Top Albums of 2024: Part 1
22 records I was blown away by this year
I ended 2023 and started 2024 thinking “THIS is finally the year I stop obsessing over new releases”
It’s odd, but I think I just listened to more music overall this year than any year in recent memory and thus the 2024 releases rolled in. I stopped tracking 2024 releases multiple times this year and made a concerted effort a few times to just be DONE with the year in lieu of other projects for myself and this Newsletter, but the addiction with consumption of the NEW is just something I haven’t really been able to break for 20 years. I’m pretty sure I wrote about it, too. I don’t REGRET it, but it isn’t something I want to keep up.
The truth is, we live in a world where so much amazing music is released every week that it is genuinely impossible to keep up with despite our insistence to try. I WANT to go back and obsess over single releases and wear them out, and it happens from time to time, but it’s super rare. Anyway, access to music is easy and finding new music is easy and it’s what I do in my spare time and I’m not even finding super obscure things like lots of people I follow here and elsewhere (your mileage may vary).
Anyway, when all was said and done - I sort of lucked into once again having about 50 releases I rated 4.5 stars or higher this year, and that’s what you’ll see here. As a totally sicko thing to do (and it’s near-meaningless anyway), I kept track of every record I rate 4-stars or higher on RateYourMusic. It’s a silly way to do music, but I do it with the caveat that it allows me to organize my brain and that everything is fluid (ie: some of the records from the 2004 revisit were rated at like 3 stars and are now at 5). Last year broke all sorts of records for me with over 230 records that reached this threshold. This year surpassed that with 264 at the time of writing this. That’s a sick amount of music!
That’s all to say that I find all the music I’ll write about here extremely good and my hope is that you’ll check it out and find the same love. As I have written about a lot of these records in posts from earlier in the year and just general busyness - my reviews are going to be real quick hitters. As always, if you find something you love - support the artist if you are able and for goodness sake - stop using Spotify as your only streamer, it legitimately ruins and degrades multiple albums on this list. Tidal, Qobuz, even the native Bandcamp app is where you should head if money allows, all have extremely good sound quality in comparison (and pay the artists’ better).
22 releases today. Get ready and enjoy!
Edit: I initially only posted 21 releases and forgot a compilation at the bottom! Fixed now.
Beings
There Is A Garden (No Quarter)
Skronky Free Jazz with Instrumental Rock influence
Zoh Amba blasting your face off with her sax, channeling Nico in vocals, Jim White (of Dirty Three) banging on anything he can get his hands on, Steve Gunn shredding on guitar as he can and Shazhad Ismaily laying down insane bottom line bass. This is a trip and not something you can listen to a lot but is great great chaos.
Billy Strings
Billy Strings Live, Vol. 1 (Reprise) / Highway Prayers (Reprise)
Virtuostic, modern bluegrass (and more?)
Billy is a superstar at this point. He makes an appearance on every great record in the country underground, seems to be playing a million shows a year, has the best Grateful Dead cover band, is personal friends with Ringo and if his set with Chris Thile that opened up the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in June got an official release, he’d have 3 records on this list. He’s the best. Live is a cheat in that it’s highlights from a handful of concerts. And Highway Prayers isn’t PERFECT but it’s damn close. Fuckin’ jam out.
Black Spooks
The Black Spooks (90s Tapes / HHV)
Unreleased Hip Hop classic from a forgotten California trio
I JUST listened to this record a few days ago and was blown away. Recorded and meant to be released in 1996, this San Bernadino group never got this release out to the public, but it is AWESOME. Imagine if Tajai from Souls of Mischief and Aceyalone from Project Blowed put out a record with Geto Boys lyrical content and jazzy boom bap production. Unreal stuff.
Blood Incantation
Absolute Elsewhere (Century Media)
The death metal band even hipsters love goes full progrock
People can like what they like but while some TRUE metalheads may be hesitant to praise Blood Incantation because they are like the most extreme band that a modern normie can get into (which is nuts, in itself), the fact is they are 3/3 in full-lengths and this is probably their strongest one. Balls to the walls wails, growls and progressive electronic Tangerine Dream-esque passages. Was VERY close to a full 5 for me.
