21st century albums that have stood the test of time, so far...

[LemonMirrorSky]

Somebody was saying in the Killers thread how they have already forgotten that there was a new album out last year and it got me thinking...

We get so excited with new releases and almost immediately download them or stream them and then go out and buy them, in many cases. Our collections are ever increasing by the day and bursting at the seams! But how many of these albums really stand the test of time and become true classics?

I'm curious as to which albums this community thinks have aged very well from say, the year 2000 as a reference point. We've all seen several lists of so-called essential albums from the 50s/60s to the 90s. So I'm more curious about the post-Kid A era.

Try to make your list the absolute cream of the crop. And obviously, you may have to ignore the last couple of years or so because it may be too soon to tell.

 

[elevated_u2_fan]

bring on the Radiohead!

 

[the tourist]

Off the top of my head, Is This It?, Fleet Foxes, Yoshimi, White Blood Cells and geez I could go on all day.

 

[mikal]

Not my complete list, but I'd include the following:

Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights
Deerhunter - Microcastle
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Tame Impala - Lonerism
Doves - Lost Souls

I'm sure I can think of more, but these are definitely on the top of mind.

 

[Tacvbo]

Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
The Strokes - Is This It?
Funera - Arcade Fire
Elephant - White Stripes
Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
Aha Shake Heartbreak - Kings of Leon
Boxer - The National
In Rainbows - Radiohead
Viva la Vida - Coldplay
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

 

[LemonMirrorSky]

Tame Impala - Lonerism

Isn't that too recent to have stood the test of time??

Seriously, I want to explore more of this band but not sure if I should get Innerspeaker or Lonerism first. I only like Elephant so far. :/ But I really like that one! And to a lesser extent, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.

 

[djerdap]

Porcupine Tree - Fear of a Blank Planet
The National - Alligator
LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
Doves - Lost Souls
Interpol - Turn on the Bright Lights
Sonic Youth - Murray Street
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus
God is an Astronaut - All is Violent, All is Bright
The Beat Fleet - Maxon Universal
Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam
The White Stripes - Elephant
Queens of the Stone Age - Rated R
New Order - Get Ready
Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Arcade Fire - Funeral

 

[mikal]

Isn't that too recent to have stood the test of time??

Seriously, I want to explore more of this band but not sure if I should get Innerspeaker or Lonerism first. I only like Elephant so far. :/ But I really like that one! And to a lesser extent, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.

Well, it's about a year old already, and I still hasn't left my regular rotation. Knowing how I work, I'll still be talking about this one 5 years from now.

 

[the tourist]

Isn't that too recent to have stood the test of time??

Seriously, I want to explore more of this band but not sure if I should get Innerspeaker or Lonerism first. I only like Elephant so far. :/ But I really like that one! And to a lesser extent, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.

It seems clear to me that you don't care about Tame Impala. It's okay to not like a band. I don't see why you'd get stuff by a band you know you don't like. Just my two cents.

 

[the tourist]

Well, it's about a year old already, and I still hasn't left my regular rotation. Knowing how I work, I'll still be talking about this one 5 years from now.

Yeah, I totally agree. I was trying not to list anything that's come out in the last 5 years or so.

 

[mikal]

Isn't that too recent to have stood the test of time??

Seriously, I want to explore more of this band but not sure if I should get Innerspeaker or Lonerism first. I only like Elephant so far. :/ But I really like that one! And to a lesser extent, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.

Oh yeah, about where to start, I would actually say you should listen to Innerspeaker first. For me, having that introduction was very important in enjoying Lonerism.

 

[LemonMirrorSky]

Well, it's about a year old already, and I still hasn't left my regular rotation. Knowing how I work, I'll still be talking about this one 5 years from now.

Yeah but that's not the point. I specifically want to know which albums have already stood the test of time for people... not stuff that you're totally sure will be a classic 5 yrs from now. It is very easy to get excited about stuff and later lose interest. We all do it.

It seems clear to me that you don't care about Tame Impala. It's okay to not like a band. I don't see why you'd get stuff by a band you know you don't like. Just my two cents.

Haha well... it is true that I didn't find songs like Alter Ego and Apocalypse Dreams special at all. I also referred to the music as John Lennon getting drowned out in a messy sound collage. lol. And then I heard Elephant and quite liked it. So now I'm a bit confused I guess.

Yeah, I totally agree. I was trying not to list anything that's come out in the last 5 years or so.

That was my whole idea. Try to ignore the last 3 yrs or so at least. 2000 - 2010 type thing perhaps.

 

[lazarus]

In addition to what's already been mentioned:

Bob Dylan - Love And Theft
Bob Dylan - Modern Times
David Bowie - Heathen
Super Furry Animals - Rings Around The World
Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - Pig Lib
Sleater-Kinney - One Beat
Sleater-Kinney - The Woods

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

So this is just gonna be "List your favorite albums of the 2000s"?

