In troubled times such as this it's difficult to know what to expect from pop music. Do we want a nostalgic escape from reality? or do we want to tackle the issues of the outside world head on? With her début album Kali Uchis manages to do both. 'Isolation' is a lush pop album that mixes soul and funk influences with a modern take on the classic girl group sound. Kali also puts her own tasteful spin on the Latin pop trend. Kali achieved this by bringing together an impressive roster of guest musicians, from Tyler, the creator to Bootsy Collins, Damon Albarn to Thundercat, yet Kali is never out-shined. In a year marked by increasingly depressing immigration policies Kali makes moving countries sound not only enjoyable but sexy as hell on songs such as 'Flight 22' and 'Miami'. In fact the whole album oozes sex appeal, 'Just a stranger' and 'Your teeth in my neck' are irresistibly funky jams, yet even a woman with as much sex appeal has to confront unrealistic body expectations as she says 'I'm too skinny I'm too fat' on 'Coming Home'. 'Tyrant' finds Kali wondering whether her lover is susceptible to be corrupted by power, and 'After the Storm' confronts depression. Mix all this together and you have the perfect pop record for 2018. Socially conscious, yet gorgeous enough to work as a brief escape from reality.
Check out - Just a Stranger
2. IDLES - Joy as an act of resistance
It was only last year that Idles burst onto to scene with 'Brutalism'. An album that was easily the best post punk album since Eagulls début a few years before it. Less than a year later Idles have followed up one of the best punk albums of the decade with one that's even better. On 'Joy' Idles haven't captured the Zeitgeist so much as bludgeoned it with a hammer. 'Joy' is a furious beast of an album yet uplifting at the same time. It helps that singer Joe Talbot not only has the roar of a animal but the prose of a bard. Every lyric on this album would look good on a protest sign. Whether attacking Tories, ("a heathen from Eaton on a bag of Micheal Keaton"), depression ("if someone talked to you the way you talk to you, I'd put their teeth through, love yourself") or toxic masculinity ("I kissed a boy and I liked it!"). Joe is frequently hilarious, yet it's his chilling ode to his unborn child on 'June' that proves that sometimes it's the simplest lyrics that cut the deepest.
Check out - Danny Nedelko
3. Brockhampton - Iridescence
'Iridescence' is Brockhampton's 5th album in two years and supposedly the 1st part of yet another trilogy. The fact that the two albums 'Puppy' and 'Team Effort' may still hold a load of unreleased material as well as the fact that three singles didn't make this album, only goes to highlight the groups prodigious work-rate. Iridescence was mostly recorded during a short period in London and it carries the gritty urban feel of the city. The quirky hip-hop sound of the 'Saturation' trilogy has been expanded on with elements of drum n' bass and garage, along with orchestral accompaniments and even a choir. The downbeat mood of the album can mostly be attributed to the sacking of founder member Ameer Van.
The album benefits from every member of the group being on top form, most surprisingly Bearface, whose performances dominate much of the album, despite being absent from much of the Saturation Trilogy. Iridescence is chock full of bangers yet it's the emotional highs and lows of deep cuts such as Tonya and San Marcos which make the album stand out. Brockhampton have proved themselves to be one of the most important hip-hop groups/boybands of the decade with an album that can make you mosh and cry in equal measure.
Check out - Tonya
4. Pusha T - DAYTONA
It says a lot about Kanye West that in a career marked by asshole behaviour it took until 2018 for him to finally outdo himself. This makes it difficult to admit that his projects this year have mostly been brilliant. One of the highlights being this fantastically gritty gangster rap album from Pusha T. Thankfully Kanye mostly takes a backseat on this one creating a backdrop that mixes grimy electronica with classic soul. The perfect backdrop for Pusha's ice cold retelling of a life lived on the streets. Pusha T brings fantastic lyricism to match his sharp flow, and endless quotable one liners. Despite being over shadowed by the beef that Pusha started with Drake on the track 'Infrafred', and Kanye trying to make America great again, it's worth looking back on DAYTONA, as despite the controversies it spawned, the music is what really matters.
