Well, I was gonna write a "Ten Best albums of 2004" list, but it turns out that most of my current favorite albums are from 2003 or before, so instead I'll make a "Ten Five Best Albums That I Listened To A Lot In 2004 Regardless Of Their Release Date" list. So! Here it is:

Arcade Fire - Funeral
OK. Gotta get on the truck with everybody else on this one. This album is the fresh new sound all the kids have been lookin' for, and it's just so good. Intimate and orchestrally huge at the same time. Lyrically dense and musically intricate, but with just enough pop hook to stick the landing.

Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans
There was a time in my life when I would've been turned off by the religious overtones in this album, but I'm thankful that now I can see the spirituality behind the language. The hopelessness of Abraham's choice, the joy in recognizing the great Other that sometimes finds us in unlikely places, the power and fear of the unknown – all themes that are touched and lifted by a gentle, almost erotic hand in this really wonderful album.

Modest Mouse - Good News...
Some people out there are going to try to tell you that Modest Mouse isn't cool anymore, since this album is popular and we all know that success is bad. Those people are wrong.

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy/ William Oldheim – Master and Everyone
Patient and soft as a mother's lullaby, yet at times lyrically barbed with sharp barby barbs. This album is a true tonic for the rush and bustle, but not for melancholy. Let the dew collect on your cold window panes as you sip your coffee and let this album's songs whisper in your ear. "Wolf Among Wolves" may be my Favorite Song that I Listened to This Year.

The Decemberists – Her Majesty
Everyone who knows me is by now tired of my proselytizing and carrying on about this band, but what do I care? I've definitely crossed straight over into fandom, so that even the things reviewers critique strike me as good points. I love the narratives they create about soldiers and sailors and gymnasts, war heros and architects. Their songs are clever, but what's more they're honest, even though entirely fictitious. And anyone who writes a song about Myla Goldberg gets a star in my book.

I think that's about it for albums. Did I forget anything? Probably. Lots of people put the Fiery Furnaces on their top 10's or whatever. I just got the album so it hasn't sunk in yet. That new Bjork album is likewise just simmering in the crock pot of my brain. Seems like most of my favorite stuff came out LAST year. I guess it takes a while for the unhip to get the news.