1. Funeral (Arcade Fire)
Genre: Rock
Year Released: 2004
Arcade Fire released their debut studio album, Funeral, in 2004 and since have gone on to dish out gems like Neon Bible, The Suburbs and Reflektor, making a name for themselves as album artists. In 2010 they were the first indie band to win the Grammy for Album of the Year for Suburbs, but, without a doubt, their best effort came on Funeral, an album that forces the listener to reflect on loss and life just as the dreaded ceremony does. This album is perfect and because of that, it is the decade's best.
Best Song: Wake Up
2. Is This It (The Strokes)
Genre: Rock
Year Released: 2001
This album was certainly the most buzzed-about album of 2001 and was the American punk-rock band's debut. Upon its release, music critics said they were they new Rolling Stones, but the thing that makes this album so great isn't it's "coming-of-age-ness", but rather it's just five dudes playing out of a garage, singing about the modern annoyances people go through, which is exactly what the genre's supposed to be. It's simple and it does it's job.
Best Song: Last Nite
3. Kid A (Radiohead)
Genre: Alternative Rock
Year Released: 2000
In most people's eyes, Kid A is the best album of the 2000's. For me, I'm just not able to say that because it was step-down from their previous album, released in 1997, OK Computer. I will say, however, that combined, the two albums are the greatest back-to-back albums ever released by a band. There isn't really a central narrative to the album, and there does need to be; Radiohead can do whatever they want. They're weird, their fans are weird, their music is weird.
Best Song: Everything in Its Right Place
4. In Rainbows (Radiohead)
Genre: Alternative Rock
Year Released: 2007
Coming off a four-year hiatus, Radiohead returned with In Rainbows, an album lead singer Thom Yorke describes as being the band's most intimate to date with themes of life's purpose and the obstacles humans go through to avoid dealing with their problems at hand.
Best Song: Reckoner
5. Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I Am Not (Arctic Monkeys)
Genre: Indie Rock
Year Released: 2006
Similarly to Arcade FIre and the Strokes, Arctic Monkeys have yet to release an album as good as their debut, which is a tall order seeing as though their debut was Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not. Written from a first person narrative, all the tracks revolve around the misconceptions one might get upon first impression and center around youths in the club scene.
Best Song: I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor
6. Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP (Eminem)
Genre: Rap, Hip-Hop
Year Released: 2000
On his third studio album, the Grammy-winning Rapper shed the layers of Eminem and Slim to let the world see him for the first time as his birth given name; Marshall. One of the most controversial albums of all time, this album is filled with personal narrative that leaves you feeling sympathetic for a guy, who on the surface, seemed, well, like a douche.
Best Song: Stan
7. The Blueprint (Jay-Z)
Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop
Year Released: 2001
There is no doubt Jay-Z was one the biggest rap acts of the 90's, releasing four albums in a span of four years including his debut smash, Reasonable Doubt. His most notable album to date, though, is his sixth studio album The Blueprint. At the time of it's release, Jay-Z was awaiting two criminal trials and in the midst of several feuds with other rappers in the music industry. This album tells that story.
Best Song: Izzo (H.O.V.A.)
8. Sound of Silver (LCD Soundsystem)
Genre: Dance
Year Released: 2007
James Murphy is one of the greatest songwriters of the modern generation. Known for satire and humor, Murphy ditched his old ways on Sound of Silver to create an album that leaves a devastating mark on it's listeners. There is still plenty of humor, don't worry, but this time it's used to bring the listener closer rather than distance them.
Best Song: All My Friends
9. Elephant (The White Stripes)
Genre: Rock
Year Released: 2003
Every single high school band has played their song, we've all heard it, and it came from this album. That song is "Seven Nation Army" and this is album is Elephant, an album that continues the band's ongoing love for that gritty, garage band sound and tackles the issue of a failed relationship. The duo of Jack and Meg White divorced in 2000, but remained good friends to release some of the best music of the decade.
Best Song: Seven Nation Army
10. Back to Black (Amy Winehouse)
Genre: R&B, Blues
Year Released: 2006
In 2007 she was unavoidable. That dreaded song "Rehab" was on every radio station, and she was on every tabloid, known as the bad girl, who quite frankly just didn't give ****. After listening to Back to Black, though one realizes this cigarette smoking, poofy haired, party girl has more to offer than what's on the surface. Oh, and "Rehab" is actually one for the ages. Pop radio is a dangerous thing.
Best Song: Rehab
11. The College Dropout (Kanye West)
Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop
Year Released: 2004
After helping Jay-Z produce a few albums to success, Kanye West opened his solo career with a trilogy of albums with title's revolving around school and education. The College Dropout is the first in the trilogy and reflects on life up to that point for West, a real-life college dropout who got A's and B's in high school but opted out of an education to pursue his dream of making music.
