It's already July, which means that the obligatory look back at the first half of the year is well underway. Drowned in Sound and the Irish Times put their two cents in recently, and each list is comprised of just about all the bands you would expect. Both agree on Animal Collective, Fever Ray, and Dirty Projectors, and both throw in some personal favorites. The Irish Times seems to include more of a stylistic range with folks like Mulatu Astatke and Hudson Mohawke, while Drowned in Sound is more indie-centric (Sunset Rubdown and Handsome Furs both make it, as well as the gimmicky Danananananaykroyd). The "I can't believe they forgot ___!" and "Why the hell would ___ make it?" backlash is inevitable, so feel free to air your grievances in the comments. [Via: LHB]

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Drowned in Sound's list:
St. Vincent Actor
Animal Collective Merriweather Post Pavilion
Fever Ray Fever Ray
Dirty Projectors Bitte Orca
Metric Fantasies
Sunset Rubdown Dragonslayer
The Veils Sun Gangs
Andrew Bird Noble Beast
School of Seven Bells Alpinisms
Moderat Moderat
Cursive Mama, I'm Swollen
Soap&Skin Lovetune for Vacuum
Sonic Youth The Eternal
The Horrors Primary Colours
Handsome Furs Face Control
My Latest Novel Deaths and Entrances
Future of the Left Travels With Myself And Another
Danananananaykroyd Hey Everyone
The Decemberists The Hazards of Love
Various Dark Was the Night
Patrick Wolf The Bachelor