As music delivery becomes more and more digital, the music spectrum outside the Top 40 has become more diverse than ever. That said, this year’s BRB Top 10 albums are a diverse bunch that feature a combination of up-and-coming artists, as well as some who are old enough to be your parents.

Without further ado…

10. Mr. Lewis and the Funeral 5 – Delirium Tremendous: Roll up your sleeves and order a few drinks, because this is a soundtrack for the night. If The Presets met The Kinks at a Tom Waits concert, you’d just begin to get an idea of the swagger Mr. Lewis and the Funeral 5 deliver.

9. Kyng – Trampled Sun: Kyng succeeds where so many other rock bands have failed. They combine classic rock, grunge, and metal into a sound that is wholly unique and incredibly listenable for fans of just about any kind of rock. They call it “California Heavy.” We call it “Fan-f#cking-tastic!”

8. Animals As Leaders – Weightless: Often, the problem with pushing the extremes is that the extremes are almost unlistenable. You can only play it so fast, detuned so far, or in so many odd time signatures before it becomes about catering to the extreme itself and not making a musical statement. Enter Animals As Leaders and their mastermid guitarist, Tosin Abasi, who combines soaring melodies, djent rhythms and odd time signatures in a way that is listenable… in the extreme. Weightless is rewriting the rulebook for progressive metal.

7. Grand Pianoramax – Smooth Danger: To call Smooth Danger an eclectic album would be a tremendous understatement. Never has one album combined funk, electronic, hip hop, and avant garde music in a a way that is so completely organic. If you are looking for candy pop, look elsewhere. Smooth Danger is 88 keys and the truth!

6. Russian Circles – Empros: Funny thing about Russian Circles. They’ve proven, record after record, that a great album doesn’t need a vocalist to tell a story. And while SPIN spends countless pages stroking Explosions in the Sky, Russian Circles drops Empros, which reaffirms what music fans already knew: while Explosions in the Sky is good, Russian Circles still rules the realm of post-rock instrumentalism.

5. Younger Brother – Vaccine: When bands make lineup changes, they instantly put themselves up for criticism. Many diehards were tough on Vaccine for all the ways it wasn’t like its predecessors. What most of them failed to realize was that, judged completely on its own merits, not only was Vaccine a stellar album, it was one of the best from any band in 2011. Vaccine brings together elements of ambient electronica and indie dream pop in a collection of convincing and infectious songs.

4. Anthrax – Worship Music: I grew up in the denim and leather generation with Anthrax and Metallica patches on my jean jacket. I say this so we can establish some credentials to remove any hyperbole from this statement: After 30 years, Anthrax released the album of their career with Worship Music. That alone is reason enough for you to have this album in your collection. Period.

3. Alert New London – Youth: From the rock hotbed of Columbus, Ohio comes Alert New London. Their unique brand of melancholia is visceral and never forced in a way that hasn’t been heard in more than a decade. From lyrics to music, this is the complete package.

2. Scarlet Season – The Taxidermist: Many reviewers called out the obvious influence of Tori Amos, but Scarlet Season goes further, incorporating elements of minimalist electronica into her beautiful, angst-ridden vocal delivery. Indeed, The Taxidermist exudes a panorama of dynamics not seen since Siouxsie Sioux.

1. Egypt Central – White Rabbit: In an age of singles, many bands are abandoning the concept of an album that contains songs that, together, make a statement. Egypt Central fly directly in the face of convention, then, with White Rabbit. The album follows the story of someone succumbing to his addictions and the perils that come with it. Musically, each song could be a single and a staple of rock radio. Together, these elements bring music fans what they long for most, but are finding in shorter supply each year: an album they can listen to from beginning to end and never want to skip a track. In the end, White Rabbit gets our vote as the top album of 2011 because it was the most accessible album we heard all year that didn’t sacrifice an ounce of integrity, coming out leaps and bounds more mature than its predecessor.