The current position is followed by last month´s position in brackets, then the adjusted score, followed by the average rating and the number of reviews in brackets.

The scores after the title are the individual positions/adjusted scores for Europe, the UK and the US, followed by the current Metacritic-score.

01. (01) 70,6 - 78,9 (26) Vampire Weekend ´Vampire Weekend´
EU : 01. 71,0 - UK : 05. 71,4 - US : 03. 69,5 - MC : 82

02. (07) 70,2 - 81,8 (18) Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds ´Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!´
EU : 03. 70,3 - UK : 01. 75,0 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

03. (--) 69,7 - 80,5 (19) Hercules And Love Affair ´Hercules And Love Affair´
EU : 06. 67,9 - UK : 02. 74,5 - US : 0000000 - MC : 87

04. (02) 67,1 - 75,6 (21) Black Mountain ´In The Future´
EU : 05. 68,2 - UK : 24. 67,1 - US : 14. 65,9 - MC : 79

05. (03) 66,9 - 73,9 (25) Hot Chip ´Made In The Dark´
EU : 09. 65,9 - UK : 35. 65,3 - US : 02. 69,5 - MC : 78

06. (--) 66,8 - 81,3 (12) Erykah Badu : New Amerykah : Part One (4th World War)
EU : 10. 65,9 - UK : 11. 69,0 - US : 11. 66,3 - MC : 82

07. (--) 66,7 - 75,4 (20) The Gutter Twins ´Saturnalia´
EU : 04. 69,5 - UK : 14. 68,0 - US : 0000000 - MC : 79

08. (04) 66,3 - 76,2 (17) Drive-By Truckers ´Brighter Than Creation´s Dark´
EU : 02. 70,7 - UK : 0000000 - US : 23. 64,1 - MC : 83

09. (--) 65,5 - 74,9 (17) R.E.M. ´Accelerate´
EU : 22. 62,9 - UK : 13. 68,2 - US : 11. 66,3 - MC : 00

10. (05) 65,3 - 71,7 (25) Magnetic Fields ´Distortion´
EU : 07. 67,8 - UK : 0000000 - US : 07. 67,5 - MC : 78

11. (06) 65,2 - 71,6 (25) Cat Power ´Jukebox´
EU : 08. 66,7 - UK : 0000000 - US : 19. 64,9 - MC : 71

12. (18) 65,0 - 80,6 (10) Earth ´The Bees Made Honey In The Lion´s Skull´
EU : 14. 64,2 - UK : 23. 67,2 - US : 24. 64,0 - MC : 00

13. (--) 64,7 - 76,5 (13) Neon Neon ´Stainless Style´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 06. 70,4 - US : 0000000 - MC : 77

14. (09) 64,6 - 72,6 (19) The Mountain Goats ´Heretic Pride´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 24. 67,1 - US : 04. 69,2 - MC : 74

15. (08) 64,6 - 74,7 (15) Los Campesinos! ´Hold On Now, Youngster´
EU : 16. 63,7 - UK : 12. 68,4 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

16. (12) 64,2 - 72,8 (17) Cass Mccombs ´Dropping The Writ´
EU : 20. 63,3 - UK : 09. 69,3 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

17. (14) 63,8 - 72,7 (16) Beach House ´Devotion´
EU : 24. 62,3 - UK : 0000000 - US : 09. 66,7 - MC : 73

18. (10) 63,6 - 70,0 (22) British Sea Power ´Do You Like Rock Music?´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 04. 72,5 - US: 0000000 - MC : 80

19. (19) 63,5 - 69,8 (22) Goldfrapp ´Seventh Tree´
EU : 33. 61,2 - UK : 20. 67,4 - US : 38. 62,3 - MC : 78

20. (13) 63,3 - 71,5 (17) American Music Club ´The Golden Age´
EU : 17. 63,6 - UK : 0000000 - US : 0000000 - MC : 80

21. (--) 63,3 - 74,8 (12) Why? ´Alopecia´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 0000000 - US : 01. 69,6 - MC : 81

22. (26) 63,1 - 71,2 (17) These New Puritans ´Beat Pyramid´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 07. 69,4 - US : 0000000 - MC : 76

23. (--) 62,9 - 75,2 (11) DeVotchKa ´A Mad And Faithful Telling´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 10. 69,2 - US : 30. 63,5 - MC : 83

24. (15) 62,6 - 81,4 (07) Toumani Diabaté ´The Mandé Variations´
EU : 18. 63,5 - UK : 17. 67,7 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

25. (--) 62,6 - 73,4 (12) MGMT ´Oracular Spectacular´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 14. 68,0 - US : 0000000 - MC : 75

26. (--) 62,5 - 81,0 (08) Elbow ´The Seldom Seen Kid´
EU : 0000000 - UK . 02. 74,5 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

