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Previous Entries:
Albums 50-41
Albums 40-31
Albums 30-21
20 -- MONKEY BUSINESS, Black Eyed Peas (2005)
Its hard to believe that The Black Eyed Peas, in their current form, were once in such a place that Monkey Business was considered a lukewarm release to critics. Hindsight is 20/20 however, and looking back at this pop-funk party album, one cant deny that Monkey Business has a certain energy and spirit that very few modern albums have managed to emulate. While their first mainstream album (Elephunk) holds more credence to old Black Eyed Peas fans, its Monkey Business that channels the creative pop created in Elephunk and pumps it back out through a megaphone. The album is absolutely self-aware in its more ironic material (My Humps, in all its ineptness, is still a genius parody song) and one has to give the band a lot of credit for understanding where they stand in the pop vernacular. Leaving your expectations at home, you can dive into Monkey Business diverse tracks and end up feeling great about yourself. Its inspiring in its un-inspiredness, and as a listener you cant help but feel that the artists were having an absolute blast making this behind the scenes. The Black Eyed Peas had a distinct style and swagger that met its peak with Monkey Business, and its too bad that they ended up grasping on to the coat-tails of electronica, only to drop down with it into the abyss.
Brightest moments: My Style, Pump It, Dont Phunk With My Heart
19 -- THE REMINDER, Feist (2007)
Its hard to get terribly excited about an album like The Reminder, which goes out of its way to treat the listener as casually as possible. But the muted brilliance of The Reminder is that it finds loud and boisterous charm in so silent a package. Tracks like 1234 are unabashedly whimsical and do a phenomenal job of lowering the listeners guard before diving a bit deeper into the record. Sea Lion Woman is confoundedly intriguing, and its forceful thematics will seem lost on the casual listener. Songs like I Feel It All trail along with absolutely gorgeous chord progressions that evoke a sense of happiness unrivaled in most records. Theres a great sense of humility coming from the artist throughout the record; its like the listener wants to push Feist to let herself go a bit more, and with every track that gets a bit louder and pop-ish, the listener gets more and more drawn to her world. Overall, The Reminder is hardly a revolutionary record within its sub-genre, but its an impeccably well done project that glistens from start to finish, and its spirit and soul oozes with charm all the way throughout. One of the most likable albums, well, ever.
Brightest moments: I Feel It All, 1234, My Moon My Man
18 -- THE FAME MONSTER, Lady Gaga (2009)
The re-entrance of Lady Gaga is one that most other pop icons would have dreamt of crafting. Infectious hooks, stupidly smart chord progressions, and an eclectic mix of songs that force the listener to both take her seriously and not seriously at all. For such a short album, there is a sort of hugeness thats felt in the sledge-hammering productions and Gagas husky but seductive vocals. The album inspired pop acts to simply aim higher with their re-emergence, and the success of Bad Romance is as much a social anomaly as it is undeniably expected. Lady Gaga has moments of complete genius in The Fame Monster, and the elegantly poetic verses on Alejandro could even make us wonder whether Lady Gaga operates on a higher intellectual plane than her listeners. Those moments are counter-acted by shallower fare like Telephone and Teeth, two stupidly addicting bangers that remind us that Lady Gaga understands her pop boundaries. Its an album where the listener can be blown away by its content but is still convinced that the artist can easily top it. While hardly a revolutionary record, The Fame Monster is simply an example of how a less is more approach, coupled with a masterful level of charisma, can make for an untouchable pop moment.
Brightest moments: Alejandro, Monster, Bad Romance
17 -- JUSTIFIED, Justin Timberlake (2003)
The royal duke of pop-R&B flaunts his talents and likability in a record thats probably worth less than the sum of its parts, if only because the individual tracks on Justified stand out as consistent, vibrant, and brilliant. You cant help but feel charmed by Timberlakes advances in songs like Senorita, which channel alternative pop-soul so effortlessly. The smash Rock Your Body is of course one of the album highlights, with its timelessly catchy chord progressions and fresh vocals. The album is like a well-organized tour through the layered talents of the artist, and its itinerary ensures that every possible pop niche gets conquered, slain and skinned by Timberlakes ridiculously sharp charisma and eye for detail. There is a greater deal of soul and heart in Justified than in its successor, and its obvious that Justin Timberlake has a fundamental understanding of how to channel an attractive sell that can get unbridled attention from straight women and gay men. Hes an untouchable force in music and the fact is exemplified in the effortlessness of Justified. Its too bad that Justin Timberlake doesnt seem to need pop music the same way pop music needs him.
