Top 200 Albums of The Decade (129-173)

129. Leona Naess- Thirteens
130. Spoon- Kill The Moonlight
131. The Weakerthans- Reconstruction Site
132. Sarah Harmer- All of Our Names
133. Elliott Smith- From A Basement On A Hill
That this is his last statement still really hurts. That it is a beautiful, harrowing, hazy statement helps, though. If you can dig up "Coast to Coast" and the previously unreleased track "Abused," you'll get a real and difficult view of Smith's late mindset.
134. Calexico- Garden Ruin
Some people criticized the band's swerve away from the usual southwestern mariachi rock. I liked it better.
135. Innocence Mission- We Walked In Song
136. Sigur Ros- Takk Takk
137. Red House Painters- Old Ramon
138. Low- Drums & Guns
Was Breaker the best song of the decade? It was certainly up there.
139. Richard Buckner- Dents & Shells
140. Bob Dylan- Modern Times
141. The Hold Steady- Separation Sunday
142. The Hives- Veni Vidi Vicious
143. Over The Rhine- Ohio
144. Hem- Eveningland/Rabbit Songs (another condensing job)
145. Foo Fighters- One By One
146. Neil Finn- One All
147. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club- Baby 81
148. Feist- Let It Die
149. New Pornographers- Challengers
150. Spoon- Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga…
151. The Cardigans- Super Extra Gravity
152. Freedy Johnston- Right Between The Promises
The previous decade was so amazing for Johnston that this great record somehow felt underwhelming.
153. Tom Waits- Alice
154. Band Of Annuals – Let Me Live
155. Ron Sexsmith- Retriever
156. The National- Alligator
157. Frou Frou- Details
Pre-OC Imogen Heap in a partnership that launched the Heap we know now.
158. Tegan & Sara- So Jealous
I know, I know, I know: it should be higher.
159. Cracker- Greenland
160. Erin McKeown- Grand
161. Grant Lee Phillips- Mobilize
I had tickets to see Grant Lee on this tour on 9/11. Obviously, he got stuck in Canada on a flightless day. But this album always brings back those doubt-ridden days. A lot better than Enrique Iglesias' "Hero" too.
162. Jenny Lewis- Acid Tongue
163. Patty Griffin- Impossible Dream
164. Dixie Chicks- Home/Taking The Long Way
I'd been guiltily listening for awhile, but the doc Shut Up And Sing finally pushed me over the edge.
165. Beck- Guero
166. Elvis Costello- When I Was Cruel
167. Neil Young- Prairie Wind
168. Kings of Leon- Youth & Young Manhood
169. Cat Power- The Greatest
170. Kathleen Edwards- Back To Me
171. Cracker- Forever
172. Kasey Chambers- Barricades & Brickwalls
173. Drive By Truckers- Dirty South/Blessing & A Curse

Dream Team-Up, Pt.1

Team ups have been happening for decades.
Marvel Team-Up
Dylan and Cash doing Girl From The North Country
Dylan and The Dead
Dylan and Anybody

Even the I'm Not There soundtrack had some legendary pairings.
Stephen Malkmus with the Million Dollar Bashers (members of Sonic Youth, Wilco, Television, Medeski Martin & Wood)
Eddie Vedder with the Million Dollar Bashers
Jim James and Calexico
Roger McGuinn and Calexico
Willie Nelson and Calexico
Calexico and apparently anybody

In anticipation of the forthcoming all-star Nick Drake tribute compilation, Dark Was The Night (which is a veritable who's who of indie rock pairings), the NBA All-Star festivities, and Obama bullying his way around to make changes in all sports (including the long awaited College Football Playoff), we're creating our ultimate All Star Team-Ups.

Everyday until its release, Dark Was The Night will be posting a new song here. Likewise, we'll be posting a new pairing from our hypothetical (for now) 16 team Two-on-Two All-Star Tournament. It's our jocky way of paying tribute to Nick Drake through both inspired and ridiculous pairings.

In the spirit of Obama's change and our forebearer Bill Simmons' constant desire to change All-Star Weekend, we propose a massive 2-on-2 tourney. The rules are simple: make your own team. Play in a seeded tournament (part John Hollinger, part David Stern, part PT Barnum). Winners go home with a million apiece. Simple.

These are the teams we'd like to see, starting with:

Pairing #1

Team Name: Round 2, or Cuzzins
Team Members: Vince Carter and TEEmak

Team Synopsis: Look at all of the unrealized potential of those bygone Raptors days. Both players have learned a lot. Probably. Maybe. A few things are uncertain: Will TEEmak be injured? Will Vinsanity show up? Or will The Great Canadian Postage Stamp be the one making the appearance? Can they peacefully coexist? Or will this turn into some Tyler Perry Family Reunion montage of guffawful hilarity? Are there even enough ill-advised shots to go around? Not to mention failed hero moments? One thing is for certain: this team is NOT tasting the second round.