I decided to do a list of my top 25 favorite albums of 2012. As I went through these, I realized that attached to each one was just a little memory; where I was driving, who I was with, or what I was doing. Maybe these transform into a little album review, maybe not. So I’m taking that route and see where it goes.

This actually wasn’t too difficult to put together, but there are definitely some good albums that were left off. I’ll probably do some kind of “honorable mentions” post as well to make up for that, but keep in mind this is not a list of the “best” or “top” albums of the year. These are just my favorites for whatever reason and I am ranking them. Let’s begin.

(note: album thumbnails link to a nice large version for your viewing pleasure)

25 - Go Fly A Kite - Ben Kweller

I have loved Ben Kweller as a singer-songwriter for a long time. There are definitely some songs that lack pop on this one, but for the most part it is a fine BK offering. I mostly enjoy the first three tracks, including “Jealous Girl”.

24 - Koi No Yokan- Deftones

I never really listened to Deftones at all growing up, but I gave this album a try and really liked what I heard. It’s heavy but modern and the vocals are a very pleasing contrast. It was the perfect soundtrack to being stuck in traffic around Del Mar and accepting that I would just never escape.

23 - Attack On Memory - Cloud Nothings

If you want to hear what long, drawn-out jam sessions at the Kowalski house sound like, this is pretty much it. Minimal sound, minimal composure, but makes for a fun and energetic listen. I actually realized this while in the car with all three of my brothers, which happens rarely these days.

22 - Battle Born - The Killers

The Killers, or Brandon Flowers especially, have come a long way since 2004. They are certainly not the same band, do not write the same style music, and I think overall are liked less. But they have matured into a strong group of song writers and I can always appreciate that. Again, I think the first three tracks on this album are strongest, especially “Flesh And Bone”.

21 - Green and Yellow - Baroness

This is really two albums but I could not bear to split them apart, especially since those awesome album covers merge so seamlessly. Both are strong and harmonic at the same time. Wait, am I talking about the album cover still or the music itself? Both! Some of their progressions and vocals make you wilt just a bit but another ballad will follow to bring you back to your feet. This actually happens all in one song now that I think about it. Listen to “The Line Between” on Green.

20 - Port Of Morrow - The Shins

The Shins, much like The Killers, are not quite the same band as when we first laid ears on them. More so for The Shins, who have almost an entirely new fleet of members. But I really couldn’t help but like the catchiness of this album. To accompany it, their are some really awesome animated music videos that are worth watching.

19 - Violent Waves - Circa Survive

These guys are finally back to their old tricks again. Although I did like 2010’s “Blue Sky Noise” a lot, it remains a mystery to me why they chose to write such a mainstream-sounding, un-Circa album. Maybe they were trying to become more easily accessible, but I figured they had lost their old writing style in the process. Nope. This new one is what you remembered and liked.

18 - Bloom - Beach House

This is really as shoegaze as I like to get without being ashamed. It’s too good an album pass up. Relaxing and poppy, the guy can bend his voice up a whole step, over and over throughout the song if he has to. Listen to “The Hours”. Imagine you are gliding gently in the wind in every direction, outside of what else, a beach house.

17 - Shields - Grizzly Bear

Some bands write a big, epic sounding album and think they must immediately follow it with something bigger. Not always the case. I love what these guys did instead. A little more stripped down, both instrumentally and progressively, and it serves them well. This is really a rock album.

16 - Good Kid, M.A.A.D City - Kendrick Lamar

This album is such a story. I love the layers of different style and voicing throughout as it transitions from eerie to danceable in less than a minute. “Backstreet Freestyle” makes a winner out of nothing but a drum beat, a bell and a voice. Also really funny! I love that phone conversation at the end of “Sherane A.K.A. Master Splinter’s Daughter”. Where my dominos at?

15 - Blunderbuss - Jack White

Jack White is my favorite household-name guitarist and I got exactly what I wanted out of his solo album. With his back catalog of wing-spreaders (The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather, Rome) already quenching our thirst sans The White Stripes, I was looking forward to something just purely his. Well done, sir.

14 - TNGHT - TNGHT

What a mind-fuck of grooves. I don’t know exactly how I stumbled upon this EP but it mesmerized my ears to no end. There’s not much to say about it except, if you’ve had the necessary gateway drugs and are bored, give it a listen. “Easy Easy” has this insane little vocal whine/build thing that scratches at your inner ear and into your brain.

13 - Something - Chairlift

Does anyone remember “Bruises” from way back in 2008? I got into Chairlift but they were a bit timid to me at the time. Not now. This is a driving synth girl/guy duo with great jams. I’ve had some awesome trips coming to and from San Francisco listening to these guys. Dare I say, just a more mature “Matt and Kim” with substance? Yes.

12 - Lonerism - Tame Impala

I like to imagine that if John Lennon was born in the late 1980s and grew up with hipsters and sound artists in Australia, this is the band you would get. The voice resemblance is uncanny. But beyond the kitch, the music is great. I love their whimsical guitar dynamic, founded on a solid bass and drums pedestal.

