1. Glenn Branca "Lesson No. 1 (Edit)" - Recently re-issued. Would have loved to seen this stuff performed live back in the day. Must have been pretty earth-shattering.

2. The Detachment Kit "Ricochet" - How have I not put this up here yet? Yikes. Best song of the year? Probably. I'm proud of 'em. Album on Frenchkiss.

3. Jens Lekman "Black Cab" - I haven't heard the whole album, but i love this song. Nice little Magnetic Fields / Smiths miserablism.

4. Regina Spektor "Poor Little Rich Boy" - What's with me putting so many "chicks playing pianos" songs in rotation these days? Hmmm... here's another one.

5. The Race "Sinking Feeling" - The band known to me as "Amanda's boyfriend's band" have made an absolute fantastic new album on Flameshovel. Wow.

6. The Spinanes "Punch Line Loser" - Jon Manders heard this on WPRB for the first time ever the other day. Asked me to play it for him. Great song. I like "The Madding" a little better, but... both are great. "Strand" is a sadly overlooked gem of a record.

7. The Golden Virgins "Renaissance Kid" - Fuzzy rocking pop song. I like it.

8. Holden "Honeymoon" - I have a feeling that an entire Holden "Honeymoon" album would drive me crazy, but... This song sure gets stuck in my head for days at a time. Swedish emo = swemo?

9. A.C. Newman "Miracle Drug" - Sounds pretty much exactly like a New Pornographers song. Which is alright by me.

10. [brus] "Vakna" - I always keep a directory of downloaded mp3's for future inclusion in one of these lists. This song has been in that file for like most of 2004. I really like it, I just finally included it. Kinda Notwist-y.

11. EZ T "Goodbye Little Doll" - It's funny... If this wasn't on Monitor Records and this guy hadn't played with Will Oldham we'd all think this was pretty bad. (Well... actually i do think it's pretty bad.)

12. Ambulance LTD "Stay Where You Are" - Not a fan of this band at all... but there is a breezy lushness to this song that I really like.

13. Dirty On Purpose "Mind Blindness" - One of my favorite locals just delivered a fantastic EP. Holy shit. Download this immediately.

14. Dykehouse "Chain Smoking" - This is another mp3 that's been on my harddrive for months and months and months. Finally included it. This should have been Top 40 in 1983.

15. Amusement Parks On Fire "Venus In Cancer" - New band that sounds exactly like either Swervedriver or Ride depending upon what song you're listening to. But... they're good at it, so... fuck it. Good stuff.

16. Serious Weapon "Wolves And Lions" - Another of my favorite locals... Some well-executed demos.

17. The Secret Machines "Nowhere Again" - I'm not a big fan, but... they did make a pretty great record.

18. The Hidden Cameras "Music Is My Boyfriend" - Very hit-or-miss new Hidden Cameras album, but... this is a pretty great song.

19. Some Weird Family "California" - I got this from some random blog site, and I have no idea where / when... But a pretty great sloppy every-instrument-including-the-kitchen-sink song recorded by Some Weird Family "California".

20. The Album Leaf "On Your Way" - From the new album... I have to admit I wanted it to be better, but I'll see if it grows on me.

21. Say Hi to Your Mom "Let's Talk About Spaceships" - And yet another kick-ass local... And another great song. Reminds me of Haywood. Sigh.

22. Rogue Wave "Every Moment" - New Sub Pop band that rip off The Posies and The Shins, but isn't as good as either. But... still a nice listen.

23. Sea Snakes "Conception Bay South" - I guess they're Canadian. Pretty song. A bit o' Neil Young in the vocals.

24. Sufjan Stevens "Joy!Joy!Joy!" - I only included this song because it mixed so nicely into the next song. I like this Sufjan song, but I must say that the production just sounds a bit too much like Jesus Jones (and i LIKED Jesus Jones).

25. Sizzla "Show The Interest" - Holy shit this is fucking awesome. Been waiting for the right time to include this. Now's the time.

26. TV On The Radio "Dreams" - Pretty spectacular song from the new album. Really like it.

27. Gary Jules "Mad World" - i FINALLY saw Donnie Darko. Great movie. And, yes... it's been out for like two years, but this is a lovely cover.

28. Bedroom Walls "I've Been Thinking A Lot About Dots On The Wall" - I'm very excited that my favorite LA band is playing NYC for the first time ever in 10 days. I've never seen them before. This is the last song on their album, and a fitting last song for this list. I hope you are reading / downloading / listening this far. This song has been stuck in my head all weekend.