Initially I didn’t think I could write this post. It seemed like an impossible task. How on earth was I supposed to come up with and then rank my favorite albums from the past decade? I have enough trouble doing it for just one year. There’s simply too much good music out there (despite my occasional whining to the contrary).

But when I really started thinking about it, I came to the following conclusion: a decade is a terrible thing to waste. In all reality, I may not get another opportunity like this. After all, who knows what I’ll be doing ten years from now. Also, musically speaking, the past decade was an important one for me. Over the course of ten years, my muted appreciation of music gradually transformed into a full-blown obsession. I now spend most of my free time searching for, writing about, and listening to music.

In the end I guess it was a pretty easy decision. I would’ve been extremely foolish to let the decade pass without weighing in on my favorite albums. It was a lot of work, but I managed to compile a list of my 30 favorite albums from 2000-2009. Not necessarily the best or most important albums, but those that had the greatest impact on me.

With all that said, I proudly present the Top 30 Albums of the Decade…

Like I said, compiling this list was no easy task. In the end, tons of amazing albums got axed. Check the comments to see which ones barely missed the cut. And leave comments to let me know which albums I missed completely!

As my blog quickly approaches the ripe old age of one, it’s fun (at least for me) to look back on my old posts. Nearly a year ago, I posted an article called My Top 5 Favorite Bands. A lot has changed since then.While I still consider all 5 of those bands to be among my perennial favorites, several amazing bands have since worked their way into my collection. I realize I’ve blogged about all these guys before, but I feel compelled to share once again why I love them so much. In no particular order, here’s the new list:

MONO: Music beyond words

I am still obsessed with this band. Despite having only 39 Mono tracks in my iTunes library, I’ve listened to them almost 800 times. It doesn’t matter what mood I’m in, I keep coming back for more. The track posted below is from their debut LP Under the Pipal Tree released in 2001. In it, you can clearly hear the band honing what will soon become its signature sound: layers upon layers of guitars soaring to climaxes so high you’re afraid of what’ll happen when it all comes crashing down. One of my favorite Mono tracks, period.

[mp3] Mono :: The Kidnapper Bell

THE NATIONAL: Elegantly-wasted Americana

In all reality, The National probably should’ve made the list the first time around. Never have I heard a band combine beauty and sadness so effortlessly and yet so successfully (see “About Today” and “Slow Show” below). I’ve been listening to The National steadily for the past year, which I can’t say for too many other bands. And with the release of their excellent new LP Boxer, the band has proved without a doubt that they belong on this list.

[mp3] The National :: About Today
[mp3] The National :: Slow Show

THE WALKMEN: Inelegantly-wasted Americana

I never expected to like The Walkmen as much as I do. I honestly can’t explain what drew me to them, let alone what keeps me from ever wanting to leave. Maybe it’s the Dylanesque vocals, maybe it’s the drunken guitar pieces, or maybe it’s lines like this: “Don’t know what to offer you I’m only broke and lonely / And another one goes, and another one goes by / Sometimes when I walk outside I see it right in front of me and so / Bright.” Amazing lyrics to an incredible song, which is posted again for your convenience below.

[mp3] The Walkmen :: Another One Goes By

MENOMENA: The absolute pinnacle of indie rock

Words cannot describe my love for this band. After seeing them live a few weeks ago, I can honestly say indie rock doesn’t get much better than Menomena. All three members are incredibly talented musicians; at the concert I quickly learned that they all share lead vocals and can play just about any instrument under the sun. Tracks from Friend and Foe rocked with even more intensity than on the album, while older material greatly benefited from the live setting. Below is the standout track (well, one of many) from their debut album I Am the Fun Blame Monster, whose title can be rearranged to spell The First Menomena Album.

[mp3] Menomena :: The Strongest Man In the World

CAT POWER: The only cat I’ll ever like

I definitely consider myself a dog person, but Chan Marshall, with her gorgeous voice and haunting melodies, has struck a chord in my dog-loving soul. I seem to get a lot of feedback on my Cat Power posts, which leads me to believe many of you have already come to appreciate her music. So I’ll keep this blurb short, enjoy a terrific piano dirge from Moon Pix called “Colors and the Kids.”

[mp3] Cat Power :: Colors and the Kids

I’ve never been so busy doing absolutely nothing. I thought during winter break I’d be blogging all the time, but seeing as how I finally have the opportunity to do nothing, I’m taking full advantage of it. I think I watched college bowl games for 10 hours straight on New Year’s Day. And by the way, shame on anyone who didn’t watch the Fiesta Bowl. It was, quite possibly, the greatest college football game ever played.

Slacking aside, I’ve been listing to a lot of new music lately (surprise, surprise). I’m still working on the top 10 Songs and Albums of 2006; there were a lot of great albums released at the end of the year. So in the meantime, enjoy what I call “The New to Me List.” It’s composed of bands I discovered in 2006, though they have been around for much, much longer.

