Top 100 albums of 2010-2019: #s 75-51
(Previous entry: 100-76
)
As we continue our countdown of the Top 100 albums of 2010-2019, today we'll tackle #s 75-51. For the rest of the week, we'll jump straight into the list, followed by the Trivia Nuggets and Spotify playlist (featuring a track from each album on the day's list). Now the methodology will be available at the end of the each day's post, in case you want to read up again on how we ended up where we are.
Top 100 of 2000-2009: 75-51
t73. Touché Amoré – Stage Four (2016)
The raw emotion gutted from Jeremy Bolm has always been quite obvious to hear, but it wasn’t until Stage Four where you could actually feel it. The record went deeper than any release prior, pulling aching screams and somber melodies from places he had long buried inside. His dear mother, Sandra, had tragically succumbed to cancer and this was the coping that ensued. As much as it was an ode to a loved one, it was equally an outcry of denial. It resulted in a record that saw the band delving into softer tones and brighter hooks, creating songs that managed to be more wrenching and agonizing than those driven by Jeremy’s grueling howls and heavy hardcore aesthetics. -Terry McGinty
t73. Frenzal Rhomb - Hi-Vis High Tea (2017)
Australia's Frenzal Rhomb has not put out a bad album in over 20 years. Around Shut Your Mouth, something clicked significantly with the band, it is no surprise that 2017's Hi-Vis High Tea would be one of their best yet.
There is a lack of conviction, really, that lends the band an ability to do whatever the fuck they want without any consequences. The four-piece line-up is infinitely talented enough to pick up just about any genre and still land directly on the target. Gordy Forman's ability to drum from punk, to hardcore, and basic rudiments is a miracle to listen to. Jay Whalley rips every vocal line with a plethora of options, while (recently former) bassist Tom Crease and guitarist Lindsay McDougall fill in the blanks with telepathic symbiosis. -Mike Elfers
t73. Defeater - Letters Home (2013)
Defeater had the odds stacked against them. They were a “modern hardcore” band whose sound had went out of fashion several years prior, were relying upon an unusual fictional narrative of a WWII-era war-torn family, and had already produced two albums and an EP’s worth of it. But they exceeded all expectations on LP3. Letters Home shows a talented hardcore band operating at the top of their game. They continued to mine fresh, creative brilliance from psychological struggle and domestic strife set to a heavy, desperate and cathartic, intensely and crisply performed soundtrack, with occasional detours into remarkable post-hardcore experimentation. -Brian Shultz
t70. Seahaven - Reverie Lagoon: Music for Escapism Only (2014)
Seahaven took something of a step back on their first full-length, 2011’s Winter Forever, an oddly scrappier and more raw effort in many ways than their well-formed debut EP, 2010’s Ghost. This made their sophomore effort all the more surprising; Reverie Lagoon is a majestic and introspective indie-emo masterwork that’s sprawling and beautifully mournful, sonically and emotionally falling somewhere in the spectrum of pre-Transatlanticism
Death Cab For Cutie with a hint of the quieter side of Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. From this point on, there was no reason for emo-rock bands not to take chances anymore. -Brian Shultz
t70. Mad Caddies - Dirty Rice (2014)
In 2014, the Mad Caddies released their first full length in 7 years. While the record maintained the band’s classic erratic sound, it added a few other sonic nuances to make this one of the best records that the band had produced. Their success could probably be credited to the fact that they appeal to a wide range of music listeners. And this album was no exception. This was a true depiction of a band that showed an evolution of sorts, but still maintained a semblance of their original punky reggae sound that could be traced all the way back to 1995.-Pete Vincelli / pvincelli
t70. La Dispute – Rooms of the House (2014)
La Dispute fucked around, wrote a novel about a collapsing relationship (or maybe several collapsing relationships), give it a non-linear structure and a bone-deep sense of place, then decided rather than release at as New York Times Book of the Year to make it the most literate, cutting and substantive post-hardcore record of the last decade. You’ll never be able to sing along to it, and you’ll never be able to keep yourself from trying to quote it. Rooms of the House lingers, haunts and breeds obsession. This is the kind of record people write post-graduate theses on. -ChurchillDownes
69. Masked Intruder - M.I. (2014)
