Tag Archives: 2000-2009

The Top Five Rock Artists of the Decade (2000s): NUMBER FIVE is Green Day

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This is the first in a five part series dedicated to the top five rock artists of the decade, 2000-2009.  The criteria used to determine this list were: (1) Quality of Music, (2) Quantity of Released Material, (3) Diversity of Media, and (4) Roles of Artists/Band Members.  Look for new posts coming soon!

By Chris Moore:

The fifth entry on this list, Green Day is a strong candidate for top band of the decade, if only for their impressive return to the forefront of popular punk/rock music over the past ten years.  Even in their heyday, Green Day did not acheive the recognition that they have in the past six years. 

Who could have predicted that a trio of ostensible knuckleheads like Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tre Cool would be headlining the concept album revival in the mid-2000’s, complete with a rock opera/musical adaptation set to the tunes of American Idiot?

[Is that the sound of crickets?]

PAST SUCCESS

Without argument, Green Day was one of the most successful bands of the nineties rock revival, carving out their reputation by way of the punk rock genre.  It was a bit of an exaggeration to have titled their best-of disc International Superhits!, but their music did appear on many different charts in many different nations over their first decade as a band. 

And, for better or for worse, if you turned on a radio in the nineties and listened long enough, you couldn’t avoid hearing songs like “When I Come Around” or especially “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life).”  The latter was the song that ER character Jeanie Boulet chose to sing at the funeral of a friend. 

When one of the most popular dramas of the decade chooses your song at the peak of their own popularity, that’s saying something…

WARNING AND A LOW POINT

Which brings us to THIS decade.  I would be hard-pressed to find another group from the nineties in their genre that have had such staying power as Green Day.  Bad Religion?  Not so much.  Chumbawamba?  A one hit wonder.  The Offspring and Rancid?  Well, they’re still around, but they certainly haven’t acheived the mainstream success that Green Day has. 

That is, if you discount Warning, their first studio album of the decade.

Any way you look at it, Warning is a low point in their career, failing to ascend the charts, make sales, and receive positive reviews in the characteristic manner that their previous albums had.  Two years after Warning, things weren’t looking any better with them supposedly “co-headlining” a concert tour with Blink 182, but actually opening each night. 

This all amounted to a great deal of evidence that Green Day had peaked and this was their descent into obscurity.

A SETBACK BECOMES A COMEBACK

As they returned to the studio to work on their next album, Cigarettes & Valentines, things weren’t looking any brighter.  Near the end of their sessions (according to Armstrong), the master tapes were stolen.  There weren’t even rough mixes remaining.

So, what does this band decide to do in a moment of crisis?

Start from scratch.

That’s right: Green Day decided to start from scratch.  Although a song or two from the aforementioned doomed album would make its way into live sets, the band started over, taking this as an opportunity to approach their new album from a different angle.  So, they broke out their guitars and began writing, working together in new and better ways than they had before. 

The result?  Only their most critically acclaimed, highest-selling album to date, American Idiot.

AMERICAN IDIOT & 21ST CENTURY BREAKDOWN: A CONCEPT ALBUM REVIVAL

Green Day’s mentality following the loss of their master tapes brings to mind Conan O’Brien’s final lines from his closing statement last month on The Tonight Show: “Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen.”

You think?

I’ll just come out and say it: I’ve never been a big fan of American Idiot.  I think I’ve missed something in the translation of the lyrics, and I’ve been told that the at-times-boneheaded lyrics that I am turned off by are, in fact, purposefully constructed in order to make a statement about the average American.  Perhaps.  What makes me believe this is true, and what makes me nod my head in American Idiot‘s direction even if it won’t appear on my iPod any time soon, is that the album is so carefully constructed.  One flip through the CD booklet will reveal an overarching concept, artwork, and other notes that were cleverly compiled and arranged to create a whole that is stronger than the parts.  I won’t go comparing it to the first seven records of the Moody Blues — the industry standard for excellent concept albums — but I will say I have great respect for the band’s intentions.

