Favorite Albums 2024

The Mountain - Haken (2013)

Aah, you were at my side, all along.

My true mentor...

My guiding light...

Circa 2020, Cockroach King is uncovered in an archeologic dig. It is immediately lost and "found" in the British Museum not soon after, taking a central pedestal thanks to its jazz and alien-infused sections and overall goofiness. No-one is quite sure why, but work at the original dig site dries up immediately afterwards; some historians theorize it was because Cockroach King was deemed too unique and incredibly to possibly part of a larger collection. Whatever the true reason, a new team resumed their labor in 2024 and unearthed what is perhaps greatest prog album of all time. The complete collection (and it has been confirmed as conclusively as possible by experts in the field) is now archived in England, with duplicates exhibited in Sweden, France, and the US, and constitutes what scholars are calling one of the most cohesive, unique, and pleasant listening experiences on the planet.

The exhibit leads listeners through a small, comfortable room with soft lighting, easing visitors into the experience with gentle piano and delicate vocals. This transitions flawless to the next piece, Atlas Stone, which introduces more energy, choral elements, classic prog instruments, scat singing, and jazzy segments. Listeners are then dropped directly into the ridiculousness that is original work, a bizarre and surprisingly heavy jazz-alien-metal fusion about Blattodea (or perhaps it's a metaphor, historians cannot be sure). The next room is slightly more anxious and aggressive, and the curators haven't thought of anything clever to say about it. Visitors are then treated to a break in Because It's There, which is happy and hopeful. The reprise is brief though, as they are then dropped into the no-holds bars guitar-solo drum-pounding, heavy-fest that is Falling Back to Earth, with a lovely little pocket of calm in the center of the storm to bisect the almost twelve minute experience. The sinusoid goes on, and As Death Embraces is sparse, haunting, and beautifully sung. What goes up must come down, and Pareidolia puts visitors in the shoes of a 14th century peasant who has just discovered that the local lord is raising their tithing by three pence, and is marching on their estate with a guillotine, anachronisms be damned. Another tonal change in Sombody gives a soaring vocal performance and dramatic rise to its fantastic climax. Now damped faced from sweat and tears, listeners are given a reprieve with The Path Unbeaten, a mirror image of the opening track, expertly trimmed (but certainly not reduced) to a trio of piano, violin, and trumpet (?). It's songs like this that lead archeologists to wonder whether a single genre label is too much for such a collection. Finally, in the name of symmetry and thematic consistency, Nobody mirrors Somebody, again trimming the instruments, tone, and also the run-time to half, and giving one last perfect performance to lead out a piece of art that will hopefully be appreciated for generations to come.

Silly review aside, I love this album: it's instrumentally virtuistic, thematically diverse yet cohesive, and manages to reach unparalleled levels of heavy without relying on bass-tuned guitars, single-note-per-minute breakdowns, and harsh vocals (which I also love, but that's besides the point). If someone had to ask me what my favorite album of all time is, right now, I think The Mountain would probably be it.

Favorite songs: The Path, Cockroach King, Because It's There, As Death Embraces, Somebody, The Path Unbeaten

RTJ4 - Run The Jewels (2020)

Big, bold, bouncy, brash, 'bunctious, er, bunions? Unapolagetically aggressive and catchy, with the long anticipated return of pugilism. I'll also never complain about another reference to Stranger Fruits.

Favorite songs: out of sight, holy calamafuck, walking in the snow, a few words for the firing squad (radiation)

Trilogy - Carpenter Brut (2015)

One cup synthwave nastolgia I'm too young to have, a healthy heaping of something gone awry, little sprinkles of optimism, and a whole factory-dumping of juicy synthes and ambiance. A super fun and energetic album.

Favorite songs: Le perv, Obituary, Paradise Warfare

The Gods We Can Touch - AURORA (2022)

Wispy, soft, ethereal indy pop. All vibes, no silly analysis or long drawn-out review.

Favorite songs: The Forbidden Fruits of Eden, Giving In To The Love, Cure For Me, Exist for Love, Exhale Inhale, Artemis

Empathogen - WILLOW (2024)

I haven't heard of Willow since 'Whip My Hair', and certainly didn't expect her to release music this good. Tight drumming, a great mix that let bass, guitar, and piano shine, and vocals that dunk on most artists (well, on me, at least). Jazzy vibes. A couple short songs that I wish were more fleshed out, but that my only critique is that there's not more is about as high of a praise I can give.

Favorite songs: symptom of life, the fear is not real, false self, run!

brat - Charli xcx (2024)

An absolute earworm with sine-wave-like self-confidence, delicious synths, Daft Punk copy-cat melodies, a good blend of light-hearted and more introspective lyrics, and some goofy delivery. I love the opening and closing songs starting similarly, and the cyberpunk twist of the latter. The pop I wish we got in the 2000s and 2010s instead of 'insert rap bridge here'.

Favorite songs: Sympathy is a knife, I might say something stupid, Von dutch, So I, B2b, 365

Kid A - Radiohead (2000)

At times creepy and offsetting, othertimes witchy, often soft. I love the atmospheric tracks to death.

Favorite songs: Everything In It's Right Place, How to Disappear Completely, Treefingers, Motion Picture Soundtrack

Blackstar - David Bowie (2016)

Man, she punched me like a dude. An honorary mention because my partner hates it. Convinced me to read A Clockwork Orange.

Favorite songs: The one with the symbol for a name, Lazarus, I Can't Give Everything Away