Before I share my list of my favorite albums of 2024, I need to repeat my regular “year-end list” disclaimer. If you already know the drill, feel free to skip ahead.
1) Ranking albums is dumb …
We all know this. Art isn’t a competition. I can’t really distinguish between my 13th favorite album and my 15th favorite. This is all talk. None of it really matters.
2) … but it’s kind of fun …
Of course it is! Because it’s about sharing music recommendations. And I do mean share — make your own lists and show them to me, especially if you’re the sort inclined to complain about lists. Put yourself out there and let me complain about you, too!
3) … because it’s really about discovering an album or two (or possibly more!) that you might not have known about otherwise.
Exactly!
Now, let’s rank!
PRE-LIST “ALMOST MADE THE MAIN LIST” LIST AWARDS
THE “FAVORITE 2023 ALBUM I HEARD IN 2024” AWARD: Chappell Roan, The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess
Naturally, I picked the breakout record by the year’s messiest and most fascinating superstar. After the era of oppressive and omnipresent pop-music nation-states a la Taylor Swift/Beyoncé, it was refreshing to see an actual human being ditch the corporate HR public-facing posturing and rail against fame like an alt-rock throwback. And that’s only the cherry on the sundae that is the actual record, which is witty and catchy and genuinely subversive.
THE “ALBUM NO OTHER CRITIC BUT ME LIKED” AWARD: The Voidz, Like All Before You
I don’t think Julian Casablancas’ mother even likes this album. What can I say? I have a soft spot for Chappell Roan because she put “Midwest” in her album title, and I’m simping for this record because two people on the planet still find it funny/enjoyable when Julian Casablancas puts out a song called “Prophecy Of The Dragon.” (Those people are me and Julian Casablancas.)
THE “WOULD HAVE MADE THE PROPER LIST IF IT WERE AVAILABLE ON CD” AWARD: Mk.gee, Two Star & The Dream Police
I worked on a yacht rock “dockumentary” this year, so naturally I am a fan of Mk.gee, the Steve Winwood of Frank Ocean’s. But Two Star & The Dream Police demands to be heard on compact disc. Not vinyl, not streaming, CD! It is one of 2024’s top “compact disc music” releases. If Mk.gee and/or his label can rectify this in 2025, I promise I will put Two Star & The Dream Police in next year’s “Favorite 2024 Album Of 2025” slot.
THE PROPER LIST
27. Kelly Lee Owens, Dreamstate
One thing I really like about Chappell Roan is that she reminds me of prime-era Madonna, a bedrock musical staple of the first 20 or so years of my life. But that’s more of a “vibes” comparison — her music doesn’t literally sound all that much like Madge. Kelly Lee Owens actually gets closer to the Madonna sound on Dreamstate, though it’s not the outrageous, buttons-pushing Madonna of the 1980s but rather than the meditative, Kabbalah-humping Madonna of the Ray Of Light era, one of my favorite Madonna’s. Ray Of Light-esque is high praise in my book, and that’s what Dreamstate is.
26. Mdou Moctar, Funeral For Justice
Let’s start with the album title. As with all of Moctar’s music, there’s a strong political undercurrent to Funeral For Justice, with the Nigerien guitarist raging against the perpetual instability of his home country’s government stoked by decades of interference from the United States and other foreign actors. While American listeners might not pick up on the fervor of Moctar’s words, they will certainly recognize the ample amount of ass-kicking guitar shredding that conveys the depths of his passion. If Funeral For Justice is the most metal-sounding Mdou Moctar album title — it sounds like the lost Megadeth LP between Rust In Peace and Countdown To Extinction — then it accurately conveys the blistering speed and force of the music.
25. Fleetwood Mac, Mirage Tour ’82
Based on streaming numbers and general zeitgeist-y things — the popularity of the musical Stereophonic and the TV show Daisy Jones And The Six, the forthcoming Apple TV doc, etc. — The Mac is still one of the most popular bands in the world in 2024. And this live album is a good example of why that is. Captured at the end of a grueling tour that represented the last stand of the “classic” lineup until their 1997 comeback, Mirage Tour ’82 will register as a hyperbolic shock to anyone who views this band as soft-rock comfort food. The tension (and cocaine abuse) is palpable, as is the musical brilliance of the members — the cooking rhythm section of Mick Fleetwood and John McVie, the icy sophistication of Christine McVie, the wailing rock charisma of Nicks, and the perpetual nervous-breakdown intensity of Lindsey Buckingham, who finally loses his goddamn mind during an incredible nine-minute version of “Not That Funny.”