Mono

My discovery of the Japanese post-rock band Mono may very well have saved this year in music for me. I was desperately looking for something worthy of obsessing over. When I heard One More Step and You Die for the first time, I knew Mono was it. Their collaboration with world’s end girlfriend (called Palmless Prayer / Mass Murder Refrain) features my favorite song of 2006, “Part Five.” I thought about including it in the Top 10 Songs of 2006 podcast, but it’s almost 20 minutes long.

[mp3] Mono & world’s end girlfriend :: Part Five
[mp3] Mono :: Sabbath

The Twilight Singers

I know that I’ve blogged about these guys before, but I feel the need to do it again. The Twilight Singers rock. Their album Powder Burns is definitely making my Top 10 Albums of 2006 list. Not to mention they also released a fantastic EP called A Stitch In Time in October. I highly, highly recommend checking them out if you passed on them the first time (the mp3’s are posted again below).

[mp3] The Twilight Singers :: The Lure Would Prove Too Much
[mp3] The Twilight Singers :: Fat City (Slight Return)
[mp3] The Twilight Singers :: Forty Dollars

Neko Case

2006 will go down in history as the year I started listening to bands fronted by female musicians. I don’t know why I held out for so long (actually, I know exactly why), I’m just glad I finally gave in. I guess Neko Case is responsible for the change. Her rootsy brand of indie rock features her gorgeous vocals, which remind me of … wait, what am I talking about, I don’t know any other female singers.

[mp3] Neko Case :: Hold On, Hold On
[mp3] Neko Case :: Star Witness

Shearwater

I originally started listening to Shearwater because I desperately wanted to find more music by Okkervil River. With the release of Palo Santo, Shearwater is no longer just an Okkervil River side project. In fact, the album sounds nothing like Black Sheep Boy. And while my love of the River may have initially drawn me to Shearwater, I’ve come to appreciate the ‘Water for what they truly are: a great band.

[mp3] Shearwater :: Nobody

Cat Power

I hate cats, which is why I also hate cat power. Not the band, but the thought of giving power to cats. Turns out the band Cat Power is quite good. I especially like the song “Good Woman.” I first fell in love with the live version, but after hearing the album version with its children’s choir, I think I like studio cut better. I can’t wait until my eMusic downloads refresh so I can finally listen to 2006’s The Greatest.

[mp3] Cat Power :: Good Woman
[mp3] Cat Power :: Good Woman [live @ KCRW]

There were many other great bands I discovered in 2006, including Calexico and Destroyer. I would also include Bishop Allen, but I feel like 2006 was their breakout year, thus violating the “been around for much, much longer” rule. Anybody wanna add to the list?

A few years ago I stumbled upon the (largely) wordless world of post-rock. Initially, I didn’t know what to think. I worried that the lack of lyrics would prevent me from emotionally connecting to the music.

Call me lame, but at that point in time my musical tastes were still evolving. I gravitated towards slow songs with sad lyrics. I wasn’t necessarily sad and depressed, I just liked listening to other people who clearly were.

But you can’t be depressed forever. The same goes for music too. I had exhausted the catalogues of David Gray and Coldplay and needed something different.

I don’t remember the exact sequence of things, but I think I discovered Sigur Rós and Explosions In the Sky at around the same time. Both bands differed from everything in my music collection: Sigur Rós sang in a foreign/made-up language and Explosions In the Sky didn’t sing at all.

After a few listens, my initial concerns were put to rest. This was really good music. And with no lyrics to distract me, I could assign my own meaning to each song. For example, I’ve always pictured myself cruising down pristine slopes through epic powder while listening to “The Only Moment We Were Alone” by Explosions In the Sky.

Those of you who know that song may think I’m crazy, but that’s what I get from it.

And then there’s a song by The Album Leaf called “TwentyTwoFourteen” that perfectly fit one of my last drives through the mountains of Tahoe last winter. I think it’s the only track that I can link to an exact place and moment in time.

Now I’m not saying that songs with lyrics are bad. Good lyricists use words to paint blurry images that can be uniquely interpreted by the listener. I think everyone would put Bob Dylan in this category, though I think I’ll take a more modern example: Jim James of My Morning Jacket. Especially on the album At Dawn.

Writing this lengthy dissertation has made me realize something: when I listen to a song for the first time, I rarely hear the words. Instead, I focus on the instrumentation and overall mood of the song. For example, I didn’t realize that “The Monitor” by Bishop Allen was about the Civil War until several of my friends told me. I was focusing too much on that damn guitar part. Whether that’s good or bad is debatable…

I honestly don’t know what sparked this post. I just wanted to point out the fact that music doesn’t need lyrics to have impact. Then I planned to reinforce this observation by sharing a really good track by Mono called “Sabbath.” But somewhere in that process things went horribly awry.

[mp3] Mono :: Sabbath