Table Of Contents:
- Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not
- Arctic Monkeys – Who The Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?
- Audioslave – Revelations
- Clipse – Hell Hath No Fury
- Deftones – Saturday Night Wrist
- The Flaming Lips – At War With The Mystics
- Iron Maiden – A Matter Of Life And Death
- The Killers – Sam’s Town
- The Mars Volta – Amputechture
- Muse – Black Holes And Revelations
- Red Hot Chili Peppers – Stadium Arcadium
- Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam
- Slayer – Christ Illusion
- Tenacious D – The Pick Of Destiny
- Thom Yorke – The Eraser
- TOOL – 10,000 Days
Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not
A band of lads from Sheffield become overnight legends through internet word of mouth.
If The Strokes’ Is This It was the defining American rock album of the 2000s, then Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not was the U.K.’s equivalent.
Becoming overnight sensations from word of mouth buzz and the online sharing of their now famous Beneath The Boardwalk demo, Arctic Monkeys were the next big thing and one of the first major bands to become famous from the internet.
Inspired by The Strokes, WPSIATWIN chronicles the lives and experiences of male British youth (in lieu of American), and the experiences young men encounter, in their community, nightclubs and relationships.
The album begins with the all-out assault of The View From The Afternoon, which demonstrates Matt Helders’ abilities on the drums, the northern English vocals and mannerisms of Alex Turner and has some killer call and response type guitar interplay between Turner and other guitarist Jamie Cook.
I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor was an unlikely mega hit, considering how heavy and punkish it is, but the early to mid 2000s was as time of guitar rock revivalism. After the late 90s struggled with a dull, post-grunge and boy band landscape (minus some exceptions like Radiohead, Pavement and Foo Fighters), music listeners were hungry for raw, aggressive rock music, the exact type that the Strokes, Queens Of The Stone Age and now Arctic Monkeys were bringing to the table.
Fake Tales Of San Francisco expels the scorn of Turner, with his glare directed at chronic liars who will tell any fib to feign being the most interesting guy in the room. Dancing Shoes details Turner’s frustrations with club girls acting shocked that men want to take them home, even though they likely went there with the intention of meeting said men and getting laid.
You Probably Couldn’t See For The Lights But You Were Staring Straight At Me wins the award for the longest title on the album and is as excellent as its title is long. Still Take You Home deals with an ever-so cynical Alex, who acknowledges how vain and conceited most girls are at the club, and despite the fact that he finds them repulsive on the inside, he still can’t take his eyes away from them and wants to take them home with him.
Riot Van is a change of pace from the rest of the album, slowing things down into more subtle territory and tells the tale of troublesome teenagers on the run from the police for underage drinking and mischief. Red Light Indicates The Doors Are Secure, is driven by a groovy bass line courtesy of Andy Nicholson and recounts yet another tale from the nightclub, this time when some other guy comes along to steal the girl you’ve been trying to flirt with all night.
Mardy Bum is named after an English slang term for a moody person, who, no matter what you try, won’t allow themselves to smile. In the context of this song, its about a lover, who despite everything the narrator does, only focuses on the negatives of the relationship, being quick to argue, but never to love. Perhaps Vampires Is A Bit Strong But… sees a savage Turner calling out fake fans, who act like they are there to support you, but are (not so) secretly hoping you’ll fail.
When The Sun Goes Down is a story about an unsavoury character, a pimp, whose willing to put the lives and health of his girls at stake for his bottom dollar. From The Ritz To The Rubble brings things back to the nightclub, and has Alex Turner turning his loathing towards bouncers who will do refuse entry, not for any particular reason, but for the power trip it brings them.
A Certain Romance ends the album, with a song that summarizes the experience of being a young lad in Sheffield (or the country in general), without necessarily romanticizing it, nor condemning it, but just painting a picture as an observer — it’s the perfect ending to a perfect album.
WPSIATWIN went on to become the fastest selling debut album in British history and with good reason. All 13 tracks are absolutely amazing works of art from young lads who were just barely out of school. Frontman and Alex Turner was wise beyond his years, and one of the greatest lyricists of his generation.
One of the greatest debuts, not just in modern history, but of all time.
100 / 100
Arctic Monkeys – Who The Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?
