ILM posted this today:

01 Bloc Party - 'Silent Alarm'
02 Arcade Fire - 'Funeral'
03 Franz Ferdinand - 'You Can Have It So Much Better'
04 Antony & The Johnsons - 'I Am A Bird Now'
05 Kaiser Chiefs - 'Employment'
06 The White Stripes - 'Get Behind Me Satan
07 Sufjan Stevens - 'Illnios'
08 Kanye West -' Late Registration'
09 Babyshambles - 'Down In Albion'
10 Gorillaz - 'Demon Days'
11 The Cribs - 'The New Fellas'
12 Devendra Banhart - 'Cripple Crow'
13 The Rakes - 'Capture/Release'
14 Dungen - 'Ta Det Lungt'
15 Maximo Park - 'A Certain Trigger'
16 British Sea Power - 'Open Season'
17 The Magic Numbers - 'The Magic Numbers'
18 Art Brut - 'Bang, Bang Rock 'n' Roll'
19 Coldplay - 'X&Y'
20 Editors - 'The Back Room'
21 LCD Soundsystem - 'LCD Soundsystem'
22 Raveonettes - 'Pretty In Black'
23 Hard-Fi - 'Stars of CCTV'
24 Oasis - 'Don't Believe The Truth'
25 MIA - 'Arular'
26 Super Furry Animals - 'Love Kraft'
27 Kate Bush - 'Aerial'
28 Absentee - 'Donkey Stock'
29 Madonna - 'Confessions on A Dance Floor'
30 Doves - 'Some Cities'
31 Bright Eyes - 'I'm Wide Awake It's Morning'
32 Queens Of The Stone Age - 'Lullabies To Paralyze'
33 We Are Scientists - 'With Love and Squalor'
34 Rufus Wainwright - 'Want Two'
35 Elbow - 'Leaders Of The Free World'
36 The Bravery - 'The Bravery'
37 Circulus - 'Lick On The Tip Of An Envelope'
38 Autolux - 'Future Perfect'
39 Vitalic - 'OK Cowboy'
40 The Brakes - 'The Brakes'
41 Nine Black Alps - 'Everything Is'
42 Sigur Ros - 'Takk'
43 The Engineers- 'The Engineers'
44 Field Music - 'Field Music'
45 Shout Out Louds- 'Howl Howl Gaff Gaff'
46 The Duke Spirit- 'Cuts Across The Land'
47 Sleater-Kinney- 'The Woods
48 Ladytron - 'The Witching Hour'
49 Dead Meadow - 'Feathers'
50 Test Icicles - 'For Screening Purposes Only'

kaiser chiefs at number 5 is ridicules, but i can dig most of the list.

What was it, 1999, maybe 2000 when the NME had somewhat reliable taste? I remember them actually selling me on Grandaddy!

I just don't understand the Kaiser Chiefs. I gave that album like 10 chances and it never impressed me once. I would have definately put Maximo Park higher then them. Can somebody explain to me why they're thought of so highly? Please?

I know there's lots of hate for this album, I actually didn't know they were thought of so highly. Around the Ob, I've seen nothing but vitriol for Employment. I don't see it actually, personally it's kind of mystifying why so many people don't like them, yet like The Futureheads for instance. Overall, it's catchy, upbeat Brit-pop, kind of like The Jam/Buzzcocks at times. 'You Can Have It All' is one of my favourite tracks of the year, too.

I don't understand why so little love for Andrew Bird by the Brits. Didn't make the top 50 at Uncut either, but appears to have been released there early this year just like in the US. Too American? Seems to rate pretty highly in the US press, and rates highly with me too, the only one that really counts anyway

Love about half of the Bloc Party album, but really can't see it that near the top. That British Sea Power turned into a real grower for me so glad to see it fairly high. And anything Devendra Banhart does is worthy. Most of the rest just goes to show how diluted the music industry has become. Lots of filler on that list that no one will be listening to next year.

i really dislike the futureheads as well.

that kc album is the smelliest pile o' shit i've smelt in a loooonnng time.

