1999

In 1999 I still didn't have the internet at home, so would only have time every second weekend to pirate mp3s off Napster on my dad's computer that took half an hour to download on dialup, so you really had to know what you wanted before committing to download.




Albums

Rank Album Artist Title Label Impression
1 American Football American Football Polyvinyl

I didn't get into this album until a few years later, but it's the one from this year that I come back to most frequently. It's still an all-time classic emo album.

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2 Jimmy Eat World Clarity Capitol

For me this album is heaven.

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3 The Get Up Kids Something to Write Home About Vagrant

We're loyal like brothers, just us versus all the others.

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4 Saves the Day Through Being Cool Equal Vision

The decade definitely ended with a lot of emo. We're rocking out.

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5 blink-182 Enema of the State MCA

blink-182 was a gateway band to many of the other bands on this list so I will always be grateful for getting this CD and findind music that spoke to me.

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6 The Hippos Heads Are Gonna Roll Interscope

The singer is more known now as a songwriter for Adele, but this album is full of fun, upbeat ska songs.

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7 The Aquabats The Aquabats vs. the Floating Eye of Death! Goldenvoice

A weird album, even by Aquabats standards, but it still has Lovers of Loving Love and The Ballad of Mr. Bonkers so I have a lot of fondness for it.

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8 Big D and the Kids Table Good Lunk Asian Man Records

Big D's first album that's a little rough, but it still has some fast catchy songs.

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9 The Ataris Blue Skies, Broken Hearts...Next 12 Exits Kung Fu

San Dimas High School Football Rules!

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10 The Planet Smashers Life of the Party Stomp Records

One of my favorite memories of living on Vancouver Island was traveling to Tofino for the first time, playing Surfin' in Tofino on repeat on the way there.

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Books


Rank Book Title Author Impression
1 The Perks of Being a Wallflower Stephen Chbosky

One of my favorite young adult novels focusing on growing up in the 90's with some disturbing subject matter.

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2 Speak Laurie Halse Anderson

This is the year of young adult novels with difficult subject matter, this one focused on sexual assault.

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3 Monster Walter Dean Myers

Continuing the trend, this one focuses on a young black man charged with murder.

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Movies

Rank Movie Title Impression
1 The Matrix

This movie came out at the right time to blow my teenage mind. It's still a great movie, that I wish I could watch for the frist time.

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2 The Iron Giant

A great animated movie with a message that people who make art out of scrap are cool and the governement can't be trusted. It probably influenced my world view more than I'm willing to admit.

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3 The Sixth Sense

I didn't see that twist coming when it first came out and neither did you.

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4 Office Space

I appreciate this movie more and more as I get older. When it came out I didn't yet know what offices were like and hadn't yet had my first case of the Mondays.

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5 Fight Club

In retrospect this movie probably did more harm than good, but it's still an enjoyable movie.

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Video Games

Rank Game Title Developer Impression
1 Pokemon Yellow Game Freak

This was the first Pokemon game I owned for a gameboy color that was the first console I didn't "share" with my sister. I still have my Lvl. 100 Alakazam, best Pokemon.

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2 Pokemon Snap Nintendo

The game is super short, and doesn't have that many Pokemon but is still a lot of fun to play trying to get the perfect picture of Pikachu.

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3 Super Smash Bros. Nintendo

The only Smash Bros. game I was ever any good at. Maybe that was just in comparison to my friends I was playing against.

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