Top 10 Albums Of 2016
It’s been a crazy year for music. Real-life supervillain and weirdest haircut owner, Martin Shkreli shared some previously unreleased Wu-Tang Clan music, Taylor Swift took the Album of the Year Grammy clearly meant for someone else, and my fingers are crossed in the hopes that Michael Stipe and R.E.M reunite.
2016 was a year of surprise releases, spikes in piracy and innumerable amount of great music that graced our ears. Here are some of my favorite albums of 2016.
10. Westway (The Glitter & the Slums) by Sticky Fingers
Sure, this Australian reggae group may not be a household name here in the States, but their third studio effort is a unique one. Filled with influences from Pink Floyd to the Arctic Monkeys, the album features a more alternative sound than their last releases. It’s the kind of record that puts you in a state of constant relaxation, one that points to the making of a future alternative giant.
9. Blank Face LP by ScHoolboy Q
The first (of a few) great rap albums to appear on this list, Q’s latest album is a great mix of excellent lyrics coupled with pitch-perfect production. Throw in collaborations with Kanye West, Jadakiss, Tha Dogg Pound and Miguel and this is probably the greatest party album of the year. Tyler, the Creator, Metro Boomin’ and Swizz Beatz join the team, offering some of the best production on a mainstream hip-hop album seen all year.
8. I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It by The 1975
An oddly-titled, neon-soaked and cocaine riddled mess of an album, the indie pop group is more grounded this time around. Songs like “Love Me” detail insecurities and “UGH!” guide you into a maddening trip through addiction, making it leagues better than the band’s 2013 debut. Matthew Healy, keep doing that thing you do. We’re still listening.
7.Wild World by Bastille
Right from the opening track’s “Weird Science” sampled clip, this was already an interesting move for the British quartet. Utilizing a stadium ready sound from their 2013 debut album, Bastille crafted a deeply personal album with strings, electronic beats and the occasional 80s movie sample. For every top 40 hit, there’s an interesting deep cut that demands closer inspection. Few albums of 2016 have captured the trials and tribulations of growing up in such an epic way.
6. Blond by Frank Ocean
Four years of waiting and we got an album that was mostly hype and a few standout songs. Why is it so high up on this list? No other album had me go back for listens more times than this one (well, only one other). No other album had me talking as much. Like talking to friends about which characters have certain fatalities in Mortal Kombat, everyone was trying to get into Frank’s head with this one. Nothing will ever top Channel Orange, but nothing needs to. Frank Ocean released a new album, and we were all there to witness it.
5. Coloring Book by Chance the Rapper
Call it a mixtape or an album, it’s great regardless. Chance the Rapper does something not seen in music lately: be happy. An entire album full of gospel sounds, beautifully arranged beats, and some of the of the most tongue-in cheek lyrics seen this year. No amount of mothers watching Ellen can take away the coolness factor of any song on the album. Go ahead and smile, Chance is daring you not to.
4. Montgomery Ricky by Ricky Montgomery
That guy you might have seen on Vine a couple of times released an album this year. It’s also really good. Filled with a sense of hope, the album, in all its cheesy, bubblegum glory, manages to bring a smile to my face. Songs about lonely winters, lovers in Cabo and the feeling of questioning someone that might not be the best fit all come together with ease. The sounds of drum machines, acoustic guitars and Ricky’s high-pitched voice make for the perfect soundtrack to a year full of sadness, and the dire need of a little hope.
3. A Moon Shaped Pool by Radiohead
Oh Thom Yorke. Some skeptics think you’re pretentious and a little strange, I embrace new elements in every new Radiohead album. This one feels like a culmination of all previous efforts. With strings from Ok Computer to the electronic paranoia of Kid A, it feels like a logical progression for one of the best alternative bands of all time. In a year of political and social turmoil, let’s look to the guys who tried so hard to warn us about our future.
2. Everything You’ve Come to Expect by The Last Shadow Puppets
Sure, it’s not a new Arctic Monkeys album, but Alex Turner’s supergroup does more than fill void left after the release of AM. With some excellent bass and guitar work, the album is modern rock perfection. No other rock record has lent itself to multiple listens. No other has made me think about where the genre is going. Hyperbolic? To some, yes. But trust me, once the surf rock sounds of the album’s opening track play, your view of alternative rock will change. Hopefully, the next eight years will bring us another standout release from this modern-day supergroup.
1.The Life of Pablo by Kanye West
Three years, one child, and $ 53 million in debt later, here we are. Ye has finally released his constantly updated work. Baffling in its production and even stranger in its lyrical content, the album demands you ask questions. Kanye makes the case that all geniuses are crazy. He doesn’t only make that case, he exclaims it over Desiigner samples and an ever prevalent gospel sound littered throughout the album. It’s far from his best or most coherent work, but that’s what makes it such a great record. He knows he won’t top his earliest sounds, but he’s not trying to. He’s just trying to prove that he can release an album like this. Love him or hate him, there’s no denying his presence as a giant in the industry. His comparisons to Albert Einstein and Off the Wall-era Michael Jackson don’t seem that far off. Now, if you excuse me, I have to analyze Wolves for the hundredth time.
Top 10 Songs of 2016:
- Saint Pablo by Kanye West (The Life of Pablo)
- The Sound by The 1975 (I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it)
- Aviation by The Last Shadow Puppets (Everything You’ve Come to Expect)
- Time Wind feat. Beck by M83 (Junk)
- Starboy by The Weeknd (Starboy)
- The Currents by Bastille (Wild World)
- Low Life feat. The Weeknd by Future (EVOL)
- This December by Ricky Montgomery (Montgomery Ricky)
- Nights by Frank Ocean (Blond)
- Burn the Witch by Radiohead (A Moon Shaped Pool)
