Heeeeellllllllllloooooo all. My annual return to the ATRL forums has come!
So most of y'all probably don't know who I am, as I haven't posted outside of this forum in several years. I'm not just saying that so you will think I'm super cool, although go ahead if you'd like to, just wanted to show how out of touch I am with ATRL musica lol. Still should be a good variety of stuff for people of all shapes and colors of ears.
So one thing I do have that most others do not is HISTORY. Ten freakin years of year end lists posted here, although who knows how many have survived the servers. So I'll be digging up whatever I can find. My best write-ups, my worst, my greatest "WTF was I thinking" moments and hopefully every full list I can find.
Due to an abundance of great songs that were not accompanied by great albums, I will also be bringing back the top singles list! A full, actually thought of singles list hasn't appeared since 2009, and that was only a top 25! This year I want to do a top 50, but we'll see.
The albums list will still be the main event. This is because it was also a GREAT GREAT GREAT year for albums. I complained, often, that 2011 and 2012 were off years for music. They both had some great stuff, some really great stuff, but lacked the depth and a future all-time great. This year has THREE albums that I could see myself placing in an all-time list at some point in the future. And I still haven't figured out how to order them. So yeah, exciting stuff ahead.
I'm going to be leaving for vacation on Friday and will be gone for ten days. Therefore this list will be divided into two parts! I'm still working on my lists, so this is tentative.
Part 1 - December 16th-19th
Albums 45-31
Singles 50-36
Video Games, TV, Movies? Maybe one of these
History dug out
Part 2 - December 30th - The End
Albums 30-1
Singles 35-1
Video Games, TV, Movies? Maybe two of these
History dug out
Nudity
So stay tuned! I'll start later today.
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Easy Access Top 45 Albums:
45. "Prism" by Katy Perry
44. "Regions Of Light and Sound Of God" by Jim James
43. "Magna Carta ... Holy Grail" by Jay-Z
42. "Mosquito" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
41. "The Wack Album" by The Lonely Island
40. "Sleeper" by Ty Segall
39. "A Color Map Of The Sun" by Pretty Lights
38. "Old" by Danny Brown
37. "Comedown Machine" by The Strokes
36. "B.O.A.T.S. II-MeTime" by 2 Chainz
35. "Run The Jewels" by Killer Mike and El-P
34. "Miracle Mile" by STRFKR
33. "Bankrupt!" by Phoenix
32. "Major Arcana" by Speedy Ortiz
31. "Save Rock And Roll" by Fall Out Boy
30. "Awayland" by Villagers
29. "The Terror" by The Flaming Lips
28. "Nomad" by Bombino
27. "Head In The Dirt" by Hanni El Khatib
26. "In Rolling Waves" by The Naked and Famous
25. "Hesitation Marks" by Nine Inch Nails
24. "Days Are Gone" by Haim
23. "Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action" by Franz Ferdinand
22. "The Next Day" by David Bowie
21. "Sunbather" by Deafheaven
20. "Beyonce" by Beyonce
19. "Sleigh Ride" by Fuzz
18. "Sound City: Reel To Reel OST" by Dave Grohl
17. "The Greatest Generation" by The Wonder Years
16. "Shaking The Habitual" by The Knife
15. "Pure Heroine" by Lorde
14. "Heartthrob" by Tegan and Sara
13. "13" by Black Sabbath
12. "The Bones Of What You Believe" by CHVRCHES
11. "Reflektor" by Arcade Fire
10. "The 20/20 Experience" by Justin Timberlake
9. "Common Courtesy" by A Day To Remember
8. "Random Access Memories" by Daft Punk
7. "Amok" by Atoms For Peace
6. "Paramore" by Paramore
5. "B-Room" by Dr. Dog
4. "...Like Clockwork" by Queens Of The Stone Age
3. "The Marshall Mathers LP 2" by Eminem
2. "Yeezus" by Kanye West
1. "Modern Vampires Of The City" by Vampire Weekend
Doing a full list based on all my other lists would be pretty interesting... But I doubt I'll have the time.
So it will be just be stuff like this ... probably.
History of #1s
Albums:
2003 - "Meteora" by Linkin Park
2004 - "Start Something" by lostprophets ft. Alleged Baby Raper
2005 - "Plans" by Death Cab For Cutie
2006 - "The Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance
2007 - "Sound Of Silver" by LCD Soundsystem
2008 - "Death Magnetic" by Metallica
2009 - "It's Blitz!" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
2010 - "This Is Happening" by LCD Soundsystem
2011 - "Something To Die For" by The Sounds
2012 - "Be The Void" by Dr. Dog
2013 - "Modern Vampires Of The City" by Vampire Weekend
I was thinking about DQing 2004s winner for being disgusting and evil. Yet the whole band wasn't accused of attempting to sexually assault an infant, just the singer. So is it fair to punish the innocent just because they associated with the guilty? Hard to say, so I'll just keep it like this, unless the censors get mad at me. This was one of the most bizarre stories I've ever seen and it goes to show we really don't know anything about our idols, current or former.
