Presented in alphabetical order, with some trepidation because this includes my three favorite albums of this year, but nothing from last year; Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, MGMT, Santigold, and the Ting Tings might be left off due more to timing than actual enjoyment. But probably not.
Antony & the Johnsons, I Am a Bird Now
Arcade Fire, Funeral
Death Cab for Cutie, Plans
Dirty Projectors, Bitte Orca
Feist, The Reminder
Grizzly Bear, Veckatimest
Idlewild, The Remote Part
Interpol, Turn On the Bright Lights
The Killers, Hot Fuss
Angela McCluskey, The Things We Do
Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Radiohead, Kid A
Damien Rice, O
Regina Spektor, Begin to Hope
Rihanna, Good Girl Gone Bad
The Strokes, Is This It
Sufjan Stevens, Illinoise
Tegan & Sara, So Jealous
U2, All That You Can’t Leave Behind
Wolf Parade, Apologies to the Queen Mary
* Favorite, not Best, meaning this list is based on affection more than critical judgment. The ability to define a particular time and place in my memory influenced some choices as well (see, especially: the Strokes).