2019 was a tough year for a lot of the world – natural disasters, mass shootings, political upheavel at home and abroad. Luckily for us, it was also a great year for music. The concept of the “album” as a cohesive work seemed to make a bit of a comeback after years of languishing as playlists and digital singles took priority. Familiar artists like Tyler, The Creator, SUNN O))), Angel Olsen and more returned with albums that were meant to be listened to from front to back, not chopped up and inserted into a random playlist of the week. Without further ado, here’s our picks for the best albums of 2019.
50. Bat For Lashes – Lost Girls
Echoing vocals over a gulf of syrupy sounds—the ‘80s never sounded so soulful.
– Willie Witten
49. Mike Patton and Jean Claude Vannier – Corpse Flower
Mike Patton’s vocal acrobatics meet up with the avant garde instrumentation of Jean Claude Vannier on Corpse Flower.
– Matt Matasci
48. Little Simz – GREY Area
GREY Area‘s theme of self-empowerment runs throughout the album as Little Simz speaks on being a powerful women in a male-dominated industry.
– Alessia Milstein
47. Maggie Rogers – Heard It In a Past Life
Sharp, stripped down production exalts Rogers’ deeply personal songwriting and allows lyrics to land impactfully.
– Rigo Bonilla
46. The Desert Sessions – Vol. 11 & 12
The newest additions to the Queens of the Stone Age frontman’s Dessert Sessions are filled with catchy and organic collaborations.
– Caitlin Wills
45. Sturgill Simpson – Sound & Fury
With characteristic grace, Simpson is raw and unabashed in his search for order amidst chaos.
– Spencer Culbertson
44. Battles – Juice B Crypts
An excellent addition to a catalogue that celebrates the joys of unhinged, brutalized repetition.
– Reuben Merringer
43. TEEN – Good Fruit
Pop while evading hard distinction as such. Playful sampling and crunched out beats belie lyrics that travel unimpeded between love and death.
– Reuben Merringer
42. Metronomy – Metronomy Forever
The English electro-indie band’s sixth album to date is an evolved and complicated 17-track listen.
– Ally Tatosian
41. Show Me the Body – Dog Whistle
The seething rage and shouted madness on Dog Whistle announces Show Me The Body as this generation’s Rage Against the Machine.
– Drew Pitt
40. HEALTH – VOL. 4 :: SLAVES OF FEAR
HEALTH explores the darkness at a deeper level than ever before on VOL. 4 :: SLAVES OF FEAR. The LA-based noise rock three-piece still manages to find some satisfying melodic moments during 38 minutes of their unique brand of violent rock.
– Matthew Jordan
39. Caroline Polachek – Pang
Caroline Polachek’s Pang is more than just a lyrical masterpiece, it’s a commitment. A commitment to the listener, and the way in which emotion plays out between us, and the beautiful dynamic of Polachek’s stifling words.
– Alessandro Gueli
38. The Music of Red Dead Redemption 2: Original Score
Composed by Woody Jackson, this score emphasizes the gritty desolation inherent in the game. Though created in collaboration with artists as diverse as saxophonist Colin Stetson and DJ Arca, it remains sparse, bleak, and evocative.
– Jahan Raymond
37. Bishop Briggs – Champion
With powerful vocals, infectious melodies and beautifully written lyrics, Champion showcases that Bishop Briggs definitely has the talent and the potential to hit mainstream success in the music world.
– Marianna Salcedo
36. Malibu Ken – Malibu Ken
The duo behind this avant-garde hip-hop act – Aesop Rock and TOBACCO – have created a dense and evocative story in songs like “Acid King,” which is about a 1984 murder in New York.
– Jahan Raymond
35. The Regrettes – How Do You Love?
“Are You In Love?” is the question asked at the beginning The Regrettes album How Do You Love?, a charming collection of pop-punk songs about the most universal topic of all: Love.
– Ilana Tel-Oren
34. Joy Williams – Front Porch
The front porch is a place of convergence—inside and outside, public and private, constant and restless. From this perch, Williams explores the in-betweens of herself and the world requiring little besides an acoustic guitar and her own voice.
