The 55 Best Albums of 2014 (12-22)

Lots of guilty pleasures on the list today.  And I may be the only one on the planet who liked the Foster the People album. Here are the 55 Best Albums of 2014 (12-22):

12.  Foster The People - Supermodel
13. Conor Oberst - Upside Down Mountain
14. Klaxons - Love Frequency
15. Spoon - They Want My Soul
16. Lana Del Rey - Ultraviolence
17. Gardens & Villas - Dunes
18. First Aid Kit - Stay Gold
19. Pure X - Angel
20. The War On Drugs - Lost In The Dream
21. The Sunshine Underground - The Sunshine Underground
22. FKA Twigs - LP1

  Buy these albums and more now!!!  

The 11 Best Songs By Spoon

Fun Fact:  Britt Daniel made his acting debut in an episode of Veronica Mars.  In the episode, he sang a karaoke version of Elvis Costello's "Veronica." Here are the 11 Best Songs By Spoon:

1. The Two Sides Of Monsieur Valentine (Gimme Fiction)
2. You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
3. Me And The Bean (Girls Can Tell)
4. Rhthm & Soul (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
5. The Way We Get By (Kill The Moonlight)
6. Out Go The Lights (Transference)
7. Sister Jack (Gimme Fiction)
8. I Summon You (Gimme Fiction)
9. Everything Hits At Once (Girls Can Tell)
10. Laffitte Don't Fail Me Now (Series of Sneaks)
11. The Book I Write (Stranger Than Fiction Soundtrack)

Buy Spoon's new album, They Want My Soul...now!   Don't forget to check out our blog's awesome new book The 111 Best Lists of the 2000s.  Available now!  (featuring Spoon)  

The Unknown: Spoon - Get Nice!

I had a good response from my fans picking up the Spoon album this week. You can still get it from my Amazon store although the $3.99 offer has ended.

So, as promised, I'm posting Spoon's very rare "Get Nice." A bonus CD of demos included on some copies of GAx5. But there's a catch. Sorta. I'm asking everyone to donate some money to the victims of the Haiti quake.

Below are FIVE ways to donate money to Haiti relief and get free music out of it. I'm asking everyone to please give something. You can only download Spoon's "Get Nice" if you donate. I'm not going to check and see...so it's on the honor system.

1. Music For Relief - This is a charity run by Linkin Park. Donate whatever you want...and in return you'll get a compilation of free music, featuring new tracks by LP, Dave Matthews, Slash, All American Rejects, Hoobastank, Lupe Fiasco, and more.

2. Paste Magazine - Again, donate what ever you feel comfortable doing and get access the Paste Vault, featuring over a hundred tracks (some rare) by artists like She & Him, Andrew Bird, Ben Folds, Emmylou Harris, Passion Pit, Jason Isabel, The Avett Brothers, Jayhawks, Low Anthem, String Cheese Incident, and many many more.

3. Hope For Haiti Now - This is the full concert from Friday's benefit show on TV. This will only run you $7.99. Featuring artists like Bruce Springsteen, Alicia Keyes, Justin Timberlake, Coldplay, Jay-Z, Dave Matthews, John Legend, Shakira, Sting, Bono & The Edge, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, and others.

4. WilcoWorld - Wilco is offering two full concerts for a $15 donation to Doctors Without Borders or Oxfam. Both shows are from 2009 and are pretty epic.

5. Eddie Vedder - My City of Ruins - Eddie's live cover of Bruce's song. Only .99 cents and it goes to Haiti relief.

Thanks for your support.

The 11 Best Songs By Spoon:

The death of the CD store is coming. But for the moment...many used CD stores are actually booming in business. The reason: everyone is turning to computer-based listening. They're uploading their CDs and then selling them off. And the used stores are reeping the benefits. As convenient as it is to buy an album online, there's something to be said for walking through the wooden aisles of a CD store. That musky smell hanging in the air. And finding that CD you've been looking for. Or even finding a CD you didn't know you wanted. Then, taking that treasure home. Listening to it while holding the case in your hands. Buying a CD made the purchase more personal. You were more indebted to it. You listened to it more...because you felt like you had to. And mostly, because that case made you feel like you owned a piece of the band. A tiny sliver. But it was your tiny sliver. And no matter the band, every purchase left you with that feeling of inclusion, even if the album sucked. It was a reliable feeling. There's something to be said for consistancy.

