Top 12 albums of 2024: Is Sabrina Carpenter or Kendrick Lamar at No. 1?
Great albums were coming out of every corner of the pop music universe in 2024.
All one had to do was look around and they’d find terrific music being released by everyone from classic rockers and young pop stars to avant-garde metal men and cool country crooners.
In other words, we had an absolute blast putting together our annual list of the top albums for the year. (And see our picks for Top Concerts of 2024 with Bruce Springsteen, Olivia Rodrigo, more.) Yet, it wasn’t easy, because the competition was stiff and a ton of very good offerings didn’t make the cut.
Our final tally, however, underscores the wide spectrum of quality music being made in this era – with at least eight different genres being represented on our list. It’s also fascinating to note that the age range of these artists extends from the mid-20s to the late-70s.
Here are our Top 12 albums of 2024.
1. “Songs of a Lost World,” The Cure
You know those much-beloved rock acts from the ’70s and ’80s who occasionally still release new albums and, well, you really wish they hadn’t?
That is definitely not the story of The Cure, the seminal modern rock band that got its start in 1976 and – nearly a half-century later – has just released one of the very best albums of its amazing career.
Yes, these goth-rock titans definitely live up to their legend with the band’s first full-length studio effort since 2008’s “4:13 Dream,” offering up an eight-song collection of uncommon beauty, mystique and wonder.
It’s an album to get lost in – in the best of ways – just listening to all the vivid soundscapes and soaking up all the varied emotions as Robert Smith and company do indeed explore compositions that feel like “Songs of a Lost World.”
The result is nothing short of the single most satisfying and all-encompassing musical ride of 2024.
2. “GNX,” Kendrick Lamar
With all of the soul-sucking attention being given to his big feud with fellow multiplatinum-selling artist Drake, it’s easy to forget that Lamar is the greatest rapper on the planet.
Oh, but “GNX” serves quite the reminder that, in the hip-hop world, there’s Lamar and then there’s everyone else.
The Compton native is in kingly form on this chart-topping sixth studio set, confronting all the haters, coming to terms with his own greatness (and limitations) and dropping rhymes that will be recited by his followers for decades to come.
Because – make no mistake – “GNX” is an all-timer, that’s for sure, and certainly a nominee for best hip-hop album of this still young decade.
This album is built for all occasions, whether it’s being bumped to top volume in the middle of a backyard barbecue or studied in a scholarly fashion – with lyrics in hand – over a cup of coffee.
It also feels like a work that is oh, so very necessary for 2024, as these songs pour out of our collective speakers/earbuds and make all of us – with the probable exception of Drake – feel just a bit better about being ourselves.
3. “Short n’ Sweet,” Sabrina Carpenter
It might feel like Carpenter is an overnight sensation in the music industry, due to the massive success she’s experienced in 2024, but this former Disney Channel teen star has been building toward this moment for a decade.
And on her fourth full-length studio effort, a glistening collection of radio-friendly nuggets, the 25-year-old vocalist has absolutely launched one out of the park.
“Short n’ Sweet” is simply the best batch of pure escapist pop to be found in a year when that kind of music was sorely needed. Yet, there is no fluff or filler here. Instead, Carpenter is memorably gutsy, clever and alternatively poignant/funny as she works through the album’s 12 main cuts (plus bonus numbers).
She’d definitely get our vote – if we had one – in the Grammy race for album of the year. None of the other nominees even come close.
4. “Luck and Strange,” David Gilmour
The Pink Floyd legend likes to take his time between solo releases, having delivered just five such studio outings since 1978.
In his latest long-awaited return, Gilmour follows up 2015’s well-received “Rattle That Lock” with an even better outing in “Luck and Strange.”
The extreme care and effort that went into making this album is evident throughout, with nary a note or lyric feeling out of place or superfluous in the album’s nine cuts.
The production work and musicianship sparkle and the 78-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer’s vocals have weathered the decades quite nicely.
And the guitar? Do you even need to ask? We are talking about Gilmour, after all, so the fantastic fret work is still the No. 1 reason for listening.
5. “Absolute Elsewhere,” Blood Incantation
The death metal troupe’s fourth full-length is brutally crushing and debilitating, hitting listeners in a fashion that could well leave them asking, “Did anyone get the license plate of that truck?”
Blood Incantation has always been good, but this Denver quartet has taken its game to a whole new level with this equally aggressive and captivating mix of atmospheric prog and metal.
“Absolute Elsewhere” is the album that answers the question of what would My Bloody Valentine, Pink Floyd and Obituary sound like if they joined forces. And that answer is, well, awesome.