SUBLIST: MY FAVORITE “OLD PERSON” ARCHIVAL RELEASES OF 2024
5. Bob Dylan, The 1974 Recordings
Twenty-seven discs of Bob mostly playing the same set over and over on his comeback tour with The Band? Call me a human landfill because I want all that plastic!
4. Elvis Costello, King Of America & Other Realms
My favorite Elvis Costello album of 1986, aka the one where he has a beard on the cover, expanded with outtakes and live cuts.
3. The Waterboys, 1985
An extremely deep dive into the making of the Scottish band’s album This Is The Sea. If you listen closely, you can hear The War On Drugs being born.
2. Paul McCartney & Wings, One Hand Clapping
This famous bootleg of an in-studio live session recorded at Abbey Road in the summer of 1974 finally got a proper release, and it smokes!
1 Neil Young, Archives Volume III: 1976-1987
A smorgasbord of lost albums and lost movies from Neil’s weirdest era. The most “your mileage may vary” collection here, and possibly ever.
24. Wand, Vertigo
Back in June, this band’s frontman tweeted, “Fuck the Dead, fuck Phish, fuck Goose. Listen to the Minutemen.” Under normal circumstances, I would object to such egregious jam-band slander. But I can’t fault Cory Hanson, because his band made one of the best “indie jam” records of 2024, plugging into the hypnotic guitar drone and Krautrock rhythms that typically inspire the thinking-man’s jammers (as well as the instrumental fluidity and telepathic communication that comes from, yes, the Minutemen).
23. Styrofoam Winos, Real Time
Anyone who follows me on the social platform formerly known as Twitter (or the other site sort of named after Wilco’s sixth studio record) knows that I have a thing in the warm weather months for “patio music.” I’m often asked, “what is patio music?” And my answer is always, “music I like to play on my patio.” This answer, however, is never satisfactory. So, instead of giving that unsatisfactory reply, I will simply point to this Nashville band. This is what patio music sounds like.
SUBLIST: SIX OTHER ALBUMS FROM 2024 THAT PERSONIFY PATIO MUSIC
6. Charley Crockett, Visions Of Dallas
“Old school country” plus “Martin Scorsese references.”
5. Tim Heidecker, Slipping Away
“Wry one-liners” plus “The Rolling Stones.”
4. 2nd Grade, Scheduled Explosions
“Power pop” plus “music geek in-jokes.”
3. Trace Mountains, Into The Burning Blue
“That road trip feeling” minus “having to actually get up out of your chair and leave the comfort of the patio.”
2. David Nance, David Nance And Mowed Sound
“The feeling of drinking six beers” minus “actually drinking six beers.”
1. Little Wings, High On The Glade
Plus “those six beers you felt like you were drinking and now are actually drinking.”
22. Lee Baggett, Waves For A Begull
Another “patio music” record. But this wandering singer-songwriter from the Philippines gets a solo entry because I like his LP slightly more than the ones I just mentioned. This is such a deliriously woozy and tasty record! When I put on Waves For A Begull, I feel like I’m listening to Zuma after downing a hearty serving of Honey Slides (complimentary).
21. Peel Dream Magazine, ‘Rose Main Reading Room’
When I first heard this talented L.A. band on 2020’s Agitprop Alterna, I assumed they were among the better modern indie outfits aping the nineties drone-pop kings Stereolab. But I was wrong — they were actually much more ambitious than that. Their next record, 2022’s Pad, took a turn toward Pet Sounds-style pocket symphonies, and this year’s ‘Rose Main Reading Room’ doubles down on that sort of luxuriant, beguiling songcraft. If you wish Sufjan had made a record about California after Illinois, this is the album for you.
20. Ducks Ltd., Harm’s Way
Every year, I will put one album on this list that sounds like jangly college rock beamed directly from 1988. Last year, it was The Tubs. In the past five or so years, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever have turned this sort of album into a franchise. But in 2024, the “jangly college rock beamed directly from 1988” award goes to this Canadian duo. Congrats, boys. Treat yourself to a tasty Bartles & Jaymes wine cooler.
