Ten Years of Metacritic: The Best Music of the Decade

Comments: ↓ 226 user comments
by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor
Publish Date: December 15, 2009

The top albums of the decade

Happy to be at #1

Naturally, when you think '00s, one artist jumps immediately to mind: Brian Wilson. Okay, so maybe the former Beach Boy seems an unlikely chart-topper for the current decade, but his 2004 album SMiLE -- a mere 37 years in the making -- tops our chart of the best-reviewed albums of 2000-09. Long considered one of the great lost albums in rock history, this "teenage symphony to God" proved to be equally acclaimed once it surfaced. Is it really the top album of the decade? We have a feeling there may be some comments posted below about that topic.

Beach Boys aside, the genre most represented in our list of highest-scoring albums below is "indie/alternative" (again, if this is indicative of anything, it's of the types of albums both covered by Metacritic and favored by music critics), occupying 17 of the 40 spots. Rap was next, with nine albums (including two from OutKast, the only artist to appear twice in the top 10), followed by electronic, with seven.

The 40 Best-Reviewed Albums on Metacritic.com, 2000-09
	Album	Year	Metascore	Users
1	SMiLE by Brian Wilson	2004	97	7.9
2	Van Lear Rose by Loretta Lynn	2004	97	9.0
3	Stankonia by OutKast	2000	95	8.4
4	Savane by Ali Farka Toure	2006	94	8.2
5	Madvillainy by Madvillain	2004	93	8.7
6	Love And Theft by Bob Dylan	2001	93	8.8
7	Boy In Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal	2004	92	9.0
8	Elephant by The White Stripes	2003	92	8.2
9	A Grand Don't Come For Free by The Streets	2004	91	7.7
10	Speakerboxxx/The Love Below by OutKast	2003	91	9.1
11	Canto by Los Super Seven	2001	91	8.0
12	From Here We Go Sublime by The Field	2007	90	6.5
13	Illinois by Sufjan Stevens	2005	90	8.8
14	Original Pirate Material by The Streets	2002	90	8.9
15	Alice by Tom Waits	2002	90	9.5
16	Is This It? by The Strokes	2001	90	8.6
17	Funeral by Arcade Fire	2004	90	9.4
18	London Zoo by The Bug	2008	90	6.0
19	Untrue by Burial	2007	90	7.4
20	XTRMNTR by Primal Scream	2000	90	8.7
21	Z by My Morning Jacket	2005	90	8.2
22	Since I Left You by The Avalanches	2001	89	9.3
23	Rounds by Four Tet	2003	89	8.9
24	Neon Golden by The Notwist	2003	89	9.0
25	Modern Times by Bob Dylan	2006	89	8.4
26	Miss E... So Addictive by Missy Elliott	2001	89	7.9
27	HoboSapiens by John Cale	2004	89	9.5
28	Bachelor No. 2 (or, the last remains of the dodo) by Aimee Mann	2000	89	9.4
29	Fed by Plush	2008	89	7.6
30	Last Exit by Junior Boys	2004	89	8.2
31	Merriweather Post Pavilion by Animal Collective	2009	89	8.5
32	Songs For The Deaf by Queens of the Stone Age	2002	89	9.2
33	Wearemonster by Isolée	2005	89	8.3
34	Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse	2006	89	8.0
35	Chutes Too Narrow by The Shins	2003	88	9.2
36	Yours, Mine & Ours by Pernice Brothers	2003	88	9.2
37	Hypermagic Mountain by Lightning Bolt	2005	88	6.2
38	Ta Det Lugnt by Dungen	2004	88	9.3
39	Dear Science, by TV on the Radio	2008	88	9.1
40	Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. II by Raekwon	2009	88	9.0

Albums released between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2009 and having 7 or more reviews in Metacritic's database were eligible for the above list. Reissues, EPs, live albums, holiday albums, greatest hits albums, and other compilations are excluded. All Metascore data is from December 11, 2009. The Metascore is a weighted average of scores from top professional critics, on a scale from 0 (bad) to 100 (good). User scores represent an average of scores assigned by Metacritic.com site visitors.

Next, let's look at the decade's top-scoring albums in various categories and genres. We'll start with debut albums, a group that contains some genuine classics. Note that the same fine print beneath the table above applies to all of the lists below as well.

