No sophomore slump here! Pipe organs, big arrangements, lyrics with a bite. These Canadians made an excellent soundtrack for the state of the world. The best album that Bruce Springsteen didnÂ’t make this year.

Classic Bruce for the modern day. A lot of the album sounds similar to his old stuff but he still manages to make it sound relevant. The songs may be catchy but donÂ’t let those melodies fool you...he is dealing with some bleak subject matters here.

Who knew Jeff Tweedy and band would be making such great music after being clean and sober. If this is what sobriety sounds like, sign me up!

If you took “OK Computer” and mixed it with “Kid A” you would have “In Rainbows”. Both dreamy and edgy, it has all the necessary ingredients that make up a quintessential Radiohead record.

This is a beautiful album. At times it sounds like vintage Crosby, Stills & Nash but with enough variety to keep things interesting.

The only truly independent artist on the list. Kristin has been making music for years but this one is her best. Blurring the lines of country, folk and rock and using them as her backdrop, she wraps her sultry vocals around each arrangement. It also contains the best cover this year, “I Say A Little Prayer For You”, which she completely reinvents and makes her own.

A recent purchase and as a result I’ve only listened to this a few times. Similar to three “The” bands: The Flaming Lips, The Shins and The Jayhawks. Who knows where it would have been on the list had I had the chance to really delve into it.

Eddie goes solo for this Soundtrack to the movie of the same name. Although my two favorite tracks “Hard Sun” & “Society” are the only songs on the album that he didn’t actually write, Eddie delivers, making them his own.

At times this Brooklyn band sounds like a combination of Sufjan Stevens melodies with a mix of Thom Yorke and David BryneÂ’s vocals. The arrangements are big and the instruments varied (French horns, accordion and organ). It all makes for one compelling sound.

(TIE) This is one of those subtle albums that doesnÂ’t sound like much on the first listen. Slowly but surely the songs do reveal themselves. A more muted, yet solid effort from the former Dire Straits leader.