Fuck Vampire Weekend. Don't get me wrong, the first album from those prep school dudes was pretty good, but there is NO WAY the Fleet Foxes' self-titled isn't the best debut of the year.

Picking up right where Panda Bear's excellent Person Pitch left off last year and adding a potent dose of melody and structure, the Fleet Foxes crafted a remarkable work of indie-folk-rock (I refuse to call this "Appalachian rock" or "low-fi AM" or whatever else this music has been dubbed). In fact, the best possible musical comparison is that these guys sound somewhat like early My Morning Jacket; the crucial difference is that where early MMJ came out a bit sloppy, the Fleet Foxes' debut is painfully well-crafted. Songs like "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song" and "Blue Ridge Mountains" sound at once original and familiar, hitting the musical bull's eye so many respectable artists aim for and grossly miss.

The production and the lyrics certainly contribute to the fuzzy, comfortable character of the album: the acoustic instrumentation is crisply clear; vocal harmonies often echo but are never messy; the overall timeless, chamber-music feel is only enforced by the vaguely personal but mostly pastoral lyrics (I mean, what else do you expect from tunes titled "Ragged Wood," "Meadowlarks," Quiet Houses," and so on?).

This album is so consistent that it essentially lacks highlights; clocking in at less than 40 minutes, it is no more or less than one of the best albums of the year. And considering these guys have been making music with other groups for quite some time (including former members of Pedro the Lion and Crystal Skulls), it is safer to say that Fleet Foxes is not a fluke, but rather an exciting kickoff.

For fans of: My Morning Jacket, Panda Bear, Pedro the Lion, the Shins, Band of Horses.

Ladytron often refers to itself as "electronica with an edge," yet they have been unfairly labeled as electroclash for quite some time. As far as made-up genres go, I'd rather call them a gothpop band: it is simply safer to say they play goth-tinged pop rock than, well, whatever electroclash is supposed to mean (keyboards smashing against the wall? Who knows). In fact, I have put a good deal of thought into this Ladytron band as of late, trying to figure out if there is anything special about them or if they are just competently gimmicky.

Facts are: Velocifero is Ladytron's 4th full-length. It has 13 tracks. Some of them are sung by Helen Marnie (the traditional, poppy Ladytron vocals), some by Mira Aroyo (the harsh, Bulgarian-accented vocals), and--surprise,surprise--this time even Daniel Hunt shares leading duties in the album's closing track.  The band continues to write well-crafted, brilliantly-layered pop songs, some with a rock edge ("I'm Not Scared," "Burning Up"), some more dance-y ("Black Cat," "Deep Blue"), and most of them somewhere in between.

While Velocifero seems like the most logical progression to Ladytron's sound, it maintains the band's tradition of not repeating the same sound two records in a row. While this may not be as big a leap as the one taken from 2002's Light & Magic  to 2005's Witching Hour, the new album showcases Mira Aroyo's vocal talents much more appropriately than Witching Hour (in which she was restricted to two of the album's weakest tracks). Actually, quite the opposite happens here: the excellent "Season of Illusions" is easily Aroyo's best vocal performance to date, while "Deep Blue" is--inserting fan bias--probably the most exciting song I've heard all year.

Despite solid early efforts like the glam rock of "Ghosts" and the industrial pop of "Runaway," Ladytron once again saves the best for last (Marnie says that's an intentional trick): from the Ace of Base-meets-Depeche Mode "Predict the Day" through the painf...I mean, beautifully '80s "Tomorrow" to the excellent closer "Versus," Velocifero is almost all hits... except that it's doubtful any of it will actually become one. The album is an audio- but not a radio-triumph; something fans of the band will cherish and rave about, but that will likely not attract many new adepts (unless, of course, you've never heard Ladytron, in which case you're up for a treat).

Hence the predicaments: is there a point to playing pop music besides selling out/records? If you play pop music, and you don't make money, do you suck? What's the point of listening to pop music anyway? Or any music for that matter? Think about it.

Recommended if you like: Garbage, Nine Inch Nails, Gwen Stefani, Depeche Mode

I don't feel that is appropriate for me to review Black Mountain's In the Future because I don't listen to a lot of classic rock. I couldn't give you the exact comparison points between these songs and songs by Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath or any of the other acts that I have seen cited and referenced in so many other Black Mountain reviews. I respect all these bands, even like most of them, but I've never been "in" to them for various reasons relating to my upbringing and lack of exposure. When I'm trying to describe this album to people I find myself saying things like, "It's like perfect stoner rock, but not doom-sludgy stoner rock, more like Black Sabbath, but kind of like...." I wish I had the knowledge to appropriately reference each riff, each chorus, but I don't. All that I know is that I love this album and I cannot stop listening to it.

