Here's some of the albums that most captivated the last part of 2003:

Aphex Twin / Richard James - Richard D. James Album

Tickles the brain more like classical than electronic, with striking melodies taming artful beats. Brainy, but never aloof - always decidedly playful. His work is a broad, brilliant thing; this record is a good sample. (Amazon)

Shiina Ringo - Karuki Zamen Kuri no Hana (Calcium, Semen and Chestnut Flowers)

I asked David Marx of Young Alive in Love to recommend me some music - he said this woman and this album were the best things happening in Japanese music. He wasn't fibbing; her music is compelling worldwide. Shiina Ringo melds a wide range of styles into something both virtuosic and poignant. I don't understand about 98% of the lyrics and I'm still fantastically impressed. (YesAsia | Time.com profile)

The Small Hours

The Small Hours unabashedly works over computer-mediated feeling, coming into adulthood through machines. It's electronic, with a soft but firm hand. Agro-depressive - it will propell you into the evening. (TheSmallHours.net)

Boards Of Canada - Music Has the Right to Children

Gentle, haunting atmospheric electronica. Samples echo off beats and melody. This album effectively coerces a low-brainwave mood. (Amazon)

Jan Johansson - Folkvisor (Jazz På Svenska-Jazz På Ryska)

Aching contemplative jazz. Spare soundscapes from a piano with accompaniment, by a Swedish jazz legend who died too young. (Heptagon)

Bad Brains - I Against I

Picking up energy with righteous energetic indignation. Punk, punk, with a dab of dub. (Amazon)

(all Amazon links resolve to a Chanpon.org donation)