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| 1. Constantines Shine a Light (Sub
Pop) 2. Bronx, The s/t (White Drugs) 3. Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros Streetcore (http://www.strummersite.com; Hellcat/Epitaph) 4. AFI Sing the Sorrow (Dreamworks) 5. Jealous Sound, The Kill Them with Kindness(Better Looking) 6. The Fire Theft s/t (Ryko) 7. Superchunk.com" target="_blank">Superchunk Cup of Sand (Merge) 8. Nada Surf Let Go (Barsuk) 9. Crooked Fingers Red Devil Dawn (Merge) 10. Guided by Voices Best Of½Human Amusements at Hourly Rates (Matador) 11. Thrice The Artist in the Ambulance (Island) 12. Pretty Girls Make Graves The New Romance (Matador Records) 13. Electric Six Fire (XL Recordings/Beggars Group) 14. Jet By Day Cascadia (Kindercore) 15. Blueline Medic Text Bomb (Fueled By Ramen) 16. The Lot Six Major Fables(Tarantulas) 17. Caesars 39 Minutes of Bliss (In an Otherwise Meaningless World) (Astralwerks) 18. Alkaline Trio Good Mourning (Vagrant ) 19. Appleseed Cast Two Conversations (Tiger Style) 20. Millionaire Outside the Simian Flock (Play It Again Sam) 21. Give Up the Ghost We're Down 'til We're Underground (Equal Vision) 22. Idlewild The Remote Part (Capitol Records) 23. Cursive The Ugly Organ (Saddle Creek ) 22. Radiohead Hail to the Thief (Capitol Records) 24. Sense Field Living Outside (Nettwerk America) 25. Paper Lions The Symptom and the Sick (Kindercore) |
HONORABLE MENTION Heavenly States s/t (Future Farmer) Slowride Building A Building (Deep Elm) V/A Swami Sound System ¬ Vol. 1: 2003 Sales Conference (Swami) Von Bondies, The Raw and Rare (Dim Mak) Milwaukees This is a Stickup (Boss Tuneage) Bad Brains Banned in DC: Their Greatest Riffs (Caroline) Tokyo Sex Destruction Le Red Soul Communitte (Dim Mak) Hey Mercedes Loses Control (Vagrant ) Communiquÿ A Crescent Honeymoon EP (Lookout! Records) Kid Dynamite Cheap Shots, Youth Anthems (Jade Tree) Small Brown Bike The River Bed (Lookout! Records) Enon Hocus Pocus (Touch and Go) Hero Pattern Cut You Out (Lonesome) Soundtrak s/t (Ace Fu) Motion City Soundtrack I am the Movie (Epitaph) |
| 1. Constantines Shine a Light Shine a Light is a powerful album made by one of the brightest stars to come out of the crowded rock scene in recent years. One listen and you know that you are hearing something truly special in the making. This band may not ever be stars, but that doesn°t matter ¬ they are crucial. Crucial in the way that the Clash was important, that Johnny Cash was, that Bruce Springsteen was, and that Fugazi continues to be crucial. And when you consider that those four talents seem to have been the basis for the Constantines and when you combine that with their extreme sense of urgency, you begin to approach the essentiality of this band. What is remarkable is about this band is that are sympathetic to the listener and willing to embrace anyone that will listen as one of their own. There is no posturing here. This is a band that lives in the present, writes songs for the that are both timely and universal, and plays like their every ounce of life depends on the note they°re hitting. It°s simply awe-inspiring to think that a band of young twenty-somethings could aim so high and succeed so well on this, only their second full-length album. What you hear on this record and see in the band live is a band that is willing to stand up and tell their story of the truth, without pretension or condescension. And that they are able to accomplish this by wrapping all this intelligence and fire and gumption in some of the catchiest hooks of anyone on the list, makes this the best album of the year. (Sub Pop) 2. Bronx, The s/t There has not been one person that I°ve played this album for that has not wanted to know where they could buy it. What is it about these guys that is so magnetizing? Could be the fact that they sound like almost no one else out there right now. This is total balls-to-the-wall punk rock, with more than a pretty healthy helping of Rocket from the Crypt and AC/DC thrown in to keep it from spiraling out of control. The fact that this album was recorded live to tape, with a maximum of three takes per song, is mind-blowing. Air-tight, adventurous, and aggressive, this album is enough to bring the doubters back to the fold and restore our faith in punk rock. (White Drugs) |
10. Guided