The Best-Reviewed Debut Albums on Metacritic.com, 2000-09
	Album	Year	Metascore	Users
1	Boy In Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal	2004	92	9.0
2	From Here We Go Sublime by The Field	2007	90	6.5
3	Original Pirate Material by The Streets	2002	90	8.9
4	Is This It? by The Strokes	2001	90	8.6
5	Funeral by Arcade Fire	2004	90	9.4
6	Since I Left You by The Avalanches	2001	89	9.3
7	Last Exit by Junior Boys	2004	89	8.2
8	The College Dropout by Kanye West	2004	88	9.2
9	Arular by M.I.A.	2005	88	7.9
10	For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver	2008	88	9.4
11	Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes	2008	87	8.5
12	Franz Ferdinand by Franz Ferdinand	2004	87	8.4
13	The Creek Drank The Cradle by Iron & Wine	2002	87	8.9
14	Mass Romantic by The New Pornographers	2000	87	9.7
15	Mirrored by Battles	2007	86	7.9
16	Hercules And Love Affair by Hercules And Love Affair	2008	86	6.4
17	The Decline of British Sea Power by British Sea Power	2003	86	8.6
18	Thunder, Lightning, Strike by The Go! Team	2005	86	8.6
19	LCD Soundsystem by LCD Soundsystem	2005	86	7.6
20	The Futureheads by The Futureheads	2004	86	8.8

The Best-Reviewed Pop/R&B Albums on Metacritic.com, 2000-09
	Album	Year	Metascore	Users
1	Robyn by Robyn	2008	86	8.4
2	Beautifully Human: Words And Sounds Vol. 2 by Jill Scott	2004	86	9.2
3	Don't Give Up On Me by Solomon Burke	2002	85	9.3
4	BLACKsummers'night by Maxwell	2009	85	9.2
5	The World Has Made Me The Man Of My Dreams by Me'Shell NdegéOcello	2007	84	9.1
6	Love vs Money by The-Dream	2009	83	8.8
7	New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War) by Erykah Badu	2008	83	8.4
8	Love Behind The Melody by Raheem DeVaughn	2008	83	8.0
9	1st Born Second by Bilal	2001	82	9.6
10	Cookie: The Anthropological Mix Tape by Me'Shell NdegéOcello	2002	82	9.6
11	Come Away With Me by Norah Jones	2002	82	8.3
12	Lay It Down by Al Green	2008	81	8.8
13	Back To Black by Amy Winehouse	2007	81	8.0
14	Anniemal by Annie	2005	81	8.4
15	St. Elsewhere by Gnarls Barkley	2006	81	8.3
16	Music by Madonna	2000	80	8.8
17	Tasty by Kelis	2003	80	9.1
18	Mama's Gun by Erykah Badu	2000	80	9.8
19	Confessions On A Dance Floor by Madonna	2005	80	8.5
20	The Scene Of The Crime by Bettye LaVette	2007	79	9.0

The Best-Reviewed Indie/Alternative Albums on Metacritic.com, 2000-09
	Album	Year	Metascore	Users
1	Elephant by The White Stripes	2003	92	8.2
2	Illinois by Sufjan Stevens	2005	90	8.8
3	Is This It? by The Strokes	2001	90	8.6
4	Funeral by Arcade Fire	2004	90	9.4
5	XTRMNTR by Primal Scream	2000	90	8.7
6	Z by My Morning Jacket	2005	90	8.2
7	Neon Golden by The Notwist	2003	89	9.0
8	HoboSapiens by John Cale	2004	89	9.5
9	Bachelor No. 2 (or, the last remains of the dodo) by Aimee Mann	2000	89	9.4
10	Fed by Plush	2008	89	7.6

The Best-Reviewed Rap Albums on Metacritic.com, 2000-09
	Album	Year	Metascore	Users
1	Stankonia by OutKast	2000	95	8.4
2	Madvillainy by Madvillain	2004	93	8.7
3	Boy In Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal	2004	92	9.0
4	A Grand Don't Come For Free by The Streets	2004	91	7.7
5	Speakerboxxx/The Love Below by OutKast	2003	91	9.1
6	Original Pirate Material by The Streets	2002	90	8.9
7	Miss E... So Addictive by Missy Elliott	2001	89	7.9
8	Hell Hath No Fury by Clipse	2006	89	8.0
9	Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. II by Raekwon	2009	88	9.0
10	The College Dropout by Kanye West	2004	88	9.2

The Best-Reviewed Electronic/Dance Albums on Metacritic.com, 2000-09
	Album	Year	Metascore	Users
1	From Here We Go Sublime by The Field	2007	90	6.5
2	London Zoo by The Bug	2008	90	6.0
3	Untrue by Burial	2007	90	7.4
4	Since I Left You by The Avalanches	2001	89	9.3
5	Rounds by Four Tet	2003	89	8.9
6	Last Exit by Junior Boys	2004	89	8.2
7	Wearemonster by Isolée	2005	89	8.3
8	Up In Flames by Manitoba	2003	88	8.6
9	Arular by M.I.A.	2005	88	7.9
10	Kala by M.I.A.	2007	87	8.2

Finally, let's conclude on a down note -- literally -- with a look at some of the artists whose Metascores trended downward throughout the decade. (There is no corresponding upward chart because there were surprisingly few artists whose scores consistently increased over the past 10 years.)

