Daveportivo's Cultural Evaluation Facility

So I've finally made it to the top 50 of this huge, awesome, superbly crafted, defectly selected list that could of have been collated by a total and utter genius. Anyway enough of that lets get going.

This is certianly a divisive choice. Depending on your

learning this is either Muse's best album album or their most annoying. If you don't like Matt Bellamy's spiralling whine, and if you don't like ludicrious bombastic apocalypse baiting rock/metal/prog/pop then this is probably your idea of hell. However for the vast majority this was the moment when Muse got everything right, they kept the big pretentious arrangements of Origins Of Symatry and the bombast of Showbiz but added a slick pop punch in the form of sharp singles (Time Is Running Out, Hysteria) and haunting ballads (Sing For Absolution, Falling Away With You). It was quite an achievement for Muse and it took them from love 'em or hate 'em rockers into Festival headlining superstars. When looking back at Absolution now its a clear delight, it's apocaliptic, meanacing and beautiful. It has contains all of Muse's best tracks, their best hard rocker Stockholm Syndrome, never released as a single but still the centre peice of any Muse set, and their best apocalyspe love in the ghostly Sing For Absolution, why they chose to drop this track from their live setlist remains a mystery. Then theirs their best ballad beack before they got so syruppy they triggered your gag reflect there was the the tender and power Falling Away With You. There were signs of what was to come the overblown epic Butterflies and Hurricanes that was always better in concept than execution but it is a minor misfire on Muse's last reigned in rock album.

So we've heard alot about little miss Lily Allen and about social detialing, being a historical document of the times, the DIY ethic, being the new McCartney or Specials, but as good as Lily is, she is for the girls, and for us manfolk we had The Streets. Mike Skinner has watched his star fade but let us not forget that before their was Lily Allen, before their was Arctic Monkeys there were The Streets. A Grand Don't Come For Free wasn't the trendsetter or the mold breaker Mike Skinner had already accomplished that with the lighting bolt that was Original Pirate Materiel but this was the record that took Skinner from the cool clubs to Radio One. What did Skinner delivered, well more of the same, but with a subtly shift in dirrection, less comedy, less club bangers and more serious dour heartache. It's this element that was the key to this albums success as this was a record that made girls cry and made them buy this record in huge numbers. Of course their was the unstoppable Dry Your Eyes Mate his poppiest ballad to date but the really effecting song writting lay within Could Be In. Skinner using his sad and serious tone, talks about trying to pull a girl, detialing every aspect from watching her play with her hair to drifting away in endless conversation. Its subtly brilliance as she goes from latest target to love of his life. Don't worry its not all sad and serious let us not forget this is the record that gave us Fit But You Know It the first and last word the shallow and pathetic pulling culture. Skinner's songwriting was peerless in the early 2004, Alex Turner may have taken his crown, but "See I Think Reckon Your About An 8 or 9, maybe even 9 and a half in four beers time" remains one of the greatest cuplets in recent history. Sadder, more reflective, but never the less great follow up to one of the decades landmark records.

The race to this forty sixth spot was really tough, and in many ways the 50-40 area was the hardest to asemble as its so tough to decifer between great albums and influencial album and important albums, as a result PJ Harvey and Bon Iver failed to make the cut. Now logic would suggest if they were being considered for the 40s surely they could slot in lower, but somehow that wouldn't be right, it was a now or never situation. So how did Nick Cave edge out such tough competition? Well that question leads to an even more intriguing question how is Nick Cave managing to have a second career defining purple patch? Honestly it was a long long time since those early Birthday Party records redefined rock music and introduced us to Mr. Cave. Earlier this decade he brought us the visercal side project Grinderman with there raging epic No Pussy Blues and that animalistic energy caries over to Dig!!!. However unlike the suprising dark blues of Grinderman here Nick Cave is showing off how versitile an artist he has become. There's the lovely widescreen story telling of Jesus Of The Moon, yes a notably religious reference but the song is more focused on Cave's storytelling, like a walk through a desert in Arizona (Arizona is another key theme of this record). Then there's what appears to be a fun party through away single Today's Lesson, yes a fun radio track from Nick Cave. However the lyrics are still cutting and vital, its a real contrast the poppy chorus "We're Going To Have A Real Cool Time" and Cave's razor sharp rants "Mr. Sandman Has A Certain Appetite For Janie In Repose....He Likes To Congregate Around The Intersection Of Janie's Jeans / The Sandman The Inseminator Opens Her Up Like A Love Letter And Enters Her Dreams" fun pop song, think again. Oddly when Cave uses his Mad Preacher Gimmick as on We Call Upon The Author it feels oddly stale especially in light of the new tricks on display. Then there's the genius of lead of single Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!! it's one of those great suprise who though Nick Cave would sound this relevant in 2009, who though he'd be co-headlining Glastonbury with Blur, one listen to this album and its no longer a mystery.