Their follow-up album?  21st Century Breakdown is an even more expansive concept album that tackles the question: What will we do when our national slogan can no longer be “Change We Can Believe In,” and must instead be (hopefully) “Change That Has Already Taken Place and A Society That We Are Happy With”?  This is an interesting question indeed, particularly for those of my generation who defined their coming of age by being in opposition to all that George W. Bush’s presidency represented.  As we “graduate” into a different, potentially better society in 2012, what will we do to avoid the pitfalls of the previous presidency and its perspectives? 

A mere year into Barack Obama’s term in office, we have already begun tackling the question: How long is too long to wait for that change we believed in?  Some are patient, some are less so, but 21st Century Breakdown makes an interesting statement on these essential questions, particularly on an emotional/intuitive level.

SIDE PROJECTS AND ADAPTATIONS

Amidst all this standard studio album work, Green Day has also been able to thrive in a number of different ventures outside of traditional band output.  They have released a Billboard Top Ten live album, a platinum-status greatest hits compilation, a B-sides/rarities collection that broke the Billboard Top Thirty, and worked their way into the retro market by preparing a Green Day vinyl box set.

Outside of the band, Armstrong, Dirnt, and Cool have formed such side projects as The Network and the Foxboro Hot Tubs, both successful to different degrees and certainly indicative of a band hungry to record, produce, and play new music in a prolific manner. 

Then there is the rock opera/musical based on the story told through American Idiot, certainly a unique addition to any band’s list of tributes.

And so, at decade’s end, Green Day has reasserted themselves in what can only be described as an impressive manner.  It took me until 21st Century Breakdown to really appreciate their work, and I can only hope that the coming decade will be every bit as successful in terms of not only popularity but also quality!

(#11-20) – The 50 Best Rock Albums of the Decade, 2000-2009

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By Chris Moore:

I’m glad you’ve decided to tune in once again for what is the penultimate segment of the Weekend Review’s list of “The 50 Best Rock Albums of the Decade, 2000-2009.”  As we draw nearer and nearer to the top picks of the past ten years, I’ve found myself returning to not only the music on this list, but also to the all-time great albums in rock music history.  I just wrapped up a rotation of the Beach Boys’ 1971 classic Surf’s Up, and I continue to stand in awe of the variety, the flow, and the conceptual focus of this record.  Decades have passed, but the excellence of this album has not.

As I’ve compiled this list, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, specifically wondering which albums that I love now will be the ones that I will dial up in years to come.  Which albums will I play ten, twenty, thirty years from now and still experience the same emotions as I listen?  For that matter, which albums will offer up new insights and feelings, even after double or triple digits worth of plays?

With all this in mind, I present to you my #11-20 albums of the 2000’s.  Don’t forget to hurry back tomorrow for not only the top ten list, but also the full Weekend Review article about the Number One Best Rock Album of the Decade.

11) Room For Squares (2001) – John Mayer: John Mayer didn’t develop the respect of the critics until after this record, specifically after going through a blues phase wherein he jammed with a number of highly authentic and credible singers and guitarists.  What seemed out of place to me was the order of events — shouldn’t the roots apprenticeship come before an artist develops his own unique and entertaining style?  Well, in this case, Room For Squares established Mayer as a writer of catchy pop music that had a backbone.  It’s all in the subtle details here, the guitar stylings and the recurring lines that repeat across multiple songs.  The packaging further suggests that this was a well thought out and executed album, one of the best of the decade.

12) Chaos and Creation in the Backyard (2005) – Paul McCartney: As he did with his great 1997 album Flaming Pie, McCartney took on nearly all of the instrumental duties for this record, and the result is another excellent addition to his catalog.  And, if we’re being entirely honest, McCartney is known for his tremendous success post-Beatles, if perhaps not so much for his outstanding albums.  And yet, Chaos and Creation in the Backyard is one of the two McCartney works to make this list.  It’s simple, really: great acoustic fingerpicking, great drums, and overall great songs make for a great album.

