Urban75 Album of the Year 2004

[hitmouse]

The Mountain Goats were right in the middle of their golden era in 2004. We Shall All Be Healed (for the uninitiated, their concept album about crystal meth addiction) is a bit overshadowed by Tallahassee (the alcoholism album) on one side and Sunset Tree (the abusive childhood album) on the other, but it's got plenty of great moments in its own right:

 

[stethoscope]

High Contrast - High Society. I don't care, i loved that disco/filtered 'liquid' sound from Hospital records amongst others...



Wiley - Treddin On Thin Ice. Putting aside (but not condoning) the grime stars more recent decline into murkiness (geddit?!) this album sealed crossover success for the genre arising from the East London streets (after Dizzee broke through the previous year)...



Jill Scott's second album of 'nu soul' with her unmistakeable poetic delivery...



Skinnyman as already mentioned was a big album, and as per usual lots of singles like DJ Marky - LK. And it turns out that a whole load of stuff I thought was 2004 came out the year before or year after.

 

[hitmouse]

This Island probably isn't quite as good as the first two Le Tigre albums, but it's still a Le Tigre album, and therefore mint:

 

[hitmouse]

THERE'S BLOOD IN MY MOUTH COS I'VE BEEN BITING MY TONGUE ALL WEEK etc etc

 

[zedr]

landfill indie is all I remember about this year so I'm looking forward to learning a thing or two on this thread.

actually, this is bollocks.

65daysofstatic - fall of math

a really great blend of silly, glitchy drums, wired crackles, post rock guitars and cut up samples. maybe one of my all time favourites.

 

[Indeliblelink]

These were pretty unavoidable pop-dance bangers in 2004 - Felix Da Housecat, Mylo, Alter Ego, Scissor Sisters, Soulwax

 

[hitmouse]

We all love a bit of Dogs Die In Hot Cars, don't we?

 

[hitmouse]

2004 was a huge turning point for Fucked Up - Epics in Minutes is 13 songs in 34 minutes, collecting all their classic straight-up hardcore stuff:

And then by Looking for Gold they've started writing 16-minute songs:


But Epics is a compilation of previously released material and Looking for Gold is an EP, so the POLL COPS won't let you vote for either of them.

 

[Spandex]

Scissor Sisters

I saw Scissor Sisters early in 2004.

It was before they were famous, playing a live set at a club night I was at. I was sitting there, coming up nicely, when this group of loud, annoying american twats sat at the table next to me. 'What a bunch of idiots' I thought to myself 'I must make a point of avoiding them all night'. Then they got on the stage.

I haven't seen the atmosphere at a club so comprehensively destroyed. People were flocking away from the main room, leaving a group of about 12 people pretending to be enjoying themselves. The DJ in the bar didn't know what had hit him - a whole club of people had come to hear him play (anything but that piss-poor pub-rock-disco-band in the main room).

Afterwards I saw that woman out of them looking a bit downcast. I came that close to telling her what i though of her band, but decided to leave her be and console myself that they were so shit that they'd never get anywhere...

 

[hitmouse]

Blimey, Kimya Dawson had three solo albums in 2004. That is too many albums for one year.

 

[zedr]

Blimey, Kimya Dawson had three solo albums in 2004. That is too many albums for one year.

Hidden Vagenda got a rerelease this year. Have really enjoys listening back to it, especially this...

 

[hitmouse]

Bows & Arrows by the Walkmen is a fairly weak album carried by one great song, but what a song it is:

 

[nogojones]

How could we forget Passenger of Shit - 6

Spoiler: Possibly a bit NSFW

 

[nogojones]

more glitchy minimal from Rip off Artist - New Clear Days

 

[DaveCinzano]

Oooh how about

M.I.A. & Diplo - ‘Piracy Funds Terrorism Vol 1’

 

[DaveCinzano]

Cheers AverageJoe for the reminder

Arcade Fire - ‘Funeral’

 

[krtek a houby]

Scissor Sisters for the win.

 

[Spandex]

Horsepower Productions - To the Rescue

Early dubstep album from when it was new and fresh and still a bit UKG, before it all descended into identikit half-step wubwubwub.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Horsepower Productions - To the Rescue

Early dubstep album from when it was new and fresh and still a bit UKG, before it all descended into identikit half-step wubwubwub.

I was rereading posts on the Gutterbreakz blog from them days last night - some real time capsule moments, like a bit of friction between Bow people and Rephlex Records over the latter using 'grime' in the title of a compilation, etc.

Anyway, anyone got a copy of the 23 Minutes Under Croydon mix? Can't find it anywhere

 

[chilango]

Babylon Circus released this 2004. It's good French stuff.

 

[chilango]

Decent album from Rise Against that year too.

 

[chilango]

Plus: The Descendants, Bad Religion, Propaghandi, Hot Water Music...and Green Day's American Idiot.

 

[chilango]

Dookie got shamefully overlooked in the 1994 poll. American Idiot gives you all chance to make amends.

 

[zedr]

Fear Before the March of Flames - Art Damage

Great weirdo scremo. Not quite as good as their offerings before or after, but still some very catchy songs on there.

 

[hitmouse]

Plus: The Descendants, Bad Religion, Propaghandi, Hot Water Music...and Green Day's American Idiot.

Was there a Propagandhi album from 2004? I thought Potemkin was 2005 and Today's Empires was way earlier. Doing my research for this thread has made me learn that I missed out on voting for the Weakerthans, Tragedy and Defiance, Ohio in the 2003 thread though. Not that it would've made a huge amount of difference if it did, I suppose.

Anyway, I reckon X by Inner Terrestrials is gonna be hard to top as the crusty dubpunk squatter album of the year:


Just idly wondered if they were still going and looked it up to learn that they were playing up North this weekend just gone and I had absolutely no idea about it, bugger. Nice to know they're still at it though.

 

[stavros]

Whut! Yeah!

It's the subtlety of Lil Jon's magnum opus that I love most:

 

[hitmouse]

2004 was a good year for Swedish garage rock:



Or if you prefer Swedish garage rock made by people who've read Vaneigem and Bonnano, 2004 has that covered too:

 

[stavros]

 

[Jammy smears]

There were some quality albums that year

 

[hitmouse]

Getting around to listening to the second Libertines album, think this is possibly the first time in my life I've ever properly listened to it all the way through. It's alright but doesn't really sound like anything particularly special at this distance.