2007: A Year in Music (Part 1)

10. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (City Slang / Sonovox)

No term in the music press is bandied about as flippantly as 'difficult second album'. This ostensible longing for a sophomore slump leaves many a band on the recording trail of a follow up LP caught somewhere between a rock and hard place. You're damned if you stick, you're damned if you twist. Cue Arcade Fire to prove everybody wrong. Splicing the enthusiasm, passion and archetypal beauty of their debut with a range of unforeseen influences and darker intonations, they climbed atop said rock, performed a mocking dance and showed that the terms 'best foot forward' and 'step into the unknown' need not be distant relatives. Neon Bible is an asphyxiating charge through an emotional dictionary, the likes of which had been shelved since Funeral. Possibly the finest act in the world today with definitely one of the greatest cuts of 2007. Well, we reckon. [Finbarr Bermingham]

9. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam (Domino)

With their cult fan-base - reeled in by previous experimental efforts such as Sung Tongs and Feels - it was perhaps inevitable that the Animal Collective going 'pop' was going to cause a critical dichotomy. If Feels was Panda Bear, Avey Tare, Geologist and Deacon taking some tentative steps away from their campfire, freeform psychedelic roots, then Strawberry Jam saw the veteran New York ensemble well and truly fly the coup. Lead single Peacebone served as an accurate blueprint and, ultimately, the highlight of what was to follow. In an alternative reality, its deliriously giddy maelstrom of laser-guided chaos and hyper-undulating vocals would have taken over Rihanna's Umbrella as the chart-hogging pop anthem of 2007. Alas, until the rest of the world catches on, the Collective will have to make do with gushing plaudits from the alternative music press, including being one of The Skinny's albums of the year. Sorry chaps. [Darren Carle]

8. The National - Boxer (Beggars Banquet)

"Hopefully we're not gonna lose the fans because we don't have any screaming songs on this" fretted The National's Matt Berninger back in April. The man needn't have worried. Fast forward seven months and victory seems assured for the Brooklyn quintet. "It's been a huge year for us" he now says, retrospectively. "We've suddenly got a whole new, much bigger audience so it's been a massive change. This is the year the band came out of the shadows." Although their 4th LP, Boxer, didn't exactly emerge from the locker room swinging, it slowly revealed itself to be a blindsiding heavyweight with a considerable left hook, full of nuances sure to floor anybody curious enough to afford it the time. Full of character-driven monologues and ugly truths, Berninger rasps over estrangement and body politics while the music takes its grip. And once it has you on the ropes, Boxer refuses to let go; Mistaken for Strangers will knock the wind out of your gut while Racing Like a Pro – featuring one Sufjan Stevens on keys no less - is guaranteed to deliver the knockout blow. "It's about reconnecting with friends" offers Berninger. Cilla Black move over. [Dave Kerr]

7. Okkervil River - The Stage Names (Jagjaguwar)

Speaking recently to The Skinny, Okkervil River's lead singer Will Sheff likened penning an album to cooking a meal: "You need to have an idea what's going to come of it and make sure you've got the ingredients to produce that outcome." This year, Sheff created The Stage Names: in gastronomic terms, a wholesome feast of sumptuous melodies served up with rich, vintage instrumentation. A rarity these days, it's an uber-intelligent album from start to finish, played by a proper full band that embraces a set of songs about the escapism of TV, film, literature, and, of course, being in a rock band. It chugs (Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe), it swoons (A Girl In Port), it borrows (John Alyn Smith comes with the full Sloop John B chorus) and with every other spin, The Stage Names unravels itself to reveal a tapestry so polished, you could eat your dinner off it. [Finbarr Bermingham]

6. Radiohead - In Rainbows (Self Released/XL)

Albums leak online every day and nobody talks about them. A few people pick them up, buzz slowly builds, there are interviews, gigs, eventually CDs. In Rainbows' leak would always be more of an event than most others, but the way in which this internet leak was announced, controlled and spun to become an 'official' release that fans could pay for, if they wanted, was ingenious. By keeping the master tapes within a very tight and trusted circle, and not sending promos to journalists or bloggers, Radiohead brought the excitement of collective anticipation back to music fans. Meanwhile, a befuddled music industry tried to gather the long-term possibilities of the 'In Rainbows-model', and artists across the world wondered if their dedicated fans might pay for 'official' leaks they can otherwise get for free. Nobody yet knows the full ramifications of In Rainbows, 2007's most revolutionary release - but the album wasn't bad either. [Ally Brown]