Albums
50-41
50. softCORE - Fousheé
Genre: Synth-Punk | Standouts: bored, i'm fine, spend the money (Feat. Lil Uzi Vert)
49. Desire Pathway - Screaming Females
Genre: Alt-Rock | Standouts: Brass Bell, Mourning Dove, Desert Train
48. DATA - Tainy
Genre: Reggaeton | Standouts: PASIEMPRE, FANTASMA | AVC, MOJABI GHOST
47. Something to Give Each Other - Troye Sivan
Genre: Dancepop | Standouts: Rush, What's the Time Where You Are?, Silly
46. GUTS - Olivia Rodrigo
Genre: Pop Rock | Standouts: Vampire, Bad Idea Right?, Logical
45. The Loveliest Time - Carly Rae Jepsen
Genre: Dancepop | Standouts: Psychedelic Switch, Kollage, Kamikaze
44. UNFORGIVEN - LE SSERAFIM
Genre: K-pop | Standouts: UNFORGIVEN (Feat. Nile Rodgers), ANTIFRAGILE, Impurities
43. Mid Air - Romy
Genre: Deep House | Standouts: The Sea, Did I, Loveher
42. Love Hallucination - Jessy Lanza
Genre: UK Bass | Standouts: Limbo, Midnight Ontario, Casino Niagara
41. Volcano - Jungle
Genre: Nu-Disco | Standouts: Candle Flame (Feat. Erick Arc Elliot), Back on 74, Holding On
40-31
40. In Times New Roman... - Queens of the Stone Age
Genre: Stoner Rock | Standouts: Carnavoyeur, Paper Machete, Straight Jacket Fitting
39. O Monolith - Squid
Genre: Art Punk, Noise Rock | Standouts: Swing (In a Dream), The Blades, Devil's Den
38. Gag Order - Kesha
Genre: Alt-Pop | Standouts: All I Need Is You, Eat The Acid, The Drama
37. Hood Hottest Princess - Sexyy Red
Genre: Trap, Dirty South | Standouts: SkeeYee, Looking For The Hoes (Ain't My Fault), Hellcats SRTs
36. Scarlet - Doja Cat
Genre: Hip Hop, Pop Rap | Standouts: Fuck The Girls (FTG), Agora Hills, Attention
35. El Diablo en el Cuerpo - Álex Anwandter
Genre: Dance-pop, Disco | Standouts: Maricoteca, Unx De Nosotrxs (feat. Javiera Mena), Mi vida en llamas (feat. Buscabulla)
34. Pollen - Tennis
Genre: Indie Pop | Standouts: Let's Make a Mistake Tonight, One Night With the Valet, Pollen Song
33. My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross - ANOHNI and the Johnsons
Genre: Soul | Standouts: It Must Change, Rest, It's My Fault
32. STARFUCKER - Slayyyter
Genre: Dance-pop | Standouts: Purrr, Erotic Electronic, Miss Belladona
31. Everything Is Alive - Slowdive
Genre: Dream Pop | Standouts: Kisses, Skin in the Game, The Slab
30-21
30. All of This Will End - Indigo De Souza
Genre: Indie Rock | Standouts: Wasting Your Time, Smog, You Can Be Mean
29. Radical Romantics - Fever Ray
Genre: Art Pop, Post-Industrial | Standouts: Carbon Dioxide, What They Call Us, Shiver
28. Intercepted Message - Osees
Genre: Synth Punk, New Wave | Standouts: Goon, Intercepted Message, Stunner
27. Playing Robots Into Heaven - James Blake
Genre: UK Garage, Microhouse | Standouts: Big Hammer, Loading, Playing Robots Into Heaven
26. .mp3 - Emilia
Genre: Dance-pop | Standouts: No_se_ve.mp3 (feat. Ludmilla & Zecca), Exclusive.mp3, GTA.mp3
25. Nymph_o - Shygirl
Genre: UK Bass | Standouts: Playboy/Positions, Crush (feat. Erika de Casier), Heaven (feat. Tinashe)
24. Food for Worms - shame
Genre: Indie Rock, Post Punk | Standouts: Adderall, Six Pack, All the People
23. Heaven Knows - PinkPantheress
Genre: Liquid Drum & Bass, Dance pop | Standouts: Capable of Love, Mosquito, The Aisle
22. Higher - Chris Stapleton
Genre: Country Rock | Standouts: What Am I Gonna Do, White Horse, Higher
21. Sundial - Noname
Genre: Jazz Rap, Neo-soul | Standouts: Namesake, Oblivion (feat. Ayoni & Common), Balloons (feat. Jay Electronica & Eryn Allen Kane)
20-11
20. This Is Why - Paramore
Genre: Post-punk Revival, New Wave | Standouts: This Is Why, The News, Figure 8
Wonderful blend of new wave aesthetics and strong rock performances, lyrics are contemporary and fun!
