10 Happiest Albums of the Decade

Two-thousand through 2010 was a thrilling decade for entertainment. Videogames continually defied storytelling expectation, film delivered both brains and brawn (albeit more clumsily), television consistently impressed both the public (the behemoth that is American Idol) and critics (Big Love), and novels like and Away and The Post Birthday World proved great authors still exist. The most creative growth, however, took place in the realm of music. From the anthem pep of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Stadium Arcadium (2006) to Britney Spears' darkly futuristic pop in Blackout (2007), Shania Twain's genre-bending Up! (2002) and the solemn free-by-download In Rainbows by Radiohead (2007), music in the 2000s was as diverse as it was frighteningly similar. Shimmering electro-pop (Madonna's Confessions on a Dance Floor, 2005) and slinky throwback (Solange's Sol-Angel and the Hadley Street Dreams, 2008) were trends both widespread and pervasive, from superficial pop to underground hip-hop. But ten albums stand out in my mind as excellent, innovative from a creative standpoint and, as is most important to The Happiest Activist, a hell of a fun listen.

10. Kings of Leon, Only by the Night (2008)


















It's rumored Caleb Followill wrote Only in a single night, beginning with the haunting, desperate "Closer," about a vampire looking to feed. This is not their Happiest record of the decade, but the general tone and musicality of the album wins with major style points.

Happiest Track: "Revelry"


9. Sam Sparro, Sam Sparro (2008)


















Sparro's debut is unabashed 80's-style pop, but occasionally-deep lyrical content appears when least expected.

Happiest Track: "Too Many Questions"


8. Robyn, Robyn (2008)

















Simple, perfect pop.

Happiest Track: "Handle Me"


7. Feist, Let It Die (2004)

















Happiest Track: "Inside and Out"


6. Lady Gaga, The Fame Monster (2009)
















I was tempted to rank this higher on the list--no other female pop record was quite as fun in the 2000s--but the album is still fresh.

Happiest Track: "Bad Romance"


5. The Postal Service, Give Up (2003)

















Possibly also the Happiest Album Art Award?

Happiest Track: "Nothing Better"


4. Lily Allen, Alright, Still (2006)


















Lily Allen was and still is the most believable pop music brat. And her brand of humor has been copied again and again...(Katy Perry, Ke$ha, Kate Nash...lot's of K's, for some reason)

Happiest Track: "Knock 'Em Out"


3. Fiona Apple, Extraordinary Machine (2005)


















Happiest Track: "Better Version of Me"


2. The Killers, Hot Fuss (2004)


















There are a lot of faux-Brit rockers in the music world, but none as slick, sexual or pared down as Brandon Flowers and his less-relevant band members.

Happiest Track: "Smile Like You Mean It"


1. Amy Winehouse, Back to Black (2006)


















Cutting selections from this list--which began much larger than the ten you see here--took a lot of careful consideration and research. I wanted to include a Madonna album, simply for the impact she's had on my life in the past decade, but no single album is better than the above ten (2000's Music came close). I also wanted to throw in Rihanna's Rated R (2009), which is altogether a better record than The Fame Monster but, let's all be honest, the Lady deserves a spot here. There were a hundred others--Shakira (for She Wolf, 2009) and John Mayer (Continuum, 2006), M.I.A. (Kala, 2007) and even electro-pop goddess Annie for the dazzling, whirling disco of Anniemal (2004). But when I had to make a choice for Happiest album, there was no doubt in my mind. Amy Winehouse is a legend in the making. She has a voice without peer and an ability to write lyrics as sharp as shattered glass--and as heartbreaking as the worst breakup you've ever been through. Paired with Mark Ronson's addictive beats and as-of-yet-unmatched talent at mimicking the rasp of vintage recordings, one can only hope her heart is broken again. And that's black.

Happiest Track (of the Decade): "Back to Black"

Review: Solange, "Sol-Angel & The Hadley St. Dreams"

Back in June, I wrote a piece on Solange Knowles and her summer-pie-delicious single "I Decided." In that distant period of time, there was still question over whether her then-forthcoming album would live up to the infectious first single--not to mention a competitive modern music market flooded with R&B songstresses like Amy Winehouse, Keyshia Cole, and Solange's own sister Beyonce, to name a few. Well, she did it.

OMGeeeeee.

(The album's not flawless, however, so let's just say it's an OM-.)

Sol-Angel & The Hadley St. Dreams is a uniquely crafted work of pop-soul that, with its bright vocals and tight production, more than warrants a few minutes outside Beyonce's bootylicious shadow. Solange has a husky Motown growl beneath her feminine vocals, duly fitting her odd physical appearance--almost pretty, but hard-edged and over the top (This shouldn't be a surprise, really; Tina Knowles is her stylist. Cough, tranny, cough). The album follows suit. While most of the tracks are instantly likable, many of them venture into a personal world far too convoluted to be understood by a casual listener, and the weight of these few tracks bring down the album as a whole.

