A strong week!
Lost — Brent Faiyaz
20-minutes of R&B minimalism at its very finest. A goddamn work of art.
Nuthin’ 2 Prove — Lil Yachty
I’m coming around to Lil Yachty’s weirdness. Or, maybe, he’s coming around to his own weirdness, and thus coming into his own.
Suncity — Khalid
Besides “Better” — which slaps — where’s the spunk? 2018: the year THE pop-R&Ber (The Weeknd) and his soon-to-be successor (Khalid) both muted the scale of their sounds on more intimate, and intimately-lengthed, EPs.
Bloom — Troye Sivan
He’s most comfortable on the minimalist-pop end of the musical spectrum, far from the grating and grated obviousness of the four-on-the-floor, big-room house centered around derivative drops that pervades too much of the album.
Future & Juice WRLD Present… WRLD ON DRUGS — Future & Juice WRLD
Juice WRLD: yay!
Future: nay.
Am I alone in preferring the latter’s breathless voice — heard here on “Oxy”; most memorable from his verse on “King’s Dead” — over his signature autotune?
Ella Mai — Ella Mai
You know how starting with a definition is the most cliche way to begin what will most likely be an equally-conventional piece of writing? Well, the same holds true for music! An R&B album beginning with the definition of emotion — emotion!!! what could be more on-the-nose, unless she defined, like, the genre of R&B itself, or something like that — is the perfect introduction to its impending, imperfect boredom. The autotune is roooough; there’s just a manufactured quality to her sound that reminds me of Ally’s pop-phase in A Star is Born. Spend your time listening to who she’s (poorly) imitating: Alina Baraz, Syd, Kali Uchs, H.E.R., Teyana Taylor, SZA, Toni Braxton, Jorja Smith, Madison Beer, etc. etc. etc.
Last Day of Summer — Summer Walker
R&B overload of underloaded R&B. It’s like elevator music: soft jazz with vocals. I’m not sure I’d go so far as to claim it’s the same song repeated 12 times, but her voice definitely barely and rarely varies.
Northsbest — Lil Mosey
Smooooooth, but unremarkable in every way.
2018 Albums, Ranked
- Black Panther — Kendrick Lamar
- Dirty Computer — Janelle Monáe
- Kamikaze — Eminem
- NASIR — Kanye West & Nas
- DAYTONA — Kanye West & Pusha T
- Lies After Love — Drama
- High As Hope — Florence + The Machine
- Queen — Nicki Minaj
- KIDS SEE GHOSTS — Kanye West & Kid Cudi
- East Atlanta Love Letter — 6LACK
- Milky Way — Bas
- Redemption — Jay Rock
- Swimming — Mac Miller
- The Color of You — Alina Baraz
- Light of Mine — KYLE
- beerbongs & bentleys — Post Malone
- Man of the Woods — Justin Timberlake
- Lost — Brent Faiyaz
- Scorpion — Drake
- Testing — A$AP Rocky
- ye — Kanye West
- EVERYTHING IS LOVE — The Carters
- Shawn Mendes — Shawn Mendes
- DAY69 — 6ix9ine
- Treehouse — Sofi Tukker
- ZOO — Russ
- ? — XXXTENTACION
- Culture 2 — Migos
- YSIV — Logic
- K.T.S.E. — Kanye West & Teyana Taylor
- SR3MM — Rae Sremmurd, Swae Lee & Slim Jxmmi
- The Now Now — Gorillaz
- Hive Mind — The Internet
- My Dear Melancholy, — The Weeknd
- Bobby Tarantino II — Logic
- MUDBOY — Sheck Wes
- Vacation in Hell — Flatbush Zombies
- GANGIN — SOB X RBE
- Sex & Cigarettes — Toni Braxton
- Cry Pretty — Carrie Underwood
- Sorry To Bother You: The Soundtrack — The Coup
- Head in the Clouds — 88rising
- Survive the Summer — Iggy Azalea
- LIFE’S A TRIP — Trippie Redd
- ONEPOINTFIVE — Aminé
- Isolation — Kali Uchs
- Blindspotting: The Collin EP — Daveed Diggs
- D6: Reloaded — Lil Wayne
- KOD — J. Cole
- QUAVO HUNCHO — Quavo
- For My Fans — Fetty Wap
- Little Dark Age — MGMT
- Blue Madonna — BØRNS
- TA1300 — Denzel Curry
- Tha Carter V — Lil Wayne
- How We React and How We Recover — Jason Robert Brown
- ASTROWORLD — Travis Scott
- 44/876 — Sting & Shaggy
- Amen — Rich Brian
- Five Five — Pouya
- It’s Complicated — Wale
- Beach House 3 Bonus Tracks — Ty Dolla $ign
- Nuthin’ 2 Prove — Lil Yachty
- STAY DANGEROUS — YG
- Self Promotion — Wale
- Suncity — Khalid
- I Used to Know Her: The Prelude — H.E.R.
