By James
Okay I believe myself to have the best taste in everything in the world. I'm elitist like that. Although isn't that fundamentally true of everyone? I don't know, whatever, I buy a lot of music, just like I buy way too many DVDs, but hey. And it's important to note, that I don't really know if what I've bought is old or new or whatever, so these albums aren't probably all from 2004, it's just what I've purchased this year.
Okay, here we go. The best ten albums I've bought this year are as follows.
1. Third Eye Blind - Out Of The Vein
Best Song - "Crystal Baller"
Anyone who knows me or pretty much spends half an hour in a place where I control the music will know that I love 3EB. It is one of the key ties that bind Louis and myself in brotherhood. The others being perfect humour, taste in everything, streetfighter and good looks, but that's another story. You need this album.
2. Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism
Best Song - "Lack of Colour"
This is far and away the best CD that wasn't by Third Eye Blind that I've bought in a long time. Seriously, you need to own this album. If you're out spending money on garbage like Sum41 and Slipknot, then just for once take a step back and buy this. You're pissing your money away anyway, might as well be on something awesome.
3. Third Eye Blind - Blue
Best Song - "Deep Inside Of You"
3EB's second album's dogged by a couple of weak tracks. This CD qualifies, because I lost the case for the one I bought when it first came out and so being a true fan had to buy a new copy. Umm the CD's version of "Slow Motion" is missing lyrics, but trust me you want to download it or something, because the full version is fucking fantastic.
4. Snow Patrol - Final Straw
Best Song - "Grazed Knees"
Hmm I'm not sure about that best song thing actually, "How To Be Dead" and "Final Straw" are really good songs too. Anyway, this album is so fucking solid for the first eight tracks and then it just breaks down. Overall, good lyrics and good melodies. Solid.
5. Rooney - Rooney
Best Song - "Shakin"
Rooney is such an awesome band. Seriously, with the exception of Death Cab, they're probably the best band you've never heard of. The album qualifies as pretty hard to find because it took me three stores to find it, so I don't know whether it's rare or not, and it's also the most expensive album I've ever bought, but it is so worth it.
6. The Killers - Hot Fuss
Best Song - "Mr. Brightside"
This CD could have ranked higher, but I only like a handful of the songs. Tracks 1, 2 and 4 being the high points, pretty much the rest being the unbelievably low. The best thing about this album is that the first single, Somebody Told Me, isn't even the best track, they aren't one hit wonders either. More like three hit wonders... Or something. Mr. Brightside is definitely a fucking stupendous track though.
7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - OST
Best Song - "Beck - Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime"
I'm probably biased because I worship this movie, but I've gotta say for all the shit which is just score from the movie that you'd never ever listen to, there's some really great music in there too. I'm gonna really sound like either a fag or a geek here, but the music on the CD just brings back everything from the movie, the emotional roller-coaster between Winslet and Carrey.
8. Aimee Mann - Magnolia OST
Best Song - "Save Me"
Okay, I list this as being an album by Aimee Mann but it's not really, nine of the album's thirteen tracks are. Mann's lyrics are fucking genius. It's one of my favourite movies of all time, and if not for this soundtrack it would have been so much weaker. Save Me's the best track and I'm pretty sure it would a Grammy, but "Give Up" has got to be one of the saddest fucking songs I've ever heard.
Okay, sadly, that's all I've got, so I'll stop now. I bought a couple of other albums this year but they were shit, and there are a couple more I want to get, which'll hopefully stand up to hype (READ: Eminem's Encore), so yeah, go out and buy music that I like.