The Top 10:

1. Edguy - Hellfire Club

My choice for album of the year is very simple. We take my favorite actual band (not artist, that would be someone different) and it's obvious that they would come in at #1. Edguy is only getting better with each album, and with Hellfire Club, they've shown that they are ready to be the Iron Maiden of this decade. They carry the monicker of power metal better than any band since the glory days of Helloween, and they seem poised to break the genre back into the mainstream. From beginning to end, Hellfire Club features terrific melodies, technical guitar work, and one of the best singers in metal today. I'm sure most of you would laugh at me for liking this if you heard it (one person described the band as "Ass hats"), the fact remains that it's the best album of the year, whether you know it or not.

2. Elvis Costello - The Delivery Man

As if you didn't know this would show up on the list. The fact of the matter is this: Elvis Costello is one of the greatest songwriters around right now. He's been at this since the 70's, and he hasn't lost a step. Writing in every genre you can imagine, Elvis has proven to be better than almost all. This album is no exception, a tour of the American south, steeped in country flavor. Songs like "Bedlam" show off Elvis' penchant for wordplay, and he even thrown in the Oscar nominated song "The Scarlet Tide". Yes, I said Oscar nominated. And the real reason for this being #2 on the list is that my favorite song of the year, and one of my favorite songs ever came from this disc: "Either Side of the Same Town". You really should hear it.

3. Green Day - American Idiot

A punk band writing a rock opera? The idea seems rediculous, and the idea is rediculous. If you try to listen to this album with that concept in mind, you'll think it sucks. As an opera it does suck. but, if you consider it to be another album of three minute pop songs, you'll find that Green day has come up with another great album. The highlights are songs that everyone has heard on the radio by now, but the rest of the album doesn't fall off much from that pace. Overall, it's a step below their last album, the pop masterpiece Warning, but it's still damn good.

4. Fastball - Keep Your Wig On

You may remember these guys from their status as one hit wonders. Well, they're still around, and they put out the best pop record of the year. Forget your lousy MTV shit, these guys write better hooks. From the Beatles-esque "I Get High" to the feux country feel of "Airstream", Fastball has once again shown that the pop music on the radio blows in comparison to what can be done. With simple little songs that focus on melody, Fastball created an album of fun songs that's sure to make you smile.

5. Megadeth - The System has failed

What do you get for the music fan who wants to kill themselves over the apparent impending death of Metallica? Well, you get them this. Dave Mustaine is back for the final Megadeth album, and it's a killer. Going back into the bad of thrash riffs, Mustaine finds enough to keep this album going strong, all the while sounding as pissed off as he ever has. Songs like "The Scorpion" are enough to prove that he can write a good song when he wants to, and he doesn't have to impress everyone with speed to do it. I'm tempted to call this the best metal album of the year, but there is that pesky one at the top of the list that's better.

6. U2 - How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb

I know that U2 has been far too preachy in recent years, but I can't deny that they're good at what they do. They put out the best adult pop record this year. The songs are well constructed, the arrangements are perfect, and the Edge provides enough color to keep the songs rolling. It helps that this set of songs has better hooks on the whole than their last effort. While no one song on this is as good as "In a Little While", the album as a whole is far stronger. You might not like to hear it, but U2 isn't going away. They're still getting better.

7. Children of Bodom - Hate Crew Deathroll

Children of Bodom are one of those rare death metal bands that are fun. It shouldn't happen, but they are. From the frantically galloping guitars to the cheezy synthesizers, the band is fun. This album cuts back on the aforementioned synths, but it does show the band is tighter than ever. The songs are sharp, concise, and they still know how to shove a riff down your throat. Alexi may not have a good voice, even for the genre, but that's not going to stop this from being a fun little ride. At least the vocals are placed down in the mix.

