Gets better and better with each play. Great songs, wonderful arrangements, a collection of 'pop' songs which repay repeated listenings with great depth. Beautifully played by a group of multi instrumentalists - the next Mercury winner.

The National - 'High Violet' It's a fantastic piece of work, powerful, moving, clever. What more do you want?

Anais Mitchell - 'Hadestown'. A retelling of the Orpheus & Eurydice myth set in depression era America with a cast of players including Justin 'Bon Iver' Vernon, & Ani Difranco. And if that's not enough it got a rave review in the Word.

New Josh Ritter
Jackson Browne / David Lindley live
Midlake

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach;
Anais Mitchell - Hadestown;
Caribou - Swim;
Deutsche Elekronische Musik - Various Artists;
Janelle Monae - The ArchAndroid;

Another vote for the National's High Violet.As with all of their music this is a grower.

David Ford - Let the Hard Times Roll
I still fancy this man will finally get some of the commercial credit he so richly deservea. A fine collection of damn good songs.

Alejandro Escovedo - Street Songs of Love
Rockier than his earlier stuff. Tremendous voice, this man has truly lived the life he sings about.

Pernice Brothers -goodbye killer.
OK I have only listened to this once properly and I usually give albums three concentrated listens before reaching an opinion, but after 4 years of novel writing Joe Pernice proves he hasn't lost the knack of writing great harmonies attached to ever so depressing lyrics.

There's been a lot of albums I've really liked this year but if I had to narrow it down to three I'd go for Josh Rouse, Marina & the Diamonds and James Taylor & Carole King.

Howe Gelb & The Band of Gypsies
Harper Simon
Kings Go Forth
Tracey Thorn
The Mynabirds

The Fall -- Your Future, Our Clutter
The Fall's latest arrives with the thunder of a thousand weaponised monkeys, yet is also strangely tender. Smith's new theme, it seems, is his own mortality and he doesn't so much ponder it as taunt it. Magnificent, and anybody who says otherwise is obviously a complete, er... esteemed magazine director.

Actress -- Splazsh
Not quite as good as the debut, being less immersive; plus there are one or two tracks that outstay their welcome. Even so, this is 2010 electronica at its finest: deep, dubby, soulful machine music.

James Holden -- DJ Kicks
An incredible mix of shoegaze, hauntology and contemporary Krautrock from the erstwhile prog DJ. The first section, which builds to Holden's own remix of Mogwai's The Sun Smells Too Loud isn't so much heard as experienced, and deep within your bones. Neither does it go downhill from there. In a word: whoosh. If you buy one mix album this year, make it this one...

Agoria -- Balance 016
...or this one. A little more laidback and eclectic, Agoria's entry into the brilliant Balance series mixes horizontal electronica with modern classical for a two-disc mix that is far more than the sum of its parts. Impressive, as Lord Vader would say.

The Unwinding Hours -- The Unwinding Hours
God, how I miss Aereogramme. Why -- why did you have to leave me just after making your best album? Luckily they have formed The Unwinding Hours, and this debut, while not on a par with anything under the Aereogramme name, will keep me going in their absence. At least I can stop going through their bins now.

Emeralds -- Does it Look Like I'm Here
Psychedelia and shoegaze once again. Anything from this brilliant, uplifting album could have found its way onto Holden's mix above.

Liars -- Sisterworld
Brilliant, perplexing, actually slightly addictive alt rock. I can never play this album just once; I always want to live in it a bit longer. Why, when there are so many people doing boring things with guitars, aren't Liars more famous than they are?

The Chemical Brothers -- Further
Almost a guilty secret, since the Chemical Brothers officially obtained pantshood two albums ago, but they really have pulled it out of the fire here. Again it's one of those albums that drags you into its universe so that even though it has its outstanding tracks it's actually the whole that keeps me coming back for more.

Disappointments

Gorillaz -- Plastic Beach.
Admire and like, just can't quite love, despite the presence of MES.

UNKLE -- Where Did the Night Fall?
I'm hard-wired to like what UNKLE do, but this is muddy and directionless. Lovely packaging, though.

