Daniel's Top 10 Albums Of 2018
© Micah Veldkamp, 2018
Every year that I've released a Top 10 Albums post, I've included the caveat that there is so, so much good music out there that it's almost unfair to ask me to try and listen to all of them. With that in mind, I hope you know this is not a definitive list of the best music of the year, but rather the top 2018 albums of those I actually listened to. I did try to be a little more proactive than usual this year, but personal biases tend to win the day. So, as always, it's a strange mixture of artists/bands I already liked with some critically acclaimed albums I proactively sought out after reading about them.
For the 3rd straight year, I felt there was no shortage of great individual songs, but for the second consecutive year, found only a few albums that wowed me. There was a clear-cut Top 3 for me this time around, and I went back and forth on which ones should be ranked where. As for the rest of the list, though, it was a lot of "good, but not great." Enough rambling; to the list!! First, a rundown of the albums that may have missed my cut for Top 10, but that you should still listen to (in alphabetical order, not ranked):
Honorable Mentions
- Anthem Of The Peaceful Army, Greta Van Fleet
- Be The Cowboy, Mitski
- Head Over Heels, Chromeo
- Invasion Of Privacy, Cardi B
- Kids See Ghosts, Kanye West & Kid Cudi
- Man Of The Woods, Justin Timberlake
- Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino, Arctic Monkeys
10. Sweetener // Ariana Grande
Ariana has been everywhere in 2018, from the radio airwaves, to the charts, to social media, to year-end lists....and so on and so on. Lest you suffer from Ari Fatigue, though, rest assured: Sweetener is a very good pop album. Grande runs the gamut from funk to hip-hop to traditional pop with aplomb. Not all songs in her widely varied tracklist work, but the ones that do are, well, sweet.
9. By The Way, I Forgive You // Brandi Carlile
This was a late addition to the Top 10. By that I mean, I didn't listen to Brandi's album until the other day. Whoops. Regardless, Brandi Carlile has long been a soulful, poignant Americana voice in the music world and BTWIFY is only a continuation of that fact. Her songs, often politically and socially-charged, feel like contemporary anthems. Also, fun fact: the cover art of the album was painted by Scott Avett, which only lends to its quality.
8. I Used To Know Her (EP), H.E.R.
20-year old Gabi Wilson, otherwise known as H.E.R., is someone that if you don't already know, you should know. Don't feel bad if you aren't familiar; my first exposure to the R&B virtuoso was in the wake of her stunning Grammy nomination. That nomination is actually for her eponymous 2017 album, but she released a 2-part EP, in installments named The Prelude and Part 2. Between the two, there are about 15 tracks of phenomenal music. Wilson is one to know now, and keep an eye on for the future.
7. Black Panther: The Album // Kendrick Lamar and Various Artists
Black Panther is one of the most interesting concepts of the year. It's a brainchild of Kendrick Lamar, but not purely a Lamar album, as it's a collaboration with countless other rap, hip-hop and R&B artists. It's also the "soundtrack" to the wildly successful Black Panther film, but not really; the movie in fact featured only 2 of the album's tracks, and has a whole separate album for its score. Regardless of what you label it, Black Panther has a lot going on, with much of it worth listening and re-listening to.
6. High As Hope // Florence + The Machine
High As Hope is far from Florence's theatrical best, but still one of the better listens of the year. Read the full review, from August.
5. Everything Is Love // The Carters
Beyoncé and Jay-Z, who debuted their first ever collaboration album under shared surname, somewhat doomed themselves with their previous brilliance. Everything Is Love, already facing a comparatively muted release due to it initially being exclusively through their platform Tidal, also did not earn the same boost from critics as their individual albums Lemonade and 4:44 did. Make no mistake, though, this is still one of the better releases of the year. Jay-Z's flow still sounds fresh, and should we really be surprised that on top of everything else she's spectacular at, Beyoncé is also a pretty skilled rapper?
4. Oxnard // Anderson .Paak
I'll admit, Oxnard was my first Paak album. I of course was familiar with the drummer/rapper/singer, and some of his better-known singles, but I'm told by more than one friend that "if I liked Oxnard, I'll LOVE [insert previous Anderson .Paak album here]." If that's the case, I have some listening to do, because his latest release is a funky, hard-hitting, energetic riot.
3. Dirty Computer // Janelle Monae
Janelle has spent time at #1 and at #2 on my year-end list in recent weeks, and in my final decision, it is only by the tiniest of margins that she finds herself at the #3 spot here. I'm not sure what I can say about the quality of Dirty Computer that many other breathless reviews haven't already made clear, but believe the hype. Monae has long been seen as a musical virtuoso, and the impressive production and brave lyrics set a high standard here as well. You're bound to like some tracks more than others from the artist's socio-political throwdown, but there are at least a few songs in there that are bound to be among some of your favorites of the year. That I promise you.
2. ASTROWORLD // Travis Scott
2018 was also the year of my introduction to Travis Scott. I wrote back in October that "I had unfairly assumed he was a pop-influenced mumble rapper. . . [but] I was first taken with Scott’s mind-blowing SNL performance several weeks back, and that took me to streaming ASTROWORLD, which is a cohesive, thrilling listen for commercial and critical audiences alike." The songs on ASTROWORLD range from megahit-ready ("Sicko Mode," "Butterfly Effect") to quiet and personal ("Skeletons," "Coffee Bean"), but each is a psychedelic, catchy delight.
1. Golden Hour // Kacey Musgraves
Also from the aforementioned October piece: "We’re reaching the penultimate month of the year, and the clear two best albums of the year to me— really, the only two that have stood out to me —are a Country and Rap album, respectively. Namely, Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour and Travis Scott’s ASTROWORLD. I have never been a Country fan in the least . . . [but] Musgraves, with lyrics equal parts tender and unapologetically sassy, has a voice as smooth and calming as the music that accompanies it." It bears repeating that never in my life did I expect to rate a Country album among the year's best, and especially not at #1, breaking a 5-year streak of the top spot going to one of Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar. But there is something so transcendent about Musgraves' music. It's Country in the manner of James Taylor, the kind that eschews 'roll down the windows and cruise' for 'take a blanket out to a field and look at the stars.' I commonly say that the mark of a great album is the lack of any deadweight. On Golden Hour, there isn't a single song I'd have Musgraves cut or edit.
If you're interested, please see my Best of 2018 playlist linked here. It features tracks from nearly every album referenced in this article, and includes 2 from the best of the best.