Le Loup Best of the Decade Artist Survey
Sam Simkoff
Dec 15, 2009
Artist Surveys 2009
Under the Radar’s Best of the Decade/Year-End Issue features our Best of the Decade Artist Survey. For Under the Radar’s 7th annual Artist Survey we emailed some of our favorite artists a few questions relating to the last decade and asked them for a list of their best albums of the decade. Some of the surveys didn’t make it in the issue and some answers from surveys that did make it in the issue had to be trimmed for space. Those surveys and answers are posted on our website. Pick up our Best of the Decade/Year-End Issue to read surveys from Camera Obscura, The Dodos, El Perro Del Mar, Final Fantasy, The Hidden Cameras, The Horrors, The Invisible, Ladytron, Sondre Lerche, Jamie Lidell, Loney Dear, Los Campesinos!, Mew, Midlake, Okkervil River, Stars, Telekinesis, The Twilight Sad, and Vivian Girls.
Sam Simkoff
Le Loup
Top Ten Albums of the Decade
1. Radiohead: Kid A
2. Wilco: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
3. Animal Collective: Feels
4. Deerhunter: Cryptograms
5. Grizzly Bear: Yellow House
6. Brian Wilson: Smile
7. Wilco: A Ghost is Born
8. Deltron 3030: Deltron 3030
9. No Age: Nouns
10. My Morning Jacket: Z
What was the high point of the last decade for you, personally?
Marrying my wife.
What was the low point of the last decade for you, personally?
Either freshman year of college, or the first year out of college. They were both really awkward transitional times. Maybe freshman year, because I had no immediate group of friends to turn to for support. And my voice was still changing.
What are your hopes and plans for the next decade?
At some point, I want to live in the desert. Somewhere in Arizona or New Mexico, maybe. If I could spend all day making music in the sunny middle of nowhere—that’d be great.
Which artist and their music do you think most defines the last decade and why?
Man, I dunno. The last decade was a great time for indie music, but there were a whole bunch of huge performers that really dominated the pop charts. Beyoncé? JT? Britney Spears? If you’re looking for artists who defined the general swing of music for the decade, they’re kind of the frontrunners.
Which musical trend or scene from the last decade do you feel was most overrated/overhyped? Which one was most underrated/under-hyped?
There have been so many overhyped trends. I never got into the indie-dance-pop scene. Never could listen to a Justice album all the way through. And I’m not really a fan of Daft Punk. LCD Soundsystem is fun, I guess. But yeah, indie dance. It’s harder to find an underrated scene these days—I feel like every new nod to a bygone decade gets its own blog following. If it was underrated, I probably didn’t hear about it because it wasn’t crammed down my throat.
Do you think what is considered “indie rock” is different than it was when the decade started? With the commercial strides made in the past decade, how do you think the definition of “indie” rock has changed?
That’s a pretty big question. Yeah, absolutely it’s different. I don’t think I could explain it very gracefully, but it feels to me like indie rock now is approaching a much more radio-friendly role than it might have back in 1999 or 2000. Or maybe it had already started sounding more accessible then, I don’t know. But I hear the indie chart-topping songs these days, and maybe seven out of 10 of them would sound comfortable on any major radio station. That’s not really a good or bad thing, just a thing. If it started out as a counterculture or subculture trend, it’s quickly being appropriated by the mainstream. That happens to any musical movement, though. Eventually everything gets magnified and processed and maybe diluted. There’ll be some new equivalent of indie music in the next decade.
What big issues and challenges do you foresee musicians and the music industry facing in the next decade?
Flesh-eating nanobots. Pretty much everybody will face this challenge in the great nanobot uprising of 2016. Flesh-eating nanobots.
Which political and societal change/development from the last decade most concerns you? Which one most gives you hope?
Ethics within the scientific realm have become increasingly lax, and this is alarming. There are no bans or regulations on nanotechnology, and this is a huge mistake. You’ll see.
What are your thoughts on President Obama’s job performance thus far?
He’s been fine.
What are your thoughts on the healthcare debate and what would your preferred eventual outcome be?
I would prefer to not have to pay a huge deductible on top of my already huge monthly premium. And it’d be nice to get acceptable treatment. I’m not an economist; I don’t know the best way to do that. Don’t really care how it’s done, as long as it happens.
Which global issue (or issue within your own country) would you most like to see resolved by 2020?
All relevant issues will be resolved in the great nanobot-werewolf armistice of 2019.
How do you think you’ll describe the last decade to your children, grandchildren, or other young people in the future?
I think we’ll probably come out of this decade as huge misers. Doesn’t that happen to a lot of people living through economic drought? I’m already reusing Ziploc bags and dragging a bag of lentils out into two weeks of meals. We’ll probably relate to at least the latter half of this decade in terms of the economy. And seeing the first black president, which is huge. And living through the Bush administration, yeah.
What was your life like in January 2000 and how has your life most changed since then?
I was in high school. I was miserable, because I was a high schooler. I’m no longer in high school, and I don’t have to constantly worry about whether or not I’ll ever have a serious girlfriend. Also, beer is no longer difficult in any way.
How are you most like your parents? How are you least like them?
I have my dad’s intense anxious streak, but none of his work ethic. I don’t have any of my mom’s grace.
What were some of your favorites of the last decade in terms of movies, TV shows (which ones did you watch most religiously), books, comic books, websites/blogs, and video games?
I’m not really a movie buff, so I don’t know if I’m qualified to pick out the decade’s best. I remember really liking Spirited Away, and The Pianist totally messed me up, and all the Lord of the Rings movies were pretty good. Up might be my favorite, though. TV shows—didn’t watch much, but Arrested Development was great, and Battlestar Galactica got me all riled up. In terms of comics, somebody just pointed me towards The Goon, which is awesome, and I liked Y: The Last Man all right, but it might not be the best of the decade. Video game: Oblivion.
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January 5th 2010
4:45pm
In comics ‘The Goon’ is awesome mine favorite too.
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