Arctic Monkeys capitalize on the hype and success of their debut LP, with a cheeky and fun EP.
Coming only three months after Arctic Monkey’s landmark debut, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, the extended play Who The Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys? brings four more killer tracks into the band’s canon.
The EP starts with The View From The Afternoon, which is a bizarre choice, considering that was the opener of their debut LP. I understand that this song was supposed to be the album’s third single (following I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor and When The Sun Goes Down), but in the context of this EP, it was a strange choice.
Cigarette Smoker Fiona is a banger of a track that was on the band’s legendary Beneath The Boardwalk demo, but didn’t make it onto their debut. Despair In The Departure Lounge is a tender ballad with nothing but Alex Turner’s voice and guitar — and yet, it’s still captivating. No Buses is a lighter track in the vein of their b-side Bigger Boys And Stolen Sweethearts, with more of an indie sound than their more punk rock styling of their debut album.
The title track provides a similar guitar sound to Fake Tales Of San Francisco and has Alex Turner standing by his and the band’s musical integrity (“But we’ll stick to the guns, don’t care if it’s marketing suicide, we won’t crack or compromise, your derisory divides, will never unhinge us”) and taking the piss out of the hype surrounding the band (as evident by the EP/song title).
A welcome addition to one of the greatest albums of the 21st century.
80 / 100
Audioslave – Revelations
Audioslave releases their third and final album.
Arriving only one year after Audioslave’s second album, Out Of Exile, Revelations sees the ex-Soundagrden and Rage Against The Machine supergroup continuing to make decent radio-friendly alternative rock
The title track is one of the band’s best singles, with it’s funky riff and classic Chris Cornell chorus. Original Fire is the sound of the band having lots of fun. Shape Of Things should appease fans of the band’s heavier side.
Revelations offers more of the band’s healthy blend of riffs from Tom Morello, a reliable rhythm section from Brad Wilk and Tim Commerford, and the vocal melodics of Chris Cornell, though there are fewer memorable songs here than on its predecessors. While Audioslave is far less exciting than either of the member’s previous bands, it’s still some of the better rock music you’ll find on radio stations in the 2000s.
70 / 100
Clipse – Hell Hath No Fury
Clipse avoids the sophomore slump.
The Thornton Bros’ debut release, Lord Willin’ was a solid album with banger songs like Grindin’, which displayed the brothers’ penchant for rapping about their previous life of coke-pushing, their larger than life boastfulness and The Neptunes’ (Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo) amusing production style.
On Hell Hath No Fury, the duo doubles down and ups the ante, crafting one of the best and most cocksure rap albums of the decade.
We Got It For Cheap may as well be the duo’s theme song, and starts the album off with a bang. Momma I’m Sorry revolves around an accordion sample and features Pharrell Williams’ warm, buttery vocals. Mr. Me Too takes things into a somewhat darker musical territory than the preceding tracks. Wamp Wamp (What It Do) is built on a foundation of steel drums, giving it an exotic and tropical sound.
An incredibly fun and varied rap album from the greatest brother duo in all of rap.
100 / 100
Deftones – Saturday Night Wrist
Deftones reach a near-breaking point as a band.
Saturday Night Wrist finds the acclaimed alternative metal band at war with each other, uncertain of if they’ll pull through or not. Despite this, there are some gems to be found here, amid the chaos and disorder.
Opener Hole In The Earth and its lyric of “I hate all of my friends”, describes the the state of the band perfectly and how frustrated vocalist Chino Moreno was with his bandmates. Cherry Waves is one of the band’s prettiest and most majestic songs. Mein features Serj Tankian of System Of A Down. U, U, D, D, L, R, L, R, A, B, Select, Start is an instrumental named after the famous Konami code. Pink Cellphone is one of the band’s most controversial songs, with a bizarre monologue from guest singer Annie Hardy, who rambles about why the British have such bad teeth (though the song would be significantly improved if that part was cut).
While it’s not the band’s greatest work, it’s still a strong album with some of the band’s most diverse songs and a fascinating insight into a band in turmoil.
90 / 100
Trivia: The cover art features a collage of various images from a 1970s adult film called Roxanna.
