Top 33 of the Year.....Numbers 27 - 26

27. Tamaryn - The Waves.

"Shoegaze is back! Run for the hills!" has been the cry from some naysayers over the past few years, but I'm not one of them. Tamaryn and Rex John Shelverton are a two-piece specialising in reverb-heavy guitar and low, sometimes ominous, vocals. While there's a lovely bass throb to the slower songs, it's when Tamaryn pick up the pace that things become really interesting. There's a terrific drive to songs like 'Sandstone' and 'Love Fade', and the femininity in Tamaryn's vocals add an ethereal touch that doesn't feel affected or out of place.

A more direct and shorter shoegaze hit than is traditional in the genre, let yourself be attracted to the darkness in Tamaryn's music.

26. Wild Nothing - Gemini.

This is the sort of album that John Hughes might have used to soundtrack Kevin Bacon's Jake Briggs meeting his fantasy woman in She's Having a Baby.

Wild Nothing specialise in 1980s dreamy fuzz-pop, not too dissimilar from the music being produced by The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Radio Dept. or the sadly-missed Dirty on Purpose. You can also hear the 4AD sound in the songs on Gemini, but this isn't a trite genre exercise. Just listen to the bursts of sunlight on 'Summer Holidays' and pop thrills of 'Chinatown' and you realise that while leading man Jack Tatum might glance back for inspiration, he's always looking ahead in the search for pure pop melody.

The Walkmen - Holiday Road

The Walkmen cover "Holiday Road"

Top 33 of the Year.....Numbers 29 - 28

29. Glasser - Ring.

Cameron Mesirow's debut set her apart from other female performers like Bat for Lashes and Fever Ray by being that bit more playful and other-worldly. It's a beautiful, lush and symphonic record, and warm too - something that's hard to achieve when working mainly with electronics.

There's the tribal opening of 'Apply', the groove of 'Glad', and the gorgeous chorus of 'Clamour' ends the record on just the right note.

It's worth also mentioning Mesirow's voice, which is simply lovely. Ring is a record that hints that there's better still to come.

28. Built to Spill - There Is No Enemy.


It wouldn't be an end of year list without veteran rockers and 78s faves Built to Spill on it.

After the disappointing Ancient Melodies of the Future and You in Reverse, BTS made their best record since the turn of the millenium with this, their 7th album. Full of the usual cartwheeling guitars, wonky yet keening vocals and meandering song structures, it sounds like Doug Martsch has found a new lease of life. For years Martsch has claimed that the songs of BTS contain no personal references, but it's hard to listen to the likes of "Planting Seeds", "Pat" and "Things Fall Apart" without wondering what he's gone through in the past ten years.

A very much welcome record, and hope that there's life in the old dog yet.

Mew - She Came Home For Christmas

Top 33 of the Year.....Numbers 31-30

31. Phosphorescent - Here's To Taking It Easy.



Following on from Willie Nelson tribute To Willie, Matthew Houck kept the country theme for his most straight-ahead album to date. With a full band in the studio for the first time, this was a country-rockin' record full of ragged riffs, horns, touring blues and, of course, good beery times. While sometimes veering towards convention, these songs really came alive on stage as Phosphorescent morphed from a one-man project into the fully-formed band that ripped up Glasgow twice in 2010.

The best is yet to come from Matthew Houck.



30. Efterklang - Magic Chairs.




Moving on from the pocket symphonies of Parades, and the actual symphonies produced from working with the Danish National Chamber Orchestra, Denmark's Efterklang returned with what could be described as their 'pop' album. There's still orchestras and choirs to be found here, but they're fitted around more structured songs. It's a rare band that's able to adapt strings and woodwind to fit a pop song -and thankfully these Danes avoid making it sound like Elbow or The Verve.

This is a band that realise the importance of harmony and experimentation, and are willing to move away from the traditional instrumentation of an "indie" band. 'Modern Drift' was also probably the best opening to an album all year.

Top 33 of the Year.....Numbers 33-32

33. Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record.

Five years on from their self-titled last album, uber-supergroup BSS returned with fire in bellies and this record,produced by Tortoise's John McEntire. It's the most coherent record the band has produced up to now, and despite paring down their members to a mere six it still contains as many ideas and genre-hops that most bands can only dream about over a whole career. It bears repeated listening to open up all the noise and glitches hidden behind the veneer of conventional indie pop songs.

A camel may be a horse designed by committee, but when the camel is this good you really can't complain.


32. Warpaint - The Fool.




Thankfully, this female foursome kept clear of the obvious Spectorisms of Dum Dum Girls and Best Coast to give us the frosty, Gothic The Fool. There's echoes of Cat Power, The Cure, New Romantics and Stevie Nicks in band's approach to the songs - but it sounds fresh and not in thrall to things past.


When Emily Kokal and Theresa Wayman sing, "now I've got you in the undertow" on standout track 'Undertow', it feels like the most sensual threat you're ever likely to hear cooed into your ear. Marvellous work.

Season's Greetings!

It's that time of year when we all start putting together our lists for Santa, and some of us also start to compile a different sort of list......that's right, the best music of 2010 list!

Beginning later today, the countdown of 78s Don't Wobble's Top 33 Albums of the Year will commence, and then continue until the big - and perhaps inevitable - reveal...probably around Christmas Eve if all goes to plan.

Which album will be kicking us off at number 33? Oh you'll just have to wait a little bit longer!

I'll also be dropping in some classic Christmas tunes over the coming weeks, so expect plenty of Sufjan Stevens. Until later though, here's a righteous cut from Christmas by Low, the essential seasonal record. Sing along if you know the words...and cue the sleigh bells: