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Noah: I'm getting dangerously close to not needing to know what My Morning Jacket  is up to ever. But your point is well taken.

Steve: Give me an example of a 2011 band you'd like to hear from in 2012. For me, ironically (and we'll get into this in a minute) I'd be interested in a Bon Iver album in 2012.

Noah: I'd agree on Bon Iver, but the first one would be Wilco. We've gone on and on about them, but given the evolution in sound over their last three albums, I'd be thrilled to hear another album from them soon. Our favorites aside, I was so thrilled with the new Handsome Furs album (more on that later too) that I'd take a new album from them yesterday.

So let's start with our #10 albums of the year... Mine is one that you hated - Noah and the Whale's Last Night on Earth.

Steve: I won't slag them too badly since this should be about celebrating the music we loved, but I did not like Noah and the Whale's output on Last Night on Earth. I found the lyrics to be pedestrian at best, and actively annoying at worst. My favorite song on the album could best be described as a novelty hit (L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.). I quickly moved on to other stuff and never looked back. For the record, I rated Last Night on Earth 89th out of the 90 albums I listened to this year.

Noah: Did you like their previous album, 2009's The First Days of Spring?

Steve: I liked it okay ... it would probably earn a So So from me.

Noah: It never connected with me, but I really liked Last Night on Earth.

Steve: My #10 album was Yuck by the band Yuck. I thought it was a startlingly good, sure-footed debut from a band well-versed in early '90s pastiche; I hear everything from Dinosaur Jr. to Soul Asylum to Velocity Girl bleeding through their melodies.

Noah: I did not connect with it at all. I should probably re-listen to it, but realistically I never will. Two listens and out for me.

Steve: That album was everything I loved about early college and the alternative music era wrapped up in a dozen songs... I think that has a lot to do with my ranking. "Suicide Policeman" is a song I'd like to feature here.

What's next for you?

Noah: At #9 on my list is Rural Alberta Advantage's Departing. We had a couple of Song of the Day posts about this one, but top to bottom it's a very good sophomore effort.

Steve: I loved Departing - I had it at #8 on my list. These links to song of the day content should say more than I can here. I'm going to go to my #6 record - readers can check back in the coming days for our full lists, including my obsessive compulsively compiled list of 1 to 90 of all the albums I listened to this year. My #6 album from this year was by The Dodos, No Color. Their first two albums were a little sloppy and disorganized. Even though that was kind of the point and the appeal of their sound on those albums, I like that No Color seems a bit more cohesive thematically. Also, the playing/production is crisp without sacrificing that raw energy they're so good at bringing into their music. And lastly, they got Neko Case to sing background vocals, which is like sprinkling the entire album with awesome dust. No Color definitely represents a step forward for The Dodos. I'm ultimately a little surprised how much affinity I have for this record but it has really stuck with me since its March release. The representative song is "Going Under".

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