1. The Moon and Antartica - Modest Mouse

Being the avid music fan I am, it's pretty difficult for me to say this album is flawless and better than all the others on this list, but for me it is, and here's why.

I heard this album in the year 2000, going through an awful breakup, moving AGAIN BACK across the country, and tired of my hippie life so much, that aside going through one pseudo divorce, it was necessary, especially with the bitterness I felt at the time, to go through another one, and to stop listening to that Phish-crap (though we've since reconciled).

The lyrics were just perfect for my life. Sure, many of Isaac's lyrics are on songs not even on this album, but this is sort of like a lifetime achievement award if you will.

"Third Planet" became a permanent fixture in my "Zach's Playing Guitar" repertoire to the point that anyone who currently jams with me, can pretty much play it along with me. I actually don't sing this one too poorly either.

Track 2 was in a minivan commercial, and it's still good to this day, though, it's always been real hard for me to play that acoustic strum which pisses me off.

"Dark Center of the Universe" will always not only remind me of many-a-hangovers, but that hippie girl I dated back in 2002.

I might disintegrate into thin air if you like

but I'm not the Dark Center of the Universe, like you thought.

It took alot of work to be the ass that I am,

and I'm really damn sure that anyone can

easily, equally fuck you over

Well dyin sayin something, but didn't mean it

everyone's life ends no one ever completes it

dry or wet ice they both melt you're equally cheated

I mean, how can you not love them?

"Perfect Disguise" - This song has now applied to 2 women in my life, which is pretty fantastic in a dark sort of way.

"Tiny Cities Made of Ashes" - I really want my "The World is my ashtray" t-shirt.

I'm going to stop here, especially because the songs do wane. I mean, what am I going to say about "The Stars are Projectors" ...

Thank you so much Isaac, for helping me get through the remorseful hangovers, and very dark times.

2. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot - Wilco

Hands down a perfect album, whereas my #1 is far from perfect.

Again, it's all been said, so I'm not going to dwell here. Just one story.

You can tell a great album when you remember the first time you listen to it, and remember everything so clearly. Like listening to Paul's Boutique at Chalker Beach with my buddy Joe, I remember driving to this one. It was 2002, and my mom was in the process of moving down from Connecticut to Melbourne, FL and I was driving across the state and listening to this one in my beloved Nissan Sentra, i.e. Rusted Emotion. I remember how smooth every song sounded and how much I loved each and every one of them. It was that day I realized this "Wilco" band was pretty good, and I now had a new band in my life that I'd be excited for everyone one of their albums for the rest of their careers, and that's a pretty short list.

3. Kid A - Radiohead

My favorite Radiohead album, hands down. With these last 3 albums, I really don't want to talk too much about the album, because it's all been said at this point.

Here, I can say I've come back to this album a multitude of times, and have loved different songs on it every time. The only thing that bums me out a little is my band covering "National Anthem." Aside from my bass line being extremely off, we just overplayed the hell out of thing so it's hard for me to listen to now.

4. I'm Wide Awake It's Morning - Bright Eyes

Now that I'm looking at my list, I must be on crack. I'm saying that Bright Eyes released an album better than Jacket, the Flaming Lips, the Shins, Spoon, Suffy, the Strokes, MIA ... I mean, really, am I that thick in the head over this one?

Thing is, I love a good singer songwriter, and the songs, the structure versus the lyrics are perfection here. This would be a good Bob Dylan album. Sure Conor is a little bit of a douchebag, but to me a great songwriter, don't you have to be? Don't you have to completely invest all your qualities into your art no matter how douchy they may be?

If there's one album where I've related to the lyrics time ... and time again, it's this one. Sure Tweedy or Mercer may be a little deeper. Sure Isaac may be a little more remorseful, but Oberst came up aces over kings here.

5. Z - My Morning Jacket

There was a point when I would have said this may be the #1 album of the decade, but seeing them live did two things: 1. Made them the best rock band of the decade, 2) Made me enjoy their studio work a little bit less. After all, after hearing how well Okonokos captures their live sound, how can you go back to "Lay Low" on this album and think it's remotely as good?