One of the last decade's most consistant bands (Spoon) kicks off the new decade with a sharp new album, Transference. It's only $3.99 at our store...but go buy it at a real store if you can.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Spoon:

1. The Two Sides of Monsieur Valentine (Gimme Fiction)
2. Rhthm And Soul (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
3. I Summon You (Gimme Fiction)
4. The Way We Get By (Kill The Moonlight)
5. Quincy Punk Episode (Series of Sneaks)
6. You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
7. Me and the Bean (Girls Can Tell)
8. Laffitte Don't Fail Me Now (Series of Sneaks)
9. The Beast and the Dragon, Adored (Gimme Fiction)
10. The Underdog (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
11. Jonathan Fisk (Kill The Moonlight)

Buy Spoon's new album, Transference! Only $3.99 this week!!

The Unknown: Spoon - And The Dish Ran Away

Last night I re-watched the first act to Full Metal Jacket. Easily one of the best first acts in a modern film. In fact, the first scene in the barracks may be one of the best scenes written for film...ever. The dialogue is so sharp, it would make Swearingen from Deadwood blush. As brilliant as this film is...when it comes to war films, it seems to never get the wide recognition it deserves. Rabid cinemaniacs adore it...but I can never understand why the mainstream tends to rank it low on the list.

This week sees the release of Spoon's new album Transference. A band who is very well respected...and loved by audiophiles...but never seems to get the mainstream recognition it deserves.

Below is a B-side collection of Spoon's rare tracks from the 00s. Not included are songs from EPs, digital singles, and Britt Daniel's solo work. But this should be everything else. Enjoy...and go buy the new album, you won't be disappointed.

Here is Spoon - And The Dish Ran Away:

1. The Book I Write
2. Carryout Kids
3. All I Got Is Me
4. It Took A Rumor To Make Me Wonder
5. Is This The Last Time
6. Decora
7. Well-Alright
8. Monkey Feelings
9. Shake It Off
10. Tear Me Down
11. Sunday Morning, Wednesday Night
12. Deep Clean
13. I Am The Key
14. In The Right Place The Right Time

Bonus Internet Track:

15. Telamon Bridge

Buy Spoon's new album Transference for only $3.99. That's nothing...that's less than a ringtone. And if I get a good response...I'll post Spoon's super rare demos album "Get Nice" at the end of the week.

The Next Best 111 Albums of the 00s:

I'm going to tease this out just a bit more before the reveal of the Top 11 of the decade. Until then, here are the runner-ups. Those who were good...but maybe...just not good enough.

The Next Best 111 Albums of the 00s:

