The Best Albums of 2015

I got a couple of best of lists published this year, but I thought I’d do a definitive one here, because why not? I tried to listen to more new music this year, for reasons which are unclear, except for the usual random neurotic obsession explanation. So here are my 25 best, from least best to most best. (If there seems inconsistency with other lists I’ve posted, I invoke hobgoblins and general wishy-washy indecision.) In many cases I’ve written about the albums elsewhere, so I’ve embedded links where that’s the case.

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25. Jason Isbell—Something More Than Free
 

 
 
24. False—Untitled
 

 
 
23. Novella—Land
 

 
 
22. Rhiannon Giddens—Tomorrow Is My Turn
 

 
 
21.Death Grips—The Powers That B
 

 
 
20.Eartheater—RIP Chrysalis
 

 
 
19.Insect Ark—Portal/Well
 

 
 
18. Nozinja —Nozinja Lodge
 

 
 
17. Elfmilk—Relocation
 
 

 
 
16. Nicki Bluhm—Loved Wild Lost
 

 
 
15. Ballake Sissoko & Vincent Segal—Musique de Nuit
 

 
 
14. Negro Leo—Niños Heroes
 

 
 
13. Jordannah Elizabeth—A Rush
 

 
 
12. Jonny Faith—Sundial
 

 
 
11.Mugen Hoso—North Carolina Shepherd Dog
 

 
 
10.Kelela—Hallucinogen
 

 
 
9.Mbongwana Star—From Kinshasha to the Moon
 

 
 
8. Father—Who’s Gonna Get Fucked First?
 

 
 
7. Suuns and Jerusalem in My Heart
 

 
 
6.Melt Banana— Return of 13 Hedgehogs
 

 
 
5. Mastery—V.A.L.I.S.
 

 
 
4. Brandi Carlile—The Firewatcher’s Daughter
 

 
 
3. Dawn Richard—Blackheart
 

 
 
2. Sewer Goddess—Painlust
 

 
 
1. RP Boo—Fingers, Bank Pads, and Shoe Prints
 

 
 
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I try not to get stuck in a rut on these lists, and I think this one is pretty varied. There’s metal, hip hop, indie rock, country, folk, electronica, R&B, rock, punk, funk, various kinds of world music, psychedlia, and at least one sort-of jazz thing. The lack of classical music is the big gaping genre hole, though I’m sure there are others.

It is quite US centric; I think 14 out of 25 are from the states; after that Japan is most represented with 2, and then you’ve got Brazil, South Africa, Mexico, UK, Nigeria, Canada, Australia, Mali and France. Nearly equal gender balance: 12 out of 25 are all women or female-led. Ten black performers/groups, and another four led by people of color. It still leans towards white folks, men, and the U.S., but it’s varied enough that there aren’t that many white guys from the U.S. on it. (I think the only two bands/acts entirely made up of white US guys are Mastery and Jason Isbell.)

The last few I put on here were Father and Eartheater, which I only listened to in the last week or so—and Kelela and Elfmilk I relistened to and got more into. The last one I took off the list was Lonesome Wyatt and Rachel Brooks’ album, which I decided I didn’t like quite as well as Jason Isbell’s.

I guess that’s enough nattering. If you’d like to do a music best of on HU, let me know and maybe we can do a little roundtable. And/or tell us what your favorite albums of the year are in comments.

6 thoughts on “The Best Albums of 2015

  1. So glad to see that RP Boo at number one; footwork deserves more recognition outside of the electronic music press (which is basically none besides Pitchfork).

    I was really taken with the new Marriages album “Salome”; my first few listens I was disappointed by how passive they sounded compared to their previous album. As the songs started showing up in shuffle though, I was taken by how well Emma Ruth Rundle’s songwriting voice had been incorporated into the band, resulting in a cooler, more elegant psychedelic rock sound at times often sounding like post punk, though they still have a low end churn typically lacking in those genres.

    DJ Paypal’s “Sold Out” is my personal favorite footwork release of the year. Where RP Boo’s “Fingers…” is a masterclass of unfiltered, soulful footwork, DJ Paypal toys around with the genre on “Sold Out,” usually driving the tempo into overdrive and being really loose with the percussion. It almost falls apart at times but brings a grin to my face almost constantly.

  2. I hate to be what must be painfully banal in this space, but have you listened to the new Grimes album? If not, you should. That and the Melt Banana are my favorites for the year.

  3. Grimes is banal by dint of being on so many other people’s best of 2015 lists. She’s gone from being a darling of independent electronic music to getting played at the mall. (At least according to my friends who actually go to the mall.)

    You’d have to enjoy her aesthetics of fairly radical feminism combined with a deep love of not at all feminist pop. I think you’d probably like the music too. She did all the engineering work on her own album to avoid having credit for her sound go to male engineers, but definitely loves many female artists whose songs are in large part the product of all male production teams.

    Anyway, an obsession I apparently share with a large portion of the girls in the local middle schools. (According to some of their parents, who are also obsessed with Grimes.)

    cheers,

    d

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