Posts Tagged ‘Radiohead’
Commentary: Musician for our Generation
January 1st, 2010 • Commentary, Folk, Hip Hop, Op-Ed, Rock
Tags: death cab for cutie, eminem, jay-z, kanye west, Lil Wayne, mgmt, Radiohead, red hot chili peppers
Looking back in time, every generation has a small handful of bands and singers with which they are culturally linked, such as the Beatles and Bob Dylan for my parents’ generation and Bruce Springsteen, who gave a voice to the subsequent generation. Up until the present because it was extremely expensive and difficult to record and distribute music, it took real talent just to get an LP pressed, but digital technology has really changed the playing field. Popular music now transcends the confines of a single genre.
So as I sit at home watching the various New Years countdown specials, I started to think about who is the musician or band that defines my generation in music as many of the performers put in front of me I had never even heard of. So I wondered, in 2050, when I will be 63, who will the kids talk about as being emblematic of music of the late 1990s and early 2000s? Read more »
Editor’s Picks: 30 Best Albums of the Decade
December 24th, 2009 • 1 comment Commentary, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Op-Ed, Rock
Tags: Amadou & Mariam, Animal Collective, Bjork, Bon Iver, Brian Wilson, Bruce Springsteen, David Sanford & The Pittsburgh Collective, DJ Danger Mouse, Fleet Foxes, Gregory and the Hawk, Gui Boratto, Jens Lekman, Jonsi and Alex, Lil Wayne, M83, Noah and the Whale, Phoenix, Radiohead, Ryan Adams, seabear, Sigur Ros, Sin Fang Bous, Spoon, Sufjan Stevens, The Arcade Fire, The Hold Steady, The Shins, TV on the Radio, Yeasayer, Yelle
With the impending end of the first decade of the century looming in the distance, all one can do is take a look back at the last 10 years in music and create another list, this one ranking the best 30 albums of the last decade (With a sentence of explanation for each).
1. The Arcade Fire – Funeral
This album made baroque pop cool again, something that seemed unachievable after the Beach Boys fell apart.
2. Ryan Adams – Gold
Gold is alternative country at its very best, chocked full of sublime instrumentation and sentimental lyrics.
3. Bruce Springsteen – We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions
The Boss sings Pete Seeger and brilliance results; there is something fantastic about the combination of Springsteen’s voice and Seeger’s lyrics.
4. Yeasayer – All Hours Cymbals
All Hours Cymbals is an album for the decade lyrically, thematically, and instrumentally.
5. Jonsi and Alex – Riceboy Sleeps
Jonsi and Alex’s post-rock/ambient masterpiece is an album to listen to all the way through (8+ times) to really catch it’s flavor. Read more »