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25. Cuz I Love You

by Lizzo (2019)

I was a little late on the Lizzo train. When I got aboard this seemed like the hottest upcoming album and I was so excited for the release. Then I started listening to it and song after song I couldn't stop smiling. I was expecting an album of feminine power but I was shocked line after line at her confidence. From that very first listen I knew this would be my album of the year. There is just so much personality on this thing through the candid laughs and just Lizzo being her authentic self. The energy is so incredibly infectious. I could go on for hours about this album.

24. Never Trust A Happy Song

by Grouplove (2011)

Pure fun at its finest. These songs have aged so well and have become so nostalgic. I appreciate this album way more now than I did when it came out. It never fails to give me a burst of youthfulness.

23. ★ (Blackstar)

by David Bowie (2016)

One of the most fascinating yet heartbreaking moments in music I have ever experienced. I listened to David Bowie's last album the day it came out not knowing it would be the last on my way home from college on a Friday. It was pretty amazing to be honest. It was like nothing I had really ever heard which is kind of to be expected from Bowie. Then the news dropped on Monday that he had passed. I was at once amazed and heartbroken. This album was about his death, it all made so much sense to me. It was the most artistic thing that I have ever encountered. He went out exactly how he lived.

22. Stay Gold

by First Aid Kit (2014)

This album should be required listening for all early twenty somethings. This album is about finding yourself, dealing with hard times, and growing up. It manages to be realistic yet hopeful. For me it was like getting advice from a comforting friend. It was my album of the year in 2014 and I really saw this thing as my album of the decade back then. This is a near perfect album and it will always be very special to me.

21. Superorganism

by Superorganism (2018)

Missed this one last year then it became my workout album in early 2019. Superorganism is amazing. It's an experience, it's pure positivity, it's super experimental and of course so much fun! Another artist that gives me so much hope for the future of music. Just go listen now please, no matter who you are you won't regret it.

20. Helplessness Blues

by Fleet Foxes (2011)

This album has become so mythical and legendary, or maybe it always was. It is just so timeless. Indie folk was already headed downhill when this beauty was released. I very much think this was the critical pinnacle of the genre although it isn't quite my personal favorite.

19. What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?

by The Vaccines (2011)

I still vividly remember listening to this for the first time walking around my neighborhood with nothing better to do. The lyrics spoke to me, it was catchy, it's just the full package. It really is to me an example of a tight, succinct, perfect album. It deals with one of my favorite themes, gripping tightly to escaping youth.

18. Contra

by Vampire Weekend (2010)

Talk about a classic. I knew of Vampire Weekend before I even started my music collection and their debut was in my original 40 albums I downloaded in my first week or so. I wasn't a huge fan back then but my love has grown for them throughout the decade. I eventually downloaded Contra and it sat in my library for many years not getting much attention. Then on my first trip to visit Nanette in Cape Coral where we now live I played it as I lounged poolside and I fully understood the album for the first time. I became the tropical version of myself and never looked back.

17. The Money Store

by Death Grips (2012)

Go listen to this, right now. The first twenty seconds tells you all you need to know. This is pure unbridled energy. It instantly pumps into your bloodstream and you want to turn up the volume as loud as you possibly can. You don't feel this way? Maybe it's just me. Death Grips ruled the decade, they created something wholly new and creative. This was when I understood, alone in my car on full blast. The Money Store was at just the right mix between being accessible and one of the weirdest things I've ever heard that it worked for me.

16. Trouble Will Find Me

by The National (2013)

This album has such a specific mood. It allowed me to wallow in my feelings just the right amount without feeling too down or emotional. It's also beautiful, calming, albeit slightly depressing. It helped me just as much as Stay Gold did just in a different way.

15. Nothing Is Wrong

by Dawes (2011)

We saw Dawes five times this decade. They are my most seen live act and everytime they are absolutely amazing. Taylor Goldsmith is truly one of the best songwriters of our generation. And man does he know how to write a devastating love song, he does it several times on this album. There were times when I couldn't make it through songs like "Moon in the Water" without bursting into tears. "A Little Bit of Everything" just might have the best lyrics of the decade.

14. The Lion's Roar

by First Aid Kit (2012)

A little more rambunctious and fed up with things First Aid Kits debut album has this fire in it that Stay Gold does not. "King of The World" is probably in my top ten favorite songs of the decade.

13. The Suburbs

by Arcade Fire (2010)

Another top contender for album of the decade early on. This has become one of the most classic albums in my entire catalog. It was the first album I ever anxiously awaited it's release. I discovered Arcade Fire through the trailer for Where The Wild Things Are and fell in love with their album Funeral when I added it to my library. Then not too long later I heard that The Suburbs was coming out. I pre-ordered it on iTunes and waited up late one night at my dad's house for it to be released at midnight. I downloaded the tracks, headed to my dark room, got in bed and put in my headphones. It's one of my most vivid music memories. I was instantly transfixed by every song. "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)" is my song of the decade, I'll claim that right here right now.

12. Pure Heroine

by Lorde (2013)

This was the very first step on my journey towards pop. Pure Heroine, recommended to me by Nanette, sounded just "underground" and cool enough for my hipster and pompous self to give it a chance. This pure, new, fresh indie pop sound laid the foundation for the current mainstream pop landscape. Lorde was such a defining artist of the decade, she did for popular music what Death Grips did for underground music. Billie Eilish just recently took this sound and pushed it even further to something totally brand new. This album just sounds so shiny, sweet, and almost metallic. It is such a clean and shimmering sound while also sounding very sentimental. I love it everytime I listen!

11. The Firewatcher's Daughter

by Brandi Carlile (2015)

One of the warmest and snuggliest albums I have ever heard. The opening track "Wherever is Your Heart I Call Home" sums up the whole sentiment and feeling of Firewatcher's Daughter. It was even a contender for our first dance at our wedding. I discovered Brandi early on in my musical journey this decade falling in love with her song "The Story." Then I discovered Nanette loved her too and this album came out the year before we moved in together and it became such a huge staple in our first home together. Although it is full of sad songs I can't put this on and not feel so content and happy.

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