5 Amazing Albums Released 20 Years Ago This Month

The indie rock revolution was raging through the music world in 2005. Bands and solo artists alike were offering up some of their finest work at a fraction of the budget that was available to some of the biggest names in the industry. April 2005 saw the release of some indie rock albums that have certainly stood the test of time. Not to be left out, a rock titan also released an album, one that also makes our list of five memorable LPs released 20 years ago this month.

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‘Alligator’ by The National

The National were still working somewhat under the radar with Alligator, but they had mostly found their way to their signature sound by then. Matt Berninger’s sad-sack narratives were finding comfortable homes within the band’s music. That music could skew peppery and potent, as on “Karen” or “Val Jester”. But this is also the first album where the band allowed themselves to slow things down to great effect. “Daughters Of The SoHo Riots” hits that sweet spot. Alligator goes out on a high note with “Mr. November”, a perfect combination of lyrical frustration and musical catharsis.

‘Songs For Silverman’ by Ben Folds

Folds didn’t have the same kind of attention on him as when he released Rockin’ The Suburbs four years previously. But he delivers a set of songs that’s just as good with Songs For Silverman. With Folds, you know you’re going to get reliably stirring melodies, often balanced out by subtly acerbic lyrics. “You To Thank” swoops and soars in unexpected directions, while “Jesusland” allows him to show his satiric side. You can also expect reliably moving love songs, with “Landed” standing out in that department on this record. The expert Beach Boys’ homage “Give Judy My Notice” puts the icing on the cake. It’s wild to think that this album came out 20 years ago.

‘Blinking Lights And Other Revelations’ by Eels

At a whopping 34 songs over two CDs, Mark Oliver Everett (aka E) went for broke on this, his sixth album with Eels. It feels like a concept album about all the weighty subjects in life (and death) rolled together. Echoes of Brian Wilson, Randy Newman, Todd Rundgren, and numerous other deep-feeling auteurs run through the record. The amazing thing is how consistent it all is. Things can get somber occasionally, but that’s when Everett drops in a fun one like “Hey Man (Now You’re Really Living)”. That clears the path for the weepers, of which “Railroad Man” and “The Stars Shine In The Sky Tonight” stand particularly tall.

‘Devils And Dust’ by Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen found himself in between eras in the mid-90s. He put his “Other Band” experiment to bed, and he was still only in the process of getting the E Street Band back together. To keep active, he released Devils And Dust. Consider it a beefed-up Nebraska, where the focus is on doomed souls and the societal forces that put them in that spot. The title track, with its slight nod to hip-hop rhythms, is as modern as it gets. For the most part, he’s in dusty troubadour mode here. If you pay close attention to the stories, you’re going to find some moving gems, such as the unforgivingly bleak “The Hitter” and the elegiac “Matamoras Banks”.

‘Black Sheep Boy’ by Okkervil River

At the time they made this record 20 years ago, the following for Okkervil River was loyal but tiny. It wasn’t until the next two records in their catalog that they started to get national press around their releases. The critical reaction to Black Sheep Boy helped grease the wheels for that conversion. As always, band leader Will Sheff’s obsessions and meditations dominate the proceedings. The title track, a cover of the Tim Hardin classic, serves as both a gentle intro and a sort of “connecting thread” between the songs. Sheff’s powerfully revealing lyrics are at their best here, whether indulging in clever metaphors (“A King And A Queen”) or baring raw emotions (“A Stone”).

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