i voted spoon. les savy fav had to be there tho.

Is Sonic Youth still relevant? I actually considered them, but I dunno...I guess I'm guilty of ignoring their last couple albums.

I had LSF in my poll originally. Left them off b/c their albums don't do a lot for me.

Best live band. Period.

Feel like justifying this statement, counselor?

Sorry, Elliot Smith - HE DEAD!

Who else would you have in there, and who would you replace?

I never got around to picking up their last album, but I think Murray Street was a really strong album.

You know there are two other threads on this topic...

I agree with you on Murray St., btw. Great album. I thought Sonic Nurse was kinda dull, but you can never really write off SY.

The greatest American band still working is Sonic Youth.

The best American band working now is open to debate.

Kings of Leon, Ike Reilly, and Marah -- I mean, I like Ike, but none of these guys bring much to the table other than enthusiastically retreading well-worn ground. Compare with Spoon, on the other hand, who despite having a consistent sound across albums and being well grounded in rock and/or roll tradition, have blazed new trails and constantly redefined themselves. Same with Wilco. The obvious band that isn't on this list and should be, despite Radcliffe's curmudgery, is Radiohead. In terms of output, influence, live show, personality (meaning theirs is well-defined), and any other category, I think they should obviously top the list, but they should at least be ON it.

Except that Radiohead isnt AMERICAN.

haha oh yeah.

maybe tmrw Dalen or someone else can curate a similiar list of British bands.

but then again, marah isn't good.

kind of a throw in I'll admit. I actually included Marah and Ike more as "regional favorites" though I do consider them both to be in the upper eschelon of current American bands.

And yes Haq, I know that you and Katie hate Marah. You told us. More than once.

I will agree that Marah does tread already worn ground, yet they do it awesomely. This will lead us to the same argument that being different or experimental for the sake of it is boring and stupid, which is my opinion of Radiohead and Wilco at this point.

I don't really see who you can compare Ike Reilly to. He blends a lot of influences, and is one dude who can like, admire, and even infuse his music with elements of hip hop, without resorting to "rap rock" or the dreaded guest rapper.

I don't know about Spoon's consistent sound or blazing of new trails. I knew people like to point to point to it, but I don't see them as any more trailblazing than Wilco.

I had written them off until I heard Sonic Nurse, which I thought was fantastic. Murray Street didn't really thrill me at all. Same with NYC and Thousand Leaves.

But they do have a deep catalogue, for sure. Even their boring is an 'interesting' boring.

wilco.

i'd also throw the decemberists up there over marah or ike reilly (just because i've never heard a note by either).

Once again, two Terps fans at opposite ends of the spectrum.

CCR and The Ramones ain't experimental and ever evolving, but they are both two of the best American rock groups ever.

No, bands refusing to incorporate found sounds and/or wear costumes on stage WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED for the purposes of polling obners.

most anything from detroit

&

flaming lips

I havent voted yet.

Then I vote GWAR.

Obviously i disagree about Marah and "awesomely," but we can leave that. I would agree that Wilco went overboard on the last album, but not so much because of expirimenting but because Tweedy didn't keep it tight like he used to know how to do so well. I also think Radiohead's last album was a step down, but also not because it was expirimental. Ike's forays into hiphop are, IMO, questionable and sometimes edge on embarassing.

I don't think Spoon is "more" trailblazing than Wilco, just that both push themselves and the form within which they work.

If we're going to include bands with the limited output of Interpol, then I would definitely have to put Arcade Fire, Animal Collective and Manitoba on this list above them (recognizing that Canadian == American, and realizing that Bloor hates AC like I hate Marah).

I should have put White Stripes in for Interpol. My bad.

As far as Wilco, I definately thought A Ghost Is Born was a step back, but I think Kicking Television repaired a lot of that (IMHO) because I really like a lot of the Ghost songs live. "Hell is Chrome" = perfect example; couldnt really dig it, but fuckin a that live version is QUAL.

Damn, I agree with almost everything you said. Except that Ike is embarassing when it comes to hip hop. Hip-Hop Thighs #17 = OPEN QUAL at its most OPenly Qual.

Well that's a first. Also, add TVOTR to the list of low-output (to date) bands whose boots Interpol are not fit to lick.