</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1179494/" title="poll">1986</td>
  <td>The Feelies</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1188242" title="review">The Good Earth</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1986">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1193883/" title="poll">1987</td>
  <td>The Smiths</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1197054/"title="review">The World Won't Listen</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1987">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/211408/" title="poll">1988</a></td>
  <td>Mary Margaret O'Hara</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/212353/" title="review">Miss America</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1988">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1122609/" title="poll">1989</a></td>
  <td>Pixies</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1128031/" title="review">Doolittle</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1989">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1152456/" title="poll">1990</a></td>
  <td>The House of Love</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1156487/" title="review">"Butterfly"</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1990">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/988091/" title="poll">1991</td>
  <td>Smashing Pumpkins</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/993832" title="review">Gish</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1991">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1170267/" title="poll">1992</td>
  <td>Sonic Youth</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1177712/" title="review">Dirty</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1992">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1037604" title="poll">1993</td>
  <td>Idaho</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1041068" title="review">Year after Year</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1993">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/978438/" title="poll">1994</td>
  <td>Swell</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/981382/" title="review">41</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1994">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1050974/" title="poll">1995</td>
  <td>Sparklehorse</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1054721/" title="review">Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1995">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1085634/" title="poll">1996</td>
  <td>Cowboy Junkies</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1095772/" title="review">Lay It Down</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1996">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1010587/" title="poll">1997</a></td>
  <td>Robert Wyatt</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1022272/" title="review">Shleep</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1997">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1129244/" title="poll">1998</a></td>
  <td>Cat Power</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1133632/" title="review">Moon Pix</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1998">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/221237/" title="poll">1999</a></td>
  <td>Pinback</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/228476/">This Is a Pinback CD</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_1999">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1146086/" title="poll">2000</a></td>
  <td>Aimee Mann</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1151851/">Bachelor No. 2</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_2000">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/248563/" title="poll">2001</a></td>
  <td>Radiohead</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/258512/">Amnesiac</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_2001">top 100</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
  <td><a href="/stories/1162523/"title="poll">2002</a></td>
  <td>Lambchop</td>
  <td><a href="/stories/1166159/">Is a Woman</a></td>
  <td><a href="http://rateyourmusic.com/top_albums/year_is_2002">top 100</a></td>
</tr>

RYM = Rate Your Music website

Dan Emerson on The Beatles Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in his music/film blog Restate My Assumptions. He presses some more juice out of one of the most squeezed out releases in pop history. Personally I always found that album together with its older brother, the Beach Boys Pet Sounds totally overestimated (Dan anticipated this stance of course). The only memorable things about Sgt Pepper's in my book are the new production methods and the last song: A Day in the Life. Have a look what Dan writes about it:

Olav Bjortomt in his well written music blog It Makes No Difference... on Gillian Welch's long beautiful ballad I Dreamt a Highway (November, 28th). I have to agree especially to this passage:

are a trio hailing from Massachusetts. Their music is at least as fascinating as their ambiguous name playing with the two meanings of the word band. Do you remember the mysterious Möbius Band which has only one side from the geometry lessons?

The group is very open-minded musically. Fusing modern jazz, electronics, classical elements, epic film scores, Stereolab-like vox organ patterns, American Analog Set loops, Low's majestic slow minimalism and many other things I am going to explore in more detail this afternoon. Califone and Tortoise from Chicago seem to be other important influences. Not to forget the improvisational side of Sonic Youth represented by Lee Ranaldo. Very exciting stuff. Eclecticism as I love it.

The first two EPs and more can be downloaded from their audio page.

Pitchfork's Joe Tangari reviews their latest release Three EP.

Pjoe (a kind of link log to his own music writing and other stuff) has a couple of articles based on interviews online of some excellent bands from that decade. Very nice insightful succinct interviews you don't find a lot today anymore:

• Catherine Wheel 1995 (Happy Days)
• Eleventh Dream Day 1997
• Low 1996 (The Curtain Hits the Cast)
• Luna 1997 (Pup Tent)
• Silver Jews 1994 (Starlite Walker)
• Tortoise 1995
• Yo La Tengo 1997 (I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One)
• Yo La Tengo 1999 (And then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out)

• Aerial M 1998
• David Grubbs 1998
• Lilys 1996
• Rachel's 1997