I wasn't really sure where to rank this one, but ultimately, I have to make it Top 5 because this is the album that got me into this band.

6. Chutes Too Narrow - The Shins

In a Spoonish way, this is a sneak attack great album. Upon first hearing it, I liked it, there was no doubt about that, but it seems every time I listen to it, no matter when I listen to it, I thoroughly enjoy it. There isn't one thing I don't like about this album, except for maybe when Mercer says "Berate" on the first song, and that's just because when I try to play it, all I can do is laugh at trying to emulate that sound he makes.

I always have a special affection for albums that have many songs I've learned on guitar, and this album is a hippie guitar strummer's wet dream.

Truly an A+.

7. Embryonic - The Flaming Lips

2009 REPRESENTIN!

It's always dangerous to rank a recent album really high, when you're fresh off it's awesomeness, and really not knowing how it will ultimately stand a few years from now in your playlists. It's not really that dangerous though because really, this is some stupid list, but some knobblegopper, so I've gotta do it.

One thing I can say about the Flaming Lips, that I can't say about any other band is this. Their debut album was released in 1986, and here they are, 23 years later, making a classic album, either the 2nd or 3rd best of their entire career. Can you say this about any other band? 23 years later? 20 years later? The Beatles peaked maybe 8 or 9 years later; Radiohead peaked at about 5 years later; Pink Floyd made a classic album (The Wall) about 12 years after their debut album ... I seriously am not even close to thinking about a band (and for the love of gawd, please don't say The Boss or Bob Dylan).

If you can think of anyone that either matches or comes close to matching this feat, I'm DYING to know. Yes, that was sarcasm, but I am serious.

Also, I'm not going to do a Top 10 Albums of 2009 this year, but here are some notable albums that I gave a few listens to apiece this year:

• Built to Spill's new one was very good
• Thanks for the Skiddies for turning me on to Vetiver
• Frand Ferdinand and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs I thought both did extremely well in a gay 80's style way
• Modest Mouse released a fantastic EP
• The new Yo La Tengo was pretty good
• The Rural Alberta Advantage was a pleasant surprise and a nice find
• I'm supposed to say I like the new Dead Weather, but I'd be lying if I said I listened to it more than 3 times, or have the desire to ever listen to it again
• Wilco and M. Ward were ok I guess, nothing to blog about
• Peaches grew up a bit, which made her effort either better or worse
• The Decemberists bombed worse than Gaines Adams (that's for my fellow Bucs fans)
• Phish actually had 1 good song on their album (Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan)

8. Illinois - Sufjan Stevens

Too bad this album killed him. It was his Elliott Smith equivalent of his career being stabbed twice in the chest. I believe I've been over this, so I'll praise Sufjan rather than keep reminding people that his career is in deep jeopardy, like it was shot by John Wayne Gacy.

This is another one of those albums that I remember listening to by my pool on a nice Saturday afternoon. I sort of missing having a pool. Soon enough.

One thing I never really understood, was the actual name of this album, is it:

Cum on Feel the Illinoise!

Illinoise!

Illinois!

or maybe ... Cum on Feel the Illinois!

I'll never know. I really hope he decides to make albums again.

9. Kill the Moonlight - Spoon

GOT A BLANK SPACE WHERE MY MIND SHOULD BE!

I'm technically suppose to talk about Spoon here, so I will briefly. Spoon is a band that nearly made my list 4 times, and this is the album that roped me in. "The Way We Get By" will probably be on my best songs of the aughts list if I decide to do it.

10. It Still Moves - My Morning Jacket

I bought this CD and pawned it. That's how much I didn't like the over-reverbed voice of Jim James in the beginning. I also knew them as some band DMB got signed to his label. I did like "Run Thru" and "One Big Holiday" right off the bat, and somehow though "Golden" sounded like a DMB ripoff song. I love how wrong I can be. It's beautiful.

After a wonderful concert experience ... OO! Here we go, best Concerts of the Aughts ...