13) Mind If We Make Love To You (2002) – The Wondermints: Better known as the core of Brian Wilson’s talented backing band throughout this decade, the Wondermints deserve as much, if not more, appreciation for their own work.  They somehow managed to be strongly influenced by the Beach Boys while avoiding being entirely derivative, instead carving out their own beautiful, upbeat brand of power pop.  Mind If We Make Love To You is truly their masterpiece; it is catchy without being annoying, and it manages just the right balance between a classic and a contemporary sound.  Not as easy to find as a Brian Wilson or Beach Boys album on the shelf, but well worth the extra effort.

14) Love and Theft (2001) – Bob Dylan: Released on September 11, 2001, this album was immediately read as an apocalyptic sequence of songs that felt like the soundtrack — some sort of oddly real-time soundtrack — for the greatest national tragedy of the decade.  I’ll admit that there were some lyrics that were difficult to ignore, especially the reference to twins falling down — but the context is all off, as the twins are the bumbling Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, not buildings.  Still, Love & Theft came on the heels of Dylan’s 1997 “comeback” album and, with the easy “comeback” tag no longer available, critics were likely looking for a lens through which to view this album.  Nearly a decade later, forget the 9/11 lens, and you are left with an outstanding album, easily one of Dylan’s best.  And this is saying quite a bit if you consider even his sixties albums alone.  Some of his last true rock and roll is documented on this record, and even the more folky, dated sounding styles shine in all their glory, tight instrumentals and raw vocals driving all the pieces together.  Listen to “Mississippi” and try not to be hooked.  Even better, try “Honest with Me.”  If you can resist loving these tracks, you should probably recalibrate your tastes in great rock music.

15) Everything To Everyone (2003) – Barenaked Ladies: Even the tracks that make you shake your head when you really think about them are fun and add to the feel of this excellent album.  That is perhaps the best, most true statement I can make for Everything to Everyone, an album that manages to hit on all the major types of songs — happy songs, sad songs, protest songs (of sorts), love songs, post-breakup songs, and more.  The aforementioned “Another Postcard” and “Shopping” are the standout tracks that demonstrate the Barenaked Ladies’ singular ability to successfully walk the line between ridiculous and outstanding.  The true standouts are songs like “Celebrity” and “War on Drugs” for those that like serious, thoughtful lyrics, “For You” for those who love beautiful acoustic numbers, or perhaps “Testing 1, 2, 3” and “Second Best” for those that prefer downright fun rock music.  The sound is unsurpassed on any of their albums, before or since, and I can’t fully describe how much it feels like home to return to this album and let it play through time and again.

16) Welcome Interstate Managers (2003) – Fountains of Wayne: Rarely has a band produced one album with so wide a variety of styles represented and yet still maintained form and focus.  From the eighties pop-rock of “Stacy’s Mom” to the hard rock of “Bought For a Song” and back to the straight up country stylings of “Hung Up on You,” Fountains of Wayne have created their masterpiece — at least for now — in this album.  Preceded by solid if somewhat pedestrian records and followed by a lame attempt at either humor or conceptual continuity, Welcome Interstate Managers is one of those albums that feels like a greatest hits collection in that each track begins with a catchy, memorable part that keeps your interest.  And, by the time the pretty yet somber “Yours and Mine” fades out, it is the rare occasion when I can control the urge to crank the volume up further for “Mexican Wine” again.  This is one of my favorite albums of the decade, and I’m truly indebted to the friend who turned me on to it so many years ago.

17) Accelerate (2008) – R.E.M.: My purchase of Accelerate last year set me off on a quest to find other great R.E.M. albums.  I’ve steadily, if randomly, been acquiring their studio albums (as well as a really quirky B-sides and rareties collection) and my reaction has been the same with each: it’s not Accelerate.  This is an album that finds Michael Stipe at the top of his lyrical game, putting his gritty vocal chords to perfect use on these wonderfully subversive songs.  Track after track, this is one of the most underrated rock albums of the decade and, thus far, my pick for the best overall album in the R.E.M. catalog.

