Birthday Bashes Abound! Lily Celebrates Turning One! Dad and Mom Refuse to Acknowledge Their Pending Mortality!

I will have my cake and eat it too!

Ugh, this looks like clothes.

Smiling on command is for the weak.

Top Albums of 2010, Handfelt'd

1. Vampire Weekend: Contra - A creative and wholly unique mixture of melodies and guitars that causes unbridled happiness in a much more compact, affordable package than Prozac. A musical science experiment that's quirky yet accessible, sweet but never cloying.
2. Spoon: Transference - Their most challenging yet rewarding album yet. If "Written In Reverse" doesn't make you want to go tackle a cat, I don't know what will.
3. The Black Keys: Brothers - A step in the right direction after the comparatively disappointing Attack & Release, this take no prisoners opus could have been #1 if they'd trimmed some of the fat off the last half of the album.
4. Mumford & Sons: Sigh No More - Rousing, sing-along pub rock at it's finest and one of the best live shows I saw in 2010. Weather or not they're "authentic" enough is a debate best left to the skinny jean Pitchfork nerds.
5. Arcade Fire: The Suburbs - Another album with loads of brilliance, that like the Black Keys, could have used a better editor. These guys are peerless when it comes to rocking the concept album.
6. The Dead Weather: Sea of Cowards - Dirty rock, loud guitar Album of the Year from one of Jack White's 627 side projects.
7. LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening - Stuff this danceable is usually outside of my comfort zone, but this is essentially dance music for old white guys. I fit the bill perfectly.
8. Kings of Leon: Come Around Sundown - I was justifiably leery after their last album of fairly generic stadium rock, as I've always preferred their Dirty South sound, but they rebounded nicely with this one, which took me months to finally pull the trigger on. Detractors will have their way with the meandering pace and lack of crunchy riffs, but in my mind this is one of the best, chill albums of the year.
9. My Chemical Romance: Danger Days - It would be a mistake to pigeon hole these glam rockers as an emo flash in the pan. Think Ziggy Stardust meets Queen with a little cock rock swagger thrown in for good measure.
10. MGMT: Flash Delirium - There are no real catchy singles like on their debut, but there also aren't any real clunkers either. Solid hipster tuneage.

Honorable Mention:

Butch Walker: I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart - Not his best effort, but Days/Months/Years was certainly one of the better songs of last year, and the album has it's definite Butch-y moments.
Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - He's a real douche, but his genius label is somewhat justified. But he's still a douche.
The Soft Pack: Self Titled - California garage rock with some punch.
Pete Yorn: Self Titled - This guy churns out albums like I churn out hyperbole, and this one is one of his better efforts in some time.
Band of Horses: Infinite Arms - "Laredo" is a great song. The rest of the album struggles at times to live up to that gold standard, but is still a pleasant ride.

Other albums I enjoyed to one extent or another: Buckcherry, All Night Long; Stone Temple Pilots, Self Titled; Broken Social Scene, Forgiveness Record; Gaslight Anthem, American Slang

Biggest disappointments: The New Pornographers, Together; Broken Bells, Self Titled; Gorillaz, Plastic Beach; Hot Chip, One Night Stand