by Voices Best Of½Human Amusements at Hourly Rates If there is any band in desperate need of an album that compiled their best moments, it°s Guided by Voices. Their twenty-song per album, two album per year average that they°ve been able to maintain the past ten years has created a discography that is difficult to navigate if you are new to the band. With their tremendous number of songs and baffling discography, coupled with a questionable editing (or lack of editing) process, GbV has been in need of this album for years. Luckily for us listeners, it°s amazing!! That you can now get an idea of how great this band is without shelling out hundreds of dollars and dozens of hours is a wonderful thing. This album sheds tremendous light on just how good this band is. From their early lo-fi recordings to their recent experiments in larger studios with name producers, their songs shimmer with a brilliance cultivated by the band°s love of rock and pop. Impeccable sequencing and spot-on song selection make this the best mix tape of the year., even if it°s only one band°s songs. (Matador) 11. Thrice The Artist in the Ambulance (Island) 12. Pretty Girls Make Graves The New Romance (Matador Records) 13. Electric Six Fire If you can find me a more fun record made in the past year, please let me know. Outkast? Too spotty. Beyonce? Too pretty. The only ones that come close, the latest by Caesars and Millionaire, are listed below. (XL Recordings/Beggars Group) 14. Jet By Day Cascadia The greatest victim in the Telegraph-Kindercore merger/fallout in 2003 (in which Kindercore was bought by another company only to see their little label that could dismantled) was this album, by Athens band Jet by Day. Finally given a release, but with no promotional team to support it, the album was basically left up to the band to promote on tour. This is a tragedy as this is an album that deserves to be heard. Clever without being pretentious, adventurous yet highly listen-able, this album defies any immediate labels and shows all the signs of a band coming into their own. The songs are incredibly memorable, which owes as much to the tricky guitar parts as David Matysiak°s vocals. ¿This Quiet Hellî could be the unheard club hit of the year, while ¿Last Callî ranks up there as one of the best all-time late-night drinking songs ever, as poignant an attempt to convince a girl to stay for one more drink as you°re like to hear. This album is melodic enough for the indie kids, with guitar solos to please the harder-edged rock fans, a tremendous mixture that is equal parts melody and noise. Definitely reccommended for fans of the Pixies, Jawbox, Archers of Loaf, and probably even Thin Lizzy. This is melodic post-punk at its finest. (Kindercore) |
3. Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros Streetcore When Joe Strummer passed away of heart failure in December 2002, he left behind a legacy as one of rock and roll°s true heroes, a man whose life and music embodied Heart, Freedom, Introspection, and a true love for humanity, coupled with a willing ness to expose its flaws. He also left behind an album that was in the finishing stages. The second most remarkable thing about this album was that it was able to be completed in spite of the main songwriters° death. But with the blessing of Sturmmer°s wife, the Mescaleros holed themselves up in the studio and crafted the unfinished songs into a remarkably cohesive album. The most remakable aspect about this album is just how good the songs are. Undoubtedly his best solo album (and best album since his work on The Clash°s Sandinista). Streetcore is filled with song after song that demonstrates that Strummer was a true master of his craft. This album succeeds an impressive musical biography that takes us from Strummer°s days of busking, the straight-up punk of the first Clash album, to his discovery of reggae, dub, and rocksteady, his experimentation with dance beats world rythms, his love of country and early 1950s rock and roll. It has flow and is cohesive (unlike the previous solo efforts) and most importantly, the songs have really staying power. This is a wonderful final gift a truly great man½a man who will be missed. (http://www.strummersite.com; Hellcat/Epitaph) 4. AFI Sing the Sorrow After mining the depths of the punk rock scene for over ten years, AFI takes a stab in the majors with their first album since 2000°s brutally good The Art of Drowning. Legions of fans donned their black clothes and eyeliner to embrace their heroes once again. The question remains, ¿Is the hype justified?î Absolutely. If there°s a better-SOUNDING record in 2003 (notice I didn°t say ¿betterî), feel free to send it my way. Under the guidance of producers Jerry Finn and Butch Vig, AFI created one of the biggest sounding records in a long time. The guitars sound like their burrowing through your eardrums while the layered vocals at times feel like an attack by a swarm of vampires. The drums sound amazing. Even if one can°t stand the high-pitched vocals, one has to appreciate monstrous record they created; the these guys took the resources available to them for this record and batted the ball out of the park. The album continues at a frenzied pace with brilliant, brutal, and occasionally beautiful songs of loss, redemption, and introspection ¬ the lyrics often imply a search for a sense of belonging and meaning. The strength of this album is in its completeness. The band invites the listener into its world and takes her/him on a journey into its world. Strong from start to finish, this is a master work that should stand as one of the year°s classics. (Dreamworks) |
