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In the Mix

Was it a good year for music? I think so, actually. There were some amazing hip-hop albums released-Outkast's Stankonia and Jurassic 5's Quality Control come immediately to mind, while Eminem is undoubtedly talented as hell. In the soul/R&B section, D'Angelo's second album was competent, but the stunner was Jill Scott. Dance music did well by compilations, and even managed a few good albums (Groove Armada's Vertigo, David Holmes' Bow Down to the Exit Sign) in what is generally a singles-driven culture. As for pop-well, some records were set by various assortments of platinum-bleached boy and girl wonders. But Aimee Mann's work on the Magnolia soundtrack was impressive, and despite the fun I poked at her, I'll say that Madonna's Music is really an infectious album.

Meanwhile, British indie-rock mined a spectacularly rich vein of introspection, with great albums by Badly Drawn Boy, Coldplay, Travis and, of course, Radiohead.

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But whatever happened to good ol' American rock? At the Drive In, Grandaddy and Queens of the Stone Age all had solid releases, but they hardly got any airplay. Meanwhile, the less compelling sounds of Creed, Limp Bizkit and Papa Roach hogged the headlines and sales racks. (Oh, and Bon Jovi returned. Apparently that mattered to some people.)

Underappreciated album of 2000? In my book, Shelby Lynne's I Am Shelby Lynne.

MUSIC-GEEK DEBATE OF THE YEAR

Did the album die in 2000, to be replaced by your MP3 playlist?

IT RUNS THROUGH IT

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