Top Best 24 Favorite Albums of 2005

This was a chore and a half! Mostly because there were a lot more excellent albums released this year than I realized. I mean really, really good stuff. The following are the 24 I liked and listened to enough to include on the list. Of course, it's purely personal. That being said, leave some feedback on what you think, if in fact you do think. I know there are a lot of albums I missed, maybe tomorrow I'll do a little follow-up on what I wish I listened to more this year.

Enjoy!

24. Kings Of Leon - Aha Shake Heartbreak


This album is underrated and this band is unfairly ragged upon. But I've got the love. "The Bucket" was one of the year's best tracks.

Kings Of Leon - The Bucket


23. Architecture In Helsinki - In Case We Die


It took me a while to get around to this, I had to get past the annoying preciousness in some parts. It's paid off, though, and there are some amazing songs on here.

Architecture In Helsinki - It's 5!


22. British Sea Power - Open Season


Not as good as The Decline Of British Sea Power, but a good record anyways. The icy and crisp production creates a gorgeous and fitting glacial atmosphere.

British Sea Power - It Ended On An Oily Stage (.wma)


21. Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have It So Much Better


Another sophomore effort that is at once a disappointment and a success on its own terms. The band's coolness makes up for it though.

Franz Ferdinand - Walk Away


20. M. Ward - Transistor Radio


M. Ward is one of the finest folk musicians around, and his output is consistent and varied enough to remain interesting.

M. Ward - Fuel For Fire


19. Kanye West - Late Registration


Like you've never heard Kanye. I can't help but love a guy who so unabashedly loves himself (and makes great music).


18. M83 - Before The Dawn Heals Us


Whereas their last album was very involved with nature and outdoors, this one has a tight late-night city lights atmosphere. Fortunately they (he?) pulls it off just as well.

M83 - Don't Save Us From The Flames


17. M.I.A. - Arular


I love when hype pays off. I love when it makes for fun and dancing, as well.

M.I.A. - Pull Up The People (from Rock Insider)


16. Andrew Bird - The Mysterious Production Of Eggs


The man's a virtuoso! Lyrically and musically - he even whistles better than I've ever heard. I love the Malkmus slacker-genius vibe I get from listening to his songs, it's impossibly cool.

Andrew Bird - A Nervous Tic Motion Of The Head To The Left


15. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm


I listened to this album an unhealthy amount when it came out - "This Modern Love" by far surpassed all other songs in my playcount. A case of too much of a good thing, I guess, because it really fell off my radar since then. The songs are good, but I wish the band would have a little more fun, take themselves less seriously.

Bloc Party - Banquet


14. The Decemberists - Picaresque


I'm torn as to how I feel about the band's new sense of topicality. The urgency is welcome, but at the same time I miss the dreaminess of old classics. That said, this is a wonderful album with some of their best work.

The Decemberists - The Engine Driver


13. Lowlights - Dark End Road


This band needs more attention. I was very surprised to find the album so consistent and accessible.

Lowlights - Dark End Road


12. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - s/t


Maybe they're not everything I was led to believe, but they're almost there. I think it's when everything comes together - the voice and the music and the intangibles - that they capture some real magic, something unique.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Upon This Tidal Wave Of Young Blood


11.a. Iron & Wine - Woman King


b. Calexico/Iron & Wine - In The Reins


Woman King has my favorite production of all the varied Iron & Wine releases. It's beautifully percussive and crisp, with the sounds woven together loosely so the space between instruments is palpable. Despite being so gentle, Iron & Wine is one of the most exciting bands around.

Regarding the collaboration: it's better than I expected, and I expected great things.

Iron & Wine - Woman King
Calexico/Iron & Wine - History Of Lovers


10. Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy


This record is dark and volatile, and affecting. I'm sure it will keep growing on me as I give it more attention.

Okkervil River - Black


9. Feist - Let It Die


I think this is one of those albums that can be either 2004 or 2005, depending on where you live. It doesn't matter - it deserves the attention. You know it's something special when your mom likes it as much as you do.

Feist - Mushaboom


8. Spoon - Gimme Fiction


I love how Spoon can sound so diverse while remaining so familiar. They've got a signature sound, it's dynamic and unpredictable but consistently good. Great, even. Another remarkable album.

Spoon - I Turn My Camera On


7. Page France - Hello, Dear Wind


It was love at first listen! I suppose that's what happens when an album begins with a song like "Chariot." Themes and images pop up again and again on this celebratory album, making it cohesive and surprisingly complex while retaining a simple charm.

Page France - Chariot


6. The Mountain Goats - The Sunset Tree


John Darnielle's documentation of a difficult childhood is heartbreaking, but somehow optimism seeps through and transforms this into an incredible record.

The Mountain Goats - This Year (from Catbirdseat)


5. Wolf Parade - Apologies To The Queen Mary


Wolf Parade's unbridled energy makes this album rock, but it's the passion and conviction that give it power. To me, it really does sound like Modest Mouse. Or rather, what I wanted Modest Mouse to be; what they were approaching with their last album but didn't quite capture.

Wolf Parade - You Are A Runner And I Am My Father's Son


4. Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake It's Morning


This is the album I've been waiting for Oberst to write. It's unmistakably Bright Eyes, but more mature and remarkably consistent. Listening to this I get a wonderful sense of self-affirmation, which I couldn't say for any of his past work.

Bright Eyes - Lua


3. The National - Alligator


Alligator is a quintessentially American album, darkly moving throughout with a gorgeous and subtle glimmer. Matt Berninger's lyrics are haunting; horribly honest and frighteningly easy to relate to.

The National - Abel


2. The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday


I listen to this one straight through, every time - that's how captivating this literary story of salvation through rock n' roll is. And it always leaves me breathless. Masterful lyrics and masterful rock n' roll, I don't think this could get any better.

The Hold Steady - Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night


1. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois


I've thought so long and so intensely about this album, that no description I can come up with seems to do it justice. Sufjan Stevens has made an album of scale, a piece addressing all that it means to be human, with an awe-inspiring grace and passion allowing grandeur without pretense. An album of admiration and intention and compassion and mistake and love, of faith.

Sufjan Stevens - John Wayne Gacy, Jr.