THE NOUGHTIES: 2000-2009
Over the past 10 years, all kinds of genres have blossomed and withered. Many bands have come, left their indelible mark and scampered, while others faded into obscurity. Many successful bands of the last century were decapitated by the new millennium guillotine. This was the decade when all the greats decided to put their differences aside and get back together “for the fans.” This was the decade when Bob Geldof staged Live 8; a colossal concert that I was privileged to see on television.
This was the decade when the world hung its head in shame, as a tortured icon unexpectedly died in June of this year (for those who may have been exploring Antarctica at the time, I’m of course referring to the late Michael Jackson.)
This is homage to the albums from every year of the last 10 years, that either represent a flawless creative surge, or remain the perfect reminder of a certain period in time. Lest we forget.
All that you can’t leave behind
Never a band to do things by halves, the new millennium marked the perfect opportunity for the shape-shifting band to stage a grand reinvention, and “re-apply for the best band in the world”. Indeed, they did just that. After a decade of experimentation and synapse-exploding stadium concerts, U2 decided to strip it all back with All That You Can’t Leave Behind; a soulful feast for the senses, and what is often considered their 3rd masterpiece. With the exhilarating and now iconic ‘Beautiful Day’ as the lead single, the world was theirs once again.
Kid A 
Radiohead’s 4th album, Kid A, was born of new-millennium paranoia, and was initially met with bewilderment. Gone was the “conventional” rock format (convention is not a word that often appears in the Radiohead thesaurus). Most instruments were cashed in for keyboards, Kaoss Pads, horn sections, and drum machines, to create a minimalist electronic album about neuroticism, introversion and apocalypse. The title track sounds like a robotic lullaby, while ‘Idioteque’ is a frenzied ode to impending global disaster.
It took Radiohead’s audience by surprise; it took the band out of their element. But it was, and arguably remains, Radiohead’s finest hour, and showed just what this band were capable of. While the world was anxious yet excited about the new millennium, by the sounds of Kid A, Radiohead were dreading it.
Hybrid Theory
With the nu-metal phase in full swing in 2000, Linkin Park scrambled their way to the top of the commercial pile with Hybrid Theory, effectively rendering their contemporaries impotent. It spawned several hit singles, one of which; ‘Crawling’, snapped up a Grammy, and has to date sold nearly 30 million copies worldwide. With hoards of fans in tow, Linkin Park became one of the biggest bands of the start of the decade.
Hybrid Theory would prove to be the commercial and creative benchmark that they have yet to overcome. As the nu metal vehicle gradually grinded to a halt, Linkin Park’s grip on the public consciousness began to loosen.
Although the album seems to have been swallowed by the unforgiving sea of time, in late 2000 and 2001, the world belonged to Linkin Park.
White Pony
Deftones were always unfairly catagorised with the nu-metal label, but their 3rd album, White Pony, set them far higher above their peers. Recruiting Frank Delgado during the writing process, and taking influences from the shoegaze and new wave genres, the band created a landmark metal album, with intelligent lyrics, intricate rhythms, soaring vocals, and ferocious heaviness and landed a grammy award for “Elite.” Maynard James Keenan contributed to vocal duties on ‘The Passenger’, making for a spine-chilling vocal onslaught.
Parachutes
While contemporaries such as Oasis and Radiohead began to experiment with their sounds and the Britpop Express began to slow, Coldplay’s debut Parachutes sounds like the swansong to that era of British music, and it catapulted them to stellar heights, and haven’t come down since. While singer Chris Martin may be following Bono’s footsteps with his charitable endeavours and irksome public image,Parachutes is a reminder of when 4 young men changed the face or British rock seemingly overnight, and the album remains a humble, elusive and shy slice of heartfelt bombast.
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