In 2002 bubble-gum pop finally began losing flavor with audiences. Though "American Idol" was a hit, such groups as Coldplay, The Strokes and The White Stripes climbed the charts. Veterans such as Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney and even Elvis continued to lure new fans.
Perhaps the best trend of 2002 was the lack of trends. The finest musicians swung across genres in search of a unique style. Listening to every piece of music from last year would be virtually impossible. But here are my five picks for the best rock albums of the year.
Wilco "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot"
Beautiful music emerges from this chaotic mix of noise, nonsense and shortwave radio transmissions. Lead singer Jeff Tweedy breaks firmly from the alt-country sound he helped pioneer with his former band Uncle Tupelo, and creates a style that has no name. This was the album that almost wasn't. One record executive allegedly called it career-ending. The band's travails with their label Reprise were fodder for last year's documentary "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart" (named after the first track on YHF). Even now the album is the most glaring omission from this year's Grammy nominations.
Coldplay "A Rush of Blood to the Head"
Singer Chris Martin has said that he wanted to create something "that excites us emotionally and melodically" regardless of what anyone else thought. "A Rush of Blood to the Head" is blissful pop.
The album's best track and current single "Clocks" is a chilling track about opportunities missed and things unsaid. The lyrics are complex and difficult to interpret, yet the sound is hypnotic. Some have labeled Coldplay a "baby Radiohead," but on the current album the group sets itself apart and sets its own agenda.
Bruce Springsteen "The Rising"
By far the best musical tribute to the victims of Sept. 11, this album puts last year's flaccid Neil Young effort "Let's Roll" to shame. Springsteen wisely avoids the jingoistic attitudes that surfaced in the wake of the attacks. A New Jersey native, he sings about the people who grew up in his back yard.
A weaker artist may have been tempted to create a somber memorial. "The Rising" mourns the victims, while reminding the survivors that its OK to be alive, to get up each morning and go to work. Springsteen employs his folk sound to craft an album that's uplifting without being trite.
The Foo Fighters "One by One"
On their fourth album the Foo Fighters have evolved into one of the industry's great alt-rock acts. "One by One" is evidence that poppy music can still be great music.
Though the album fails to deliver a track akin to their masterpiece of three years ago, "Learn to Fly," the group delivers a rush of sentimentally charged rock melodies. The Fighters of Foo may be one of the last vestiges of grunges, but it's more than the "band led by Nirvana's drummer."
Rush "Vapor Trails"
This classic rock mainstay has yet to grow old. The sound on "Vapor Trails" is just as exciting as anything from their "Tom Sawyer" and "Spirit of the Radio" heyday. The album is one of this year's nicest surprises and a fine return after a five-year break and several disappointing albums in the '90s.
The band embraces the arena-rock sound that made it famous 30 years ago, with Neil Peart's intense percussion and Geddy Lee's glass-shattering vocals. Songs such as "Ceiling Unlimited" and "Peaceable Kingdom" hearken back to the epic stylings of power trio's glory days.
I don't have enough room to go into detail about the year's other great albums, though certainly efforts by such artists as Ryan Adams, Sigur Ros, Queens of the Stone Age and John Mayer deserve an honorable mention.
Write to Robert at rclopez@bsu.edu
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