Fifteen Great Albums of 2024

Merry Christmas! I took a break but I’m back. I probably won’t be posting daily anymore, because it’s just not realistic, but this won’t be the last you’ve heard of me, for better or worse.

There’s two kinds of best album lists - the kind full of albums you’ve heard of, albums who have received a lot of deserved attention and praise all years, and then there’s the type of list full of discovery and surprises. This one is probably somewhere in between. There’s no numbers, although I’ll reveal my favorites eventually. These are the albums that sunk in and stuck with me, whether they were wildly popular or more just for me.

Honorable Mention

Dehd - Poetry
So maybe I didn’t turn to Poetry as much as 2022’s Blue Skies. It’s right up there and almost cracked the top of this list, with a fun energy and sweet earnestness matched with one of the most unique sounds in modern rock. You can tell Dehd had fun making it, which carried over to the show I caught earlier this year. This band is fairly popular in indie circles, but they have made three near-perfect albums since 2020, and that’s a minor miracle this day and age.

Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2024

Popular
Doechii - Alligator Bites Never Heal
Instantly recognizable beats, an unfuckwitable flow, humor out the yang, and song that are so short you can’t wait to listen again. Swagger, chops, and talent, it’s no wonder why she’s Kendricks current favorite MC. One could make the argument that Doechii is still underrated, but thankfully she’s been blowing up on TikTok lately, thanks in part to her killer Tiny Desk performance, so her flowers are arriving just in time.

Underrated
Vince Staples - Dark Times
His best album since the sunny blast of FM, but moodier, more soulful, introspective, honest, and, well, complicated. Staples has such a confident, natural style that his use of a 70s TV segment featuring James Baldwin and Nikki Giovanni discussing how lying is an integral part of being Black in America slips seamlessly into a heartbreaking song of deceit that climaxes with a tense standoff of mistaken identity (Justin)

Best Irish Post-Punk of 2024

Popular
Fontaines D.C. - Romance
The sound of a band making an artistic statement while embracing getting huge, Romance is unique for pushing Fontaines D.C. into weird directions (Starburster) and poppier ones (Favourite) and having both of those tracks being contenders for songs of the year. This was the album that surprised me the most when it was released. If I was forced to choose, it might be my pick for top of the year.

Underrated
Sprints - Letter to Self
While the production on Sprints’ debut sheens off some of their earlier singles signature angry guitar gones, the songs still hit hard, and the band holds nothing back. Lead Sprint Karla Chubb knows how to wrap her pain around shout-along choruses and huge hooks, and by the time you finish the album you feel both ignited and world weary. What’s a better soundtrack for gearing up to fight the future?

British Debuts and Career Capstones

Popular
English Teacher - This Could Be Texas
Earlier this year when someone asked me to describe what English Teacher sound like I had no real way of parsing that out. Art-rock, dream-pop, post punk, with a dash of wacky time signatures for fun? I ended up shooting for a poppier In Rainbows era Radiohead, but man, that really doesn’t cut it either. But what’s great is that this debut sounds like English Teacher, and while there are influences you can pin to them, their sound is anything but derivative, and they write songs with the confidence of seasoned veterans.

Also Popular
The Cure - Songs of a Lost World
The Cure’s surprise 2024 career capstone is fittingly titled not only because it wrestles with the concepts of grief over a dying planet with little hope of salvation, but also because it sounds like it time traveled directly from 1988 when the band was in its prime. Robert Smith’s voice still sounds miraculously the same, and the production makes you want to wallow in every angelic keyboard chord and reverberated snare for hours. It’s strange to have such a dark album be a comfort, but it’s 2024, man. Things are bleak here. We need Robert Smith to guide us through this hell.

Self-Titled Career Milestone Fifth Albums That Read America for the Filth that It Is

Underrated
Restorations - Restorations
Their fifth album is also their best, despite the fact that it has no monster singles like Seperate Songs or kick-in-your-teeth tracks like D. Consistency is the name of the game here, with a crafted album that feels like a whole and complete statement. Although Restorations sound the same and as strong as they ever have, the six years since LP5000 has allowed for growth and hard living in equal measure. Jon Loudon even sings a bit outside of typical tough growl, but he’s still pissed about how hard it is to live and survive in this country, and the songs here sting with familiarity and then beg you to shout along and shove your fist in the air in solidarity. One day, this band will get the attention and respect they deserve.

Also Underrated
Foxing - Foxing
Yes, it’s overstuffed. Yes, it’s probably too long, bubbling over with ideas and sounds. But it’s an experience, and one that has helped me get through the last few months more than most other albums could. This is the sound of frustrated exhaustion, so it may not be for everyone, but Foxing sound both tired and exhilarated in equal measure. For a few albums now, they have swung for the fences and have tried to create something huge. Their self-titled fifth album sounds like they’re just tearing the fence apart. It’s overwhelming and something that begs to be experienced over and over again. I for one am happy to oblige. Also, I think Conor Murphy is one of the best rock vocalists going right now, and it pairs nicely with guitarist Eric Hudson’s piercing scream.