16 -- LOVE, ANGEL, MUSIC, BABY, Gwen Stefani (2004)
![Gwen_Stefani_-_Love.Angel.Music.Baby_[Front].jpg](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_NzrkVTeU6oA/SKklsVfTtbI/AAAAAAAAAVE/jY2c398EnCA/s400/Gwen_Stefani_-_Love.Angel.Music.Baby_[Front].jpg)
Consider the facts: Following an upward trajectory of success for No Doubt, Gwen Stefani decides to ditch the bands momentum and create a series of pop records through her own name. Instead of putting a stop-gap into No Doubts relevance by focusing on an alt-pop sound that would diffuse No Doubt fans into her solo camp, she does a complete 180 and finds a voice in a new genre, leaving her bands legacy (and future prospects) unscathed. Its an incredibly bold gesture that we dont see much of, and while a singer like Fergie went a bit bubblier in her one solo stint, she still relied heavily on the production and stylings of Will.I.Am to stay huddled under that umbrella. Gwen scatters off into the world of pristine art-pop that struts the fine line between tongue-in-cheekery and bold avante-garde sound. Love, Angel, Music, Baby doesnt take itself terribly seriously, and the songs on the album generally paint a colorful, surrealist picture thats easy on the ears and immensely satisfying for pop fans. Every song on L.A.M.B is unimaginatively charming, and iconic pop moments like What You Waiting For are riddled with esoteric lyrics that are smarter than they appear. The intelligence of L.A.M.B is not in spite of its two-inches-deep lyricism, but its the way Gwen Stefani channels shallow-sounding lyrics with a wink and a nudge that seem to insinuate something more. And thats the finest way to describe a record like this: Its a (flawless) pop event, but its worth so much more than most of its peers. Gwen manages to find pop nirvana consistently through L.A.M.B, and its archetype will no doubt be used as a model for high quality pop down the road.
Brightest moments: What You Waiting For, Rich Girl, Hollaback Girl
15 -- BODY TALK, Robyn (2010)
If you want to listen to one of the most balanced examples of modern, contemporary pop music, look no further than Body Talk. The condensed, cumulative version of this multi-tiered release is nothing short of an astonishing work of art. Electronic music is fused with mindful and tender themes and motifs, and then somehow immediately discarded for edgy, bold crassness that never feels more welcome. Robyn understands the science of pop music: we think we have the genre well-defined, but she knows that what we love about pop music is quite fickle. She channels that understanding through the eclectic variety of songs that give a completely different, but equally valid definition of perfect pop music. One would listen to Dancing On My Own and decide that its the perfect pop song (and it is), but then a change over to Criminal Intent or Fembot and youre stuck in a conundrum. Its the best example of what makes pop music so infectious and ever-growing: it comes in all shapes and sizes. But the bottom line seems to be that Robyn somehow nails every kind.
14 -- STRIPPED, Christina Aguilera (2002)
The beauty of Stripped is that, unlike an album like Justified, what it represents is worth so much more than the individual songs could ever muster. The album creates an archetype thats so unique to a moment in a persons life when he or she is finally un-caged. Theres an unleveled amount of catharsis thats felt through the album on behalf of the artist, and the listener cant help but feel that Aguilera painstakingly bore her soul for its creation. With so much to say, prove and clarify, the album can easily come off as unfocused or scatter-brained, but oddly enough its its unfocused nature that makes it such a believable record; a piece of art is never perfect, especially not in the eyes of the artist. But with all the motivation, blood, sweat, tears and heart that were tirelessly funneled into its creation, and beneath all the glaring flaws that the process can catalyze, you cant help but give the final product an unapologetic amount of respect. Stripped could have easily not come to fruition, and Aguilera could have much more easily followed the already monstrous upward trajectory that her debut carved for her. Instead, she carves out an untested trajectory of her own, and in the process fends off the avalanche of cynicism that naturally comes along with a release like this. A lot of credit needs to be given to Aguilera, because for all of her shortcomings as an auteur or marketer, she was still the one who shattered the glass ceiling for the modern pop female. Madonna forcefully gave herself expressive leeway that the public applied to her and her only; Stripped gave it to everyone else. Rihanna and Lady Gaga need to pay their dues.