– Spencer Culbertson
33. Sleater-Kinney – The Center Won’t Hold
Dark and mysterious in its musical composition but raw in its lyricism, Sleater Kenney bared its collective soul in tracks like “Can I Go On” where cheeky choruses contrasted with gruff guitar riffs: so good.
– Rene Cobar
32. Jamila Woods – Legacy! Legacy!
Woods sticks true to her album name as each song on the album is named after an influential person of color. Furthermore she pays homage to each of these legends in her song styles, utilizing the iconic sounds of Miles Davis and Eartha Kitt.
– Alessia Milstein
31. Lizzo – Cuz I Love You
Cuz I Love You is taking the world by storm with upbeat tempos, feel-good lyrics and relatable moments. Lizzo has only just begun her pop takeover.
– Marianna Salcedo
30. Batushka – Hospodi
Being only their second full-length album (after an internal rift led to the existence of two “Batuskas”), Hospodi shows this version of Batushka’s drive to grow. If the vocals don’t keep you entranced, the guitar riffs throughout will.
– Erin Winans
29. Brittany Howard – Jaime
Coming in at #29 is Alabama Shakes lead vocalist Brittany Howard’s debut solo album. Within this album are the recognizable soulful tunes of Alabama Shakes, as it was created in collaboration with Alabama Shakes sound engineer Shawn Everett, Howard’s individual sound shines through. Each song is Howard’s personal story, the lyrics allowing a closer look at the singer’s thoughts and experiences. Jaime is named after Howard’s late sister who died of cancer at age 13.
– Alessia Milstein
28. Tove Lo – Sunshine Kitty
Sunshine Kitty is brutal honesty wrapped up in pretty pop songs. The album includes many of her signature moody jams with emotional lyrics to boot. Tove Lo continues to show us just how well she can turn words of feelings and heartache into a fun time.
– Marianna Salcedo
27. Weyes Blood – Titanic Rising
Weyes Blood’s Titanic Rising is utterly enchanting. The chamber-pop artist Natalie Mering hits on every emotion, but sorrow and loss are definitely at the forefront. The album is mixed incredibly well, with the instrumentals taking up just the right amount of space. Songs like “Andomeda” tie nostalgia of Fleetwood Mac and the modern day together with lyrics about love anyone heartbroken can relate to.
– Ilana Tel-Oren
26. Marissa Nadler and Stephen Brodsky – Droneflower
Haunting, sparse, ethereal, cinematic, and unhurried; plinking steel guitar and ominous undertones anticipate impending doom as Nadler’s breathy siren songs conjure sooty barren landscapes, teasing the ear into dark corners. Most tracks are at or below the 3 minute mark, inviting re-visits to excavate every calculated, succulent nuance.
– Reuben Merringer
25. Cattle Decapitation – Death Atlas
There aren’t many things in life that are more extreme than Cattle Decapitation. Before, their gruesome and sardonic commentary on animal abuse and overall terrible behavior was haunting, intentionally. They’ve still got that same hard slap in the face, but with a more varied twist. Gone are the days of Cattle Decap staying harshly grind. Death Atlas shows they can dive more heavily into prog and doom while still getting their point across.
– Cervante Pope
24. Cult of Luna – A Dawn to Fear
Cult of Luna continues to release noteworthy compositions. A Dawn to Fear features a run-time of almost an hour and a half and only eight tracks, and long time fans will appreciate the dedication and deliberate intent of each song.
– Erin Winans
23. Thom Yorke – Anima
Thom Yorke’s third studio album Anima is his best solo work yet. The sensitivity with which he commands his musicality is unrivaled, and to achieve that with a sound that is predominantly processed, is a genre-pushing move. Yorke is redefining electronic music, bringing it into a realm much bigger than we’d ever imagine.
– Alessandro Gueli
22. Earth – Full Upon Her Burning Lips
Dylan Carlson and Adrienne Davies make some goddamn pretty music together. Her attentiveness to timing, his meditative riffage—both is integral to that particular something Earth has been doing for years. They’ve got a way of creating a sonic narrative without the aid of words, and Full Upon Her Burning Lips is one of the prettiest tales yet.
