This is going to be a far from inclusive list. Plus, I’m only including full albums that rocked. I’m not counting singles or individual tracks that I really liked. Might list a few of those at the end.
First up, a tie for Album of the Year.
- William Shatner – Has Been – Laugh if you must. The album is at times hilarious, touching, and insightful. And always very listenable. Shatner hams it up at points, and I’m glad to see that he doesn’t take himself too seriously. I expected every track to be along the so-bad-its-good lines of his covers of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, or Rocketman, and was pleasantly surprised.
- The Killers – Hot Fuss – One of the few albums I can listen too from first to last, and enjoy everything in between. Not a bad track in the bunch. Catchy choruses and great riffs.
Honorable mentions:
- Bubba Ho-Tep soundtrack – One of the best cinematic scores I’ve heard in years. There’s a definite western riff to it, and the lone guitar theme still haunts my dreams. I treasure my autographed copy. Apparently quite hard to come by now.
- RJD2 – Since We Last Spoke – I heard the title track on WBER over the summer and was instantly hooked. Solid techno/hip-hop.
Those are the new in ’04 albums that rocked my world this year. Other music I discovered, but might not have been put out this year includes:
Death Cab for Cutie, Modest Mouse, No Doubt – The Singles, Splashdown (more on them in a feature post eventually), The Decemberists (particularly Billy Liar), Offspring, Bad Religion, and others.