HONORABLE MENTIONS

Boban i Marko Markovic Orkestar
"Go Marko Go!" (Piranha)
Young man with a horn leads family business toward the bigger time ("Dzumbus Funk," "Romano Bijav").

Yo Majesty
"Kryptonite P---y EP" (Domino)
Conscious rapper will rock your sister's monkey -- if she likes her ("Hey There Girl," "Monkey").

Estelle
"Shine" (Atlantic/Homeschool)
She knows who her friends are, and they'll stay her friends even if she never overtakes Rihanna ("American Boy," "Wait a Minute [Just a Touch]").

Various artists
"Princes Amongst Men: Journeys With Gypsy Musicians"
(Asphalt Tango)
Excellent Balkan Gypsy starter set keyed to excellent Garth Cartwright book raids excellent single-artist albums and grinds to a halt on two six-minute diva workouts that give up no funk whatsoever (Fulgerica, "Briu De La Craiova"; Sudahan, "Cocek Shutka").

Del McCoury
"Moneyland"
(McCoury Music)
FDR fireside chats bookend bluegrass good guy Del McCoury's concept comp about slicker greed (Del McCoury Band, "Moneyland"; Dan Tyminski, "Carry Me Across the Mountain").

Balla et Ses Balladins
"The Syliphone Years" (Stern's Africa)
Guinéan authenticity -- exhibit clenched up noticeably as Sekou Tour -- got crazier ("Limania," "Soumbouyaya").

Duffy
"Rockferry" (Mercury/Rough Trade)
Lulu is so proud ("Distant Dreamer," "Serious").

Katy Perry
"One of the Boys" (Capitol)
She stopped taping her "suckers" down, and kissing her girlfriend was just an experiment, but trumpeting her vulnerability she's as loud and laddish as a hockey fan ("I Kissed a Girl," "One of the Boys").

Think of One
"Camping Shaabi" (Crammed Discs)
Belgian music for a European block party celebrating world migration ("Antwaarpse Shaabi," "Oppressor").

Miley Cyrus
"Breakout" (Hollywood)
Teen overkill by a teen with the get-up-and-go to survive it -- and get off a few shots back ("7 Things," "Breakout").

Willie Nelson/Wynton Marsalis
"Two Men With the Blues" (Blue Note)
Louis Armstrong was Jimmie Rodgers' sideman, Wynton is Willie's collaborator, and somewhere in there the songs slip away ("Ain't Nobody's Business," "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It").

Hot Chip
"Made in the Dark" (Astralwerks/DFA)
Electrobeats smarter, love songs not ("Bendable Posable," "Don't Dance").

The Dandy Warhols
"... Earth to the Dandy Warhols ..." (Beat the World)
Groove-launching space oddity light years from home ("Welcome to the Third World," "Mission Control").

El Compa Chuy
"Alacrana Lavada" (Norte)
Corridos with nutty polka accordion and crazy-ass tuba -- which aficionados of the style say could be crazier ("Por Algo Soy El Patron," "Junior Terrazas").

The Cool Kids
"The Bake Sale" (Chocolate Industries)
Too clever to call themselves the Clever Kids, they match up-to-date minimalist jokes to quasi-retro minimalist beats ("Mikey Rocks," "A Little Bit Cooler").

Adele
"19" (XL/Columbia)
Still just a teenager, a practical romantic gets by without acting cheeky ("Daydreamer," "Tired").

CHOICE CUTS

Rihanna
"Disturbia"
("Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded" [Def Jam])

Laura Cantrell
"Love Vigilantes"
"Trains and Boats and Planes"
"Howard Hughes Blues"
("Trains and Boats and Planes" [Diesel Only])

Aguaturbia
"Erotica"
Kissing Spell
"Yellow Moon"
("Love, Peace & Poetry: Chilean Psychedelic Music" [Normal])

Rihanna
"Disturbia (Craig C's Disturbstramental Mix)"
("Disturbia Remixes" [Def Jam])

Willie Nelson
"Who Put All My Ex's in Texas"
("Texas in My Soul" [American Beat])

Miley Cyrus
"Nobody's Perfect"
("Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus" [Hollywood])

Beck
"Walls"
("Modern Guilt" [Interscope])

The Duhks
"95 South"
("Fast Paced World" [Sugar Hill])

Alan Jackson
"Small Town Southern Man"
("Good Time" [Arista Nashville])