Favorite Albums - 10-1 - 2012

The glorious end has come! The list of our favorite fifty albums has come down to the final ten. Wow. What a journey. I mean, it was only a couple of blog posts, but it was still a great journey.

Here are Pop! Bang! Boom!'s favorite ten albums of the year:

10. Elton John & Pnau – ‘Good Night To The Morning’

I did't even know that this album was in the works until it came out, but it was a shocker. Mashups have never been better

9. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – ‘Heist’

This album wasn't pop, but that doesn't mean I didn't love it. The two changed the rules on hip-hop and on who can rule the charts.

8. Bruno Mars – ‘Unorthodox Jukebox’

Mars takes greater chances on his second album, defying expectations and reaching in the past for direct inspiration.

7. Ke$ha – ‘Warrior’

A second helping of electro pop goodness, this time with a little rock and roll thrown in.

6. Sara Bareilles – ‘Once Upon Another Time' EP

While it's only an EP, Sara can do no wrong.

5. Dragonette – ‘Bodyparts’

I didn't love Dragonette's past albums, but this new electro pop sound is giving me the businesssss.

4. The Very Best – MTMTMK’

The Very Best are a duo that combine pop, dance, electro, and jazz with African beats. Oh, and about 70% of the album is in the Malawian language of Chichewa, so there's that.

3. Owl City – ‘The Midsummer Station’ (and 'Shooting Star' EP)

While he might have needed a Carly Rae Jepsen collaboration to score a Hot 100 hit, the entire album is filled with potential pop hits.

2. Carly Rae Jepsen – ‘Kiss’ (and her ‘Curiosity’ EP from Canada)

Carly is the second coming of bubblegum pop, and everything on 'Kiss' (and 'Curiosity', which shares a few tracks) is an updated classic.

1. Emeli Sande – ‘Our Version of Events’

Yes, this CD was on my list last year, but it was released this year in the US, so here it is again! ‘Our Version of Events’ is a stunning example of how R&B and soul can fuse with pop and make hits possible in this day and age.