My discoveries per year

[dihansse]

These are the two albums of the year 2000 I listened to:

First an album I already own/know:

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Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia by The Dandy Warhols
I suppose their best album with the opener Godless as the highlight. It also contains a few more than satisfying singles like Bohemian Like You which is more than enough to balance some of the weaker points like Horse Pills or Sleep. All in all a good album which moves up from the 63rd to the 27th rank.

And an album from my wishlist:

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Golden Lies by Meat Puppets
With another proof that this band could be great in all eras with here another new lineup with the band and although the sound of the band is much harder, this still sounds totally Meat Puppets of course for a big part because of the unique voice of Curt Kirkwood. Lamp and Endless Wave are true highlights and the only thing preventing this record to be really great are some tracks where the band feels they should throw in some raps. But overall again a good MP album which immediately enters at the 21st rank of the year 2000.

[dihansse]

These are two albums of 2001 I listened to with not a lot of success:

First an album I already own/know:

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Constantines by Constantines
TBH I don't know why I own 3 albums of The Constantines in my collection because I don't really like them. I don't know exactly why but somehow they don't touch me (any more) and this certainly also goes for this particular album. Young Offenders and Steal This Sound are OK but otherwise I think there is enough reason to evacuate this album from my top album list of 2001.

And an album on my wishlist:

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The Big Picture by Cotton Mather
I like Kontiki and in a way I don't dislike this album either but as with The Constantines there is not enough to keep my attention going. Panama Slides and Marathon Man are ok but otherwise... not for my 2001 top chart.

[dihansse]

These are the two albums of 2002 I listened to:

First an album I already own/know:

Maladroit by Weezer
I sometimes wonder if Weezer shouldn't have stopped making albums after The Blue Album and this one doesn't do a lot to disprove that. There's only two tracks which are OK: Slob and Love Explosion and the rest is just so-so. So I have doubted a long time if I should keep this album in my top chart but finally decided to keep it in and it remains at the 53rd rank.

Then an album from my wishlist:

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Devil's Workshop by Frank Black And The Catholics
Frank Black & The Catholics released two albums and this seems to be the shortest and most direct of the two and I fairly like it. Of course it's not The Pixies or even his first solo-albums but there is already a version-with-lyrics of his early Velvety of which the instrumental version appeared on a B-side of the Dig For Fire single. There's otherwise not really surprising songs but overall this is an enjoyable album and good for the 26th rank of the year.

[dihansse]

These are the 2 albums of 2003 I listened to:

First an album I already own/know:

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Shootenanny! by Eels
A better Eels album than I gave it credit for with of course Rock Hard Times as the key track. E is still his miserable self but always with a bit of a wink and this makes his music less miserable. Not everything is great but still a nice addition to the legacy and the album goes from the 64th to 43rd rank.

And an album from my wishlist digging further in the Tindersticks legacy:

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Waiting For The Moon by Tindersticks
What can I say, they deliver great after great album without compromising on their sound. No real highlights but consistent and immediately entering at the 37th rank.

Looking to what I've listened to up to now: this is indeed a very mellow round.

[dihansse]

These are the two albums of 2004 I listened to:

First an album I already own/know:

The Dirty South by Drive-By Truckers
It was about time I relistened to this album because it got a bit hidden at the back of my 2004 top chart and of course that's completely undeserved. They really have their own place in their own take of southern rock and this album is certainly one of their best of course proven by two of their best: The Day John Henry Died and Carl Perkins' Cadillac. But you know what: The Buford Stick, Never Gonna Change and Lookout Mountain are even beter. So this album goes from the 66th to the 28th rank.

And an album from my wishlist:

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Whiskey Tango Ghosts by Tanya Donelly
I'll start by confessing that I love Tanya Donelly as a singer and member of all the bands she was in: Throwing Muses, Breeders and especially Belly where she was the centerpiece. And her voice also shines on this solo album. But sorry, the songs are not really there with maybe only My Life As The Ghost as the exception. So it's with a bit of pain in my heart that I decided not to include this album in my top chart of 2004.