Career Highlights From Excellent Artists Doing Their Thing

Popular
Charli XCX - Brat
An album so good it keeps growing past the season it effectively owned, with an extended version (it’s the same, but there’s three more songs, so it’s not) and a remix album that chronicles the different world Chari exists in as a superstar thanks to the season of the album in question. A rich, vulnerable chronicle Charli’s rave roots, Brat seems almost too good to be true, with broad brush strokes forcing you to pay attention, and dance, making the moments of her questioning and lacking confidence all the more powerful. Lesser artists would fumble putting brat brags like Von Dutch and 360 alongside tougher material that examine her complicated feelings working with other women (Girl, So Confusing) jealousy and feeling inferior around Taylor Swift (Sympathy is a Knife) death of a friend (So I) and having a kid (Think About it All the Time) all to wrap the experience up with a celebration of…her (365) as a party-girl who can not be pinned down (seriously, the song changes styles and beats like five times, but Charli makes it seem easy. This is going to be a tough one to top, but given what goes on here, I believe this brat is up to the task.

Underrated
Hurray for the Riff Raff - The Past is Still Alive
Here’s a serious question - does anyone else love this the way I do? Hurray for the Riff Raff have received plenty of attention in the past, including on year end lists. Created in the immediate Alynda Segarra sounds more haunted than ever, crafting tracks of precious lost things with heartfelt compassion and careful consideration. It starts with a confession, as Alibi kicks off with a dear friend sharing their addiction with Segarra, which forces the singer to end the enabling relationship. It ends with the apocalypse, with Segarra sitting back and watching the world burn, and realizing that at least they are just in time to see it. Nothing in 2024 felt more right and fitting as we all collectively watch what is known turn quickly into dust, and their songs have never resonated so powerfully. I was surprised to find this was my most re-listened album of 2024, but I don’t know why I’m surprised. It’s a career highlight that won’t post Brat numbers, but deserves its own season. It’s a Riff Raff winter, yall. We’re right on time.

Two Great 90s Influenced Albums Released This Year

Popular
Wishy - Triple Seven
The 90s are in and that’s wonderful, but there’s plenty of derivative nonsense going around that can induce eye-rolls. Why in the world is shoegaze popular? I try not to question it, but wow, is it…odd. Speaking of, Wishy hit this year with a hook-stuffed 90s alt-rock romp they call Triple Seven. Yes, you can rattle off the number of influences with each huge hook, but when the music is this good, who cares? They band also shows depth and range, with some light ballads and multi-vocalists.

Underrated
Bodega - Our Brand Could Be Yr Life
I don’t know if Bodega are Pavement fans, but I’m willing to bet they own Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain in the least. This remake of an earlier tape release examines the uneasy relationship between being a musician and the need to “sell yourself,” and how capital is entwined with art. It’s enough of a repeated statement to make you wonder if the catchyness in the songs are a trick, and it’s easy to be cynical and write the band off as overly winking, but the first song (Dedicated to the Dedicated) lays down the thesis, as Ben Hozie acknowledges his critics while shouting out artists who are just trying their best despite how impossible it all feels.

Underrated Psych Rock I have nothing to pair with. But it’s Great!

Underrated
Ty Segall - Three Bells
Released way back in January, Segall has (predictably) already released a second album this year, and while a lot of people may have grazed over this or forgotten about it, Three Bells stuck with me. It’s stuffed full of some of his best psych-rock musicianship, with his multi-layered guitar lines standing out as especially strong. And it feels like a real labor of love, with many songs co-written by Segall’s wife, and the album artwork and layout designed by her as well. There’s a sweet, playful energy that hasn’t really shown up in a Segall’s album since Freedom’s Goblin, and while Three Bells may not be as strong as that career standout, it deserves to be mentioned in the top tier of Segall releases.

Pissed-Off Women Fronted Punk

Popular
Amyl and the Sniffers- Cartoon Darkness

It’s hard to make a good punk album. People often write it off because the musicianship is basic three-chords, and there’s almost so much a band can do before it starts to feel samey. Of course that’s nonsense, but that’s what “they” think, and “they” also have a lot of thoughts on Amyl and the Snifters. They’re sellouts. They’re not really punk. They’re not as good as people give them credit for. To which I respond by echoing lead singer Amy Taylor. DON’T WANNA BE STUCK IN THAT NEGATIVITY! Seriously, if you don’t like this, fine, but fuck off already.

Popular?
Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven

Not as strong as Patience, no, but let me tell you, one of the most invigorating shows I’ve been to this year was Mannequin Pussy supporting this album. Missy Dabice makes stalked the stage like a lioness, finding incredible sexy strength in her anger. Bretween songs, she would baby whisperer sweet nothings like a chanteuse cooing her lover and then out of nowhere - scream. Let it all out. Anger. Frustration. Fear. Loud, unrivaled fury. It was startling. Some people walked out, especially when she turned her attention to Palestine. And this happened repeatedly. She has a loud bark and a deep bite, and I Got Heaven reclaims all the horrible negativity in the world and lets it out in a deep rooted scream. Missy and her band begs us to scream along. I for one was happy to oblige when I saw them loud. I can have a loud bark and deep bite too.