Top 10 Albums of 2024

I know I say this every year, but wow, was 2024 ever a year. Global upheavals and political tumult aside, on a personal front it was pretty fantastic. I got married, my wife and I both rediscovered our love of reading, I moved my personal site from Squarespace over to Ghost (and learned some new things along the way), and saw some of the most fun live shows I've been to in a long time. And as I say every year, I hope this following list of albums that brought me some joy does the same for you.

So without any further ado, and in no particular order, here is my list of the Top 10 Albums of 2024:

NewDad - Madra

The first full-length album by the Irish outfit, NewDad, expands on their earlier indie-pop roots with the addition of some gnarly punk-infused riffs. The wash of guitars and vocals really helped me tap into the broad and seemingly renewed interest in darker-toned shoegaze, reminiscent of the Pixies' grungy-pop and the mournful basslines of The Cure, all neatly packaged with tons of youthful energy that gives this near 30-year old (good lord that makes me really feel my age) sound a contemporary edge.

FFO: Blondshell, Soccer Mommy, Hotline TNT, Bully

State Faults - Children of the Moon

I first stumbled across State Faults in 2014 with their song, Wildfire. It took me 10 years, but Children of the Moon is the album I've been wanting for what seems like forever? You know what, I'm actually just going to link to this SputnikMusic review that does an infinitely better job at explaining just how good of an album this really is than I could hope to muster in just a few short sentences. It's an absolute must-listen, especially if you can pull up the lyrics and just take in how absolutely breathtaking it all is. This album is pure art.

FFO: Wristmeetrazor, Shirokuma, Chalk Hands, Frail Body

berlioz - open this wall

The first time I heard berlioz was live. My friend, Dave, took me to this show on a last minute whim and I'm forever grateful because it opened up this whole new world of music to me, one that I was only loosely familiar with previously. It manages to ride the very fine line between deep house and smooth jazz without ever spending too much time in either genre, all the while sounding absolutely fresh and unique. The artist description on Spotify describes it best - "if Matisse made house music." And the album title says even more; you can absolutely enjoy this album in a solitary manner, but it's best suited for when you open the walls of your home to friends; a truly uniting and joyous experience. Thanks, Dave!

FFO: Ezra Collective, Bolden., Underground Canopy, manon

SeeYouSpaceCowboy - Coup de Grâce

If you liked Alesana in the 2010s, this album will be right up your alley. It's the perfect blend of sexy and sinister, with the right amount of screamo, metalcore, and nostalgia to leave a lasting impression. As this EverythingIsNoise review put it, "The magic of this album is in transitions. Between songs, between ideas, between harsh and soft sounds, clean and harsh vocals. The scenes change effortlessly with pageantry and grace." It's captivating, thrilling, and will absolutely leave you with a smile on your face.

FFO: Dying Wish, Static Dress, Greyhaven, The Callous Daoboys

Bilmuri - American Motor Sports

Bilmuri has always been a band rife with memes, and none more so than America, fuck yeah! From an artist that is most well-known for being part of a band that kickstarted the entire crabcore genre, seeing him effortlessly blend elements of metalcore, emo, pop, electronica, and classic rock has been nothing short of eye-opening. What I wasn't expecting, however, was a seemingly perfect blend of all the above with country. It sounds like it shouldn't work, but you know what, it does. It has the right amount of wholesome earnestness with a self-aware lampooning of the state of modern country while also being an ode to said genre.

Seemingly, singlehandedly, Bilmuri helped define an entirely new genre - y'allternative and y'all, I am here for it.

FFO: Dayseeker, Emarosa, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk!, Hot Mulligan

Kamasi Washington - Fearless Movement

I first heard Kamasi on Kendrick's 2015 magnum opus, To Pimp a Butterfly, and then again a few months later on the aptly titled three hour epic, The Epic. But unlike his previous albums, which usually have the runtime of a summer blockbuster (including the after-credits bonus scenes) that take you on a long and winding journey, the main thesis of Fearless Movement is "really speaking on that idea of just being comfortable in what you are and where you want to go" or more simply, "be at where your feet at." And for someone like me, who's really spent the better part of this last year trying to do just that, this was an album I kept coming back to as a sort of reminder. It's beautiful, soaring, funky, and full of life.

FFO: BADBADNOTGOOD, Kokoroko, Yussef Dayes, Hiatus Kaiyote

Knocked Loose - You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To

From knocking normies to their feet with their 2023 Coachella set to kickstarting a new "satanic panic" with their performance on Jimmy Kimmel, Knocked Loose seemingly can't be stopped. Clocking in at a pretty lean 28 minutes, the band is absolutely unrelenting and unapologetic with how hard they play. Every note, every scream just hits you like a sledgehammer. This album is so tightly calculated that while it doesn't reinvent the wheel, it certainly perfects it. So much so that I honestly think it set the bar for what a modern hardcore album should be. And if you're as into metal as I am, you'll be smiling from ear to ear the entire way through.

FFO: Spiritbox, Johnny Booth, Desolate, Foreign Hands

Poppy - Negative Spaces

I'll be honest when I say I never gave Poppy an honest listen until I heard her featured on Knocked Loose's song, Suffocate. But after learning she was teaming up with Jordan Fish of ex-Bring Me The Horizon fame for her sixth studio album, I was very intrigued. What's most interesting isn't how effortlessly she's able to switch between being gentle and delicate to ferocious and feral in her vocals, but how that translates into the genre-hopping that happens throughout this album. To try and pin Poppy to a single genre is a fool's errand, and I cannot wait for the next curveball she has in store for us.

FFO: Jinjer, BABYMETAL, Amira Elfeky, WARGASM (UK)

Tems - Born in the Wild

From her-released debut 2020 EP to today, you can see a clear progression of Tems' style and approach to writing music. This debut LP, four years later, is an incredible way to show up. Throughout the album, Tems melded warm sounds and full-of-life tempos, often contrasting but done in a way that lets them flow and interweave. At times, that works to the detriment of the album, making it feel a bit "same" throughout, but the songs themselves are stunning works of art when you stop to really listen and appreciate. It's an intensely personal album, but one that deeply resonated.

FFO: Snoh Alagera, Jhené Aiko, SZA, June Freedom

NOTE: The previous album here was The Impermanent Amber by Secret Gardens. It's still an incredible album, but this is my list and I say what goes, so I replaced it with Tems. Different sounds, different ideas, different everything - sure! But for me, Tems knocked it out of the park and this album ended up being a solid contender for my AotY. Give both a listen!