1. Gillian Welch - The Harrow and The Harvest

Gillian and David Rawlings are the best songwriting duo in decades, period. Tasteful singing, great production, they’re both unique and outstanding performers who have a firm understanding of where music has been and how to take that and make it their own. I love listening to this album over and over. 
http://www.gillianwelch.com/

2. Cliff Martinez - Drive OST

Cliff Martinez is one of my favorite film composers, and he did a wonderful job scoring this film (which was also excellent). Cliff is a unique voice in the film world and his scores, which tend toward the electronic/ambient end of the spectrum, are each unique and listenable even detached from the context of the films themselves. It should be noted that the music choices outside of his score really added to the astehtic of the film as well.  I can’t get “A Real Hero” by College out of my head. 
http://cliff-martinez.com/

3. Julia Holter - Tragedy

I saw this album recommended via Boomkat, and I think the music she’s done here is rather a fresh mix of a various genres. I find it both listenable and challenging. There’s elements of pop, ambient, noise, and dance, at times beautiful, at times experimental and DIY, it’s a rare gem and I’m glad to have stumbled upon it. 
http://juliashammasholter.com/

4. Tim Hecker - Ravedeath 1972

I really like Tim Hecker’s music, I think he puts out consistently good releases that exhibit a wonderful exploration of sound. Ravedeath 1972 is another essential link in the chain of his discography. Beautifully mixed and mastered, I have a fun time jumping into the details of this record as there’s a lot of emotions to extract from it. 
http://www.sunblind.net/

5. Sepalcure - S/T

I have known Praveen (aka Braille) and Travis (aka Machinedrum) since the early days of Merck records and have been a fan of their solo material for a while. Their collaboration here yields a really satisfying take on a genre that I find quickly becoming over saturated. They are both consummate musicians and producers who have a real handle on how to write in many different styles of electronic music, who have been doing it for quite some time and are extremely passionate about what they do. 
http://www.sepalcure.com/

6. Nils Frahm - Felt

I have to first say that Nils is one of the warmest people to be around. His positivity comes out through the music and although his compositions are very contemplative, they are very emotive and ultimately hopeful. This record was like putting on a warm sweater. I love intimate albums like this where I feel like I’m in the same room as the music that’s coming through my headphones. Nils is an excellent piano player and engineer, and Felt was a great representation of his performance background as well as his production experience. 
http://www.durtonstudio.com/projects/detail/project/63

7. Idaho - You Were A Dick

Idaho (aka Jeff Martin), has been one of my favorite bands for years and it’s been a while since his last release but I really enjoyed his return. Jeff has an intimate way in presenting his songs, and his albums are always expertly mixed with lots of subtle details. The songs are all quite different, some miss the mark a bit, but the good songs are really great. Highly underrated. 
http://idahomusic.com/

8. Hooray For Earth - True Loves

In 2008 I played drums in a band called Boy In Static, and we opened up for Hooray For Earth in Boston. Before the show I checked out their music and was pleasantly surprised. They put on a great (and very rockingly loud) show. This record is expertly produced, catchy, and the elements of the music (some rockin’ guitars mixed with 80’s synth pop) are very interesting and varied. If Nirvana was a shoegaze band and was best friends with New Order, it would sound kinda like Hooray For Earth.
http://hoorayforearth.net/

9. Peter Broderick - Music For Confluence

Peter is one of my favorite musicians. A jack-of-all-trades, he writes and performs a LOT of different types of music (he is also the violinist of Efterklang). The score that Peter wrote is very much in line with his solo project music (especially the “Float” album he released several years ago), and it’s really beautiful across the board. It feels very intimate and home made, featuring his great lyrical violin playing and very tasteful sprinkles of piano, and guitar. It’s right up my alley and pushes all my musical buttons. I felt very much at home and comfortable enjoying this album, no pretension, no unneeded bells and whistles just very thoughtful music. 
http://www.peterbroderick.net/

10. Rhian Sheehan - Seven Tales of The North Wind

Rhian is a composer from New Zealand who has a wonderful ear for details and makes some of the nicest ambient soundscapes I’ve heard. I was very much looking forward to this EP after hearing a few previews on his soundcloud page. Throughout the 7 tracks my ears were very happy and content. Thick layered sound filled with reverb, gentle touches of synth melodies, field recordings and piano weaving in and out, expertly mixed. Right in my wheelhouse. I can’t wait for his next release. 
http://www.rhiansheehan.com/