You guys know I love music, and I listen to a lot of it.  Sometimes, I get overwhelmed by the enormity of what is out there.  How can I possibly listen to all of it?  Even in my favorite genre, I can't get to all of it.  (Same goes for books).  I love applications like Spotify and Pandora that let me access all that is out there without having to fork out all the cash.  But even then, I don't have the time to listen to it all.  I get bits and pieces of each band I like, and I love being able to do that.

But then along comes an album that hogs all of my time and attention.  Albums that I cannot get enough of.  Albums that are seamless pieces of art rather than a collection of good songs.

These are my all-time favorite albums...

1. Brothers - The Black Keys

I love listening to this album. I just love listening to it.  I don't have a favorite track.  Many of them, I can't even distinguish from the others because it's all so perfectly woven together.
I don't care who you are. You're not as cool as the Keys.















I had only seen this movie one time when I bought this soundtrack.  If you have never seen this movie, [SLAP] what are you waiting for?! Watch it immediately.  The first time I heard Glen Hansard sing Say it to Me Now, I was stolen.  Falling Slowly is obviously a brilliant and beautiful song, but it's nothing compared to the rest of the tracks.   All the Way Down rips my heart out violently, in a good way.



3. Arcade Fire - The Suburbs






I was actually a little late to the Arcade Fire bandwagon, but when I fell upon this group, I was mesmerized.  Their music is a freight train.  So much power behind that couple and s-ton of instruments.











If you have never heard A Fine Frenzy, then I am sorry, because she is one of the most beautiful singer/songwriters I have ever heard.  This album is a dream. It's melancholy and ethereal. It sweeps you into an abyss of lovely.










I am one of those rare people who fell in love with Jenny Lewis before Rilo Kiley.  I came across this album somehow and it sat on my iPod unlistened for too long. When I began playing in, I couldn't stop.  It's gritty and sexy and angsty in a very feminine way.  Jenny Lewis is my original hipster.










I fell in love with this album around the time Jude was born.  I was in an all around good place.  My heart was happy and the world just glowed a little brighter.  This album was my soundtrack for that era of my life.  At times, when the sadness would sink in, it had songs like Basket Case and Breathe Again to serenade me through.  
This girl does not get enough props.  Her voice is beautiful and her music is so artistic.  I adore her.







I used to peddle this album to anyone who showed the slightest interest in Andrew Bird.
This is writing/reading music to me.  It's not heavy or demanding.  It lies listlessly in your ears and in your mind without asking for much.
Andrew Bird, part poet, part songwriter, party every-instrument-player. He's phenomenal.









You're shocked, I know.  Actually, it took me a long time to love this album.  Not because I heard it and didn't like it. No, it was my best friend, Becky, who was trying to get me to open my eyes to the magic of Mums. At first listen, I just waved it off as some of her weird banjo, Missouri music. (Sorry Beck) Then, one day it all just clicked. Once I was started, I couldn't stop.






9. Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal


After first hearing the song Little Talks, I avoided giving this album a good listen to because I could only assume that whatever else they had could not be as good as that song.  Boy was I wrong!
This album is so strong.  Solid good.













I first heard Bon Iver on the Twilight soundtrack. He did a collaboration with St. Vincent, another favorite of mine.  That song was good and I assumed Bon Iver was good and I admit, I underestimated him, greatly underestimated. I bought this album to try it out.  It quickly became an ocean that I would gladly drown in.  This music has become such a major part of my life.  I hate to think I almost didn't discover it.









What are you all-time favorite albums that you listen to obsessively?