18) Memory Almost Full (2007) – Paul McCartney: The second of McCartney’s two excellent albums this decade.  Two years after Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, McCartney had returned to the studio with more energy and electricity than he had brought on perhaps any previous record.  One listen to “Mr. Bellamy” will demonstrate just how willing he was to experiment with more modern forms of rock music as well.  Speaking as a big fan of Paul McCartney’s work throughout his career — yes, even including Wings! — this was a stronger, more fun and rocking album than I could ever have hoped for.  Even if you don’t like his music, it’s worth buying this album just to play with the multi-layered packaging…

19) SMiLE (2004) – Brian Wilson: Nearly four decades after the SMiLE sessions crumbled around Brian Wilson’s mental decline, he returned with a final sequencing of songs that, as a whole, added up to much of the not inconsiderable hype and legend surrounding this album.  Click HERE for my full review.

20) Maladroit (2002) – Weezer: Crunchy guitars and catchy vocals drive the most tightly composed music in the Weezer catalog.  And, in many ways, Maladroit is the pinnacle of Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo as a guitarist and as a songwriter.  It caused a great deal of debate among fans, and I think it is apparent where I fall in — strongly on the side of reading this album as one of the best, not only of the band but of the decade.

The Top Five Rock Artists of the Decade (2000s): NUMBER ONE is Wilco

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This is the final in a five part series dedicated to the top five rock artists of the decade, 2000-2009. The criteria used to determine this list were: (1) Quality of Music, (2) Quantity of Released Material, (3) Diversity of Media, and (4) Roles of Artists/Band Members. There was stiff competition, but here goes…

By Chris Moore:

And coming in at number one on our Top Rock Artists of the Decade list are none other than Jeff Tweedy, John Stirratt, Glen Kotche, Nels Cline, Mikael Jorgensen, and Pat Sansone…

…better known as Wilco!

Before I get to writin’ below, I would be remiss if I didn’t note just how close a battle it was between this band and my pick for number two, the Barenaked Ladies. Now, I know what you might be thinking. The Barenaked Ladies and Wilco referenced so closely? Well, the truth is that they have both distinguished themselves as prolific writers, performers, and album-makers in a decade when more and more people are allowing those oh-so-frustrating, defeatist sentiments:

They just don’t make music like they used to…

There really isn’t any band making great music/albums anymore…

Well, it’s simply not true!

Wilco had to take the top spot on this list for a number of reasons, not the least of which being what a memorable decade this was for the band. It was, after all, the ten year span that kicked off with them being kicked from their label after the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot sessions, the release of which would go on to skyrocket them as close to the mainstream as they’ll probably ever come.

You know what they say: out of the alt country genre dead-end and into the fire. (Isn’t that what they say?)

Several key personnel changes at the turn of the millennium notwithstanding, Wilco’s lineup stabilized by A Ghost is Born, and they have since created some of the most interesting and engaging rock music available — certainly of this decade, and very likely of all time.

While internet-fueled music piracy was threatening the entire system by which the industry functions, Wilco was busy pioneering new ways to reach fans. They were among the first to stream an album online for free. They signed on for the return of vinyl. They supported numerous causes, brought lost music by historic singer/songwriters (namely Woody Guthrie) back to life, put on marathon-length live shows of the finest quality, and engaged in myriad side projects.

Wilco has not rested these past ten years, and anyone who has been listening knows it is not an exaggeration to say that this decade has seen the band hit its stride and perhaps its peak.

You Have To Lose…

It may have been 2001, but the story of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot calls to mind the pages of rock music history that involved such trendsetters and iconoclasts as Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, and the Beatles. Taking the music itself — the genre, the style, the arrangements — out of the equation for the moment, the difference of opinion between the executives at Reprise Records and the members of Wilco was an old story: band makes music it feels is honest and A&R men see only dollar signs.