Masked Intruder - M.I. - They roared out of the gate fully-formed on their debut: Four color-coded criminals, unlucky in love and unlucky in crime, singing the catchiest pop punk ditties this side of the Mighty Mississip’. But where would they go from there? They stayed the course, but further shined up the punk, turning it from pop punk to pop punk. Sure there was still the furious Johnny Ramone-style downpicking by Blue, Green and Yellow, the super fast hi-hat subdivisions by Red, while they remained all clad in either sleeveless black tees or leather jackets. But man, M.I.’s songs are slick and harmony-laden, which was just what I wanted. People jumped ship at this album, but joke’s on them, Masked Intruder stole their wallet. Their third album is super solid too, so it’s clear these guys are here for the long con, and it’s not really the masks or stage act, but because in the end people really just want something they can sing along to. -Greg Simpson
68. Downtown Boys - Cost of Living (2017)
On their third album, Cost of Living, Downtown Boys blew right past their prior widely-acclaimed output. The Providence, RI sextet raised the stakes and set ablaze the same ingredients from Full Communism turned yet more caustic meeting the tumultuous politics of the moment. The brass and driving bass boldly backdropped the movement in the lyricism, overtly political songs “A Wall”, “Somos Chulas”, operating in both Spanish and English, provided a powerful political screed from minority voices early in the Trump administration. Anthemic belter Victoria Ruiz’s yelling, jarring, sloganeering choruscraft and infectious melodies evoked and empowered a vividly painted anger. -Danny Wimmer
67. The Flatliners - Cavalcade 2010
Ontario's The Flatliners had a busy beginning, quickly melding into the melodic hardcore punk rock beast that they are today. WIth 2010's release of Cavalcade, after countless tours with their idols around the globe, their momentum was unending and their solidity was top notch. Cavalcade is when the young punk quartet became common adults, and truly honed exactly how they wanted their band to sound. Singer/guitarist Chris Cresswell sounds as timeless and powerful as ever, literally drilling his vocal chords into the 12 song LP. His tone and rasp are beyond any voice in Fat's historic roster, and the growth of the band's instrumentals and writing are stapled steady by his delivery.
Cavalcade is rich with best material, and a cohesiveness that you can't get out of a band that hasn't sweated it out in tour vans and sketchy venues for 300 days a year. The tremendous record closes with the killer experience of "New Years," shifting from heavy speed to ambiance and emotion, all directed by Fat Wreck's most powerful vocalist. -Mike Elfers
66. Joyce Manor – Never Hungover Again (2014)
Joyce Manor’s dank and fuzzy pop-punk has always embodied the dingy basements where their sound seemingly took form. But it wasn’t until Epitaph Records came along, who just happened to hold the key to the band’s underground dwellings, where they began to spread their filthy charm above the surface. Never Hungover Again was a rinsed and shined 19-minute summery blast that didn’t leave the quirky hooks and twangy riffs down the stairs. It weighed heavier as a punky-pop record with infectious tracks that could have easily found their way into living rooms and TRL top-ten’s 15 years prior.-Terry McGinty
65. Joey Cape and Tony Sly - Acoustic Volume 2 (2012)
The early part of the decade continued to bring us what was arguably one of the cutest couples in punk: Lagwagon’s Joey Cape and No Use For A Name’s Tony Sly. The two continued to tour on the back of their acoustic stylings, and released a second split of acoustic versions of their “electric” bands’ songs. Acoustic Volume 2 may be mostly unplugged rehashes of songs (as with the first volume, each artist also provided an unreleased original track) but, as with any acoustic breakdown, how the artist tackles it can be good or bad. In this case, the two kept up their success and gave us ten classic songs given new life, and two new tracks which only served to prove their songwriting abilities. -Jeff Sorley
t63. Deafheaven - Ordinary Corrupt Human Love (2018)
With their combination of black metal, shoegaze, post rock, and alternative rock, Deafheaven may well end up being remembered for doing for black metal what Hüsker Dü did for hardcore punk over thirty years ago. On this 2018 album, Deafheaven accomplished something rare in the underground music scene; they grew their sound and expanded their audience without making their music more palatable. While the band built on the genre blending found on previous releases, they finally feel comfortable here. They were no long figuring out who they were, they were ready to tell us. -Johnathon1069
t63. Billy Liar - Some Legacy (2019)
Billy Liar has a certain kind of charisma that can only be explained by listening to his songs. He could easily silence a room full of drunk punks with simply a guitar and his voice, but he also has the ability to play with a full band without losing any of the magic. And this was clearly evident on his debut album. The songs were powerful, emotional, yet somber and sweet; a near perfect blend of punk rock sound and great songwriting. -Pete Vincelli / pvincelli
