I got my list together. It follows. Randy -- My Top 20 Albums of 2004 1. The Spazzys - Aloha! Go Bananas I didn't have this as my number 1 at first, but as I reviewed my top few albums, I realized that this is it. This album makes me happy like nothing else I heard this year. The Spazzys are an Australian female punk-pop trio who blend the Ramones with '60s girl-group pop for a brilliantly infectious debut album. The Ramones influence is all over this: they appropriate lines like "gabba gabba hey," pay homage to "Blitzkrieg Bop" on "Paco Doesn't Love Me," and even have a song called "I Wanna Cut My Hair Like Marky Ramone." Their guitar sound is total Ramones; so are their smart/stupid lyrics and sense of humor. But they're so great at it that the album is better than all but the classic early Ramones albums. From the girl-group side of things, we get shamelessly catchy song structures, abundant harmony vocals, handclaps, and a fucking awesome cover of "My Boyfriend's Back." This album won't win points for originality, but it doesn't need to. It's overflowing with charm. The only other Ramones-inspired band I've heard that I've loved nearly this much is Sweet Baby, and the Spazzys are far more consistent. Records are hardly ever this much fun from beginning to end. 2. Mission of Burma - OnOffOn Rare is the band that comes back after over 20 years apart without embarrassment. For a band to come back with an album this vital is almost unheard of. Simply astonishing. 3. Sam Phillips - A Boot and a Shoe To my ears, this is her best work since 1994's "Martinis and Bikinis." Though far more spare than that Beatlesque classic, its intimacy hits the spot emotionally and has a handful of brilliant tunes. 4. The Futureheads - The Futureheads Not only do they take after XTC, they take after my favorite era of XTC: circa "Black Sea." They also have an unbelievable flair for vocal hooks. Great debut. 5. The Sound - The BBC Recordings Yes, none of this was recorded more recently than 1985, but none of it was ever released until this year. You can't reissue something if it's never been issued. After years of reading about this band in "The Big Takeover," I decided to buy this new release and was knocked flat. The earlier recordings on this collection are the most vital, but it's all great, beating bands like Joy Division and the Chameleons at their own game (and stomping all over contemporary followers like Interpol). I can't believe it took me this long to hear them. 6. Laurie & John - Arabella Laurie & John are the Stirratt twins, he of Wilco and the Autumn Defense, and she formerly of Blue Mountain. This album blends the classic gentle pop of the Autumn Defense with a bit of the rural sound of Blue Mountain. Between this and the two Autumn Defense records, my estimation of John Stirratt has climbed to great heights. (Not to neglect Laurie, who wrote and sings lead on some of the best songs here.) 7. Neko Case - The Tigers Have Spoken This is not your average live album. First of all, it features the golden pipes of Neko Case. That's enough right there, but it also only reprises two songs from her other releases. Otherwise we get new songs and covers, which give us a little more to chew on until her next studio album. 8. A.C. Newman - The Slow Wonder The lead New Pornographer goes solo with a sublimely hook-filled record that's a real grower. 9. The Pernice Brothers - Nobody's Watching/Nobody's Listening Unlike Neko Case's live album, this simply features live renditions of previously released material. It still took over my CD player for longer than I could have expected. I still haven't watched all of the accompanying DVD. 10. Guided By Voices - Half-Smiles of the Decomposed GBV's swan song charts the lowest on my top 20 list of any proper GBV record since I started making lists--the production is flat and it needs a few more memorable songs. But it's still a GBV record, and that still beats almost everything else, in my book. 11. Visqueen - Sunset on Dateland This Seattle trio's rocking second album outdoes their debut. Great hooks, crunchy tunes, loud guitars, and powerhouse vocals from frontwoman Rachel Flotard. For rocking out to. 12. John Wesley Harding - Adam's Apple A typically stellar collection of folk-pop (sometimes slightly bent) from an underrated songwriter and performer. 13. The Language of Flowers - Songs About You This Irish quintet's debut full-length is like the Primitives meets Heavenly. Or maybe it's like Lush meets Tiger Trap. In any case, it's totally charming indie-pop with appealing female vocals and occasional bursts of noise. 14. Denise James - It's Not Enough to Love Great, dreamy '60s-inspired pop tunes that aren't slavishly retro. 15. The Dears - No Cities Left This was released in the Dears' native Canada in 2003, but I didn't pick it up until this year's domestic issue. No Cities Left is emotional and dramatic, and sometimes over the top, like some of the British pop it's clearly inspired by. But I can wallow in depression for a while. 16. Dungen - Ta Det Lugnt Swedish psych-pop (*sung* in Swedish) that hits like RockFour or the Soundtrack of Our Lives at their best and most powerful, and often like lost tracks from the second "Nuggets" box set. 17. The Legends - Up Against the Legends Supremely catchy Swedish pop. This is the guy from Club 8 (a mellower outfit sort of like Ivy) on a buzzier trip. There are touches of the Primitives, the Raveonettes, and the Jesus and Mary Chain here. This stuff will get stuck in your head. 18. Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Shake the Sheets It's safe to say this album wouldn't have made my list if I hadn't seen this band live. Though I liked the record before that, it suddenly made a lot more sense after I saw them--they made me a believer. Smart, sharp, melodic punk. 19. American Music Club - Love Songs for Patriots Back in fine form after a long layoff. I've got to be in the (downbeat) mood for it, but AMC really is the best outlet for Mark Eitzel's songs. 20. Doug Gillard - Salamander GBV axeman Gillard's first full-length solo album is a definite grower. I wasn't all that impressed at first, but it worked its way in. His earlier "Malamute Jute" EP was more immediate, but this is more substantial. A few other favorites (in alphabetical order): Augie March - Strange Bird Autolux - Future Perfect The Belles - Idle Acres The Breakup Society - James at 35 The Delgados - Universal Audio The Dollyrots - Eat My Heart Out The Finn Brothers - Everyone Is Here A Girl Called Eddy - A Girl Called Eddy Darren Hanlon - Little Chills Adam Marsland - You Don't Know Me Perfect - Once, Twice, Three Times a Maybe The Soviettes - LP II Tobin Sprout - Live at the Horseshoe Tavern Wilco - A Ghost Is Born . . . and more. Including Franz Ferdinand.