Brightest moments: Beautiful, Fighter, The Voice Within
13 -- COME ON OVER, Shania Twain (1998)
The queen of pop crossover, Shania Twain crafts an album that seems too big for any single genre. Filled with timeless classics from start to finish, Come On Over takes the best characteristics of country music (smart evocative lyricism) and the best of pop music (approachability and a good hook) and fuses them together with perfect science. With this album, Shania crafted a sound and appeal that Taylor Swift has tried to re-capture, but theres a fundamental difference between the two artists. The difference is that Shania Twains music doesnt make a listener feel like he or she is above it; a curse that Taylor Swift has been trying to combat since her pop emergence. Theres a whimsical spirit to every song that isnt a ballad, and every ballad has timeless chord progressions that are still being used in pop today. Youre Still The One has inspired years worth of pop and country incarnations that borrow the very same pacing, lyrical positioning and progressions that the iconic song introduced en masse. Actually, its safe to say that Come On Over is one of the most influential albums of all time, and while many of those influential albums have done more harm than good in the long run, theres no such indication that this albums legacy will serve the music scene unfavorably.
Brightest Moments: Come On Over, Youre Still The One, When
12 -- BORN THIS WAY, Lady Gaga (2011)
Coming off the high of her previous radio-friendly albums, everybody who listened through Born This Way was waiting for something expected to happen. Be it a dubstep breakdown, a feature by a prominent rapper, or a mind-numbing nursery rhyme of a hook ala P-P-P-Poker Face, listeners were expecting something that was uniquely Gaga to come out of this music and remind them of why they fell in love with the artist in the first place. What we end up realizing is that Born This Way is exactly the record that Gaga was building her career up to, and in effect, we realize that there is nothing more uniquely Gaga than the rambunctious offerings on display with Born This Way. The album is not so reliant on typical radio tropes, and while theres still the occasional stutter and unnervingly memorable hook, much of the album seems to be concocted out of Lady Gagas adoration for the great 80s rock turnover. Production is harsher, louder, more raw. The melodies are more static and repetitive, but admittedly timeless. The vocals are riddled with Bob Dylan swagger and seem to follow a great deal of chords popularized by Kiss (the pre-chorus to Hair comes to mind here). The highly politicized content struggles to find a perfect middle in between subtle genius and preachy pandering. Its polarizing nature and blaring flaws are actually what make it such a powerful record, and bring to mind the experimental periods of rock n roll that pissed off half the population and inspired the other. Whether you found inspiration in Born This Way or not, two points will always ring true: that history will elect this album as the official soundtrack to one of our great social movements, and that Born This Way cements all validity in the fact that Lady Gaga is our last great rock star.
Brightest moments: Marry The Night, The Edge of Glory, You and I
11 -- MISS E... SO ADDICTIVE, Missy Elliott (2001)
Missy Elliotts third album is one of the most revolutionary releases in hip-hop history, and its approachability made it both an easy crossover into pop and a mainstream darling post-release. What makes So Addictive so spectacular is its relentless energy and its progressive spirit. Its one of the most unadulteratedly fun albums ever, but it doesnt sacrifice quality and credence for loudness and bass. She channels the popular and emerging music trends at the time (instrumentals with mid-east influence, bass over treble, etc.) without making the music feel static in time or fad-ish. Instead, she creates a timeless work of art thats as substantial as it is hilariously, stupidly fun. If you've never listened to So Addictive, simply look to the album title to get a good understanding of what's in store.
Brightest moments: Get Ur Freak On, One Minute Man, 4 My People
ALBUMS 10-6 COMING SOON. WILL YOUR FAVE MAKE IT??