Then I guess this type of music isn't yr cup o' tea.



Then you're just not listening to enough music. There are many, many more horrible albums other than the Kaiser Chiefs.

Bloc Party, Franz & the White Stripes in the top 6?

I like that Bloc Party album, but #1, best record of the year.

Question, I know Arcade Fire was just released this year over there, but Dungen - 'Ta Det Lungt'? That's almost 2 years old i think.

to have coldplay on that list is a joke. i wouldnt wipe my ass with x&y.

Really only two or three of those have a chance at my top 20, but to think that andrew bird, new pornos, mountain goats, crooked fingers are all missing from that list. There is some pretty soid tripe on that list.


It must be top 50 british records (or records by artists pretending to be british)

I swear Funeral is going to be on lists for like 10 more years. Yikes. Seriously though, I found some faults as well. Kaiser Chiefs, like the rest of you said, seems to be placed oddly high for what it is, and what it accomplished. I'm also surprised at how high the Gorillaz album is, and how low Sigur Ros is. With all the stuff you guys are rattling off, I'm going to be interested to see what you all have in yr top 20, considering some of you have pointed out many of the albums above won't be in the 20.

that kaiser chiefs album isn't that high, you guys. they were the favorites to win the mercury prize.

The fact that 50% of the Top Ten is North American seems to have passed you by then.

I'm not arguing that the list is a reprehensible pile of shit but......please spare me your "everyone's out to get us they even hate our bands paranoia".

As for Kaiser Chiefs, I think they have garnered so much antagonism for the following reason - not only is their music utterly dismal, the band themselves (particularily Ricky) are a bunch of unbelievably annoying cunt faced fuckers.

This is the sort of list I'd expect from NME (said non-judgementally). I don't know most of the bands and don't suspect I'd like most of 'em, but I'm not surprised NME does. The only one I'm surprised by is Sufjan Stevens in the top ten. I don't know whether its good or bad -- never heard it -- but its certainly not the style of music that I expect NME to embrace though so good for them on that album at least.

even so...#5? That only 4 records were better to NME?!

Now for the Songs list that has just been printed:

01 Hounds Of Love The Futureheads
02 Rebellion (Lies) The Arcade Fire
03 I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor The Arctic Monkeys
04 Gold Digger Kanye West
05 My Doorbell The White Stripes
06 Fuck Forever Babyshambles
07 Hope There's Someone Antony & The Johnsons
08 Somewhere Else Razorlight
09 Do You Want To Franz Ferdinand
10 Juicebox The Strokes
11 Fake Tales Of San Francisco The Arctic Monkeys
12 Hard To Beat Hard-Fi
13 Banquet Bloc Party
14 Neighbourhood #2 (Lakia) The Arcade Fire
15 La Ritournelle Sebastien Teller
16 DARE Gorillaz
17 Daft Punk Is Playing My House LCD Soundsystem
18 I Predict A Re-Release The Kaiser Chiefs
19 Please Stand Up British Sea Power
20 1 Thing Amerie
21 Blue Orchid The White Stripes
22 Oxygen Willy Mason
23 First Day Of My Life Bright Eyes
24 Work, Work, Work(Pub, Club, Sleep) The Rakes
25 Bored and Somewhat Detatched Snow White
26 Apply Some Pressure Maximo Park
27 22 Grand Job The Rakes
28 Munich Editors
29 Off The Record My Morning Jacket
30 Forever Lost The Magic Numbers
31 Lyla Oasis
32 Hey Scenesters! The Cribs
33 My Dead Wife Absentee
34 California Low
35 Pull Out Death From Above 1979
36 Hey Man (Now We're Really Living) The Eels
37 Strasbourg The Rakes
38 Love and Pain Clor
39 Hung Up Madonna
40 My Friend Dario Vitallic
41 Zoo Time Mystery Jets
42 Feel Good Inc Gorillaz
43 It's Not The Only Way To Feel Happy Field Music
44 Love In A Trashcan The Ravonettes
45 Lose Control Missy Elliot
46 Freakin' Out Graham Coxon
47 Oh My God! Kasier Chiefs
48 The Great Escape We Are Scientists
49 Lucky 6 Lupen Crook

