My apologies if this is a well-trodden subject here, but I have to say I'm quite surprised that 'Is This It' is the single most acclaimed album of the naughties so far. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of the album, and I acknowledge its influence over so much that has followed in its wake in the last 6 years, but really, the best piece of music since OK Computer? (which it is, according to the incredible AcclaimedMusic). Do people feel this way or is it me?
i don't like is this it much. i would've picked kid A, yankee hotel foxtrot, or franz ferdinand as the best album of the 00's. maybe even sufjan stevens. having said that, i haven't heard most of the top 10 of the 00's.
I think everyone latched onto that album because it was so different when it came out. It wasn't particularly heavy and it wasn't epic, so it was pretty different than what rock was like at the time (oh, and it wasn't rap-rock).
Personally, I have 8 albums from the 00s ahead of it on my all-time list. It's pretty good, but I also think that Wilco should have the top. Personally, My Morning Jacket - Z is the best of the 00s, but it's not particularly epic enough to get all the love of something like YHF (which is my #2 of the 00s).
It stood out the first time I heard it because it was rare to hear a modern rock album that is that consistent. So as an album, it shouldn't be questioned on why it's that much acclaimed. I've seen some albums get too much acclaim mostly based on having famous hits. For example, random 60s soul albums that are made up of filler but contain the hits that everyone knows them for.
I think I may actually give this album a bit too much credit, but to me it is absolutely (at the very least) in the top 5 of the decade so far. Beyond the fact that it was a consistent, back to basics rock record, i feel like its lyrical content was strikingly honest, especially in its context (alongside the unending artificial teen pop of britney spears, nsync, destiny's child, and backstreet boys that dominated the charts for about 3 years prior). Songs like "Barely Legal", "Someday", and "Last Nite" acted as odes to the American fuck-up. You don't know who you are, you can't hold a girlfriend, and the scariest thing in the world is committing to anything. What made this all the more impressive and moving is that everyone in the band retains this untouchable heir of cool, as if nothing can hurt them. But as we all probably know (as if the lyrics didn't indicate this already), Julian isn't the happiest guy in the world.
Since Is This It, in my opinion, everything that made this band so special has been lost. They just sound lame now, and Jules legitimately sounds like he's either lost it or isn't really trying anymore. Still, the magic of that first record is there, and will be for quite some time I think (at least for me).
I think I can only argue two pop albums being more deserving of the title of best of the decade, and those would by OutKast's Stankonia and Radiohead's Kid A. Safe for those, its more than earned that spot.
Kid A has is this it well and truly beat. Both for its originality and creativity. I do love is this it but its not better than kid a, or amnesiac for that matter
Each to his own - the most creative albums aren't always the best. Sometimes all you need is some stripped back,back to basics rock...I prefer punk of the late 70s over prog any day