19. Nourished By Time, Catching Chickens
Marcus Brown makes records that sound like The Cure trying to make a Bobby Brown record produced by Prince. This EP — a follow-up to 2023’s acclaimed Erotic Probiotic 2 — is synth-heavy psychedelia with R&B swing, and I can’t get it out of my head. It’s easily the most cinematic music I have heard all year. It plays like a soundtrack to a disreputable-but-brilliant straight-to-VHS action thriller that Michael Mann should have made between the first season of Miami Vice and Manhunter.
18. The Hard Quartet, The Hard Quartet
This supergroup composed of Stephen Malkmus, Matt Sweeney, Emmett Kelly, and Jim White manages to sound like a real band on their self-titled debut, which is the highest (and most elusive) praise you can give to a burgeoning supergroup. I’ll be honest: When I heard about The Hard Quartet, I thought the album would be a respectable effort that showed up at No. 34 on year-end lists, and then get promptly forgotten. But this album is loaded with genuinely great songs. It is not a “forgettable No. 34” record. It’s a “reliably great No. 18” record.
SUBLIST: FIVE MORE “RELIABLY GREAT” ALBUMS FROM TRUSTED VETERANS
5. Blitzen Trapper, 100’s Of 1000’s Millions Of Billions
One of the finest indie-Americana bands of the aughts, still truckin’ on their best album in years.
4. The Smile, Wall Of Eyes
The better of the two albums that Thom and Jonny’s other band put out this year. A third might drop by the time this column publishes.
3. Kim Gordon, The Collective
The only reason I almost didn’t put this one here is that there’s nothing “reliable” about this record. Kim Gordon ripped up the rulebook and made a singular record in her catalog. Not bad for a 71-year-old indie rock goddess.
2. Jack White, No Name
The loudest, dumbest, most fun, and best record he’s made since his first solo album. It’s not a Meg White comeback, but it will do.
1. The Cure, Songs Of A Lost World
Their best since Bloodflowers! (Seriously though — it’s really good. And so is Bloodflowers!)
17. Vampire Weekend, Only God Was Above Us
Another “reliably great” band! Probably the reliably great band in indie rock right now. After the polarizing Father Of The Bride — which I loved, as its blend of smart pop hooks and jammy aesthetics was right up my alley — Vampire Weekend somehow produced an album that reassured old fans they were “back” even though OGWAU sounds nothing like what they did before. Every lyric, every instrumental choice, every production flourish — it’s all predictably well-chosen and expertly executed. Thankfully, it also holds up over many listens, because knowing this band, it might be a while before there’s a new Vampire Weekend LP.
16. Wild Pink, Dulling The Horns
Not as famous as Vampire Weekend, but just as reliable. Dulling The Horns is the fifth album from these storytelling heartland rockers, and it secured them affirmative “Five Albums Test” status. If that’s enough to earn you a coveted spot on this list, I don’t know what is.
15. Wishy, Triple Seven
The runner up for my “Rookie Of The Year.” At a time when “shoegaze” as an adjective is applied more liberally in record reviews than barbecue sauce at a Famous Dave’s, this quintet from Indianapolis somehow took the overused sonic signifiers of that genre and made something that felt fresh and engaging on their debut. The key is that they go beyond the signifiers to focus on the sort of hooky alt-rock songwriting that would have landed them in MTV’s Buzz Bin 30 years ago.
14. Waxahatchee, Tigers Blood
I think 2024 is the best year for music of the 2020s so far. I think it’s the best year for music by a pretty wide margin. And I know I’m right because I actually put Tigers Blood by Waxahatchee at No. 14 on this list. If this were 2022, this would be Top 10, easy. My one semi-knock is that I don’t like it quite as much as her previous album, Saint Cloud, which is the Damn The Torpedoes to this album’s Hard Promises. (I suspect that Katie Crutchfield will take this analogy as a compliment.)
13. Friko, Where We’ve Been, Where We Go From Here
My Rookie Of The Year. This Chicago band tried to make a modern version of Funeral or Apologies To The Queen Mary with their debut, which is sort of amazing given that the band members are barely older than those records. Then again, you sort of have to be in the your early-to-mid-twenties to think that executing mile-high and melodramatic indie-rock songs can make sense in a club. Friko pretty much nail it, though I expect the next record to be the really special one.
