I guess

I literally had to flip a coin between Interpol and Massive Attack as well as which Modest Mouse album - "Long Drive . . ." is also an essential.

For most people the R.E.M. album is Murmur, but since it first came out when I was barely alive maybe it just didn't have the same impact on me due to its decade plus influence on music by the time I came around to R.E.M., or maybe I just wasn't cool enough. Teenage Williwaw, however, wore out Reckoning in both cassette and C.D. form.

Townes and Jimi are doing an incredible amount of heavy lifting here.