It may not have been as major a year for music as some in recent memory, but 2001 really did see the release of some great ways to pass the time. Among other things, heaven hath given us the Strokes to make fun of, American Analog Set to nap to and Atmosphere to decipher. Prediction for 2002? After briefly relenquishing the crown, hip-hop once again conquers the planet while IDM becomes ever more chic.

1. Atmosphere: Lucy Ford. Atmosphere’s Lucy Ford LP is easily the strongest hip-hop album of the year. A true lyricist’s record, Ford is an extended jaunt through the mind of Slug, the act’s only real member and hip-hop’s most tender and poetic hard-drinking womanizer. As solid beats float by courtesy of Ant and Jel, Slug provides one man’s honest take on his own contradictions. The record’s many true gems, especially “The Woman With the Tattooed Hands” and “Nothing But Sunshine,” are gloriously beautiful stories laid down to rhythm. The rest is damn fine hip-hop, chronicling everything from a day in the life to a night on the road with biting wit and perfect flow.?Will Cleveland

2. The Strokes: Is This It. Children of privilege? Maybe. Beneficiaries of a massive hype machine? Sure. Does any of this matter? It really shouldn’t. Is This It is a classic rock album in all the best ways: tinny guitars, tight drums and unpretentious, irresistably singable lyrics. What’s not to like? Furthermore, props have to go to any group of alcohol-soaked youth able to permeate the consciousness of frat boys and indie snobs alike on both sides of the drink with a decidedly lo-fi 35-minute LP. So where do they go from here? Well, in all likelihood, to rehab, but Is This It could very well mark the beginning of a productive career, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Expect the “Behind the Music” episode by this time next year?you heard it here first.?Mike DeBonis

3. The Faint: Danse Macabre. It seemed an impossible task for The Faint to top their analog-heavy sophomore 2000 release Blank Wave Arcade. This past year, however, saw the Omaha trio’s coup de grace, Danse Macabre, which marks the de facto transition from the group’s initially lo-fi, folkish stylings, to its signature hybrid of brooding synths, loops, punk-undertones and Brit-pop sensibilities. The neo-Soviet artwork, complements the edgy, introspective and unmistakably danceable construction of the disc, which highlights the group’s masterful genre-bending, rock experimentalism. Danse Macabre is perhaps the most intelligent and authentic record of the year, and adds a certain magic to everything from OD’ing in a Goth club to shakin’ your ass Brit-pop- style.?Ian Bourland

4. Death Cab for Cutie: The Photo Album. Since these boys from Seattle hit the big time with 2000’s We Have the Facts and We’re Voting Yes, this year’s follow-up had to live up to big expectations from the indie-rock cognoscenti, as well as the new fans won over by We Have the Facts. Death Cab responded with The Photo Album, its best effort yet, which built upon the low-key splendor of their previous work, while still managing downright rock in parts. Ben Gibbard’s lyrics are as flip as ever (see anti-L.A. polemic “Why You’d Want to Live Here”) and Chris Walla’s guitar parts remain some of the most interesting around. Compares favorably to fellow Pacific Northwesterners Modest Mouse, whose Everywhere and His Nasty Parlor Tricks was largely a disappointment.?Mike DeBonis

5. Anti-Flag: Underground Network. The Anti-Flag boys seem to have grown up during the past two years, during which their inimicable brand of Pennsylvanian, poli-sci punk has been refined into the aggressive and frequently illuminating Underground Network. Recent developments include a newfound allegiance to the vegan army, alliances with the likes of revisionist historians and academic trouble-makers Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn and a marked improvement in the cohesiveness of the group’s power-chord driven compositions. The result is a dark and relentless fifth album that educates and reflects on topics ranging from U.S. foreign policy to destroying some guy’s house. Easily a contender for punk album of the last five years.?Ian Bourland

6. American Analog Set: Know By Heart. There are any number of names for it: sad-core, slow-core, drone-pop, snooze rock?the list goes on. Pick any label you like, but this type of of slow-tempo, moody pop flourished throughout the 1990s, during which Austin, Texas’s American Analog Set has released some of the genre’s most interesting releases. This year saw similarly musically low-key releases from bands such as the Red House Painters, Aspera Ad Astra and the Shins, but Know By Heart proved that AAS remain the genre’s standard-bearers. Perhaps the poppiest effort in the band’s catalog, the album’s low-key intensity remains challenging, something that can’t be said for the aforementioned bands. Know By Heart is passive-agressive indie pop at its finest.?Mike DeBonis

