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This and Under Thunder and Fluorescent Light are some of the best math rock albums I've ever heard. I tried to pin them down into a genre but it didn't work. It's like some kind of dreamy, math rock/sometimes noise hybrid of happiness. Some of it is improvised, and some of it is fully planned out riffs, except that is kind of rare. It's the kind of music that makes you want to hug things and sing songs from The Wizard Of Oz. The only problem with this album is that I always end up feeling angry at the current math rock scene. Guys, don't listen to all of these hella rip-offs, listen to the Math Rock with soul.

that was my highlight of this year's discoveries. here are a few others:
EXTRA LIFE - Secular Works
CLARK - Turning Dragon
VHS HEAD - Video Club

and many, many more.

That's what's so fascinating to me about them, how much they've changed from album to album. I can't think of too many bands who have changed so much over the course of their career. I just got a hold of In the Kingdom of Kitsch You Will Be a Monster and Sweet Shanghai Devil last night and am really looking forward to both. Where the Ragged People Go seems to be kind of hard to find though, unfortunately.

I had Leviathan in 2009, but I didn't get into Mastodon's other albums until this year. Now, they're one of my favorite bands. And as a result of my love for Mastodon, I checked out similar bands such as Baroness and Kylesa and really enjoyed them too.

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Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career (2009)
This band and album slipped my radar in 2009 but i was so glad to hear this album in 2010 and it quickly became one of favourite albums of the past few years. Tracyanne's voice is one of the sweetest voices i've ever heard, and the songs on this album are just heart-breaking, captivating and really addictive. I'm hoping they release another great album this year.

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Galaxie 500 - On Fire (1989)
This band were staring at me for a long time in my Last FM recommendations, but when i read Mojo magazine's excellent review of their reissues i was sold. This album is just incredible, once you put it on you are sucked right into the album and into another world. Dean's voice has that pain and emotion that can't be faked, and his guitar playing is simple yet really effective. From start to finish this is a really captivating album and one of my best finds in recent years.

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Swirlies - They Spent Their Wild Youthful Days In The Glittering World Of The Salons (1996)
Swirlies are a band that just don't give a f**k. They don't care what other's think of their music, they just do what they want to do regardless of anything. This album is a fantastic mixture of layered art-rock guitars, submerged vocal hooks and bizarre yet humorous sample recordings.

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Sleater-Kinney - Dig Me Out (1997)
These girls have a very consistent discography which i very much indulged in this year, but this album is their standout for me. It's just one great song one after another, all with great vocal hooks, raw emotion and passion.

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Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago (2008)
A really beautiful and heart-breaking album to listen to, easily one of the best breakup albums i've ever heard. Every song is a gem and at 9 songs they have certainly chosen quality over quantity.

Round 2:

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Suis La Lune- Quiet Pull The Strings (2006)
A really gorgeous, emotional album, goes from relaxed to chaotic in such a seamless way between tracks, one of my favorite discoveries of my screamo search.

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Kind Of Like Spitting- The Thrill Of The Hunt (2006)
Ben Barnett is performing as Blunt Mechanic now, but the majority and his best stuff is under this moniker. I have come to think of him as a better Conor Oberst, simple singer-songwriter emo, but with more wit and less whine.

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Hop Along, Queen Ansleis- Freshman Year (2005)
Frances Quinlan has since shortened the name to just Hop Along but this has to be one of the most creative albums I've heard in a long time. It's brilliant lyrically, sung in such varied interesting styles and uses unique instrumentation, it's hard to describe the perfection of this album.

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Gaslight Anthem- The '59 Sound (2008)
I avoided this album for 2 years and after I heard it for the first time I had no idea why I did. They have such a classic sound and a way for putting together great anthem songs that are fun to sing along to.

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Madeline Ava- Songs I'm Too Nervous To Sing For My Mom (2009)
It's just fun, cute ukulele pop with quirky lyrics about puns and growing up, there's nothing much to say about it, you just listen and be charmed.

