The Top 20 Albums Of 2010
Looking back, 2010 was an exceptional year for popular music, and there's really no better time than in the dead of winter to reflect on the flurry of incredible sounds that came our way. Musicians we really respect made huge, and, in some cases, surprising artistic statements. Singers we'd never heard of six months ago are now at the top of our repeat list. And for this end-of-year celebration of the very best albums and songs of 2010, you'll see our tastes are as schizophrenic as ever. One second we're listening to glossy hip-hop, the next we're exploring to the outer reaches of human eccentricity with weirdo Outsider rock. No matter where your preferences fall in the spectrum, we invite you to dig in to this 20-song winter playlist of the best of the best...downloads included!
Download Refinery29's Best of 2010 Playlist [MP3].
1. Beach House—Teen Dream"Walk in the Park" [MP3]
Three albums into their career and we've stopped waiting for Beach House to run out of brilliant songs. Making this a top Indie album of 2010, shooting right to the top of our playlist in January and has stayed there all year long. Buy this album
2. Tame Impala—Innerspeaker"Alter Ego" [MP3]
Shimmering, sunshiney psychedelic pop with huge hooks. We want to live inside the sound of this album. Buy this album
3. James Blake—CMYK/Klavierwerke EPs"I Only Know (What I Know Now)" [MP3]
It's funny how injecting a little soul into detached London dubstep can instantly change machine music into something warm and inviting. Buy this album
4. Kanye West—My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy"Power" [MP3]
Unfiltered, unedited, and entirely brilliant. No, not Kanye's Twitter. This album--definitely the strongest musical statement of the year. Buy this album
5. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti—Before Today"Round and Round" [MP3]
How often is the year's weirdest album also the catchiest? This album reminds us of everything we love about L.A. Buy this album
All MP3s are for sampling purposes only. Please go out and buy the artists' records. If you would like for us to remove a track, please email us at feedback@refinery29.com.