7. Missy Elliot: Miss E … So Addictive. Missy Elliot is hip-hop’s one true queen. 2001 saw the imitators continuing their shots at the throne while Missy released yet another earful. Miss E … So Addictive is that rare mainstream hip-hop record that maintains consistent quality through varied production approaches and creative songwriting. Producer Timbaland’s beats always rock, equal parts smooth head-nod and dancefloor mayhem. Missy’s rhymes sit perfectly on top of the mix, smoothly asserting control. In times like these, it’s hard enough to find a radio rapper whose lyrics aren’t embarrassing. Missy, however, is a genuine pleasure to hear.?Will Cleveland

8. Radiohead: Amnesiac. What Radiohead’s latest studio album lacked in cohesion, it more than made up in innovation. Amnesiac finds Radiohead moving outside itself, into arrhythmic piano melodies, boozy clarinets and minimal synthetic drumming. Critics called the record a collection of Kid A B-sides, but more often than not, individual tracks from Amnesiac far outshine anything on Kid A. Radiohead’s increasingly bizarre sound may leave listeners bewildered, but the band themselves sound relieved and relaxed at having left their old shell behind. Free to experiment, Radiohead are just as powerful, if a bit disoriented, as when working within a strict rock format.?Will Cleveland

9. Bis: Return to Central. 2001 was the year that perennially catchy pop-outfit Bis hit the nail on the head. The trio’s third release, Return to Central, is a sonic odyssey that is fluid and innovative from start to finish. The album demonstrates a considerable, new sophistication in the group’s writing. Once known for groovy, yet simple three-minute verse-chorus-verse explosions, Return to Central builds on a pop-saavy foundation and is accentuated by skillfull forays into the electronic dance music, sampling and over-dubbed orchestration. The result is a beautiful, lush, conception that functions less like a compilation of pop-scorchers and more like a unified and cogent rock opus.?Ian Bourland

10. Miles Davis: Live at Fillmore East (March 7, 1970). An honorable mention must go to this double disc, a recording from a New York show on March 7, 1970, after the Bitches Brew studio sessions but before that record’s April release. Davis’ all-star band, which includes Chick Corea and Wayne Shorter, tears apart Brew’s eerie, trembling moods and rebuilds the original themes into a thundering, stomping funk. “Spanish Key,” a tame track on the original, is transformed into a burly bass-driven tornado. A compressed version of “Bitches Brew” features an headbanging, overdriven Rhodes piano bass motif, and Davis’ trumpet is a whirl of activity throughout, guiding this potent record through the depths of funk and back again.?Will Cleveland

After a succession of years which saw a dearth of quality independent films, but a plethora of the usual Hollywood dreck, 2001 saw a comeback of sorts for cinema. Propelled by foreign offerings and a number of great Hollywood flicks, this year saw some of the most ambitious films in recent memory. However caveats remain?critical favorites such as In the Bedroom and A Beautiful Mind were vastly overrated?but these following films proved that this past year will be remembered for its wonderful cinema.

1. The Royal Tenenbaums. Director Wes Anderson’s first two films, Bottle Rocket and Rushmore, were two great “little” movies. Funny and often touching, sure, but both at times seemed to be mere exercises in style?stories of little people with little problems. Anderson’s ambition has finally matched his formidable talent with The Royal Tenebaums, the story of a family of waning overachievers. It is a very funny movie, but it is not content with the traditional definitions of on-screen comedy?it is a also very poignant movie. But more than that, it is a joyful movie, a movie that will send you out of the theatre with a smile on your face. Be warned, this film does not deal in glib, pre-packaged Hollywood emotion. If you would prefer that, see A Beautiful Mind. Instead, The Royal Tenenbaums seizes on the complexity of human feeling, and tells a story that knows no genre: comedy, drama or otherwise.?Mike DeBonis

2. Mulholland Drive. After an uncharacteristically “straight” The Straight Story, which left movie aficionados and critics alike baffled, avant-weirdo David Lynch made a compelling return to strangeness this fall with the disturbing, if amusing Mulholland Drive. To the dismay of the elderly following that Lynch garnered with Straight, this latest offering is chock full of Lynch staples: lo-tech cinematography, shoddy acting, a labyrinthine and supernaturally-driven storyline and kinky lesbians turned detectives abound in the quirkiest but possibly most-intriguing film of the year.?Ian Bourland

3. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings. More than just the paint-by-numbers adaptation of a popular book that the Harry Potter movie was, FOTR grants us the experience of watching filmmaking on a grand scale. Director Peter Jackson respects his source material, but manages to imbue Tolkien’s novel with a wealth of emotion absent from J.R.R.’s dry prose. The acting is superb, as each cast member fully inhabits their role. Not in a long time have we seen a film so sweeping, so dense, yet so immensely enjoyable and exciting to watch.?Gilbert Cruz

4. Memento. Even though it was released in the earlier part of the year, no one should forget this twisting brainteaser of a film written by Georgetown alum Jonathan Nolan (CAS ‘99). Accused of being gimmicky due to its reversed structure, Memento is an intelligent look at guilt, revenge and identity wrapped up within a stereotypical murder mystery. Although now available to replay and decipher on DVD, think back to the simultaneous feeling of awe and confusion you had upon leaving the theatre after seeing this film: therein lies understanding of Memento’s achievement.?Gilbert Cruz

5. Amelie. Proof that movies have the ability to make life better, if only for a short time. This French piece of confectionary entertainment is the most joyous piece of cinema to emerge from any country in recent years. Rare is the movie that makes one emerge dancing from the theatre at the pure bliss of being alive, but Amelie is that movie. Music, cinematography, performance?everything comes together perfectly to result in a unitary whole of exultant moviemaking guaranteed to brighten even the rainiest of days.?Gilbert Cruz

6. Donnie Darko. Donnie Darko may very well be the year’s most enigmatic movie?a bold statement in a year that featured both Memento and Mulholland Drive. While those two films were in many ways mysteries to be solved by the audience, Donnie Darko entered the hopelessly inscrutable realm of the adolescent psyche. However, mere enigma does not a great film make. Donnie Darko might easily have been a mere run-of-the-mill suburban angst drama, but wonderful performances from Jake Gyllenhaal as the titular hero and Mary McDonnell as Donnie’s sympathetic mother, make this film stand apart from the crowd. In his debut, director Richard Kelly proves he can create a enthralling mood, while telling a compelling story.?Mike DeBonis

7. Moulin Rouge. And you said the musical was dead. It probably still is, but Baz Luhrmann’s attempt to resurrect the genre can claim its title as the most ambitious film of the year. At a time when movies featuring random acts of singing and dancing are widely acknowledged as financial losses, Moulin Rouge takes two young, beautiful actors and throws them into a mythical, musical, operatic concoction that never stops moving forward with accumulating speed. While at points too fast for the audience to soak in the intricate set design of the Moulin Rouge, this film has memorable songs and a wealth of good humor?everything a top notch musical needs.?Gilbert Cruz

8. The Others. A true sleeper hit, The Others came out of left field to notch a spot on the box office Top Five for ten weeks. Aside from all that, Nicole Kidman’s other film this year is just a good, solid, scary movie. It is a slow moving, quiet film that manages to put to shame most of the teen horror movies released in the last decade. The Others is a haunted house film with a twist that manages to frighten without any blood, guts, or scary monsters. Recognition goes to Nicole Kidman?s gorgeously repressed Grace as well as her two eerie little kids.?Gilbert Cruz

9. Pootie Tang. This movie was a lot of things?bedroom comedy, morality play, period piece. Actually, it was none of those things. Instead, it was undoubtedly the most absurd movie of the year. The eponymous hero, played by Lance Crouther, takes on the nasty Lecter Corporation, purveyors of such no-no’s as cigarettes and fast food, with nothing more than his trusty belt. With sidekicks like the spunky Biggie Shorty and numerous characters played by Chris Rock, how could he fail? Comedian Louis C.K.’s ridiculous script and tongue-in-cheek direction make this the sleeper comedy of the summer. Very few films in history have taken themselves less seriously than Pootie Tang, and that is a compliment of the highest degree.?Mike DeBonis

10. Legally Blonde. Reese Witherspoon made a surprising comeback in this summer hit, and scored points towards redemption for her characteristically poor acting and poorer choice of scripts (see: Cruel Intentions and Election). In what promised to be a nauseating Clueless knockoff, peppered with unnecessary props to already overly-hyped Harvard Law, Witherspoon, and an ensemble rounded-off by Luke Wilson and Selma Blair, delivered a smart yet unpretentious read on life in the Ivies. Although the morals and the critiques lodged in the film were transparent and somewhat unoriginal, Legally Blonde proved to be a hysterical dose of perspective for all those poised for the graduate school track. Not bad for an unassuming, feel-good comedy.?Ian Bourland