This chart covers Jan. 3 – Jan. 9, which means that, for all intents and purposes, it’s less the first chart of 2011 than it is the last chart of 2010.

  1. The Black Keys / Brothers / Nonesuch

  2. Arcade Fire / The Suburbs / Merge

  3. Kanye West / My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy / Def Jam

  4. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals / III/IV / Paxam

  5. Greenhornes / **** / Warner Bros

  6. Kings Of Leon / Come Around Sundown / RCA

  7. Yann Tiersen / Dust Lane / Anti

  8. XX / XX / XL

  9. The Sainte Catherines / Fire Works / Anchorless

  10. Cee-Lo Green / The Lady Killer / Atlantic

  11. Justin Townes Earle / Harlem River Blues / Bloodshot

  12. The Morning Benders / Big Echo / Rough Trade

  13. Mumford & Sons / Sigh No More / Glassnote

  14. Of Montreal / False Priest / Polyvinyl

  15. Daft Punk / Tron Legacy / Walt Disney Records

  16. Caribou / Swim / Merge

  17. Brian Eno / Small Craft On A Milk Sea / Warp

  18. Belle & Sebastian / Write About Love / Matador

  19. Minus The Bear / Omni / Dangerbird

  20. Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros / Up From Below / Vagrant

  21. Jay-Z / The Hits Collection, Vol. 1 / Def Jam

  22. She & Him / Volume 2 / Merge

  23. Wavves / King Of The Beach / Fat Possum

  24. Sufjan Stevens / The Age Of Adz / Asthmatic Kitty

  25. Shadow Shadow Shade / Shadow Shadow Shade / Public Records


This article appears in Jan 12-18, 2011.