The Top Albums of 2017

Music criticism is something that has always interested me, but it’s also something that I feel is becoming unnecessary in a world where literally millions of songs are available for an affordable monthly subscription. The idea of the music critic as the gatekeeper between good music and your hard earned cash is now irrelevant. If you’re interested in someone’s music, the barrier to entry has never been lower. Regardless, I have opinions about music, and making a list like this is something I’ve wanted to do for a while but never actually sat down and did it. So with that said, I present to you my twenty favourite albums of 2017.

Warning: Most of the embedded YouTube videos contain explicit language and are not safe for work.

20. Mac DeMarco — This Old Dog

Genres: Indie Pop, Folk Pop

Rating: ★★★½

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2E1jDRx

My experience with Mac has been a weird one. When I first heard 2 when it came out in 2012, I kinda hated it. It seemed like boring, acoustic wankery that was trying too hard to sound retro or something. He followed this up with Salad Days in 2014, and I’m glad I gave it a chance as it’s now one of my favourite albums of all time. Its summery, carefree vibe was there for me at the perfect time in my life and it just clicked with me like few albums have. Three years later Mac brings us his third album, This Old Dog. He sounds like he’s matured quite a bit on this album; he keeps his trademark goofiness to a minimum and focuses on the songwriting. It’s no Salad Days for me but it’s another solid effort from the Canadian hero we deserve.

19. Gucci Mane & Metro Boomin — Droptopwop

Genres: Trap Rap

Rating: ★★★½

I wasn’t really a Gucci fan until his post-jail period which started last year. Since then he’s released two mixtapes I’ve really liked: Everybody Looking and Woptober. He lost a bunch of weight in jail, grew a beard and cleaned up his act, and it shows. I’m not gonna lie, Gucci’s music is pretty dumb, but it’s dumb fun. While Mr. Davis, his first studio album since being released, was a disappointment for me personally, this mixtape is great. With production solely handled by the fantastic Metro Boomin and the features kept to a minimum, short and sweet mixtapes like this one are what Gucci should be sticking to in 2018.

18. Chelsea Wolfe — Hiss Spun

Genres: Gothic Rock, Doom Metal

Rating: ★★★½

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2E29TGJ

I had the pleasure of seeing Chelsea Wolfe perform most of this album live in one of the few shows I went to this year. I feel that helped me get into this album a bit more than I would have otherwise. Her only other album I’ve heard, