The Guardian lists their 100 best albums of the 21st century
Jeremy Nifras
Jeremy Nifras Published: September 13, 2019
Radiohead at MSG in 2018 (more by Toby Tenenbaum)
As the 2010s draw to a close, we're anticipating an onslaught of lists trying their best to encapsulate a very eventful decade in music (as well as working on our own). The Guardian decided to take their list a step further, however, by ranking the 100 best albums of the 21st century (so far). For the gigantic list, the publication polled "45 music writers" to determine what records truly stood out over the past two decades.
Among the artists included in the list are many of the usual suspects, including Radiohead, Kanye West, Beyonce, Daft Punk, Sufjan Stevens, The Strokes, LCD Soundsystem, PJ Harvey, Arcade Fire, Kendrick Lamar, Joanna Newsom, Grimes, Bon Iver, Frank Ocean, Vampire Weekend, St. Vincent, Jay-Z, The National, and tons more. The UK publication's list also heavily praises albums from Dizzee Rascal and The Streets, who are perhaps more influential nowadays, thanks to a newer wave of artists embracing the grime rap genre.
You can check out their top 40 albums below, as well as a few songs from the albums, and read the full list over at The Guardian. What do you think of their #1 pick?
The Guardian's 100 Best Albums of the 21st Century (top 40)
40. Antony and the Johnsons - I Am A Bird Now
39. Britney Spears - Blackout
38. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Fever to Tell
37. Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell
36. Grimes - Visions
35. Daft Punk - Discovery
34. The Avalanches - Since I Left You
33. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
32. MIA - Arular
31. Burial - Untrue
30. Jay-Z - The Blueprint
29. Deftones - White Pony
28. Aaliyah - Aaliyah
27. Bjork - Vespertine
26. The xx - xx
25. Beyonce - Lemonade
24. David Bowie - Blackstar
23. OutKast - Speakerboxxx / The Love Below
22. Joanna Newsom - Ys
21. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
20. Arcade Fire - Funeral
19. PJ Harvey - Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea
18. Kanye West - Yeezus
17. OutKast - Stankonia
16. Radiohead - Kid A
15. Robyn - Body Talk
14. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d. city
13. D'Angelo - Voodoo
12. Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
11. Radiohead - In Rainbows
10. Frank Ocean - Blonde
9. Beyonce - Beyonce
8. Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
7. The Streets - Original Pirate Material
6. Dizzee Rascal - Boy in da Corner
5. LCD Soundystem - Sound of Silver
4. Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly
3. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
2. The Strokes - Is This It
1. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
Filed Under: 21st century, Aaliyah, Amy Winehouse, Antony and the Johnsons, Arcade Fire, Arctic Monkeys, Beyonce, Bjork, Bon Iver, Britney Spears, Burial, Daft Punk, Dangelo, David Bowie, Deftones, Dizzee Rascal, Frank Ocean, Grimes, Jay-Z, Joanna Newsom, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, LCD Soundystem, MIA, Outkast, PJ Harvey, Radiohead, Robyn, Sufjan Stevens, The Avalanches, The Guardian, The Streets, The Strokes, The xx, Yeah Yeah Yeahs
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