Broken Bells -- Broken Bells
Wonderful opener -- one of my most played of the year. But what happened to the rest of it?

On edit:

It's bugging me that I forgot to add...

In 'best of year so far'
Eels -- End Times
Which evaded me for a while, because I couldn't get past the fact that it wasn't quite as good as Hombre Lobo, but I now think it is its equal. "She locked herself in the bathroom again, so I am pissing in the yard." What a lyric.

in disappointments
Emma Pollock -- The Law of Large Numbers
I loved Watch the Fireworks, and I adore everything about the Delgados, but this somehow lacks what I love about them both. It's too show-offy; the kind of album you have to force yourself to listen to.

1. Gabriella Cilmi - Ten (Way, way better than I expected)

2. New Young Pony Club - The Optimist (Some good songs but doesn't quite add up as a whole album)

3. Melissa Auf Der Maur – Out Of Our Minds (Okay if a bit fiddly to be straight forward enjoyable)

4. Sparrow and the Workshop - Crystals Fall (Have a good folk-rock sound but the songs aren't quite there)

5. The Drums - The Drums (It's fairly good but repetitive musically and lyrically. Threatens to get tired very quickly)

6. Lucky Soul - A Coming Of Age (It's okay but lacking something to push it further)

7. Christina Aguilera - Bionic (Has some good songs and a fair amount of filler. Neither good or bad)

8. Katie Melua - The House (Has a few standout tracks, but overall okay at best)

9. Goldfrapp - Head First (The X factor has been lost)

10. Amy MacDonald - A Curious Thing (The songs, stories and emotions are just not there)

11. Marina and the Diamonds - The Family Jewels (Her affected roller-coaster vocal performances are not good)

12. Dum Dum Girls - I Will Be (Very indifferent scuzzy lo-fi pop)

13. Magnetic Fields - Realism (I have no idea how the band that recorded the majestic 69 Love Songs have failed with every other album I've heard to even hit the heights of merely okay)

14. Vampire Weekend - Contra (One good single, Cousins, but the rest is crap)

High Violet by The National for me. As with every other album by them I just know that each song on it will be my favourite at some point. Currently its I'm Afraid of Everyone & thats one of the few that didn't do much for me on my first listen!

However, 'This Is Happening' by LCD Soundsystem is a close second. I think its an excellent, fully rounded album & a pity its going to be their last!

Troubadour by K'Naan was officially released last year but has been re-released. (At some annoyance to me I should add, I paid £17 getting it from the US last April & could now get it from hmv.com for £8.99!) Anyone who has not had a listen should give it a go, songs like 'Somalia' & 'Take A Minute' are beautiful

Yeasayers latest deserves an honourable mention too.

at the start of the year and may not exist by its end; the eponymous album from Dixie Chicks spin off, Court Yard Hounds is great.
Then there is Band of Horses and their CD Infinite Arms.
The Tracey Thorn album mentioned by a few others is a very pleasant surprise.

Love and its Opposite - Tracey Thorn
Queen of Denmark - John Grant
Have One On Me - Joanna Newsom
The Glare - McAlmont & Nyman
The Foundling - Mary Gauthier

If I had to pick one it'd be Joanna Newsom.