1. ...And You Will Know Us - Source Tags & Codes
2. Aesop Rock - None Shall Pass
3. Against Me! - New Wave
4. Alicia Keyes - The Diary of Alicia Keyes
5. Animal Collective - Feels
6. Animal Collective - Sung Tongs
7. The Anniversary - Your Majesty
8. At The Drive-In - Relationship in Command
9. Band of Horses - Everything all the Time
10. Beck - Guero
11. Black Rebel Motorcycle - Black Rebel Motorcycle
12. Bob Dylan - Modern Times
13. Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake and It's Morning
14. Bright Eyes - Cassadega
15. Burial - Untrue
16. Cat Power - The Greatest
17. Cold War Kids - Robbers and Cowards (Hospital Beds)
18. Cursive - Happy Hollow
19. Cursive - The Ugly Organ (Sierra)
20. Damien Rice - O
21. Danger Mouse and Jemini - Ghetto Pop Life
22. Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse - Dark Night of the Soul
23. The Darkness - Permission To Land
24. Dashboard Confessional - The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most
25. Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism (The New Year)
26. Death Cab For Cutie - We Have The Facts and We Are Voting Yes
27. The Decemberists - Her Majesty
28. The Decemberists - Picaresque
29. Destroyer - Destroyer's Rubies
30. DJ Shadow - The Private Press
31. Drive By Truckers - Dirty South
32. Elliott Smith - Basement on the Hill
33. Explosions in the Sky - All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone
34. The Faint - Danse Macabre
35. FELT - A Tribute to Lisa Bonet
36. Fiona Apple - Extraordinary Machine
37. The Foo Fighters - There Is Something Left To Lose
38. Fugazi - The Argument
39. Girl Talk - Feed The Animals
40. Gogol Bordello - Gypsy Punks
41. Green Day - 21st Century Breakdown
42. Grizzly Bear - Yellow House
43. The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America
44. The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
45. Iron and Wine - Our Endless Numbered Days
46. Iron and Wine/Calexico - In The Reins
47. Jack Johnson - In Between Dreams
48. Jay-Z - Blueprint 3.0
49. Jay-Z - MTV Unplugged
50. Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins - Rabbit Fur Coat
51. Joanna Newsom - Ys
52. John Legend - Get Lifted
53. Kayne West - 808s and Heartbreak
54. The Klaxons - Myths of the Near Future
55. The Knife - Silent Shout
56. The Libertines - The Libertines
57. Lil Wayne - Tha Carter II
58. Loretta Lynne - Van Leer Rose
59. Lupe Fiasco - Food & Liquor
60. M. Ward - Post War
61. Manu Chao - Proxima Estacion
62. Mastodon - Leviathon
63. Matisyahu - Live at Stubbs
64. The Mars Volta - De-Loused in the Comatorium
65. Metallica - Death Magnetic
66. M.I.A. - Arular
67. Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
68. Missy Elliott - Miss E...So Addictive
69. Modest Mouse - The Moon And Antarctica
70. Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk
71. Morrissey - You Are The Quarry
72. Mr. Lif - I Phantom
73. Muse - Absolution
74. Nas - Hip Hop Is Dead
75. Neko Case - Fox Confesor Brings The Flood
76. The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
77. Okkervil River - Stage Names
78. Panda Bear - Person Pitch
79. Peter Bjorn and John - Writer's Block
80. The Polyphonic Spree - The Beginning Stages Of...
81. Q-Tip - Kamaal: the Abstract
82. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs For The Deaf
83. The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely
84. Radiohead - Amnesiac
85. Rilo Kiley - The Execution of All Things
86. Rodrigo y Gabriela - Rodrigo y Gabriela
87. Ryan Adams - Rock N Roll
88. Ryan Adams - Love Is Hell
89. The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow
90. The Shins - Wincing The Night Away
91. Santogold - Santogold
92. She and Him - Volume One
93. Sia - Colour The Small One
94. Sigur Ros - ()
95. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (The Ghost of You Lingers)
96. The Strokes - Room On Fire
97. The Strokes - First Impressions of Earth
98. Talib Kweli - Quality
99. Tapes and Tapes - The Loon
100. Tegan and Sara - The Con
101. Tool - 10,000 Days
102. Tool - Lateralus
103. Travis - The Invisible Band
104. TV on the Radio - Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes
105. U2 - How To Build An Atomic Bomb
106. Usher - Confessions
107. The Walkmen - Bows and Arrows
108. Whiskeytown - Pneumonia
109. The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan
110. The White Stripes - White Blood Cells
111. Wilco - The Album
     
     
     Buy The Best of the 2000s here.

