Badly Drawn Boy's Hour of the Bewilderbeast vs. Interpol's Turn on the Bright Lights
The case: These albums are about as different as any two on the list...the former being a finely crafted pop record, the latter a dark homage to Joy Division and 80's new wave, and the torch bearer of, if not a genre in an of itself, then a new chapter in a genre's life. And while Turn on the Bright Lights has great atmosphere, innovation, and some truly brilliant songs (especially the final track "Leif Erikson" which, for my taste, showcases the bands strengths...brooding tone, haunting vocals, and lyrics that border between nonsense and genius) the edge in this match goes to Badly Drawn Boy (nee Damon Gough). The album's greatest strength is also one of its biggest weaknesses: Gough shows a knack for genre bouncing and manipulation, from the straight piano-and-a-guitar singer songwriter style (that one assumes is his baseline) of songs like "Pissing in the Wind" and "Epitaph" to funk on "Disillusion" to, well, hip-hopish beats on "Body Rap". But some forest is lost for all those trees...a brilliant, tightly crafted pop record is hidden amongst the overlong album's 18 tracks, and were it cut down to 12 it might lose some experimentation and ability to call back and cycle through themes, but it would gain a coherence and lack of filler that would make it truly great. Gough writes songs that can be sweet and funny at the same time, and the album is littered with little jokes (the splash at the end of "Fall in a River") and melodies that stick with you long after listening.
Score: In the Hour of the Bewilderbeast defeats Turn on the Brightlights 63-48
Representative Tracks:
Badly Drawn Boy- The Shining
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