but so far these are my favourites:
1. Galactic - Ya-Ka-May ( funky, jazzy, hippie & hoppy...no, not four more Disney dwarfs, just the infectious sound of this New Orleans' group. Will grow on you. )
2. Darwin Deez - Darwin Deez ( No, it's no more repetitious or one note in it's sound than most other albums, you're just not listening properly! Great songs. )
3. Vampire Weekend - Contra ( Didn't like it at first, but then something just clicked. Of course, now I've reached the point when I've listened to it too many times, and start to get tired of it... )
4. John Grant - Queen Of Denmark ( Again, had a hard time liking this at first; loved the songs individually but found it a bit depressing to hear them all in one go. But after seeing him live I don't mind listening to the whole album any more! The positive emotions and atmosphere surrounding that gig has transferred to the recording. )
5. Laura Marling - I Speak Beacause I Can ( Lovely voice and songs that I find myself humming for days after listening to them. )
6. Beach House - Teen Dream ( Subtle, quirky pop songs that gets under my skin. )
7. Tunng - ...And Then We Saw Land ( One of those albums that just makes me smile, and I can't quite say why. I'm not sure I could hum any of these songs if you asked me to, but they get me in a good mood. )
8. Jónsi - Go ( Loved the faster songs from the start, now I'm warming up to the slow ones as well. Voice of an angel. )
9. Field Music - Field Music ( Always interesting, but not really easy to love. Music for the head, not the heart. )
10. Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me ( Hard to get in to, but rewarding when you do. I think it will climb on this list during the months ahead, as some of the ones at the top right now falls down. By the time I write the full time list I can imagine it will have reached my top five, maybe even top three. I usually don't like extremely long songs, but her songs actually get better the longer they are! )

Disappointments so far:
Gorillaz - Plastic Beach ( No substance, and not enough fun. )
Midlake - the Courage Of Others ( Just shoot me now. )

Enjoyed the Gorillaz album, although I can tell it's one of those I'm going to stop playing soon and probably never play again.
Also really like the Divine Comedy album, although it sort of drops in quality a bit in the middle and then picks up again with the three strange songs at the end.
I think my favourite album of the year so far, certainly the one I've played the most, is Marina and the Diamonds 'The Family Jewels'.

The Japanese record company Promising Music has been re-releasing classic but rather obscure 1970s jazz from the German MPS label. My favourite of the reissues so far has been:

Zbigniew Seifert- "Man of the Light"

For a really thorough appraisal of this wonderful album, check out John Kelman's review of it on the All About Jazz website.

http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=35905

For now, I'll just say that if you fancy a prime slice of uplifting 1977 violin-led Polish jazz, then step this way. It's really great. No, honest, it is.

Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
Paul Weller - Wake Up The Nation

Will soon be procuring Divine Comedy's Bang Goes The Knighthood - the list is likely to become a Top 3 based on the recommendations here and elsewhere

...a mite disappointed with many releases so far this year, so I'm going to reserve judgement at this point. Maybe some will grow on me as the year pans out.

For those paying attention, you will remember that my favourite band of the moment (for the past five years and counting) are The Black Angels. I fully expect their third album (it's released in September)to be up there in my top five come 31st December, especially after hearing this...

Albums I've enjoyed so far this year:

Yeasayer - Odd Blood (except the first track which is pants).
Hot Chip - One Night Stand (has grown on me exponentially).
Beach House - Teen Dream (lovely).
LCD Soundsystem - It's Happening (if it really is his last, it's a good way to go out).

Singles of the Year:

Kelis - Acapella (just great).
Plan B - Stay Too Long (ditto).

Disappointments:

Goldfrapp - Head First (enjoyed it for the first few plays, but then haven't played it since).
Gorillaz - Plastic Beach (just don't get it: my fault I'm sure).

I've got:

Avett Brothers - growing on me

Lissie - quite west coast - worth a listen - good voice

Stornaway - nu-folk - great lyrics - different sound. Contemplating going to see them in November

Tracey Thorn - have 2 tracks off her album - and am thinking of buying it

Jakob Dylan - talented son of Bob - but sounds like that Robert Plant and Alison Krauss record - need to get into it

Mumford and Sons - great album. too much hype ?

Vampire Weekend - different sort of pop

Justin Currie - if you like your Del Amitri - well worth a listen

Band of Skulls - a real grower - old fashioned rock

Silver Seas - Chateau Revenge - not as poppy as first album - talented group

Laura Marling - powerful stuff - very talented - looks so fragile and shy when performing

Imagined Village - second album poor - saw them in concert in Reading

Finally......

Danny and the Champions of the World - as it appeared on the Word disc - good album

The National;
Teenage Fanclub;
John Grant;
Gil Scott-Heron;
Midlake;
The Hold Steady;
Drive-By truckers;
Band of Horses;
Broken Bells;
Gorillaz.

I own the Field Music album but ain;t gotten around to plaing it yet