Best Albums of 2003

2003 was one of the best years for music I can remember, close to 1994 and 2004 in quality. Ten was the magic number for this list but as with any of the other lists, subsequent edits have stretched it out past ten. Oh well, here goes:

12. Chutes Too Narrow - The Shins
Reflections: This album was something I really needed, something fresh and new. There's nothing groundbreaking about the lyrics, but the musical approach that The Shins take with each song is mindblowing. After hearing "Saint Simon" once you know immediately that you need to hear more.
Best tracks: Saint Simon, So Says I, Kissing the Lipless, Gone For Good

11. Yoko - Beulah
Reflections: Sadly this is the last album by California outfit Beulah, as the band parted ways after touring in 2004. A great album from start to finish, this album is the epitome of calm and melodious.
Best tracks: Landslide Baby, You're Only King Once, Me and Jesus Don't Talk Anymore

10. Deloused in the Comatorium - The Mars Volta
Reflections: Smooth and melodious are two things I would not use to describe this album. Chaotic dissonance would be a lot more correct. Though that might sound terrible, the songs actually come together in a curious, amazing way. The harmonies are incredible at times. This is one I recommend you listen to, but download it first. Mars Volta isn't for everyone.
Best tracks: Televators, Cicatriz ESP, Son et Lumiere/Inertiatic ESP

9. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below - Outkast
Reflections: This double album is massive, and has two distinctly different flavors. Big Boi's "Speakerboxxx" half is more conventional Outkast, but it's done extremely well. Andre's "The Love Below" half has a couple blockbuster singles but the rest is just him screwing around on a record, almost unlistenable at times. The set has plenty of up-notes though, and in the end is just more quality Outkast music.
Best tracks: Roses, The Way You Move, Knowing, Flip Flop Rock, Hey Ya, Dracula's Wedding, Bowtie

8. The Coral - The Coral
Reflections: Listening to this album gives one the impression that they're back in the 1960s, listening to songs about the sea while on a drug of some sort. The Coral are unique and brilliant, and the tales they interweave with their music are incredible. "Dreaming of You" is one of the best singles I've heard in my life.
Best tracks: Dreaming of You, I Remember When, Spanish Main, Shadows Fall

7. Give Up - The Postal Service
Reflections: This is brilliantly written pop music, with an electronic twist. Ben Gibbard's light, airy vocals combined with light, airy beats give us an incredible listening experience with some of the catchiest melodies and phrases I can ever remember hearing.
Best tracks: Nothing Better, We Will Become Silhouettes, Such Great Heights, Be Still My Heart (B-Side)

6. Fallen - Evanescence
Reflections: Now, I know I'm going to catch some grief for having this album in my list, but that's no big deal. This album on the other hand is quite a big deal. Combine angelic vocals with hard, driving guitars and you've got me hooked. The album feels almost religious at times, but it's a very tainted sanctity. Very dark, very creepy, but very beautiful.
Best tracks: Whisper, Imaginary, Taking Over Me, Tourniquet, Everybody's Fool, Bring Me To Life

5. Spending Time on the Borderline - Ozma
Reflections: Another "last" album, this pop-emo masterpiece was put together by Ozma before they broke up. Every track is golden, and this album rarely misses a step. If Weezer had continued to improve after Pinkerton, I imagine that this is what they might've sounded like in 2003.
Best tracks: Your Name, Bad Dogs, Spending Time on the Borderline, Restart, Wake Up, Lightyears Will Burn

4. Billy Talent - Billy Talent
Reflections: I didn't get into this Canadian punk band until hearing "Red Flag" on the Burnout Revenge (and Burnout Legends) soundtracks. I found and downloaded this album and after a few listens was absolutely crazy about it. If you're like me and haven't heard anything of this band, go to their website and check 'em out. It's high energy punk, with a fair amount of wailing. Not everybody's cup of tea, but it sure gets me going.
Best tracks: This Is How It Goes, The River Below, Prisoners of Today, Try Honesty

3. Her Majesty - The Decemberists
Reflections: When I first heard The Decemberists, I immediately thought "that's what I've been wanting to hear for years." A distinct sound, this is extremely intelligent folk-indie-rock. The lyrics are brilliant, the songs actually tell stories. The music behind the words is no let-down either.
Best tracks: The Chimbley Sweep, The Soldiering Life, The Batchelor and the Bride, Shanty for the Arethusa, Billy Liar

2. Sing the Sorrow - AFI
Reflections: I was not a fan of AFI's earlier work, and really still am not. But this album was incredibly well put together. It's the most rocking album I've heard in a long time, and AFI found a way to channel the energy of hardcore punk and refine it into something incredible.
Best tracks: Makeshift Wings, This Celluloid Dream, Death of Seasons, Girl's Not Grey, The Leaving Song Pt. II

1. The Ugly Organ - Cursive

Reflections: This album is abrasive yet the most refined work of art I've ever heard. To date, this is my favorite album of all time. The harmonies and phenomenal use of dissonance by Tim Kasher, along with scathing lyrics describing the debauchery and emptiness following a painful divorce give this album a mood and live to itself. It's anguish and regret, and it's beautiful.
Best tracks: The whole disc is a masterpiece, but the combo of "Some Red Handed Sleight of Hand", "Art Is Hard", and "The Recluse" just slay me

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