Not a great year, but definitely solid. I wanted to vote for Belle & Sebastian, but honestly, I think Outkast had the better album, so that’s who I’m going for this year.
Easily Lauren Hill for me, followed by Moon Safari and Aeroplane Over the Sea.
Tricky again this year - Lauryn Hill, Air and Neutral Milk Hotel still get a lot of play round mine. Hmmm - Moon Safari, I think.
Mermaid Avenue
Aeroplane. This is probably still my favorite album of the 90s…it’s brilliant, moving, and a view into a strange psyche. I was lucky enough to see a play based on this put on by Amanda Palmer, and that was also fantastic.
Lauryn Hill.
You know, I hear about this album, but have never gotten enough of a sense of it to chase it down. Is it all that? I guess I am worried that it is a bit twee, folky, unstructured…??
Went with Neutral Milk Hotel, but also considered Beck and a few others. Not a very good list at all.
Up is terrible. We’re now well into sucky late R.E.M.
Well, I probably doomed it for you with those words of praise, but: it’s raw and unfiltered, musically lo-fi, but definitely not twee. Jeff Mangum has a lot of weird shit rattling around in his head, particularly with respect to Anne Frank, and the lyrics can be ungainly and honest.
33 1/3 has a good book out on it as well.
I’m not seing Angels with Dirty Faces on the list.