The Best Albums of 2024
By Nick Caceres
Published 12/31/2024
Joey Valence & Brae promotional photo for "No Hands" (2024)
Photo Courtesy of Atwood Magazine
*Some EPs and Mixtapes made the cut
*Just my opinion
30. Boldy James & Conductor Williams - Across The Tracks
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
After becoming one of the biggest producers with Buffalo rapper, Westside Gunn, Kansas Citys’ Conductor Williams has further evolved his grimy, mutated Boom Bap with his first ever full-length project with the highly respected Boldly James. 2024 has become a comeback year, further extending the 227 rapper’s golden age that initially kicked off back in 2019 with his first collaboration with the Alchemist. This collab in particular serves as Jame’s reminiscent travelog, sifting through stories on the road as a hustler, bouncing between the past and present, accompanied by Conductor’s minimally decked out samples representing some of his best work to date.
29. Iglooghost - Tidal Memory Exo
Released: 05/10/2024
Label: LuckyMe
Genre: Deconstructed Club, UK Bass, UK Drill, Drill and Bass, IDM, Electro-industrial
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Recorded in an undisclosed seaside town somewhere in the United Kingdom, this album has one of the most intriguing backstories of the year. The Shaftesbury-based electronic artist, Seamus Rawles Malliagh, claimed that this seaside town often had “primordial” garbage and artifacts washing up onto the shore from ongoing storms with town residents seeking to collect these scraps. These factors aided in the creation of “Tidal Memory Exo” with its singular aesthetic built into both the sound and art. The classic Iglooghost sound of intoxicating textures of deconstructed club and other UK based electronic genres can be found in this album with effective IDM melodies. A true rival to the average rave.
28. Viscera Infest - Teratoma
Released: 08/09/2024
Label: Obliteration Records, Headsplit Records, Huangpuan Records
Genre: Goregrind, Death Metal
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
Just like a birth defect, the chances of them dropping are rare, yet never zero. After a nine year gap, Oita-based Goregrind titans, Viscera Infest, are back and better than ever, breaking past assumptions of them being a mere copy of earlier acts in this horrific corner of extreme metal. “Teratoma” is truly an unforgettable experience, with heavy riffs and fat bass completed with rancidly beautiful vocals rummaging throughout and projectile vomiting with sheer velocity. The only break one can get on this record are those fitting Japanese horror passages. Overall one of the most powerful and violent albums of the year.
27. Samlrc - A Lonely Sinner
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
One of the more interesting breakout albums of this year, the young Brazilian musician, Samantha (or Samlrc...obviously) have been an unknown face in Bandcamp for nearly half a decade however the tides are changing with them now becoming a fresh face in Post-Rock for the genres younger, more queer-leaning fans. As an inherently DIY, concept driven release, “A Lonely Sinner” was entirely constructed out of production confined to a bedroom, attempting to recount a story about Sheep experiencing love, nodding to Samlrc’s furry ties, with delicately meandering Post-Rock passages patterned with calmly executed vocals.
26. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - "No Title as of 13 February 2024 28,340 Dead"
Image Courtesy of Constellation
Between October 7, 2023 and February 13, 2024, 28,340 Palestinian lives were claimed by attacks from Israeli forces and is widely and rightfully considered a modern day genocide. Pairing this event with a Canadian band that have helped redefine protest music have resulted in one of the most historically important albums of the year that needs no proper title. Godspeed You! would announce the album back on August 27 during a North American tour with the single “Grey Rubble – Green Shoots.” As with any album released by arguable one of the most recognizable Post-Rock acts, "No Title as of 13 February 2024 28,340 Dead,” features the signature, almost conversational dynamic between a mix of Rock and Chamber instruments, this time stripping the album of sound recordings and sticking with wispy Drone and Ambient elements.
25. FearDorian - FearDorian
Image Courtesy of Passion of the Weiss
A refreshing splash on the current state of Internet Rap, Atlanta resident rapper and producer, FearDorian, has been treading a steady incline for the past several years while still attending high school, building connections. His self-titled album opens up the harsh reality of abandonment in youth along with other anxieties and burdens during this stage of life, melancholically rapping over self-produced glossy Cloud Rap and Sample-Drill that recontextualizes an array of carefully selected tracks of Midwest Emo and ethereal Pop.
