Now that we effectively have a full decade of music on which to reflect, the years of 2000-2009 were actually pretty interesting years in song. There were some honestly classic albums produced in the aughts and I'm glad to have been around to hear them. Because all Best Of lists are hopelessly biased and there's just too much music to even hope to cover enough of it, I've decided to put together a list of my personal ten favorites from the decade. Here, in no specific order, are the discs I spun more than all the others.

1. Interpol- Turn On The Bright Lights

The stoic New York rockers in Interpol began the decade with one of the greatest independent records ever recorded, 2001's Turn On The Bright Lights. Lumped into that possibly imaginary category of post-punk revival, Bright Lights is a work of art from start to finish. At times desolate, at times soaring and beautiful, it is genuinely unique and best of all, it sounds new. The sharp, driving guitars and acrobatic percussion always get my blood flowing and while they aren't for everybody, I actually rather enjoy Paul Banks's free association lyrics. The band only produced two other albums between Bright Lights and today, neither of which quite match the debut but are still quite good on their own.

2. The Arcade Fire- Neon Bible

The Arcade Fire is far from prolific, only releasing two full albums in nearly eight years of operation, but damned if they weren't two of the best albums of the decade. Rumors have their third LP on the docket for early 2010, but nothing's solid yet. It's tough to choose between their alternately raucous and contemplative debut Funeral and its stunning follow-up Neon Bible, but I'm ultimately going for the latter because it's a more fully realized album while Funeral seems more like a proof of concept. If any collection of songs describes the desperation, anxiety and defiant hopefulness of living in America during the Bush years, it's Neon Bible.

3. The National- Boxer

Another difficult choice between two great albums is deciding which among The National's most recent recordings gets the top slot. Alligator is all kinds of awesome and to its credit it certainly rocks harder, especially on tracks like "Abel". Still, Alligator has some low points and even one track, "Looking For Astronauts", that I usually just skip entirely. 2007's Boxer, on the other hand, is excellent from start to finish. It feels like an incisive, emotionally honest novel in song. Boxer is clever without being smug and well-produced without being glossy. In essence, it's indie music for grown-ups.

4. Rufus Wainwright- Want

I'm on record (multiple times) as saying that the world will always need its piano men. Rufus Wainwright is easily the greatest piano man of his generation. The 2003-2004 companion albums Want One and Want Two are collections of some of his most exemplary songs. Classic throwbacks like "14th Street" and funny ditties like "11:11" are the double album's heart, but melancholy preponderances like "The Art Teacher" and "Gay Messiah" prove once and for all that Rufus Wainwright isn't just some kid pilfering the canons of artists from a bygone era.

5. Explosions in the Sky- All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone

The 00's have been good years for post rock, that nebulous term for mostly guitar-driven music that eschews the vocals and pop sensibilities of traditional rock arrangements. One of the more accessible bands in this category is the Texas-based Explosions in the Sky. They do sweeping, triumphant tracks that often stretch to ten minutes in length, but justifiably. Their most recent album, All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone from 2007, is their strongest offering to date. At 6 tracks and just under 44 minutes, it's a heart-bursting wall of sound with few chances to relax along the way. The intense, beautiful centerpiece "Catastrophe and the Cure" is unlike any song I've ever heard and the closing track "So Long, Lonesome" is a delightfully spacey cool-down after 40 solid minutes of gorgeous chaos.

I'll be back later this week to finish the list. Feel free to share your own favorites from the decade in our comments section.