11 - Shrines - Purity Ring

If you are a fan of M.IA. and Little Dragon, then this is an album for you. I really did not know what to expect when I listened to this, but it amazes me how they were able to mash up dance-club style beats with soothing female vocals and progressions. It becomes hard to decide whether songs belong on a dance floor or in a small venue.

10 - Channel Orange - Frank Ocean

This album is getting a ton of hype now, and it does deserve it. His first mixtape was not quite polished enough to be mainstream but this is the big time now. And there’s something for everyone to like. His dirty R&B combines the best of both rap and soul, and if you want to reach out more, check out John Mayer on “White”. Even better, watch them perform on Saturday Night Live where Ocean plays an arcade game on stage while Mayer serenades with strings.

09 - Synthetica - Metric

Finally, Metric releases some new music. I think everyone enjoyed 2009’s “Fantasies” for the catchy girl-rock, but this one gets a little more experimental and grandiose. I guess it all depends on whether you approve of this or not, but I found the songs to still maintain pop appeal while branching out a little more. “Youth Without Youth” is their anthem, while “Breathing Underwater” can stir up those youthful emotions of yesteryear just the same.

08 - Reign Of Terror - Sleigh Bells

Sleigh Bells has such a fun and interesting sound. It’s immature but smart at the same time. The guitar sound and riffs sound like slightly polished Guitar Center customer playing power chords in the store, but it’s clean and to-the-point. And with pretty vocals that be both angelic or routy, it’s a great combination.

07 - The Only Place - Best Coast

I live in California. I love California. I love driving up and down California many times. All that may be a prerequisite and cause some bias, but I love Best Coast. They perfectly define the idea that less is more, whether it is musically, lyrically, or just having fun without any responsibilities. This album will feel more polished than “Crazy For You”, and it certainly is due to their success. You can feel however you want about that aspect. But I don’t think a band in the last five years has stirred up so much careless emotion in me. Feels good man.

06 - ¡Uno! - Green Day

Damn it Green Day. You have always been my all-time favorite and I have always been ashamed to tell people that. Most of the time I lie. But I will call it as I see it and say that this is a very fun album. I loved listening and singing to it nearly every time I drove up to Orange. It’s obvious to see that although this is the first of a trilogy, Billie Joe put all his best effort on the album with his face on it. Songs are short, sweet, catchy and tight all at once. Everyone knows that Green Day has come and gone, then came again and may be on their way out again. But at the very least they have secured a spot in the history of rock and are still alive and playing together.

05 - Harmonicraft - Torche

This band. If there is such a thing as heavy metal carved from marble, then this is it. It’s powerful and masculine but I can put it on and it makes me feel like I’m soaring with angels. Ever drink whiskey, put it in your mouth, have it hit your tongue, remember the potential for it ending badly, and then have is go down smooth and satisfying in a rush of relief and awaited intoxication? That’s this band. Sorry. All that’s coming to me are these terrible analogies. But it’s all you really need. The track to listen to is “Reverse Inverted”. Go.

04 - Gossamer - Passion Pit

Almost nothing in life pleases me more than when a band follows a great first album with another great album. I’m not going to discuss whether this one is better than their last, “Manners”, it just made me so much happier. The main reason? Maturity without aging. I feel like Passion Pit abandoned those high pitched, incessant vocals without losing a step in their youthful appeal. Thus, the new song performances translate MUCH better on stage, which is so important. Also, what’s that he’s singing about? Coming home to a wife and kids for dinner? Paying taxes? Whoever this is about, it’s very settling now that I am getting up there in age as well.

03 - Celebration Rock - Japandroids

This band is a daily dose of youth and energy. Two guys going crazy on a guitar and drums, belting out anthems and not caring about the end result. I almost always think of At The Drive-In when I hear this band, but instead of a series of sporadic progressions and rhythms, it’s more a steady blast off from a launch pad that accelerates to reach full speed once you really get into it.

02 - Neck Of The Woods - Silversun Pickups

I think “Carnavas” will always stand as their most liked album, but for some reason that one never quite sparked my interest as much as “Swoon” did after that. The key word is interest. I am just drawn to the texture of their sound and progressions. I didn’t even go into this album with high expectations of topping their last, but I think they at least matched it.

01 - I Love You, It’s Cool - Bear In Heaven

I love rock. I love dancing. I love new-wave synth, and I love the 80s. So here’s all that, shaken not stirred. Unfortunately, the best description of his album does not come from me, but from a friend of mine who I played this for during a car ride: “This is, like, what you listen to while you’re doing coke in your bedroom and wearing neon-colored nikes.” Yup, that’s it right there. The tracks to hear are “The Reflection Of You” and “Sinful Nature”, but really listen to the whole thing. This will remain one of my all-time favorites.