Top 20 of 2011: 1. Bon Iver – Bon Iver

1. Bon Iver – Bon Iver

Since the release of For Emma, Forever Ago and its follow up EP, Blood Bank, Justin Vernon has been doing just about everything but Bon Iver. He worked with Collections of Colonies of Bees as Volcano Choir, played a one-off with Peter Wolf Crier drummer Brian Moen as their old blues duo the Shouting Matches, made soft rock with Gayngs and even worked with Kanye West. He proved his versatility, but what was next for Bon Iver? After all that, could Vernon really go back and make another lonely solo record?

No. Instead, he enlisted the help of woodwind mastermind Colin Stetson, pedal steel guitarist Greg Leisz , saxophonist Michael Lewis and yMusic’s Rob Moose and CJ Camerieri to bulk up Bon Iver’s already-impressive live band — Sean Carey, Matt McCaughan and Mike Noyce.

The intensity of For Emma, Forever Ago might have been a fluke — Vernon, sick with mono after breaking up with his band and girlfriend, finds solace in his father’s cabin in the woods and records something perfect. But even without a romantic backstory, Bon Iver effortlessly recaptures the magic of Emma on a much larger scale.

I’ve had this pegged as “Album of the Year” since my first listen. It’s absolutely enchanting from the thunders of “Perth” to the Bruce Hornsby-based ballad “Beth/Rest.” Bon Iver is one of those rare records — much bigger than itself, but so personal and meaningful.

Top 20 of 2011: 3. Destroyer – Kaputt

3. Destroyer – Kaputt

Destroyer’s ninth album is the most interesting thing to happen to music this year — and maybe even longer.

Singer-songwriter Dan Bejar’s acoustic guitar disappeared in a haze of smoke, drugs and nostalgia, replaced by saxophones, flutes and synths. Kaputt‘s light jazz and funk lifts his obscured poetry to a cinematic high. Bejar creates musical images of cocaine dealers walking through Chinatown in the late ’70s and hazy dreams of New York City streets.

Though it heavily recalls the ’70s and ’80s, nothing’s ever been made that sounds like Kaputt. Bejar treads a fine line between irony and Steely Dan worshiping. Whichever way he’s actually leaning, it’s fantastic.

I wouldn’t expect Kaputt II. Knowing Bejar, he’s bound to come up with some incredible and bizarre new direction soon.

Top 20 of 2011: 6. The Decemberists – The King Is Dead

6. The Decemberists – The King Is Dead

The Decemberists are a great band, but their theatrics can be a bit much. The heavy narratives of their last few albums — the song cycles of The Crane Wife and the full-blown rock opera, The Hazards of Love — were impressive, but a bit inaccessible.

That’s why The King Is Dead was such a surprise. The band’s sixth album isn’t another session of indie-rock theater camp. It’s a straight-forward indie-folk album, featuring tons of traditional instrumentation — harmonica, accordion, banjo and bouzouki, to name a few — and guest stars like Gillian Welch, David Rawlings and R.E.M.’s Peter Buck.

Songwriter Colin Meloy still spins incredibly detailed yarns about the days of yore, but this time, he’s more like Elvis Costello than a playwright. Meloy published his first novel, Wildwood, this year, so it’s possible that he got his need for plot-driven media out a different way.

The King Is Dead is arguably the Decemberists’ finest work. Its unpretentious, upbeat folk is thoroughly enjoyable, even without a theater degree.

Top 20 of 2011: 7. Ryan Adams – Ashes & Fire

7. Ryan Adams – Ashes & Fire

When Ryan Adams took a step back from music, it was uncertain how long he would be gone. Thankfully, like most musical retirements, his time off was short.

Ashes & Fire is different than the music he had been making with the Cardinals up until 2009, but fits right into his constantly evolving body of work. More stripped-down than anything he’s done since Heartbreaker (save for maybe the piano-heavy 29), Ashes & Fire is definitely a personal record. Adams sounds more at ease than he has since his debut, free from the pressures of a record label and waiting fans.

Adam’s 13th album isn’t just the sound of an artist coming back to music. It’s intense, sincere and, at times, heartbreaking. It’s the kind of record that’s only going to get better with time.

Bon Iver – Bon Iver

On an almost-eight-hour train ride to New York City, I decided to finally listen to the new Bon Iver record. I had been putting it off for quite a while, waiting to hold out for the vinyl version – which I still hadn’t gotten. I think the real reason I held off was that I was afraid it couldn’t possibly hold up to the first Bon Iver album, For Emma, Forever Ago.

I was listening to music and reading Bob Mould’s autobiography. I selected Bon Iver and immediately realized I wasn’t ready. This needed my full attention. I held off a little longer, put down the book and tried again. I was greeted with the opening guitar of “Perth.” It started very sparse, like Bon Iver’s older material. I knew the sound had expanded and was prepared for it, but it was still almost overwhelming in its breadth and majesty.

As the train rolled through small towns in upstate New York, I could feel the same intimacy so prevalent in For Emma. Even surrounded by countless instruments – steel guitars, drums, horns and strings – Justin Vernon still sounds the same: intensely personal. It’s the kind of record that you can’t help but want to keep to yourself, listening over and over, alone to your thoughts.

By the middle of the first song – when “Perth” erupts with thundering drums and horns – I could already tell that Bon Iver would be as life-changing as For Emma. Bon Iver will someday carry the weight of bands like Neutral Milk Hotel. They’re extremely important now, but will be utterly priceless to the next generations, who will feel an incredible revelation listening to Bon Iver or For Emma – much like most of us did with In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.

It’s hardly even worth writing about the songs. Vernon has the impeccable capability to evoke personal emotions from each individual listener. Each person hears it and feels something different, and each subsequent listen offers a unique experience the way few records ever have or will.

I finished the album as the train was stopped in Schenectady. I started it again, afraid of missing absolutely anything – a note, a word or even a breath. It’s all incredible and demands (and deserves) every bit of attention.