62. Title Fight - Shed (2011)
Shed’s one-two opening punch is some of the best melodic punk revitalization around, with “Coxton Yard” a spot-on Lifetime song for the 2010s and “Shed” a wonderful hybrid of Hot Water Music’s gruffly emotive post-hardcore and Jawbreaker’s signature restraint. Thankfully, the hardcore masses they played for loved it. This was essentially Title Fight’s last hurrah playing relatively straightforward punk before they’d explore shoegaze, post-punk and slacker indie rock on future (and improved) efforts. But even here, they were combining the best of pop-punk, melodic hardcore, and emo into one vigorous, youthfully angsty stew, and it was a formidable one at that. -Brian Shultz
61. Ramshackle Glory - Live the Dream (2015)
This album followed the harrowing story of Pat the Bunny’s (lyricist and vocalist of the band) journey to and through sobriety. Fans of Pat’s previous records knew what to expect with the release of this album and it didn’t disappoint. The songs were passionate, angry, and well-written with plenty of sing along moments. Pat has a clear talent for writing and the band accurately translated this passion. Ramshackle Glory has since disbanded and Pat is no longer making music, which has greatly enhanced the legacy of this record. -Pete Vincelli / pvincelli
60. Teenage Bottlerocket - Tales From Wyoming (2015)
I was way late to the game on Teenage Bottlerocket. For most of my time here at punknews, especially in the early aughts, I was the guy that got the “go write for Pitchfork, you hipster!” thing. Throughout the mid 2010s I realized that the shit I grew up on is still great, and I should find some new stuff like that. TBR was the band everyone was bringing up when comparing to bands I loved from high school- Ramones, Screeching Weasel, Mr. T Experience, etc - so I finally gave ‘em a shake, and boy, they did the style perfectly and wrote kickass fun songs by the boatload. I may be the only fan who would call this their favorite TBR record , but that first album you fall for always sticks. These songs are undeniably catchy and sound like they’re having a blast so it’s no wonder they keep doin’ it album after album. Sadly this was drummer Brandon Carlisle’s last record before he passed rather suddenly, but his last testament is a great fucking record. -Greg Simpson
59. The Lillingtons - Stella Sapiente (2017)
Although on-again, off-again, The Lillingtons have had a fairly steady career trajectory. The band, while still keeping a sense of their Ramones-core roots, ventured into a foreboding sound with Stella Sapiente. The album, true to its titles’ roots in Lovecraftian mythos (by way of comic scribe Alan Moore), touches upon the occult and adjacent themes, while still being a thrilling, if somewhat slower tempo then previous, album to listen to. Haunting surf rock mixed with secret societies gave us a stellar LP to follow up their comeback EP Project 313 from earlier in the year. -Jeff Sorley
t57. Gang of Youths – Go Farther in Lightness (2017)
From the moment those initial keys hit, Go Farther in Lightness gripped you in tight and held you close as it lifted you high above any circumstance set to bring you down. You were released inspired, full of hope and ready to take on life. The trusting softness in Dave Le’aupepe’s voice guiding these soothing ballads and arena-rock jams blanketed all stress and anguish during your time spent with the record. The album was monstrous, meant to reach a greater audience - and that’s just what it did, garnering global praise and acclaim. Dave sung to the masses, but spoke to you directly, reminding you that even in the darkest of times, there’s always light to be found. -Terry McGinty
t57. Balance and Composure - The Things We Think We’re Missing (2013)
Balance and Composure became arguably the best of the emotive alternative rock/post-hardcore bands of their time on their more mature LP2. Its musical framework is a tapestry of “best in genre”: Sunny Day Real Estate’s ethereal drama of The Rising Tide; Smashing Pumpkins’ cathartic glory from “Stand Inside Your Love”; and earlier mewithoutYou’s tense, full-bodied rhythms. (Heck, “Cut Me Open” starts like SDRE’s “Snibe” and shifts into a groove resembling mwY’s “Nice and Blue (Part 2)”.) Few — if any — other bands, however, have sounded as sincere in their influences and expressing their tangled emotions articulately (without the melodrama or creative laziness) like B&C did, especially on this album. -Brian Shultz
56. Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, m.A.A.d city (2012)
To Pimp a Butterfly is the one that people are going to write books about 20 years from now, but Good Kid, m.A.A.D city is the one people are actually going to listen to. For long-time observers of Lamar’s trajectory, it is a culmination of all his powers in one place: thoughtful writing, considered storytelling, dexterous and adventurous rapping. For anyone else, it’ll knock your block off (“Backseat Freestyle”) and get you high (“Money Trees”). Add to that it’s function as a concept album / love letter / hate letter to growing up hard, and you’re let with one of the most impressive major label debuts of any rapper from any decade. -ChurchillDownes
