Austin’s musicians work harder than any other city’s in the country. As proof, there’s their ceaseless productivity, which cannot be denied. Yet with each passing year, it’s surprising that Austin doesn’t have more acts break through to a wider audience and more national acclaim when they’re putting out such great material. To champion just a few of the tastiest fruits of that labor in 2015, here’s our Top 10 Austin Albums of the Year based on the ones that had the best reviews of the year in the pages of Austin Monthly. (Unless stated, all reviews are written by Bryan Parker.)

1. Abram Shook – Landscape Dream, Western Vinyl

Opening his sophomore LP with the whimsy of a space-age guitar, Shook levels the instrumental richness with his unique ethereal vocals. Aptly titled, the album unfolds from there into a vast dreamy landscape that matches the output of its equally strong predecessor, Sun Marquee. —Neph Basedow

2. Adam Torres – Nostra Nova, Misra Records

Recorded nearly a decade ago, this minor masterpiece finally gets its first proper release. Drawing from seminal underground heroes Elliott Smith and Neutral Milk Hotel, Adam Torres creates elegant ballads and clamoring folk rock, delivering a powerful song cycle that hits its mark on “Rosemarie.”

3. Living Grateful – Peace Mob, Punctum Records

Former Strange Boys member Ryan Sambol exceeds expectations on his new LP, released under the moniker Living Grateful. Throughout ramshackle arrangements of guitars both acoustic and distorted, the singer warbles and moans like Austin’s very own drunken version of Loaded-era Lou Reed.

4. Reservations – Taking Time, Self-released

In the two long years between the trio’s debut EP and its first full-length album, songwriter Jana Horn has carefully transformed hushed folk into expansive, ethereal arrangements. The front woman’s once-timid voice haunts these songs like a specter. Taking time paid off for this promising act.

5. Patty Griffin – Servant of Love, Thirty Tigers

Within Patty Griffin’s minor key riffs of haunting piano and rambling guitar lie the pain, love, hope and transcendence of life and death. Alternating between songs rooted firmly in earthy tones and those arching heavenward, Griffin’s 10th album adds another powerful work to a masterful oeuvre.

6. Carson McHone – Goodluck Man, Self-released

The dust on Carson McHone’s boots comes from a road well trod by traditional country greats. With a new album full of almost-too-perfect songs guided by pedal steel and her effortlessly pleasing voice, this rising singer-songwriter will follow that road to deservedly wider audiences on the horizon.

7. Sweet Spirit – Cokomo, Nine Mile Records

Sweet Spirit is a sweaty shot of garage rock tempered with a warm caress of soul grooves. Andrew Cashen’s buzzing guitar hooks and Sabrina Ellis’s smoky vocals pilot a drug-fueled red-eye flight over an ocean of romantic turmoil and heartbreak. You’ll never want to come home after this trip to Cokomo.

8. Moving Panoramas – One, Modern Outsider

Singer Leslie Sisson emits sugary vocals that float gently on a wash of shoegazing guitar and bouncing bass notes. Falling somewhere between The Softies and My Bloody Valentine, this all-girl trio’s twee-gaze debut on local label Modern Outsider marks a solid effort.

9. John Wesley Coleman – Greatest Hits, Super Secret Records

Like all great songwriters, John Wesley Coleman III works between timeless universality and fresh phrasings, creating sentiments that feel familiar but sound original. With wry lyrics backed by a touch of twang and lo-fi garage folk, these are songs of life’s tedium at its most beautiful.

10. Knest – Honorary Bachelors of Arts, Self Sabotage Records

Knest’s improvisational debut yields an array of aural textures. Shearwater drummer Thor Harris’ percussion drives arrangements buoyed by Reverend Glasseye cellist Randall Holt, developing experimental songs that, though strange, invite rather than intimidate listeners.

In all honesty, this list could be much longer, so we close with three more albums absolutely deserving of a mention. Just one month into January’s album reviews, we’ve already been astounded by more of Austin’s incredible stable of musical talent. We have much to look forward to in 2016—so keep reading and listening.

Honorable mentions: Spray Paint – Dopers; Gary Clark Jr. – The Story of Sonny Boy Slim; Heartless Bastards – Restless Ones