#3 Halcyon Digest, Deerhunter
Deerhunter has been around for a while, but it wasn't until this little beauty that they created something amazing. Microcastle was good, and while it was experimental enough to warrant conversation, it was not consistent enough to warrant ridiculous praise. All that has changed with Halcyon Digest, as the whole thing shimmers with amazing atmosphere and melody, and hence why Halcyon Digest, as of yet, is the best thing they've ever done. And why everybody is giving it ridiculous amounts of praise, because it's a band fulfilling their amazing potential.
Earthquake: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijurnaMqLxg
#2 My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West
I do not like Kanye West. I'm just going to come out and say it up front just to avoid any confusion. I think he's a prideful, supremacist, arrogant and extremely rude guy. Hence why there was a blatant absence of any sort of nod on my 00's list (albeit he probably deserved one, Late Registration is one of the better rap albums). But I cannot deny that this is not just one of the best rap albums ever made, but it could quite possibly be THE best rap album ever made. This isn't your typical hip/hop album, consisting of near rhymes, repeats of the same line over and over again, Dr. Dre esque beats, and obnoxious references to their fake gangster life or how rich and amazing they are. This is something else entirely. Kanye took rap and made it operatic. Consider this the Night at the Opera of hip/hop. Or maybe even the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. With flat out jaw dropping tracks like "Monster" (with Nicki Minaj blowing away the competition with her verse, and the competition is Jay Z), "Runaway", and perhaps the greatest rap song of all time, "Power". And how in the world he produces something like this is beyond me. Is Kanye a jerk? Yes. But is he a freaking genius? Oh yes.
Monster: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXy-6wV5cOQ
#1 This is Happening, LCD Soundsystem
And at the polar opposite end of the spectrum of Kanye West, sits one of my all time favorite lyricists and musicians, James Murphy. Here's a humble, down to earth, extremely talented guy who wouldn't tell you that, guy who's just out to make amazing music. Well, he succeeds incredibly with This is Happening. I believe this to be LCD Soundsystem's magnum opus. Their masterpiece. Of their three albums, the self-titled debut was the worst, although extremely promising, with great songs like "Daft Punk is Playing at my House" and "Losing My Edge". Sound of Silver, which was an amazing improvement from their debut, was an amazing album in it's own right, including the song "All My Friends", which, as you all know, I praise and will continue to praise as one of the greatest songs of all time, and simply the best anybody had to offer of the last ten years. But after that comes This is Happening, which is hands down Murphy's most emotional album, and in turn, best. He promised after Sound of Silver that he was putting together the best one yet, and he certainly delivered. And it's so sad to think that this is probably going to be the last LCD Soundsystem album ever. But what a way to end huh? I couldn't have asked for anything more than the very best album of the year.
All I Want: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLPeQ9U_f-0
Songs:
#5 Slow Motion - Panda Bear (so excited for next album)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn7pQMXQ0-8
#4 White Sky - Vampire Weekend (#4 best album of the year, in case you were curious)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhdqfX44zUM
#3 Runaway - Kanye West
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRzHib-2E28
#2 Power - Kanye West
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=354DRrfhUhI
#1 I Can Change - LCD Soundsystem
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW8FKkVnqng
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