Mike Usinger

I don’t get Deerhunter in the slightest, have never understood the appeal of the National, and am yet to be sold on Beach House. I do, however, totally love Ke$ha. And, no, I don’t care in the slightest that whatever credibility I might have left has just been destroyed by these revelations.

Kate Nash
My Best Friend Is You
Without abandoning thinking girl’s Mockney pop, Kate Nash reinvents herself with a cocktail of styles that includes riot-grrrl punk, black-clouds folk, and scratchy ’20s jazz. As if that weren’t impressive enough, the flame-haired chanteuse shows herself to be one of the cleverest lyricists working today, while still coming off as just another plain-Jane punter at the pub.

Listen to "Do-Wah-Doo" by Kate Nash.

Grinderman
Grinderman 2
Nick Cave makes a terrifying case that he’s actually getting more bad-ass as he gets older. Painfully loud, epically mind-bending, and totally devastating, Grinderman 2 is what the end of the world will sound like right when the gates of hell fly open.

Listen to "Heathen Child" by Grinderman.

The Black Keys
Brothers
Overamped-blues bros Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney still smell fantastically of Crossroads mud, the big difference here being that they’re equally obsessed with super-sludged soul. Despite what their promo photos might lead you to believe, sexy suits them.

Listen to "Tighten Up" by the Black Keys.

Black Mountain
Wilderness Heart
Black Mountain didn’t need to mess with a winning formula, but that didn’t stop guiding light Stephen McBean from doing just that. The songs are shorter and punchier, and while there’s no lack of megaton riffage, it’s the colour-saturated ’70s-country comedown numbers that deliver the breathtaking gold.

Listen to "Old Fangs" by Black Mountain.

Matt & Kim
Sidewalks
The perma-peppy Brooklyn twosome inject some depth and darkness into their DIY dance-pop, the hip-hop beats and ’90s-vintage electronica flourishes adding to an already infectious mix. The end result suggests that, as much as Kim Schifino and Matt Johnson still live on rainbows and lollipops, they aren’t above dropping E and cranking the Wu-Tang.

Listen to "Cameras" by Matt & Kim.

Ke$ha
Animal
While it’s debatable whether Ke$ha can actually sing, there’s no denying that the fabulously obnoxious crunk-pop princess understands how to get a party started. That trailer-glam bangers like “TiK ToK” are nutritionless trash doesn’t make them any less tasty.

Listen to "Tik Tok" by Ke$ha.

The Pack a.d.
We kill computers
Becky Black and Maya Miller show they’re no longer just another grimy duo from the stun-blues ghetto, with tracks that cannonball from post–White Stripes garage rawk to feral art-punk. As always, one is left wondering how the hell two people manage to make a sound like a diesel freight train hitting a land-mine factory.

Listen to "Crazy" by the Pack a.d.

Die Antwoord
$O$
Whether the members of Die Antwoord are a legit South African zef freak show or outrageously clever performance artists is irrelevant. What matters is that their fusion of pile-driver rap and glitter-spackled house is every bit as captivating as the YouTube clips that took them viral.

Listen to "Enter the Ninja" by Die Antwoord.

Jonsi
Go
Those who expected something radically different from Jónsi’s work with Sigur Rós went home disappointed, the big question being “Why?” The angelic-voiced Icelander’s regal chamber pop proved as gorgeous as a snowy New Year’s Day in Reykjavík.

Listen to "Go Do" by Jónsi.

Titus Andronicus
The Monitor
Not so much a record as a tortured, indie-punk manifesto that’s partly about the American Civil War, and mostly about one man’s demoralizing battles with the loser within. If you despise yourself today even more than when you were 15, Titus Andronicus singer Patrick Stickles understands your utter self-loathing.

Listen to "A More Perfect Union" by Titus Andronicus.