While Kanye West has always given the people what they want, 2010 saw him become rap's true king of generosity: he leaked new songs near-weekly and launched one of the greatest Twitter accounts of all time. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Roc-A-Fella) caps off a return-to-form year for West with a boundary-pushing opus that envelopes the digital experiments of his last two albums into a more traditional beat-driven sound. It's a hip-hop history lesson that looks to the future for inspiration.

Building on a well-earned reputation for riveting live shows, Kingston's PS I Love You deliver one of the year's most impressive debuts with Meet Me At the Muster Station (Paper Bag). Credit much of the energy to vocalist/guitarist Paul Saulnier, who sings like the manic love child of Wolf Parade's Spencer Krug and Mick Jagger. Muster Station's rawness makes for a brash ...