michal jacaszek has created a cinematic masterpiece of ambient electronic music similar in scope to deaf center's "pale ravine". one of the most haunting and beautifully rendered albums ever recorded. (yup, ever)

yay! portishead is back and what a comeback! not really like anything they put out previously but somehow unmistakably portishead. this album is diverse and gorgeous for it - it's like they've decided to open their musical hearts for us to examine.

tiny, lovable voices stretch themselves against simple notes that weave into layers of lulling instrumentation. (their best album is 55:12)

lo-fi, silly, tropical dance tracks from a very strange man known as el guincho de tortilla.

artists such as hypnotic brass ensemble, diplo and carl craig lend their stylings to afro-beat tracks from nigerian musician, tony allen, making for some damn danceable tracks.

similar to cold cave in their dance-inducing technoness, but with a decidedly punk approach. i imagine hipsters everywhere will cling to this album like they cling to their trust funds and williamsburg zipcodes, but it's catchy and subversive so i can't help myself.

i'm a long-standing member of the church of mike patton. this is his first film soundtrack and it has a big-band, jazz vibe, though unmistakably patton and sounds as though it literally comes to us from the past via some worm-hole in the space-time continuum. the cd comes with a dvd of the short film. (this filmmaker is a genius for getting patton to market his mediocre film in this way!)

i'm kind of cheating here - this is technically an ‘09 release but, coz i gotz connectionz, i've been singing along to it all year. it's a strawberry lemonade pool-party album that can deftly become your crackling fireplace, knit tea-cozy in the doldrums of winter. the lyrics are funny yet heartfelt & flutes and clarinets meld seamlessly into the indie pop mix. (pick up the album through itunes)

this release seems equally inspired by david lynch as it does u2 - yes this is an odd combination but sometimes (and in this case) odd combinations produce harmonious results.

encourages floating away on a magic gram-cracker-carpet, cocooned in marshmallow fluff and drizzled with melted (but not in a way that can burn you) nutella into a world of delicious, gooey dreams that have nothing to do with the impending 2012 death of all existence as predicted by the mayans.

this super-charged rock album makes me feel like a viking. and feeling like a viking is great - although, sometimes it makes you curl up in a ball of guilt if you allow your thoughts to wander to the long legacy of brutality that comes with vikinghood - so try to focus on the intricate guitar riffs instead.

being from a jersey shore town i was unsure whether to big-up these guys or regard them as "shoe bees". turns out they are from seattle and the album is about the shark attacks that took place in jersey in 1916. interesting album concept that adds a sense of dread to the guitar riffs and screaming vocals - reminiscent of mastodon.

christian lesbians (?) getting crunk all over the past and the future. word.

a bang on cans, post-noise-rock band from japan. (i just made up the term, "post-noise-rock")

songs inspired by a divorce are heartbreaking, yet so much truth and beauty can arise from tragedy. william fitzsimmons is a testament to this phenomenon with his simple yet poignant acoustic guitar & vocals driven album. (will 14 years be enough?)