edit 50. Fix You - Coldplay

Seems to be a Conspiracy brewing:

http://www.londonist.com/archives/2005/ ... _album.php

Today, NME publishes its annual Album Of The Year poll. For the benefit of our overseas readers, that's the New Musical Express, the UK's longest-running weekly music journal. The NME being the tastemakers that they are, this is a well-respected poll, with a coveted #1 spot. Well-respected, that is, until now...

It has come to our attention that this year, NME may have chosen to publish a doctored version of the aforementioned poll. According to our source, the list of albums printed in this week's publication does not reflect the opinions of its writers, as you might expect. Instead, we're told you'll find a heavily edited version which, we have on good faith, takes some commercial and political factors into consideration.

In the document we saw were the actual results of the poll, according to the votes of the NME staff, which we can now compare with the version that appears in today's NME.

We notice, for example, that Babyshambles appear at #9 in the published poll, despite fairing particularly badly in the 'genuine' poll. Dare we speculate that Mr. Doherty shifts too many papers for him to be outside the top 10? At least we can glean what NME's reviewers really think of Babyshambles album...

Keeping up with useless information like always but Pitchfork did this last year (supposedly) and I don’t remember this kind of national news.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/news/sto ... 37,00.html

NME defends album of year poll

Andrew Dickson
Friday December 2, 2005

The NME, one of the UK's most popular music magazines, tonight denied allegations that its top 50 albums of 2005 poll, published in tomorrow's edition, had been tampered with for commercial reasons.

The allegations, first published by the blog Londonist.com on Wednesday, suggested that an early version of the poll, which is compiled each year by the magazine's editors and writers, had been radically overhauled prior to publication. It was alleged that artists including Beck and Patrick Wolf had disappeared from the top 50 entirely, while others, among them high-profile names such as Babyshambles, Oasis and Kate Bush, had seen their ratings significantly boosted.

Another band, Arcade Fire - relative outsiders whose album Funeral was one of 2005's surprise critical successes - had, it was further alleged, been knocked off the coveted Best Album spot by Bloc Party's Silent Alarm, who were originally at number two in the poll.

Londonist claimed to have access to an early version of the poll that collated writers' responses before the editorial team intervened. This spreadsheet, which has been seen by Guardian Unlimited, appears to record numbers of votes, and includes a running order significantly different from the published version.

Connor McNicholas, NME's editor, firmly rejected accusations made by the blog that the magazine had caved in to commercial considerations when editing the list. "I strongly resent the insinuation that there is any kind of commercial pressure," he said. "These people are on a different planet."

Called upon to explain how the poll was compiled, however, Mr McNicholas said: "The mechanics are a reflection of NME editorial policy. It's a very fuzzy process. We take a vote in the office; it's quite informal."

A spokesman for the magazine later clarified the situation, saying: "All the writers are asked for their top 50 albums of the year, which is then collated and passed to the editors.

"This is probably an early working document, nothing more. There's nothing suspicious going on."

Following contact with NME's lawyers, Londonist has since taken down the story. Speaking soon afterwards, its editor, Rob Hinchcliffe, said: "We got this list in good faith and we think it raises some interesting questions. We've got no vendetta against the NME. This list matters to a lot of people, and that's the only reason we've questioned it."

"If the NME is saying what we've claimed isn't true, all we ask is that they're transparent about the process."

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005

you've gotta be kidding me.

I've only heard these:

i've heard:



and have "09 Babyshambles - 'Down In Albion'" on my machine, but haven't heard it.

i read numerous thrashing reviews of kaiser, so i've avoided it.

kaiser chiefs - modern way is one of my favorite tracks of the year....