Solange recently had a baby (YouTube the Destiny's Child video for "Soldier" to see a preggy cameo) and was subsequently divorced from her husband of, like, a year or something. Doesn't matter. Whatever she went through, it isn't mentioned on Sol-Angel. Nor is her child. Normally one would expect these life-altering events--falling in love, getting knocked up (er, married), having a child and getting a divorce--would somehow show up in her album. I mean, Amy Winehouse can't stop talking about her one love Blake, not to mention her drug addiction and depression. Airing dirty laundry is just part of the package. Granted, sometimes an artist goes to far (suicide references in Keyshia Cole's "Guess What" from The Way It Is), but if my analytical powers are still strong, the only issues Solange is dealing with involve a bit of a Beyonce complex (see image) and an obligatory "for my people" (a.k.a. anti-prejudice) anthem smack dab in the middle of the album. So, when I talk about her weighty tracks, they are really just fatty--and should have been trimmed in post-production. (Or is post-op more appropriate??)

Of these chubby tracks, "Valentine's Day" and "This Bird" are morbidly obese. "Bird" is one of two or three songs on the album with (very) obvious references to Beyonce, which are quite tired by the end of the six-minute track. Ironically, the slower tracks, which Solange simply can't carry with her raspy voice, remind me most of her older sister's first album. Dangerously In Love was more than a little overweight, what with "Signs" and "Gift from Virgo" and "Daddy" and "Speechless" and "The Closer I Get To You" and...you get the point.

The beginning of Sol-Angel is nearly perfect, however, so who cares about fatty thighs when the upper body is bangin'? Kicking things off slowly, "God Given Name" (produced by the Thievery Corporation!) is a strange choice for an album opener, but in the context of the entire set it makes sense; Solange wants the world to know she is different, and while I can't say I fully believe her, the effort is admirable, and "Name" is most certainly listenable. Solange has a great sense of humor, and despite the cryptic lyrics of the later tracks, we get a peek at who Solange really is when she laughs and assures the production team, "I know I sound high, but I promise you guys, I'm not high. I'm not high!"

"T.O.N.Y." has a 808 line that begins on an off note, which works beautifully when Solange's vocals kick in, leading her into the jumpy chorus and allowing her to bow out just in time. The production is understated and calm against the thumping bass line, a juxtaposition of musical influences (Jay-Z hip hop and old school soul) that would not work with another artist. Solange croons about her lost love, Tony, who isn't "just a regular guy," but is really "just the other night." Yeah, thanks Sol-Angel. I'm still trying to figure this one out: does T.O.N.Y. stand for The Other Night? Plus Y? Doesn't matter. "Dancing In the Dark" follows right behind the slightly-stronger "T.O.N.Y.," and while the track showcases the best instrumental work of the entire album--reminiscent of Winehouse's first album--it's the only upbeat track lacking a decent hook, and once again features Solange's confounding lyrics: "These leaves, I want them to fall/these leaves, I can't shake them off/I should be dancing in the dark..."

...woods?

The strongest song on the album, the ridiculously beautiful, relentlessly bubbly "Would've Been the One," actually surpasses both of Solange's current singles ("Decided" and "Sandcastle Disco") in both production quality and vocal presentation. Solange has a fantastic upper range, and her songwriting abilities, limited vocal flourish, and the production by Riddick and Splash merge like perfectly chiseled gears in a jukebox. The production on "One" is modern while maintaining a retro sensibility, in vein of Christina Aguilera's "Ain't No Other Man." Mid-chorus the beat doubles, ending in an ecstatic little blast of piano chords and tambourine shakes. It's an indelible, once-on-an-album kind of track, a song designed to lift spirits and inspire--you know, in the music-as-caffeine kind of way. Hey, coffee inspires me.

Of course there's the second single, "Sandcastle Disco," where Solange tells a new boy she's a "cool low jane with a skip on her shoe"; with it's smoky cymbals and Solange's coy use of metaphor ("I'm nothing but a sandcastle/don't blow me away"), "Disco" is another shining moment on Sol-Angel.

The album's strangest moment comes in the form of "Cosmic Journey." Unlike many professional critics, who see the track as superfluous and a bit too trippy for mainstream pop, I find "Cosmic" an essential song in the Sol-Angel catalog. Beautifully sung by Solange, "Cosmic" had the potential to be one of the more commercial tracks on the album, and if transitioning the song into a thumping dance track in the last quarter was intentional--not a self-indulgent creative choice--than I admire the producers and their ability to finely edit a song simply because it is music, and not a dollar sign.

When the fat is trimmed and the lyrics decrypted, Sol-Angel & The Hadley St. Dreams is a fantastic re-debut by an artist that will undoubtedly become a major player in pop-soul for years to come. The challenge for Solange will be walking the fine line between saccharine pop and repellent, experimental R&B--but if "Sandcastle Disco," "Would've Been the One," and "T.O.N.Y." are any indication, she's got a better balance than we think.