The Flaming Lips – At War With The Mystics
The Flaming Lips makes a return to a guitar-driven sound.
After releasing two back-to-back classics with The Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots comes At War With The Mystics, which sees the band return to a more guitar-centric sound, mixed in with their more modern production sensibilities that they (and producer Dave Fridmann) have become known for.
The opening one-two of The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song and Free Radicals (with its falsetto vocals) may seem a little tacky, but then again, this is the band whose first big hit was She Don’t Use Jelly. Despite this, both songs have their merit and fit in with The Flaming Lips’ style and canon.
Vein Of Stars is one of the band’s most beautiful and sublime songs, and one of their all time best, as is The W.A.N.D. — with it’s fuzzed out monster of a guitar riff. Another highlight is Pompeii Am Götterdämmerung, one of the band’s heaviest cuts, recalling the vibes of Pink Floyd’s 1971 track, One Of These Days.
At War With The Mystics may be lacking some of that extra little magic that made its two immediate predecessors such watershed moments, but it’s still one of the band’s best albums nonetheless.
80 / 100
Iron Maiden – A Matter Of Life And Death
Iron Maiden continues its resurgence in the 2000s.
Following Iron Maiden’s fantastic return to form, Brave New World, and the nearly as good Dance Of Death, A Matter Of Life And Death continues to see the metal icons enjoying their second life, with some of their best songs since the 80s.
The album begins with Different World, the shortest song on the album and an obvious choice for a single, though it was curiously released after The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg. These Colours Don’t Run, For The Greater Good Of God and Brighter Than A Thousand Suns are highlights, though the entire album is quite consistently strong.
It’s hard for anything new that Iron Maiden releases to top their legendary run of albums from the 1980s, but A Matter Of Life And Death is one of the albums that comes closest.
80 / 100
Trivia: A Matter Of Life And Death was intentionally left unmastered to reflect a more raw, live sound.
The Killers – Sam’s Town
The Killers ditch the post-punk, new wave sound of their debut for a darker, more rural, Springsteenian sound.
After the massive success of The Killer’s debut, fans were expecting Hot Fuss 2, but what they got instead was something more influenced by Bruce Springsteen rather than U2, The Smiths or New Order.
Although Sam’s Town was seen as a disappointment when compared to the hit-making Hot Fuss, it did still feature When You Were Young, which is easily on the level of any of the big singles they had previously released and may just possibly be their greatest song yet.
The mini epic of a title track has a frustrated Brandon Flowers criticizing the judgements of others that have been cast upon him. Read My Mind is a gentle and lovely ballad, where For Reasons Unknown is an all-out rocker. Uncle Jonny is perhaps the band’s heaviest song (in terms of music and subject matter) and details the drug addiction of the titular character.
Where Sam’s Town may be lacking in the immediacy and gargantuan hooks of its predecessor, it makes up for in boldness and its sense of adventure. The Killers. could have easily acquiesced and released the album that fans were expecting and hoping for, but the Flowers stuck to his guns and made the album he wanted to make; something I can never fault an artist for doing.
While it may have hurt The Killers’ popularity and slowed down some of the momentum of the band’s generation-defining debut, it gave me great respect for the earnest Brandon Flowers.
80 / 100
The Mars Volta – Amputechture
The Mars Volta ditches the art of Storm Thorgerson for Jeff Jordan.
Arriving only a year after Frances The Mute, Amputechture could have signalled some creative burnout for guitarist extraordinaire Omar Rodríguez-López and vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, but defies that notion with a strong continuation of the band’s idiosyncratic sound. John Frusciante also returns.
The original album cover was designed by Storm Thorgerson (of Hipgnosis), who had designed the artwork for De-Loused In The Comatorium and Frances The Mute, but the band instead chose the art of Jeff Jordan. Although Thorgerson nailed the first two covers, I agree with the band’s decision to switch artists, as Jeff Jordan’s artwork feels right for Amputechture.
Vicarious Atonement is a gentle opener, focused on atmosphere and feeling. Tetragrammaton is a ~17 minute-long, kinetic epic, with unpredictable time signature changes (even by the band’s standard) and bold musicianship that never lets the long runtime feel bloated. Meccamputechture and Day Of The Baphomets are both 11 minute epics that see some fantastic drumming from Jon Theodore, along with those Spanish flourishes that The Mars Volta is known for.