12. Bill Callahan, Resuscitate
The second album featuring Jim White on this list. Viva la year of Jim White! Beyond the Jim White-ness of it all, this live album is one of the finest releases of the “late-period Callahan” era, somehow melding Astral Weeks-style vision-questing with squalling guitar noise borrowed from Sonic Youth, with Bill showing calm in his eyes in the middle of the musical hurricane.
SUBLIST: FIVE MORE GREAT JAMMY LIVE ALBUMS FROM 2024
5. Fiery Furnaces, Stuck In My Head
The most thrillingly confounding indie band of the early 21st century returned for this raucous live-in-the-studio effort, radically reworking their songs as a series of synth-heavy bangers.
4. The War On Drugs, Live Drugs Again
Adam Granduciel introducing his band is my new favorite in-concert War On Drugs track.
3. BBsitters Club, Joel’s Picks Vol. 2
What if you could enjoy a Frank Zappa record with the obnoxiousness removed?
2. Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit, Live From The Ryman, Vol. 2
A very good Jason Isbell record, and a great 400 Unit record.
1. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Live in Chicago ’24
The fastest three hours and 16 minutes of the year.
11. Cindy Lee, Diamond Jubilee
The most heartwarming indie-rock story of 2024. A respected veteran puts out an ambitious 32-song record on a poorly designed Geocities site with no promotion, and it quickly becomes one of the most acclaimed records of the year. People put on this record and they immediately recognized a better, bigger, and more inviting version of the internet as it existed in the pre-social media era. But there are other ghosts here — Diamond Jubilee unfolds like the greatest oldies station of a post-apocalyptic world, in which garage-rock one-hit wonders and girl-group legacy acts create a haunting soundtrack for a decaying world.
A Special Note Before My Top 10
Hope you’re enjoying the list so far! If I haven’t listed something that you like, I can confirm that I have “no love” for it. In fact, I hate every album from 2024 that is not on this list. All of the albums that were released this year were either great (on the list) or the worst thing ever (not on the list).
There are no exceptions.
Back to ranking.
10. Jessica Pratt, Here In The Pitch
In my mind this record and Diamond Jubilee coexist on the same bill. Or maybe Here In The Pitch is simply the shorter, more digestible version of that “greatest oldies station” vibe.
9. DIIV, Frog In Boiling Water
This record doesn’t sound much like Cindy Lee and Jessica Pratt, but it is the final part of a trilogy with those albums to me. These are the “Pretty Dread” records of 2024, the ones that Trojan-horsed a sense of creeping foreboding inside mesmerizing tunes and captured the year’s prevailing vibe. Though Frog In Boiling Water is more overt as a trepidation-delivery device, with lyrics that dwell on collapsing political systems and dead-eyed media outlets. “Political shoegaze music” might seem like an oxymoron, but that’s exactly what DIIV accomplished with this album.
8. This Is Lorelei, Box For Buddy, Box For Star
An album I didn’t know I was waiting for. This, to my ears, appears to be the concept: Chocolate And Cheese, only minus the jokes about AIDS and dying children and all the songs sound like “Baby Bitch” and “What Deaner Was Talking About.” (Attention to other bands: Please steal this idea!)
7. Billy Strings, Live Vol. 1
Shoutout to Billy’s very good studio record from this year, Highway Prayers, but this live LP is the one that Strings-pilled me this year. While he dabbles in jam-band signifiers on his studio albums, he goes full Deadhead on Live Vol. 1, leading his expert band on extended improvisations that take the back porch to “Dark Star” land. The case for this guy being the Guitar God of the decade starts here.
6. Rosali, Bite Down
The best singer in indie rock? Rosali belongs at or near the top of my list and your list and anybody’s list. Pairing Sandy Denny’s tone with Chrissie Hynde’s toughness, Rosali also writes songs that are worthy of her stunning vocals. Bite Down elaborates on the Crazy Horse-isms that distinguished her previous album, No Medium, which also featured the backing of the excellent Nebraska band, David Nance and Mowed Sound. But while No Medium felt like stepping out of the darkness — addiction, romantic loss, and mortality are among the topics — Bite Down is about fighting for (and claiming) the light.