Some more from me. . .

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Judee Sill - Judee Sill - 1971
70s California folk. A sad, beautiful and brilliant record. For those unfamiliar with Judee, she led a troubled life to say the least- death of parents, abusive stepfather, heroin addiction, prostitution, armed robbery, prison. There's a feeling of sins being washed, melodically and thematically on this album. There's also lots of talking to God, but don't let that put you off.

"Once a demon lived in my brow,
I screamed and wailed and I cursed out loud,
And I sailed through the clouds on ten crested
cardinals
To guard my battleground,
But I laughed so hard I cried. . . "

Well worth checking out especially if your into Joni/Gene Clark/Nick Drake.

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Brian Eno - Before and After Science (and My Life in the Bushes of Ghosts)
I've finally gotten into Brian Eno after years of avoidance (always associated him with Bowie/Talking heads, two I'm not fond of). Such great song craft and nice melancholy drones. His album with Byrne is still mind blowing.

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Smokey Robinson - One Dozen Roses - 1971
From beginning to end this is flawless. Beautiful stuff. And 'Tears Of A Clown' isn't even the best track on it. My favourite soul LP, which makes it even more frustrating that it's practically impossible to find in psychical form. It's frankly bewildering that this hasn't been reissued. Come on record labels, pull your ears out of your collective arse and make it happen.

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Randy Newman - 12 Songs - 1970
An undoubted classic. Newman's character studies are still cutting, and his 12 track journey through rocks roots excels at every turn. My only criticism it's that the journey is all to brief. Forget his Pixar affiliation, this it what Newman's about.

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Ike and Tina Turner - River Deep, Mountain High - 1966
Phil Spector's cinematic production merged with Tina's astounding vocals is a perfect marriage. (Er. . . much better than Tina and Ike's in fact). Tina's raw emotion floats among the clouds with glossy strings. The title track is one of the greatest songs of all time. What else could one want?

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John Cale - Paris 1919 - 1973
Lovely, hazy folk rock from former Velvet Underground visionary. Crazy I know, but I like this more than any VU LP.

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Diamond D - Stunts Blunts and Hip Hop - 1992
Underground classic. Recalls ATCQ at times and is every bit as good. Hip Hop's 'best kept secret'.

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Sioxsie and The Banshees - A Kiss In The Dreamhouse - 1982
Psychedelic gothy post-punk. With kinky sex.

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Captain Beefheart - Safe As Milk - 1967
Wacky blues rock masterpiece. It's Trout Mask Replica that gets all the plaudits, but for me this was his best moment. Wonderfully daft, yet still user friendly. 'Electricity' is one of the best psychedelic tracks of all time. The news yesterday was gutting. Rest in piece skipper.

Well I discovered far more great stuff this year than any other. Here's to more happy hunting in 2011 :beer:

:love::love::love::love::love::love::love::love:

One of the most important albums in my life; always glad to see somebody digging this one.

I'm jealous. I listen to 99% of my music online, and I can't find Sweet Shanghai Devil anywhere. I really wanna hear this album. I feel like I'm missing an important piece of a puzzle without this album. Oh well, I'm sure I'll hear it one day.

As for how much they change from album to album, that's what attracted me to their music in the first place. I'd listened to Blackjazz when it first came out and was hooked immediately, so I went and checked out their debut. My first thought upon listening to Where the Ragged People Go was "I must've made a mistake, there's no way this is the same band". I don't need to tell you that it's a big step from that album to Blackjazz, and the fact that they're only 9 or so years apart makes that leap all the bigger. It's as if they're not comfortable just keeping with one style and I love that in a band. I can't wait to see what they do next.

I'm always way behind the times... thank God music is not fashion.


Beck - Odelay (1996)

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Not quite sure why I listened to that - I'd heard Loser and found it mildly irritating - but I'm glad I did. One of those "Everything but the kitchen sink" albums, and it manages to totally work as a whole. Pretty amazing.