15. Blueline
Medic Text Bomb (Fueled
By Ramen) 16. The Lot Six Major Fables One of Boston°s best bands. Their third full length finds them hitting their stride, making an album that is simultaneously diverse and cohesive. Hopefully, their recent tour with the Distillers and the Explosion will help them gain national acclaim as one of the most captivating live bands around. Vicious guitar lines coupled with the tremendous ability to bend genres to suit their needs, all underlined with the tremendous heart and soul of the singers° vocals. (Tarantulas) 17. Caesars 39 Minutes of Bliss (In an Otherwise Meaningless World) (Astralwerks) 18. Alkaline Trio Good Mourning ´When you find something you like to do, why not continue..why mess with a solid formula?°, says Alkaline Trio on their fourth full-length record. Apparently, the band likes it°s Smiths-meets-Jawbreak attack just fine, thank you very much. They are also fond of incredibly well-written soliloquies comparing being in a relationship to being murdered (or murdering) in a somewhat CSI-esque fashion. No harm in that, they do it well, very well. Well enough that this record stand the test of about a dozen listens with no noticable loss in entertainment value. (Vagrant ) 19. Appleseed Cast Two Conversations (Tiger Style) 20. Millionaire Outside the Simian Flock (Play It Again Sam) 21. Give Up the Ghost We're Down 'til We're Underground (Equal Vision) 22. Idlewild The Remote Part (Capitol Records) 23. Cursive The Ugly Organ (Saddle Creek ) 22. Radiohead Hail to the Thief (Capitol Records) 24. Sense Field Living Outside (Nettwerk America) 25. Paper Lions The Symptom and the Sick (Kindercore) |
5. Jealous Sound, The Kill Them with Kindness In 2000, The Jealous Sound released one of the most impressive debuts of that year. And then came the wait. First their label was swallowed up and then they were neither able to put out another record nor find another home. Thankfully, with a new label and the aid of a first-rate producer (Tim O°Heir), these songs are now available to the public. The Jealous Sound has retained much of the soft-loud dynamic that is present on the self-titled EP, but they°ve expanded their sound to include samplers and keyboards on few tracks. To grasp how far this band has come, one only has to compare the version of ¿Anxious Armsî to the version on the EP. You get the feeling that this is a band in the midst of creating something really wonderful. These are powerful and poignant songs that sound like little else around at present. The quiet songs are devastatingly heartbreaking, the rock songs just outright slay. Singer Blair Shehan (ex-Knapsack) is at the top of his game on this record, writing songs that convey an extremely high level of emotional depth while still maintaining a punch. And the rest of the band steps up as well; the combination of Pedro Benito (Sunday°s Best)°s guitar lines, John McGinnis° bass parts, and Tony Palermo (Pulley)°s drumming create a formidable presence that serve the songs well, creating a big sound that envelopes Shehan°s melodies like a glove. Impressive. (Better Looking) 6. The Fire Theft s/t Anyone that regarded the demise of Sunny Day Real Estate as premature (i.e. anyone who ever heard the band), will find this album to be a very welcome return. The Fire Theft is comprised of 3/4 of SDRE and their self-titled debut marks a very welcome return to recording for singer Jeremy Enigk (Nate Mendel is currently a member of The Foo Fighters and drummer William Goldsmith also did a stint in The Foo Fighters in the days following SDRE°s breakÜup.) This album is comprised of a series of grandiose and epic songs that wrap the listener like a ray of sunlight. Anyone inclined to nay-say the reunion is likely to be dissuaded immediately as the album takes hold and buries the cynicism beneath its persistence. You almost can°t help but love these songs.. Dramatic as it sounds, the album is remarkably refreshing anecdote to the negativity so pervasive in modern music. Without a doubt, they are the strongest lyrics and songs that the members have written. Dare to hope, Enigk seems to be saying, with every plaintive cry. It°s a bold examination of the inner core, coupled a constant hope for humanity despite harrowing circumstances. A master work from one of rock°s great groups. (Ryko) 7. Superchunk.com" target="_blank">Superchunk Cup of Sand Superchunk is a band that has prided itself on giving fans a constant stream of singles and EPs both in conjunction with and in between full-lengths. That these odds and ends rank among their best work is somewhat unfortunate as it tends to weed out all but the most devoted of fans. But now the band has delivered up a rather tasty appetizer of singles and b-sides in a sequence so strong it sounds better than most band°s full-lengths. Not just for previous fans, this release offers up some of Superchunk°s best songs, including ¿The Majestic,î ¿Her Royal Fisticuffs,î ¿Never Too Young to Smoke.î Particular favorites include the poignant ¿Does Your Hometown Care?î , the eloquent ¿Bassement Life,î and the epic ¿The Mine Has Been Returned to Its Original Owner.î If the first half of the first disc on this double CD doesn°t convince you that this is one of the best bands ever, then it°s time to head back to school. (Merge) |