As a result of Reprise’s treatment of the band, Wilco ended up gaining the sympathy and interests of many fans, critics, and music magazines. After the label rejected the album, they didn’t waste any time going to plan B, posting the album in its entirety on their website for free streaming. It would be until 2002 before Nonesuch (ironically a sister company of Reprise) signed Wilco and finally released the album properly.

Fittingly, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is the first great Wilco album. Its simple songs and ambitious arrangements redefined their sound, and there couldn’t have been a better album for this publicity boost to happen to.

Experimenting, Jamming, and Blending

On the heels of Foxtrot, Wilco took an even more experimental turn with A Ghost is Born. Some tracks were tremendous achievements — “Spiders (Kidsmoke)” and “Hell is Chrome,” for instance — and others were overly self-indulgent, namely “Less Than You Think” and its eleven minutes of feedback loops.

Tweedy himself admitted that it simply isn’t a track that even he would listen to every time around.

For their next project, Sky Blue Sky, the band altered the formula, leaning more towards a live band feel.  The result?  Some of their most fun rock songs, such as “Hate It Here” and “Walken.”  Thankfully, this did not lead to a breakdown in their cohesion or a “jam band” mentality.  As one might expect from Wilco’s previous releases, even the guitar solos in such tracks as “Impossible Germany” are impressively choreographed.

This is where Nels Cline’s outstanding talent really began to shine through on record.

Following two years of touring in support of Sky Blue Sky, and as if three strong albums in the decade weren’t enough, Tweedy and company released Wilco (the album) in 2009.  As the title might imply, this record finds Wilco really settling in, blending the various sounds and styles they perfected throughout the decade into one superb effort.  While it certainly isn’t their strongest individual project, Wilco (the album) is one of the most dynamic in their catalog, featuring the experimental “Deeper Down” and the oh-so blunt “Wilco (the song).”  The former would have blended smoothly into A Ghost is Born, and the latter reads like a direct, personal letter from Jeff Tweedy and Wilco to their fans.

On and On and On…

As I suggested in my “Number Two” article on the Barenaked Ladies, this number of quality studio albums would be, in and of itself, criteria for a band to be considered one of the best of the decade.  Like BnL, Wilco has been prolific beyond these standard releases.  This includes Mermaid Avenue Vol. II (2000), the second installment in their collaboration with Billy Bragg putting Woody Guthrie lyrics to music.  2005 saw the release of Kicking Television: Live in Chicago, Wilco’s first live record, a double CD with 23 tracks.  Four years later, they released their first live DVD, Ashes of American Flags, which featured a song selection that was more than 50% different from Kicking Television.

Outside of official full-band projects, the members of Wilco are constantly involved in other projects, including but not limited to Tweedy in Golden Smog, Stirratt and Sansone in The Autumn Defense, and Nels Cline in The Nels Cline Singers.  In 2003, R.E.M.’s Peter Buck invited members of Wilco to contribute to his own side project, the Minus Five, and the result was Down with Wilco.  In 2009, several members traveled to New Zealand to play on the latest Seven Worlds Collide charity project.

And the list goes on and on and on.

Since 2003’s More Like the Moon, Wilco has made a habit of releasing EPs to accompany their official album releases, offering them as free downloads to those who have purchased the CD (or downloaded the album legally).  2004 saw the release of The Wilco Book, which was packaged with a CD loaded with demos and outtakes.  Adding to the interactive quality of their music, the band now gives out free full-color programs at their live shows, booklets which include a score card listing all of their songs for their fans to check off as they are played.

To think that I promised myself I would avoid listing too many details…

I think the aforementioned details paint an indisputable portrait of a band always pushing themselves to the next level, each of the six members constantly involved with music both in the band and in their side projects, and a group of singer/songwriter/performers dedicated to making their music and their process transparent for their fans.  On record as they are live — and at the risk of overstatement — Wilco is a dynamic group whose music has seen me through some of the darkest chapters of my life (and safely out into the light again!) and a band that continues to inspire me as a songwriter and as a listener.

Wilco is my choice for the number one rock band of the decade!