I think this album should win an award for its ratio of awesome riffage per song. In fact, at first listen it almost seems like this album is built around its riffs, like it depends on them, but upon subsequent listens you realize that even though this is not the case, it wouldn't matter anyway. The album also relys on prog-heavy keyboards and a rolling drum track. Two of the best tracks on the album are the weighty 8 minute long "Tyrants" and the 16 minute long epic that is "Bright Lights." The opening of "Tyrants" may be the best 60 seconds of music released this year, rivaled only by the absurdly wicked call and response guitar riffs that occur later in the song. On "Bright Lights" the dual vocals of Stephen McBean and Amber Webber build for the first 4 minutes and then break into some more fantastic riffage that makes you want to spark up a joint and bang your head. There are many moments on this album that make me fluttery with anticipation while I'm waiting for them to occur. The aforementioned breaking is only one of them. Sometimes the thrill is in what is not happening on the album at the moment, the spaces of sound and distortion, the lazy drawn out vocals that evolve into sullen melodies.

It might be easy for some to dismiss this album as retro, a "musical Cliffs Notes to an entire decade" as I read somewhere. I think it's unfair to judge Black Mountain only by their obvious influences. This album proves that this band can stand confidently on their own merits just as well. In the Future is definitely a musical trip worth taking, preferably with a nice pair of headphones.

Recommended if you like: marijuana, badass guitars, classic rock

I can't say I've been listening to Malkmus for all that long, but somehow I feel like I know the guy pretty well. You can tell grew up in California just from his breezy vocal delivery; and the very first few moments in Trash give away that 1) he likes to rock out on the electric guitar and 2) he was once a major stoner.

Malkmus' fourth solo outing has been hyped as an indie-meets-jam band record, and I can almost agree with that. This isn't exactly a polygamous marriage of Malkmus' Pavement and The Allman Brothers, but there sure are plenty of passages that will take one straight back to the 1970s, most remarkably the 10-minute long title track. Mr. Stephen does come out as an awesome guitarist, but don't expect any Anastasio-like display of virtuosity--Malkmus scores guitar hero points not in speed, but in creativity.

The nonsense lyrics could also fit both indie and jam bands; it's hard to tell if Malkmus has a knack for metaphors, or if it's just verbal incontinence. That's irrelevant, because his limited vocals still manage to hit all the right notes. Thankfully, what stands out in Trash is the musicality: the song writing is notoriously unpredictable, yet beautifully melodic. Tough as it may be to understand how "Dragonfly Pie" goes from its heavy guitar opening to its xylophone tinged chorus, the whole thing has a surprisingly nice flow to it.

Oh, and the Jicks are pretty sweet too. Drummer Janet Weiss, of Sleater-Kinney fame, is possibly the best backing musician Malkmus ever had the chance to play with (I told you I know the guy well). If anything, she ensures Trash never comes out as a nostalgic experiment, bringing in the 1990s and 2000s along for the ride through her drumming (I am yet to find any evidence that the 1980s had anything to do with this album).

The average length of the tracks (only 4 of the 10 are clock under five minutes) allows the listener to settle in with each song. More than anything, Real Emotional Trash is a deeeeep album--not because it conveys a philosophical message, but because it brings forth much more than what one would expect at the beginning of each track, and let me tell you: "Baltimore" and "Elmo Delmo" are gorgeous abysses. One of the best albums of the year.

Recommended if you like: Pavement, My Morning Jacket, The Allman Brothers, Radiohead

Released in 1994, Ulver’s Bergtatt: Et Eeventyr Capitler (Spellbound – A Faerietale in 5 Chapters) is an album well respected by some metal fans for its haunting, classic black metal sound. As a concept album, it’s unfortunate that the story told is impossible to know for an American audience since the entire album is in Danish. However, if spoken in any other language, this album would not stand out from the pack as the duet of male choir vocals and harsher snarl of black metal meld perfectly. This is not your typical corpse paint and blast beat affair. Over five cuts, the listener gets to experience the diversity of gloom laced acoustic guitar, traditional Norwegian folk, and numerous tempo changes. The shortest song on the album is just over 4 minutes, but each second of each song contributes to the overall atmosphere and the atmosphere the album creates is superior. Don’t write this off as a Finntroll clone, it’s not even in the same class. The most stand out moment on this album is on the fifth track, where within a 1:30 span, you’re greeted to acoustic guitar and clean singing, a faster riff that is almost reminiscent of harder rocking Neil Young, and just some really good black metal. Another thing that stands out is the fact the opening track is sung entirely in a clean voice. If you’re into metal, you have to check this out. Hell even if you’re not, check out some of this band’s other albums, as they are now more known for their electronic and ambient music.

Recommended if you like: Finntroll, Dimmu Borgir, Amon Amarth, folk music

I'll go ahead and admit it: writing a Radiohead review is intimidating. First of all, it is safe to say that these Oxford dudes have one of the largest hardcore fan bases out of any band out there, so odds are a great number of readers will disagree with my not-so-humble opinion of this album. Secondly, it is a fact of life that Radiohead is one of the most creative, unique-sounding, "greatest" bands of the past 15 years. In Rainbows serves not only to reaffirm what the fans already know, but also as a good introduction for those not familiar with the band's work.

