Top 10

10. HANDSOME FURS
Plague Park
Wait, You Mean Wolf Parade is More Than Spencer Krug?: 2007 marks the year that Dan Boeckner became a well-known name in indie music circles. It also will be remembered for the year that Boeckner trumped Wolf Parade poster-boy Spencer Krug with a far superior release than Krug’s Sunset Rubdown record. Plague Park does more with less than any other record I heard this year.

9. MARK BERUBE
What The River Gave The Boat
Canada’s Next Top Under-appreciated Musician: We have a tendency for this as a country, don’t we? You know, having some of our very best and most talented song writers/ musicians toil in obscurity. Mark Berube already has a rabid fan base, but with a record as borderline brilliant as What the River Gave the Boat, more people should know his name.

8. BOATS!!
Intercontinental Champion
Warning: These Vocals May Offend Some Listeners: From deep within the home of the all-time greatest NHL franchise –- the Jets -- comes Boats!, a band most of you haven’t heard of, which you should rectify immediately. Just heed the warning, as some of you will definitely hate what you hear.

7. LONEY, DEAR
Loney, Noir
Scandinavians Do it Better: When it comes to indie-pop, it seems Scandinavians have the market cornered. Jens Lekman might be getting the buzz this year, but much like the early 2007 releases won’t get considered for Oscars, Emil Svanangen’s brilliant Loney, Noir is getting snubbed. Hands down the best Sub Pop release of 2007.

6. ARTHUR AND YU
In Camera
Singles are Overrated: Or at least that’s what Arthur & Yu might have you believe with their remarkably consistent In Camera. We as music listeners are so used to those couple blatantly catchy…hopefully get on the radio…download on iTunes…or score a sweet spot in a commercial tracks being on record that we’ve almost forgotten how great an actual album can be. Thank you, Arthur & Yu, for reminding us.

5. GRINDERMAN
Grinderman
Never has a Mid-life Crisis Sounded So Good: When most 50-year-olds are playing solitaire or buying a corvette to satisfy their mid-life crisis, Nick Cave decided to form an entirely new band and record his most intense and vital music in over a decade. Grinderman is the sound of a man on a mission, and proof that there is much more to come from Nick Cave. For that we should rejoice.

4. SUNPARLOUR PLAYERS
Hymns For the Happy
Sunparlour turned Cross-Country Players: In seemingly a blink of an eye, these Players went from early weeknight shows at the Cameron House to a cross-country headlining tour in support of Hymns for the Happy. You might think that was a fluke, but a few listens to the record will quickly prove otherwise.

3. FOX JAWS
Goodbye Doris
Goodbye Lawsuit, Hello Critical Acclaim: Can a name change ever have been as well-received as this? With each passing week this band has been gaining momentum and critical praise, a definite one to watch in 2008.

2. AMOS THE TRANSPARENT
Everything I've Forgotten to Forget
Memorable release not soon to be forgotten: Quite possibly the best band to come out of Ottawa since…well, maybe since forever. Everything I’ve Forgotten to Forget is an interesting concoction of many different, familiar genres, making it feel like home even at your first stay.

1. CLOUD CULT
The Meaning of 8
Whoever said the green party can’t win anything?: A true underdog story as Cloud Cult -- at times are better known for their environmentally-friendly habits than their music -- takes home the No. 1 spot with the impeccable The Meaning of 8.