5. Liquid Mike, Paul Bunyan’s Slingshot
Songs about small-town decadence and degradation by a GBV-loving mailman from Upper Michigan — this isn’t an album, this is my culture. When I interviewed Mike Maple earlier this year, we spent several minutes discussing the nuances of the novelty comedy music act Da Yoopers. At that point, even if this record sucked, it was going to be in my Top Five. Fortunately for me, this record doesn’t suck. It is, in fact, the best “good-ass indie” record of the year.
SUBLIST: SIX MORE “GOOD-ASS INDIE” RECORDS FROM 2024
6. Nilüfer Yanya, My Method Actor
Good-ass “Radiohead-esque” indie.
5. A Country Western, Life On The Lawn
Good-ass “it’s not country western music, it’s more like the Toadies” indie.
4. Itasca, Imitation Of War
Good-ass “we closely studied Joni’s guitar tone on Hejira” indie.
3. Hovvdy, Hovvdy
Good-ass “we like friendship and Alex G” indie.
2. Cloud Nothings, Final Summer
Good-ass “we’re Cloud Nothings and good-ass indie is what we do, motherfucker” indie.
1. Ben Seretan, Allora
Good-ass “Oh, A Ghost Is Born is my favorite Wilco album, too” indie.
4. Good Looks, Lived Here For A While
Along with Liquid Mike, the easiest band to root for in 2024. A bunch of Texas guys in their 30s who have survived various vehicular disasters in recent years, Good Looks also happen to write more inspiring “heartland rock infused with socialist politics” anthems than any other “heartland rock infused with socialist politics” bands you could name. Tyler Jordan’s homespun songs are taken to another level by guitarist Jake Ames, whose improvised leads merge Neil Young skronking with soaring post-punk explosiveness.
3. Sturgill Simpson, 2024/09/25 St. Paul, MN
I could have put his great album as Johnny Blue Skies, Passage Du Desir, in this spot. It’s possibly my favorite LP Sturgill has put out under any name. But honestly, as much as I love that record, I spent a lot more time listening to Sturgill concert recordings from Nugs.net. And this one I listened to the most. Now, I was actually at this show, so that certainly affects my judgement. But I honestly believe this recording represents the most exhilarating music made by Sturgill — or practically anyone else — in 2024. Taking the “southern rock with a bitter core” sound of Passage and juicing it up with the muscle and volume of his Sound & Fury guise, Sturgill has made the live album of my dreams: A little Waylon Live, a little Live At Fillmore East, a little Absolutely Live, a little Rock Of Ages, a little Europe 72.
2. Father John Misty, Mahashmashana
One of the best albums by one of the modern greats. After the brilliant but insular genre experimentation of Chloë And The Next 20th Century, Josh Tillman returned to his roots with this stunning and grandiose statement of purpose. Hilarious, pretentious, insightful, messianic, beautiful, disturbing, of-the-moment, timeless — the man simply does not miss when he lets it all hang out like this. And he’s even doing interviews again and dropping tweets on the disintegrating social media husk known as X. Welcome back to the world, Josh. You got better as we got worse.
SUBLIST: TOP 10 FAVORITE MOMENTS FROM MY FAVORITE ALBUM OF 2024
10. The guitar solo in “She’s Leaving You”
9. “Kahlua shooter/DUI scooter”
8. The guitar solo in “Rudolph”
7. The outro guitar solo in “On My Knees”
6. “Burdened by those wet dreams of people having fun”
5. “Awooooo!”
4. Karly Hartzman’s vocal at the end of “She’s Leaving You”
3. “Every day is a miracle / not to mention a threat”
2. The drum fill at the start of “On My Knees”
1. “I got a houseboat docked at the himbo dome”
1. MJ Lenderman, Manning Fireworks
An instant classic. If you love it, you quoted it constantly this year. You lived with this record. You hung out with it. You laughed with it. You drank with it. You played air guitar with it. You barbecued hot dogs with it. You watched sports with the announcers turned down with it. You got back into Jason Molina with it. You contemplated the state of modern masculinity with it. You considered renting a Ferrari and going to Vegas with it. You worried that stardom might ruin MJ Lenderman’s bullet-proof guilelessness with it. You wondered if you would ever get sick of it. You realized you were never going to sick of it. Because it’s the no-brainer No. 1 album of 2024.