From January to June, a list of our favourite 25 albums of 2024 so far.
Somehow, we’re now over halfway through 2024! And its a milestone that has forced minor reflections on the year so far. What better time then to look back on the first six months of the year and rank our favourite releases.
Its already been hard enough to put this list together as there’s undoubtedly so much good music still to discover. But here are our 25 favourite albums of the year so far (January to June).
25-21
Initially, this list was only 20 albums, but then we felt obliged to extend it to 25 to ensure a few others made the cut:
25. The Black Keys - Ohio Players
24. Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven
23. Porij - Teething
22. Pond - Stung!
21. The Smile - Wall of Eyes
20. English Teacher – This Could Be Texas
This Could Be Texas is an impressive opening statement from Leeds quartet English Teacher, meandering between big post-punk statements and gentle ballads, split between quirky and emotive tones. The dynamism on offer is admirable, engaging and driven by existential indecisiveness (‘Mastermind Specialism’) and failed relationship helplessness (‘You Blister My Pain’). When English Teacher soar, this is a very special debut album indeed.
Best three: Nearly Daffodils, R&B & The World’s Biggest Paving Slab
My full review of English Teacher’s debut album This Could Be Texas is live on the Clash website.
19. IDLES – TANGK
TANGK opens with eerie pianos on ‘IDEA 01’ and departs with a pensive sax solo on experimental closer ‘Monolith’ – a perfect summation of the journey the Bristol band have taken us on. Because IDLES fifth record progresses the sonics to new depths, bringing in fresh elements of atmosphere and creativity to their music: aided by the introduction of long term Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich. An unpredictable voyage from what was once Britain’s most predictable band. The perfect combination of their boisterous past and the experimental direction they’re moving in.
Best three: Gift Horse, Pop Pop Pop & Jungle
You can read my review of IDLES latest album TANGK on the Head Stuff website.
18. Dylan John Thomas – Dylan John Thomas
Glaswegian singer-songwriter Dylan John Thomas built a strong cult following during the COVID pandemic and delivered his self-autobiographical debut album back in February. Drawing comparisons to fellow countrymen Gerry Cinnamon and Kyle Falconer, there’s an undeniable draw to Thomas’ lyrical vulnerabilities and honesty in his upbringing, performed with such energy and infectiousness. You can’t fail but root for him.
Best three: Fever, Jenna & Up In The Air
17. NewDad – Madra
Irish shoegaze four piece NewDad initially announced their arrival way back in 2020, kicking off a run of dreamy singles that banked critical acclaim while lighting a long fuse for their debut. Four years later, they deliver on this percolating sense of anticipation in some style. Madra, which translates as “dog” in Irish, combines rich atmospherics with a poignant undercurrent, inspired by formative bands including Pixies, Slowdive and, in particular, The Cure. A collection of often breathtaking dream-pop tunes that further cements NewDad’s position as one of Ireland's most exciting young bands.
Best three: Sickly Sweet, In My Head & Nightmares
16. Bill Ryder-Jones – Iechyd Da
Lechyd Da – which is a Welsh toast for good health – has vulnerability at its core, Bill Ryder-Jones’ singer-songwriter’s lyrics covering themes as heavy as mental health issues and romantic loss. Emotional indie-folk accompanied by strings, organs and there’s even several appearances from a children’s choir who lighten the mood on the darker subject matters.
Best three: I Know It’s Like This (Baby), This Can’t Go On & It’s Today Again
15. The Libertines – All Quiet On the Eastern Esplanade
Nine years after the mixed bag that was third album Anthems For Doomed Youth arrived All Quiet The Eastern Esplanade back in April. A gratifying fourth album sonically exploratory while remaining true to The Libertines swashbuckling indie heart. A shabby sort of elegance swallows many of these tracks, with the band enjoying a wider range of stylistic influences than before to prove there’s life in the old dog yet.
Best three: Merry Old England, Shiver & Run Run Run
14. The Mysterines - Afraid Of Tomorrows
A couple of years on from The Mysterines explosive debut Reeling, sophomore release Afraid Of Tomorrows is a more creative and well-rounded return that, crucially, continues their precipitous rise. Produced by John Congleton in LA, the quartet’s latest ventures deeper into the dark corners of singer Lia Metcalfe’s mind. Less immediate than their debut, Afraid of Tomorrows is intimate while maintaining their typical rock boisterousness.
Best three: Another Another Another, Inside A Matchbox & Sink Ya Teeth
Read my review of The Mysterines latest album on the Stereoboard website.
