(Disclaimer: I have never been, nor will I ever be, a music critic or music reviewer.  At best, I know what I like, and my enjoyment of various bands and songs can be tough for me to put into words.  So don’t expect great writing to follow here.  Also, I won’t claim to have heard all the albums that came out this past year, so I’m certainly missing a few that would likely have made it on here.)

Honorable Mentions: Green Day – “21st Century Breakdown”, Hallelujah the Hills – “Colonial Drones”, They Might Be Giants – “Here Comes Science”
I’m not sure why Green Day didn’t impress me as much as their CDs usually do; it might be because it came on the heels of “American Idiot”, which was just a fantastic record.  Still, “21st Century Breakdown” was enjoyable and probably will be liked by anyone who has any of their other albums.  TMBG’s latest album might be too kid-friendly to be one of my favorites, but it’s still a lot of fun and I admire any concept album centered around science.  Hallelujah the Hills has some great songs, but I wish they would use some clear vocals on their record instead of leaving them muddled or using whatever distortions they rely on.  A lack of clarity really just brings down what they could accomplish, in my opinion – I have a copy of “You Better Hope (You Die Before Me)” where they sing perfectly, and I think it’s a thousand times better than the version they released on the album.

#10 – Bishop Allen – “Grrr . . .”.  There doesn’t feel like there’s a lot to most of this album – the vocals, guitar, trumpet, and percussion all feel really simple most of the time, and there’s a number of times it feels like an indie rock group experimenting with staccato singing and playing as often as they can.  But the songs are chipper and the music blends together well enough that the combined sound overcomes the flaws to make a pretty enjoyable record.

#9 – Swell Season – “Strict Joy”.  You might know Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova better from the musical “Once” or from their acceptance speech at the Oscars a few years ago.  The album is mostly full of slower songs about sorrow, and if you’re a person who focuses heavily on lyrics, it can start to wear on you.  But when Hansard lets the tempo rip and speeds up, you can see why their live versions are so much fun to listen to.

#8 – Deer Tick – “Born On Flag Day”.  The Providence-based band has a mixture of styles going – somewhat folk and country, while lead singer John McCauley’s raspy vocals makes it feel like there is some grunge presence as well.  “Easy” is the clear standout song from the record, and you kind of wish the band kept the tempo up as much as they did initially.  But McCauley’s voice sucks you in for the rest of the ride, and it makes for a fun album.

#7 – Camera Obscura – “My Maudlin Career”.  This indie pop album feels like it leads with the vocals straight through, but every now and then a string arrangement seizes your attention and makes you give the music another listen.  Many of the songs sound similar to the upbeat “French Navy”, but don’t go overboard into the far-too-peppy territory.  It’s a nice album, but if the songs were a bit more distinctive from each other, it’d be more fun than it is.

#6 – Julian Casablancas – “Phrazes For The Young”.  I’m not a fan of the Strokes, but I loved this solo album from their main songwriter.  All the songs blend together rock and electronic styles, guitar mixing with synthesizer, and the combination strangely works well on even a few of the almost-ballad like songs.   The main problem with the album is that, with only eight songs, it just feels over too fast, which frankly is a better problem to have.

#5 – Neko Case – “Middle Cyclone”.  I’m not sure how you should really classify Neko Case – country folk?  Pop folk?  Some type of rock?  In the end, her album comes entirely down to her voice.  The vocals are the most defining aspect of every song, and in many cases, instruments only seem to be there as an afterthought.  The slower songs are carried by Case all the way, but when the supporting instruments kick in like on “People Gotta Lot Of Nerve” or “Red Tide”, the powerful combination is wonderfully hypnotic.

#4 – Among the Oak & Ash – “Among the Oak & Ash”.  I’ve enjoyed the work of Josh Joplin ever since I heard “Camera One” years ago, a song probably still in my top ten favorites of all time.  His full albums usually haven’t been as strong as the best songs, though – and that changed with this first record from his new band.  There’s a number of really strong folk and folk indie rock songs like "Shady Grove" where either he or Garrison Starr carries the vocals beautifully, and others like "Hiram Hubbard" where both Starr and Joplin trade off.  If you enjoy folk music at all, you’ll love this album.

#3 – M. Ward – “Hold Time”.  M. Ward is not a musician who will likely win you over with his singing.  Instead, his cheerful guitar playing is the most enjoyable part of his songs, and strangely works in a perfect combination with the vocals.  There’s a number of great indie rock songs on this album, either when he is complemented by Zooey Deschanel or sings by himself, and the easy-going music is relaxingly enjoyable to listen to.

#2 – The Eels – “Hombre Lobo”.  I’d never heard of The Eels before this year, but the range of the rock songs on this album is really impressive.  Listening to “Fresh Blood” followed by “In My Dreams” or any other songs feels like listening to very different bands, if not for Mark Everett’s distinctive vocals.  And even better, Everett’s father came up with the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, so how wrong can you go with a band with a great album like this one?

#1 – Joel Plaskett – “Three”.  Both “Three” and “Hombre Lobo” stood out far beyond all the other albums I heard this year, but what Plaskett accomplished with his triple album pushed it to the top for me.  While the single “Through & Through & Through” is a great rock song by itself, Plaskett put together 27 songs for the entire album with almost no fluff or filler.  “Every Time You Leave”, “Run Run Run”, “Precious Precious Precious”, and my favorite, “Deny Deny Deny” . . .the list of top notch indie folk/rock songs is just too long to go through them all.  Plaskett’s vocals and guitar aren’t overpowering, and he is often complemented by backup singers singers Ana Egge and Rose Cousins to great effect.  Easily the best album of the year, and it’s pretty darn likely you never heard it.

Other Favorite Individual Songs:  Phoenix – “Lisztomania”, Hey Marseilles – “Rio”, Blitzen Trapper – “Black River Killer”, Akron/Family – “The River”