I have come to really dislike putting together "Best Of" lists or year-ending spreadsheets of music that everyone has already heard. This time I'm gonna do it differently...Shrie -style! These are just a few albums/songs/artists that tickled my fancy and got some good stereo-play at our house. Some are indie critic darlings (and disliked by many), some are sure-fire ins and some won't be at the top ofanyone's lists this year. It's a mish-mash of sonic goodness, extrapolated on by your friendly local music writer (and sometimes critic).

In alphabetical, not ranking, order. The "Top Ten" theme is too restrictive for my wily mind to grasp.

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at Neumo's

I fall in love with their love every time I see them live.

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During the YACHT portion of Saturday's AMAZING show (Matt and Kim are my heroes), the duo played this video. It's not nearly as cute as Matt and Kim (review and super rad photos coming soon), but it's pretty darn sweet.

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Noise for the Needy has announced the final lineup for their 2008 festival, which takes place June 11-15 at various venues around Seattle and raises funds for Urban Rest Stop.

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This JUST in: local non-profit Noise for the Needy has just pre-announced some great show dates for their forthcoming 2008 musical festival.

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at SXSW 2008

SXSW 2008: the Best Use of a Wah-Wah Pedal, Dance Moves, and Old Favorites.

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Sometimes I think it takes me waaay too long to come up with my Top 20 albums of a given year. There are a lot of internal debates and arguments that really have no right answer. Really, you reach a point where all the albums are good but how to rank them gets to be quite the challenge. This year was chock full of good music (not matter what the naysayers might groan). I counted something like 175+ albums worth mentioning in 2007, and that is only a tip of the iceberg when it comes to everything that was released in the year. However, I did whittle it down to 20... well, 22 if you count my 2 EP exception (EP's don't count as real albums).

If you're interested in some sub-lists, like my albums "with apologizes" (albums I didn't hear but should have) or "best imports" or "most disappointing" (hint, the band who made it rhymes with Milo Biley), check it out here.

So, here we go:

#21 The EP's - Two EP's made me happy this year, and really, they would be in the top 20, but it seems unfair to me to include EP's versus albums. They're both UK pop, and they're both brilliant in their own cute way.

Los Campesinos! Sticking Fingers Into Sockets (Thanks to igLiz for this band!)

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I Believe in You. Your Magic is Real is an unsung hero of 2007, coming in well under the radar for most music listeners.

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The night is going to be a feel good indie-pop dance party with the cute, musically inclined AV club that we call Architecture in Helsinki.

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