Chris Forsyth
Plays Love Devotion Surrender (Self-Released)
Live recording and slight reinterpretation of legendary Santana/McLaughlin record.
This is a 2023 recording celebrating the 50th Anniversary of an overlooked but amazing Santana & McLaughlin record. Forsyth and co. don’t change a lot, but they do smooth out some edges compared to the rapid machine-gun explosions of the McLaughlin original. They also remove the acoustic tracks for slower, electric blues interpretations. It makes the album just as pleasurable as the original but just a little bit smoother.
Creekbed Carter Hogan
Creekbed Carter (Gar Hole)
Biting, beautiful Appalachian via Texas folk equal parts wistful and funny
I wrote about this record back in March while it was a real obsession of mine and while I haven’t delved back too much since, revisiting it for this has reintroduced its stunning beauty. A record that I hope to grow with over many years.
Dawn Richard & Spencer Zahn
Quiet in a World Full of Noise (Merge)
R&B goddess makes a modern ECM-influenced vocal jazz album
I LOVE most Dawn Richard albums. She has a sizable following but to me she should be one of the handful of active artists around right now we can pin “genius” to. Her second collab with Spencer Zahn in two years is a little less experimental than the first but comes across like a very minimal, bucolic vocal jazz record perfect for dusk. A sister record to the absolute masterpiece L’Amour by Lewis.
Dlala Thukzin
Finally Famous Too (Dlala Records)
The best amapiano/gqom/3-step/afrohouse record I heard this year
Compared to the last 5 years, in which a lot of the popular South African genres have been dominating my modern listening habits, I really fell off this year. I still listened to a fair amount, but thanks to the always great Semipop Life, I was reminded this record came out recently and was absolutely blown away. Thukzin’s many other releases always blend genres as well as anyone and are uniquely beautiful but this is a grand gesture and has become my favorite late discovery.
Elephant9 with Terje Rypdal
Catching Fire (Rune Grammofon)
Norwegian jazz fusion trio add one of the best guitarists ever for straight JAMS
This record is truly incredible. Capture from a live performance from 2017 it is 80 minutes of some of the craziest, most brain-melting jazz-rock you will ever here. Rypdal has been a legend for 60 years and at age 70 here, really just RIPS it up. Play loud as fuck. (Elephant9’s studio album from this year Mythical River is also very good).
Gustavo Gimeno: Toronto Symphony Orchestra / Marc-Andre Hamelin / Nathalie Forget
Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie (Harmonia Mundi)
Absolutely thrilling rendition of one of my favorite symphonies
Part of my goal this year was to listen to more new releases from Classical labels and through about June I was listening to everything that a handful of labels put out. I eventually got bogged down and didn’t get back to it, but I am hoping to start that up again because finding a recording like this makes it all worth it. I’m still not good at talking about any classical music, but I’ve loved this symphony since first hearing it almost 20 years ago via the DG Loriod(s)/Chung release from 1991. This out-of-the-world piece about love is always thrilling and this is one of the best interpretations I’ve heard of it. Unfortunately, this is the only classical release on my list this year.
High On Fire
Cometh the Storm (MNRK Heavy)
Sludge metal legends put out their best album in 19 years
High On Fire was a real gateway band for me to get into metal as an overarching genre with 2005’s Blessed Black Wings being a real monumental album for me. I’ve enjoyed basically all of their releases since but have ultimately found most of them lacking. For whatever reason (maybe the addition of Big Business’ Coady Willis on drums?), this release is my fave of theirs since then. The production has been ramped up, the songwriting and riffs feel more heavy and enjoyed blowing out my headphones with the record.
Holy Tongue meets Shackleton
The Tumbling Psychic Joy of Now (AD 93)
Experimental dub trio links up with UK Bass-Heavy electronic stalwart
I was not a fan of Holy Tongue’s debut full-length from 2023 but this link up with Shackleton both expanded and refined their sound into a full on experience. Shackleton did a handful of awesome collabs this year and this is the best one. Just really far-out, spacey dubby electronic music made for a speaker or headphone set with excellent bottom end.
