1993

As we move closer to the 80's, the music is getting heavier. brit-pop is only in the very beginning and grunge still rules the music scene. 1993's top ten is not as good as the later years', but it still manages to include a number of great albums. There are more genres involved than in the mid-90's. This years list consists of brit-pop, grunge, alternative rock, art-rock, indie pop, power pop, shoegaze and progressive rock. Some of the grunge albums from this year have amazing songs but don't really succeed in becoming great whole albums. Well, enough chit-chat, here's the list.

10. Dinosaur Jr. - Where You Been

Dinosaur Jr. had made music for approximately ten years when they reached their most melodic period. This is my favourite period in their music. Without the Sound unfortunately did not make it to my top ten in 1994, but fortunately I can now praise Where You Been. The guitars are quite heavy, but the sound is lighter and more pop-oriented than many other albums. Album kicks off perfectly with Out There, which is probably the best song from the album. The album cover's scary hitch-hiker is great. J Macis' weird and fragile voice works as well as ever and the guitar solos soar high above the melodic songs with the sounds combining grunge, hard rock, alternative rock and punk. Listen to the album on Spotify.

9. Björk - Debut

Björk's Debut features a number of really amazon songs, but the album has some weaker moments as well, which explains this album's place ninth on this list. Björk's shamanic rhythms and weird melodies were unique at the time of the release of this album. The synths, percussions and of course Björk's vocals give the music truly unique sound. The album includes many hits, such as Human Behaviour, Venus as a Boy, Big Time Sensuality and Play Dead. In my opinion, these are the best songs on the album. I'm sure this was the first Icelandic album that made it's way to the consciousness of the big crowds. Björk led the way to the following Icelandic artists, such as Sigur Ros and Mum in making Iceland known for it's great art-rock scene. Listen to the album on Spotify.

8. Blur - modern Life Is Rubbish

Blur was one of the first bands of the 90's brit-pop movement to make great pop albums. Pulp had yet to release their break trough and Oasis was without albums altogether. Modern Life Is Rubbish, despite of its brilliant title, isn't the best of Blur albums, but it already has a number of great pop songs and alternative rock bits. For Tomorrow, Star Shaped and Colin Zeal are probably my favourites. This album doesn't have as many hits as the subsequent albums, but it's a great album. It's got light and summery parts, but also heavy guitars and punk attitude. The album cover's painting looks great as a vinyl. This was the time when people were getting rid of their vinyls and moving on to CD's, and you don't see many original copies of these albums on vinyl. Listen to the album on Spotify.

7. Aimee Mann - Whatever

Whatever is the first solo album of Aimee Mann. It's a really strong performance for a debut album. Melodic pop-rock songs have great lyrics and the mood and the sounds get shivers in my spine. This is one of the albums that need to be listened to many times before they reveal all their secrets. Aimee Mann has made a number of exceptionally good albums and it's not easy to say which albums are better or worse than the others. This album got really good reviews at the time it was released. Mann's voice is beautiful and effortless. She is one of the best artists to sing about heartache. Most of all she's a storyteller and even though it's sometimes hard for me to focus on the lyrics, listening to the stories in these songs really pays off. Listen to the songs from the album on Youtube.

6. Pearl Jam - Vs.

Pearl Jam is one of the great grunge bands of the early 90's. it was never as successful as Nirvana, and neither as good in my opinion. Nevertheless, Vs. beats In Utero, that came out the same year. I don't even have In Utero on this list. Vs. has a number of great grunge songs with heavy guitars and raspy rock singing. The melodies are not as apparent as I would probably like in my music, but the more you listen to the album, the more you like it. Rearview mirror is one of the best songs in the whole grunge scene. The sheep in the album cover looks a lot like an alpaca, which is always good. The cover art is one of the icons of the grunge era. For those of you who are stuck in Nirvana, when it comes to grunge, listen to this album. Listen to the album on Spotify.

5. Kingston Wall - II

Kingston Wall is one of the most talented Finnish bands of all times. They played melodic progressive rock in the 90's. Their all three albums were great and they succeeded in making music that didn't sound Finnish. All the members of the band were amazingly talented in their instruments. After three albums Kingston Wall's story ended, when the lead singer and guitar player Petri Walli plunged to his death from a church tower. The second album, not very innovatively named, II is their best album. It has hard rocking sounds, but also beautiful melodies and skilful use of saxophones, clean guitars, amazing drumming and difficult bass lines. I think it's a real shame that Kingston Wall never made their music known globally. Listen to the album on Spotify.

4. Mazzy Star - So Tonight That I Might See

Mazzy Star has been ignored by many fans of the 90's music. I simply don't know why. Their hypnotic and simple songs are beautiful. The band only made three albums in the 90's but recently they've made a comeback and their fourth album is going to be released in few weeks time. Hope Sandoval's dreamy singing voice takes the listener away from this world. Guitars have buzzing sounds in some of the songs getting influences from shoe-gazing. If you like dream pop, shoe-gazing, and slow and beautiful melodies, you should definitely get acquainted with the band. So Tonight I Might See is the band's second album and in my opinion it's also the best one. The other two are almost as good though. Listen to the album on Spotify.

3. James - Laid

James is often forgotten when talking about brit-pop of the 90's. Their musical career started already in the early 80's, but their best piece of work, Laid, was released in 1993. This album is filled with amazing songs. The Manchester based James offers beautiful melodies, rhythms to dance to and most importantly light and lazy mood that blocks the worries of the world away. At some point they were expected to become new The Smiths. Something happened and they were mostly forgotten. The album photo could not be mistaken to be from any other decade than the 90's. those outfits are pretty ridiculous. But music is fantastic example of 90's melodic pop rock that rose up after the gloomy decade in music that we call the 80's. Listen to the album on Spotify.

2. The Posies - Frosting on the Beater

The Posies were one of the best alternative rock bands in the turn of the 80's and 90's. Frosting on the Beater is their by far best album. The guitars are fairly heavy sounding, but the songs have beautiful melodies, filled with harmonic singing and skilful playing. The Posies are a pure example of power pop done right. The Posies continue to make albums, but their golden time was in the early 90's. The first three songs on the album are truly exceptional. Dream All Day, Solar Sister and Flavour of the Month belong to the best power pop songs of all times. Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow are amazing songwriters. This is a band for everyone who appreciates catchy tunes, memorable melodies and great attitude. Listen to the album on Youtube.

1. Suede - Suede

Yet again Suede has made its way to the top of my list. Their debut album is filled with melodramatic and dark songs full of beauty and sorrow. This album really started the brit-pop. Animal Nitrate became to be known as the anthem for the movement. Brett Anderson and Bernard Butler managed to write exceptional songs with amazing mood. The album cover is one of the most recognisable album covers of the 90's. The band became known for their androgynous appearance which was boosted by Anderson's vocals. Again I have to conclude one year's top ten list by saying that this album is one of the best albums ever made. Not many bands can even dream of putting together as strong debut album. Listen to the album on Spotify.