All systems go

What do an Armenian-American prog-metal quartet, a minimalist Detroit duo, Chicago's most outspoken rapper, a group of earnest Icelanders and some hairy jammers from Louisville all have in common? They're all counted on my list of the best albums of 2005.\n1. System of a Down -- Mezmerize/Hypnotize\n2005 was the year of System. Mezmerize dropped in May, shattering all sales and critical expectations, and Hypnotize is currently doing the same. It's an unconventional feat for an oddball So-Cal prog-metal outfit with Armenian roots, but System of a Down has done nothing but defy convention throughout their ten-year career. A frenetic mix of speedy metal riffs, tuneful melodies, topical humor and constant shifts in tempo renders the combined Mezmerize/Hypnotize the year's best and most compulsively listenable album.\n2. Sufjan Stevens -- Illinois\nAnd the award for the year's most elaborate pop-opera goes to... Brooklyn's Sufjan Stevens, for the second of his state-themed odes to joy, on the heels of 2003's Greetings from Michigan. In honoring the land of Lincoln with songs referencing everything from John Wayne Gacy to the Great Godfrey Maze, Stevens has created a concept album of the highest order, where the music is as cohesive and detailed as the concept. After 74 minutes of intricately sequenced sonic experimentation and shape-shifting pop melodies, one can't help but feel the Illinoise.\n3. Bright Eyes -- I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning\nCommencing the best of his two simultaneously released efforts of 2005 with a spoken-word story, indie golden boy Conor Oberst sets a tone of stark acoustic beauty and lyrical prowess worthy of Dylan comparisons. The inherent frailty in his songs has finally mirrored his gaunt physical frame, but there's more fire in his voice than ever. "We Are Nowhere and It's Now" and "Land Locked Blues," both featuring Emmylou Harris on guest vocals, rank as two of his best compositions, and "Lua" is a bittersweet drug ballad that cuts deep.\n4. M.I.A. -- Arular\nMaya Arulpragasam, the London-born, Sri Lanka-raised art student/rapper with the come hither stare, released her long-awaited debut LP this year to fervent acclaim. Arular takes an addictive hold and refuses to let go. Aside from throwing together the year's best line-up of beats and synth lines, M.I.A. showcases her voice better than any female rapper other than Missy Elliot, even if her unique enunciations outmuscle her flow. "Bucky Done Gun," "Hombre," and "10 $" are all speaker-thumping party anthems that sound even better through a solid set of headphones.\n5. The White Stripes -- Get Behind Me Satan\nNo one in the rock music business can make so much out of so little like Jack White. Using studio equipment the Beatles would've found obsolete in 1968, and backed by his ex-wife pounding away at her drums like a preschooler, Jack penned, recorded and produced 13 of the year's most enigmatic songs. Juxtaposing acoustic and piano-based tracks like "My Doorbell" with the trippy electric crunch of "Red Rain," White further cements his status as rock's consummate minimalist showman.\n6. Sigur Rós -- Takk...\nIceland's favorite sons didn't gain any ground on the U.S. mainstream with their debut, Von, or its two amazing follow-ups, Ágætis Byrjun and ( ). Thankfully for those of us who like to keep our Sigur obsession private, they still remain out of the general public's eye with Takk..., which builds on the gradual elegance of Byrjun and ( ) while excising their excesses. "Hoppípolla" is the best Top 40 Hit that's sure to never chart, and "Mílanó" is a multiple orgasm on record, ripe for the reveling.\n7. Bruce Springsteen -- Devils & Dust\nTonally and topically, Springsteen's latest effort resembles his finest album, Nebraska, and his most underrated, The Ghost of Tom Joad. Those records were more desolate than Devils & Dust, but certainly not deeper. Bearing witness to his nation following the wrong path, Bruce conjured a set of songs direct from his gut, concerning a cast of characters ranging from a lonely soul sharing his bed with a prostitute in "Reno" to a Mexican immigrant desperate to cross the border in "Matamoros Banks." It's essential Americana.\n8. Kanye West -- Late Registration\nAs hard as it is not to resent West's arrogance, it's harder to deny his prowess as a producer and sampler. "Hey Mama" is rap's best maternal ode since Tupac's "Dear Mama," "Gold Digger" is the best kiss-off to triflin' hoes since Dr. Dre's "Housewife," and "Heard 'Em Say" is the best rap song of the year. George Bush might not care about black people, but Kanye most certainly cares about good beats, and in topping his debut, he's become the most consistent and creative hip-hop artist since Blueprint-era Jay-Z.\n9. Coldplay -- X&Y\nFinally unencumbered by allusions to their becoming the next Radiohead, Coldplay have fully accepted becoming the next U2. Bubbling over with as many stadium-ready ballads ("Fix You," "A Message") as somber elegies ("Swallowed in the Sea," "'Til Kingdom Come"), X&Y crowns Coldplay the 21st Century's best excuse for another British invasion, and as the most legitimate act ever to appear on a NOW! compilation.\n10. My Morning Jacket -- Z\nDuring the last five years, Louisville, Ky.'s My Morning Jacket have built a live following worthy of a younger Dave Matthews. As with Matthews and the Dead, the band didn't really nail a studio album until five or more years along the path. Z is that album. Tracks like "Gideon" and "Knot Comes Loose" are sure to only expand and improve in a live setting, ensuring My Morning Jacket will be lighting up many a Kentucky night for present and future fans.