The White Stripes, Elephant
Why it’s the best: Because the White Stripes perfected a formula that has never successfully been replicated--even by Jack White himself. Sure, there have been plenty of blues/rock bands--even two-man blues/rock bands (the Black Keys come to mind)--but none have tackled the genre quite like Jack and Meg White. The fusion of Jack's technically proficient guitar playing with Meg's deceptively simple beats created an entirely unique sound, all infused with a sense of childlike wonder (on songs like "Black Math" and "I Want to be the Boy to Warm Your Mother's Heart.")
Other candidates: Radiohead’s Hail to the Thief, The Strokes' Room on Fire
Quality of year (out of 10): 8
Quality of year (out of 10): 8
Arcade Fire, Funeral
Why it’s the best: Because rarely does a band arrive as fully formed and unique as Arcade Fire. With songs that are about death and yet also about life, Arcade Fire debuted with four songs about their childhood neighborhoods (or a version of them), and also delved into topics like riding in the backseat of a car, and the ancestral home of band member Regine de Chassagne's family ("Haiti"). The album rides from one high to the next. It's fitting that "Wake Up" was later used to score Spike Jonze's film version of Where the Wild Things Are, because few songs convey that sense of childlike wonderment as well as Arcade Fire do here. (In fact, the only band that comes close is the previous band on this list, the White Stripes.)
Other candidates: Interpol’s Antics, The Black Keys' Rubber Factory
Quality of year: 6
Quality of year: 6
The National, Alligator
Why it’s the best: Because this is where the National arrived, and it's the first step towards greatness for a band that would continue down that path with each subsequent release. It's actually a bit weird to go back to this one; it's strange hearing Matt Berninger sound as young as he does here, because he's become so associated with that middle-aged baritone voice he has now. This album is also the most upbeat of their catalog by far-- there are honest-to-god punk rockers on here! ("Abel," "Lit Up")
Other candidates: My Morning Jacket's Z, Spoon's Gimme Fiction
Quality of year: 6
The Decemberists, The Crane Wife
Why it’s the best: Because this album has ten- and twelve-minute songs, song versions of Shakespeare plays and Japanese folk tales, and yet it succeeds, and not in spite of those elements, but because of them. To ask the Decemberists to cut down on these aspects of the band would be to remove their charm and the very things that make them unique. Few can tell a story in song form like Colin Meloy, and if he wants that story to be a three-part epic about marrying a bird, then that's what it should be.
Other candidates: Silversun Pickups' Carnavas, Justin Timberlake's FutureSex/LoveSounds
Quality of year: 6
Radiohead, In Rainbows
Why it’s the best: Because some albums are more like a collection of short stories--a series of songs that, while they may be great, are unconnected except for the artist. Other albums are more like novels, with each song acting as part of a whole. This is one of those albums. Radiohead makes the sound work for them on In Rainbows, utilizing reverb beatuifully and eschewing traditional verse/chorus forms of songwriting for slow builds that, when they crescendo, lead to breathtaking moments.
Other candidates: Spoon’s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, The National's Boxer
Quality of year: 10
Vampire Weekend, Vampire Weekend
Why it’s the best: Because this may be the happiest music I've ever heard. There are so many quirks that make Vampire Weekend's self-titled debut so good, and while it has its share of detractors, how can they turn down music that's this happy?
Other candidates: Fleet Foxes' self-titled debut, TV on the Radio's Dear Science
Quality of year: 5
Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Why it’s the best: Because this album surprised me when I first heard it; I had heard the singles, "Lisztomania" and "1901," and I liked them, but I wasn't sure it would necessarily mean that the album would be great. I was wrong; it's great all the way through, even succeeding in a two-part instrumental.
Other candidates: The XX's XX, AFI's Crash Love
Quality of year: 1
The National, High Violet
Why it’s the best: Because this album was where the National got grand, bringing in common "we're rock star now" cliche instruments like strings-- yet it wasn't overblown or pretentious, it just accented their music very well, and with it, they made their best album to date, which is doubly impressive considering how consistently great these guys are.
Other candidates: LCD Soundsystem's This is Happening, Arcade Fire's The Suburbs
Quality of year: 9
The Decemberists, The King Is Dead
Why it’s the best: Because here the Decemberists proved they were just as good at Americana and folk rock as they were with the French-inspired accordion-driven music of their previous albums. To be honest, this wouldn't have been my choice as album of the year at the time (and was rarely included in such lists from music publications), but as time has gone on, its brilliance has become more obvious to me. Colin Meloy's lyrics have always been the not-exactly-secret weapon for the Decemberists, and though he's stopped using the ridiculously big words he indulged in in the past, this may be his best work lyrically. Songs like "Don't Carry It All" and "All Arise" make you feel like you're living among 1800s pioneers, while "June Hymn" and "January Hymn" paint perfect portraits of their seasons.
Other candidates: Beirut's The Rip Tide, Fleet Foxes' Helplessness Blues
Quality of year: 9
Why it’s the best: Because it's very impressive that two guys can make music this loud, this powerful, all on their own. Few bands can aspire to the kind of fist-pumping anthems like "The House That Heaven Built."
Other candidates: Grizzly Bear’s Shields, Tame Impala's Lonerism
Quality of year: 1
Vampire Weekend, Modern Vampires of the City
Why it’s the best: Because this is the album where Vampire Weekend improved in areas where they already excelled, while ditching certain aspects that many found irritating. While their first album was brilliant, only this more mature version of Vampire Weekend could take a song like "Hannah Hunt," which starts off as a simple piano ballad, and take it to its impressive, piano-led crescendo.
Other candidates: Queens of the Stone Age's ...Like Clockwork, Daft Punk's Random Access Memories
Quality of year: 9
Spoon, They Want My Soul
Why it’s the best: Because this is far from the only year Spoon has an argument for having the best album of the year. 2002's Kill the Moonlight and 2007's Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, in particular, are probably stronger than They Want My Soul, but this is the year when everything lined up just right for Spoon. At least, for now-- we still have two and a half more months for a contender to emerge.
Other candidates: Wye Oak's Shriek, St. Vincent's self-titled album
Quality of year: 5
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