24. Civerous - Maze Envy
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Don’t be fooled by the hilariously on-the-nose cover art, nothing about his album is discrete. The LA-based Death/Black Metal outfit, Civerous, returned with their third studio album, this time through Pittsburg extreme metal label, 20 Buck Spin, well known within the underground metal scene for hosting contemporaries like Mournful Congregation throughout their catalogue. It seems that this torch is passing on to Civerous with “Maze Envy” who are attempting to create something more ambitious and “far-reaching.” The goal seems to be to further push their strengths of thick, chewy riffs, Lord Foul’s perfectly harsh vocals, dissonant interludes and vicious themes of the end times which seems to be coming close, according to Civerous, of course.
23. Charli XCX - Brat
Released: 06/07/2024
Label: Atlantic Records
Genre: Electropop, Electronic Dance Music, Electro House, Bubblegum Bass
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
It goes without question that this was the most culturally potent piece of art in 2024. Whether it was the jumpstart of Kamala Harris’s immediate presidential campaign or the revival of cocaine bumping dancing at a London rave, “Brat” was unavoidable and inevitable in the career of Charlotte Emma Aitchison, internationally known as Charli XCX. This British pop star had already proven herself as a breath of eclectic air in the growing staleness of the current girly pop star landscape with milestone records like “Charli” (2019) and “How I’m Feeling Now” (2020). “Brat” serves as a reminder of that title, with Aitchison delving into more aggressive, confrontational, yet vulnerable topics than all previous Charli XCX releases, delving into her relationship with contemporaries and pensiveness of possibly missing out on motherhood. All of these topics are communicated through a sharp bliss of Electropop chopped up with clubready House and Bubblegum Bass.
22. Conifère - L'impôt Du Sang
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
After seemingly freezing in time after releasing a debut full-length and split during the massive dryspell of performing live that was the COVID-19 Pandemic, Quebec Black Metal quartet, Conifère, returned to the spotlight of the Canadian scene in 2024 with one of the most colorful lo-fi Metal releases in quite some time. “L'impôt du sang” is a majestic display of raw yet melodic Black Metal, with influences of Punk rhythms and motifs of medieval keyboard.
21. Tyler, the Creator - Chromakopia
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
This year saw the surprise return of one of the biggest current generational acts, Tyler Gregroy Okonma, with a fresh album matched with a completely new aesthetic and persona ready to implement into the cultural zeitgeist. The art-house monochromatic influences would match this new album, with Tyler extending his writing skills into much darker and mature territory with “Chromakopia” covering topics of experiencing an early mid-life crisis, the desire to have children and the emotional weight that comes with making that first step and, of course, parasocial bonds. While for the most part, the musical palette that Tyler pulls from is nothing new in the grand scheme of his entire discography with some influences going as far back as “Wolf” (2013), there is clearly a sense of growth and anxiety that oozes out of this new album.
20. 3776 - The Birth and Death of the Universe Through Mount Fuji
Released: 12/11/2024
Label: Natural Make
Genre: J-Pop, Art Pop, Indietronica, Spoken Word, Neo-Psychedelia
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
Perhaps one of the most out of the box concept albums in quite a while, if “The Birth and Death of the Universe Through Mount Fuji” wasn’t a more insane setup of a title, then the backstory itself should seal the deal. Even though the language gap limits the grasp for western ears, the story is told through the singing and spoken word of Chiyono Ide, who plays the role of a narrator in which Mount Fuji is a student in the spacious confines of the universe, playing the role of the school. Just like how certain elements are constantly existing in the universe, certain repeated lyrics remain unchanged and permeate under all of the tracks. As with all of the 3776 albums, the music and lyrics were composed by Akira Ishida, whose mixing in this album comes off as a cold breeze of layered J-Pop and Indietronica accompanied by backup vocals that sit under the surface. Outside of the story itself, “The Birth and Death of the Universe Through Mount Fuji” exemplifies how this project evolved from a simple Mount Fuji-themed idol group to an underground DIY duo that exemplifies the boundless potential in J-Pop.
19. Geordie Greep - The New Sound
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
This past August marked the indefinite end of Black Midi, a band known for their decade defining Post-Punk and Experimental Rock. Members of the band promised solo work with Geordie Greep being the first to deliver on this covenant with a “new sound.” This solo record explores a much weirder side of his lyrical palette, even for Black Midi, where Greep unpacks extravagant vignettes of male sexual fantasies with a tinge of irony splattered throughout. Greep delivers these themes over instrumentals that practically worship Frank Zappa and Steely Dan in a tasteful manner.
