Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2024 Brat Charli XCX ★★★½ 78 Pop Dance Pop Charli XCX has probably become my favorite pop artist of the past decade. The base quality of her tracks is so consistently good – they’re fun at the very least, and often time reach greatness.Her sixth album, Brat, is noContinue reading “BRAT – Charli XCX”
Category Archives: Album Reviews
Hustler’s P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment) – Jim Jones
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2006 Hustler’s P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment) Jim Jones ★ 29 Hip-Hop “We Fly High” is an iconic 2000s hip-hop song, but the strength of a single can’t always save an entire album, and on 2006’s Hustler’s P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment), Jim Jones falls into many of theContinue reading “Hustler’s P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment) – Jim Jones”
Dark Times – Vince Staples
Year Album Artist Stars Score 2024 Dark Times Vince Staples ★★★★½ 92 Hip-Hop Vince Staples is one of the most understated and consistently great rappers of the past decade. From 2014 to 2024, he’s released six albums and two detailed EPs, with only one — 2016’s Prima Donna — being less than stellar (even thatContinue reading “Dark Times – Vince Staples”
Beth Gibbons – Lives Outgrown
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2024 Lives Outgrown Beth Gibbons ★★★★½ 93 Rock Chamber Pop Singer-songwriter Lives Outgrown is the first true solo record by legendary Portishead vocalist Beth Gibbons, and her first substantial release of music since the trip-hop band’s 2008 record, Third. In comparison to Portishead’s iconic percussive, industrial, and electronic production,Continue reading “Beth Gibbons – Lives Outgrown”
Scrapyard – Quadeca
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2024 Scrapyard Quadeca ★★★ 68 Hip-Hop Neo-Soul Scrapyard is my first exposure to Quadeca, a former YouTube rapper and personality who has transitioned from a kind of goofy and humble DIY hip-hop nerd, known for freestyles and mimicking the flows of other emcees, to an artist with a uniqueContinue reading “Scrapyard – Quadeca”
The Dream of Delphi – Bat for Lashes
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2024 The Dream of Delphi Bat for Lashes ★★½ 59 Pop Chamber Pop Bat for Lashes’ sixth record, The Dream of Delphi, doesn’t offer much substance in terms of hooks or through melodies. However, the ethereal and emotional production is breathtaking throughout the album. Haunting backing synths and choirs,Continue reading “The Dream of Delphi – Bat for Lashes”
Vampire Weekend – Only God Was Above Us
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genres 2024 Only God Was Above Us Vampire Weekend ★★★★½ 92 Rock Indie Pop Only God Was Above Us in a way is Vampire Weekend being their more Vampire Weekend-y. There’s a lot of baroque-inspired chamber music. There’s a lot of warm, boyish vocal melodies by Ezra Koenig and light,Continue reading “Vampire Weekend – Only God Was Above Us”
Supermodel – Foster The People
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2014 Supermodel Foster The People ★★★½ 71 Rock Indie Pop Supermodel might not have the hits that Foster the People’s seminal 2011 debut Torches had, but I think it’s actually a deeper, more rounded record overall that shows maturity beyond the bright, childish, hyper catchy, electronic indie pop theContinue reading “Supermodel – Foster The People”
Kingdom Come – Jay-Z
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2006 Kingdom Come Jay-Z ★★½ 51 Hip-Hop After a three-year “retirement,” Jay Z returned in 2006 with Kingdom Come, a record that sounds exactly of its time in both good and bad ways. The production across Kingdom Come relies heavily on catchy, cleaned up samples of live instruments likeContinue reading “Kingdom Come – Jay-Z”
Hip-Hop Is Dead – Nas
Year Album Artist Stars Score Genre 2006 Hip Hop Is Dead Nas ★★ 47 Hip-Hop Man, I held Hip-Hop Is Dead in pretty high regard in my mind for years because I really dug it when I was back in high school listening to it for the first time. But revisiting it now in fullContinue reading “Hip-Hop Is Dead – Nas”
Fresh Out The Deli 