1. made in the dark - hot chip - time delay. time delay. yes, hot chip is dance music for uptight nerdy white kids, i know, but at least we’ve stopped holding up the wall, right? “ready for the floor,” indeed. “i’m only going to heaven if it feels like hell” is the best obvious/dumb indie-dance mantra since, well, “the smell of repetition really is on you.” no, there isn’t anything as achingpoignantperfect as “boy from school,” but some of the ballads slay me, especially the title track, but then again, i’m a sucker for the maudlin, especially if it’s “ironic.” the ballads are probably going to be the biggest point of contention for most people. i’m drawn to hot chip because of the clever self-awareness; i stick around because they can write damn good songs. time delay. best tracks: ready for the floor, made in the dark, hold on.

2. heretic pride - the mountain goats - john darnielle is one of those lyricists who gives me chills on a fairly regular basis whenever i listen to his work. whereas many lyricists i adore appeal to my intellect, darnielle goes straight for the emotional center, hitting me on an immediate, visceral level. he’s capable of overwhelming me with the power of his words, which really is no small feat. the title track on this album literally made me gasp with incredulity. how does he come up with such simple yet incredibly vivid and profound images? i’m always going to be huge fan of his lo-fi work, but the lush instrumentation really does wonders for him. yes, his voice can be overbearing sometimes, but i think it makes his lyrics all the more effective. the pacing on this album is commendable; the calmer tracks are always juxtaposed against the more intense ones. also, unlike most of his albums, there’s no grand theme, which is kind of refreshing. best tracks: san bernardino, heretic pride, lovecraft in brooklyn

3. distortion - the magnetic fields - another one of my favorite lyricists! and a textbook example of a lyricist that appeals to my intellect. not to say stephin doesn’t affect me emotionally as well. convoluted, what? i’m not sure how i feel about the whole jesus & mary chain-aping concept. i mean, it’s cool to hear a hyper-distorted mandolin or something at first but it kind of gets tiresome. the songs are charming, witty and misanthropic, as always. best tracks: california girls, too drunk to dream, the nun’s litany

4. vampire weekend - the fork hyped the shit out of this album in a recent review, comparing the level of excitement to the debuts of belle & sebastian and the strokes. i don’t know if i’d go that far, but this certainly is a pretty stellar collection of “world”-influenced pop. my roommate jordan said they sounded pretty much exactly like paul simon. not too far off, i guess. best tracks: oxford comma, cape cod kwassa kwassa, campus

5. hold on now, youngster… - los campesinos! - slightly disappointed with this, but that’s only because i expected a whole lot from these kids. “you! me! dancing!” was a top five track of the year for me in ‘07 and i was there at their first ever show in the u.s. at lollapalooza. their brand of hyper-kinetic pop wears thin over the course of an entire album; there’s simply not enough variety. nevertheless, the songs are fun and the lyrics are clever as hell, even if they are a bit wordy. i also find it incredible that these guys are my age. our generation is finally starting to make good, worthwhile music! best tracks: this is how you spell “hahaha we destroyed the hopes and dreams of a generation of faux-romantics,” you! me! dancing!, 2007 the year punk broke (my heart)