1-5

Goodbye 2005!

5

Decemberists – Picaresque

Colin Meloy writes bedtime stories for scenesters. Picture the Count of Monte Cristo sportin an indie haircut – blasphemy perhaps but you know you love it.

4

Bright Eyes – I’m Wide Awake

Bright Eyes haters BEWARE: this paragraph is going to be packed with emotion and heart. You've been warned.
My dear friend Spencer called me the other day with a revelation about why he relates more to heroin addicts then mainstream society dwellers. He elegantly divulged that unlike the average citizen, the heroin addict is willing to outwardly display humanity’s inward sufferings. That’s my basic argument for why I love Conor Oberst. I'll leave it at that.

3

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah– Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

The warble is making a comeback and CYHSY is leading the pack.

I have danced on both coasts to "The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth," and declare it my favorite song of the year.

2

Sufjan Stevens – Come Feel the Illinoise

When Sufjan released Seven Swans last year I figured his intentions for writing the 50 state records must have been a joke; however, only a year later we have with us Illinois - easily his best release to date.

1

Animal Collective – Feels

Hands down, Feels holds the freshest sound of 2005. It is one of those benchmark albums that we see once every couple of years (Funeral did it last year and Moon & Antartica a few years before that). Those who loved Sung Tungs will be taken to both familiar and foreign places with this release, and those new to Animal Collective should be blown away altogether.