As you may or may not know, IN THE FUTURE this album will be remembered for its groundbreaking "pay as much as you want" marketing and downloading strategy, but that's not what I want to write about. What matters here is that In Rainbows is the best collections of songs Radiohead has put out in a decade, which should automatically catapult it to several "best of the decade" lists come December 2009 (really isn't all that far away, is it?).

While In Rainbows isn't quite as bold and adventurous as 2000's Kid A, it does have its own unique feel to it. The right word to describe it would be lush (point made by the shoegazer feel of "Reckoner", "Jigsaw Falling Into Place," and the second half of "Bodysnatchers") or perhaps sensual (in "Nude," "All I Need," and "House of Cards," Thom Yorke teaches us that abstinence sucks). Yorke has referred to this album as the Radiohead's "classic album," comparing it to the Beatles' Revolver (which makes one hope for Radiohead's Sgt. Peppers', White Album, and Abbey Road!).

Even though the band had been playing around with some of these songs for almost a decade, all 10 tracks hold together as one awesome State of the Band address. The first few seconds are somewhat deceiving: the electronic beats and paranoid vocals may fool you into thinking this is Eraser part 2 (Yorke's solo album), but this feeling is gone in 40 seconds: once Johnny Greenwood's slick, mellow guitar jump into the picture, you realize that, when it comes to Radiohead, you never know exactly what you're getting into. In this case, the bulk of the album provides a smooth, relatively accessible ride through some... rainbows, crowning the run with "Jigsaw Falling Into Place," one of group's best singles to date. -MNB

Highlight/ Favorite Moment: The end of "All I Need," the kind of music climax that makes this band essential.
Recommended if you like: good music

Even though the band itself probably wouldn't appreciate it, it's tempting to be superlative about One Beat. Arguably the all-female Washington trio's best work, this may also be simply the best rock album by a female group; put it simply, it is time for the last few standing skeptical chauvinists to throw the towel and admit that girls DO rock.

Written and recorded less than a year after the Sept.11 terrorist attacks, One Beat serves as a perhaps the best portrait of early '00s America along with Bright Eyes' Lifted (not that the two albums sound ANYTHING alike). What's striking, however, is how well the trio balances the already expected political- and/or feminist-themed songs (like "Far Away" and the appropriately titled "Combat Rock") with soulful tunes ("Sympathy") and shamelessly fun stompers ("Oh," "Step Aside"). The final result is a testament to the group's versatility and integrity; aside from the 9/11 backdrop, the songs carry clear references to Corin Tucker's new life as a mother and Carrie Brownstein's romantic misfortunes: her relationship with Tucker fell apart, but the band miraculously stayed together... "O2" gives away how that must have felt. The only thing noticeably missing in One Beat is filler. From the brilliant interplays--both instrumental and vocal--opening, self-titled track to the hauntingly beautiful "Sympathy," One Beat again and again makes a strong case not for females in rock music, but rather for rock music as a relevant form of art and communication. -MNB

Highlight/Favorite Moment: the "whoo whoo"'s in "Sympathy" are unforgettable.
Recommended if you like: Sonic Youth, Le Tigre, Gossip

Able Baker Fox is the new colaboration from former members of Small Brown Bike and the Casket Lottery. It sounds just like it should, which is very similar to what 2002's Small Brown Bike/Casket Lottery split album sounded like. For full disclosure purposes, let me mention that I LOVE that split. It would have been really hard for me to not love Voices as well.

Voices is an appropriate name for this album, with three distinct voices lending vocals throughout. It's obvious that these musicians are no strangers to one another and the songwriting is tight and comfortable. The songs feel very layered, and as one layer peels away often another will take its place. Melodic vocal harmonies on top of screaming background vocals, on top of explosive guitar riffs. Overall, this album is just awesome, the kind of album that makes you remember why you love music in the first place, the kind of songs that you ache to sing along with.

For fans of: Small Brown Bike and Casket Lottery (duh), Hot Water Music, Jawbreaker

I was unfamiliar with Canadian songstress Basia Bulat until last week. I am becoming thoughroughly familiar with her, however. Since my first listen to her album, Oh, My Darling, I've had an urge to have it on all the time. I think I've listened to it at least once every day. Lately I'm quite a sucker for female voices, especially female voices accompanied by the kinds of string arrangements present on this album. Her voice definitely can be compared to Feist or Fiona Apple - it's very soulful and sultry. There's a lot of folk and jazz influence here, along with ragtime piano, harmonica, ukelele, and absolutely haunting vocal melodies. One track, "In the Night," is exclusive to the US release of this album and is probably one of my favorite tracks on the album. Produced and engineered by Howard Bilerman (who has also produced the Arcade Fire and Godspeed You! Black Emperor), it has both an epic and an intimate feel, sometimes very whispy, sometimes bittersweet. My only complaint is that the album isn't long enough. If I believed in heaven, I would want this to be the soundtrack.

For fans of: Feist, the Decemberists, St. Vincent