6. “Postcards from Texas,” Miranda Lambert
It’s been an era of seismic change in mainstream country music, as major pop stars like Post Malone and Beyonce turn to a genre that is steadily building a case for being the most popular style of music in the U.S.
Despite all the changes, however, there’s one thing that remains the same in the genre:
Miranda Lambert continues to put out some of the very best music in all of country.
“Postcards from Texas,” the 10th studio offering from this Longview, Texas, native, touches a lot of bases – from on-the-run ramblers (“Armadillo”) and pedal-steel-powered nostalgia (“Looking Back on Luckenbach”) to cowgirl-up anthems (“Wranglers”) and classic country (David Allen Coe’s “Living on the Run”). And Lambert is equally great at each turn, showing the rest of the ever-increasing pack just how it’s done.
7. “Glorious,” GloRilla
Already a major star in the pop music world – thanks to the very 21st century path of initially focusing on EPs, singles and being featured on well-known artists’ works – GloRilla further establishes herself as a massive force in hip-hop with the release of her full-length debut album.
“Glorious” lives up to its title in so many ways, as Glo showcases her wicked lyrical flow across a variety of grooves and vibes. It’s all good, but standout cuts “Glo’s Prayer” and “Rain Down on Me” – both of which touch upon the vocalist’s roots in the church choir – are the ones that truly leave us wanting to hear so much more from the artist born Gloria Hallelujah Woods.
8. “Unsung Hero: The Inspired By Soundtrack,” For King + Country
Luke and Joel Smallbone – famously described as “Australia’s answer to Coldplay” – have been on quite a roll over the last dozen or so years, releasing one solid album after another while topping the charts on multiple occasions and wining numerous awards.
The pop duo’s streak continues with this companion piece to “Unsung Hero,” the terrific inspirational film that tells the story of the Smallbone family’s journey to America and the top of the charts. For King & Country shines brightly as they deliver updated takes on classic Christian music from the ’80s and ’90s – like Michael W. Smith’s “Place in the World” and even Stryper’s “To Hell With the Devil” – as well as the devastatingly beautiful title track and other material.
9. “X’s,” Cigarettes After Sex
How did this little lo-fi indie-pop trio from El Paso, Texas, become one of the biggest bands in the land?
Chalk it up to great musical taste – and plenty of viral TikTok videos.
“X’s” is Cigarettes After Sex’s victory lap, a dreamy meditation on relationships, loss, infatuation and, of course, sex that the trio supported in 2024 with a tour through major sports arenas packed with (mainly) young female fans whose screams of joy were much louder than the actual music.
This third full-length outing falls nicely in line with the previous two, at times reaching the heights of 2017’s self-titled debut, which remains the band’s greatest achievement. Singer-songwriter-guitarist-producer Greg Gonzalez has a vision and he sticks to it.
10. “World Wide Whack,” Tierra Whack
The follow up to the 2018 mixtape “Whack World,” this Philadelphia hip-hop artist’s full-length studio debut is a stone cold triumph, filled with so much joyful and idiosyncratic wordplay and the kind of grooves that perplex and flex in equal measures.
It’s jazzy, confident and effortlessly hip, as likely to be played in a bohemian coffeehouse as it is a crowded minivan on its way to soccer practice.
The whole thing banks on Whack’s storytelling, which comes alive as she spins curious and catchy lyrics that blend such diverse influences as Dr. Seuss and Lauryn Hill.
11. “Ship to Shore,” Richard Thompson
A first-tier music treasure in every sense, the 75-year-old Londoner shows he’s still one of the greatest in the folk-rock game with the release of his 20th solo album.
The vocals and songwriting are equally gripping throughout the 12-song set, which comes six years after “13 Rivers.” And – no surprise here – the guitar work is nothing short of masterful, as Thompson’s versatile playing morphs to perfectly meet and manage the mood of each and every composition.
Most impressively, “Ship to Shore” highlights Thompson’s uncanny ability to craft a good brand new song that somehow manages to feel like it’s always been here.
12. “Evolve,” Phish
The world’s most exciting live band continues to indeed “Evolve,” finding new ways to thrill in the recording studio. Sure, the Vermont quartet will likely never be known as a “studio band,” but “Evolve” certainly provides a baker’s dozen of very good reasons for “Phans” to (at least momentarily) push pause on that beloved 12/31/95 Madison Square Garden concert recording and listen to something new.
There is actually a tangible and quite enjoyable “live” quality to the album, likely stemming from the fact that so many of these tunes had previously been road tested and that the band reportedly recorded the whole batch during one highly energetic four-day period. The kind of famed synergy that the four players share on the concert stage is alive and well on “Evolve.”