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| NUMBER 10 The Presidents of The United States of America Love Everybody |
I've gone on about the wonderful subversiveness that comes with certain pop bands (plus or minus the punk). Love Everybody has always been a prime example. Some are quick to lump (no pun intended) this group in with laughable 90's flash-in-the-pan acts, like Hanson. I've always seen The Presidents as against the grain, considering what the tone of alternative rock was in the Seattle area. Love Everybody is not only the most consistent Presidents album, but full of clever dark-humored gems like the perverse "Drool At You".
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| NUMBER 9 Big D And The Kids Table How it Goes |
Around this time, I was calling Big D the best thing to happen to ska-punk since The Suicide Machines, thanks to songs like "Cutshow". While they've never quite been a total package band, in 2004, Big D was 80% there, and that's pretty damn good. How it Goes is an ambitious record. It's long as hell, with lots of well flowing interludes, and runs up and down all of their talents as a band. The sophomoric lyrics don't stop me from enjoying the energy and love Big D put into what is far and away, their best release.
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| NUMBER 8 Head Automatica Decadence |
With GlassJAw entering what would be a massive hiatus, Daryl Palumbo used what star power he had to somehow cut a record with the legendary Dan The Automator (Gorillaz, Deltron 3030). What resulted was a gaudy, hedonistic, cocaine frosted, future-disco fever dream. Dan's fun-loving flair is the perfect chaser to Palumbo's bite. Decadence proved to be lighting in a bottle, as Palumbo went on to nerf Head Automatica with a poor sophomore effort. At least we'll always have "I Shot William H. Macy".
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| NUMBER 7 John Frusciante Inside of Emptiness |
I don't remember how I discovered John Frusciante's solo career. I was never a Red Hot Chili Peppers Fan. Inside of Emptiness just ended up on my computer one day. What I do know is ever since then, I've been following his career. Always looking for something quite like this record, and never finding it. Inside of Emptiness is one of the most perfect combinations of hard hitting no nonsense rock, and dark heartbreaking introspection. Few rock songwriters get as naked as Frusciante does with "Look on".
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| NUMBER 6 Zazen Boys II |
In the same year as their debut, Zazen Boys completely flips the script on who they are and what they can do. I rarely ever take the time to review old albums, but always wanted to write one about Zazen Boys II in the form of a FAQ or an operations manual. At first, Mukai Shutoku's outlandish funk and hip-hop affections may make you laugh. His unflinching vocal aggressiveness may grate on your ears. Despite all that, it's some of the tightest jams of 2004. Stick with it long enough and you may even appreciate its surface-level absurdity.
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| NUMBER 5 Blonde Redhead Misery is A Butterfly |
This is the album that redefined Blonde Redhead. Their sound was once a bitter pill to swallow. On Misery is A Butterfly, it's a handful of pills with a bottle of hard liquor. A beautiful and oppressive sadness that never lets go until the very end. "Falling Man" is Blonde Redhead's second best song ever. Since Misery... Blonde Redhead has never even attempted to make music that doesn't have a certain tranquility to it.
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| NUMBER 4 Ted Leo And The Pharmacists Shake The Sheets |
In 2003, Ted Leo was an act that my friends would suddenly develop better things to do whenever he came to my town. The week Shake The Sheets were released, those same friends were practically banging down my door to inform me how amazing Ted Leo is. I'm not trying to tell a "...before it was cool" anecdote, I'm praising Shake The Sheets for being Ted's "breakout" album. He simplified his influences just enough to get attention, and spoke to people on a whole new personal level. I've seen people come to TL/Rx shows just to hear "Me And Mia", then leave.
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| NUMBER 3 塊Fortissimo魂 |
Anyone who knows me in real life usually first identifies me with video games. It's not a personality trait I try to show as an adult, but I guess I'm not so good at that. It wouldn't be that way though if not for one game - Katamari Damacy. That was the game that pushed me from just grabbing the 2 or 3 blockbuster titles a year, into hunting down rare indie art project games and joining online communities. A big part in falling in love with Katamari Damacy had to do with its soundtrack, which in itself catapulted me into Shibuya-kei fandom, and a whole new appreciation for bubblegum pop music in general.
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| NUMBER 2 Hot Snakes Audit in Progress |
Hot Snakes is my favorite punk band of all time. Audit in Progress somehow manages to be their most accessible album while also being the hardest-hitting. Its simplicity is some sort of mad genius. The first three songs are like being punched in the face, grabbed by the collar and shaken silly, and thrown down a flight of stairs (in that order). I'd love to go on about the next 9 tracks, but I'd totally break the nice clean formatting I have for this list.
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| NUMBER 1 Zazen Boys |
Like many, I followed Mukai Skutoku from his legendary punk-emo act, Number Girl. Zazen Boys is a much less straightforward affair, fully infusing itself with a traditional Japanese sound that Number Girl had only flirted with. On top of that is a whole lot of jazz and hip-hop influence. It's ambitious to the point of lunacy, and they still pull it off. Everything in this album is so special, as abrasive as it may sound. Even those two opening bass notes of "Si・Ge・Ki" give me goosebumps today. Like ZBII, this is a hard one to get into at first; but the point at which you "click" with it should come much sooner, by being a more serious sounding album. Make no mistake though, it's a stubborn one. So confident and deliberate in all of its rough edges. So unique that I can't think of anything more deserving of number one.
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