- Punken — Maxo Kream
- Expectations — Bebe Rexha
- 4275 — Jacquees
- Common Ground — Above & Beyond
- Love Yourself Tear — BTS
- Lost & Found — Jorja Smith
- Trapholizay — Zaytoven
- Cosmic — Bazzi
- I Want to Die In New Orleans — $uicide Boy$
- California — Diplo
- When We (Remix) — Tank
- 2.23 — Blac Youngsta
- Invasion of Privacy — Cardi B
- That’s A Girl’s Name — DRAM
- Life of a Dark Rose — Lil Skies
- Beloved — Dave East & Styles P
- As She Pleases — Madison Beer
- Bloom — Troye Sivan
- Still Run — Wet
- Legends of the Summer— Meek Mill
- Youngblood — 5 Seconds of Summer
- Ready — Ella Mai
- BEWARE THE BOOK OF ELI — Ski Mask the Slump God
- Activated — Tee Grizzley
- God’s Favorite Customer — Father John Misty
- Trench — twenty one pilots
- Vibras — J Balvin
- By the Way, I Forgive You — Brandi Carlile
- The Big Pescado — Berner
- Rico — Berner
- Free Lunch — Wale
- Play — Dave Grohl
- Hoodwolf 2 — HoodRich Pablo Juan & Danny Wolf
- Rolling Papers 2 — Wiz Khalifa
- P2 — Dave East
- Camila — Camila Cabello
- I Like It Loud — Tiesto
- M A N I A — Fall Out Boy
- Victory Lap — Nipsey Hussle
- MEMORIES DON’T DIE — Tory Lanez
- Human — Steve Angello
- International Artist — A Boogie wit da Hoodie
- Fuck Everybody 2 — Blac Youngsta
- Bless Yo Trap — Smokepurpp & Murda Beatz
- Goodbye & Good Riddance — Juice WRLD
- Reckless — NAV
- The Longshot — The Longshot
- Fate — Tammy Rivera
- The World is Yours — Rich the Kid
- 23 — Jaydayoungan
- Kolorblind — DJ ESCO
- Edgewood — Trouble & Mike WiLL Made-It
- Future & Juice WRLD Present… WRLD ON DRUGS — Future & Juice WRLD
- Hurtin’ Me — Stefflon Don
- F.A.M.E. — Maluma
- Rearview Town — Jason Aldean
- This One’s For You Too — Luke Combs
- Ella Mai — Ella Mai
- Obsessed: Hedwig and the Angry Inch — Lena Hall
- November — SiR
- The Chocolate Box — Jeremih
- Sweetener — Ariana Grande
- Voicenotes — Charlie Puth
- The Vault — G-Eazy
- Last Day of Summer — Summer Walker
- Dan + Shay — Dan + Shay
- Heart Break Kodak — Kodak Black
- Die Lit — Playboi Carti
- Ottopsy — Chief Keef
- Lil Boat 2 — Lil Yachty
- Glock Bond — Key Glock
- Drip Season 3 — Gunna
- Spiritual Conversations — Mozzy
- SUPERFLY — Future & Co.
- DIME TRAP — T.I.
- Northsbest — Lil Mosey
- On the Rvn — Young Thug
- Golden Hour — Kacey Musgraves
- We Beefin? — at Wendys
- Until Death Call My Name Reloaded — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- Harder Than Ever — Lil Baby
- The Play Don’t Care Who Makes It — 2 Chainz
- Real Hasta la Muerte — Anuel AA
- Bad Witch — Nine Inch Nails
- Mansion Musick — Chief Keef
- Humble Beast (Deluxe) — G Herbo
- 4Freedom — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- Rich As In Spirit — Rich Homie Quan
- Pain and Pleasure — Tink
- Ray Ray from Summerhill — YFN Lucci
- Freda’s Son — YFN Lucci
- Dex Meets Dexter — Famous Dex
- Swervo — G Herbo & Southside
- Forever — Popcaan
- Age Of — Oneohtrix Point Never
- Queen Naija — Queen Naija
- Just Cause Y’all Waited — Lil Durk
- Apart — Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson
- Karma 2 — Dave East
- Slime Language — Young Thug & Young Stoner Life Records
- The Marina — Curren$y & Harry Fraud
- BEASTMODE 2 — Future
- Aura — Ozuna
- Sick Boy…Everybody Hates Me — The Chainsmokers
- Hear No Evil — Young Thug
- First Time — Liam Payne
- Chained to the City — Kevin Gates
- Drip Harder — Lil Baby & Gunna
- No Stylist — French Montana
- Life After Fame — Quando Rondo
- Master the Day of Judgement — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- Until Death Call My Name — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- 2 Heartless — Moneybagg Yo
- Don Season 2 — Don Q
- Grow God — Money Man
- Don Talk — Don Q
- N****S Get Shot — Young Dolph
- Rich Hood — HoodRich Pablo Juan
- The Leek 4 — Chief Keef
- Bet On Me — Moneybagg Yo
- YBN: The Mixtape — YBN Almighty Jay, YBN Cordae & YBN Nahmir
- 4Respect — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- 4Loyalty — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- Luca Brasi 3 — Kevin Gates
- Role Model — Young Dolph
- Decided — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
- Pray For The Wicked — Panic! At the Disco
- 4Respect 4Freedom 4Liberty 4WhatImportant — YoungBoy Never Broke Again
OUT OF CONTENTION
WRITE ALL NITE 