Eighteen albums from 20 years ago that you should not have missed

September

Interpol - Antics

No wonder the band is reissuing this one for its 20th anniversary.  Taking their Velvet Underground inspiration a few steps further, Paul Banks and the crew turn the sound of their debut into something truly their own and bring one of the best part of the sixties into the new century here.

Sonic Youth - Sonic Nurse

By this album, Sonic Youth were making music for twenty years or so, covering an unbelievable music ground along the way. Many critics thought the band was waning, but with Sonic Nurse Sonic Youth decided to prove them wrong, at least for that moment.

Here they decided to do some sort of a recapitulation of all of what they have done before, making a sense of how and why they did it.

Brian Wilson - Smile

Almost forty years after it was supposed to be originally released as a Beach Boys crowning album, Brian Wilson picks up the pieces of the album that never was (literally) and with a help of lovingly supporting friends and fans gives us a glimpse of his genius from the new century perspective.

It turns all the “what ifs” into yes, out is absolutely great.

The Arcade Fire - Funeral

Another band (more of a musical collective) coming out of nowhere with its debut album showing everybody how you can turn the genius of David Bowie into something new, fresh, and quite personal and general at the same time.

It made practically all the ‘best of’ lists of that year and rightfully so, with Arcade Fire continuing to make strong music that never reached the success of this one.

October

R.E.M. - Around The Sun

Is there any proof that 13 is an unlucky number? It just might have been for R.E.M., as the album was lambasted by the critics upon its release.

Ok, so R.E.M. surely had quite a few stronger albums, but the paean to harmony-dominated pop/rock was miles ahead of the music, not only released that year but has hidden charms that you could easily listen to today.

Elliott Smith - From A Basement On The Hill

By the time this album was released, unfortunately Elliott Smith was gone, but has become a musical legend, and rightfully so. It took three years to record, and its posthumous release only brought us all the right reasons why Smith’s music was so good, making his sad departure even more painful for his fans.

More music news and analysis: