oh man. it's too soon to say.

i picked the strokes because i played the shit out of that album. an extremely close second, radiohead: amnesiac. i think it's way underrated for a rh album. and i still love it.

Yeah, I definitely get where you're coming from here. For me and most of my friends, that album was a staple of late 2001/early 2002 that has gotten almost no play since then. And while it's certainly a good album, I'm surprised that so many people have such a lasting fondness for it. For me it just sounds like that particular time in my life, and that's about all I get out of it. There's not much depth there, and not a lot to bring me back other than wanting to reminisce.

i'm surprised at the strokes love too. i remember first hearing it in a virgin megastore -- sounded like good, straight-ahead rock'n'roll & nothing more.

The notion that there needs to be "something more" shows an elitist disdain for simplicity, which I'd take you to task for 'cept I know you're a prog fan. It's like criticizing Robert Johnson for being good, straight-ahead blues and nothing more. The "more" is there if you want it.











And I'll say it again - best album of 2001 = Ike Reilly - Salesmen & Racists

Well said as usual, Rads.

I take exception to this. I've never found anything remotely thrilling about the Strokes either...Is This It personally bores me to tears, although it's made enough of an impact for me to say it's probably a classic....and yes, I'm a prog fan, but I enjoy plenty of fairly straight ahead rock and roll artists too...like the Exploding Hearts, You Am I, etc.

I just find the Strokes boring, personally. Although lI saw them live before I ever heard their records (at the Empty Bottle no less) and they were much better live than they were on record.

Spade I'm calling on you to issue a self-moratorium on the phrase "bores me to tears"

once a week is enough, sir

And Rads, Salesman and Rascists is excellent but like At Dawn, it beats neither Is This It or The Southern Rock Opera.

Plus I'm having a hard time with it being a 2001 release since ive only had it for a year and a half or so.

Perhaps he cries a lot. And yawns.

fair enough

Huh?

Sorry Bilz....its true.

I actually knew the Cracker version of "Duty Free" first........

I think its much more similar to criticizing RL Burnside for being good straight-ahead blues and nothing more. Because Robert Johnson isn't good, he's great.

You make the "there's nothing wrong with simplicity" argument well but I think what you miss is that there are literally tens of thousands of bands that play "good, straight-ahead rock'n'roll" Is it elitist to say that doing so makes it harder to stand out in the crowd? I don't dislike the Strokes and I can enjoy listening to them, but there's not that much there to make me choose to listen to them over hundreds of other similar bands.

But the Strokes quite obviously do stand out in the crowd or we wouldn't be having this discussion.

It's my opinion that there's a certain amount of magic involved in making "good, straight-ahead" rock 'n' roll. The difference, in terms of composition, between Nirvana and, say, Bryan Adams is negligible - and yet they're somehow on different planets in terms of effect. The Strokes managed to have a similar effect - and I'm not talking about the mainstream "c'mon, let's all wear flannel now" sort of effect - I mean the effect that they dropped jaws with the same 3 chords that bored everybody when Bryan Adams strummed 'em.

must've been my mood at the time. i still like their stuff and look forward to their new stuff. (on my hd, just haven't listened yet.) maybe i was subject to the "outside hype machine" and expected more. don't know. but compared to those other releases (not "other") in the poll, i don't see it with an advantage.

guess i need anotha listen, eh? wouldn't mind a good ysi about now. always willing for another go-round.

and prog is for elitists! it's the old wave to the new wave!

I'm going with an a band with (to my knowledge & AMG) only one album, that is good fucking shit and just happened to stumble out of the closet in 2001.

Moods For Moderns :: Loud And Clear


Honorable Mentions:
Ike Reilly :: Salesmen and Racists
Ass Ponys :: Lohio
Beulah :: The Coast Is Never Clear
Ted Leo + The Pharmacists :: Tyranny of Distance
Rocket From The Crypt :: Group Sounds

So do the Wrens stand out in your mind then? Because I'm sure we'll be discussing them again with most of the board providing the same level of praise.

In my mind they do, but in your mind there's probably no magic. So its far from obvious to me.

I am going with Burning Brides Fall of the Plastic Empire becuase it was the best stright ahead rock cd of 2001 and Blood on the Highway is one of my favorite songs ever. I also like Bis' music for a stranger World and Cake's Comfort Eagle.

That's a really good album.

I listen to The Argument on a very regular basis, can't think of anything else from 2001 that I listen to as often, actually.

[quote="Elvis Fu"]I'm going with an a band with (to my knowledge & AMG) only one album, that is good fucking shit and just happened to stumble out of the closet in 2001.

Moods For Moderns :: Loud And Clear



Ive seen about 20 promo copies of this in local stores a few months back...had it for a while. never really loved it. eventually sold it.

The Wrens do stand out in my mind, but for completely different reasons than the ones we're discussing. :exaggerated winkie emoticon:

You bastard.

I was thrown more by the logic that implies something isn't released until you've acquired it. By extension, the Stones wouldn't have released anything before '78 or so.

Yeah, I figured thats what you meant----my original comment was a little tongue in cheek---I definitely consider Salesman a Top 5'er from that year, the others just feel like more like that year to me b/c its so relatively recent.