55. Fucked Up - Dose Your Dreams (2018)
Fucked Up broadened their sound on 2018’s Dose Your Dreams and experimented with different musical influences. They drew on psychedelic rock, disco, electronic music, and dashes of hardcore punk among many others to create a deep, layered sound and continue the story of David Eliade that had begun on 2011’s David Comes to Life. Dose Your Dreams also saw long-time lead singer Damian Abraham stepping back and sharing the vocals with guitarist Ben Cook and drummer Jonah Falco, as well as a multitude of guest vocalists. Dose Your Dreams was an ode to creativity in punk rock and showed the true merit of stepping outside of the box. -Em Moore
54. The Mountain Goats - Goths (2017)
The first Mountain Goats album to forego guitar, genius songwriter and bandleader John Darnielle took to the keys instead on Goths and wrote yet another slab of perfection that landed this album at the #1 spot on my Best of 2017 Punknews list. You write differently on different instruments, and getting off the guitar is something Darnielle has done before, notably on The Life of The World to Come, but here it’s primarily a Rhodes electric piano, and whether it's that or the much more relatable subject matter (being an outcast rather than being a Jesus freak) this album knocks it out of the park Darnielle has never whiffed on an album, but this one is a walk off homer, even as the veteran player on the indie rock squad. -Greg Simpson
53. The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang (2010)
The Gaslight Anthem started the decade off with the much anticipated American Slang. Not an attempt to replicate the overnight sensation of The ’59 Sound, Slang would serve as a note of progression, rather than sequel. Brian Fallon’s signature pipes soared even higher when not stuck in the muddy production of ’59. Opting for far less reverb, and much more Boss, the keynote of the title track is not lost on the rest of the album. These are hymns of modern Americana; our classic cars ridden hard, our old haunts disappearing, our royalty sauntering down urban streets uncelebrated. -Chris DC
52. Gogol Bordello - Trans-Continental Hustle (2010)
The sprawling, enigmatic gypsy-punk ensemble’s fifth album was a grand, sweeping, layered landscape introducing a softer era for the band. Rooted in their own elaborate environs and mythos, enhanced by Hutz’ sweetly strummed and heavily featured acoustic guitar, Trans-Continental Hustle was given more room to breathe amidst spacious and lush arrangements. Among the sunnier compositions the raucous “Immigraniada” and “Break the Spell” harkened to their rowdier past, the title-track tidily encapsulated this era of the band, and “My Companjera” stands a decade later as potentially the band’s finest written song. A transitional album, and perhaps their last great album (time will tell). -Danny Wimmer
51. Tigers Jaw - spin (2017)
Tigers Jaw fans may not want to hear this, but spin is the band’s best full-length (don’t @ me). After three-fifths of the band departed in 2013, the Pennsylvania act was whittled down to just the duo of Ben Walsh and Brianna Collins. After the final effort from that original quintet, 2014’s Charmer, the pair were put under tremendous pressure not only to write and record an entire Tigers Jaw album themselves, but do it under the auspices of major label expectations. But they absolutely delivered with a pitch-perfect emo/rock/power-pop interpolation and essentially produced the Stay What You Are of the 2010s. -Brian Shultz
Trivia Nuggets
- There were 69 total “The…” bands in the entirety of the poll.
- 9 albums each received a total score of 1, meaning that they were A) #100 on one of the participant's Top 100 picks, and B) did not appear on anyone else's picks.
- Portland, OR hardcore act Dead Fucking Serious was just on the outside looking in, as their 2019 LP Peril missed the Top 100 by a single point.
#75-51 Playlist
Methodology12 Punknews reviewers, writers, and editors participated in this poll. Each chose their Top 100 albums of 2010-2019, assigning each album a point value with 100 being the highest, and 1 being the lowest. These scores were then cumulated and tallied.
Based on constructive criticism from the 2000-2009 poll, this time around we have also applied a modifier to each album's score based on how many individual Top 100 lists it was on. This "mass appeal" modifier allows albums that were more popular to get a boost in the score (and helped to limit, but not eliminate, ties). If an album had 2 persons vote for it, a multiplier of *1.1 was applied to the base score. For each additional vote, 0.1 was added to that modifier.
The resulting value is the album's final score and, as you'd expect, the final results are the 100 highest scoring albums. />