Favourites from 2004:
No
Cities Left - The Dears
There isn't a tune on No Cities Left, the Dears' gorgeous second album, that's
not pitched at a minor state of emergency.
METACRITIC SCORE : 78
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the reviews
These
Are The Days - Saybia
METACRITIC SCORE :
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Want
Too - Rufus Wainwright
Wainwright's fanciful songs about love and faith place him in the rarefied company
of Bjork and Brian Wilson, whose audacious Medulla and SMiLE his album most
resembles.
METACRITIC SCORE : 74
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the reviews
The
Lyre Of Orpheus/Abbatoire Blues - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
The Bad Seeds have not made a record this ambitious, well, ever, and the results
are rewarding, thoughtful and challenging.
METACRITIC SCORE : 86
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the reviews
Hot
Fuss - The Killers
The Killers sound like a delicious puree of Blur, Pulp and the Cure, loading
Hot Fuss with stylish synth-pop effects and big blazing choruses.
METACRITIC
SCORE : 64
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the reviews
Faded
Seaside Glamour - The Delays
The Delays have found a way to combine the sparkling harmonies of the Byrds
with the glorious noise of My Bloody Valentine, and still sound as fresh and
surprising as a London heat.
METACRITIC SCORE : 67
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the reviews
Tyrannosaurus
Hives - The Hives
It is the best parts of a bar brawl, a naked Twister party and a street race
in one cumulative package.
METACRITIC SCORE : 75
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the reviews
Stealing
Of A Nation - Radio 4
Unlike other would-be indie-dance pretenders, this is properly danceable stuff;
fat basses and catchy percussion beats are punctured by intoxicating keyboard
motifs.
METACRITIC SCORE : 46
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the reviews
A
Ghost Is Born - Wilco
A work like this is only self-indulgent if its accoutrements aren't justifiable.
Wilco makes every note count on this album: however miraculously, it all manages
to cohere. And the songs are undeniably stunning.
METACRITIC SCORE : 79
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the reviews
A
Grand Don't Come For Free - The Streets
Mike Skinner audaciously weaves an 11-track narrative over an often bare and
inert musical backdrop, one that acts more like a film score than the foundation
of a pop record.
METACRITIC SCORE: 89
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the reviews
The
Grey Album - Dangermouse
DJ Danger Mouse's 'The Grey Album' - a start-to-finish staggering, witty, delightful
and ferociously funky remix album in which the vocals of Jay-Z's 'Black Album'
are endowed with tracks composed entirely of samples from The Beatles' 'White
Album', right down to the very last snare drum.
NME Rating: 10
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Com
Lag - Radiohead
Create
anticipation and heighten excitement? Shucks guys, we were looking forward to
the new stuff already.
NME Rating: 7
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Hopes
and Fears - Keane
Yes,
you'll see the word "Coldplay" in nearly every review for this debut disc, but
the UK trio stand out from the crowd with their unconventional lineup of vocals,
drums, and piano.
METACRITIC SCORE : 61
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the reviews
You
Are The Quarry - Morrissey
The
Moz croon is more succulent than ever, and the music productively splits the
difference between Your Arsenal's thrusting butchness and Vauxhall & I's voluptuous
enervation.
METACRITIC SCORE : 68
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the reviews
The
Runaway Found - The Veils
'Runaway
Found' marks the debut LP for the London (by way of New Zealand) rock outfit
led by 19-year-old singer/guitarist Finn Andrews. Their epic sound has drawn
the band comparisons to many of the usual suspects (Coldplay, Radiohead, the
Verve).
METACRITIC SCORE : 72
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the reviews
Scissor
Sisters - Scissor Sisters
Although
a New York band, Scissor Sisters (as evidenced by this debut disc) are definitely
not part of the typical New York scene, eschewing garage and no wave to embrace
campier, glammier 70s and 80s rock and dance music sounds. Included here is
the band's cover of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb."
METACRITIC SCORE : 82
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the reviews
Franz
Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
Their
debut album pulls off a fine balancing act: clever without sounding pretentious,
idiosyncratic but easy to get along with, a shift away from post-Britpop traditionalism
that still recognises the importance of writing great pop songs.
METACRITIC SCORE: 84
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the reviews
Love
Is Hell - Ryan Adams
If
you missed the initial two part installment last year, here is is again, complete
as it was meant to be originally released. A work of wonder.
NME Rating: 9
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