In Our Heads - Hot Chip
An amazing mix of bleeps and beats and vocals. Some of it sounded like the 2 Bears (and their album is also worthy of a mention). Listen to the track ‘Flutes’ or the lovely epic stand-out track ‘Let me be Him’
Banga – Patti Smith
Some tracks stood out more than others but there is something so melancholy about her music. I think you either get her or you don’t, but I love her.
How About I Be Me? (And You Be You?) - Sinead O’Connor.
A fine return to form, easily producing the best album since Faith and Courage and one of the best of her career.
Electra Heart – Marina & the Diamonds.
It didn’t quite blow me away in the same way as The Family Jewels, but it grew on me and plenty of amazing tracks lay within (Primadonna was a great lead single too if only for finally breaking her to the mainstream).
Make me Believe on Hope – Bright Light Bright Light
Stumbled upon this after reading a twitter review and fell in love with it. Great electronic – I’d start by listening to Disco Moment if you want to try it.
Echoes and Rhymes – The Primitives
After a long absence, they returned with an album of covers and it felt like they hadn’t been away and nothing had changed!
Not your kind of people – Garbage
Think every Garbage album can make a best of each respective year top 10 and this was no different.
Monkey Me - Mylene Farmer
Only recently started listening to and a few songs taking a while to grow on me, but worth the top 10 on the strength of the last 3 songs and the video for the single, ‘A L’ombre’.
Origin of Love – Mika
Yes I know some won’t agree, but I like him and this album does feels different to the first two. There was the odd one I wasn’t keen on (‘Popular’), but songs like the ‘Origin of Love’ and ‘Kids’ are just lovely.
Ok I’ve copped out on no. 10 and a few albums are so near making it, but I can’t pick. Agonised over putting in Gold Dust by Tori Amos – the quality of the songs and the gig easily deserve the recognition, but the orchestral re-recordings didn’t add enough to make it feel like a whole new album. Same issue with the Abbey Road Sessions by Kylie. MDNA was a return to form after Hard Candy and the gig was fantastic, but she so should have swapped some tracks from the deluxe edition onto the main CD. Lana Del Rey felt like the best thing I’d heard all year for a couple of months, but I just seemed to go off most of it quite suddenly. Whilst Saint Etienne’s ‘Words and Music’ has some amazing songs, it was a bit inconsistent. Anyway, number 10 would be one of them and it depends what day it is!
