Here we go again. Six months until the usual barrage of year-end lists hits, here's a tally of 10 albums that deserve to be ranked at 2013's halfway point. This annual semiannual roundup includes classic-sounding efforts by two of Minnesota's best-known rock bands, Low and the Replacements, innovative work by more recent stars such as the Stnnng and Dessa, plus quite a few upstarts you should discover well before the December recaps hit.

ON AIR: Chris Riemenschneider will weigh his picks against those of the Current's "Local Show" staff (6 p.m. Sun., 89.3 FM).