Each an every deuchy singer songwriter walking the earth right now should take this album home study from it and learn. How often do you get a guy who sits on an accoustic guitar strumming out of basic chords and singing some repetitive non descript sentiments who ends up flying up the charts? It's ridiculous. Sufjan Stevens is a welcome change and should be admired, he's got a lovely voice but he puts huge effort into his production and arrangements and it pays huge dividends on Illanoise. The strings and orchestral arrangements are wonderful and pitched to perfection, the horns blast, the strings soar and the choir harmonises superbly. However its not the arrangements or Sufjan's goergeous vocals that steal the show here, its the sheer level of detail, intamacy and reaserch that are beyond parrell. Now you may be wondering what I'm talking about, research? Well incase you didn't know Sufjan Stevens has embarked on a series of fifty albums detailing the lives and cultures of the various states of America. While occasionally I have to plead ignorance, when he talks about famous folk from Illinois the detail from his work is sublime, rooted around the famous cities and landmarks of the state he makes the state come to life in wonderful technicolour. The undoubted highlight for me was the low key (by Sufjan's standards) and somber played John Wayne Gracy Jnr. that details the life and killings of the states most notorious serial killers. It's a stageringly affecting song, not only does he attempted to get inside the psyche of the killer and sings the events in first person but he clearly understands his subject matter recalling his childhood and a bump on his head he recieved as a child. It's little touches like that that make this work so incredible. It's not all doom and gloom the album is uplifting and full of bouncy joyous up tempo numbers like the charming Decatur and the off the wall Come On Feel The Illinoise!!! This is a long album, but its endlessly rewarding and it reveals more and more secrets with each listen while also engraining some of the catchiest hooks imaginable in your psyche. The new great American Song Writer has arrived.

It's so frustrating when everytime someone talks about Jay Z your told he's the greatest of all time. Can we ever just talk about his music without having to suck the guys dick? I think this is why it took me so long to become a fan of Jay. I'm still not sold on his best in the world tag, his best album The Blueprint is not the highest ranking rap album in my list and artistically I much prefer Stankonia but trying to deny the importance, influence and quality of this album is futile. From the minute album opener The Ruler's Back kick in your instantly reminded why everyone loves Jay Z. His flow is superb, so chilled, so laid back, and so unique to Jay Z. While others shout and scream, or try to fit a punch line into every line Jay is cool calm and relaxed. He knows his swagger is tight, he doesn't have to force anything. This isn't an album in a rush. The real weakness of Jay Z's work is apparent immediately however, while he may be cool, do we really need to hear about how awesome he is over and over again? While M.I.A "puts people on a map whoever never seen a map" Jay Z seems content making sure that we never forget his name. That's why Jay is often most successful and most charming when he drops the facade "Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen to the eight wonder of the world / thanks for coming out tonight, you could have been anywhere else in the world" of course this intro then drops into monster anthem I.Z.Z.O (H.O.V.A) and all those complaints are soon forgotten. Honestly if I'd told you in 1999 that Jay Z would be standing tall on the Glastonbury stage with the crowd in the palm of his hand shouting "H to the Izzo" you'd have called me crazy. But that's what happened, and looking back at the sublime Heart Of The City and it shouldn't be a suprise. This album put Jay Z on the fast track to being the consensus choice for Greatest Rapper Alive.