13. Vampire Weekend – Only God Was Above Us
After their inconsistent last album Father of the Bride, Only God Above Us gets things back on track for Vampire Weekend - even if its immediacy is lacking on first listen. The LP is probably best regarded as a record of two halves. The first is full of more experimental growers that maintain the band’s elegant style, the second more immediate and reflective. Only God Above Us is not as attention-grabbing an album like their first three records. But their fifth is a far more succinct body of work than their last; It wonderfully merges an old sound with a progressive new, sounding both chaotic and soothing. A fantastic return from them.
Best three: Classical, Capricorn, Pravda
12. The Last Dinner Party – Prelude To Ecstacy
The Last Dinner Party are arguably THE band of 2024. Championed as the next big thing by the music critics, the pressure was on for the all female five-piece to produce a suitably excellent debut LP. And, as very much expected, they passed with flying colours. Prelude To Ecstasy is a particularly lush and grand opening statement, and a heap fun also. Lustful, empowering and majestic throughout, it seems The Last Dinner Party can do little wrong. Put your money on this winning the Mercury Prize come September.
Best three: Portrait of a Dead Girl, Burn Alive, Sinner
11. Royel Otis – PRATS & PAIN
Brothers Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic joined forces in 2019 to form Royel Otis, making their name in the coming years with three excellent EPs, an acclaimed hit in ‘Oysters In My Pocket’ and a much-celebrated reworking of Sophie Ellis Bextor’s ‘Murder On The Dancefloor’. Their debut album PRATS & PAIN may be named after a bar in South London, but the contents within continue the breezy style of indie pop that have become accustomed with Australian bands of late. The sound is warm, nostalgic and delightfully melodic – the perfect sound for sunnier days and the festival season.
Best three: Sofa King, Always Always & Adored
10. Kim Gordon – The Collective
A new solo effort from a rock veteran in the latter stages of their career wouldn’t exactly be something many new music fans would be rushing to hear in any given week. Then again, Kim Gordon isn’t just any rock veteran. And boy, did her second solo album, The Collective, leave quite the impression release in March.
Gordon keeps this spirit of experimentalism alive through a 40-minute collection of songs that wallow in abrasiveness, hip-hop beats and distorted guitars. The merging of contemporary trap and experimental rock works a treat for the most part: a strangely fresh experience many of us probably didn’t realise we needed in our lives. Merging electronica, hip hop, industrial and noise rock into one cohesive sound, Kim Gordon has provided a challenging yet captivating listen.
Best three: BYE BYE, I’m A Man & The Believers
Check out my review of The Collective on the Head Stuff website.
9. MGMT – Loss Of Life
MGMT’s fifth studio album is amongst their most ambitious and eclectic pieces of work to date, incorporating folk, dream-pop and psych-pop for a jubilant and, at times, emotive listening experience. Many still associate Andrew VanWayngarden and Ben Goldwasser with their indie dancefloor filling album Oracular Spectacular and while their latest won’t have the same commercial success as their 2008 debut, its arguably their best since. A record likely cherished by the early fans as well as those seeking the experimental journey they’ve chased thereafter.
The pair again proved their musical depth and willingness to progress, all the while still containing a similar earwormy draw that drew so many to them in the first place. A truly stunning and gripping piece of work.
Best three: People In The Streets, Phradie’s Song, Mother Nature
8. SPRINTS - Letter to Self
Irish punk band SPRINTS emerged towards the end of last year when the blistering anthem ‘Up and Comer’ began receiving heavy rotation on BBC 6 Music. Letter To Self emerged in January and proved they could maintain the song’s standard over a frenetic debut record, one immediately tipped to be on many a publication’s end of year lists.
The Karla Chubb fronted band are arguably Ireland’s most promising young band’s at the moment and will surely go from strength to strength in the coming years. Letter To Self itself is an assured opening statement of intent, carrying a heavy sense of bleakness and melodrama, but most of all presenting an unforgettable collection of banging rock tunes.
Best three: Up and Comer, Literary Mind, Cathedral
7. Orlando Weeks – LOJA
Loja is the moment Orlando Weeks finally steps out of The Maccabees shadow and into a limelight of his own. Swapping his hometown from London to Lisbon, Weeks has offered up a truly stunning solo record and one that places the Portuguese capital city as a beautiful backdrop.
Across this assured collection of 11 tracks, the 40-year-old singer’s soothing tones and the beauty of the music come together superbly for an emotive yet uplifting listening experience.
Best three: Longing, Dig & Good To See You
6. The Lemon Twigs – A Dream Is All We Know
The Lemon Twigs have long walked a thin line between acknowledging classic ‘60s songwriters and being a pastiche of that period. After the success of 2023’s Everything Harmony, the New York-based brothers Brian and Michael D’Addario wasted little time in delivering their fifth album A Dream Is All We Know, with the strength of their joyful melodies and meticulously-crafted indie-pop songs keeping them on the right side of things.
