2008 marks the 15 year anniversary of the release of Liz Phair’s middle finger of an album Exile in Guyville. Its re-release has been getting a lot of publicity on blogs and public radio stations because for many, it was a landmark album, a defining album of their teens-to-early twenties. I didn’t get into Liz Phair until after I graduated high school, but the recent hullabaloo over Exile in Guyville got me thinking about the albums that really defined my formative years. Here is a list of my top five:

5. Relationship of Command: At the Drive-In
I mostly listened to grrl rock like Tori and Fiona, but something about the rawness of lead singer Cedric Bixler’s (now of the far inferior Mars Volta) voice and the frantic intensity of the music really appealed to me. Maybe it was an outlet for my teenage anger and angst, or maybe it just made me feel cool. Either way, the album still kicks ass.

4. Rated R: Queens of the Stone Age
I listened to this album over and over after I broke up with my first boyfriend. It’s not an especially sad album, so I don’t know why it brought me so much comfort, but it really became a security blanket. I can’t listen to it now without feeling a little sad and really, really nostalgic. Which is a shame, because it also kicks ass. Read More »