The same thing happens every year. I say, "There were 10 great albums this year? ... really?" and then I dig through stacks of plastic and MP3s and find myself having to discard five or 10 that I really loved.

Sorry about the predictability of No. 1. Rolling Stone, Spin, Paste and Entertainment Weekly, among others, have already anointed TV on the Radio, but there's just no getting around the fact that the Brooklyn band is in its own league. What follows is a mix of young, old, punk, pop and hip-hop.

1. TV on the Radio, "Dear Science": Like the Yankees, there's so much talent on this team, it's not even fair. There's always something churning to the surface, and although "Dear Science" is an easier listen than "Return to Cookie Mountain," TVOTR never lets us feel too comfortable, with distorted guitars, funky loops, orchestral atmosphere and static, all topped by the ridiculously soulful vocals of former Pittsburghers Tunde Adebimpe and Kyp Malone. It's a sound that reflects unsettling times, with dense, nonlinear lyrics referencing love, sex, death, power, paranoia and protest.

2. Eddy Current Suppression Ring, "Primary Colours": This Melbourne, Australia, band (led by guitarist Eddy Current and singer Brendan Suppression) summons the thrashy greatness of the Pistols and Buzzcocks while throwing in some Wire-worthy art-punk. It's like a long-lost album from 1980, in the best way.

3. David Byrne and Brian Eno, "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today": You know the quality you're going to get when you put these two gentlemen together. They worked on it from across the ocean, Eno shipping Byrne tracks to overlay soaring vocals. Unlike "My Life in the Bush of Ghosts" (1981), this one is easy to access, and although Byrne slyly jokes that "these beats are out of fashion," they've always been ahead of their time.

4. Vampire Weekend, "Vampire Weekend": Not many bands arrive with a faux Goth name, preppy clothes and white-boy Afro-pop songs about Cape Cod. Add a tsunami of hype and it becomes a semi-lethal combination for haters. For the rest of us, it's hard to resist the perky township jive of "Graceland" stripped down to four pieces with a kid who sounds like a young Sting.

5. [Expletive-d] Up, "The Chemistry of Common Life": This hardcore band packs more excitement into the first three minutes of the first song than some bands do in a whole album. If you thought the Metallica record sounded massive, experience these nearly 70 layers of tracks. With the screams, windmill guitar strokes and drum clatter, it's a bit like The Who discovering hardcore.

6. The Hold Steady, "Stay Positive": "Raise a toast to Saint Joe Strummer/I think he might have been our only decent teacher," Craig Finn enthuses on the opening track, as the band finds the meeting ground between Husker Du and the E Street Band. It doesn't stay that positively intense but does expand the band's palette -- more keyboards and textures -- while painting stories of desperate characters, missing persons, murder and mayhem.

7. Deerhunter, "Microcastle": The long-awaited follow-up from the Atlanta band is a drastic departure from " Cryptograms," which flipped between ambient drones and noisy indie-rock. Deerhunter finds the middle ground on "Microcastle," targeting its more jangly, melodic side, but there's still a sense of weird dudes making pop.

8. Fleet Foxes, "Fleet Foxes": The debut from this Seattle band sounds much like My Morning Jacket, with dreamy melodies and high lonesome vocals. But the record is so pretty we can give them a pass. It meanders along at its own pace, unconcerned with hooks and song structure, going from one soaring harmony to the next.

9. Santogold, "Santogold": She's often name-dropped in the same sentence of M.I.A., but this singer-rapper who formerly fronted a punk band goes beyond grime with better songs and a hint of New Wave.

10. Atmosphere, "When Life Gives You Lemons, Paint That [Stuff] Gold": Slug's raps here sometimes recall the working-class poetry of Springsteen and befitting the content, "Lemons" is a huge sonic leap for the Minneapolis duo, fleshed out with the soulful, funky textures of live musicians.

1. The Hold Steady, "Constructive Summer": A punk-rock anthem about the redemptive powers of ... punk rock, and friends drinking on water towers.

2. Santogold, "Les Artistes": Chilling put-down is the best New Wave song in years.

3. TV on the Radio, "Golden Age": Try to remain still for this beat and then try to not melt when that falsetto rolls in with "there's a golden age ... comin' 'round."

4. MGMT, "Time to Pretend": Monster-size pop hit is a hilarious, poignant send-up of rock-star lifestyle.

5. Eddy Current Suppression Ring, "Which Way to Go": Delicious throwback to the Buzzcocks.

6. Vampire Weekend, "M79": Perky pop music from the baroque period.

7. Fleet Foxes, "White Winter Hymnal": Harmonies worthy of the Beach Boys or CSN.

8. Al Green, "Lay it Down": The world's greatest soul singer back in his groove.

9. Mudcrutch, "Scare Easy": One of the 'DVE crowd, this is the best Tom Petty stuff in years.

10. Donora, "Shhh": I like ... when Casey does that whisper and stutter. A great single that should go beyond the 'Burgh.

I like these as much or more as the first list.

1. Allies, "Invisible Spectrum": A sonic storm reminiscent of early And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead with smart, passionate lyrics, starting with a lead-off track that could be the protest anthem for the corporate bailouts.

2.The Modey Lemon, "Season of Sweets": Nine songs demonstrating how the trio could easily go off on a garage-punk bender, challenge the metal or stoner-rock scenes or just become the world's most aggressive jam band.

3.Centipede Eest, "Confluence": A dangerous collision of heavy groovage, shredding psychedelic guitar noise, chanted vocals and a fearlessness to bust through any and all borders.

4.Girl Talk, "Feed the Animals": Another mind-blowing party mashup with more samples, more ingenuity, more intensity.

5. Don Caballero, "Punkgasm": Same pummeling yet intricate math-rock, now with vocals!

6. Grand Buffet, "King Vision": Prankster duo shape-shifts between hip-hop, New Wave and metallic rock.

7.Tobacco, "[Expletive] Friends": Black Moth Super Rainbow leader flies solo with endlessly groovy psychedelic space jam.

8. Lohio, "History, the Destroyer": Sophomore effort shifts from Americana toward power-pop with '60s flavor and gorgeous harmonies.

9. Donora, "Donora": Glorious New Wave-y pop with peppy beats and sing-song cheerleader choruses.

10. Burndowns, "Burndowns": Former Radio Beats frontman strikes back with more punk-rock that blows the garage door right off.