19. JAGUAR II - Victoria Monét
Genre: R&B, Neo-Soul | Standouts: I'm The One, How Does It Make You Feel, Hollywood (feat. Earth, Wind & Fire & Hazel Monét)
A standout R&B record with some buttery smooth vocal performances and some old-school drama and passion.
18. Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd - Lana Del Rey
Genre: Singer-Songwriter, Baroque Pop | Standouts: Peppers (feat. Tommy Genesis), A&W, The Grants
A return to form for Lana after her past few records, she really stepped it up in the songwriting here.
17. Everything Harmony - The Lemon Twigs
Genre: Soft Rock, Baroque Pop | Standouts: Corner of My Eye, Everyday Is the Worst Day of My Life, Any Time of Day
Such a romantic album and their strongest melodies today. I swoon every listen.
16. With a Hammer - Yaeji
Genre: Glitch pop, UK Bass | Standouts: Passed Me By, For Granted, Happy (feat. Nourished by Time)
Love Yaeji's perspective on feminine rage with misleading chill aesthetics before you pivot into cool industrial sounds.
15. NO THANK YOU - Little Simz
Genre: UK Hip Hop, Neo-Soul | Standouts: Gorilla, No Merci, Heart on Fire
Little Simz takes down the leeches in the music industry, detailing the past few years of her life.
14. Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) - Yves Tumor
Genre: Neo-Psychedelia, Art Rock | Standouts: Parody, Lovely Sewer, Echolalia
NB Alternative alien excelence. Every sound is foreign yet familiar. This album has aged better with every listen for me.
13. Red Moon in Venus - Kali Uchis
Genre: Neo-soul, R&B | Standouts: Moonlight, I Wish You Roses, Hasta Cuando, Deserve Me (feat. Summer Walker)
Easily her strongest R&B effort to date. Kali sails through romance, spite, and flexing and it all sounds steamy.
12. The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We - Mitski
Genre: Indie Folk, Americana | Standouts: Bug Like an Angel, Star, I Don't Like My Mind
Speaking of returns to form, Mitski ditches synthpop licks from her previous record for her trademark Americana sound and storytelling.
11. Mañana será bonito (Bichota Season) - Karol G
Genre: Reggaetón, Trap Latino | Standouts: Qlona (with Peso Pluma), Oki Doki, Bichotag
Very easily album of the summer. Front-to-back bangers with next to no filler.
10-1
10. the record - boygenius
Genre: Indie Folk | Standouts: Emily I'm Sorry, Not Strong Enough, $20
The 3 respective singer-songwriters complement each other very well, with harmonious vocals and strong songwriting.
9. Fountain Baby - Amaarae
Genre: Afrobeats, R&B, Dance-pop | Standouts: Co-star, Wasted Eyes, Sex Violence Suicide
The most diverse collection of dance music on an LP this year. The way she can command so many styles and sounds while being cohesive is insane.
8. 10,000 gecs - 100 gecs
Genre: Ska Punk, Noise Rock, Hyperpop | Standouts: 757, Hollywood Baby, I Got My Tooth Removed
100 gecs continue to push the boundaries of pop music and Hyperpop, moving into stronger noise-rock directions after the standard Hyperpop flares they popularized have become sanitized.
7. Javelin - Sufjan Stevens
Genre: Indie Folk | Standouts: Shit Talk, Will Anybody Ever Love Me?, So You Are Tired
Sufjan does a sad album so well, and this stunning tribute to his late partner is no exception :(.
6. Desire, I Want to Turn Into You - Caroline Polachek
Genre: Art pop | Standouts: Welcome to My Island, Billions, Blood and Butter, Sunset
This was an insanely long 3 year wait but every track was crafted so immaculately that it shows. The quintessential art pop record of the year.
5. That! Feels Good! - Jessie Ware
Genre: Disco, Diva House | Standouts: Freak Me Now, Begin Again, Lightning
An immaculate follow-up to What's Your Pleasure, she forfeits the electronic sounds of modern house music for a wonderful ode to classic 70s and 80s disco with natural instrumentals and vocal layerings.
