Because we all know, more often than not, that albums are front-loaded, and bands/labels place the best songs at the beginning of the tracklisting to cater to all those short attention spans that want to hear the best a band has to offer as quickly as possible. So what are those albums that buck the trend and really come into their own from midway to end?

I nominate A Northern Soul. Excellent album overall, certainly not disputing that, but tracks 7-12 contain career bests like History, Drive You Home, Stormy Clouds and Life's an Ocean. Not even the triple whammy of A New Decade, This is Music and On Your Own can top that.

Honourable mentions...

Mew, Frengers - She Came Home for Christmas, Comforting Sounds, SheSpider, Her Voice is Beyond Her Years
The Antlers, Hospice - Two, Wake, Epilogue
Arcade Fire, Funeral - Crown of Love, In the Back Seat, Wake Up, Rebellion (Lies)
Clearlake, Cedars - Come into the Darkness, It's All Too Much, Treat Yourself With Kindness, Trees in the City