It’s that time where I reveal 10 albums that I enjoyed throughout the year. My picks are personal favorites that were in constant rotation in my car stereo. I think a couple of the albums are no brainers that they made the list, and there might be a couple surprises.
So, in no particular order, here are my favorite albums of 2010.
Music From Glee: Journey to Regionals EP
I have reviewed a lot of Glee music this year, and my favorite batch of songs came from the Journey to Regionals EP. I love the Journey covers, but the shining gem is Jonathan Groff’s cover of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Seriously, go take a listen. It’s absolute ear candy.
Darren Criss: Human EP
Darren Criss is hands down the best thing that’s happened to my iTunes this year. His Human EP is made up of five relatable tracks that will pull on your heartstrings. I can’t wait to see what this singer-songwriter can do with a full studio album.
Ke$ha: Animal
I didn’t really know what to make of Ke$ha when “Tik Tok” first came out. After taking a listen to her album, I realized that homegirl’s music is absolutely infectious. If you want to feel good and dance, Animal was where it was at this year.
Sara Bareilles: Kaleidoscope Heart
The fabulously foul-mouthed Sara Bareilles returned to the spotlight with her latest album Kaleidoscope Heart earlier this year. I love a good f-u song that’s sung with a smile. After seeing Sara perform live this past fall, I found that her talent is not to be taken lightly.
Lee DeWyze: Live It Up
I always look forward to hearing music from American Idol winners, and this year was no different. Live It Up is a great batch of music. You can tell that a lot of thought and a lot of heart went into this album down to the order of the songs. I look forward to hearing how Lee interprets his music live when he hits the road in 2011.
Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Plenty of critics have said so much about this album, and I remember my first reaction being, “This is pretty rad.” I like that Kanye continues to take risks with his music. He’s probably the one artist in the music scene today that you can’t just stamp with a certain musical genre and move on. His music has so many different layers, that he’s re-defining what it means to be a music artist.
Eminem: Recovery
Recovery is the album that I had hoped Relapse was going to be. Plain and simple. It’s not that it had a huge hit singles; It’s that the album felt truthful from start to finish. This album makes me hope that Marshall Mathers can fight his demons and keep his life together, and continue to make great music.
Good Charlotte: Cardiology
It’s pretty cool to see a band that I have been a fan of for a long time come somewhat full circle with their career. After dabbling with different sounds on previous albums (Chronicles of Life and Death and Good Morning Revival), the band really took the best of all their albums and put together Cardiology. This album takes me back to their first album, with more mature lyrics and layered melodies.
Lifehouse: Smoke and Mirrors
There are only a couple bands that I legit run to the store for the day their new album comes out. Lifehouse is definitely one of these bands. And man, what an album! Smoke And Mirrors stayed put in my car stereo for months. What I love about this album is that the classic Lifehouse sound is still there, but they also went a little harder with “Here Tomorrow, Gone Today.” I would go as far to say that Smoke and Mirrors is my favorite album of 2010 along with…
Maroon 5: Hands All Over
If there was one album that I have been anticipating, it was Maroon 5’s Hands All Over. It had been three years and one remix album later, the band’s third album was finally released this past September! I remember being so excited listening to all the new songs, and falling instantly in love with “Stutter” and “Never Gonna Leave This Bed.” I really liked that they are taking more chances with their sound, and how they really embraced the pop/funk/soul side of them with this album.
As you can obviously tell, I have poptastic taste in music. I can’t help it. I love fun music that puts me in a good mood. Luckily, 2010 was filled with great music!
What were some of your favorite albums from 2010?
Wait...WHAT? 