WHAT’S UP FAM?! (Photo Cred: Noisey)
As you all know, I like music. Bit of a ‘music guy’. I like sharing and writing about music too, and so after a year-plus hiatus I’d like to get back at it. Hence the Mark Morrison reference.
So to jump right in, let me give you my favorite albums from 2016, in reverse rank order:
10. blink-182 – California – Sometimes adulthood can’t save you from the sounds of nostalgia, even without alien-believer Tom DeLonge in the mix.
9. DIIV – Is the Is Are – This one clocks in at over an hour and I’m not sure how many times I’ve even reached the end, but “Out of Mind” sets the tone immediately for the chillest vibe I had heard on an album all year…
8. Porches – Pool – …except for maybe Pool. The array of sounds used on this project made it a cut above the rest of the indie space in my book.
7. Danny Brown – Atrocity Exhibition – Eclectic as ever, it feels pretentious to say that this is a sonically challenging album, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.
6. Car Seat Headrest – Teens of Denial – Rock is not dead, and Car Seat Headrest is a prime example of why that statement rings true.
5. Rihanna – ANTI – Rihanna proves how much range you can get from a pop star with the right supporting cast. This level of variety is ANTI’s defining trait.
4. Kanye West – The Life of Pablo – I’m not yet cognizant of Pablo’s identity within the greater Kanye discography, but it feels a bit like a preview to Cruel Winter. Lord knows ‘Ye’s ability to collaborate with the right people is one of his strongest traits, and that’s what shines in hindsight here.
3. The 1975 – I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it – Call me a sucker for dreamy pop, but this album has a perfect balance of singles, slow jams, and ambient instrumentals
2. Pinegrove – Cardinal – I’m an even bigger sucker for short albums, and this one steals my heart at 8 songs across 30 minutes. Some may say Pinegrove is a fusion of alt. country and emo… however you try to define them, we can all agree it sounds damn good.
1. Chance the Rapper – Coloring Book – HEADLINE: Chicago area rapper drops gospel rap mixtape, evangelizes country. Lock it up.
And there you have it! With some hindsight, I’d say this top 10 is definitely missing Bon Iver’s 22, A Million, but I tried to keep this list as close to my end of year list as possible. Glad I could finally get around to publishing it 🙂
In the future I will try to keep posts more succinct like this, and I will most likely be moving to Squarespace after this, my 101st post for my WordPress blog. If you have any advice on starting a Squarespace, I’d love to hear it. Until next time!
Posts by @AndrewMackens 
Leave a comment