There may not be much you haven't already heard here. I'll try to put together a few notable albums you may not be as familiar with in a future post, as well as a playlist for my favorite tracks of 2010. Please share the albums you think I left off my short list. To me, these 10 were the cream of the crop in 2010. Now let's hope this stairwell style translates well to the Kindle.
Sufjan Stevens "The Age of Adz": Far and away my favorite album of this year, maybe even this century. Seeing this performed live in Oakland was the event of the year for me.
Broken Social Scene "Forgiveness Rock Record": 9 out of 10 hipsters agree.
The National "High Violet" : So depressing, but always so good. Following up epic albums like "Alligator" and "Boxer" could have been disastrous, but luckily, this was not the case.
Beach House "Teen Dream" : My favorite female vocalist of the year.
Vampire Weekend "Contra" : The preppiest album of the year. These kids can do no wrong by me. I can't believe I missed their tour with Beach House.
Arcade Fire "The Suburbs" : Cohesive, catchy and always critically acclaimed.
Local Natives "Gorilla Manor" : A promising debut. Check out "Who Knows Who Cares" if you don't believe me.
LCD Soundsystem "This is Happening" : Dance album of the year. "Dance Yrself Clean" is one of the best opening tracks of all time.
Kanye West "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" : Love em' or hate em', I can't get "Blame Game" out of my head. The collaboration with Bon Iver is puzzling. A bit overrated throughout the blogosphere in my humble opinion, but still a solid contribution from an innovative artist in the hip-hop genre.
Sade "Soldier of Love" : In a related story, I turned 30 in 2010. I think this selection may reflect my "mature" tastes. A smooth R&B instant classic.
Discovered in 2010, but Recorded Earlier
The Slip "Eisenhower" (2006) : Quickly becoming an all-time fave. Has a definite 90's college rock feel.
The Antlers "Hospice" (2009) : Mysterious, yet warm and inviting. Overlooked this one last year. Give the songs a chance to develop and you will be rewarded.