4. BB/ANG3L - Tinashe
Genre: Electronic R&B, UK Bass | Standouts: Talk To Me Nice, Treason, Tightrope
If this was a proper full-length record of this quality I could see this having taken AOTY. That said, I respect a short concise project that executes its POV with no fluff.
3. Softscars - yeule
Genre: Dream Pop, Shoegaze | Standouts: Dazies, Sulky Baby, Fish In The Pool
Easily Yeule's best project to me, they nailed a focus all-time great shoegaze project. Every song is layered with sonic detail and gripping narrations of their identity.
2. Scaring the Hoes - JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown
Genre: Experimental Hip Hop | Standouts: Lean Beef Patty, Fentanyl Tester, Kingdom Hearts Key (feat. redveil)
JPEGMAFIA's sound tends to air on the side of too abstract for me, where it feels like experimenting for the sake of experimenting while not going anywhere. Perhaps having a focused collaborator in Danny Brown led to a clear landing of manic chopped-up beats, wild bars, and frankly no misses.
1. Raven - Kelela
Genre: Breakbeat, Ambient | Standouts: Contact, Bruises, On The Run, Washed Away, Raven, Sorbert
Just wow. The leadup to Raven was fascinating, with the first teaser being Washed Away, an ambient chill breakbeat intro. What we got was a full concept album experience of seamless transitions, laid-back dancefloor beats, and her experience as a queer black woman in the industry. Awesome commentary and separating herself from a consumer product fans can demand content from.
Songs
75-61
75. You Knew - Róisín Murphy - Microhouse
74. King of Hearts - Kim Petras - Dancepop
73. Give It To Me - Miguel - R&B
72. Wandering Eyes - Magdalena Bay - Synthpop
71. Boom Boom - Blue Hawaii - Euro-trance
70. Hooked - BAMBII - UK Bass, Dancehall
69. Destroy Me - Rebecca Black - Dancepop, Drum N Bass
68. Nah, That Ain't It - Spiritual Cramp - Post-Punk, Garage Rock
67. I've Been In Love - Jungle, Channel Tres - Nu-Disco
66. Tonta - Nathy Peluso - Dancepop
65. A Night To Remember - beabadoobe, Laufy - Bossa nova
64. Tension - Kylie Minogue - Dancepop - Diva House
63. Skinny Ape - Gorillaz - Synthpop
62. Tonight - City Girls - Rap, Southern Hip-Hop
61. Bongos - Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion - Pop Rap
60-51
60. Psychedelic Switch - Carly Rae Jepsen - Nu-Disco, Dancepop
59. Endless Fashion - Lil Uzi Vert, Nicki Minaj - Trap, Pop Rap
58. Bad Idea Right? - Olivia Rodrigo - Garage Rock Revival, Pop Rock
57. Speed Drive - Charli XCX - Electropop
56. Paper Machete - Queens of the Stone Age - Stoner Rock
55. Princess Diana - Ice Spice, Nicki Minaj - Hip Hop, UK Drill
54. The Sea - Romy - Deep House
53. Unforgiven - Le Sserafim - K-pop
52. Double Tap - LSDXOXO - Deep House, Miami Bass
51. Pollen - Tennis - Synthpop, Bedroom Pop
50-41
50. Angel - Halle - R&B, Pop Soul
49. Red Ruby Da Sleeze - Nicki Minaj - Rap
48. Latina - Isabella Lovestory - Neoperreo
47. Columbia - Quevedo - Reggaeton
46. ICU - Coco Jones - R&B, Neosoul
45. I like u - Tove Lo - Eurodance
44. Purrr - Slayyyter - Electropop
43. Peppers - Lana Del Rey, Tommy Genesis - Baroque Pop
42. White Horse - Chris Stapleton - Country Rock
41. Midnight Ontario - Jessy Lanza - 2-step
40-31
40. All I Need is You - Kesha - Singer-Songwriter
39. Agora Hills - Doja Cat - Cloud Rap
38. I'm The One - Victoria Monét - R&B
37. No Merci - Little Simz - UK Hip Hop
36. No Bars - JT - Trap, Hip Hop
35. Luna - Peso Pluma - Corrido Tumbado
34. FANTASMA | AVC - Tainy & Jhayco - Reggaeton, Latin Electronic
33. MY HOUSE - Beyoncé - Hip House
32. Emily I'm Sorry - boygenius - Indie Rock, Singer-Songwriter
31. No_se_ve.mp3 - Emilia & Ludmilla - Dancepop, Funk mandelão
30-21
30. Bored - Fousheé - Riot Grrrl, Punk
29. Universal Swamp Anthem - Doechii - Dirty South, Soul
28. Playboy / Positions - Shygirl - Deconstructed Club, Snap
27. Skin in the Game - Slowdive - Dream Pop, Shoegaze
26. Passed Me By - Yaeji - Trip Hop
25. Smog - Indigo De Souza - Indietronica, Synthpop
24. Co-Star - Amaarae - Afrobeats
23. Shakira: BZRP Music Sessions, Vol. 53 - Bizarrap & Shakira - Dancepop, Electropop
22. Penthouse - Kelsea Ballerini - Country Pop
21. Cobra - Megan Thee Stallion - Trap, Rap Rock
20-11
20. Vampiros - Rosalía & Rauw Alejandro - Neoperreo, Reggaeton
Obsessed with the electro-clash elements in the back half of the track.
