the 2000s, and now decided to introduce you to it alphabetically… So listen up, kids :) The artists beginning with A are indeed a motley crew, I mean, there's jazz(-ish), indie rock, 2-step, chillout… But they all are unforgettable, and that's all that counts.
I've published this entry on my blog, too, so if you're looking for MP3 links, you should head there.
I apologize in advance for not including Arcade Fire, I used to think of them as The Arcade Fire for the longest time. And all the artists beginning with The will be under T. A bit silly I suppose, but whatever.

Aimee Mann

It really is a coincidence that the very first artist I present as one of my favorites of the decade is also my very latest discovery – Aimee Mann. Yes, like the majority, I got hooked on her melodic and melancholic contribution to the soundtrack of Magnolia, which inspired me to search out more of her songs. Aimee‘s songs are just the thing fuck-ups like me need, depressingly uplifting combination of music and lyrics aiming straight to the hearts of lost, confused and good-for-nothing basketcases like me. „Baby there‘s something wrong with me“, she sings on the chorus of King of the Jailhouse; she asks for someone to save her „From the ranks of the freaks who suspect they could never love anyone“ on Save Me; and on Deathly she says she‘s „just a problem for you to solve“. For the true representation of what Aimee‘s songwriting is all about, see 31 Today from her latest album. It‘s quite straightforward, yet if you‘ve ever been in a situation where you thought you were supposed to do something with your life and failed, you will be touched. Oh and be sure to watch the video of that song, it‘s hilarious. Meanwhile, the lyrics to Pavlov‘s Bell are more cryptic, but Aimee‘s abilities shine here: this one is the proof that she has not only a stunning voice, but also a knack for making super-catchy melodies.

My pick: Pavlov's Bell

Air

I‘m not sure myself why one of my overall most listened songs on Last.fm is La Femme d'argent (as a sidenote, though, it came out not in this decade). I‘m not the biggest fan of instrumentals, chillout music and overall the style of these French electronic gods is not exactly my cup of tea. I guess that particular track struck me as having that magical spark… It‘s as if I get lost in a sonic adventure, and every sound flows so perfectly that all I want is listen to it again and again, like a sailor spellbound by sirene‘s song. Regardless, the greatest achievement Air earned in the 2000s is, undoubtedly, their soundtrack to the movie Virgin Suicides. The moment that sinister rhythm begins on Playground Love, you have to know you‘re in for something special. And if you‘ve seen the film, you can‘t help but think of those poor girls in the 70's, whose parents made them go through hell just because they were teenagers and wanted to be loved. So this song serves as a way to escape that reality: „Time‘s no matter, I‘m on fire, you‘re my playground love“. A brief moment of joy, you‘d say, yet it‘s heavily melancholic, thanks to wonderful instrumentation and the saxophone in particular. All in all, this one song has enough to make Air stand out as one of key artists of the 2000s.

My pick: Playground Love

Amy Winehouse

She may be a stubborn addict who doesn‘t want to go to rehab and fucks up in live performances, yet her Back To Black album is a milestone. Again, this is not exactly the type of music I prefer, but she clearly stands out in a mass of artists such as Duffy who gained success mostly due to that album. Jazz revival, 60‘s revival, BBC POP, call it what you want, it‘s quality music either way. The brutal honesty of the lyrics might seem disturbing, I mean, „It‘s got me addicted, does more than any dick did“? Funny, yet I feel sorry for her. It‘s as if she‘s the kind of hopeless fuck-up that Aimee Mann sings about. As for the key track, it‘s You Know I‘m No Good, I find it more funky and interesting than her smash-hit Rehab. As far as innovative artists of the noughties, Amy Winehouse is undoubtedly an important figure. But if she won‘t wise up (…yes, another reference ;D) and end up dead, she will be forgotten as a one-hit wonder. Unless, of course, the record label will succeed in Tupacizing her… which I can easily imagine happening.

