ILM Top 100 2000-2004: ALBUMS

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I think both albums are totally worthy of #1.

The Good Dr. Bill (Andrew Unterberger), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:43 (twenty-one years ago)

It's kind of understandable that Kid A would do well in this list, as it really works as an album in the age of the track (although I am now bitterly regretting placing it at all). As Jess said over on the other thread, though - I can't understand the love for Radiohead tracks. Whereas with Discovery, I (shame) never listen to the whole album at all. I just play the singles over and over.

Jamie T Smith (Jamie T Smith), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:43 (twenty-one years ago)

i very very rarely listen to all of either album

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:45 (twenty-one years ago)

i'm guessing if stankonia had been nominated it've taken this thing

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:45 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't think it works as an album, though (Kid A this is) - so often when I tried to listen to it I got lulled by the ambient one and then thought ah, fuck it, I want something pretty every time the harsher stuff came back in.

I can understand people respecting it but liking it? Eh. LOVING it? Double eh.

Tom (Groke), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:46 (twenty-one years ago)

not sure i ever made it through kid a straight through

artiste (artiste), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:46 (twenty-one years ago)

wait. why wasn't it or "is this it" nominated?? did they come out in 1999? if not, that seems so odd. i don't understand this poll.

amateur!!st, Friday, 27 August 2004 15:46 (twenty-one years ago)

_Is This it_ wasn't nominated because _It Is Shit_.

(I SLAY ME)

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:47 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't often make it to the end of Discovery either but that's cos I feel happy and delighted with the world by the end of Something About Us!

I do take Jamie's point though, I'm not an 'albums person' and maybe thats why I put Discovery as my #1.

Tom (Groke), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:48 (twenty-one years ago)

i hate to say it but not enough brits voted

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:48 (twenty-one years ago)

Kid A is interesting in theory, tedious in actuality. Some people would no doubt say exactly the same about Discovery. Some people will say it about BOTH!
I am some people.
Actually, "Discovery" isn't even interesting in theory, so never mind that.

Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:48 (twenty-one years ago)

Look, at Glastonbury 2003 I had to fucking stand for about an hour watching those tedious twats, having the most fucking miserable time of my life waiting to discover that all my friends were thinking exactly the same thing and that we could go somewhere else and actually enjoy ourselves. We did and it was great. How can the best fucking album of the decade come from the same band that put us through that? Jesus Christ, I hate Radiohead.

Alba (Alba), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:48 (twenty-one years ago)

Alba smells like poo.

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:49 (twenty-one years ago)

_Is This it_ wasn't nominated because _It Is Shit_.
(I SLAY ME)

-- VengaDan Perry (djperr...), August 27th, 2004.

hahawhatever but anyway a lot of people here and everywhere like it a lot. so i'm surprised it wasn't even an option. as with "stankonia."

so no outkast albums in the top 100 then?

amateur!!st, Friday, 27 August 2004 15:50 (twenty-one years ago)

(I would not be so down on _Discovery_ if I didn't think that "Music Sounds Better Than You" encapsulates the vibe of the album in one song.)

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:51 (twenty-one years ago)

(er, "Than" = "With" DAMN YOU ID)

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:51 (twenty-one years ago)

This is the beauty of the nomination process I think, it reminds me of when big teams don't qualify for the World Cup, it allows plucky minnows their chance to shine (step forward, uh, LCD Soundsystem)

xpost "Music Sounds Better Than You" is a great lost title for someone.

Tom (Groke), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:52 (twenty-one years ago)

no - everyone had a chance to nominate something and somehow noone got around to nominating any strokes or outkast albums. and the thing is i'm pretty sure both would've gotten the highest ranking of their genre.

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:52 (twenty-one years ago)

'Please Let Me Wonder' encapsulates the whole vibe of Pet Sounds in one song. Who cares?

Alba (Alba), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:53 (twenty-one years ago)

So is Interpol at no.9 the same as having something like Public enemy at no.9 in the all time top 10? A token indie rock record.

Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:54 (twenty-one years ago)

rockist scientist why are you playing such a curmudgeon caricature on this thread? ease up.

Do you feel I'm usurping your persona?

Rockist_Scientist (rockist_scientist), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:54 (twenty-one years ago)

Except that Kid A is gonna be 1 or 2, Julio.

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:54 (twenty-one years ago)

i don't really think 'music sounds better with glue' encapsulates discovery at all, no guitar solo for one.

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:55 (twenty-one years ago)

Alba, in this particular case, I do.

They released a fucking blinder of a tune under a different name, then went on to record multiple infeior versions of it and released it under the Daft Punk moniker and people went batshit insane over it and I never really understood why.