 

[LemonMirrorSky]

Off the top of my head, my own list would look something like this:

Radiohead - Kid A
Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights
White Stripes - Elephant
The Killers - Hot Fuss
Keane - Hopes And Fears
Pearl Jam - Backspacer (although the self-titled one also comes close!)
Porcupine Tree - Fear Of A Blank Planet (used to prefer Deadwing)
Tori Amos - Scarlet's Walk
Bruce Springsteen - The Rising
Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head
U2 - All That You Can't Leave Behind (maybe... )

 

[mikal]

Yeah but that's not the point. I specifically want to know which albums have already stood the test of time for people... not stuff that you're totally sure will be a classic 5 yrs from now. It is very easy to get excited about stuff and later lose interest. We all do it.

Ok, well with that said, I would say Lonerism stands the test of time for me, even if that test has only been 1 year.

 

[LemonMirrorSky]

^ lol. Fair enough.

So this is just gonna be "List your favorite albums of the 2000s"?

Was really trying to get a sense of which albums have had staying power over a number of years.. kinda thing, beyond the initial excitement. But I guess it has become like a fav albums thing. Oh well.

 

[the tourist]

Haha well... it is true that I didn't find songs like Alter Ego and Apocalypse Dreams special at all. I also referred to the music as John Lennon getting drowned out in a messy sound collage. lol. And then I heard Elephant and quite liked it. So now I'm a bit confused I guess.

Yeah. I wouldn't say a sound collage per se, but I see what you're getting at. To me, if I had to describe Tame Impala, I'd say they're like if a reverbed and echoed John Lennon was singing over the music on Yoshimi by the Flaming Lips, if that music was run through vintage amps and peppermint fuzz pedals. Seeing as John Lennon is one of my favorite vocalists, reverb and echo are two of my favorite guitar effects, Yoshimi is one of my favorite albums, and I grew up on late 60s psych (and baroque pop, British Invasion, and sunshine pop), this band couldn't be more up my alley.

So because I feel very strongly about each of these elements, I probably could say with a decent amount of self-aware authority that this album will stand the test of time for me.

 

[LemonMirrorSky]

Yeah. I wouldn't say a sound collage per se, but I see what you're getting at. To me, if I had to describe Tame Impala, I'd say they're like if a reverbed and echoed John Lennon was singing over the music on Yoshimi by the Flaming Lips, if that music was run through vintage amps and peppermint fuzz pedals. Seeing as John Lennon is one of my favorite vocalists, reverb and echo are two of my favorite guitar effects, Yoshimi is one of my favorite albums, and I grew up on late 60s psych (and baroque pop, British Invasion, and sunshine pop), this band couldn't be more up my alley.

Loved how you described it! I can definitely hear a Flaming Lips influence too.

The thing is, I think I jumped the gun a bit with Tame Impala in the Desert Island threads. Should've been a bit more patient with them. I'm liking Apocalypse Dreams too now.

And the reason I want to go out of my way to give them a chance is... I'm a huge fan of Pink Floyd, The Beatles and a lot of psychedelic stuff from the 60s! A quick look at Part 1 of my DI playlist confirms this. And I got such an awesome trippy vibe from Elephant! Anyway, going to see whether I enjoy Innerspeaker or not.

 

[lazarus]

So this is just gonna be "List your favorite albums of the 2000s"?

Nope, apparently it's just another Tame Impala thread.

 

[the tourist]

Oh crap. I didn't realize the on-topic police were out in force today.

Favourite Worst Nightmare, Rubber Factory, and Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga can be added to my list.

 

[iron yuppie]

Off the top of my head, Is This It?, Fleet Foxes, Yoshimi, White Blood Cells and geez I could go on all day.

I agree about Fleet Foxes and White Blood Cells (even if I prefer De Stijl from the Stripes). They both seem to have given rise to a number of imitators that made strong albums in their own right, but those acts never lived up to the vision and coherence of FF and the Stripes.

 

[LemonMelon]

Kid A hasn't aged a second. It still sounds like it's being transmitted from another planet.

 

[purpleoscar]

Albums other than U2:

Animal Collective Merriweather Post Pavilion
Elbow Seldom Seen Kid
White Stripes Elephant
Radiohead (All of them)
Fleet Foxes (both records)
Coldplay A rush of blood to the head
Beck Sea Change
Arcade Fire Funeral & The Suburbs
Bjork Vespertine
Plant and Krauss Raising Sand
The Strokes Is this it?

EDIT: Boards of Canada Campfire Headphase

 

[cobl04]

Outkast - Stankonia
Destroyer - Kaputt

 

[brooklynmike]

Red Hot Chili Peppers- By The Way

 

[intedomine]

Seldom Seen Kid - Elbow

 

[Mount Temple]

Bruce Springsteen - The Rising (2002)

Over 10 years later and still just as powerful as when I first heard it.

 

[cobl04]

 

[Mount Temple]

Kanye West .....are you serious? That just dropped a few months ago. Wait it out 10 and then see.