Songs:
2003 - "Faint" by Linkin Park
2004 - "Ch-Check It Out" by Beastie Boys
2005 - "Helena" by My Chemical Romance
2006 - "When You Were Young" by The Killers
2007 - "Through The Fire And Flames" by Dragonforce
2008 - "All Nightmare Long" by Metallica
2009 - "Panic Switch" by Silversun Pickups
2010 - "Dance Yourself Clean" by LCD Soundsystem
2011 - "Get Away" by Yuck
2012 - "Little Talks" by Of Monsters And Men
2013 - "Unbelievers" by Vampire Weekend
I'll try to do a history of the other top #s too. Memory might get a bit hazy the further we go back though.
"Meteora" is an amazing album, easily top 20 of my favorite albums of all time and Faint
Helena the song is amazing, and the music video even more, it was a fan of MCR in 2005
Panic Switch can't wait for this year's #1
OK I'm gonna start with the albums list. This is a top 45. I was originally going to do 50, but only came up with 47. So rather than listen to some new stuff that send the entire list into chaos, I just cut the last two off. These were Yuck and Savages. Sorry! But, just saying, if you had made slightly better albums it wouldn't have even come to this.
45. Prism by Katy Perry
Favorite Song - "Roar"
I was thinking about cutting this one off too as the second half of the album is very abysmal. However, the first six songs are pretty great and nudged the album into the top 45. I only kept six songs from Teenage Dream, and I'd consider these six better. So you earned it Katy. However, I do remember being promised a darker Katy, more akin to the "Part of Me"/"Wide Awake" Katy we got last year. This did not turn out to be the case at all, as Katy is as positive and horny as ever. I consider this a good thing though, her songs from last year kind of blow. I'd much rather think about her breaking out her big balloons than whine about Russell Brand. Katy stuck with what worked ... for six songs at least.
44. Regions Of Light and Sound Of God by Jim James
Favorite Song - "State Of The Art (A.E.I.O.U.)"
While this does give not the same exciting trip a full blown My Morning Jacket album would bring, it is still a very pleasant mellow high. I don't really like camping, but I imagine this album would be great to listen to around a campfire. Break out the acoustic guitar! Though there is also piano and orchestras and a bunch of other things on this record, which might be tough to fit in a backpack. If you like folk-rock, camping or My Morning Jacket then listen to this. Actually if you fit into any of those three categories you probably already knew about Jim James ... so never mind let's move on.
43. Magna Carta... Holy Grail by Jay-Z
Favorite Song - "Picasso Baby"
HOV! Jay-Z basically created the Classic Rap genre, although I prefer calling it Classic Hop, with Magna Carta this year. What I mean by that is he did what Classic Rock artists have been doing for decades. Knowing that your best days are behind you, you don't bother trying to change the world (on purpose). You create a decent album that merges that sound that got you here with modern production. And add in about five bangers that you can play in arenas around the world, where the real money is. People will be dancing along with "Holy Grail", "Tom Ford", "BBC", and a few others for years to come. "F.U.T.W."? Not so much. Another artist did this with much more success later in the year, but I give Jay props for being the first. He has always been ahead of the game.
O!! Happy to see your year-end! I approve of the splitting of the year-end. You are taking tips from Warner Bros and Lionsgate! Except your splitting will be a lot more satisfying. SHOTS FIRED, HOBBIT/HARRY POTTER/HUNGER GAMES. COME AT ME, BILLION DOLLAR FRANCHISES!
And man, yeah, in your history, The Band That Shall Not Be Named. What a horrifying story. I have that album in my History as well.
As for THE ALBUMS AT HAND: I love the Jim James album, and am happy you found room for it! It didn't get a lot of attention this year, but I really enjoyed it. Also props for putting Katy Perry on. I haven't heard the album, but i'm a fan of "Roar" just like you. And great write-up on the Jay-Z record. That really is what it is, classic rap just used to sell tickets to the tour. It does have a couple good songs on it, which you highlight.
Well, really, NOBODY could have expected Ian Watkins to turn out to be the monster that he is, especially not in 2004. That's completely understandable. Also, I did NOT know that "Little Talks" was your favorite song of last year. I am embarrassed to be affiliated.
And man, I wish I had thought of that "digging up the past" idea first. That would have been PERFECT for the YECA.