My pick: You Know I'm No Good

Andrius Mamontovas

The last official album of Foje (except Best-ofs) was released in 1999 – the live record Vilnius-Kaunas-Klaipeda, which captured their very last performances. But the end of this legendary band allowed frontman Mamontovas to focus more on solo career (it started back in 1995), and it continued to blossom wonderfully in the 2000s. First came the sophisticated, mostly acoustic Visi Langai Ziuri I Dangu, then – under the moniker Cloudmaker – English-sung album, headlined with somewhat relaxing single No Reason Why. In 2002, however, things were shuffled up a bit by a more folksy, light-hearted approach – album O, Meile! offered new versions of folk classics and Andrius‘ own spin on the genre, fused with rock and pop, or, simply put, mamontovized. I didn‘t like it all, though lyrically tracks such as Ufonautai are just too fun to ignore. Next came Beribiam Danguje, another album that I found slightly too joyful and light as well. The true gems came late in the decade. Saldi. Juoda. Naktis went back to basics, to the clean, quiet, acoustic guitar strumming, which is absolutely stunning on tracks such as Marso Kanjonai. In 2008, a politically charged, angry album Geltona. Žalia. Raudona struck the right chords both literally and figuratively. Arguably, it is his loudest, angriest and the most energetic album yet, with guitars roaring unapologetically on most tracks, such as Mes Čia. It is a critical look at today‘s corrupt society – crooked politicians, dumbed down show bussiness, greedy youth, addicts, etc. Ironically, my favorite track on that album is the happiest – Tavo Svajonė, which is a superbly-crafted, catchy tune about good people, fairies, alchemists and things like that.

My pick: Marso Kanjonai

Arctic Monkeys

Back in 2005, I stumbled upon the album of their demos, Beneath the Boardwalk. Rugged voice, rugged guitars, rugged sound production, yes. But it was also unabashedly sincere, striking, simply different than anything I‘ve heard before, not to mention melodic, catchy as hell. And the lyrics, that was an entirely new world to me! British chavs with knackered Converse, mardy bums who don‘t see that he clearly cares, scummy pimps who‘d rob you if they could and girls who dance like robots from 1984… All those demos finally formed into one of the best albums of 2000s, cheekily named Whatever People Say I Am, That‘s What I‘m Not. Partly educational about the realities in British cities such as Sheffield, partly a rebellious fuck-off to bossy major record labels, it was all a great triumph, a success story which was unfortunately harmed by the media. I mean, if you‘re compared (not musically though) to the Beatles after your debut album, you might as well die, because you‘ll be remembered? Ridiculous. Sophomore effort Favourite Worst Nightmare was an evolution which wasn‘t met very enthusiastically (me included), though songs such as Teddy Picker and Fluorescent Adolescent are definitely worth mentioning. Now in 2009 comes Humbug, led by dark, difficult-to-warm-up-to Crying Lightning, which I now also consider one of the band‘s best singles. But I still haven‘t fully digested the album so I‘ll refrain from commenting on it further.

My pick: A Certain Romance

Honorable mentions

Artful Dodger

For a brief period at the juncture of two centuries, 2-step artists such as Artful Dodger enjoyed a lot of popularity. Some of you might still remember their collaborations with Craig David, such as Re-Rewind or Woman Trouble… But for me their most memorable track is Think About Me, very somber, sad, difficult to pigeonhole as belonging to a certain genre. I remember when back in 2001 this was dedicated to a DJ of a Lithuanian radio station, Kristijonas, who died prematurely, and it was one of his favorite songs. So I guess I began associating Think About Me with loss and death, even if the lyrics actually refer to a break-up. Either way, it‘s one of those special songs that are not easy to forget. Oh and it's ironic that Last.fm lists them as The Artful Dodger, complicating my list even further… Well let me just ignore that fact and pretend there's no The :)

My pick: Think About Me

Audioslave

It‘s difficult to explain why I put Audioslave in the section of „Honorable mentions“, as opposed to the actual list. I guess I always prefered Foo Fighters, similarly to how I prefer Pearl Jam to Soundgarden. Nevertheless, I still have a couple of favorites Chris Cornell put out this decade, and it‘d be a shame not to mention the incredible Show Me How To Live, or the somewhat fun Doesn‘t Remind Me… As far as alternative rock goes, Audioslave were essential to the genre, but I found their last album to be miserably bland, so their break-up in 2007 didn‘t make me sad.

My pick: Show Me How To Live

So that's it, hope you enjoyed reading. For MP3 links, videos and other crap you should go and visit my blog. Guess I'm fishing for popularity by copy-pasting here, well my excuse is that I want more people to discover good music. Yeah right…