It has been a very interesting first year of the new millennium. There were plenty of surprises, lots of news, and notable events to keep people talking about the music world. The Y2K bug didn't hit, but Napster did, and the aftershocks are still being felt. The biggest selling albums came from a squeaky-clean boy group, a teen diva-wannabe, and one pissed off bleached blonde rapper with an axe to grind. Some artists went away; others, both new and old, came in with a roaring vengeance. It was a fascinating year for music, so let's take look at some of the best and worst of 2000.
Band of the Year: In a year when mediocrity was often rewarded at the expense of excellence by mainstream music fans, Radiohead stuck to its guns and released an album unlike anything else out there. While a lot of the great '90s alt rock bands have called it quits, Radiohead continues to carry the flag.
Album of the Year: Radiohead, this year's candidate as the messiah of rock, took all expectations of following up its 1997 masterpiece OK Computer with a similar sound and chucked them out the window. On Kid A, the band embraced entirely new sonic mediums, and commanded listeners' undisputed attention as a band that needs to be heard and respected.
Best Rock Album: In a year when rock was dominated by second-rate rap metal, rock, or punk bands, U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind stands head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. Other albums worth an honorable mention are Pearl Jam's Binaural, A Perfect Circle's Mer de Noms, and Pink Floyd's double live set Is Anybody Out There?.
Best New Artist: A Perfect Circle, a project that spent years in development, finally delivered its debut album Mer de Noms and proved to be one of the most original-sounding bands to surface in a long time. Maynard James Keenan's inimitable vocal delivery, Billy Howerdel and Troy van Leeuwen's textured guitar parts, Paz Lenchantin's heavy bass lines and piercing violin, and Josh Freese's hard-hitting drumming make for a band that will be around for years to come.
Best Rap/Hip Hop Album: Whether you like him or not, you can't deny that Eminem's The Marshall Mathers LP was one of the most successful, talked-about, and controversial albums of the year.
Most Anticipated Album of 2001: Art rockers Tool are releasing Systema Encephale, their first album in five years, on April 17, and they'll be ready to rock everyone off their asses all over again. In a three-way tie for second place are upcoming releases from Dave Matthews Band (Everyday), Radiohead (Amnesiac), and the revamped Guns N' Roses (Chinese Democracy), which announced itself to the world in two highly anticipated shows in Las Vegas and Rio de Janeiro this month.
Best Comeback Album: Once again, U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind. These legendary Irish rockers have returned to the older sound of their 1980s heyday, while incorporating some of the finer elements of the electronica dabbling that characterized their '90s albums. This, in an addition to a mix of soul, pop, and gospel, makes for an amazing comeback disk. Look out for the band on its upcoming US tour in summer of 2001, guaranteed to sell out every arena in its path.
One Hit Wonder of the Year: The Baha Men have provided America with the year's most incessantly annoying song and phrase ("Who Let the Dogs Out?"). The clock is ticking for these guys. Soon they will join the elite fraternity that includes Los del Rio, Fastball, the New Radicals, and Lou Bega.
Reunion We'd Like to See: Led Zeppelin. Jimmy Page wants to do it. John Paul Jones wants to do it. Jason Bonham wants to fill in for his late great dad on the drumkit. But Robert Plant doesn't? Also worth mentioning are The Police, whose former members say there both are and aren't reasons for doing a reunion/farewell tour. Come on guys, kiss and make up and rock everybody all the way to the bank.
Best Artist that is Riding Off into the Sunset: The Smashing Pumpkins, one of the last decade's most influential alt-rock bands, disbanded in late 2000. They ended their career by releasing final new studio material directly onto the Internet, and a rocking four-and-a-half hour farewell performance in their hometown of Chicago.
Breakthrough Artist: After years of rocking the underground scene, punk rockers At the Drive-In delivered their major label debut, Relationship of Command, to a tremendous buzz for the intensity of the music and their live performances. In a distant second place are emo-rockers Incubus, whose album Make Yourself made them a band to watch out for in 2001 for an upcoming follow-up release.
Best Video/Box set: Tool's Salival, an excellent collection which includes all of the group's provocative and ground-breaking videos on a DVD or VHS, an audio CD of unreleased and live tracks (including a mind-blowing ten minute cover of Led Zeppelin's "No Quarter"), and an art and photo booklet, is a must for any Tool fan waiting for the release of a new album.