HONORABLE MENTION Heavenly States s/t (Future Farmer) Slowride Building A Building (Deep Elm) V/A Swami Sound System ¬ Vol. 1: 2003 Sales Conference If you°ve been missing out on the great rock and roll coming from the Swami°s cave, here°s your chance to catch up. Forget your kings, princes, and president thieves½all hail the Swami!!! (Rumor has it that the Swami is in fact John Reis of Rocket from the Crypt, Hot Snakes, and The Sultans, but the Swami is never seen, only heard on the radio waves around San Diego). The Swami has put together a pretty tasty slab of compact disc material here, from the dirty grooves of dirty rock bands The Husbands and The White Apes to the Testors° surf-punk to the methodic hardcore of Loincloth to the party sounds of Beehive and the Barracudas to the vicious rock and roll riffs of Hot Snakes and The Sultans. The standout songs here are Dan Sartain°s ¿P.C.B. ´98î and Rocket from the Crypt°s ¿California Lights,î inspired by the action of citizens living near the border of California and Mexico, who ¿rallied around a hole in the border fence with their car headlights directed towards this weakness in our national security.î About half of these songs are exclusive to this compilation while others appear on other Swami Records releases. (Swami) Von Bondies, The Raw and Rare (Dim Mak) Milwaukees This is a Stickup (Boss Tuneage) Bad Brains Banned in DC: Their Greatest Riffs (Caroline) Tokyo Sex Destruction Le Red Soul Communitte This is a pretty hot dose of garage-y rock and hyped-up soul. Definitely the best band I°ve heard out of Spain. Clean production and tight riffs makes this an album that stands up to repeated listening, rare for this type of music. These kids have every right to their place alongside (International) Noise Conspiracy, the Dirtbombs, and the Hives. The leftist nature of the lyrics and the adopted last name of Sinclair (presumably after White Panther Party leader John Sinclair) that all the band members claim will lead to MC5 comparisons, but that°s okay since this band rocks! (Dim Mak) Hey Mercedes Loses Control (Vagrant ) Communiquÿ A Crescent Honeymoon EP In 2001, American Steel released its finest album, Jagged Thoughts. Any comparisons that were made to The Clash or Rancid or Avail at the beginning of the band°s career had evaporated into something more substantial as Jagged Thoughts showed a heightened sense of songwriting. Unfortunately, the band broke up the next year. Communiquÿ features Rory Henderson and Ryan Massey teaming up once again on vocals and guitars with a new rhythm section. In some senses, A Crescent Honeymoon seems like the logical extension of some of the more poppy moments from Jagged Thoughts, but with a much-more present 80°s pop jones. Love songs that are as clever as they are catchy, ¿Cross Your Heartî and ¿Ugly Moonî are must-hear tunes for any fans of intelligent pop. (Lookout! Records) |
8. Nada Surf Let Go Nada Surf returned with a bang in 2003, selling out NYC°s Bowery Ballroom in the midst of one of a snowstorm that crippled New York. They opened that show with ¿Blizzard of ´77î which brought a giant smile to the crowd that trudged through twenty-six inches of snow to see hear songs from Let Go. Let Go is one of those records that anyone can find a song to like. They°re songs that reek of honest expression of human emotions½of doubt, of longing, of love. And occasionally they hit home so strongly that you can feel the goose-bumps forming on the back of your neck. (Barsuk) 9. Crooked Fingers Red Devil Dawn Finally! A Crooked Fingers album that stands up to expectations! Songs written from the depths of the heart about characters as well-drawn as nearly any of Bruce Springsteen°s or Neil Young°s (two clear influences on the sound of Crooked Fingers). This album gives back more with each listen, which is very refreshing in the modern age. Dear Mr. Bachmann, I knew you had in you and I°ve been waiting½I hadn°t written you off, but damn, was I close. Thanks for this! Thanks for the songs, sir½thanks for this album! (Merge) |
Kid Dynamite Cheap Shots, Youth Anthems (Jade Tree) Small Brown Bike The River Bed (Lookout! Records) Enon Hocus Pocus (Touch and Go) Hero Pattern Cut You Out One of the best up and coming bands. Energetic rock with plenty of punch at the right moments. And a couple of sicky-sweet slower tunes. Parts of this will appeal to fans of Superchunk, Thin Lizzy, Get Up Kids, Superdrag, Hot Rod Circuit, and Ultimate Fakebook. (Lonesome) Soundtrak s/t (Ace Fu) Motion City Soundtrack I am the Movie (Epitaph) |
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