10. The G Love Experience

I say this because, it's more of an experience to go to a G Love show, than it is going to a concert. That experience is this, it's somehow always a great time. Maybe G has found that perfect blend of music where you don't care about the music it all, but it's good enough to want to go with all your friends to a concert where you know you're not "dying" to hear the music, but you just wanna hang out at a concert where you know he's eventually going to say, "She's got sauce. Your baby ain't sweet like mine."

9. The Hold Steady Experience

Maybe they can become that new band. The 3rd time I saw them, I had no problems missing any of the songs, and enjoyed the relative ease to get a drink, and just hang out elsewhere during the show.

8. The Dave Matthews Band in West Palm Beach

I can't say I remember the show too much, but just the circumstances of the event that took place. It was spontaneous, and about meeting a new girl, and an old friend lending me something like 70 bucks just so I could get off work and go with my new friends. Sometimes, it's not the actual music of the show see. I do remember a kickass version of "One Sweet World" being played though.

7. Radiohead in West Palm Beach

Sadly, I was just too far away to really get into this, and I didn't really know them nearly as well as I know them now, so I couldn't fully appreciate it. I remember many of debates on proper times to listen to the band you're actually seeing as to before and after.

6. Pearl Jam at the Ice Palace

I forget which friend at the time scored "tickets" to this show, but it's probably best they go nameless. I loved seeing Eddie Vedder look happy and enjoying life and it gave me a newfound respect for one of the 90s better bands. He made it. He was going to be okay. It wasn't so certain before Kurt died. Great show. They freaking rocked it!

5. Toast at the Dubliner

The cold show. Maybe it's because we have it on tape or what not, but looking back on the glory days (how much you wanna bet I can throw that football of those mountains?), this is probably my favorite of the bunch.

4. Medeski, Martin and Wood

Two. Even though I was having a tough time getting into my first "Dropper" show, I drove to Gainesville in the Sentra with Joe, Dillon and Erica. D & E didn't have tickets and ended up missing the show. The second time I saw them doing a "Dropper" show was much better. I was ready for all the changes and what not. They also kicked ass at Langerado.

3. Wilco

Two. The simple fact I got to see these guys at the Tampa Theater will rival any concert experience for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, I really only knew Yankee Hotel I believe at the time, so I didn't know most of the songs. Jeff Tweedy and the gang were all sitting outside their bus, right outside the Hub btw, and just hanging out and talking with everyone. They probably don't do that any more. I also got to see them at the Performing Arts Center which was also grand.

2. The Modest Mouse Experience

About 200 people at the Orpheum. Isaac cracking wise to anybody who made a request and being a surly asshole and playing a great couple shows. Phenomenal. Another venue vs. band dynamic that will rival anything I see from here on in.

1. My Morning Jacket

Of course. I've been over Langerado a billion times since the show, so need to discuss anymore. That's best for reminiscing in person. Oh, and the House of Blues was pretty good to despite the fact that it's a horrible place to see a how. Horrible.

11. Is This It? - The Strokes

Another great fad band, and it's too bad that that's all they are was a mere rock fad in the early aughts.

In an earlier post, I recalled the day about this album. Every now and then a band comes out that makes you feel so cool for listening to them, and they were one of those bands. They were too cool to the point they couldn't handle being perceived as "the cool band" and all went there separate ways.

Toast trying to cover, "Is This It?" is probably one of the greatest failed experiments of it's life. It was my suggestion too, but Toast covering a relevant song around the same time it came out wasn't going to happen, unless it was Yoshiimi ...

12. Kala - MIA

I really felt MIA was going to be a one year thing in my life. I thought she'd end up becoming some overdone hip pop star that would either sell out, or get the hell out.

When I first heard "Bird Flu", I liked it, but wasn't overly impressed. Then when I first heard this album, I still was like, "we'll see, there's no way it will be better than Arular."

Then I listened to "Bamboo Banga" and "Jimmy" and "Boys." I realized she had done it again, at the very least created an album as good as it's predecessor because it even have the "weaker second half" in common.