[dihansse]

These are the two albums of 2005 I listened to:

First an album I already own/know:

The Loon by Tapes 'n Tapes
A lot of tracks sound like coming from bands like Pavement, Pixies or Modest Mouse. But I must admit I like this album better than when I first heard it because it contains some damn good songs so it goes from the 76th to the 19th rank.

Then an album from my wishlist:

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Greg Dulli's Amber Headlights by Greg Dulli
Many describe this solo album of Greg Dulli as not so good mainly because the songs sound like he's done them before. But they are still good songs and for me there is enough variety to like it. So this album enters at the 30th rank.

[dihansse]

Two albums of 2006 I listened to:

An album I already know/own:

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Songs And Other Things by Tom Verlaine
The importance of Tom Verlaine and the role he played in Television can't be over-estimated but this album is a bit of a letdown: his singing and inventive guitar playing is still present but the songs suck a bit and the album is only saved by that one fantastic track The Day On You. But it still moves forward from the 60th to the 43rd rank because Tom Verlaine... well remains Tom Verlaine.

and an album from my wishlist:

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Ticket Crystals by Bardo Pond
The album of the comeback of the flute. Tbh the flute doesn't really play an important role, something that can't be said for the ever droning sound of the guitars which are omni-present as on most Bardo Pond albums. It would be easy to discard this album as boring but somehow I'm mesmerised by the whole sound, just listen to the Beatles cover Cry Baby Cry which starts fairly normal but then pretty much derails. Sometimes the droning goes a bit too far like on the 14 minute long fcii but on most track they certainly reach their goals. I won't say this is the best album I ever heard but still a good addition for my 2006 year chart and entering at the 38th rank.

[dihansse]

And two albums of 2007 (or is it 2014?):

First and album I already know/own:

Shotter's Nation by Babyshambles
In fact a real good album by Pete Doherty just because of the fact that his somewhat shaky voice fit the songs in a very good way. The album moves up from the 51st to the 21st rank.

And an album from my wishlist:

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Smack Dab by Smack Dab
This was a bit weird: something from my wishlist I had never heard of. But then I heard that Steve Wynn was the singer and then realised I heard the songs before and than realised on what album:

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Sketches In Spain by Steve Wynn
an album already in my 2014 top chart but is in fact a compilation of the former and Memento by Australian Blonde which both feature Steve Wynn and Paco Loco, a Spanish musician and producer. The first album is very good and has one of the best Steve Wynn tracks Lavender Foam. The second has three ok songs at the beginning while the rest don't really feel like real songs. So a decision to make and the final decision was to discard the two individual albums and just maintain Sketches Of Spain in my top chart of 2014 and there it goes from the 26th to the 16th rank.

[dihansse]

These are the two albums of 2008 I listened to:

Með Suð Í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust by Sigur Rós
Sigur Ros at their most orchestral and they do a good job at this; for me one of the most consistent albums of their legacy where especially Ara Batur stands out. It goes from the 68th to the 36th rank of my year chart.

And an album from my wishlist and another one of Tindersticks:

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The Hungry Saw by Tindersticks
I suppose we all know the feeling: you've enjoyed the first albums of a band but after a while you think: I think I've heard enough and don't bother to listen to the next albums. Tindersticks must be the quintessential example of this and what a mistake that was. Every single album after their first two are equally fantastic and so is this one. It's not that they change their sound with every album because each and everyone of them sounds very Tindersticks: the deep voice of Stuart Staples, the addition of additional instruments like cello, violins, piano etc and of course the slow sometimes even lethargic dragging on of the songs. But you know what: that last thing is in essence the quality of this band and this album. And tbh the first thing is about the most important: the voice of Stuart Staples is missing on three of the tracks here and those are for that reason dragging the average score of the album down. But again a very special album which enters my year chart at the 33rd rank.

[Repo]