via GIPHY
As we close the chapter to what was a brutal year in so many ways, we look back at the music that was.
In a year where we lost David Bowie, Prince, Phife Dawg, Sharon Jones, Leonard Cohen, and so many others, 2016 will be marked like someone with a scarlet letter. It wasn't a particularly great year by any means and the music echoed that.
It felt as if the year took a while to cook up great records by brilliant artists. Some of the heavy hitters like Beyonce, Rihanna, Radiohead, Frank Ocean, Richard Ashcroft, and Kanye West released albums that achieved much acclaim straight away but quickly faded off as the year trickled on. Everything seemed to be fly by night and as we close out 2016, we look back at our picks for the 10 Best Albums of the Year.
These records not only made an impact to our ears but also have a welcomed longevity where we will be listening to them for years to come.
Here are our picks for the 10 Best Albums of the Year:
10. James Blake - The Colour in Anything
9. Slaves - Take Control
8. Czarface - A Fistful of Peril
7. Kendrick Lamar - Untitled. Unmastered.
6. BADBADNOTGOOD - IV
5. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree
4. Iggy Pop - Post Pop Depression
3. Savages - Adore Life
2. Beach Slang - A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings
1. A Tribe Called Quest - We Got It From Here... Thank You 4 Your Service
Now in Long Form, With Explanations:
10. James Blake - The Colour in Anything
In May, the digital generations “King of Pain”
released his surprise third album. Sonically, it picks up where Overgrown left
off, however, lyrically, it is Blake at his best. With a slew of guests
including Bon Iver, Frank Ocean and help from Rick Rubin, Blake is maturing
before our eyes and revealing more of his mysterious deck of cards with every
release.
9. Slaves - Take Control
No other record in 2016 captured the social anger of Brexit and Trump's election win more than Slaves' Take Control. The UK punk duo
returned with help from Mike D. of Beastie Boys on deck as the producer for their
sophomore album. The record is a loud bash of fuck you to the
system and brings forth the attitude of the genre’s yesteryear.
8. Czarface - A Fistful of Peril
The indie hip-hop supergroup featuring Inspetah Deck, 7L and
Esoteric returned with their third record and unlike their previous efforts, A
Fistful of Peril, relies heavy on the lyricism of the crew rather than the
samples, production and special guests. Each album furthers the adventures of
the fictional comic book character and the latest shows that these guys are
here to stay to see their superhero take over the game.
7. Kendrick Lamar - Untitled. Unmastered.
Nearly a year after releasing last year’s best album, the
groundbreaking To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick Lamar gives fans the tracks that
hit the cutting room floor with a collection of unmastered and untitled tunes. These songs, which hit the cutting room floor, showcase his thought process. It
is a behind the scenes look into what and why Lamar is the future of the genre.
6. BADBADNOTGOOD - IV
The best music from Canada usually comes from oddball
collectives and BADBADNOTGOOD are no different. The acid jazz group has
released a collection of fascinating and brilliant songs that transcend the
genre into pop, rock, and of course, hip-hop.
5. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree
If Nick Cave stopped making music after the tragic death of
his teenage son last year, the world would have understood. However, for Cave
to take the darkest chapter in his life and turn it into his greatest album in
decades is something else. This album plays like an Academy Award winning film
that features such heavy subject matter it leaves you tattered, torn and in
hysterics and the fact that he can do this without shedding a tear playing the
songs is something else. A remarkable, heavy record that needs to be heard and
experienced.
4. Iggy Pop - Post Pop Depression
In what might be the Godfather of Punk's swansong, Iggy Pop
goes out with a bang with his best album in decades. Recruiting Josh Homme to
play and produce the album as well as Matt Helders of Artic Monkeys on drums
and members of Queens of the Stone Age, Pop assembled a band that is indebted
to his career and makes them shine as they still make the star of the show a
spectacle. It has been a long time since Pop has sounded this raw and uncharted
without sounding frivolous. It also is the first time Pop has sounded this
polished without being overproduced. If this is how the master wants to hang up
his career, then he did it in all the right ways.
3. Savages - Adore Life
The London based post-punk band returns and defies the
sophomore slump. Building on the critically acclaimed debut they unleashed to
the world two years ago, they fired back with Adore Life. A record that mixes
the hop of new wave, the despair of cold wave and the attitude of the 21st
Century post-punk sound they are after. If Ian Curtis were alive today, this would no doubt be his favorite band.
2. Beach Slang - A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings
Following their sublime 2015 debut, The Things We Do To Find
People Who Feel Like Us, Philly’s Beach Slang return with a record so good, it
defies the sophomore slump idea. A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings is raw emotion
over a punk rock score. This band is quickly turning out to be a modern version
of The Replacements and we are more than fine with it.
1. A Tribe Called Quest - We Got It From Here... Thank You 4 Your Service
The first album from the mighty Tribe Called Quest in 18
years does not disappoint, in fact, it lets the legends go out on a high note.
Following their on-again, off-again reunions since 2008, Tribe reconciled fully
in 2015 to perform on The Tonight Show which sparked the idea of a new album.
After a series of intense recordings and founding member Phife Dawg traveling
back and forth from California to Jersey to work on the record, he unexpectedly
passed in March. The record is a love letter to his life and legacy. The
remaining members of Tribe finished the LP inside Q-Tip’s Ab-Soul Studio in New
Jersey and released it to the world. It became their first No. 1 album in 18
years and above all, one of the greatest achievements. Using the jazz and rock
samples that made them instant icons, they also push forward to a whole new
generation. Getting help from Jack White, Elton John, Kendrick Lamar, Busta
Rhymes, Consequence, Andre 3000, Talib
Kweli and more, the Tribe has spoken and we are all at their feet saying “we
are not worthy.”
