The Top Fifty Favorite Albums Of 2003 - Pt.1

The ranking of my Top 50 Records proved not as difficult as it was for songs. I can attribute this to two reasons: 1) I didn’t have as many to go through (almost 75); and 2) I have a tool called the Album Quantifier Model (AQM) that scores each record. What is this AQM? Simply put, it is model that spits out a score based on Song Score, Record Length Factor, Album Flow, Concept, Packaging, and Historical Significance. Each of these components factor into the overall pleasure (and ultimately, the greatness) of the record. Naturally, the Song Score makes up the bulk of the overall score. I have included the AQM score after each record. The actual model development began from some discussions with friends; and the actual AQM that I used was developed with my good pal, Jeff Teel (thanks ‘Saw, you rock). You will notice that I sometimes rank a record with a higher AQM Score lower than another record. This is because we (or at least, I) enjoy a record that isn’t as “good”, and I choose to tweak the order by ranking them based on how many times I listened to the record. If I listened to a record with a low AQM a bunch, I made the choice to move it up in my rankings. So here we go, my favorite records of 2003 starting at #50. I will be posting ten each day all week, so be sure to check back often!

50. The White Stripes – Elephant 72.04
Probably, the most consistent White Stripes release. “Seven Nation Army” is a really good single, with it’s apocalyptic post-Led-modern-Zep guitar riff, and Meg’s drumming is huge and solid. While Jack still pulls off the same ol’ same ol’, the songs are stronger and the album flows much more nicely. I like the “vintage” sound, the noisy mix, the rattling drums, the abrasive guitars, but overall, the record is plagued by the uninspiring “In the Cold, Cold Night”, the jokey “Well It’s True That We Love…” and meandering jams like “Ball And Biscuit” (Jon Spencer fucked with the blues much more effectively).

49. My Morning Jacket – It Still Moves 72.33
“Dancefloors” and “One Big Holiday” really show how My Morning Jacket ain’t no Southern Rock Revivalists, even though they hint at it. I couldn’t really make out what it is about this band that I love and that I hate; all I knew was that MMJ was taking something old (Southern Rock genre, Neil Young) and molding it into something truly 21st century. The record is too long, too muddled, and slightly above average.

48. Ed Harcourt – From Every Sphere 73.33
Harcourt is a difficult one because he teeters along the precipice to nearly fall into the vast uninspired pit of Adult-Alterna-Contemporary-Lite-Pop. When he is the semi-quirky, slightly edgy pop troubadour, I love him. But about half this record does fall under that tepid Adult-Alterna-Contemporary-Lite-Pop. Anyone upon hearing the record, knows that this is for casual listeners, but songs like “Watching The Sun Come Up”, “The Birds Will Sing For Us”, and “All Of Your Days Will Be Blessed” are excellent, near perfect orch-pop gems. And that makes the album worth every specially-priced at $9.99 penny.

47. The Jayhawks – Rainy Day Music 74.50
Nothing new here, this is a very safe record for the Jayhawks. Rather than trying to become some sort of indie-alt.country-pop band, they go back to what works. “Tailspin” is a song that celebrates themselves: the standard Jayhawks melody, the big soaring chorus, and trademark vocals by Gary Louris; there is nothing wrong with it. At this stage in their career, this is the perfect record. While not necessarily “memorable”, it is enjoyable and that’s cool. And the title is perfect, this is rainy day music.

46. Paul Westerberg – Come Feel Me Tremble 70.36
No where near the comeback/greatness of 2002’s Stereo/Mono, but there is still reason to believe. “Crackle & Drag (alt. Version)” is the pinnacle of Come Feel Me Tremble. But look to “Knockin’ ‘Em Back”, “Pine Box”, and “Meet Me Down The Alley” for classic Westerberg passion and dirty songcraft. The filler is more predominate this time around, but I’m glad the guy is still committing his songs to tape and hanging them out there to get whacked.

45. The Minders – The Future Is Always Perfect 69.12
I suppose this is more of a mini-LP or a long-EP, but nevertheless, the Minders release a very pleasant record of raw indie pop with a few surprises. The angular post-punk/indie pop track “28X” is a welcome diversion from their formula. “It’s So Hard”, “Tearway”, “Here Goes Nothing”, and “Go Wave Your Hand” are tinged with new wave synths to also add that something to their sound. Martin Leaper’s vocals are as good as ever.

44. Ryan Adams – Rock N Roll 63.18
Not necessarily a good record (see the low score), but when Adams is on, he is on. Rock N Roll is the epitome of a flawed and convoluted record: really awful rockers (“1974”, “Note To Self: Don’t Die”, “Shallow”), throwaway tracks (“Rock N Roll”, “Do Miss America”) and that enfant terrible genius (“Burning Photographs”, “Boys”, “The Drugs Not Working”). While many love to pile on RA, and in a way he deserves it, in the end it’s rather unfair. He did record an excellent record, Love Is Hell, which was rejected by his label as too depressing/downbeat/mopey, a compromise was reached where it would see the light of day as two EPs. I wonder if Rock N Roll was just a “punk” reaction to his label: “You want me to rock? Fine, I’ll rock, here is a bunch of stuff I can fart out in a week, slap down on tape, and appease you.” Or is he just acquiescing? Either way, it’s no wonder this record (overall) stinks. Still, the three songs I noted are so good, so wonderful, so amazing, that I kept playing Rock N Roll. Take it for what it is, a loud record that rocks… like Journey or Boston. I love you Ryan Adams. Seriously. You are one of my favorites. No lie.

43. The Coral – The Coral 69.08
One of those UK hyped bands, that went absolutely nowhere in the US. This actually was released in the UK in 2002, but didn’t hit US shores (and special end caps at mass merchandisers with a super low price of $5.99) until 2003. The Coral play a unique brand of neo-Nuggets-garage and it’s pretty cool. I think the record suffers from an overly slick production that renders the songs a bit too pristine. “Goodbye” and “Dreaming Of You” are top notch, but the rest of the record treads water. Nevertheless, the band is quite young and offer up tons of potential.

42. Drive By Truckers – Decoration Day 70.92
Fairly standard alt.country guitar rock, but done very well. Like Whiskeytown (the greatest alt.country band ever), DBT jam classic rockers (“Sink Hole”, “Do It Yourself”, “Marry Me”) and melancholy ballads. Lyrically, DBT really succeed from a starkly honest anti-suicide ode to love-n-hate to advice from yer pops. The music and lyrics reflect the South, but reflect bigger than Lynrd Skynrd and The Allman Brothers.

41. Nada Surf – Let Go 67.17
Yeah, this record really snuck up on me, in that I was never entirely in love with it, but I never hated it. For some reason, it kept finding its way into my CD player. I barely even purchased this record, as all I knew of the band was that heinous Weezer knockoff tune, “Popular”. I listened to the record at the local record store’s listening station and was pleasantly surprised. Not really any super-strong songs, but quite a few really nice ones (“Happy Kid”, “Blizzard of ‘77”, “Fruit Fly”, “Blonde On Blonde”).