1997 was the year I started junior high and spent afternoons playing NHL 98 on Sega Genesis and watching Jenny Jones.
Albums
Rank | Album | Artist | Title | Label | Impression |
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1 | blink-182 | Dude Ranch | Cargo | This album was my introduction into punk music after I heard Dammit on Much Music and things would never be the same. Wikipedia |
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2 | The Aquabats | The Fury of The Aquabats! | Goldenvoice | Tell your mom, tell your dad that we were super rad! Wikipedia |
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3 | Mineral | The Power of Failing | Crank! | Gloria is silent and glory is a silent thing. Wikipedia |
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4 | The Promise Ring | Nothing Feels Good | Jade Tree | 1997 was a great year for emo and Nothing Feels Good was used as the name of the book by Andy Greenwald covering this time period. Wikipedia |
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5 | Pennywise | Full Circle | Epitaph | Bro Hymn is an anthem for getting bros stoked with all those whoas making this a necessary inclusion. Wikipedia |
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6 | Modest Mouse | The Lonesome Crowded West | Up | Back before Float On Modest Mouse released this indie rock classic. Wikipedia |
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7 | The Mighty Mighty Bosstones | Let's Face it | Mercury | The Impression That I Get was the other ska song I played during a high school talent show and had a lot of fun skanking and dressing up in thrift store suits. Wikipedia |
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8 | Third Eye Blind | Third Eye Blind | Elektra | Third Eye Blind may be best remembered as a 90's radio rock band, but this whole album is solid front to back. Wikipedia |
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9 | NOFX | So Long and Thanks for All the Shoes | Epitaph | One of the more ska NOFX albums with a great Champs Elysées cover that they would play every time I saw them play in Canada. Wikipedia |
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10 | Great Big Sea | Play | Warner Music Canada | I remember borrowing this cassette from the library and playing it all the time in my dad's car. Wikipedia |
Books
Rank | Book | Title | Author | Impression |
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1 | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | J. K. Rowling | J. K. Rowling sucks, but the Harry Potter series is still really good. I tried to avoid it for a long time because it was so popular so I never read it until much later and yeah I was wrong. Wikipedia |
Movies
1996 was a weak year for movies, but things turned around in 1997.
Rank | Movie | Title | Impression |
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1 | The Fifth Element | Get your Multipass ready because this movie is non-stop fun from start to finish. Wikipedia |
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2 | Gattaca | 90's sci-fi that is quickly becoming reality, well the genetic discrimination part at least. Wikipedia |
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3 | Contact | Wow 1997 was a really good year for sci-fi. This one is more serious, but still really enjoyable. Wikipedia |
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4 | The Game | A really interesting film about a rich banker participating in a game where the lines with reality are blurred. Wikipedia |
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5 | Princess Mononoke | An anime with an environmental message and forest spirits. I think this was the first Ghibli film I saw. Wikipedia |
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6 | Starship Troopers | I didn't get the facism in the film the first time around, but it was more poignant on rewatching. Wikipedia |
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7 | Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery | It was hard to avoid the cultural impact of this film when it came out. I didn't even realize that Mike Myers played both Austin Powers and Dr. Evil. It's still funny. Wikipedia |
Video Games
Rank | Game | Title | Developer | Impression |
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1 | The Curse of Monkey Island | LucasArts | I remember getting a PC Gamer magazine for my 13th birthday that had a review for this game and I wanted to play it so bad. I've replayed it many times over the years and the humor and artsyle are so good. Wikipedia |
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2 | Goldeneye | Rare | it took many years and tries, but beating this game on 00 Agent is still one of my greatest gaming achievements. Wikipedia |
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3 | Blade Runner | Westwood Studios | The Blade Runner video game is surprisingly good with multiple possible endings and draws from both the movie and the Philip K. Dick book. Wikipedia |
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4 | NHL 98 | Electronic Arts | I still only had a Sega Genesis when this came out, but I used to play that version in the afternoons all throughout junior high with my friends and get into fights over the game. Wikipedia |
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5 | Zork: Grand Inquisitor | Activision | The Zork series started out as a text adventure, so it's impressive that this FMV game turned out as well as it did. Wikipedia |