5. "Midnight Boom" - The Kills Best track: "Tape Song"
American vocalist/guitarist Alison Mosshart and British guitarist Jamie Hince have rekindled their vampy antics and stinging instrumentation for their third and most consistent album, "Midnight Boom." Although frequently compared to their blues/garage rock counterparts "The White Stripes," The Kills have taken an experimental step forward, drawing upon their signature minimalism and infusing electronica and eerie erotica. Chockfull of rowdy anthems to the night, "Midnight Boom" maintains The Kills' nicotine-stained nihilism, but this time around there is a newfound sense of fun, with loop tracking and claps abound.
4. "Nouns" - No Age Best track: "Things I Did While I Was Dead"
No Age's sophomore effort "Nouns" is a fleeting, albeit haunting album composed of fuzzy soundscapes and boisterous garage beats. The two-person Los Angeles-based indie rock band's latest work is a layered album. "Nouns" deftly blends lo-fi, ambient rock and experimental noise in a manner so graceful that with each listen, you are bound to discover something new.
3. "Feed the Animals" - Girl Talk Best track: "Shut the Club Down"
After he gained indie and mainstream cred with 2006's "Night Ripper," mash-up DJ Greg Gillis, who goes by Girl Talk, spent two years on the road, selling out his notorious dance party shows left and right. Illegal Art issued his fourth album "Feed the Animals" ? la Radiohead's "In Rainbows," presenting customers with the option of naming their own price. Girl Talk's albums are composed of fused unauthorized samples of music, which Gillis views "a lawsuit waiting to happen." Throughout the span of his six-year career, Gillis has yet to face any legal issues, as his genuine and all-inclusive adoration for the art of music is evident in his work. Gillis mixes and mashes the most unlikely of musical partners, from The Velvet Underground and Flo Rida to Ray J and Steward - and it works. Alarmingly well. A dizzying kaleidoscope of pulse-pounding, intoxicating beats, "Feed the Animals" is a party's best friend.
2. "Volume One" - She and Him Best track: "Black Hole"
We all knew Zooey Deschanel could sing after her "Baby It's Cold Outside" shower singing performance in "Elf" but damn. While shooting Sundance Film Festival hit "The Go-Getter," Deschanel met indie folk king M. Ward, who composed the film's original score. The film's director asked the two to record a duet for the closing credits, and weeks later, they were She and Him. The duo's debut album "Volume One" is endearingly nostalgic, warm and elegant with powerful vocals from Deschanel and invention musical arrangements from M. Ward. Primarily composed of melancholy, lovesick tracks, "Volume One" is a retro, sublime debut that will leave listeners craving Volume Two.
1. "Fleet Foxes" - Fleet Foxes Best track: "White Winter Hymnal"
A wistful exploration of rich folklore, Fleet Foxes self-titled album marks one of the strongest musical debuts in recent memory. The Seattle-based quartet have crafted a truly landmark modern American album, one as intricately composed as the Bruegel painting of a 100 peasants representing more than 100 proverbs. Channeling the sweeping serenity of the wilderness on tracks such as "Sun It Rises" and "Meadowlarks," to the bustling energy of "Ragged Wood" and "Quiet Houses," "Fleet Foxes" is an evocative album from start to finish.
You can each this staff writer at dsheldon@theeagleonline.com.