Joel and the Neverending Sextet
Marbled (Motvind)
Cello & Tuba-led free jazz from Norway
Don’t remember where I found this album but it’s easily one of my favorite jazz releases of the year. The cello and tuba actually mellow out the record a bit, making for a very relaxed “out” album. It flows really well and feels equal parts composed and improvised.
Kamasi Washington
Fearless Movement (Young)
Saxophonist tightens things up to 86 minutes for a “dance” record
Kamasi barely needs an introduction at this point. He has become essentially the biggest name in modern jazz and while some don’t love his playing (his music is probably more about composition and feeling than skill and improvisation), I find all his music incredibly striking. Here he collabs with some big names (Andre 3000, George Clinton, Thundercat) and vocalists to create a more upbeat, less “spiritual” record focused on dance. It’s a blast and perhaps the least jazzy thing he’s done.
Kendrick Lamar
GNX (pgLANG)
Kendrick with a late-year surprise of Bay Area-influenced heat
You don’t need to read this. If this record doesn’t do it for you, I am a bit suspect of your feelings about rap. A joyous brag of an album from the dude who had the biggest year in pop. Fuck a concept, let it ride. Also, listen to this Chopped N Screwed version or the even better Swishahouse version on their app.
Mildlife
Chorus (Heavenly Recordings)
Jazz-funk with a real disco lean
I could imagine this as too “lite” for some, but it really straddles a line of smoothness and funkiness that I just adore, one of the best “feel good” records of the year for sure and one that just sounds perfect on a sunny day. In an era where a lot of jazz records are true nostalgic tribute acts to smooth jazz or City Pop, this still sounds like 2024 but has that vibe.
Potatohead People
Eat Your Heart Out (Bastard Jazz)
2000s style throwback jazzy production hip hop compilation
I’d never heard of Potatohead People before this, the Vancouver, BC jazz-rap production duo, but I might be the single highest person on this album around. This is classic organ driven, smooth, love-referencing hip hop with the duo adding their vocals to raps from some legends (Redman, Abstract Rude, T3) for super smooth rap songs. Very pleasant listening experience here and genuinely excellent production.
Rich Ruth
Water Still Flows (Third Man)
Crazy mashup of en vouge “Ambient Americana” and devastating doom metal
Amazing record, this one. Ruth blends the more earthy ambient soundscapes with leads, solos and crushing metal riffs. The push/pull dynamic between soft and loud is meditative in the right headspace and the screeching sax brings extra power. Another one to play LOUD.
Wyatt Ellis
Happy Valley (Knee High Records)
Traditional “progressive” instrumental bluegrass by 14-year old phenom
For the first few months of the year, this was my album of the year. I still find it outstanding and one of the easiest things to throw on I’ve heard this year, but obviously a handful of other records surpassed it. This is excellent instrumental bluegrass that doesn’t reinvent the wheel but hits all the touchstones of the best stuff from the 70s-90s. An excellent guest list boosts it as well, but this is just really joyful stuff.
Yasmin Williams
Acadia (Nonesuch)
Excellent finger-picked guitar record from one of the most exciting young players
I really loved Yasmin’s 2021 debut Urban Driftwood but I think this slightly surpasses it. It’s not perfect but the transition to more Windham Hill-style acoustic numbers for the first 6 tracks is really Andy-nip for me. The last 3 songs are mostly good but they do ruin the vibe a little bit as we foray into electric instrumentation, drums and sax. Regardless, a good journey.
Various Artists / Ansonia Records
Salsa Con Estilo - Dance Floor Gems from the Vaults: 1950s-1980s (Ansonia)
Incredible compilation of NY-centric Salsa from the roots to mainstream
Whoops! Forgot this one in the initial post. Ansonia’s re-emergence with the Meridian Brothers and re-releasing long forgotten Latin American music their label put out decades ago has been a real joy for the last few years. This compilation is just about perfect, broken into “Roots of Salsa” and “Salsa Boom” and taking you on one of the most fun rides possible. Open the windows and dance.
Ok! That is everything for right now. I’ll try to get part 2 out when I can, but it might be a bit - apologies for that!
Thanks for reading,
Andy