Best Albums of 2010

Another year has passed and it is time for a look back at what was a great year in musical terms. I've tried to list it in the order of what I've enjoyed the most over the course of the year, and what I imagine I will return to the most in the future.

Unfortunately, I can't listen to everything (hard as I may try), and there are a number of albums I know I will love once I get them, but have yet to get my filthy hands on. Specifically I’m thinking of Caribou's Swim, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti's Before Today, These New Puritans' Hidden, Women’s Public Strain, and Tame Impala’s Innerspeaker. That said, it's been a great year and there will always be music that I'll miss out on, so enough on that and on to the important stuff…

Best Albums of 2010
1. Beach House - Teen Dream
On Teen Dream, Beach House perfected the hazy indie pop sound that they had shown on their first two albums, making my pick for number one easy. There had always been a dreamy quality to Beach House’s music, but on Teen Dream that quality is fleshed out and used to its full potential. Victoria Legrand’s vocals are as before soulful and intense like few others can, but here drawn to the front where it should be. Throughout the album she sounds at once fragile and strong among Alex Scala’s swirling guitars and her own reverb- drenched organ. The album was and is perfect for the quiet mornings, dreamy afternoons and late nights, where you can allow yourself to be transported to another place. 

2. Harlem – Hippies
Hippies is simply put, great garage rock. Better yet, it is great songwriting made to sound effortless. That said, there is an incredible tightness to the careless sound, so it never seems lack effort. Someday Soon is the song that perfectly sums up the album, with lyrics about not wanting to put out a friend on fire, a great hook, and a breakdown that brilliantly features an almost stumbling guitar. It’s ramshackle in the best way possible, and that feel continues throughout making it, to me, the feel- good album of the year.

3. Four Tet - There Is Love In You
There Is Love In You is not your ordinary electronic album. The music sounds and feels organic, with its live drumming and great use of vocal samples.  Love Cry is a brilliant example, as he builds the whole song around a pulsing drum break, onto which he adds a chopped vocal sample, synths, acoustic guitar and what appears to be the sound of an old 56k modem. The song has an almost zen- like quality, and in this way, TILIY has become my go-to album for taking breaks. The music is clean and perfect for moments where you need to clear your head.

4. Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
Quieter than Microcastle/ Weird Era Continued, but equally great, Halcyon Digest has underlined Deerhunter’s status as one of the best bands around right now. Bradford Cox has always been the leader, but here the best song – the fantastic Desire Lines - was written and sung by guitarist Lockett Pundt, showing that the group is all talent. In the end it comes down to the songs, and here they’re all great without exception.

5. Janelle Monae - The Arch Android
The Arch Android is both a brilliant r’n’b/soul album and the story of Cindi Merryweather - an android sent to the future city of Metropolis to save us all. Sci- fi storyline aside this is an album littered with great pop songs and it is beyond me that songs like Cold War, Faster and Tightrope did not make more of a chart impact. In any case, on The Arch Android Janelle Monae has managed to perfect the sound of modern funk and R’n’B, by clearly drawing on the old school á la James Brown (right down to the cape- wearing), and combined it with the more modern hiphop sound á la Outkast. A superb album.

6. Hot Chip - One Life Stand
7. Earl Sweatshirt - EARL
8. LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
9. The Soft Pack - The Soft Pack
10. Warpaint - The Fool
11. Spoon - Transference
12. Les Savy Fav - Root For Ruin
13. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Nightmare
14. The Walkmen - Lisbon
15. Sufjan Stevens - Age of Adz
16. Vampire Weekend - Contra
17. Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
18. Gorillaz - Plastic Island
19. Foals - Total Life Forever
20. Tyler, the Creator - Bastard

Best Danish Album Of 2010

The Malpractice - Tectonics
Heavily biased on this one, but it really is excellent and, in my humble opinion, by far the best Danish album of 2010. If I were to put it in my overall list then it would definitely make the Top 10 - I just don't know who I would take out, so I'll chicken out and do this special mention instead.

Honourable Mentions (Alphabetic Order)
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Before Today, Big Boi - Sir Luscious Left Foot, Beach Fossils - Beach Fossils, Caribou – Swim, CFCF - The River, Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles (II), Girl Talk - All Day,  Glasser – Ring, Good Shoes - No Hope No Future, Gonjasufi - A Sufi & A Killer, MGMT – Congratulations, Mystery Jets – Serotonin, The National - High Violet, No Age - Everything In Between, Tame Impala – Innerspeaker, Twin Shadow – Forget, Women - Public Strain, Yeasayer - Odd Blood