As 2012 nears to a close it’s time to look back at all the music that has made it onto the airwaves and into our iPods and playlists. Former American Idol contestant Colton Dixon sat down with CBS Local and shared some of his favorite releases of the year.

“Favorite album of the year. That’s hard. I haven’t bought a lot of albums,” he confessed. “I just bought the new Muse album. I’ve been listening to that a little bit. That’s always fun. I still go back and listen to their older stuff and I hear something new that I didn’t hear before. It trips me out all over again. So I’ve been listening to that.”

It turns out Colton isn’t the only one who’s been digging Muse’s newest release. The 2nd Law just received a GRAMMY Nomination for Best Rock Album and Best Rock Song for “Madness.”

But that’s not the only album Colton’s been waiting for.

“I haven’t bought the new T. Swift album yet. Looking forward to that, though. I’m amazed how great of a songwriter she is,” he said. “But man, there are several. There’s also a few albums coming out the end of the year I’m looking forward to.”

-Annie Reuter, CBS Local