18. Maruja - The Vault
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Maruja at their purest and rawest. This debut full-length consists of a collection of archival phone recordings of the Manchester band’s jam sessions from 2021 to 2023, compiling the best ones into a single release as a treat for their growing fanbase and for the world to witness the creative force that was always there from the start. Therefore, “The Vault,” is perhaps the most unique out of their discography…so far at least. With, the crashing drums and bellowing electric strings, toiling against the harmonic saxophone and tailing vocals, Maruja creates some of the most refreshing and euphoric modern-day jam core in the form of a lovechild between mid-century Jazz, Post-Punk and, as always, Post-Rock.
17. E L U C I D - REVELATOR
Released: 10/11/2024
Label: Backwoodz Studioz
Genre: Experimental Hip Hop, Industrial Hip Hop, Abstract Hip Hop, East Coast Hip Hop
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
As Backwoodz and subsequently Billy Wood’s most well-known collaborator, Elucid has been heavily involved in some of the most well respected albums and singles in the current experimental and Abstract Hip Hop circles being one-half of Armand Hammer and a discography that stretches as far back as 2002. As with many of the distinct strain of East Coast Hip Hop coming out of Backwoodz Studioz, “Revelator” manages to find a woozy balance between organic string and drum instrumentals and eerie sample-based production, resulting in a cryptic cacophony to accompany Elucid’s tightly packed and grandiose verses touching on class upheaval.
16. 454 - Casts of a Dreamer
Released: 08/??/2024
Label: Self-Released
Genre: Cloud Rap, PluggnB, Southern Hip Hop, Chopped and Screwed
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
A hidden gem is sea of conformity, Orlando-born rapper and self-producer, Willie Wilson, famously known as 454, has been developing his craft from as early as 2018. Throughout this period of momentum, Wilson has maintained perhaps one of the strangest visual choices being a hybrid between 90s ratitude and Looney Tunes aesthetics, with an almost dreamlike simplicity. That’s likely why this mixtape strips back on such visual consistency, placing the audience's focus on the contents within and a depiction of Wilson, playing a jester for the listener and entertaining them with some of the most embodied beats in his entire career. Wilson finds balance between current-era pluggnB splashed with soulful textures of unique samples and ambient loops topped with the signature Quasimoto-adjacent high pitched vocals. While this mixtape’s obscurity is due to it being released on physical-only, it has since surfaced on YouTube and SoundCloud, courtesy of the artist, giving it more recognition across pockets of the world wide web, resulting in “Casts of a Dreamer” likely becoming one of the most sought after tapes of the 2020s.
15. Phuyu y La Fantasma - B| Décimas de Phuyu y La Fantasma
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Though their first installment of this music poem series earlier this year stood on its own as a bold blend of Experimental Post-Rock artfully reflected by traditional Chilean sound palettes, it would be “B| Décimas de Phuyu y La Fantasma” that catapulted this blend to legendary heights. With all of their might, the band retells an environmental apocalypse in which the world's oceans have swallowed the land leaving the remaining humans secluded up in the Andes, their landscape being highlighted by the thick guitar riffs with gentle piano and acoustic instrumentals latching. The main character is a girl named Phuyu who encounters the ghost of a charango from Quirquincho which signifies a loss of innocence and the inquiry of a deeper meaning in horror inside this alternate world of uncertainty. This album serves as the final conceptual unit of this chapter of Phuyu y La Fantasma’s discography with the contributions of vocals and keyboard from Bitácora Celeste being present on the most recent albums. However, this specific album serves as the best execution of their ideas to date.
14. Joey Valence & Brae - No Hands
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
Formed at Pennsylvania State University in 2021, Joey Valence & Brae officially bailed out of being just another gimmick Tik Tok “song of the summer” pundit with their sophomore full-length album, “No Hands.” This album was so much more than just a Beastie Boys knockoff, in fact it was one of the best attempts at Nerdcore since their peak. Everything from the easy-going, comedically stupid but charming vocals to every track having its own sub-personality makes this entire thing the white boy summer anthem for years to come.
13. Chat Pile - Cool World
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
The Oklahoma boys are back at it again with a second dose of decade defining Noise Rock and Sludge Metal. “Cool World” takes a more balanced approach, both in thematics and production, compared to the debut, “God’s Country” (2022), examining the psychological erosion of late-stage capitalism under the gaze of a Voltaire perspective. The riffs are dipped in a heavy-duty dissonant blaze with some of the most guttural and melodic vocals of the year.
