8 - Mew - And The Glass-Handed Kites

These Danish lunatics showed exactly what they are about on international debut album Frengers back in 2003 and expanded upon it in every way here to create a sci-fi pop masterpiece. We have no idea what the title means or what any of the songs are about, but Apocalypso, Special and The Zookeeper's Boy are three of the catchiest pop songs of the year, but are all freaky enough to be kept away from the mainstream.

9 - Eels - Blinking Lights and Other Revelations

E has been threatening to make a genuine masterpiece ever since Eels first broke onto the scene, and this is almost certainly it. A double album of songs about life and tragedy (of which he has endured more than enough of in his own life), Blinking Lights And Other Revelations is a very grown-up record, while avoiding all of the cliches that description entails.

10 - The Raveonettes - Pretty In Black

Here's an album that came out of left-field. The Raveonettes had previously been a noisy garage punk band, but Pretty In Black finds them wishing they were living in the 60s and working with Phil Spector. They even get to work with the legendary Ronnie Spector on album highlight Ode to LA, while the rest of the tracks have twangy guitars and pitch-perfect harmonies and it all just sounds so cool, but so sleazy at the same time.

11 - Kanye West - Late Registration

In a year that saw hip-hop dominated by brainless lunks 50 Cent and The Game, it was reassuring to see Kanye West return to show that The College Dropout wasn't a fluke. Featuring a sample from Diamonds Are Forever, Adam Levine from Maroon 5 and Jamie Foxx doing his best Ray Charles impression on the catchy-as-hell Gold Digger, West again displays more brains and more balls than either of the Gruesome Twosome...

12 - The Pernice Brothers - Discover A Lovelier You

Joe Pernice comes up with the goods again on Discover A Lovelier You, thankfully ditching some of the New Order pastiches that made Yours Mine Ours a bit hit-and-miss. Instead, it's back to the lush soundscapes and heartbreaking melodies of The World Won't End, and songs like Saddest Quo and My So-Called Celibate Life are amongst the best the Pernice Brothers have released so far.

13 - David Ford - I Sincerely Apologise For All The Trouble I've Caused

Probably the least well-known name on our list, David Ford deserves to get many more plaudits than has already has for this passionate and fiery debut album. In a year when Bob Dylan has received so much attention in the media, this album comes closest to classic Dylan, particularly on State Of The Nation, which starts off quiet and reserved before ending up like a raging tornado.

14 - Nada Surf - The Weight Is A Gift

With an album title that sounds like it should be a Flaming Lips song, one of the most underrated American bands returns with another great album. After releasing two pop-punk records to slight acclaim in the 90s, Nada Surf regrouped and released Let Go in 2002, which had some lovely melodic pop songs on it. The Weight Is A Gift takes that formula and does it all even more impressively and consistently.

15 - Viva Voce - The Heat Can Melt Your Brain

This album belongs in our list purely for the great song titles, like Free Nude Celebs and Mixtape=Love. However, the shimmering but powerful pop that this husband-and-wife duo have come up with - exemplified on Alive With Pleasure - belies the very basic production facilities they were able to utilise, which was basically anything they could find in their kitchen.

16 - Jose Gonzalez - Veneer

Picture a road. Now picture some brightly-coloured bouncing balls tumbling down that road in their thousands. Now add a soundtrack of lush, quiet beauty and maybe add a random frog too. Yes, it's that Sony advert and the music was Heartbeats by Swedish singer-songwriter Jose Gonzalez, and his debut album Veneer is full of similarly understated and lovely songs.

17 - Magnet - The Tourniquet

The mysterious Magnet, Even Johansen – another resident of the Norwegian hit-factory town of Bergen - returns in the summer with The Tourniquet, his second album and the follow up to the massively acclaimed debut On Your Side. Recorded in the countryside of Norway and then polished off in Los Angeles, this album manages to be both very natural and very warm.

18 - Martha Wainwright - Martha Wainwright

When you come from a family as musically illustrious and personally tempestuous as hers, releasing a song called Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole is a good way of stating your intent as an artist. Martha Wainwright could so easily have been remembered as the one who appeared on her relatives' albums, but never went out on her own, but this confident debut proved what a talen she has.

19 - Death Cab For Cutie - Plans

While none of it quite matches up to the majesty of the title track from last album Transatlanticism, Plans is another step in the right direction for Death Cab, who are yet another of those acts to have benefitted from musical exposure in The O.C. and Six Feet Under, as well the movie Garden State. I'll Follow You Into The Dark is the clear highlight, but there's plenty of quality here.

20 - Ry Cooder - Chavez Ravine

This could have been much higher than it is if Cooder had edited the album a little more closely, as there are a few non-event tracks that go on far too long. However, this tale of life in mid-20th Century Los Angeles is full of geniune musical legends from all sorts of genres, as well as taking in plenty of different styles and containing Chinito Chinito, one of the best party songs of the year!