Oooh: lists!

Let's say, oh, the Top Seven Albums of 2003...

1. The Strokes: Room on Fire

The sophmore effort from New York rock saviours finds the patented Strokes sound enfused with synth-y guitar licks, cheeky handclaps and hooks galore. Familiar, yet refreshing.

2. Kings of Leon: Youth and Young Manhood
Derivative? Yeah, sure, but here southern boogie rock is dragged through the gutter for a much needed makeover. Past the moustaches and backstory is a solid collection of rock and roll songs. What more do you want?

3. The Shins: Chutes Too Narrow
The follow-up to the much hearalded "Oh Inverted World" finds the Shins still mining pure A.M. gold from the remenants of the Beach Boys on down to Pavement.

4. Belle and Sebastian: Dear Catastrophe Waitress
A new producer and a new focus for the rainy-day Scots results in a re-invigorated colelction of pop Nuggets.

5. White Stripes: Elephant
Would have been higher, but for the fact they ripped off their own stuff twice on the same album. Otherwise: huge.

6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Fever to Tell
Though mired in art-fag pretension, still kicks you in the junk harder than just about any record this year.

7. Grandaddy: Sumday
The spiritual descendant of Wilco's "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" is all electro bloops and guitar twang, but it's the tales of broken robots and office workers lost in the forest that make it better than good.