I'm not going to have any order here, but the first album I'm going to list here is the album released most recently. Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation (1988) was released at a time where the alt-rock scene was just coalescing. The scene was so fragmented, you had kids playing avant-garde out in new york city, the hardcore kids down in DC, and college pop-rock music at many colleges. Sonic Youth combines these with the noise at atmosphere of bands like Dinosaur Jr. and My Bloody Valentine, and add part snarky youth and film/literary/art references(Juno anybody?) into the entire album way ahead of it’s time. The way they do this is also so perfectly and seamlessly you wouldn’t even think they were combining so many different styles into one album. If you’ve never listened to this, and you’re in any way a fan of alt-indie-rock, it’s something you need to have.
Hüsker Dü is a band which has been long overdue a mention on this blog, I know that it was released back in 1984, but far too few people listen to them now-a-days, which is disappointing as they still sound as fresh as ever. Hüsker Dü broke the mold when they made this record. They started out as another hardcore band, and they were good, but they weren't doing anything different from what they rest was, and they were not happy with that. They went on to record this double LP record in 40 hours for about $2,500 bucks with each song in one take (except for two songs). They did something no hardcore/punk band had ever done, and not may do now, they made a concept album. The story is of a kid raised in an abusive household who runs off, joins the military, and finds religion, etc. They also did something punk/hardcore bands at the time didn't do either, used a melody and used classic-rock influences in their songs. It's such a great record which stands on it's own so very well. Zen Arcade is where their departure started, go older to see their hardcore roots, and head forward in their catalogue to witness their crafting of more pop oriented songs.
Gang of Four, notoriously influential, notoriously dark post-punk band which sounded like almost nothing before it. The lyrics were darker, more calculating, and anti-capitalistic than anything before. The guitar work is so angular, and ever changing that it's still a mind fuck. It's almost as if playing the same notes and rhythms was physically impossible to the guitar player. I don't know what more to say about it, it's one of the best albums I've ever listened to, and it's one of the most influential in modern day music, even if we don't think about it.
