PeteHatesMusic’s Top Albums of 2018

Twitter: @PeteHatesMusic

You can’t have a Top Songs of 2018 list without a Top Albums of 2018 list, right? I copied that opening sentence from last year, so I’ll assume it turned out to be true.

I’ve written a few flowery sentences about 5 Honourable Mentions and the Top 5 albums, but really, just click the playlist below or go listen to the complete album yourself. There are some good ones to get lost in.

Honourable Mentions

Mitski – Be The Cowboy: An eclectic listen, with strong vocals, and diverting into directions you’re not expecting as a listener.

Beach House – 7: The dream pop wizards return with yet another gem to get drawn into.

Thom Yorke – Suspiria (Music for the Luca Guadagnino Film): While not the pure solo album that I may have wanted, mixed within the soundscapes are some of the best work he has ever produced.

The Field – Infinite Moment: This Swedish artist can do no wrong in my book, and has another good album in the books. Lengthy tracks morph and add dense yet simple sounding layers to create enjoyable listening experiences.

The Decemberists – I’ll Be Your Girl: The Portland band continue to slightly tweak their sound, while arriving at a more consistent effort of what one may expect from a Decemberists album.

Top 5
5 – Father John Misty – God’s Favorite Customer: A more focused and consistent album compared to his previous effort, resulting in a stronger collection of songs, reminiscent of his sophomore album, I Love You, Honeybear.

4 – Jean-Michel Blais – Dans ma main: No sophomore slump here, the Montreal pianist takes his interesting piano style to new places with a mix of some electronic sounds (first hinted at with his collaboration with CFCF), resulting in another interesting effort.

3 – Gorillaz – The Now Now: While Humanz was a decent album, this version of Gorillaz has a more Damon Albarn-based center point, more so than Humanz, which shows just why the Now Now succeeds where their last album stumbled.

2 – MGMT – Little Dark Age: Another band on this list with a return to form, MGMT rebounds from an arguably unlistenable third album to an album that takes their strengths and further defines their sound.

1 – Lykke Li – So Sad So Sexy: Lykke Li, while somewhat popular, is highly underrated in terms of her ever evolving sound from album to album. With sprawling and interesting pop gems earlier in her career, to a brilliant and mellow break up album with her last effort, and now this mix of pop/trap/melancholy/beat-based tracks, it’s hard to believe it’s the same artist at times. Lykke’s lyrics and beautiful voice are a constant throughout her songs, and are no different on this album.

Spotify Playlist

Last year I wrote “2018 is just around the corner, which hopefully means some new music from Arctic Monkeys and maybe Mr. Thom Yorke? ” Bang on! Unfortunately I didn’t dig what Arctic Monkeys gave us, and while Thom Yorke gave us some beautiful tunes, it was a soundtrack that wasn’t necessarily a proper solo album. Regardless, I guess I should guess at a Beatles album for 2019 and see what happens (besides a dozen bullshit reissues or remasters). Hope you had a good 2018!