While I’m more than 99% certain that by 2011 most if not all music/entertainment blogs and music/entertainment sites will all be talking about their “10 Best Bands of the Last Decade” I figured I would prematurely make a list of who I think are the Best Modern Rock bands of the decade so far. These are the bands I think people will still be talking about in years to come. Let the list begin.

10. Vampire Weekend: the Swift and Steady

There’s no need to reiterate what VW sound like or remind people of (by the way, it’s Paul Simon’s Graceland/Rhythm of the Saints mixed with a little bit of Talking Heads – or vice versa) because they have rode & conquered the buzz of the blog airwaves faster then the speed of light and now–if they want–they can have it all. For fuck’s sake , they have already been featured on the cover Spin and have played Saturday Night Live which means nothing to the people (people who discover music through blogs or word of mouth or randomly perusing Myspace/iLike/Last FM) above Spin/SNL but to the masses this means everything. Two years ago (2006) no one heard of this band. Why? Because they didn’t exist. And if you haven’t heard of them yet, then it’s quite possible you don’t exist.

Read on for the top nine modern rock bands of the ’00s…

Recording rock concerts can be a hit or miss proposition. Sometimes the elements are just right for a taper to pull a perfect recording. Other times various factors lead to a tinny tape that just isn’t worth the trouble. Often new sources of a show turn up that puts what you have in your collection to shame.

This week’s Grousing The Aisles looks at a couple of recordings that are huge upgrades over the sources that previously circulated. One of the shows took place last month, while we recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of the other concert. Let’s jump in…

Phish 12/30/1997 FOB DAUD [FLAC, MP3 Pt.1 Pt.2]

December 30 was always a special day for a Phish show, but the concert the band played on that date in 1997 was some next level shit. The band blew past the union deadline by nearly an hour, during which they staged the best encore they ever played. Up until now mediocre sounding audience recordings were the only way to hear the madness that ensued that evening. Just this week an incredible version of this concert finally surfaced over at bt.etree offering a listening experience that put me right back in the world’s greatest arena. Read on for more about this show, a Mars Volta bootleg and links to five terrific soundboards…

The New York Football Giants shocked the world by pulling off an incredible victory over the heavily favored Patriots in what was one helluva game — it was actually kinda hard to sleep last night in New York City thanks to the roar of the fans celebrating in the streets. Guess you can’t win ‘em, all Boston fans. We rank Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ rapid fire parade of hits atop the non-football highlights, followed by the Prince Caspian commercial and the talking Tide stain.

Let’s see what’s cookin’ as we pretend we don’t have the world’s worst hangover:

• Four More Albums: U2 avoids free agency by resigning with Universal
• Lefsetz isn’t down with the Vampire Weekend hype machine
• NMAS’ Luther Dickinson sure knows how to make a room shake
• Ted Rockwell shares his thoughts on a recent Mars Volta show in Boulder
• moe.’s Rob Derhak speaks to the Boston Herald about Sticks and Stones
• The Duo wouldn’t sound like The Duo without Dirty Jerz
• As always Neddy delivers a list of the NYC shows of the week

Finally, Filter Magazine sent Pat McGuire on the road with Band of Horses to document one of their recent tours of the West Coast. The road journal McGuire came back with features many interesting anecdotes and factoids from the road.

Ever since those four lads from Liverpool landed at Idlewild Airport, British bands have been a major part of rock history. Honoring the Brits, this week’s Grousing The Aisles honors three of the best acts to emerge from Britain in the ’70s.

We start with the David Bowie tribute from Jam Cruise, which features members of moe., Phish and the Greyboy Allstars among others musically rimming The Thin White Duke. Next, we take a look at Elton John’s legendary Christmas Eve concert from 1974, and, finally, we let you know about an amazing compilation featuring The Police playing blistering versions of all the tunes from their reunion tour.

Oh! You Pretty Things: Jam Cruise Tribute to David Bowie DAUD [FLAC, MP3]

Photo by David Steinberg

The best music to come from Jam Cruise over the past few years has stemmed from the all-star tribute jams that have emerged. On Jam Cruise IV, certain members of Umphrey’s McGee formed the Brain Damaged Eggmen with a few members of the Disco Biscuits to pay tribute to The Beatles and Pink Floyd. Then members of the West Coast bands on board Jam Cruise V combined forces to form the Sounds of San Francisco to honor the bands from that city. This year, a group of musicians channeled David Bowie under the moniker Oh! You Pretty Things. The first tapes from their gig have emerged, and they sound pretty damn good.

Oh! You Pretty Things combined the talents of Al Schnier, Jon Fishman, Jans Ingber, Ron Johnson, Robert Walter, Jeff Austin and a few other special guests who made cameos. During their public rehearsal the band decided to play a short, tight set at the actual gig instead of a solid long set, and the band delivered, dropping fantastic versions of 16 Bowie classics. Some of the songs are played straight, while others such as Let’s Dance are jammed out a bit. Hopefully a soundboard of this classic performance surfaces soon, as the quality of the recording isn’t as good as the quality of the performance — the strong winds which hindered the taper. Read on for much more GTA…

The Mars Volta brought its rolling ball of wild energy, wicked improvisation and hyphenated names to New York’s newest big venue last night, and our main man Danfun headed to the west side for the band’s 150-minute nonstop spectacular.

Dan reports: “The show was fucking great. It had everything I look for in a show. It was loud, high energy and fucking heavy. The band played for close to 2.5 hours without stopping. These guys just blow me a way every time I see them. The setlist featured both old and new songs, but the theme of the night seemed to be that the band was sick of people saying ‘Why don’t you make your first two records over and over again?’ I can’t wait until they tour again great time.”

So read on after the jump for some more amazing photos from Danfun…