27. (--) 62,4 - 72,3 (13) Cadence Weapon ´Afterparty Babies´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 14. 68,0 - US : 0000000 - MC : 71

28. (16) 62,4 - 69,5 (18) Lupe Fiasco ´The Cool´
EU : 36. 60,8 - UK : 0000000 - US : 22. 64,5 - MC : 77

29. (17) 62,4 - 69,1 (19) Baby Dee ´Safe Inside The Day´
EU : 19. 63,4 - UK : 0000000 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

30. (--) 62,2 - 73,7 (11) The Young Knives ´Superabundance´
EU : 21. 63,2 - UK : 35. 65,3 - US : 0000000 - MC : 00

31. (20) 62,1 - 68,4 (20) Wu-Tang Clan ´8 Diagrams´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 0000000 - US : 31. 63,4 - MC : 73

32. (--) 61,9 - 69,2 (17) Autechre ´Quaristice´
EU : 26. 61,9 - UK : 0000000 - US : 17. 65,4 - MC : 78

33. (--) 61,9 - 67,0 (24) Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks ´Real Emotional Trash´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 0000000 - US : 15. 65,7 - MC : 79

34. (22) 61,8 - 82,3 (06) Times New Viking ´Rip It Off´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 0000000 - US : 05. 68,8 - MC : 00

35. (21) 61,8 - 69,0 (17) Sons & Daughters ´The Gift´
EU : 26. 61,9 - UK : 0000000 - US : 0000000 - MC : 73

36. (24) 61,8 - 74,0 (10) Jonny Greenwood ´There Will Be Blood´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 0000000 - US : 13. 66,1 - MC : 00

37. (30) 61,8 - 72,0 (12) Thao ´We Brave Bee Stings And All´
EU : 40. 60,5 - UK : 0000000 - US : 25. 64,0 - MC : 00

38. (11) 61,7 - 71,0 (13) Ghostface Killah ´The Big Doe Rehab´
EU : 39. 60,5 - UK : 0000000 - US : 18. 65,2 - MC : 77

39. (23) 61,3 - 71,2 (12) Xiu Xiu ´Women As Lovers´
EU : 0000000 - UK : 0000000 - US : 21. 64,8 - MC : 77

40. (--) 61,2 - 70,2 (13) Be Your Own Pet ´Get Awkward´
EU : 13. 64,4 - UK : 0000000 - US : 0000000 - MC : 71

Further information on the regional charts :

EU :

11. (--) 65,0 Sascha Funke ´Mango´
12. (--) 64,7 The Black Crowes ´War Paint´
15. (11) 63,7 Black Lips ´Good Bad Not Evil´
23. (13) 62,3 Mars Volta ´The Bedlam In Goliath´
24. (--) 62,3 Lizz Wright ´The Orchard´
28. (--) 61,8 Scott Matthew ´Scott Matthew´
29. (15) 61,7 Joe Jackson ´Rain´
30. (16) 61,7 K.D. Lang ´Watershed´
31. (RE) 61,7 Marah ´Angels Of Destruction´
32. (18) 61,4 Shelby Lynne ´Just A Little Lovin´
34. (--) 61,2 Thee Silver Mt. Zion ´13 Blues For Thirteen Moons´
35. (--) 61,1 Rumble Strips ´Girls And Weather´
37. (--) 60,8 Tift Merritt ´Another Country´
38. (29) 60,7 Sheryl Crow ´Detours´

UK :

07. (--) 69,4 Mystery Jets ´Twenty One´
17. (--) 67,7 Benga ´Diary Of An Afro Warrior´
17. (--) 67,7 Fuck Buttons ´Street Horrrsing´
20. (--) 67,4 Kathryn Williams/Neill Maccoll ´Two´
20. (--) 67,4 Foals ´Antidotes´
24. (11) 67,1 Lightspeed Champion ´Falling Off The Lavender Bridge´
27. (--) 66.7 Tegan and Sara `The Con´
28. (14) 65,9 Pete & The Pirates ´Little Death´
28. (14) 65,9 Sebastien Tellier ´Sexuality´
30. (16) 65,5 Le Loup ´The Throne Of The Third Heaven...´
30. (--) 65,5 The Raconteurs ´Consolers Of The Lonely´
30. (--) 65,5 Health ´Health´
33. (18) 65,4 The Heliocentrics ´Out There´
33. (18) 65,4 The Boggs ´Forts´
35. (20) 65,3 Laura Marling ´Alas I Cannot Swim´
38. (30) 64,8 Nada Surf ´Lucky´
38. (--) 64,8 Merz ´Moi Et Mon Camion´
40. (--) 64,7 White Hinterland ´Phylactery Factory´

