ALBUMS
1. Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? - 15
2. Wu-Tang Clan - 8 Diagrams - 14
3. Prodigy - The Return of the Mac - 13
4. Aesop Rock - None Shall Pass - 12
5. Joell Ortiz - The Brick: The Bodega Chronicles - 11
6. Jay-Z - American Gangster - 9
7. Ghostface Killah - The Big Doe Rehab - 8
8. Lucky Soul - The Great Unwanted - 7
9. The Noisettes - What Time Is It Mr. Wolf - 6
10. Dungen - Tio Bitar - 5

TRACKS
1. Of Montreal - Heimdelsgate Like a Promethian Curse
2. Prodigy - Mac 10 Handle
3. Wu-Tang Clan - Gun Will Go
4. Aesop Rock - None Shall Pass
5. Battles ft. Joell Ortiz - Leyendecker Remix
6. Jay-Z - Fallin'
7. Jay-Z - Blue Magic
8. Ghostface Killah - Walk Around
9. Lucky Soul - I Ain't Never Been Cool
10. The Noisettes - The Count of Monte Cristo

REISSUES
1. Sly and the Family Stone - There's a Riot Goin On (Remaster)
2. Kool G Rap and DJ Polo - Wanted Dead or Alive (Deluxe edition)
3. Biz Markie - Goin Off (Deluxe edition)
4. MC Shan - Down By Law (Deluxe edition)
5. Laurie Anderson - Big Science

ARTISTS
1. Of Montreal (Kevin Barnes)
2. Prodigy of Mobb Deep
3. RZA
4. Aesop Rock
5. Jay-Z

COMMENTS
A Few comments on my picks

Of Montreal: While an insufferable amount of acts raped the rotting corpse of glam this year in an attempt to "be ironic" and capture the attention of the drunk and moronic masses; Kevin Barnes' use of the genre to mask his pain and frustration, which actually worked. In a year where Warhol's prediction about fame came true with just about every other band on myspace becoming "the next big thing", it's nice to see honest hardworking musicians getting rewarded for a decade's worth of work.

Return of the Mac: Fighting back against the tide of special ed dance rap and simplified gangsta choruses, Prodigy and Alchemist came through with ATMOSPHERE. The loops may have been obvious and "Bandana P" may have lost a step since the 90's but the darkness and grime in ROTM was more intriguing than nerd-rap lyricism could ever be. Extra points for the best youtube videos of the year. Fuck a Soulja Boy.

Wu-Tang Clan: It's sad that Raekwon and Ghostface's bitching distracted reviewers from the most adventurous and avant-guard rap full length of the year. While it's not nearly as out-there as the detractors make it out to be, Rza's 8 Diagrams (because it IS his album) is dense, funky, scary and most importantly WEIRD which is something that the rap industry has clearly forgotten how to be in the midst of its poptacular descent into mediocrity. At a time when a new paradigm for black music is desperately needed, The Wu proved that there's still some life left in boom-bap music.

Aesop Rock: Def Jux's motor mouth finally figured out why the Beastie Boys worked so well: under all of that white nerdiness was a solid layer of funk, an element that anchors None Shall Pass and cements it as Aesop's best work yet. From pirate raps to ruminations on passing 30, the guy's got a lot to talk about and does it over great production with catchy hooks. This deserved the MTV2 time it got.

Joell Ortiz: The future of this rap shit. NO ONE rhymed with as much fire or intelligence and Ortiz. Listen to any of the 125 tracks on his Koch debut and tell me he would shred Lil Wayne into dog kibble.

Jay-Z: Crass commercial tie in or artistic rebirth? Probably both, but as long as the results sound this good I don't think anyone will have a problem with El Presidente's music. Jim Jones who?

Ghostface Killah: Ghost still out rhymed 90% of his competition this year but frankly, his production choices were a little on the cheap side. Come on Tony, you sound OK over Sean C's stuff but it's hard to get excited when you were on MF Doom and Pete Rock beats last year. Not to mention your appearances on 8 Diagrams outshined your whole album.

Lucky Soul: A really pretty pop album for nerds that doesn't involve shitty electro beats? Count me in. While the Pipettes will get more acclaimed from the scenesters for their *wink wink nudge nudge* feminism, Lucky Soul's unnerving dedication to honest un-ironic love songs and heartbreak ballads gets my vote. Not that I dislike the Pipettes or anything.

The Noisettes: I guess I'm the only critic who really liked this one. Then again, I prefer anything the British do on principal, rapping excluded obviously.

Dungen/Art Brut: I could have put either of these two groups in this slot, plus the Arctic Monkeys. Cool follow ups, not quite as a good as the debuts. Third time is make it or break it guys.

—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—
BONUS: 5 acts that were overhyped or just plain sucked balls.

Soulja Boy/D4L/Dem Franchise Boys/dance rap: Frankly, I actually have nothing against these acts. Teenagers have had dance crazes since before music journalism existed and there's nothing wrong with that. However, if you listen to this stuff and are over the age of 21, please consider killing yourself.

M.I.A: Like the above for pretentious white people who pretend to give a fuck about the third world without doing anything about it. Here's a thought: instead of paying for that M.I.A album or concert ticket (or better yet, that ugly sneaker/hoodie combo, you unsightly cunts) give the money to a reputable charity. You'll do the world a favor and I won't have to listen to the worst attempt at Female rap since JJ Fad.

The Black Eyed Peas, Kid Rock, Nickleback, Corporate music: I really hope the major labels DON'T adapt to the digital world so the A&R's that signed these guys end up broke in the street sucking dick for crack.

The Arcade Fire: I didn't want to bash the hometown band, but they really asked for it once they started cribbing on Bruce fuckin Springsteen. Besides, Will Butler's actually American.

Timbaland: The most creative person applying his talents to the service of terribly bland MOR pop today.
—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—--

Well that's it. I'm leaving the continent for 12-18 months in January so I'll be missing out on a whole lot of music during that time frame. Hopefully by the time I get back, people will have realized 808's are played the fuck out in rap and will have abandoned rock-electro-mashups in favor of some new 80's revival. How about Madchester? That stuff was awesome.