1. Morel "Queen Of The Highway" The best record I have heard in the past 10 years, hands down. I can't stop crying when I listen to "Mean Time", and "Over" is the pop song of the decade, built around the line "all of my dreams of love and affection are over." Richard is one of the sweetest people I've ever met, which only makes me love it that much more. Can't recommend it enough. 2. Boards Of Canada "Geogaddi" A beautiful atmospheric record. Some people compare them to MBV, and there are similarities in that melody is always present, in addition to the layers and textures that build throughout the work. 3. Swayzak "Himawari" A very close second. It's a Summer 2000 release that my friend Mark C spun at the FDNY benefit in November, and I remember dropping whatever I was doing so I could find out what it was. Cool chillin' kinda grooves that work anytime of the day or night. 4. Daft Punk "Discovery" My latest guilty pleasure. This has been out for a while as well, but it's so damn catchy and upbeat, how can you not crank it on the highway? A gym we go to in Atlanta played "Harder Better..." every day at the same exact time, I felt like I was in the movie Groundhog Day. 5. The Czars "Ugly People vs. Beautiful People" Haunting arrangements, harrowing stories, a unique mix of classic styles. The vocal stylings remind me of Phil Ochs, sometimes Lou Barlow, you get the idea. 6. Death Cab For Cutie "Forbidden Love" EP A late 2000 release, picked it up at an in-store in St. Louis the other day, and it was a great soundtrack for the Iowa stretch of I-35. I always enjoy this group's music. 7. Joey Ramone "Don't Worry About Me" A great record, a great loss to the music community. No worries. 8. . Her Space Holiday "Manic Expressive" Come early, and see them for yourselves on the COLAS tour. I'm thrilled that Marc and Keely are along for the ride, it will add so much to the evenings. 9. Tanya Donnelly "Beautysleep" Her most centered work in years, it's nice to hear Tanya enjoying herself once again. A solid collection of pop songs, with the appropriate production feel. 10. Arling And Cameron "We Are A+C" It's getting a lot of play in the car; I especially like the title track, it's so funny and cute.