2009's Best Music So Far

Now that 2009 is more than halfway over, James Montgomery runs down the best albums of the year—so far—on MTV:

Animal Collective, Merriweather Post Pavilion: The No. 1 pick is “the only thing I can remember that has actually lived up to the hype, if not exceeded it.”
Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix: “Retro pop hyper-focused on a futuristic re-imagination of post-modernism and neo-classicism as proletarian touchstones? That you can dance to?” earns album No. 2 spot.
Kelly Clarkson, All I Ever Wanted: “Yes, seriously,” she made it into the top five. Clarkson is “finally realizing her full potential as a pop megastar.”
Wilco, Wilco (The Album): “Jeff Tweedy and company appear to be aging gracefully here and, in the process, they've created the summertime anthem for anyone who owns a battered Volvo wagon and spends their Saturdays playing kickball in McCarren Park.”
Mos Def, The Ecstatic: This is “the album his fans have been waiting for since 1999’s milestone Black on Both Sides. Welcome back to earth, Ford Prefect.”