– Cervante Pope
21. FKA Twigs – Magdalene
After the spectacular LP1 and M3LL115X records it was apparent that FKA Twigs was destined to become one of the best left field pop stars since Bjork, but I’m not sure any of us saw this coming. Magdalene is a shimmering magnum opus that sees Twigs go through a journey of heartbreak and redemption, all atop crackling, blistering production the likes of which are seldom heard outside of the experimental scene. It’s not just the best pop record of the year, it might be the best of the decade.
– Drew Pitt
20. Sharon Van Etten – Remind Me Tomorrow
With her dark sound, Sharon Van Etten created another wonderful strange album at the beginning of this year. Her voice is one of a kind and the songs are introduce new elements to the listener. No song is like the other, which keeps the album interesting and the audience engaged.
– Alison Alber
19. Billie Eilish – When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
What is there to say about a 17-year old musically-talented powerhouse who has taken the world by storm in 2019 and has completely changed the way we hear alternative music? When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? is a spectacle from start to finish. The singer-songwriter created an album filled with oozy nightmarish triumph and tackled relative issues like body positivity, sexual orientation, drug use and even sleep paralysis. Jumping from tracks like “xanny” to “bad guy,” any listener can hear the lyrical maturity that Ellish possesses. Gut-wrenching honesty mixed with insane party vibes from start to finish in the singer’s first studio album to date.
– Ally Tatosian
18. The Highwomen – The Highwomen
With their debut album The Highwomen, the supergroup quartet of Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, Maren Morris and Amanda Shires created something truly unique. The all-female powerhouse combines old country sounds with strong feministic lyrics and attitude. While country can be a boy’s club, these women show how females can stand their ground and use their voices out loud. One of the best songs on the album because of its easy melody and catchy lyrics is “Loose Change.” The lyrics are inspirational and confident and the band destroys old stereotypes of women in country. All four women are extremely successful on their own, so it wasn’t surprising that The Highwomen became a hit across genres. The lyrics are interesting and inspire the audience to think.
– Alison Alber
17. Tool – Fear Inoculum
Thirteen years in the making and worth the pent up math. The elaborate compositions the long wait produced exceed previous ambitions with tight mixing and delivery, equally matched by their live shows. Tool represents a staunch holdout in terms of wide-appeal rock virtuosity. Even with the abysmal categorization as alt metal or even prog, and even with the regrettable imitators that have come and gone since the band’s emergence in the mid-’90s, Tool is singular and unmatched at what they do, and with this effort they continue to stake their claim.
– Reuben Merringer
16. Charli XCX – Charli
After spending the last few years releasing mixtapes and one-off singles, Charli XCX finally returned with a proper full length this year and it’s easily among the best in her discography. The off-kilter pop gets started with “Next Level Charli” and doesn’t relent, with the Christine and the Queens-featured “Gone,” Sky Ferriera-featured “Cross You Out” and Troye Sivan-featured nostalgia trip “1999” all coming sequentially after. That’s just the first four songs. There’s also the insanely good beat of “Click” and the mournful ballad “White Mercedes” rounding out the second half of the album. Charli XCX proves she’s still the queen in her niche of the pop world.
– Matt Matasci
15. Angel Olsen – All Mirrors
The album helped to further define the sharp, yet tender, style of St. Louis-born Angel Olsen with dramatic tracks like “All Mirrors,” which shrouded itself in rich orchestral symphonies while Olsen’s poignant vocals pierced through. Songs like “Lark” continued the theme of urgent reflection, and in moments allowed for peace and serenity to reign supreme before distortion devoured it. The record was not only a solid entry for the burgeoning alternative country field but also a statement piece for a woman well on her way towards a clear artistic rendering of herself. 2020 looks promising, both for the artist and the variety of music she produces.
– Rene Cobar
14. Baroness – Gold & Grey
With Gold & Grey, Baroness brings people on an emotional rollercoaster. The shift between short, vocalless tracks and chilling songs is the ultimate ride that people will want to experience again and again. “Pale Sun,” the final track, will have people hit replay for the entire album each time. The hour-long run time makes the 17-track album feel fast, but in the best way. An album that long could have dragged on, but the short songs are all vital and contribute to the album as a whole. Baroness continue to deliver solid albums and Gold & Grey is one of their best.