Seriously, welcome back, O. I'm so excited for this. HI-YOOOO!
2003 - "Faint" by Linkin Park
2005 - "Helena" by My Chemical Romance
2006 - "When You Were Young" by The Killers
2010 - "Dance Yourself Clean" by LCD Soundsystem
2012 - "Little Talks" by Of Monsters And Men
Yes it is based on the film. I was kind of surprised somebody else had not already used it honestly lol.
Song list is not coming about as easy as I had hoped. Album list is shaping up nice though, so let's continue with that.
42. Mosquito by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Favorite song - "Mosquito"
"I'll suck your blood". Yeah Yeah Yeahs went in a very different direction with the follow up to 2009s #1 album "It's Blitz". Obviously the reader can tell that I didn't enjoy it nearly as much, just by it's 41 spot placement drop. Overall I'd say it's the second biggest disappointment of the year. Luckily, even in disappointment Karen O and crew can still put out a pretty solid album. "Mosquito" and "Sacrilege" are both very fun and I imagine great concert singalongs. Their hip-hop song "Buried Alive" is also great, I love my genre mash ups. Yes, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs do a hip-hop song. Even if you don't love "Mosquito" it's impossible to find it uninteresting.
41. The Wack Album by The Lonely Island
Favorite song - "YOLO"
First off, where the heck has Robyn been? Quit messing around with Lonely Island and make a new album, gawwwwd. Lonely Island are always good for some hilarity and actually some good hip hop. As silly as the above "Spell It Out" is, the beat is quite fresh. Takes me back. There's no stand outs like "I'm On A Boat" or "Jack Sparrow" on here. Yet songs like "Yolo" , "Semicolon", "3-Way", etc.. all add up to make Lonely Island's third album a success. Good going Dy, Jorm and Kiv! "Those are colons, you all get F's."
40. Sleeper by Ty Segall
Favorite song - "She Don't Care"
You all might remember Ty Segall appeared twice on my 2012 year end list, or you might not know him at all. The thing everyone needs to know is that Ty is able to transcend genre worlds like Dr. Manhattan. Time, place and meaning are all relative. Ty goes almost entirely acoustic here, clashing with his hippie/dark punk/metal stuff he did last year. Although as you can hear in the above video, there is also some amping going on and some wicked solos. Never set on doing just one album at a time, Ty will also appear again LATER. SPOILER ALERT WARNING. Looking at some pictures of the guy, it's not really surprising that he bounces around from genre to genre. In some pics he looks like a chick, in others he looks like a 70s **** star. Well as long as he keeps making great album, Mr. Segall is free to be a creative wanderer as long as he chooses.
Already we're starting to get a little murky with the history. Some of these charts were not saved or never written down in the first place, so forgive me if my memory is a little off.
Albums:
2003- "Blink-182" by Blink-182
2004- "To The 5 Boroughs" by Beastie Boys
2005- "The Bravery" by The Bravery
2006- "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out" by Panic! At The Disco
2007- "Neon Bible" by Arcade Fire
2008- "Dear Science" by TV On The Radio
2009- "Homecoming" by A Day To Remember
2010- "Body Talk" by Robyn
2011- "The King Is Dead" by The Decemberists
2012- "Red" by Taylor Swift
Songs:
2003- "Feeling This" by Blink-182
2004- "Make A Move" by lostprophets. Yikes this song has a whole new meaning.
2005- "An Honest Mistake" by The Bravery
2006- "Ridin" by Chamillionaire
2007- "What I've Done" by Linkin Park
2008- "Halfway Home" by TV On The Radio
2009- "Zero" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
2010- "*uck You" by Cee-Lo Green
2011- "The Adventures Of Rain Dance Maggie" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
2012- "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" by Taylor Swift
Albums:
2003- "Blink-182" by Blink-182
2005- "The Bravery" by The Bravery
2006- "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out" by Panic! At The Disco
2007- "Neon Bible" by Arcade Fire
2009- "Homecoming" by A Day To Remember
2010- "Body Talk" by Robyn
2012- "Red" by Taylor Swift
Songs:
2003- "Feeling This" by Blink-182
2004- "Make A Move" by lostprophets.
2005- "An Honest Mistake" by The Bravery
2007- "What I've Done" by Linkin Park
2009- "Zero" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
2010- "*uck You" by Cee-Lo Green
2011- "The Adventures Of Rain Dance Maggie" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
2012- "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" by Taylor Swift
the song is amazing, and the music video even more, it was a fan of MCR in 2005
but I like "State Of The Art (A.E.I.O.U.)". 
Loved that movie.
, I hope that Fuzz will be in the list. 
but I need to check out the album in full