This is the duo’s best and most concise effort yet, leaning heavily on upbeat Beach Boys harmonies and swatches taken The Beatles in their early experimental era (some are calling the combination of the two sounds “Merseybeach”) alongside the reflective Simon & Garfunkelisms of their previous LP. A blissful ode to the past from two extremely talented brothers.
Best three: In The Eyes Of The Girl, How Can I Love Her More & If You And I Are Not Wise
Check out my Stereoboard review of The Lemon Twigs new one.
5. Declan McKenna - What Happened To The Beach?
Declan McKenna has rarely shown a desire for standing still. Aged just 18, his politically charged debut What Do You Think About the Car? arrived in 2017 to a wave of critical acclaim, before he raced us to the moon and back on the chaotic, Bowie-inspired Zeros in 2020. Four years on, he’s advanced his sound again on What Happened To The Beach? – sun-kissed Californian self-indulgence very much the new order of the day.
Less breathless, super fun and lightly psychedelic, the London singer’s third effort is surrounded by a warm glow of West Coast sunshine. His third is a fun yet wonderfully composed record that sounds radically different to what he’s produced before. If a little odd at points with a dialling down of immediacy, patience is required to fully appreciate the pay-off.
Best three: The Phantom Buzz (Kick In), Nothing Works & Mulholland's Dinner and Wine
You can read my full review of What Happened To The Beach on the Clash website.
4. Real Estate – Daniel
Over the past 15 years, Real Estate have mastered the sort of gentle jangle-pop that might soundtrack days spent at the beach following sunny road trips along coastal highways. Daniel is the result of nine days spent recording in Nashville with producer Daniel Tashian, and it’s safe to assume Real Estate were happy with the final product given they appear to have named the record after him.
Reflecting their surroundings, a country influence also pops up on occasion. Flowers has been described by the band as “the closest Real Estate will ever get to like a Shania Twain style country rocker” even if it doesn’t quite betray their typical jangly style. So, while Daniel only scratches the surface of its new textures, it’s hard not to find joy in these beautifully crafted songs.
Best three: Flowers, Water Underground & Victoria
You can read more about this album in my Daniel review on the Stereoboard website.
3. Yard Act - Where's My Utopia?
On Where’s My Utopia? Yard Act’s creative boots are strapped on for a new exploration of eclectic terrain, ending up as a fun, reflective exercise full of quirky charm. Their second album is fantastically held together by James Smith – the singer never allowing proceedings to become too inauthentic, nor too pretentious. It also has them venture into disco and art rock styles to further the palette beyond the gritty post punk one of their debut.
Where’s My Utopia? is a hugely enjoyable, self aware record that, above all else, is playful and weird. The creative leap forward marks a giant departure from their debut and the risk pays off big time. Yard Act smash through all expectations on album number two and some.
Best three: We Make Hits, Grifter's Grief & Blackpool Illuminations
Check out my review of Yard's Act second album on the Head Stuff Media website.
2. Been Stellar – Scream from New York, NY
As the title suggests, Been Stellar are a band from New York City and one who captured many an imagination with the release of their debut album, Scream From New York, NY. And it’s an absolute post-punk delight, carrying a heavy reference to previous Big Apple bands without ever becoming a pastiche or copycat.
They draw heavy inspiration from the bands featured in Lizzy Goodman’s Meet Me In The Bathroom oral history book and subsequent feature film about the New York indie rock scene of the ‘00s, and thus draw comparisons to the likes of The Strokes, Interpol, The Walkmen and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Typically then, the five-piece produce gritty soundscapes and a melodic shoegaze sound packed with raw energy and confidence.
Best three: Sweet, I Have An Answer & Scream From New York, NY
1. DIIV – Frog in Boiling Water
And in at number 1 is DIIV! Five years on from their heavy shoegaze last record Deceiver, the Brooklyn band have offered a natural follow up, doubling down on the darkened sonics with Frog In Boiling Water. And dare we say, their fourth is even gloomier, even moodier and even more beautiful than their last.
DIIV may be far removed from their sun-kissed early sound, but the despair and despondence offered on Frog In Boiling Water makes for a fascinating listen. Still immediate, albeit in a different way entirely. Mood music carrying the weight of the world on its shoulders, progressing the band even further into dark and haunted terrain. DIIV have refined their brooding vibe and produced as gorgeous a record as you’ll hear this year.
Best three: Brown Paper Bag, Raining On Your Pillow & Soul-net
Check out my review of Frog In Boiling Water on the Clash website.
Yorumlar