NME's Best of 2005 issue just hit newsagents (I love talking British) and is already causing controversy. Londonist claims claims that the published list of Best Albums has been doctored by NME higher-ups (EIC Conor McNicholas is implied but not named), and that it differs wildly from "real" list they had gotten their hands on previously. Specifically, they say real winners The Arcade Fire have been replaced by Bloc Party. Whether or not this is true, this kind of fiddling with lists happens all the time -- right up to print deadline -- at magazines, be it People's "50 Most Beautiful People" or EW's "It List." "What's that? Your label wants to buy a two-page ad for The Blandy Blokes? Oh you're right, they ARE on our Best Of list."
That said, NME has gone steadily downhill since Conor McNicholas took over as Editor in Chief in the early '00s and turned it into a much more generic rock mag. Someone claiming to be McNicholas in the Londist post's comments responds to the article. There are a few of them, but here's my fave:
I'm afraid this blog is not held in such high esteem. Clearly, in this situation the on us is on you to prove you are not manufacturing this list, working for your own anti-NME agenda, and cowardly hiding behind an established code of journalistic conduct -- which, as highly subjective bloggers, you have no real claim to in the first place.
Oh boy. Whether or not this is the real list, NME's picks for Albums of the Year are pretty obvious, especially the Top Ten. While I haven't seen the list of singles, Single of the Year is given to Futureheads' cover of Kate Bush's "Hounds of Love" which will be in my Top Ten when I get around to publishing it.
Here's NME's Top 50 Albums of 2005 as published in the mag:
- Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
- Arcade Fire - Funeral
- Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have it So Much Better
- Antony & The Johnsons - I Am a Bird Now
- Kaiser Chiefs - S/T
- The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan
- Sufjan Stevens - Illinoise
- Kanye West - Late Registration
- Babyshambles - Down in Albion
- Gorrilaz - Demon Days
- The Cribs - The New Fellas
- Devandra Banhart - Cripple Crow
- The Rakes - Capture/Release
- Dungen - Ta Det Lungt
- Maximo Park - A Certain Trigger
- British Sea Power - Open Season
- The Magic Numbers - S/T
- Art Brut - Bang Bang Rock and Roll
- Coldplay - XY
- Editors - The Back Room
- LCD Soundsystem - S/T
- Raevonettes - Pretty in Black
- Hard-Fi - Stars of CCTV
- Oasis - Don't Believe the Truth
- MIA - Arular
- Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft
- Kate Bush - Aerial
- Absentee - Donkey Stock
- Madonna - Confessions on a Dancefloor
- Doves - Some Cities
- Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning
- Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabyes to Paralyze
- We Are Scientists - With Love and Squalor
- Rufus Wainright - Want Two
- Elbow - Leaders of the Free World
- The Bravery - S/T
- Circulus - Lick on the Tip of an Envelope
- Autolux - Future Perfect
- Vitalic - OK Cowboy
- Brakes - Give Blood
- Nine Black Alps - Everything Is
- Sigur Ros - Takk
- Engineers - S/T
- Field Music - S/T
- Shout Out Louds - Howl Howl Gaff Gaff
- The Duke Spirit - Cuts Across the Land
- Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
- Ladytron - Witching Hour
- Dead Meadow - Feathers
- Test Icicles - For Screening Purposes Only
EDIT: I just realized that this issue is about a month earlier than it used to come out. I remember racing to Rebel Rebel on Bleeker the week between Christmas and New Years to pick up one of the copies of this before it sold out. Obviously the need to be first has superceeded all else these days. Times have changed.
It's Aerial (in reference to the Kate Bush album) and didn't Want Two and Funeral come out in 2004 or did they come out in the UK this year?
Posted by: Matthew Berlyant | Wednesday, November 30, 2005 at 05:43 PM
Thanks Matt for correcting my spelling yet again. You should seriously consider getting a job as a Copy Editor. As for Want Two and Funeral, a simple check on Amazon.co.uk finds that both didn't see a UK release until this year. Though it seems like a lifetime ago for Funeral, doesn't it?
Posted by: SoundBitesNYC | Thursday, December 01, 2005 at 10:32 AM
You're welcome and thanks for the info regarding the release dates. It does indeed seem like ages ago that Funeral was released here (September 2004).
Posted by: Matthew Berlyant | Thursday, December 01, 2005 at 04:26 PM