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:55 (twenty-one years ago)

Kid A (musically speaking) is hardly token indie rock.

The Good Dr. Bill (Andrew Unterberger), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:55 (twenty-one years ago)

("vibe" != "instrumentation" but anyway)

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:56 (twenty-one years ago)

x post

Er, this is embarrassing (in a persistent lurker defends Radiohead even though I didn't vote for it that high, honest kind of way) but...

The album itself takes you on the ol' personal>political journey that Tommy took. Quietude and withdrawal from the world ('I'm not here') to a kind of wake up call ('This is really happening'). The ambient one sits bang in the middle while they think about it all. Kind of symmetry to it all. (The National Anthem should have come in the second half, though.) Anyway, while not being a *fan*, by any means, it is one of the very few 00s records that I actually listen to the whole thing every time I listen to it.

Jamie T Smith (Jamie T Smith), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:56 (twenty-one years ago)

somehow noone got around to nominating any strokes or outkast albums.
As I mentioned upthread (or maybe it was on the other one), this "randomness" in the nomination process is certainly the most glaring weakness in this poll.
(xposts)

Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:56 (twenty-one years ago)

I somehow wonder if there might not have been 20 or so albums that Stevem could've thrown in as "automatic qualifiers" -- maybe, like, the top 5 P&J finishers from each year? And then we'd nominate the rest.

jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:56 (twenty-one years ago)

'Music Sounds Better With You' is kind of annoying, mostly. Mind you, so is 'One More Time', but I like most of the rest of Discovery a whole lot more than Stardust.

Alba (Alba), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:57 (twenty-one years ago)

isn't there more electronics on kid A tho'? (I haven't heard either).

but ok, ilm was nearly there.

Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:58 (twenty-one years ago)

rockist scientist why are you playing such a curmudgeon caricature on this thread? ease up.
Do you feel I'm usurping your persona?

-- Rockist_Scientist (phatw...), August 27th, 2004.

er, i don't recall posting 100 times to this or any other thread with variations on "i've never heard that one"/"i heard that one once in a friend's car, i didn't like it"/"i can't bring myself to care about this"/etc. i dunno, it reminds me a bit of ned's popping up on springsteen/strokes/etc. threasd to offer 1800 chipper variations on "meh."

amateur!!st, Friday, 27 August 2004 15:58 (twenty-one years ago)

i think the "randomness" has turned out to be it's saving grace!

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:58 (twenty-one years ago)

Weirdly I bought the Stardust record when it first appeared and didn't like it. In fact I've never much liked it. It's odd because I can see exactly what Dan's saying, for me they tweaked the formula in some indefinable way and went from pfft to perfection.

I totally disagree about the nominations process, lets have SOME room for quirk for fucks sake.

Tom (Groke), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Jaymc, that sort of idea was bandied about on the nominations thread, but nobody showed much enthusiasm for it.

Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Friday, 27 August 2004 15:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Spare us nominations for the 90s poll!!!!

Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:00 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't even like Homework that much to be honest.

Do I have to hand in my Daft Club card now?

Tom (Groke), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:00 (twenty-one years ago)

poor outkast and strokes now these overlooked classics will never achieve the critical recognition they deserve!!!

artiste (artiste), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:01 (twenty-one years ago)

i own 35 of the records on the list. that's more than i thought i would have for some reason. i will go buy the rest of them tomorrow. and if it is kid a coming up next then make that 36.

scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:01 (twenty-one years ago)

ooh, my last post was post 666, i'm gonna post again real quick so that i don't die.

scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Stevem, can you hurry up and finish the thing off before we all hate each other too much?

Alba (Alba), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:03 (twenty-one years ago)

bring on the hate

(homework is def rub really)

Jaunty Alan (Alan), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:04 (twenty-one years ago)

OK, the "randomness" does lead to some intruiging placings (i.e. stuff other than the "standards" throughout the list), but if you're doing that at the expense of representing people's true faves (there are some huge, huge omissions here), then it takes away from the defined intention of the list -- to pick the best songs/albums of the half-decade.

Obviously, there's a balance that should be struck somehow (not like I have any bright ideas right now on how to do it better if there is a next time, but still).

(xposts)

Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, I want to start cooking my dinner...

Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Artiste does raise the question of what purpose lists like this are supposed to serve. Is it supposed to mark an accurate reflection of what you like, or is it supposed to help spotlight albums that haven't gotten enough recognition? I guess I always assume it's the former, and then I read about Roger Ebert putting something on his top 10 list (I forget what it was) because he knew nobody else was going to and he wanted to give it some attention. That's probably why so many people voted "strategically," too; I just never think in those terms, I was so busy trying to come up with an accurate reflection of my own favorites.

jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:05 (twenty-one years ago)

i don't know - these lists never actually mean anything so i think there's some potential to have some fun in acknowledging they don't mean anything and playing with that

cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:07 (twenty-one years ago)

but if you're doing that at the expense of representing people's true faves

Well if a record isn't a single person's #1 fave then I don't think people can be begrudge its non-appearance too much. You all had the chance to nominate them folks!

Alba (Alba), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:07 (twenty-one years ago)

No. 2

Points: 1467
No. of votes: 55
No. of #1 votes: 10

Artist: DAFT PUNK
Title: DISCOVERY
Label: Virgin
Year: 2001

http://base58.com/ilx/ilm/top100/20002004/albums/discovery.jpg

This record means a lot to me. My strongest memory of it is linked to
this board, oddly enough. It was summer 2001, the big rooftop party at
Suzy's block of flats where London ILX really got going. It was a
fantastic day. As the afternoon lazed on and we all got drunk we
decided to go and put Daft Punk on the stereo - about half of us
danced around like wallies and sung "One More Time" as loudly as we
could. Every time I play that song it reminds me not to give up on
pop, people, stuff. Bad times are cyclical: the beat will come back,
the dance will go on. That sounds corny - well, the song sounds corny.
But I honestly believe it, and I love Daft Punk for catching that
feeling.

There are lots of rational reasons to like Discovery. It is elegant.
It is playful. It is a sketchbook of most of the possibilities
remaining to house music (my original draft expanded at some boring
length on this). It is full of noises you knew were beautiful and
noises you didn't know were beautiful. It has the best love song of
the decade on it (and "Something About Us" is pretty fucking amazing
too). Thomas and Guy-Manuel look fantastic in their robot suits. Also
I'd be lying if I didn't admit I like how they baffle and even annoy
some people. But the main thing I love about Discovery is its
optimism, its love of life in all its bathetic, glorious, cheesy,
beautiful diversity.

(In the context of this list I am hugely tempted to contrast that
optimism with - well, you can probably guess, and do it yourself.)

I think you either hear that optimism in Daft Punk or you don't. If
you don't, you probably hear it somewhere else. People listen to music
- and sorry if this bit gets embarrassing - to make their lives
better. People talk about that music, discuss it and share it to make
each others' lives better. And so here we are. I have not lived up to
this philosophy that much on ILM. ILM in general has not lived up to
that philosophy much. But it's done a better job than almost anywhere
else I can think of on the Internet. What I'm trying to say is
thankyou Daft Punk, and thankyou ILM, and even if sometimes I'd
happily see this place deleted I think in ten years time I'll be
really proud of having started it. Now go and listen to this record
again you fuckers. Tom Ewing

Recommended tracks: Digital Love, One More Time, Harder Better Faster Stronger, Something About Us


No. 1

Points: 1619
No. of votes: 55
No. of #1 votes: 10

Artist: RADIOHEAD
Title: KID A
Label: Parlophone
Year: 2000

http://base58.com/ilx/ilm/top100/20002004/albums/kida.jpg

Recommended tracks: Idioteque, Everything In it's Right Place, Optimistic, Morning Bell

The margin! Misery beats fun! There's enough you can say about the result and what it says about ILM. I will leave that up to you What about the album though....?

Kid A made it safe for the indie kids to actually think about how music is constructed and how it is \"art\" without being too wank about it all. Mattson Carlhew

I have a feeling I\'m not alone in putting Radiohead at the top of the list. What else could (almost) everyone agree on from the past 4 years? Radiohead practically gets the crown by default, simply because nothing else remotely iconic was released. Remember all the press attention and word of mouth about this album? I remember when it came out I lived with a kid who had voted for Bush, and Radiohead was virtually the only thing we had in common. We drove to the next town to get our copies at midnight, and listened to the whole thing as soon as we got back. Our respective reactions were irrelevant--what matters is that no other release has mattered that much since then. If KID A had come out in 1991, would it have been overshadowed? Probably, but who knows. It doesn\'t matter. What works in the music worlds makes as little sense as what works in politics. Back when the biggest threat to the world seemed to be boy bands, Radiohead instilled the kind of hope in us white college kids that John Kerry wishes he could instill now. Richard Killiam

the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:07 (twenty-one years ago)

"It's just slash your wrists music, isn't it?"

Actually, yes.

Alba (Alba), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:08 (twenty-one years ago)

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 27 August 2004 16:09 (twenty-one years ago)


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