Narrowing down my favorites for this year was HARD! I’m sure I’ll find even more 2007 releases I adore in 2008... but here’s what has been in obsessively high rotation this year.

Note: I still battle with how I can rank EPs versus full albums, or collections of previously unreleased material… but using my current logrhythm, here’s what it came out to today...

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On the off chances that 1) anyone cares what their friendly neighborhood imaginary film and theater critic thinks about the year's music releases, and 2) anyone is doing anything at all during the dead 'tween-holidays week, much less reading top-ten lists, here are my favorite albums of the year, alpha by artist:

• The Apples in Stereo – New Magnetic Wonder
• The Eames Era – Heroes + Sheroes
• Imperial Teen – The Hair The TV The Baby & The Band
• Just Jack – Overtones
• LCD Soundsystem – Sound of Silver
• Jens Lekman – Night Falls Over Kortedala
• Menomena – Friend and Foe
• The New Pornographers – Challengers
• Radiohead – In Rainbows
• Tracey Thorn – Out of the Woods

My films-of-the-year feature (coming early '08) will be far more compelling. Promise.

The video features the band begrudgingly playing a kid's birthday party, and the snide hipster comments from the party attendees.

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at Athens Popfest

In short, Athens and its residents are total peaches. I want to hug them and the aforementioned indie-pop bands in residence until they bleed.

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