At some point a year later, "Paper Planes" blew up and she was bumping her rhymes to Slumdog Millionaire. She does something special on her sophomore attempt. It's really going to be interesting to see what Momma Mia can do on attempt #3.

13. Blazing Arrow - Blackalicious

And the winner of the "Best Rap Album of the Aughts Award" goes to ...

I'm sure 99% of rap fans would disagree, but you know what I'd tell them? I'm not a rap fan. So in your face!

14. Yoshiimi Battles the Pink Robots - The Flaming Lips

Sure their may have been some better albums that came out this decade, but I don't think there's one collectively liked by all my friends than this one. It's great to think that there was a time in 2002-2003 when no matter who's house I went to, chances were very good that this album was going to be playing. This happened to the point that I eventually got sick of it. Years later ... it's still pretty dang good.

15. The Dropper - Medeski, Martin and Wood

The only album on my list not to contain words was released in the year 2000. Kind of the end of my jam band phase, and this album was the perfect conclusion.

Not only did it freak out many of the new friends I was making at the time, but it was so intentionally unjammy in a way Nirvana was unglammy.

Jazz is always the truest form of alternative music, and this was a great alternative to jazz. Not too many records will ever be made like this.

16. Echoes - The Rapture

Aside from some stumbling in the beginning (tracks 2 and 3), this is a perfect album. I'll never forget by birthday in 2 double aught 3. I purchased this on CD that day, which in itself is not only a forgotten medium, but a forgotten thing to do. The downside of the fall of the compact disc, is that I never "Go out to buy music" anymore.

One day Vinyl Fever will close and I will be sad. Just going out to the store, glancing through the used CD rack, glancing through the new CDs as well, hoping they'd have that rarity that wouldn't have to be ordered, the smell of incense, cool posters and t-shirts ... it's all going away.

It's the small metaphor of how as people we are going to become less and less social with society, as purchasing things online makes it all so much more convenient. Wow, I've never thought I'd be writing something promoting shopping, especially as Xmas nears, but here I am.

17. Attack and Release - The Black Keys

What I love about an album like this, is that this band had so many albums before that I never heard. Now that I've heard this one, discovering all the older ones will be so grand.

"Things Ain't Like They Used to Be" ... It doesn't matter what Beatles song it may sound like, the song just kicks major ass. One of my favorite tunes of the aughts. Of course, jammin' in the studio to "Strange Times" is equally impressive.

FAILED TO MAKE THE CUT - Hot Hot Heat

After listening to Track 1, they deserved to be on this list. Downside, even though that song just rocked, as do a couple others on this good album, they just don't have it. Point being, are they still a band?

18. You In Reverse - Built to Spill

I'm excited that I love their new album. My history with B2S (yes, I just created a wicked way of referring to them via typing (that I'm sure some hardcore B2S fan has already thought of, but I'm not that hard core so it doesn't matter)) is that I LOVE this album, but have never enjoyed anything previous. If that's grammatically correct, than Nastrovia! If it's not than GFY. The point being, is that I'm happy I like their new album. I don't know of B2S fans (and yes, by now I'm absolutely some fan must have typed those 3 keys togehter) enjoy the new shit, or pretend to enjoy it the way I would a newly over-produced Modest Mouse album.

These are one of less than 5 bands that can be involved in the conversation, "Modest Mouse Would Not Exist Without You" conversation, so I gots to give'em props, right? I don't know. Whatever they're doing know, they've reached a point in their lives where they're doing the exact thing I want to hear in my life.

19. Gimme Fiction - Spoon

It's so hard to rank Spoon albums. Right now, the Flaming Lips fabulous, "Superman" just came on on my Ipod, and I was disappointed it wasn't a Spoon song from this album. That's what's so gajeezy about this album, is that nothing stands out, but yet, play the 80th percentile of the album, and it can run with Seattle Slew.

It's impossible to explain why Spoon is so grand, but they are. If you hate Spoon, you don't understand why people create music. That's probably the best compliment I can give them right now.