#5debutalbums0004 #nowplaying The Vines - Highly Evolved The next big thing of 2002. It's more diverse than I remember it. It's got the rockier, grungier elements, but there's also a fair amount of melodic 60s influenced pop. Enjoyed it. Favourite songs - Country Yard, Homesick, Outtathaway.

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge Ryan Adams - Heartbreaker Somehow, I forgot to post about Heartbreaker by Ryan Adams in my year 2000 selection. This has a very good chance of making my top 5.

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge My last choice from 2001. Royksopp became a staple in my house over the next several years.

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 3. So. Central Rain youtu.be/msWi0c4tHV8?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 4. Oddfellows Local 151 It's a fantastic closing song on a fantastic album. Always loved the lyrics on this one. youtu.be/t_sUVqi-Ga0?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 5. Orange Crush My final song from Green. It's a super catchy rock song. Never realised what the Orange Crush referred to until much later. youtu.be/_mSmOcmk7uQ?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge Elbow - Asleep In The Back I've got a couple of their CDs but have only ever been a casual listener, and I missed this debut on release. This will get another listen.

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge The Strokes - Is This It No doubting this was one of my favourite CDs of 2001. It does feel a bit 'of its era' though.

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 6. I Believe Great jangly guitars. Always find myself humming it for the rest of the day every time I play it. youtu.be/8ftacKGmn6Q?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge #nowplaying Starsailor - Love Is Here Evokes some good memories as this was a shared favourite of me and my wife not long after we met.

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 7. World Leader Pretend Green was a fantastic album. This is my 2nd of 3 picks from it. youtu.be/WwS9_vqdHcQ?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge Turin Brakes - The Optimist LP Another band that was part of the new acoustic movement, pleasant enough with a couple of good songs though I much preferred the Tom McRae and Starsailor debuts which are the most comparable in my shortlist.

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge A really strong debut from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. Enjoyed listening to this again. It's held up really well. open.spotify.com/album/5kNEFt...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 8. Ignoreland Nothing better than Stipe having a bit of a rant! youtu.be/03gauuHIgME?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 9. Fall On Me youtu.be/lf6vCjtaV1k?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 10. King Of Birds "Standing on the shoulders of giants Leaves me cold, leaves me cold A mean idea to call my own A hundred million birds fly." youtu.be/veadgtKc7IQ?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 11. Walk Unafraid Maybe 'Up' could have done with some better editing but its got some great songs on it, this being a favourite. youtu.be/dCAblmIOfz0?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge Ed Harcourt's 'Here Be Monsters' - Being on a budget at the time, I remember buying this over Poses by Rufus Wainwright. Loads of great piano driven songs on here with some Jeff Buckley(ish) influenced vocals. Superb stuff. open.spotify.com/album/0sXvMC...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge It was good to re-engage with Loss by Mull Historical Society from 2001. I was a big fan at the time, but admittedly lost track of them after this debut. youtu.be/wqk2iG5jVu8?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 12. The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite Even when I couldn't quite catch some of the words, the imagery painted by the lines I did grasp have always stayed with me. youtu.be/mgiCechWNCo?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 13. Get Up Just a flawless pop song. youtu.be/rPIEBohSojI?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge #nowplaying I'm trying to listen to my shortlist year by year, so this is my third from 2000. I still quite like this, though it was their second album where I really fell in love with them. open.spotify.com/track/0qksx8...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 14. Man On The Moon Always been one of my favourite music videos of theirs as well. youtu.be/dLxpNiF0YKs?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge JJ72 seemed to be industry darlings when this came out with a promise of being the next big thing. The lyrics seemed a bit bonkers but that was just another part of the mystery as well as the often asked, "What does JJ72 actually mean?".

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 15. Country Feedback This sometimes feels like the greatest R.E.M. song, but I find it very mood dependent. youtu.be/6EHBh1FuY1Q?...

#5debutalbums0004 #musicchallenge Enjoyed relistening to Tom McRae's self titled debut from 2000. I absolutely loved it upon release and haven't listened to it enough in recent years.

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 16. Find The River Love this one. My first track from AFTP. youtu.be/KIJGlTu5sEI?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 1. Blur - End Of A Century Lyrically amazing with a glorious melody. Blur doesn't get much better than this. youtu.be/rVNCpCy8gLc?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 2. Blur - Out Of Time Beautiful and timeless track from the Think Tank album. youtu.be/SRkX1Up1vnc?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 17. Bang And Blame youtu.be/4cdZQ41rGAg?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 3. Blur - I'm Just A Killer For Your Love youtu.be/Lx4DJRTtcXE?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 18. Disturbance At The Heron House youtu.be/k2-nSCsxyXU?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 4. Blur - Trouble In The Message Centre. Sounded great when I saw them live in 2015 and elevated the song to one of my favourites from Parklife. youtu.be/O5Nhul_AV0M?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 19. Leave The epic centrepiece of New Adventures. A lot of love for this one....beginning to think I could have had it higher on my list. youtu.be/tXj6_-UwkOU?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 5. Blur - Go Out youtu.be/Sp1ks7PTzng?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 20. Cuyahoga youtu.be/uSjo81bSW3s?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 6. Blur - Death Of A Party One of my favourites from their self titled 1997 album. youtu.be/n72J7QgkG98?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 21. Bittersweet Me One good thing to come out of this process is that I now realise I like New Adventures more than I thought I did. youtu.be/-R2hvKDFLHE?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 7. Blur - Entertain Me Back to pop Blur today. The bass is incredible on this song. youtu.be/Z5MccdP_hU8?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 22. Strange Currencies My second track from Monster. youtu.be/j4iuG7StmPc?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 8. Blur - Battle One of the more experimental tracks from the band. youtu.be/UwW86i79CxA?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 23. The One I Love Having never heard R.E.M. in the 80s, this song's UK re-release in 1991 probably explains my memory of it being one of the first R.E.M. songs I heard. Remains a great guitar track. youtu.be/j7oQEPfe-O8?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 9. Blur - Best Days A beautiful track from The Great Escape. youtu.be/flUnDtO7_gI?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 24. New Test Leper youtu.be/_c_Yg8azAi0?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 10. Blur - Chemical World youtu.be/mc0idORNd10?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 25. Half A World Away A very OOT sounding song with the mandolin and organ. Gorgeous melody with some lovely lyrics throughout. Always liked the 'Blackbirds, backwards, forwards and fall' line. youtu.be/AWiBIrPMEWk?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 26. Begin the Begin Opening track from LRP, great guitars, great vocals. Feeling that I should have placed it higher on my list. youtu.be/IfVvgQb6MC8?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 11. Blur - Sing It's almost become synonymous with the movie Trainspotting. Never a single but has remained a live favourite. I love the 'ah ah ah ahh' bit at the chorus with both Graham's and Damon's voices. youtu.be/zsQ6_9m-iDo?...

#ArtistFave15 #Musicchallenge 12. Blur - Tender This one has a bit of a spiritual feel with the gospel choir. youtu.be/SaHrqKKFnSA?...

#REMtop30 #Musicchallenge 27. How The West Was Won And Where It Got Us I was very hesistant about New Adventures when it came out but it's definitely been the R.EM. album that's grown on me the most. This, the opening track, sets the tone for the entire album. youtu.be/9BC07l2_zKU?...