(t5!) My Year In Lists 2005: Albums! 20 to 4

20. Jens Lekman - Oh You're So Silent Jens (Secretly Canadian)

Sung over temperate instruments and obvious samples, this monotonous Swede croons witty and humurous lyrics about his girl problems.

19. Amos Lee - Amos Lee (Blue Note)

This Philadelphia singer-songwriter's fusion of folk and soul got him branded as the male version of labelmate Norah Jones.

18. Nouvelle Vague - Nouvelle Vague (Peacefrog)

Donning a moniker that means new wave in French and bossa nova in Portuguese, it's the most accurately named band of 2005, describing their bossa nova covers of new wave classics.

17. Robbers On High Street - Tree City (New Line)

New Yorkers rob Spoon's template of toe-tapping melodies and danceable rhythms and records an album that rivals their experienced counterparts.

16. Various Artists - Verve Remixed, Vol. 3 (Verve)

Verve's classic jazz collection prepared for the dance floor by the world's hottest track magicians and electronica producers.

15. Stars - Set Yourself On Fire (Arts & Crafts)

Charming string ensembles and co-ed harmonies about awkward ex encounters, post-heartbreak sex, and lovers' quarrels.

14. Architecture In Helsinki - In Case We Die (Bar None)

If a more joyful Arcade Fire and a more conventional Fiery Furnaces had a twee-pop lovechild, this Australian octet would be it.

13. Of Montreal - The Sunlandic Twins (Polyvinyl)

Neo-psychedelic band of Athens, GA (not Montreal) continues their wave of electro-60's pop infusion with this seventh album.

12. The National - Alligator (Beggars Banquet)

Rock music about apologies, alienation and regret that is sung fittingly in Berninger's baritone, reminscent of Joy Division's Ian Curtis.

11. Spoon - Gimme Fiction (Merge)

After five albums of minimal guitars, straightforward drum beats, and flourishing piano stomps, it's no fiction how marvelous this band is.

10. Sigur Ros - Takk (Geffen)

These Icelandic experimentalists orchestrate a soundtrack to Iceland's lighter side with their trademark crescendos, inaudible howls, and celestial arrangements.

9. Kanye West - Late Registration (Roc-A-Fella)

The cockiest preppy of hip-hop administers some soul in present-day top 40 charts while trying to dodge George W. Bush's radar screens.

8. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (Self-Released)

With possibly one of the worst band names in music, this Brooklyn five-piece invade the post-punk scene in true do-it-yourself fashion.

7. Caribou - The Milk Of Human Kindness (Leaf/Domino)

A born-again debut from the artist formerly known as Manitoba, tackling IDM tracks that are completely detached from his works before the alias change.

6. Antony And The Johnsons - I Am A Bird Now (Secretly Canadian)

Daunting themes conveyed outstandingly using this sexually ambiguous musician's ghostly piano and his (or her) Nina Simone-like, vibrato-filled vocals.

5. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm (Vice)

Each detail--simultaneous pauses, cymbal crashes, energetic hooks--tweaked flawlessly in this confident debut by London's newest guitar rockers.

4. Feist - Let It Die (Interscope)

Anyone who's familiar with Broken Social Scene's Almost Crimes know that this Canadian chanteuse's voice has enough allure and charisma to leave the whole galaxy breathless.