New or old. Try and narrow this down to as few as possible (like maybe 3 best and 1 worst).

I'm going to review my purchases and post mine in a bit.

Worst: Ironing Board Sam--self-titled

Don't know the best one yet. Probably the Solar Flares.

I guess "A Blessing And A Curse" would be my best purchase. I dont really have a worst one since even with the three that I bought without having heard a preview (Bruce, Bulit To Spill, Pearl Jam), I kinda knew what I was getting.

I will say that the Springsteen has been the most pleasantly surprising purchase. Much better than expected.

Edit: I hadnt heard Cat Power either, but I generally like it, too.

One of my roommates bought this, and what I heard was very good. I ripped it from him and will be listening to it more later.

Best So Far: Cesaria Evora - Rogamar and Islands - Return To The Sea

Worst By Far: The Kills - No Wow

At this moment I'd say:

Neko Case "Fox Confessor" / Field Music "S/T"

Best: Jenny Lewis
Worst: new Strokes

But I've only made maybe 17 purchases.

best:

m. ward - end of amnesia (replaced cd-r. my favorite of his albums)

nick cave & the bad seeds - abattoir blues/the lyre of orpheus (also replacing cd-r. so fucking good.)

the radio dept. - lesser matters (also replacing cd-r)

see the trend there? another argument for downloading first. ensures you only buy great albums.

worst:

the streets - the hardest way to make a living (replaced cd-r, which i really wasn't crazy about in the first place, but couldn't pass up the $3 price on half.com)

Best:

Tommie Young "Do You Still Feel The Same Way"
Marty Robbins "Gunfighter Songs..."

Worst:

Isobel Campbell/Mark Lanegan

Best: Liars
Worst: Flaming Lips

i think i've bought a total of 2 cds this year. goodness i'm spoiled here.

but i enjoy the hell out of them:
jimmy edgar- color strip
little ones- sing song ep

Limited to stuff I didn't have prior to this year*

Best
Sly & The Family Stone - There's a Riot Goin' On
This band has been my favorite discovery of this year by far. This album and the two preceding it are just so, so great. I just need to find a copy of Fresh which has suddenly become kinda difficult.

The Dukes of Stratosphere - Chips from the Chocolate Fireball
Started getting into XTC last year, and I didn't know where to go next after Drums & Wires, Black Sea, English Settlement, and Skylarking. I think this might have been the perfect choice. Right now I'd say it's my 2nd favorite thing of theirs, right after D&W.

Liars - Drum's Not Dead (LP + DVD)
My favorite album of this year so far. Hopefully it'll keep holding up as well as it has.

Worst
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound
What can I say? I should have known better. Luckily I'd already bought those first two Soft Machine albums when I got this, or else this might have scared me off from anything remotely prog-like for a very long time. Honestly, I don't think I'll ever understand what makes Peter Gabriel any better or more "credible" than Phil Collins. More pretentious? Sure. But equally sucky.

Terrestrial Tones - Dead Drunk
This is Avey Tare from Animal Collective and a dude from Black Dice, for those who don't know. I thought it was a decent enough noise record at first, but the more I listen to it, the less I like it. I enjoy a fair amount of noise and experimental stuff, but this is just kind of annoying.

*Otherwise the dualdisc of Fear of Music might qualify as my best purchase, as it's currently taken the spot of my favorite album ever.

Best : Damone "Out Here All Night"

Worst : dunno...I'd have'ta check my list.

At the risk of totally pissing you off, I'm gonna agree with you here.

Haha. I'll take whatever allies I can get on the Peter Gabriel hate.

at the risk of sounding ambivalent, I have yet to purchase anything this year that has made any remarkable impression on me, good or bad. I find that depressing, actually.

Not on the "the man can do no wrong" bandwagon, but side one of the "melt" album (the side WITHOUT Biko and GWOF)--think Paul Weller cranking his Rickenbacker during "And Through The Wire"--and portions of Security are exquisite.

Well, pretty much all of the Gabriel I've heard are the big '80s singles and that one Genesis album. That's enough for a while, though.

Yeah, I don't have a 'worst' because I'm always previewing. I have listened to a couple albums that I've shut off about 1/3rd of the way through because they've been so horrible (Suede, The Go Team, The Constantines).

EDIT: And Wolfmother, I thought that was so horrible I shut it off after two songs using the oft used 'Life's Too Short' clause.

The best actual purchases have probably been The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Arctic Monkeys.

I may actually like him less than Phil Collins. And the word "may" is only there due to respect for what he's done to raise the visibility of african musicians like youssou n'dour.

best: drive by truckers; matthew sweet & susanna hoffs; the bell rays

worst: subways; artic monkeys

i have more things to post.....but for now.

i did buy this in 06 & totally disagree with you...great album
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound

sorry drinky...i am against you on the gabriel hate

"Can you tell me where my country lies?
Said the unifaun to his true love’s eyes."

I'm sorry. You can't open an album with those lyrics. Someone should have told them that.

best: ghostface fishscale

worst: gogogo airheart rats! sing! sing! (i knew i should've waited til after their set was over before buying the album)

Best: Madlib - Beat Konducta Vol. 1-2

Worst: William Orbit - Hello Waveforms (mostly because it was a total let down compared to his last pop album, Hinterland)