12. Parannoul - Sky Hundred
Released: 08/03/2024
Label: Self-Released, Poclanos
Genre: Shoegaze, Noise Pop, Dream Pop, Chamber Pop
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Back in 2023, Parannoul would leak on his blog that he would be releasing three projects that would eventually narrow to two in 2024, one of which happened to be widely considered one of his best solo-releases since “To See the Next Part of the Dream” (2021). The past three years have represented a shift in the Seoul artists attitude towards their placement in the music scene, now coming from the perspective of finding themselves enveloped in this newfound fame in the DIY scene. “Sky Hundred” explores these topics in detail, referencing their views on fandom, even teasing their eventual retirement from performing live. The album also represents a transition from Korean Shoegaze into a fusion of Noise Pop and Dream Pop with a more concise pacing than previous Parannoul albums.
11. Samlrc - [untitled]
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
In the immediate aftermath of her fourth album receiving the 2021 Parannoul treatment, Brazilian artist, Samlrc, would quietly release a follow-up EP to “A Lonely Sinner.” This EP was recorded during a difficult period in her life, living in the confines of an abusive household resulting in a sound that contrasts with their full-length albums, choosing to approach the more direct and sensitive topics of unsupportive parents and missing a sibling who was one of the only people who accepted her identity, through a stripped back approach. The two tracks dive into a warm lushness of spacious Avant-Folk and Post-Rock with frantic and reluctant percussion. Sam’s vocals are ripe with pain and sorrow, resulting in one of the more intense releases of the year.
10. Mach-Hommy - #RICHAXXHAITIAN
Released: 05/17/2024
Label: Self-Released
Genre: East Coast Hip Hop, Abstract Hip Hop, Political Hip Hop, Jazz Rap
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
After his collaboration with Griselda Records on “Pray for Haiti” and “Balens Cho (Hot Candles)” in 2021, it was uncertain when the enigmatic Newark rapper of Haitian ancestry would take a solo route in the likeness to his legendary 2016 breakout, “HBO (Haitian Body Odor).” This year, it finally happened with a surprisingly danceable single produced by KAYTRANADA soon followed by the full-length album, “#RICHAXXHAITIAN.” This album builds off of Mach’s efforts to advocate and support his Caribbean homeland, this time taking a more vibrant palette of jazzy East Coast Hip Hop, bringing out the most pivotal turns in his career since his legendary streak in 2017.
9. Blood Incantation - Absolute Elsewhere
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Denver cosmic gods, Blood Incantation, have made a valiant return with one of their most expensive albums to date production wise with band members going on record to have spent thousands of Euros overseas at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, Germany. The album is split between two compositions divided into three movements, or as the band calls them, “tablets.” The 70s Prog inspired sound falls in and out of atmospheric trips of Death Metal and Berlin School, meant to represent a 90s Prog band from the future. Even the name, “Absolute Elsewhere” is a nod to the Paul Fishman fronted Progressive Rock project under the same name.
8. Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Recorded, mixed and mastered on pure analog tape at the secluded Double Infinity studio between touring dates during the fall of 2022, “Bright Future” once again represents Lenker’s audible contrast from her parallel vocals on Big Thief. The album sinks deep into vulnerability and reflection and represents a parallel of her talent, with raw vocals the weight of a “journeyed heart” for 40 minutes straight. The analog quality of Lenker’s instrumentals create a very personal experience for any listener who relates to or resonates with her stories. “Bright Future” leads the charge as one of the best albums in this region of music, likely of the decade.
7. Mount Eerie - Night Palace
Released: 11/01/2024
Label: P.W. Elverum & Sun
Genre: Slacker Rock, Singer-Songwriter, Noise Rock, Post-Rock, Spoken Word, Drone, Field Recordings
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Although it’s been four years since the grand return of The Microphones, it’s as if the king of Anacortes himself has never left the spotlight. This is the overdue Mount eerie installment, filled to the brim with honing one’s own craft. Throughout “Night Palace,” Phil Eleverum swiftly moves through rooms within a “palace” culminating into one of his most important albums, reminiscent of the legendary album, “The Glow Pt. 2” (2001), by reviving that fuzzy production to fit Elverum’s current state of mind. He even flaunts his skill by offering a glimpse into an alternate universe where he fronts a northwestern Black Metal outfit.
6. Skee Mask - Resort
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Since his departure from being a regular DJ at the historic Blitz Club in Munich, Germany, Bryan Müller, who DJs and releases music under the alias, Skee Mask, has finally released a proper follow-up to “Pool” (2021). “Resort” features more meticulous and unified production, with trance-like ambience oozing between handcrafted Techno beats, placing the listener in a spacious spa in the heavens.