Check out - Come Back Baby
5. David Byrne - American Utopia
American Utopia bears many of the hallmarks that made David Byrne's previous band Talking Heads the iconic act that many music nerds know them as now. The eclectic nature of many of Talking Heads classic songs is reflected throughout here. David Byrne continues to mix indie rock with elements of afrobeat, funk and electronica. The main difference is that his paranoid yelp is now a cry for hope and positivity. American Utopia is deliberately cheery, and upbeat as a riposte to the darkness of the year it was released. Lyrically David pens some of his most surreal tales. On 'Dog's Tale' he wonders whether the problems of humans are really all that relevant to the lives of others. On 'Everyday is a Miracle' he reminds the listener to 'live for each other, love one another'. A corny statement, perhaps, but a necessary one
Check out - Everyday is a Miracle
6. Father John Misty - God's Favourite Customer
The artist formerly known as J Tillman is one of the most divisive artists of the decade either a irreverent genius or pretentious twat depending on who you ask. I'd go with the former yet even I'd have to admit that last years magnum opus 'Pure Comedy' was hard going. Sure it was brilliant, and his wry sense of humour helped, but ultimately it was too long and too overblown an album to truly love. With God's Favourite Customer, 'Mr Tillman' takes a good hard look at himself and doesn't like what he sees. Examining his flaws in both first and third person. A running theme of the album is his failed attempts to reconcile his relationships. He does this over some of the most beautiful ballads of his career. In typically self deprecating fashion, Tillman sings that 'Disappointing Diamonds are the Rarest of Them All', questions the ethics of taking song-writing inspiration from his relationships, on 'The Songwriter'. Unfortunately Tillman doesn't have all the answers as he simply concludes that 'We're only people (and there's not much anyone can do about that)'
Check out - God's Favourite Customer
7. LUMP - s/t
Lump is a product by Mike Lindsay Laura Marling. The former being the singer of the long running folk act Tuung and the latter being one of the most revered singer - songwriters of the past decade. Together on this unexpected collaboration they create an intoxicating style of Folk-tronica. Laura Marling's lyrics focus on odd subjects, such as flying, and the life cycle of a crab, while Mike Lindsay creates dreamy, lush backdrops for her ethereal voice to soar across. Of all the albums I've listened to this year 'Lump' is the one I've probably gone back to the most. It seems to get better with each listen.
Check out - Curse of the Contemporary
8. KIDS SEE GHOSTS - s/t
If you've ever wondered what a Kanye West produced psychedelic rock album would sound like look no further. Kids See Ghosts is Kanye West and long time collaborator Kid Cudi pushing each pother to produce the strangest and best music they can. In just over 20 minutes the two fit in a huge amount of ideas and creativity from the genius (that organ backing track on 'Reborn') to the downright insane (Kanye's Big Shaq impression on 'Feel The Love'). The two mix rapping with guitars and sampling with Kanye's trademark big beat sounds to make one of the most diverse and intriguing projects of the year.
Check out - Reborn
9. Car Seat Headrest - Twin Fantasy
The original Twin Fantasy is to bedroom recorded Bandcamp albums what 'The Wall' is to 70's Progressive rock albums. A short sharp blast of scuzzy indie rock songsunited by a grand concept, unfortunately ruined by horribly cheap production. Yet this still couldn't hide how great those songs were. Despite Will Toledo having made several fantastic records since Twin Fantasy. The orginal retains it's cult status. Rather than simply recording the songs in a professional studio, Will has expanded the songs to epic proportion.The song's have been stretched out, and experimented with. Yet the emotional core and rough aesthetic of the original still remains. As far as indie rock goes in 2018, this is as life affirming, odd, and downright brilliant as it gets.
Check out - Nervous Young Inhumans
10. Parquet Courts - Wide Awake!
After many years Parquet Courts have delivered what may be their definitive album. 'Wide Awake' is the NYC punks at their smartest, catchiest and most diverse. The dry humoured punk rock that made their earlier records so much fun is still present on tracks such as 'Freebird 2' and 'Mardi Gras Beads'. Yet much of the album shows off how their experimental records have paid off. There's a psychedelic streak that runs throughout 'Wide awake!'. Especially on the spaced out 'Back to Earth'. The title track is the funkiest song they've ever written. The jaunty 'Tenderness' is probably the most memorable song of the bunch, kicking off with a piano lead that wouldn't sound out of place in a cowboy saloon. on an album that's rife with social observation, it's apt that by the end, they would be longing 'for a little tenderness'.
Check out - Tenderness
11. The 1975 - A brief enquiry into online relationships
12. Shame - Songs of Praise
13. Mac Miller - Swimming
14.Twenty One Pilots - Trench
15. Slaves - Acts of Fear and Love
16. Ross From Friends - Family Portrait
17. Everything is Recorded - Everything is Recorded by Richard Russell
18. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquillity Base Hotel & Casino
19. Peace - Kindness is the new Rock n' Roll
20. Dream Wife - s/t
21. SOPHIE - Oil of every pearls Un-insides
22. Boy Azooga - 1,2 Kung fu!
23. Daughters - You won't get what you want
24. Nervus - Everything Dies
25. Insecure Men - s/t
26. Daniel Avery - Song for Alpha
27. JPEGMAFIA - Veteran
28. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Hope Downs
29. Superorganism - s/t
30. Robyn - Honey
31. Sons of Kemet - Your queen is a reptile
32. George Clanton - Slide
33. Joji - Ballads 1
34. Gorillaz - The Now Now
32. Jack White - Boarding House Reach
36. A.A.L (Against All Logic) - 2012 -2017
37. Janelle Monae - Dirty Computer
38. The Fever 333 - Made An America
39. Tiny Moving Parts - Swell
40. Kanye West - ye
41. J.Cole - KOD
42. Young Fathers - Cocoa Sugar
43. Pale Waves - My mind makes noises
44. Post Malone - Beerbongs & Bentleys
45. Suede - The Blue Hour
46. Khurangbin - Con Todo El Mundo
47. Zeal and Ardor - Stranger Fruit
48. The Internet - Hive Mind
49. Anderson. Paak - Oxnard
50. J.I.D - Decaprio 2
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