Sigur Ros ( )

Sigur Ros' unpronouncable sophomore effort isn't much of a departure from their astonishingly beautiful debut, Ageatis Byrjun. But if I had the formula for making the some of the most somber and mellifluous atmospheric music in recent years, I'd likely use it over again too.

John Forté I, John

Former Refugee All-Star John Forté has abandoned the camp that handed him a 15-minute career as a mainstream rap star to create a soulful street reggae sound for his latest CD. However, a more personal, spirited approach to music making is the reinvented Forté's true strength.

Elvis Costello When I was Cruel

After working with unexpected partners like Burt Bacharach and Sophie van Otter, Costello is back to true form with a chilling, sardonic collection of bitter, bitter songs. Twenty years in the music biz, we're still fooled by that deceptively sweet voice and those bright melodies.

French Kicks One Time Bells

On the surface, the songs of the French Kicks are all shiny, simple melodies that, alone, might be very catchy yet unnoteworthy. Their brilliance comes from well-placed harmonies, noises and other deviations reminiscent of '90s alternapop. Sugary, strange and gimmick-free.

Badly Drawn Boy Have You Fed the Fish?

Not so long ago Badly Drawn Boy was part of a new generation of singer-songwriters that included softies like Elliott Smith and Rufus Wainwright. In some ways, his new disc shows he's the same artist. You just have to turn up the oddness factor from about a 3 to a 10.

Brendan Benson Lapalco

Brendan Benson is Matthew Sweet with a little bit of balls. Not to say we won't pity him all the same when he sings about rejection and tough luck. Like a comedian singing the blues, it's a mystery whether his humor is just humor or whether it's there to soften real pain underneath.

Queens of the Stone Age Songs for the Deaf

You know how some foods are just hot for the sake of being hot, the spiciness not really a complement to the meal. In music, there are bands that are loud just to be loud. And the hard, psychedelic ferocity of Queens of the Stone Age on their third album is a savory exception.

The Roots Phrenology

Slowly creeping out of the hip-hop underground, The Roots feature smooth hooks and guests like Nelly Furado and Musiq. To challenge anyone to call them sell-outs, they play with a ripe vigor on songs submerged in a vat of funk. They are hip-hop's Sly and the Family Stone.

Steve Earle Jerusalem

Steve Earle's harsh critiques of America and religion on Jerusalem may be too dark and sarcastic for some, but his frustrations concern ideals that we all should be questioning. And he isn't too shy to stress that we are not only victims but participants in this imperfect society.

The Flaming Lips Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots

Since their long-awaited follow-up to 1999's Soft Bulletin, Wayne Coyne and the other oddballs from Oklahoma didn't reinvent themselves as much as they have previously. Added, though, is a sincere sweetness disguised in a bizarre futuristic David and Goliath tale.

Solomon Burke Don't Give Up on Me

Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Tom Waits and other long-time fans of soul legend Solomon Burke lend their songwriting credits to Don't Give Up on Me, a resurrection of Southern soul delivered through the raspy voice, owned by what could only be a very wise man.

Ed Harcourt Here Be Monsters

Moving deftly between tracks that are hauntingly somber and ones that are as sweet and gleeful as a first ballet recital, Ed Harcourt's bipolar debut is held together by clever lyricism and hallucinatory imagery. A drastically different mood lurks around each corner and is welcome.

DJ Shadow The Private Press

The carefully coordinated orgy of sound on DJ Shadow's The Private Press seemingly gathers every recordable noise available to man. The album repeatedly plays tricks on you with its bold manipulations of rhythm and ingenious combinations of unique beats and aural accessories.

Sleater-Kinney One Beat

I surprised myself when I realized that this is the first year that Sleater-Kinney's made the final 25. One Beat is much more confidently developed and assembled than their previous work. Finally, the articulate, perfectly muttled, deafening anger comes boiling to the surface.

The Streets Original Pirate Material

Geezer-bashing Mike Skinner won't find a place on the U.S. hip-hop charts with his talky two-step style. Actually, he doesn't exactly fit into any genre. In a year that embraced new dogs with old tricks, his smart lyrics and basement beats made him genuinely original.

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