8. Velvet Revolver - Contraband

As someone who still loves Guns N Roses to this day, seeing Slash back in the limelight was a nice thing. Of course, having an album of songs that are pretty good helps things out. From the driving riff of "Slither" to the majestic guitar in "Falling to Pieces", which is reminiscent of "Sweet Child O' Mine", The boys deliver a solid rock album, which is all you can really ask guys with egos this large to do. Weiland may not have been the best choice to front the band, but he doesn't hold them down too much.

9. Dio - Master of the Moon

I have a soft spot for power metal, and no one embodies the spirit more than Dio does. His songs about dragons and the like have been entertaining for a long time now, and Dio hit another good one this year. Master of the Moon may not be legendary, and it's not the greatest album I've ever heard, but it's a fun time. The songs are all decidedly mid tempo, but they feature a voice that should not be able to be that good, given Dio's age. The lyrics are typically ludicrous, and there's some that make you scratch your head, but who ever listened to this stuff for the lyrics?

10. Black Label Society - Hangover Music Vol VI

Zakke Wylde should stick to this type of stuff more often. I know that he's a technical guitar wizard, but he plays the worst and most boring sludge riffs most of the time. By stripping away the pretenses of metal, and crafting an album of southern ballads, Zakke showed that he has talent. The album features some beautiful piano led songs scattered with flowing solos. Without resorting to his usual bag of tricks (pinch harmonics anyone?), Zakke has convinced me that he is worth keeping on the scene. Now if only we can get him to stop singing.....

****

The Albums I Can't Decide if I like:

1. Killswitch Engage - The End of Heartache

I've heard a lot of hype about this album, and I've given it a fair number of times through my CD player, but I can't decide if I like it or not. There's some good points about the album: there's some great riffs throughout, and the singer has a good clean voice. But, for every good, there's a bad: every riff relies on the same pinch harmonic and three note hammer-on/pull-off, and the singer's growl is horrible and overused. For some reason I can't make up my mind on this one. Even though I don't think it's all that good, there's something about it that drawn me back when I'm in need of some violence.

2. Mastodon - Leviathan

This album is also critically acclaimed, which is the reason that I bothered to get a copy of it. It's a nice little piece of technical metal, but as with all prog/psuedo prog, I find myself bored too often, even when I should be in awe of the technical prowess.

3. Jimmy Eat World - Futures

I definately like this one better than Bleed American, but it seems to lack anything that makes it stand out. While listening to the album, the uptempo songs strike me as being very good. The slow songs flat out suck, but that's all right. The thing is, after listening to this one, I can't remember a single hook that came off the album. That should be a sign that it's not very good, but it still seems good when listening to it. It's an odd situation.

****

Stuff That Didn't Come Out This Year That I Discovered:

1. Sinergy

This is a band featuring Alexi Laiho from Children of Bodom that deviates from his usual thrash/death metal to bring a more Iron Maiden style power metal, which as we should know by now, is something I'm fond of. Sinergy combines some decent melodies with a female lead singer (odd for the genre) to create a mix that doesn't grate too much upon repeated listens. Plus, they covered an ABBA song. How cool is that?

2. Wilco

This year's A Ghost is Born is a decent little pop/rock album, but the reason to like this band is YankeeHotelFoxtrot, which is a fascinating little acoustic romp through somber pop music. It's a welcome relief that doesn't bludgeon eardrums with overproduction, instead choosing to be laid back and open with the arrangements. If you can get by some of the dumb lyrics, Wilco will provide a nice little escape from happiness for a few minutes.

3. The Late Era Megadeth Albums

I know that Megadeth is one of the major thrash bands, and I've heard far to often about their first four albums, but I have a soft spot for the later Megadeth albums. I'll admit it: I might be the only fan on Earth that owns only the albums after Rust in Peace. Does that make me weird? I'm sure it does. But, the thing that is missed on these albums is that Mustaine knows how to put a song together, whether it's at 200 bpm or 100. There's some gems to be found if you bother to listen (Breadline), and it becomes more than apparent that Mustaine was the most talented member of Metallica back in the early 80's.