5. Ka - The Thief Next to Jesus
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
The tug and pull between religion and oppression has always been a component of discussion in regards to African Americans. This is something that Brownsville rapper, Kaseem Ryan, has grappled with in his solo-career in succession to his minor contributions to the underground Hip Hop scene in Brooklyn during the 1990s under the name Ka. Throughout the next few decades, Ryan would become an influential figure in the blossoming Abstract Hip Hop style and at the same time serve his community as the Brookly fire captain of the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY). He was a first responder to the September 11, 2001 attacks, long before he would release his first solo record. Each Ka album has a distinct concept in mind, with “The Thief Next To Jesus” bridging the relationship between Christianity and tools of oppression. Ryan only sticks to gospel samples, stripping them of any external beats or audio manipulation, placing his verses in the forefront in order for them to never be ignored. This album would serve as the final album of Ryan’s entire discography in which he would suddenly pass away on October 12.
4. Cameron Winter - Heavy Metal
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Let’s get one thing straight, Cameron Winter is one silly guy. This fact has become apparent from his involvement in the band Geese, with its humorous stew of Post-Punk Revival and Alt-Country. But in his first solo full-length, Winter is left without that punchy Geese sound, successfully filling the gaps with a more stripped back approach. This was captured through perhaps the strangest backstory of any album this year with “Heavy Metal” being allegedly recorded across different public spaces such as Guitar Centers and hotel room closets, resulting in Winter receiving a lifetime ban from, you guessed it, Guitar Center. Regardless, this makes the album all the more intriguing, with Winter’s keyboard coordination and acoustic textures fluttering throughout. Occupying the centerpiece, his vocals sound like a much messier younger brother of Mark Kozelek, flirting with humor here and there. However, within the context lies disturbing undertones of internal burdens of transparency, reality and…a random hit of religious awakening?
3. JPEGMAFIA - I Lay Down My Life for You
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
After the first half of the year, with his controversial and unapologetic association with Ye’s first installment of “VULTURES,” Peggy had promised a new album since the latter half of 2023, with the official drop date continuously extended out of sheer perfectionism. Before this album would see the light of day, Peggy would enter a short-lived beef with Freddie Gibbs as well as his entire Subreddit going private as a result of a handful of circumstances, including Peggy being annoyed by his own fanbase placing constraints on his endeavors. Therefore, all of this baggage resulted in one of JPEGMAFIA’s most aggressive and provocative album since “Veteran” (2018), with the industrial beats buzzing in-between his direct statements on tracks like “Don’t Rely on Other Men” and “I Scream This In The Mirror Before Interacting with Anyone.” There’s even guitar solos that find their way onto the album which is something that was seemingly never attempted in Peggy’s style palette up until this point.
2. Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Insert the disc in your forehead and enter the simulation with the latest sophomore full-length release from the Los Angeles-based alternative pop extraordinaires, Magdalena Bay. This album marks a pivotal moment in both Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin’s careers since conceiving the project back in 2016 while they were still attending college, breaking past any standard Pop production constructs with a wider range of styles and fine-tuned visual aesthetics such as Mica’s various costume designs reflecting the different themes and motifs. Speaking of which, the thematic delivery of metaphysical metamorphosis is stretched perfectly throughout the highs and lows of "Imaginal Disk," with highlights like “Death & Romance” and “Image” creating some of the most addictive hooks of the year, resulting in one of the greatest pop albums of the 2020s.
Honorable Mentions
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead - Tragedy as Catharsis
MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks
Boldy James & Nicholas Craven - Penalty of Leadership
Nicolás Jaar - Archivos de Radio Piedras
Ulcerate - Cutting the Throat Of God
Doechii - Alligator Bites Never Heal
Звёздный Храм (Zvyozdny Khram) - Звёздный Храм (Zvyozdny Khram)
1. Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Ever since their unfortunate fallout from the Canadien four-piece experimental post-punk collective, Women, Patrick Flegel would continue their career as a solo musician primarily under the name, Cindy Lee, performed in Americana-inspired drag. They would incorporate the noisy lo-fi elements originally found in Women to a more extreme degree. This is still very much on-par with their sixth studio album, “Diamond Jubilee,” however it’s apparent that Flegel has perfected what they wanted to get out of Cindy Lee throughout its 12 year duration, likely serving as a closing for the project. Recorded in Durham, NC as well as a few cities up in Canada, Flegel manages to bring down those noisy elements, fusing it with dreamy silhouettes of Blues Rock, Brill Building and Hypnagogic Pop. The ballads of love dismantling with replaying memories stagnating afterwards, complements the timelessness that this record will have in the decades to come.