5. Twin Shadow, Confess
As weird as it is accessible, Twin Shadow’s Confess feels like a soundtrack to a lost ’80s cult teen movie we wished we could see. One of our favorite rock albums of 2012, it doesn’t have the most obvious of connections to the Caribbean but a quick background check reveals the enigmatic artist behind the Twin Shadow moniker, George Lewis, Jr., is Dominican. And we’re not mad at the steelpan on Confess‘ “Golden Light,” either: It might be the best use of the Trini-born instrument (or at least a synthesized version of it) we’ve heard all year.