As a musician, music critic and general music fan, I find that listing the top albums of the… As a musician, music critic and general music fan, I find that listing the top albums of the year a very difficult but enjoyable task. Unfortunately, in the past several years it has become more and more difficult for me to compile such lists. Gone are the years when we were graced with several excellent collections of music, such as 1995, which yielded Pearl Jam’s Vitalogy, The Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and Radiohead’s The Bends all in the same calendar year.

Popular music is a business. Unfortunately, it seems we are still reeling from all of the reinforcement artists like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera have received in the recent past.

Listing the top albums of the year is a very important task that I do not take lightly. Each year, I take great pride in my selections. This year, I have decided to list only my top three albums of the year.

Why? Because I felt that only three albums were released this year that really took hold of me. It just didn’t feel right for me to include acclaimed albums such as Franz Ferdinand’s Ferdinand, Arcade Fire’s Funeral, and The Walkmen’s Bows and Arrows simply to fill up my final two positions.

So, without further delay, here are the top three albums of the year:

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3. Bjork: Medulla

This album is an aural masterpiece. Again, Bjork has managed to release another stunning collection of music. This time, she did it without the aid of any instrumentation.

Still sounding like a Bjork album, Medulla is the work of an artist who grows with each album. Fortunately for us, with each album, Bjork has grown into the right place at the right time. Medulla has the unbelievable quality of being organic and raw, while still managing to be progressive. Excellent work.

2. Wilco: A Ghost is Born

This album, a follow-up to 2002’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, is pop music at its best. It’s an innovative mixture of timeless melodies and stunning lyricism combined in a way that only Wilco can produce. A Ghost is Born manages to touch on nearly every relevant feeling one could have, while still focusing on questions of vital importance. “Maybe if I leave, you’ll want me to come back home / or maybe all you mean is ‘leave me alone,’ at least that’s what you said.” Classic musicianship.

1. Kanye West: The College Dropout

Ah, the Louis Vuitton Don himself, Kanye West. Never did I anticipate listing a rap or hip-hop album as the best of the year. I usually despise rap.

Nor did I anticipate that a graduate student like myself, who enjoys the concept of school, would relate to an album titled The College Dropout. I was wrong. I was extremely wrong.

And, at a time when innovation and exploration in music is so vital, I have never been happier to be wrong. The College Dropout is simply an excellent piece of work. A piece of work that I simply have not been able to stop listening to.

It’s rap music… but with a melody. Huh?! It’s imaginative and cunning material by the best new artist in a long time. Everyone should hear this album.

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And there they are. Was it as good for you as it was for me? Here is hoping that all who read this list will listen to these albums if they haven’t already. Here is also hoping that these three artists continue to make great music in the future. And finally, here is hoping for excellent musicianship in 2005.

Artists to watch in 2005: Radiohead, Eddie Vedder, Billy Corgan, Kanye West, The Shins and OutKast.