Asilos Magdalena is a stripped back acoustic track sung in Spanish — a welcome change of tempo and pace, after several tracks of pure chaos. Vermicide is the album’s shortest track, being the closest thing the album has to a conventional single, though the nine and a half minute-long Viscera Eyes ended up being released as a single instead.
Though it might not quite have attained the status of its predecessors, Amputechture is still a great record, that sees The Mars Volta doing what they do best.
80 / 100
Muse – Black Holes And Revelations
Muse inches closer towards a commercial sound, but without sacrificing their musical integrity
After releasing two modern classics with Origin Of Symmetry and Absolution, Muse continues their domination within the alt rock scene, sprinkling in some extra accessibility this time around.
The spacey and uplifting synth arpeggios of Take A Bow set the album off on a theatrical note, leaning heavily into the band’s bombastic Queen influences — but without going overboard either. Starlight sees the band at its poppiest yet (particularly with that piano riff), but without losing sight of what made fans love Muse to begin with. Supermassive Black Hole is one of the band’s sexiest songs and one of their most popular singles yet, even making appearances in nightclubs
However, the centrepiece of the album (or rather, end piece) is Knights Of Cydonia — a neo-spaghetti western epic with the defiant sing-along chant of “No one’s gonna take me alive, the time has come to make things right, you and I must fight for our rights, you and I must fight to survive!”. One of Muse’s all-time greatest tracks.
Black Holes And Revelations may fall slightly shorter of Origin Of Symmetry and Absolution, but it still continues Muse’s streak of great albums that started with Showbiz back in 1999.
80 / 100
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Stadium Arcadium
RHCP makes a double album...
If you thought Red Hot Chili Peppers albums were already long, then you’re in for a treat, because Stadium Arcadium is two hours of Chili Willi.
Dani California was an obvious choice for a lead single, though it has been accused of plagiarizing Tom Petty’s 1993 hit, Last Dance With Mary Jane. Snow (Hey Oh) is the Chili Peppers at their mellowest and has some of John Frusciante’s most impressive guitaring, with all those hammer-ons and pull-offs. Hump De Bump feels like the vintage, fun-loving, funked-up Chili Peppers of the 80s and early 90s — before they tried to ever act poignant. The title of She’s Only 18 is as hilarious as it is ironic, considering she was probably much younger than 18. The music for Readymade is some of the band’s grooviest; the lyrics are some of Kiedis’ worst.
The Rick Rubin production here isn’t great, but it’s still not quite as shit as it was on Californication, and Anthony Kiedis continues to be the worst part of the band. Seriously though, Flea, Chad Smith and John Frusciante have impeccable musicianship, and as someone who is not a huge RHCP fan, I can’t deny that. On their own, these three are next level, but the complete package of what a Red Hot Chili Peppers album is just doesn’t seem to do it for me the way something from, say, Queens Of The Stone Age, Deftones or Radiohead might.
There are some really good songs scattered across Stadium Arcadium, but it’s just such a feat of endurance for me to listen to 28 four minute songs from this band, but for RHCP fans, I imagine this is a favourite of many.
75 / 100
Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam releases their self-titled album.
Pearl Jam’s self-titled album finds the band sounding somewhat revitalized since their last album (2002’s Riot Act), with lots of upbeat rockers and few acoustic songs or ballads.
Life Wasted, World Wide Suicide and Comatose are all lively rock songs, with the type of positive energy that initially separated them from the far gloomier bands of the 1990s Seattle grunge scene. But, despite the album having a harder sound, there’s still a few relaxed moments, like on Parachutes, Inside Job and Gone.
Pearl Jam may not revolutionize the band’s sound or add anything new into their formula, but it’s a sign of good health from Seattle’s last remaining classic grunge band.
70 / 100
Slayer – Christ Illusion
Dave Lombardo returns to Slayer.
Following the release of their last truly classic album, Seasons In The Abyss, drummer Dave Lombardo had left Slayer and was soon replaced by Paul Bostaph. In this time, the band had navigated a changing metal landscape by experimenting with then popular nu metal (much to the chagrin of thrash metal fans).
