If The Joshua Tree made U2 a popular band in the late '80s, this album pushed them through the stratosphere 13 years later. After going through a dance rock phase in the '90s, All That You Can't Leave Behind went back to the more guitar-oriented rock band sound, though keeping a bit of the electronic. Bono's vocals get into the falsetto on songs such as "Beautiful Day" and "Elevation" among others. Although the first four tracks are the memorable singles, the rest of the album is great music too, from a love song to "New York" to a call for "Peace on Earth".

Release Year: 2000
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Iona mixes traditional Celtic sounds with rock/pop. The Irish band weaves together beautiful instrumental tracks with Joanne Hogg's heavenly vocals taking the lead on others. This album is centered around Irish historical figure St. Brendan and his exploration of the seas around Ireland. I love to have Iona's albums playing in the background while reading a book on a quiet weekend day; they're so epic in scope.

Release Year: 1993

Note: On streaming services, it seems like this is the 2-disc, 30th anniversary of Iona release which includes bonus tracks from the studio sessions. The original album is the first 15 tracks, about 70 minutes in total. The later tracks are just demos and unreleased tracks which may be less interesting.
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Anberlin has been making alternative rock for most of the last 20+ years, although they took a hiatus for a few years in the late 2010s. Never Take Friendship Personal is their second album and it's been an album I play pretty regularly from them. It's probably still one of my favorite albums made by Anberlin. As with many of their songs, the lyrics are about relationships and love, sometimes beautiful and sometimes heartbreaking. Stephen Christian's vocals mix in with the guitars sometimes and float above them in other times. If you have a CD copy, enjoy the booklet which has a bunch of variations on the cover artwork.

Release Year: 2005
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The release tour of this album was I think my favorite concert ever—so far. Charlie Peacock and his band are musicians who are so good at their craft! And it was in this beautiful little old church venue and I was just a dozen feet away from them with the most beautiful music being played. No Man's Land was his first independent vocal album of the modern music era, and it's a great mix of jazz, country and New Orleans blues rock. Charlie Peacock's lyrics mix the mundane with the profound. "Kite In A Tree" and "Beauty Left The Room" get stuck in my head. I love a good closing track so "Satellites" is a favorite of mine as well.

Release Year: 2012
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