Two brothers from the hard rock town of Granite City, Ill., create pure rock 'n' roll raunch. Think Jet, only without the suck.

Rock Kills Kid

1. Blowoff | Blowoff (Full Frequency)

The dance-pop collaboration of rocker Bob Mould and house DJ Richard Morel unites the best tendencies of both performers, crafting a record worthy of rocking out to in the car or shaking your booty to on the dance floor.

2. Arctic Monkeys | Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (Domino)

When NME named this album the fifth best British album of all time the same week it was released, you couldn't help but laugh. Disregard the hype, however, and you'll find this album, the fastest selling debut in U.K. history, to be a damn fine rock record, telling Strokes-like stories of smoky, alcohol-fueled nights with Morrissey-like lyrical detail over lightning fast angular punk.

3. Rock Kills Kid | Are You Nervous? (Reprise)

Bummed out by the Killers' odd Springsteenian turn on their sophomore album? Boy, is this up your alley. Take those Vegas boys' dancefloor classics and add in the best of everything you ever loved about the '80s, from Modern English to the Fixx to New Order to U2 (thankfully sans the earnestness), throw in a dash of slicing disco guitars and a singer who sounds like Rivers Cuomo if he were obsessed with Duran Duran instead of Kiss, and you end up with this oddly timeless sounding collection of killer synth-rock. Half this record is unassailably perfect; the other half comes awful close. This is a band to watch.

4. La Rocca | The Truth (Dangerbird)

Like the Replacements with a little E Street-esque keyboards thrown in for good measure, La Rocca's brand of rock is powerful, earnest, and insistent. "Sketches (20 Something Life)" kicks the album to life in a major fashion, and the rest of the album is more than happy to keep up the pace.

5. The Raconteurs | Broken Boy Soldiers (V2)

The supergroup featuring Jack White and Brendan Benson teamed with Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler of the Greenhornes failed to live up to the enormous hype that preceded it, but when the foursome does click, the results are more than worth the price of admission.

6. +44 | When Your Heart Stops Beating (Interscope)

Unlike former bandmate Tom DeLonge and his new band Angels & Airwaves, Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker bring Blink-182 fans exactly what they want to hear, continuing the maturation of that band's phenomenal final album without skimping on the punk rock crunch.

7. The Vacation | The Vacation (Warner Bros.)

Two brothers from the hard rock town of Granite City, Ill., create pure rock 'n' roll raunch. Think Jet, only without the suck.

8. Let Go | Let Go (The Militia Group)

This Tempe, Ariz., trio plays like a more hook-driven, less morose version of Jimmy Eat World, and considering how catchy that band's songs are, you can only imagine how deeply these songs can dig into your skull.

9. Blackpool Lights | This Town's Disaster (Curb Appeal)

Fans of Jim Suptic's old band the Get Up Kids would do well to order up this tight slice of straight-up guitar rock, with extra Westerberg and hold the emo.

10. Miho Hatori | Ecdysis (Rykodisc)

The former Cibo Matto singer tones down the craziness for her solo debut, inspiring in the sheer musical variety in its 11 songs. | Jason Green