From the disturbing artwork that’s reminiscent of the cover of Reign In Blood, to the old school thrash sound and the return of Dave Lombardo behind the drum kit, Christ Illusion feels like vintage Slayer — or at least South Of Heaven / Seasons In The Abyss era Slayer (they never topped Reign In Blood in speed or intensity).
It can be argued that the album is regressive by returning to a comfortable sound and aesthetic, but with a band like Slayer, just let them do what they do best.
80 / 100
Tenacious D – The Pick Of Destiny
Tenacious D’s releases their soundtrack to the movie of the same name.
Where Jack Black and Kyle Gass’ debut album as Tenacious D was the result of their short-lived, cult classic HBO TV series, The Pick Of Destiny sees the band aiming higher and entering the theatrical world.
Opening track Kickapoo is one of the duo’s most epic songs and features not only Meatloaf as Jack Black’s god-fearing, rock n roll-hating father, but Elf/Rainbow/Black Sabbath/Dio vocalist Ronnie James Dio as well. Classico sees a hilarious and vulgar reinterpretation of Bach. Master Exploder sees JB screaming like a banshee, over some killer guitar licks. Dude (I Totally Miss You) is the ultimate song for bromances. Beezleboss (The Final Showdown) has Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl playing Satan and being bested by JB and KG with their writing of best song in the world (which they forgot and wrote Tribute about). The Metal is one of the band’s heaviest songs and a genuinely great metal song.
As for the film, Tenacious D’s box-office bomb The Pick Of Destiny is one of the greatest music films ever made, with so many memorable cameos (Meatloaf, Ronnie James Dio, Dave Grohl, Tim Robbins, Ben Stiller); it is absolutely essential viewing for any metalhead. It’s a tragedy that this film performed so poorly (it barely made back half of its $20 million budget), but it will live on as a cult classic for years to come.
One of the greatest rock n roll soundtracks to one of the greatest and funniest rock n roll films of all time.
80 / 100
Thom Yorke – The Eraser
Thom Yorke releases his first solo album.
After six highly successful and influential Radiohead albums, Thom Yorke decided to branch off into solo territory, where he could indulge more in his electronic side, leaning more heavily into the realm of Aphex Twin, than what a recent project like Hail To The Thief would have afforded him.
The title track is one of Yorke’s best solo compositions, with a tasteful 8-bit outro. Analyse sounds like a holdover from the sessions of Radiohead’s Hail To The Thief that didn’t make the cut (that album was already quite full at 14 tracks). Atoms For Peace is a track that revels in its minimalism. Black Swan reminded me of an alternate take on his main band’s 2001 single, I Might Be Wrong.
While not quite as complex or layered as a Radiohead album, Thom Yorke still does a lot to make The Eraser an interesting album, despite the absence of his usual bandmates. Here, Yorke demonstrates just how crucial he is to their sound and experimental nature.
80 / 100
TOOL – 10,000 Days
TOOL continues and expands upon the sound of Lateralus.
The one downside to TOOL evolving so much between Ænima and Lateralus, was that it felt like the band had reached the pinnacle of their sound. They had perfected their progressive/alt metal style and that begged the question of, where do they go from here? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?
Named after the approximate amount of time it takes for Saturn to return to its position in orbit from when you were born (roughly 27 years), as well as the amount of time between vocalist Maynard James Keenan’s mother’s debilitating stroke and death, 10,000 Days deals with Keenan’s most personal lyrics yet.
The album boasts three of the band’s biggest singles, including Vicarious, a critique of people living vicariously through the news and the media, getting a sort of thrill from the pain and suffering of others. There’s also Jambi, a chunky, but emotional rocker named after the Peewee’s Playhouse character of the same name, and The Pot, which is perhaps the band’s most radio-friendly song they’ve ever released. Epics like The Wings For Marie suite, Right In Two and Rosetta Stoned are all phenomenal compositions that sound like you’ve taken mushrooms.
Although it doesn’t quite reach the heights set by the two preceding albums or shake up the band’s formula too much, 10,000 Days is still a triumphant album all the same.
90 / 100
FIN
Britain Chambers