Going Down: Artists With Consistently Decreasing Metascores, 2000-09
Artist	Metascores (in Chronological Order)	Total Decline
The Dandy Warhols	80 73 57 46	↓34
Jesse Malin	84 76 67 61	↓23
Outkast	95 91 72	↓23
Badly Drawn Boy	78 77 60 57	↓21
The Strokes	90 78 69	↓21
Eminem	79 75 64 59	↓20
Jurassic 5	77 76 57	↓20
Devendra Banhart	88 82 79 69 68	↓20
Jet	70 62 51	↓19
Richard Ashcroft	70 61 52	↓18
Xzibit	75 59 57	↓18
Bob Dylan	93 89 76	↓17
Buck 65	85 71 68	↓17
Busta Rhymes	77 65 64 60	↓17
Franz Ferdinand	87 83 70	↓17
Dizzee Rascal	92 87 78 75	↓17
Sugar Ray	71 68 54	↓17
Trembling Blue Stars	78 73 61	↓17
Polyphonic Spree	84 70 68	↓16
Asobi Seksu	80 69 64	↓16
M83	86 76 70	↓16
Plaid	81 72 65	↓16
Dolly Parton	86 73 70	↓16

Coming soon ...

We'll continue our best music of the decade coverage with a roundup of lists from top music critics and publications.

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Comments (226)

First to Last
Latest

your father, from th
- Dec 16, 2009 4:08PM
you ipod toolbag, here's a handy and timely list for your consumption
Jeremiah
- Dec 16, 2009 1:45PM
It's wonderful to see Brian Wilson getting his just desserts from the critics -- "Smile" is a tremendous achievement, if only because of the struggle Wilson went through to record it after 37 years. Granted, arguments could be made that it only received the highest rating due to an overwhelming number of Baby Boomer critics living out their fanboy fantasies of playing the record on their turntables back in '67. Regardless, "Smile" is a brilliant symphony; a love of labor by a man for whom love and mercy are more than just a peacenik slogan.
gaddic
- Dec 16, 2009 1:44PM
This list is utter garbage
Metacritic is a poor music critc aggregator when it comes to rapmusic
Where's Nas on the rap artist list?
How can Rolling Stone's "Artist of the Decade" be behind the likes of a pop sounding band like OutKast
The fact is this site use mainstream "white" music critcs that barely know anything about Hardcore rap music Hiphop magazines like XXl HipHopDx and The Source(Sometimes) are where real non-pop audience rap heads should look to for reviews

Seriously Metacritic is only half-accurate when it comes to movies
everything else is the opposite of credible
Nik
- Dec 16, 2009 1:38PM
Im pretty sure Mastodon would have made this list easily if Metacritic had even included "leviathan" (one of the most critically acclaimed albums of this decade) on its webpage, it astounds me that they dont have a rating for it.
Number One! «
- Dec 16, 2009 11:24AM
[...] For those who don’t know, Metacritic is a site that analyses the critics scores from a number of magazines and websites and comes up with a combined score for movies, albums etc. Clearly it is difficult to always take a subjective piece of writing and assign a score, but it is probably the most scientific way available of gauging critical opinion. And on that basis, SMiLE is the number one album of the decade! Yes, indeed. See for yourself here. [...]
Joe Rogers
- Dec 16, 2009 8:06AM
THANK YOU for giving Sleater-Kinney's 'The Woods' the respect it deserves!! Most definitely a powerhouse album that deserves all the hype.
Alex
- Dec 16, 2009 8:02AM
A little floored that Kid A didn't make the list. As much as I hear "This topped our lists for the decade," the publications and their ACTUAL scores for the album certainly don't show that opinion...
overmatik
- Dec 16, 2009 8:01AM
Ok, so there's no Tool with Lateralus, there's no Tears for Fears with Everybody Loves a Happy Ending, there's no...

The poor qualitty of mainstream music in this decade is only surpassed by the low quality of the critics.
pete b
- Dec 16, 2009 7:45AM
Just because your mom tells you that you have excellent taste in music doesn't mean it's true. The people who have reviewed these albums have a background in music and have some platform from which to speak. Just because Avril and Fall Out Boy don't top this list doesn't mean the list blows.
dp
- Dec 16, 2009 6:56AM
"Most of these highly reviewed bands come off as gross noise to me, and most people I talk to say I have excellent taste in music."

You talk to the wrong people.

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