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (23-33)

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (23-33):

23. The Shins - Oh, Inverted World (2001)
- Did you see Garden State? Enough said.

24. Outkast - Stankonia (2000)
- The only bad thing about this album is that it wasn't a double album.

25. The Killers - Hot Fuss (2004)
- Hands down the hardest rocking Mormons to ever come out of Las Vegas.

26. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver (2007)
- Album number 2 is louder, faster, stronger, bigger, braver, and better.
(New York I Love You)

27. The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (2002)
- A concept album that isn't a concept album. Would expect something from the Flaming Lips to make sense?
(Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots)

28. The Postal Service - Give Up (2003)
- Don't side projects usually suck?
(This Place Is a Prison)

29. Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III (2008)
- Just because you're short and ugly doesn't mean you can't make good music.

30. Kanye West - Late Registration (2005)
- Just because you're loud and obnoxious doesn't mean you can't make good music.

31. Spoon - Gimme Fiction (2005)
- Do these guy know how to make bad music? (Sister Jack)

32. Johnny Cash - American IV: Man Comes Around (2002)
- F.U. Trent Reznor.

33. Norah Jones - Come Away With Me (2002)
- Who ever thought sappy piano ballads could be so good?

Buy these albums now.

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (67-77)

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (67-77):

67. The Decembrists - The Crane Wife (2006) (Get it now for $5)
- Though Hazards was supposed to be Meloy's epic project, the Crane Wife may be the bands best collection to date. With fantastic songwriting that crossed epic 12 minute ecclectic compilations with blissfully Fleetwood Mac-influenced pop songs while pushing their sea shanty style to the forefront, the band delivered an album that made them popular while keeping their indie cred intact. (The Perfect Crime #2)

68. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere (2006)
- Was it hip-hop? Was it electronic? Was it R&B? Was it rock n roll? What made this album so spectactular was that it was a little bit of everything...and a Violent Femmes cover that outperforms the original (IMO) never hurts.

69. El-P - Fantastic Damage (2002)
A blast of fire from the hip-hop underground came from a white guy. A new voice would break ground that is still forming the hip-hop world today. Though he keeps shaping his more recent albums in new directions...it was his first that fired the bullet from the gun.

70. Spoon - Girls Can Tell (2001)
- When Spoon jumped to Merge...half their fans left them for selling out. (And that's a hardcore fanbase who thinks Merge is selling out) But Spoon made a massive jump not just in audience but in style and substance. This album rocketed them upward as a band that now needs to be reckoned with. (Me and the Bean)

71. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend (2008)
- Anytime a band's album is traded on the internet months before it comes out...there's a chance it will be good. Though this album lost some music snobs as it found itself featured on every teeny-bopper movie and TV show soundtrack, it remained one of the most talked about albums of that year....with no signs of slowing.

72. Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand (2004)
- As of January, FF was not on this list. But their new releases has really given them a newfound boost of respect and influence. The has-beens are now the right now...and are making us remember that they never left.

73. Ryan Adams - Cold Roses (2005)
- Ryan's Grateful Dead opus was the first of 50 albums he released that year...and maybe his best with the now defunct Cardinals. The Dead style perfectly suited RA's talents that remains fresher than some his newer material. (How Do You Keep Love Alive?)

74. Radiohead - Kid A (2000)
- Maybe I'm the only one who doesn't get this album's popularity. It might be my least favorite Radiohead release. But this album was the one that made them the household name...and trendsetters that they are today. (Idioteque)

75. M.I.A. - Kala (2007)
- Would Slumdog millionaire have been electric with out M.I.A.? Would the Grammy's have been as exciting without her pregnant belly? And would the world of have dance survived with out her?

76. Eminem - The Eminem Show (2002)
A step-down from the epic Marshall Mathers...but still proof that Eminem was no flash in the pan. His rhymes remained crisp as he continued ripping apart his own life and those around him.

77. Linkin Park - Meteora (2003)
- Before you start bashing me for this choice. How many nu-metal bands survived? how many continued/continue to sell to this day? Linkin Park just didn't out-last the others...they pushed forward. This album wasn't just proof of their songwriting at its peak...it was also the album that launched them into rock stratosphere. And if not for this album...the collab with Jay-Z would have never legitimized mash-ups as we know.

Buy these albums now...especially if you don't have them.