– Erin Winans
13. Big Business – The Beast You Are
There’s literally not a single song that isn’t amazing on The Beast You Are. Big Business show off their sludgy metal prowess on their sixth full-length with songs like pummeling opener “Abominibal Snowman” or “Heal The Weak” and “The Moor You Know” showing off sludgy guitar riffs from Jared Warren and seriously complicated drumming from Coady Willis. The duo is equally adept at slowing things down, as evidenced on the excellent slow-burner “Time and Heat.”
– Matt Matasci
12. Lana Del Rey – Norman Fucking Rockwell
Truly sturdy songwriting is the name of the game on Norman Fucking Rockwell. Del Rey’s storytelling reaches new heights on highlights like “Mariners Apartment Complex” and “hope is a dangerous thing to have – but I have it,” and her vocal performances remain consistently gorgeous on every single track. Jack Antonoff’s often sparing production strikes the perfect balance between allowing Del Rey’’s vocals to shine and giving her the backing she needs for her songwriting to succeed. Del Rey silences anyone who questions the power of pop on this album, and proves that a mind as brilliant as hers can bend the concept of pop to her will and work the typical conventions of pop into a variety of other styles and genres.
– Matthew Jordan
11. Jenny Hval – The Practice of Love
The Practice of Love, among other purposes, serves as a reminder from Norwegian artist Jenny Hval that “avante-garde” and “accessible” are terms that are actually quite compatible. Hval boasts a strongly-held sense of self, as her output still holds fast to her signature avante-garde aesthetic even while infusing more mainstream pop influence into the album. While tracks like “Ashes to Ashes” and “High Alice” quietly and subtly invite listeners to dance along to steady synthesizer subdivisions, title track “The Practice of Love” and “Lions” stand as reassurance that Hval refuses to be limited — that her music is still very much experimental in the best sense of the word. The Practice of Love features artists Vivian Wang, Laura Jean and Felicia Atkinson. This collaborations ensure the album’s terrain remains varied, via an incorporation of textures ranging from whispers and sighs to rolling waves of synth to mere conversation. Wang’s recitation of a Lasse Marhaug film meets conversation, creating a textural bed of spoken word on which the title track is founded.
– Gabby Victoria
10. Mark Lanegan Band – Somebody’s Knocking
Mark Lanegan is back with yet another incredible album under his moniker Mark Lanegan Band. Somebody’s Knocking features the singer’s trademark croon, all growly and world-weary. Stand-outs from the album include the blistering single “Stich It Up,” which was released with an incredible video featuring Donal Logue as his Jimmy the Cab Driver character. Other highlights of the record include “Night Flight to Kabul” with its darkly mysterious lyricism and the slowed-down goodness of “Playing Nero.”
– Matt Matasci
9. Charly Bliss – Young Enough
Charly Bliss’ second album Young Enough brims over with auspicious promise, much like No Doubt once did in the early ’90s. Lead singer Eva Hendricks has a unique voice with a remarkably distinct timbre, operating in a higher register that evokes a youthful charm and an angelic force all at once. With that as the anchor, the band takes an impressive stab at power pop rock as Hendricks explore the difficulties of young adulthood. “Blown to Bits” is an enrapturing journey remembering a world about to be lost, “Capacity” ponders on the merits of holding something back for yourself and “Hard to Believe” confronts the pain of letting go of a lost love. Through moments like those, and other stellar cuts like “Under You,” Young Enough is one of those rare releases when you can see a band’s potential in vivid disdplay, knowing all it will take is time before they become mega stars.
