ILM’s Top 77 Albums of 2018

i think it still could place

https://i.imgur.com/gF5cyX9.jpg
#27: Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Hope Downs - 389 points – 14 votes

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever

Edgardo Rodriguez: "When it comes down to it, Hope Downs ultimately succeeds thanks to its impressive quality control. There's not a single bad song on here, only slight variances in tone and luster. A similar comparison could be made to R.E.M.'s groundbreaking debut effort, Murmur, and though it won't have the same impact, the album does share that same meticulous rendering of ringing guitars."

Stuart Berman: "Even within the realm of contemporary indie, the band is a glorious anomaly. Sophisticated and subversive in equal measure, their staccato sing-alongs come on pristine and precise, then unspool in surprising directions as decorum gives way to abandon."

My "I'd like this to place but surely too few slots left now" that has not been mentioned yet in thread is serpentwithfeet -- so I'll guess that one for 78.

the fact this finished above TFS is grounds for an inquest

many xposts

OPN's album art and promotional campaign for Age Of were much more interesting than the music, which was a bummer because i've been a big fan of a lot of his stuff

the fact this finished above TFS is grounds for an inquest

― imago, Wednesday, February 6, 2019 5:31 PM (nineteen seconds ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yawn

was hoping TFS got 78'd. Oh well.

strewth

why the heck didn't i vote for this hailu mergia record? it's so lovely

― my name is leee john, for we are many (NickB), Wednesday, February 6, 2019 10:24 AM (nineteen seconds ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

my top discovery so far.

Voted for AAL. More diverse than some of his other stuff, in terms of sampling, textures, and rhythms, and yet still a cohesive album front to back.

Voted for RBCF but surprised to see it show up. The build up and lead guitar on "Exclusive Grave" is undeniable.

389/14 is pretty low enthusiasm, may indicate a certain amount of "ok I'll throw that one a vote" balloting.

decent chance we get another TFS album this year so looking forward to having this fight again in 12 months

utterly bored by this album, though I liked the EP

https://i.imgur.com/VfrgHju.jpg
#26: Hop Along - Bark Your Head Off, Dog - 398 points – 13 votes

hop along: bark your head off, dog

Jayson Greene: "The album as a whole feels warmer, more spacious. The songs on Painted Shut were doled out like 10 fist-shaped car door dents, but Bark Your Head Off, Dog moves at an agitated hum."

Owen Maxwell: "Introducing strings, electronics and a whole range of new sonic experiences into their voice, the band manages to avoid simple novelty by finding interesting ways to use each new idea. Though it’s not totally breaking new ground, for Hop Along this is an amazing step in a new direction for them as a band."

liked this less than the previous, still great though. voted for "Prior Things"

i wanted to like this but her melodies are just too indirect for me, in that particular emo sort of way

Awesome! I really fell in love with Hop Along this year.

https://i.imgur.com/snLCvoL.jpg
#25: Pusha T - DAYTONA - 410 points – 12 votes - 2 first place votes

Clayton Purdom: "It’s all dope-boy come-up stories, subliminal shit-talk, and luxury at a level only possible to convey via fine-art name-dropping and whatever the fuck a “caviar facial” is. For the first time since going solo, it all feels of a piece."

Marshall Gu: "Another rare instance of an artist coming up with a classic a decade after what seemed like the peak of his career (Clipse’s Hell Hath No Fury), and the only thing that could’ve made it better was if he pre-released “Infrared” so that Drake could’ve responded and we could’ve had an album with “The Story of Adidon” on it."

gross

both of those are really good

whiney, did you honest expect Cardi's album to be as good as it is?

― alpine static, Wednesday, February 6, 2019 3:42 AM (eight hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

No I didn't!

RBCF album grew on me after a while although the production is a bit too tidy imo. The ep's were much better.

thats 3 more of my votes we're in the black folks

this is not for me, but horrifying to think that kanye put out two other albums that were significantly worse though

being 20 minutes long is a big part of its appeal i think, not even a backhanded compliment

hey two of my top 5 placed! AM and HA.

i understand that people might've liked the new hop along album less than painted shut, but painted shut was a once-in-a-lifetime tornado of awesomeness that only a handful of bands ever approach in their careers. bark is merely excellent and the second best album of last year.

the monkeys album is really good you guys, but you gotta really fall into the vibe. it's not a record for casual listening

https://i.imgur.com/DtkliP4.jpg
#24: SOPHIE - Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides - 413 points – 15 votes - 1 first place vote

SOPHIE

Jessie Jeffrey Dunn: "In its flows and breakings, it echoes and repeats a fractured self, locating this fracture as something aimed toward futurity, toward a new image of pop music, toward a new mode of being and becoming, toward a new way of moving limbs on a dancefloor with others. It’s incredible."

Sasha Geffen: "The experimental music of SOPHIE relaxes into new forms on her debut album. It is sprawling and beautiful, while still keeping the disorienting, latex-pop feel of her fascinating production technique."

wild record, this is a nice placement for it

some of this was really lovely but the more industrial parts like "ponyboy", "faceshopping" and "whole new world/pretend world" were absolutely not for me

I think I gave "Faceshopping" some points

this is good but imo slightly inconsistent, didn't vote for it but when it's good it is very good. certainly one everybody should check out

lmao, faceshopping is the highlight for me!

I voted for this

ponyboy & faceshopping are the sort of thing i wish i cld send back in time to my 16yo self to blow his young mind

One of those records where I didn’t listen to it very much since I wasn’t often in the mood for it — but when I did it absolutely blew my mind

Faceshopping/Immaterial/Whole New World were three of the best tracks of the year.

also the best music to make milkshakes to

voted 'immaterial'

Yeah Immaterial is amazing too

also the best music to make milkshakes to

particularly if you have an old rackety milkshake maker so you can perform accompaniment

When I finally got round to listening to this it was a lot less annoying than I'd expected but also sort of harrowing? Like pop songs trapped in big metal cages.

Daytona my #1, cool sounding fun album, what more could I want

being 20 minutes long is a big part of its appeal i think, not even a backhanded compliment

― ciderpress, Wednesday, February 6, 2019 10:51 AM (thirteen minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

totally

pusha record being this high sucks ass

what fucking horrible cover art btw can't be said enough

https://i.imgur.com/cZraaFp.jpg
#23: Kali Uchis - Isolation - 430 points – 13 votes

Kali Uchis

Madison Desler: "For an album that’s 15 tracks to be this consistently good is a rarity, an anomaly, and an artistic triumph that should place it on every Best Of list at the end of the year. For Uchis to accomplish this while still holding on to seemingly all the cards, is even more rare, perhaps signaling a legend in the making."

Felipe Q. Noguiera: "Like Beck or Outkast, she's a pop weirdo who works grooves that seem vintage and futuristic at the same moment. She grabs splashes of funk, bossa, reggaeton and soul and blankets them with a sunbaked, psychedelic wooziness"

Pusha T makes albums so he can stop at #25 in ILM polls

oh hell yeah re Kali Uchis. The dullest track is the Damon Albarn collab, naturally.

the big shrieking noises on the noisy trax kind of sound like processed versions of the sort of noises you hear on new songs of the humpback whale, they are so intense

oh damn i was wrong about the aal record. it's pretty ok

sweetener so dramatically worse than dangerous woman i still can't believe ppl rate it so high

mostly i just want a whole album of "is it cold in the water?" and "infatuation" from sophie, or maybe a few more "nothing left to say"/"ehhh"s? "bipp" was fantastic but i don't need any more of that

kali uchis album was solid but i never managed to get too into it, my favourite track is still the intro