Howdy folks. It’s almost the end of December, and a lot of great music hit our ears this year. We all have different tastes, so here is my compilation of what I thought the best releases were of 2013. Do you have other contenders? Comment below and tell us why you chose what you chose!

Congrats to all of those that impressed us here at theFIVE10.com! There were a lot of you.

#5 – Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown – Wild Child

What can I say about these guys? Bringing back the blues rock n’ roll attitude in a very needed way. This debut by the young guitar virtuoso is solid from front to back, garnering many repeat plays this year. Not to mention they put on a hell of a live show.

#4 – Paul McCartney –New

Sir Paul blessed us all in 2013 with his fantastic new record. It contains all the elements of why you love the Beatles, mixed in with some contemporary instrumentation. Once again, McCartney shows why he is (in my opinion) the better songwriter of the famous duo.

#3 – Bad Rabbits – American Love

I’ve been singing praises for this Boston quintet for a few years now, and it seems that they’re about to hit us very, very hard. Bad Rabbits released their first full-length album this year and man, is it good.  Imagine Bobby Brown for a rock n’ roll audience.

#2 – Middle Class Rut – Pick Up Your Head

Straight. Up. Rock. With some Beastie Boys-esque vocal tones. Every song will get stuck in your head.

#1 – Arctic Monkeys – AM

This UK group came slamming through this year with one of the best rock albums I have heard in years. Moody, groovy, sassy, catchy. Alex Turner proves yet again that he is probably the most gifted lyricist in popular music currently.

Here’s to a great 2014! Although this is gonna be a tough year to beat.