– Raymond Flotat
8. Vampire Weekend – Father of the Bride
“Harmony Hall” and “This Life” can be set aside. They will be in the collective rotation for years to come. It is the sound of the angelic “Hold You Now,” the watery hymn “Big Blue” and the psychedelic residue of “Sunflower” that will stick in the ears of listeners who rightfully delve into the heart of Father of the Bride. With themes of love, permanence and reminiscence serving as backdrops for a wide variety of melodies, instruments and genre-fusions, Vampire Weekend creates an album that defies their past efforts while staying true to their unique sound. Tracks both danceable and pensive take turns sharing the incredibly full sound of a band writing with true inspiration and a sublime maturity. The lyrics have aged, but the soul is still young. A wild expansion of artistic reach after six dormant years rarely yields a winner, but this album is a wonderful exception.
– Willie Witten
7. Freddie Gibbs and Madlib – Bandana
Some folks just don’t miss a beat. On Bandana, Freddie Gibbs and Madlib took this phrase literally as the two reunited to deliver another stellar record. Each song glistens with a painstaking production and Gibbs’ lyrics and flow are stellar as always. Standout tracks like “Crime Pays” and “Half Manne Half Cocaine” have popped into countless playlists but the record is best experienced in a single session, an experience that you must lose yourself in to truly comprehend. It’s inevitable that people will compare this record to Pinata but the comparison between the two is futile. Bandana is a continuation of a classic. The pickup is right at the end of another perfect record. The real discussion is where this slots in on the best hip-hop records of the decade.
– Drew Pitt
6. Sunn O))) – Life Metal
Conceptually, Sunn O))) manages to convey a whole lot of feeling without having to incorporate long-winded lyrical narratives or overextended compositions. At this point, the duo has certainly recognized the merit of minimalism and just letting beauty unfold as it should. Life Metal is the first of their two 2019 albums to exhibit this, opening up with the hauntingly shrill screams of “Between Sleipnir’s Breaths.” From there, whirs and feedback grow into expansive soundscapes that sweep and sink in all the right places. The record’s ender “Novae” leaves a sense of longing in its resolve, but thankfully, Sunn O))) took that into consideration. In a sense, they finish the story with Pyroclasts, though Life Metal really holds the meat of both of the albums. We know exactly what we’re getting whenever Sunn O))) releases an album, though it never seems to get stale or repetitive. That reliability is part of what makes Life Metal one of the best releases this year.
– Cervante Pope
5. Various Artists – The Music of Red Dead Redemption 2 (Original Soundtrack)
From D’Angelo’s profound “Unshaken” to Willie Nelson’s cheeky farewell “Cruel World” to Rhiannon Giddens’ folksy “Mountain Hymn” this is a difficult album to categorize. Producer and lead writer Daniel Lanois unites the album with a mythological reverence for the American West and a feeling that the songs are bigger than themselves. This album is no Ennio Morricone. The folksy tinge of songs is reminiscent of Western soundtracks before it, but its emotional depth and variety transcend the genre of video game or western soundtrack to tell its own narrative of strength and salvation.
D’Angelo sings of a man on the frontier by himself asking “May I stand unshaken amidst a crashing world?” Lanois continues this journey with “That’s The Way It Is.” Interspersed with the narrative songs are instrumentals that paint an emotional picture. The mournful “Moonlight” is as beautiful as dark and “Mountain Banjo” has the persistent urgency of a train chugging through the desert. The album augments the immersion of the video game, but it would be a tragedy to deny these songs their due as their own installment in the mythology of the American West.
– Spencer Culbertson
4. Tyler, the Creator – IGOR
Star-studded Igor is Tyler, the Creator’s fifth album with many features including Kanye West, Solange, Lil Uzi Vert, Santigold and many more. The album showcases how much Tyler has evolved in the industry as well as in his own personal sound. While the project still falls into the hip-hop/rap category, it shares many other genre influences; including “Running Out of Time” with a bit of an R&B flare, “What’s Good” with some ’80s vibes and an overall slight pop feel. Igor has more singing than before, more stylized vocals, and is one of Tyler’s most cohesive works yet.
