Paste’s 50 Best Albums of the Decade list, out today, is a mixture of A-list indie rock standards and token hip hop and mainstream picks. These selections are mostly successful releases that cater to a white audience of semi-alternative persuasion. Even if this roster is more a reflection of who's reading than the music itself, though, at least they climbed the mountain -- and hey, the album streams are cool.
Here is the list.
50 Björk - Vespertine (Elektra, 2001) 49 Libertines - Up The Bracket (Rough Trade, 2002) 48 Loretta Lynn - Van Lear Rose (Interscope, 2004) 47 Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (Domino, 2006) 46 Once - Music From The Motion Picture (Columbia, 2007) 45 Radiohead - In Rainbows (self-released, 2007) 44 The Jayhawks - Rainy Day Music (Lost Highway, 2003) 43 Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala (Secretly Canadian, 2007) 42 Jay-Z - The Blueprint (Roc-A-Fella, 2001) 41 LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver (Capitol, 2007) 40 TV on the Radio - Return To Cookie Mountain (Interscope, 2006) 39 Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (Merge, 2007) 38 Gentleman Jesse - Introducing Gentleman Jesse (Douchemaster, 2008) 37 Iron & Wine - Our Endless Numbered Days (Sub Pop, 2004) 36 Pedro The Lion - Control (Jade Tree, 2002) 35 Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion (Domino, 2009) 34 Various artists - O Brother Where Art Thou? (Mercury, 2001) 33 Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head (Capitol, 2002) 32 The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (Warner Bros., 2002) 31 Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism (Barsuk, 2003) 30 Damien Rice - O (Vector, 2003) 29 Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago (Jagjaguwar, 2008) 28 Paul Westerberg - Folker (Vagrant, 2004) 27 Drive-By Truckers - Decoration Day (New West, 2003) 26 Over the Rhine - Ohio (2004) 25 Sigur Rós - Med ud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust (XL, 2008) 24 The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow (Sub Pop, 2003) 23 Ryan Adams - Heartbreaker (Bloodshot, 2000) 22 The Decemberists - The Crane Wife (Capitol, 2006) 21 Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend (XL, 2008) 20 The National - Boxer (Beggars Banquet, 2007) 19 Beck - Sea Change (Interscope, 2002) 18 Amy Winehouse - Back To Black (Universal Republic, 2007) 17 Kanye West - The College Dropout (Roc-A-Fella, 2004) 16 Rufus Wainwright - Want One (Dreamworks, 2003) 15 Patty Griffin - 1000 Kisses (ATO, 2002) 14 The Strokes - Is This It (RCA, 2001) 13 Josh Ritter - The Animal Years (V2, 2006) 12 Spoon - Kill the Moonlight (Merge, 2002) 11 The Hold Steady - Boys And Girls In America (Vagrant, 2006) 10 M.I.A. - Arular (Interscope, 2005) 09 The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You (Columbia/American, 2009) 08 OutKast - Stankonia (Arista/LaFace, 2000) 07 Gillian Welch - Time (The Revelator) (Acony, 2001) 06 The White Stripes - Elephant (V2, 2003) 05 Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning (Saddle Creek, 2005) 04 Radiohead - Kid A (Capitol, 2000) 03 Arcade Fire - Funeral (Merge, 2004) 02 Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (Nonesuch, 2002) 01 Sufjan Stevens - Illinois (Asthmatic Kitty, 2005)
I really think this mag should be called "Music White People Like." It bothers me that they are from Decatur, which is like 20 minutes outside of Atlanta, but the only hip-hop they cover is Jay-Z and Kanye West.
I think we've talked about this before, and in theory I'm totally on your side on this one, Andross. But there's also a chicken-egg thing here, where they have a readership that doesn't seem to mind their whiteness, and in the end they really have little responsibility outside of their own perspective (reductive as it may be) and we can respond to it any way we like. That being said, I think they need to shake it up big time if they want to stay afloat. Where online pubs are taking over, and gradually offering more and more variety across genres, it'd be a shame if Paste, which limited perspective or not can have some pretty great writing in it, falls victim to its own small scope.
Also, there's at least 20 records I'd leave off this list here. Maybe more. And there's no way Illinois is the best record of the decade. Great album? Yes. The best thing since Ok Computer? Not a chance.
Yeah, we did talk about it before, I think. I understand that their perspective is primarily focused on the people who consider Relix to jam-band friendly but Harp too rock friendly, but it has always bothered me that their tagline is "Signs of Life in Culture, Music and Film" which implies that there is no life 15 minutes from their offices. I mean, anyone that thinks that a bloody Ludacris album (even his last one) has less "signs of life" than a Josh Ritter album is kidding themselves. Also, it bothered the hell out of me that when they did their international issue a while back, they covered hip-hop in other countries, but don't cover it here. It's like hip-hop is only authentic when it's from another country and doesn't have references to women's anatomy or drugs.
Living in NC, I can't stop hearing about those damned Avetts. Somehow geography automatically gives authenticity to a sound that, in the end, toes a line between the simplest of folk gestures with pop music.
And I wholly agree on Paste's approach (or lackthereof) to hip-hop in this country. It's almost as if they seem ill-prepared to talk about it, and rely on crossovers like West and MIA to fill their quota. Which is a) lazy and b) really too bad.
Jesus Christ, hold on a second. The BRAND NEW Avett album?? We're already going to call that the 9th best album of the last ten years?? Come on, Paste, don't fall into the trap of validating your opinion and claiming authority by constantly jamming it down our throat. Let's take some time and let albums live a while before we start plopping crowns on them, shall we?
I always think their rap reviews are like, "This is a gritty street anthem. Best from (St. Louis, NYC, L.A., Virginia) this decade. Too long due to skits and tossed off tracks. 85 percent" It's like if they gave Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II anything above a 87, the magazine would fold inside itself. Yet M. Ward can jizz into an album sleeve and it'll get at least a 90.
Hey, I can't complain about how many white vs. black artists are on the list, instead, I'll complain about the lack of females other than M.I.A. who aren't doing post-rock or country. We all got to pick our battles, I suppose.
Yeah, and the females they include seem suspect too. Griffin, Welch, Lynn. All great performers, all solid albums, but they reek of stabs at country-roots credibility on the list. Could use a few more fresh female voices on there.
And seriously, what the hell is Damien Rice doing here? Is this sponsored by Starbucks?
Marnie Stern, Le Tigre, Sleater-Kinney, Gossip, Tegan & Sara all missing. I guess feminism is scary in Georgia?
December 4, 2009 at 6:41 p.m.
Sarah
I think the Avett Brothers album is great. Really, it's the first album I've heard in 5 years at least that I wanted to listen to over and over again, and I'm psyched that it made the top ten. There might be too much of that kind of music on this list, but calm yourselves. It's not like the death metal guys are here whinging about how they're not represented.
I really think this mag should be called "Music White People Like." It bothers me that they are from Decatur, which is like 20 minutes outside of Atlanta, but the only hip-hop they cover is Jay-Z and Kanye West.