Electro is a funny genre, its cold, electronic, robotic, without the familar tones of the human voice it's so hard to convey emotion other than, jump up around, dance, and sometimes that's enough, The Chemical Brothers have made a career out of such simple pleasure. The Knife however remove the human element running the lead vocal through multiple pitch adjusters and vocaders and often overloading the vocals with heavy basslines. Yet far from being emotionless and detached this record is affecting. It's creepy, it's cold, and it's kind of scary. There's a ghostly air to the album, like spectres in the machine the vocals float around ominously best demonstrated on the hypnotic From Off To On. However vocals aside the Knife have alot more to offer than ghostly landscapes, while this record drew many Kid A comparisions this is still a electro album with its foot firmly on the dancefloor. In the same way the metalic beats of Man Machine made you want to dance as well as run for cover. For everything ghostly urgent nightmare (that's a good thing) like Forest Family there's a beat and hook based anthem in the shape of Silent Shout and the wonderful Like A Pen. The joys of this album come from surviving your first impression getting through the towering eastern vocals of Marble House and you'll be suprised with some glorious arrangments and catchy hypnotic cuplets. By the end your almost uplifted by its soaring anthemic qualities as the cold hard robotic surfaces has been pulled away and replaced by the final fragile vocals "Some Things I Do For Money / Some Things I Do For Free". By the end your staggered, how could such a beautiful worked be disguised and hidden away by such a harsh abbrasive outer shell, then the Kid A comparison makes perfect sense, commit to this album, it maybe tough at first but its incredibly rewarding in the end.

The second album is always the ultimate test, some bands don't have to worry, Blur started of with the bland Leisure and had no where to go but up, and Radiohead started off as the worlds most generic plod rockers with Pablo Honey. So having set the bar low they could only soar and suprise their peers and critics, Arctic Monkeys however fell into a long lineage of impossible to top first albums, Whatever People Say fell right alongside Is This It, Definitely Maybe and Original Pirate Materiel. How would they respond would they go onto bigger more widescreen pop like Oasis and The Streets, or perhaps opt for the more of the same underground spirit of The Strokes or perhaps suprise us with a Kid A. Well the Arctic's didn't quite go particular far in any dirrection Favourite Worst Nightmare wasn't Whatever part two, and yet it wasn't a Kid A type departure or a Room On Fire natural successor. It was a deeper, darker and a little heavier. It was still full of grass roots socail detailing but this was not the story of a night out, this record felt older, it delt with failed relationships and on most obvious single Floresent Adolescent Turner tells the story of the spark going out of a relationship as the years go by "You Used To Get It In Your Fish Nets / Now You Only Get It In Your Night Dress".

Eslewhere things have got heavy there's the scenester bashing first single Brianstorm based around a Japanese fan they encountered. The arrangements are still tight and bouncy, but on this second record they've gained more meance, more punch and often more soul. This is clear on Old Yellow Bricks and first ever ballad 505. 505 also marks a clear change between the albums now the song writing watermark is the gloomy regretful and retrospective, Turner seems to have aged hugely between albums, now crooning wistfully rather than providing a state of the union adresses there is no new A Certain Romance here. So ultimately Favourite Worst Nightmare is a young band overwhelmed by age and thoughtfulness, it's the tender moments that shine through, but fear not the Monkey's still rock and the basslines bounce but there now more considered, accomplished but sadly less vital.

In the early nineties it looked liked we'd lost Bob Dylan once and for all as he struggled under the pressure of the never ending tour. Musically the returns were ever dimminishing, and new lows were being hit until suddenly Bob struck upon another career purple patch. The excellent Time Out Of Mind reminded the world of his relevance and then he blew everyone away with the beautiful Love & Theft (which I admit is a shocking admition from this list). However with 2006's Modern Times Dylan not only firmly restablished himself as back to his best he also took the pop charts by storm. Dylan became the oldest man to top the Billboard album charts and miracoulously saw his songs make their way onto an iPOD advert. Now there's no way anyone could have predicted that. So what was so special about Modern Times well for one its so laid back and mellow in places but Dylan's songwriting keeps it safely away from the dreaded "easy listening" tag. The smooth Spirit On The Water despite being firmly rooted in the past is so well crafted it never feels dated. Then there's the next big suprise Dylan has found his dancing shoes just listen to the beat of Thunder On The Mountain or the funky strut of Someday Baby and you'll be helpless to resist. Then their's Dylan songwriting and he feels strangly relevant on the wonderous Workingman's Blues #2 "They Say Low Wages Are A Reality, If We Want To Compete Abroad". Dylan even sounds like he's having fun dropping some great cuplets "I'm Going To Raise Me An Army Some Tough Son's Of Bitches / I'll Recruit My Army From The Orphanages" and then he ends the album with the superb Ain' Talkin' with the albums best and most interesting arrangement you feel like your broodily walking through an old western while Dylan displays unleashes his head down distain. Ultimately Modern Times is the third part of a trilogy and has restored Dylan to his rightful place in music history and reintroduced him to a newer wider audience, long live the resurrection!