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The F-List 
Albums
We listened to hundreds of records this year, meticulously parsing every ear-splitting riff. We cheered the debuts of Bloc Party and M.I.A. We sighed as hip-hop's stars were out-illuminated by inspired mash-ups that, sadly, were not eligible for this list. And after arguing our faves well into the night, we came to a consensus — a list of stunning releases that, despite our previous showers of praise, deserve a second, celebratory soak. -Andrew Phillips
The Brooklyn foursome that put the "freak" in freak folk has finally come into its own, nearly ditching the scene it spawned in the process. Improbably, Feels sees Animal Collective realizing their potential by reigning it all in: electric guitars girded tight, they exchange pastoral hippy sprawl for, of all things, power anthems. - Todd Goldstein
There's never been a pop star quite like Antony Heggerty. Somehow, a hulking, pale, baby-faced pianist with the voice of Nina Simone and songs about crushing despair and gender confusion snuck in under the radar — and now he's got accolades coming out of his ears. Thankfully, I Am a Bird Now is every bit as touching and odd as its creator. - Todd Goldstein
Wayward folk queen Vashti Bunyan finally follows her 35-year-old debut with a second set of wistful, dreamy, acoustic melodies. Lookaftering retains the airy warmth and sparse orchestration of her 1970 release, but dispenses with the youthful naïveté. Looking back instead of forward, Bunyan's sage-like lyrics make masterful meaning of her wandering, agrarian past. - Andrew Phillips
On Descended Like Vultures, Rogue Wave pick clean the haunting post-Shinsian dream-pop that defined their debut. All skeleton, the record's hook-heavy indie cuts glimmer with but a hint of their former mysterious, melancholic edge. It'd be easy to cry foul but, by shedding his lamentful skin, songwriter Zach Rogue has exposed a more truthful heart — one that slowly, steadily seduces. - Andrew Phillips
Five years after his debut album, the hitmaker behind "Beau Mot Plage" refuses to self-plagiarize, turning instead to a bewitching amalgam of house, disco, and mind-bending sound design that conceals some of the year's most inventive chord changes beneath a veneer of club-thumping beats. - Philip Sherburne
Although this album has been dosing unsuspecting listeners with its incessant sonic sugar rush since late 2004, it didn't receive a proper US release until this October. Nominated for this year's Mercury Prize, the Brighton, England-based collective's debut album distills '70s funk, old-school TV culture, shout-along cheers, and all things double-Dutch and break-dance-worthy into a compact, discordantly modern-feeling form. - Doug Levy
Serious, scary, aloof, and outrageous, Andrew Bird's The Mysterious Production of Eggs sees the virtuoso violinist (and master whistler) through murky rock dirges, heartsick love songs, and maniacal, semi-psychotic romps. It's a pop record so twisted that its cap has spun back into place, sealing away the bloody, brooding opus that lies within. - Andrew Phillips
No other musical style tore through the US underground this year with a fire equal to that of London grime, and Run the Road was its definitive document. Dizzee, Kano, Wiley, Roll Deep, and Lady Sov all reinforced their emerging reps here, with the unexpected side benefit of a diverse and well-balanced album. - Jake Lancaster
Jason "Donna Summer" Forrest toys with our emotions and memories on Shamelessly Exciting, a whirlwind of disco, prog, country, and punk from back in the day, all served up tight and on-beat. No gimmicky mash-ups here, just music worship that's both sincere and contagious. Little else this year offered an equivalent "wow" factor, or such fleeting joy. - Jake Lancaster
Techno-soul improvisor Jamie Lidell is a performance artist above all, but his studio album Multiply doesn't scrimp on spotlight moments or songcraft. Harnessing high technology, respect for his forebears, and a killer contributors' list, Lidell brings Stax and Motown into the Tresor era and beyond. - Philip Sherburne
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