No pattern, it’s personality

Talk about your two Americas. Here’s sobering news from pop music’s great divide: Five of the year’s 10 most compelling albums, including Kanye West’s “The College Dropout” and U2’s “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb,” have sold more than 14.4 million copies collectively; combined sales of the other five totals less than 550,000.

Instead of red states and blue states, pop music is separated along these lines: records accessible enough to fit in contemporary radio formats, thus getting the exposure that leads to hits, and records that may be just as accomplished, but are either too extreme or too subtle for mainstream programmers.

Wherever they fit on the pop spectrum, none of these 10 artists took an easy path. Each album on this year-end best list is marked by a winning individuality and passion.

1. Kanye West’s “The College Dropout” Roc-A-Fella. In his debut CD, West went against the commercial grain in rap by sidestepping the thug life rhetoric to speak about life in the inner city in more realistic, everyman terms -- from working at the Gap to saying school is no panacea (he is a college dropout). It was a bold move that paid off handsomely for West, whose mom headed the English department at Chicago State University. It helps that West’s raps are backed by spectacular hip-hop beats and stylish R&B; grooves.

Touring with Usher this summer, the 27-year-old touched audiences on a deep sociological level, with traces of the way Stevie Wonder and Curtis Mayfield did in the ‘60s and ‘70s. U.S. sales since the album’s release in February: 2.4 million.

2. U2’s “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” Interscope. After years of experimentation, the Irish band returned to its classic sound in 2000’s “All That You Can’t Leave Behind” album, and it restored them as a radio favorite. This follow-up CD completes the band’s reconnection with its “Joshua Tree” glory by also recapturing the thoughtfulness of that period. In its way, “Dismantle” is U2’s equivalent of Bob Dylan’s “Time Out of Mind,” reexamining earlier assumptions and beliefs. Sales since its Nov. 23 release: 1.4 million.

3. Loretta Lynn’s “Van Lear Rose” Interscope. In making this album with the veteran country star, rock’s Jack White aimed for the classic country sensibility that would enable it to fit on a honky-tonk jukebox alongside records by Hank, Lefty, Patsy and Merle. In doing so, he and Lynn sacrificed all chance of fitting into today’s conservative country music format. But the CD was championed by some college and alt-rock radio outlets and critics. Sales since April: about 260,000.

4. Franz Ferdinand’s “Franz Ferdinand” Domino/Epic. There are lots of danceable elements that remind you of Roxy Music and Pet Shop Boys, but the outlook (love so tortured that you quickly notice the wink) is Franz’s own. Accessible enough to get on pop and rock radio. Sales since March: 687,000.

5. Rufus Wainwright’s “Want Two” DreamWorks. Wainwright is a great writer who may just be too elegant and sophisticated for pop radio, which means he’s going to have to struggle to find an audience. A companion piece to last year’s “Want One,” the songs continue to deal with obsessive relationships and the thorny issue of self-identity. Sales since its Nov. 16 release: 31,000.

6. Arcade Fire’s “Funeral” Merge. This new Canadian rock outfit’s artful, richly imaginative music recalls the independence and ambition of Talking Heads, but it reaches into an emotional territory that is haunting and original, wonderfully imaginative tales of dealing with struggle and loss. Because it is not on a major label, radio exposure outside of college and alt-rock is going to be a challenge. But word is building fast. Sales since September: 28,000.

7. PJ Harvey’s “Uh Huh Her” Island. Harvey is a splendid singer-songwriter whose music is so dark and edgy that it just can’t find a friend at mainstream radio. So she remains a cult figure. Maybe the frustration of that role is why she wondered in a recent interview whether this album was even any good. Pass the word: These earthy tales of desire and disorientation add up to another near-perfect piece of art. Sales since June: 118,000.

8. The Streets’ “A Grand Don’t Come for Free” Vice/Atlantic. Here are “everyman” raps almost as entertaining and character-driven as West’s, but done from a British perspective that makes it hard to connect with U.S. sensibilities, even if hip-hop stations here decide to give it a spin. U.S. sales since May: Nearing 100,000.

9. Eminem’s “Encore” Aftermath/Shady/Interscope. The volatile rapper drops from No. 1 in my 2002 Top 10 list (“The Eminem Show”) to No. 9 here because he wastes too much of the album on tracks aimed chiefly at gathering airplay and satisfying the younger end of his fan base. Too bad, because Eminem turns in some of his most thoughtful and revealing work elsewhere in the CD. Sales since Nov. 12: 2.6 million.

10. Usher’s “Confessions” LaFace/Zomba. This R&B; star had already sold millions of albums by the time he was 25, but they were mostly lightweight exercises. This time he wanted to keep selling, but also to make a record with maturity and depth, and he delivered big time. In the album’s best moments he captures the tensions and heat of sexual relationships with an intensity rare in pop. Sales since March: 7.3 million.

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

It’s no landslide, but there’s a mandate

In a year when the high-profile and/or most popular music ranged from Kanye West’s articulate hip-hop to Brian Wilson’s reconfigured ‘60s epic, from Green Day’s political punk to Usher’s state-of-the-art R&B;, an old critics’ favorite sneaked in to take first place in the 2004 voting for the year’s best albums by 18 Times pop-music contributors. PJ Harvey’s relatively low winning score emphasizes the absence of a dominating record such as last year’s winner, the White Stripes’ “Elephant,” which logged 70 points.

Albums are awarded 10 points for a first-place vote, nine points for second, etc.

*--* Artist Album Label Pts. No. 1st 1. PJ Harvey “Uh Huh Her” Island 49 6 2 2. Green Day “American Idiot” Reprise 39 6 1 3. Franz “Franz Ferdinand” Epic 38 5 2 Ferdinand 4. Kanye West “The College Dropout” Roc-A-Fella 36 5 2 5. Brian “Smile” Nonesuch 33 4 2 Wilson 6. Arcade Fire “Funeral” Merge 30 4 1 7. Rilo Kiley “More Adventurous” Brute/Beaut 23 3 -- 8. Loretta “Van Lear Rose” Interscope 22 3 -- Lynn 9. (t) Elliott “From a Basement on the Anti- 21 4 1 Smith Hill” 9. (t) Tom Waits “Real Gone” Anti- 21 3 --

*--*

Key: Pts.=Total points; No.=Number of ballots on which album was represented; 1st=Number of first-place votes

The first-place votes

PJ Harvey: Dean Kuipers, Steve Appleford

Green Day: Steve Baltin

Franz Ferdinand: Geoff Boucher, Karla Blume

Kanye West: Robert Hilburn, Soren Baker

Brian Wilson: Randy Lewis, Phil Sutcliffe

Arcade Fire: Kevin Bronson

Elliott Smith: Richard Cromelin

Bebo Valdes & Diego El Cigala, “Lagrimas Negras” (Calle 54/RCA): Agustin Gurza

The Hives, “Tyrannosaurus Hives” (Interscope): Natalie Nichols

Michael Brecker, Dave Liebman and Joe Lovano, “Saxophone Summit: Gathering of Spirits”

(Telarc): Don Heckman

The Secret Machines, “Now Here Is Nowhere” (Warner Bros.): Lina Lecaro

Blonde Redhead, “Misery Is a Butterfly” (4AD/Beggars Group): Steve Hochman

Babasonicos, “Infame” (EMI Latin): Ernesto Lechner

Richie Spice, “Spice in Your Life” (Fifth Element): Baz Dreisinger

Robert Hilburn, pop music critic of The Times, can be reached at robert.hilburn@latimes.com