Best Song: Jesus Walks
12. Kala (M.I.A.)
Genre: Hip Hop
Year Released: 2007
M.I.A. became a worldwide sensation with her smash hit, "Paper Planes". From there all people had to do was listen to Kala and they were hooked. Named after her mother, the album is an ode to the single mother who raised her and tackles the issues working women go through to raise children on their own.
Best Song: Paper Planes
13. Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (PJ Harvey)
Genre: Alternative Rock
Year Released: 2000
Stories from the City, which was penned while filming a movie in New York City, differs sonically from the English Rocker's previous albums showing, perhaps, the growth and maturity of the same angry girl who penned "Down by the Water". Lighter in sound but certainly not depth, PJ Harvey is an absolute treasure and yet again offers something that is cheaper than therapy.
Best Song: This Is Love
14. The Black Album (Jay-Z)
Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop
Year Released: 2003
The Black Album was the eighth studio album and supposed to be the notorious rapper's last before retiring. The perfect capstone to go out on, Black was the ninth studio album in seven years for the Rapper and in spite of being a masterpiece, it's the Grammy-winner's third best of his career behind Reasonable Doubt (1996) and The Blueprint (2001). The legacy Jay-Z has created is unparalleled.
Best Song: 99 Problems
15. White Blood Cells (The White Stripes)
Genre: Rock
Year Released: 2001
The duo of Jack and Meg White scored big with their third studio album thanks to the stripped-down, rawer garage rock than on their prior albums. Nowhere near as known as Elephant, but probably just as good housing themes of love and betrayal. The duo would eventually split but would stay close to continue making music.
Best Song: Fell in Love with a Girl
16. Stankonia (Outkast)
Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop
Year Released: 2001
Coming off their highly successful Aquemini, which mostly deals with drug addiction, Stankonia tackles issues in the hip-hop world, with most of the album pointing out the genre's misogynistic point of view on the world. They also poke fun at the critics of hip-hop. Name a better rap duo, I'll wait.
Best Song: Ms. Jackson
17. Vampire Weekend (Vampire Weekend)
Genre: Indie Pop, Rock
Year Released: 2008
Vampire Weekend's self-titled, debut album revolves around the intricacies, or perhaps the foolishness of College campuses in the late 2000's. A group of Columbia University students, this New York pop/rock band created an album that's so unlike anything that's ever come before it.
Best Song: Oxford Comma
18. A Rush of Blood to the Head (Coldplay)
Genre: Rock
Year Released: 2002
Coldplay hit the scenes with Parachutes in 2000 and followed with it's little brother A Rush of Blood to the Head in 2002, which NME Magazine named as the Album of the Year. With themes surrounding human urgency and world politics of the time, this album somehow manages to string together a narrative utilizing both guitar and piano throughout, making it unforgettable.
Best Song: Clocks
19. Sea Change (Beck)
Genre: Rock
Year Released: 2002
Beck made headlines in 2015 for nabbing Album of the Year over Beyonce and the world went crazy. What people didn't know is that he is one of the greatest all-around musicians of all time and that award was long overdue. He doesn't miss here as he copes with the loss of his longtime lover and the tragedy of a relationship expiring.
Best Song: Lost Cause
20. Yankee Foxtrot Hotel (Wilco)
Genre: Alternative Rock
Year Released: 2002
This album is the Chicago-based rock group's best selling work and with reason. Wilco's record lebel refused to release their fourth studio album, forcing them to acquire the rights. They would later go on to stream the album for free on their website and, now, here we are. This album gets better with every listen.
Best Song: Jesus, Etc.
Top 20 Songs of the 2000's
1. Hey Ya! (Outkast)
2. 99 Problems (Jay-Z)
3. Seven Nation Army (White Stripes)
4. Crazy in Love (Beyonce ft. Jay-Z)
5. Paper Planes (M.I.A.)
6. Maps (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
7. Last Nite (The Strokes)
8. One More Time (Daft Punk)
9. Crazy (Gnarls Barkley)
10. Rehab (Amy Winehouse)
11. Take Me Out (Franz Ferdinand)
12. Stan (Eminem)
13. Get Ur Freak On (Missy Elliott)
14. Umbrella (Rihanna ft. Jay-Z)
15. Time to Pretend (MGMT)
16. Lose Yourself (Eminem)
17. Losing My Edge (LCD Soundsystem)
18. Wake Up (Arcade Fire)
19. Gold Digger (Kanye West)
20. Toxic (Britney Spears)
