15 Greatest Pop Punk Albums Of The 2000s

What's the difference between a pop punk album and a straight-up punk album? The lines are thin, but ultimately it comes down to the ol' "you know it when you hear it" argument.

And when you hear pop punk from the first decade of the new millennium, it's impossible not to get a little nostalgic. There was just something so damn pure about it. Sure, there was heaps of angst and enough songs about teenage heartbreak to last a lifetime, but underneath all that, there was just so much catchy, infectious, life-affirming rock music.

It's weird to say, but pop punk albums tend to be the most personal listening experiences of any genre. It's likely something to do with the age of the listeners (is there anyone in their late 20s who still seeks out new pop punk records?), as everything about your teenage years feels more important than it probably is.

Because of that, there's likely to be more debate over these fifteen albums than the average list...

Can you say "criminally underrated"? Because Rufio can. Or, at least, they should be able to, considering how many times that phrase has been used to describe their band. 

By far the most technically sharp album on the list, Rufio started to seem like it was a heavy metal band trapped inside some pop punk meat suits by the time they released The Comfort of Home. The guitar riffs are face-melting, the song structures insanely complex, and the multiple interludes (which all build on each other, by the way) are pretty much just rubbing our faces in their talent.

But that's all right, because the end product is a high-energy hurricane of tight melodies and effortless hooks. The Comfort of Home may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's without a doubt one of the hardest-rocking albums to come out of the genre. Period. And that can't be a bad thing.