[TheCommodoreAfro]

I can't limit it to five, but can point to about seven or eight (in no order) that had that kinda life affirming ring to them. If you ask me next week I may have to change my mind on some or all of these anyway.

Primal Scream - Screamadellica. I was bigtime into shambling, shoegazing bands back in the day and these guys put a beat to it.

a tie between Pixies - Surfer Rosa and Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Don't really know how I would have made it through the latter bits of high school and first year of uni without these albums. Both rock albums that redfined the genre in the latter bits of the 80's. I also really, really dug REM's Murmur and Reckoning.

Mercury Rev - Yerself is steam. Saw them live in a dingy club in London and they almost got into a fistfight with each other on stage.

Boards of Canada - Music has the right to children. The first electronic album that could double as a composition.

Talking Heads - Remain in Light. Best album from the postpunk late 70's/early 80's (an underrated period of music itself). Smiths Hatful of Hollow and Joy Division's Substance are also contenders from (about) the same era.

Portishead - Dummy. I really liked trip hop for a couple of years. Still a good album too.

Tindersticks - by Tindersticks. Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene, Final Fantasy, Sufjan Stevens et al must have a copy of this album somewhere at home. Orchestra rock/pop. Very well done.

Kayne West - Late Registration. Revolutionary - best thing I've heard in the genre and a good style signpost a la De La Soul's 3 Feet High and Rising.