US :

06. (06) 68,6 Bon Iver ´For Emma, Forever Ago´
08. (--) 66,8 Food For Animals ´Belly´
10. (--) 66,3 Destroyer ´Trouble In Dreams´
16. (17) 65,6 The Raveonettes ´Lust Lust Lust´
20. (12) 64,8 Atlas Sound ´Let The Blind Lead Those Who Cannot See´
26. (18) 63,9 Jason Collett ´Here´s To Being Here´
27. (--) 63,8 The Kills ´Midnight Boom´
28. (--) 63,6 Headlights ´Some Racing, Some Stopping´
29. (--) 63,5 She & Him ´Volume One´
32. (--) 63,2 Born Ruffians ´Red Yellow & Blue´
33. (21) 62,9 Zs ´Arms´
33. (21) 62,9 Bob Mould ´District Line´
35. (23) 62,9 Sheryl Crow ´Detours´
35. (--) 62,9 Nine Inch Nails ´Ghosts I - IV´
35. (--) 62,9 Kathleen Edwards ´Asking For Flowers´
39. (25) 62,3 Re-Up Gang ´We Got It For Cheap, Vol.3´
40. (26) 62,2 The Whigs ´Mission Control´

Our winner of the competition is STEPHAN; his CD has been posted.

Clues for this month´s competition on the 22nd, deadline is the 25th.

Next update on April 30th.

Great update, Stefan!

REM and NICK CAVE both have 10 plus reviews and starting scores on metacritic if your interested. You just gotta search for them

I'm still trying to figure out how to do the specific rankings with my system. The way I have it right now, Bon Iver, Erykah Badu, Vampire Weekend, and Drive By Truckers make up the top four. Maybe I'll post it when the list is a little more populated. Right now I only have 20 albums rated.

With the idea I'm using right now with win-losses (A win means more sources prefer album A to album B than vice versa), I take out the album with the lowest score, re-calculate score based on the albums still left, and then repeat until the list is done.

The idea here is that in order to get higher than 8th place, you need wins against other albums in the top 8. But that has enough pitfalls and flukes I need to fix before finalizing it as 'my system'.

Stefan: The Why? album is #1 for the U.S.? Really?

Wohoo! :) Thanks Stefan, I'm eagerly awaiting the album.

April is easy. Portishead. by light leagues,

Harold :
Yes, really !!! Why?´s album is the US # 1
Pichfork : 82
Popmatters : 80
Slant : 80
Spin : 70
Tinymixtapes : 90
Cokemachineglow : 78

Mitchell :
Your competition-entry has been noted !

Just received Hercules and Love Affair, gonna give it a spin now. Thanks again Stefan.

And a very good album it is. It just climbed to my #3 album of the year, just behind R.E.M..

How did you get Stephan's address?

I gave it to him.

April entry: Sun Kil Moon

It's totally going to be Portishead, but I'm going to go with: Frightened Rabbit

Because I'm having trouble finding it in stores.

Or I could be annoying and pick one that's only available as import in the US. But no, Hercules and Love Affair is already on.

The Sun Kil Moon album is really good.

I'm going to go with a comedy album: Flight of the Conchords. There's a ton of stuff coming out April 28th and 29th but I think some of it will be reviewed too late for the update.

not so overhasty !!! there´s another one rocketing up the chart at the moment !!! wait and see the clues on the 25th !!!
and ... even if ´portishead´ has been entered before ,you still can make your guess for´portishead´and the´lucky draw´will find this month´s winner.

I have to go with Sun Kil Moon for this one. I personally think its one of the best this year.

It's your game but it's a lot more fun to guess the albums before they are reviewed. I'd prefer it if you didn't give the hint unless nobody gets it. But it's your cd to give away and game to moderate!

Sun Kil Moon just jumped up to #4 on my list. It's probably a good guess. But, I already have it, so there's no reason for me to pick it. :)

And Nick Cave's taken the #1 spot by leaps and mounds when 3 or 4 more 90's were added all in a row. It's current record is 37-0-1.

hey could somebody please explain last month's clues i didn't understand them at all?

Sure, Brennen
...So here are he clues to the clues :
1 : 'lion skin and club' = greek mythology, description of Hercules = Hercules and Love Affair
2 : 'sluice and sluice' = gutter and gutter = Gutter Twins

oh okay thanks...April's highest ranking will go to Elbow, I think.

This month's clues almost ready Stefan?

yes, stephan
they will be published here on the 25th

Ah, then I'll have to make my guess now.. I'm gonna go with Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.

sorry, I mixed up the dates...
the 25th is the deadline...
and the clues will be online any minute now...

John - I hope it's Flight Of The Conchords. Don't think it's come out here yet but I know most of the songs. Are they acclaimed?