– Marianna Salcedo
3. Amanda Palmer – There Will Be No Intermission
Another exercise in incredible, unvarnished honesty, Amanda Palmer’s new album There Will Be No Intermission is brimming over with the details of years of pain and hardships. Palmer confronts the darkness with all the courage of a medieval warrior on a blood-soaked battlefield, brimming with destruction. The album cover alone depicts her naked against a dark horizon, seemingly the last remaining light of dusk standing proudly with a sword held high over her head. The deepest pits of the darkness are explored almost immediately on “The Ride” as Palmer ruminates on the great uncertainty of now and the allure of perhaps not proceeding, singing with utter sorrow, “And it’s just a ride / It’s just a ride / And you’ve got the choice to get off anytime that you like,” adding later “The alternative is nothingness / We might as well give it a try.”
“Drowning in the Sound” plays like a desperate plea to protect loved ones from even worse impending dread, “If you can hear / If you’re around / I’m over here / I’m over here / I’m watching Everyone I love / Drowning in the sound.” Elsewhere, “Voicemail For Jill” is a loving effort to comfort a friend about to get an abortion. The fear of motherhood, cancer and death all abound in the album’s content, and Palmer allows each song to take as much time as is exactly necessary to bring it to bear for maximum emotional impact. It can make for a daunting experience, but it is a gorgeous and honest piece of art. It’s an album refreshingly that is true in a way that almost seems to be extinct in modern music.
– Raymond Flotat
2. Chelsea Wolfe – Birth of Violence
Birth of Violence displays a clear departure from Chelsea Wolfe’s recent albums, such as Hiss Spun (2017) and Abyss (2016), and embraces a refreshingly pristine folk aesthetic that listeners may very well be pleasantly surprised by. Accompanied by the strumming of an acoustic guitar, Wolfe presents intimate and reserved vocal work that tapers to whispers on tracks like “Little Grave,” while “American Darkness” and “Mother Road” exhibit an unapologetic richness to Wolfe’s voice that the artist has yet to so fully embrace until Birth of Violence.
The album is easily reminiscent of her 2012 album, Unknown Rooms: A Collection of Acoustic Songs, though Birth of Violence is imbued with a greater musical maturity and an overall cohesiveness that is refreshingly unique to the album. Wolfe seems to be taking larger steps in the direction of folk, and retreating from the gothic and metal aesthetics that have long characterized her earlier work. Her work on Birth of Violence speaks instantly of greater accessibility and perhaps even exemplifies the artist taking a step toward mainstream, though not at all to the detriment of her artistic integrity. The album’s tremendous cohesiveness and uniformity of character reveal a creative mastery that leaves audiences eagerly anticipating Wolfe’s future work.
– Gabby Victoria
1. Devin Townsend – Empath
On his latest opus, the daring and triumphant Empath, Devin Townsend pushes the envelope of a genre that by its very definition pushes the envelope of what rock music is and can be. Our news team has very closely documented the hours, intense moments of self-doubt, and a significant amount of personal cash that went into the creation of this ambitious 10-track album. The pay-off is significant. “Castaway” gets the record started on a strong note, as the album progresses into its best track, the alternatively beautiful and blistering “Genesis.” Yes, the combination of blast beats and orchestral arrangements are nothing new for heavy music, but it’s never sounded as like it does on “Genesis”: If there was a song to soundtrack God creating the universe, this is it.
“Spirits Will Collide” is a by-the-books prog-metal, with Townsend’s commanding vocals and lyrics that we need in this time of grave uncertainty: “So we rise / Receive the pain, but this isn’t where this ends / Don’t you forget that you are perfect / Don’t you forget just who we are / We’re strong enough.” Later “Why?” presents itself as an off-kilter old-timey pop song, the kind of track that a mafiosa kingpin would get murdered to. It’s a song that’s sure to turn heads; it begins with swelling strings and Townsend singing in an operatic tone, but right before the chorus hits, things take a sludgy turn and out comes Townsend’s best deathcore pig squeal. But just like that the heaviness dissipates, leaving the song to conclude on a tragically beautiful note. This kind of wild experimentation that just works is a major reason why Empath is our album of the year.
It’s rare that an artist would personally put so much on the line as Townsend does here on Empath, and we’re so pleased that the result is an album that will be remembered for decades to come as a pillar in the world of not just progressive rock, but rock ‘n roll as a whole.
– Matt Matasci
Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat
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