Another year begins.. Another list of my favourite albums from the year just ended.
1 Kelly Lee Owens - Dreamstate
A regular in my lists, Kelly’s finest work came in 2024’s Dreamstate - a perfect blend of euphoric, melodic, and ambient sounds. My album of the year. Dark Angel is brilliant.
2 Ride - Interplay
Everything they’ve done since the comeback has been a joy. This is by far my favourite.
3 Another Sky - Beach Day
Songs that get better with each listen. Their previous debut album would have featured much higher given how much I’ve listened to that in the years since.
4 Linn Koch-Emmery - Borderline Iconic
Ebay Armour and the title track. Marvellous.
5 The Cure - Songs Of A Lost World
Worth waiting for!
6 Lauren Mayberry - Vicious Creature
More eclectic than her work with Chvrches and exceptionally good throughout.
7 Madi Diaz - Weird Faith
Madi’s writes gut punching lyrics like nobody else. Incredible. “For Months Now” is my song of the year.
8 Rachel Chinouriri - What a Devastating Turn Of Events
Debut album of the year..
9 Beyoncé - COWBOY CARTER
Country influenced but unmistakably Beyoncé. There really is no-one quite like her.
10 Maggie Rogers - Don’t Forget Me
Just like 2022’s Surrender, this took several plays to sink in. Rewarding songs.
11 Nadine Shah - Filthy Underneath
12 Suki Waterhouse - Memoir of a Sparklemuffin
13 Kasey Musgraves - Deeper Well
14 Chali xcx - brat
For those of us who go back to the True Romance and mixtapes beginnings, her domination in 2024 felt long overdue.
15 Dead Pony - IGNORE THIS
Guitars!
16 NewDad - MADRA
17 Desperate Journalist - No Hero
A consistently excellent band.
18 The Last Dinner Party - Prelude to Ecstasy
They’ve become a bit cringe, but what a record. No doubt about that.
19 Katie Gavin - What a Relief
Golden solo album from 1/3 of MUNA.
20 Torres - What an enormous room
21-30
Bat for Lashes - The Dream of Delphi
Drahla - angeltape
Griff - Vertigo
James - Yummy
Orla Gartland - Everybody Needs a Hero
Misha Chylkova - Dancing the Same Dance
Pillow Queens - Name Your Sorrow
Jazmin Bean - Traumatic Livelihood
Francis of Delirium - Lighthouse
Lola Young - This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway
31-40
Sarah Jarosz - Polaroid Lovers
Thurston Moore - Flow Critical Lucidity
Pale Waves - Smitten
Fontaines D.C. - Romance
Sheryl Crow - Evolution
Florrie - The Lost Ones
Oceanator - Everything Is Love and Death
Sprints - Letter to Self
Japandroids - Fate & Alcohol
Hurray for the Riff Raff - The Past is Still Alive
41-50
Kim Gordon - The Collective
Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood
English Teacher - This Could Be Texas
BIG SPECIAL - POSTINDUSTRIAL HOMETOWN BLUES
Nerina Pallot - A Psalm for Emily Salvi
Faye Webster - Underdressed at the Symphony
Bill Ryder-Jones - Iechyd Da
Snow Patrol - The Forest is The Path
Susanna Hoffs - The Lost Record
IDestroy - IDestroy