19. Qlona - Karol G & Peso Pluma - Reggaeton
So sexy, and nice to hear Peso Pluma in a different sound.
18. 757 - 100 gecs - Hyperpop
I was so obsessed with this song that I ripped a YouTube live performance to listen to for months before it dropped.
17. Star - Mitski - Chamber pop, Indie Folk
Such a lovely atmosphere to this one. Mitski really plays with restraint on this track.
16. Come 2 Brazil - Alice Longyu Gao - Hyperpop, Industrial
This song encapsulates Alice and to a larger extent Hyperpop's tongue and cheek humor.
15. Super Shy - NewJeans - Liquid Drum and Bass, K-pop
When a K-pop song shakes the locals like this you know it's something special.
14. I Wish You Roses - Kali Uchis - Neo-soul, Bedroom Pop, R&B
The way this song oozes romance but it's kind of a spiteful 'bless your heart' moment.
13. Oral - Björk & Rosalía - Art Pop
It is always wonderful to hear Björk in the pop song structures she played with in the 90s, this vault track is everything.
12. Low - SZA - Alt R&B, Trap
I didn't think SZA could manifest this much swagger in a song. A banger.
11. Corner of My Eye - The Lemon Twigs - Soft Rock
A wonderful romantic ballad with career-standout vocals from the Twigs. Very happy for their broader success this year.
10-1
10. (It Goes Like) Nanana - Peggy Gou - Eurohouse
Kind of club song of the year, very happy for her success!
9. Lean Beef Patty - JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown - Reggaeton
Really dope sample, with wonderfully off-the-wall manic performances from both rappers.
8. Capable of Love - PinkPantheress - Breakbeat
Very nice to see PinkPantheress fleshing out her songs so fully this era. Love the bridge on this one,
7. Parody - Yves Tumor - Neo-psychedelia
Just a general haunting vibe to this one I always come back to. Love the "Is this all just make up" line.
6. Shit Talk - Sufjan Stevens - Indie Folk
My feelings on this song are more or less the same as the full record, very gorgeous and very sad. The strong melody makes the near 9 minute track fly.
5. Freak Me Now - Jessie Ware - Funky House
With an instrumental straight out of Daft Punk's "Discovery", a strong diva house style vocal from Ware and raunchy vocals the song is a 9.99 (stronger mixing would make it a 10).
4. Talk to Me Nice - Tinashe - Alt R&B, UK Bass
The ultimate grower of a track, the staying power is madness. The vocals are hypnotic, and just when you begin to tire a masterful beat switch into the bridge leads you right into a repeat listen.
3. Contact - Kelela - Breakbeat, 2-step
Contact is emblematic of the era Kelela embarked in with Raven, a sluggish club rager that makes you want to dance but you just don't know how. Seeing this live the audience would often be confused on whether to dance or stare in awe.
2. Dazies - Yeule - Shoegaze
Is it too late to make this #1? Probably. The song fits right in place with the all-time greats of 90's industrial rock/shoegaze.
1. Welcome to My Island - Caroline Polachek - Synthpop, Newave, Art Pop
From the opening vocal passages, Caroline makes a career-defining statement here. She is near peerless in the indie pop scene when it comes to vocal acrobatics and creative song structure.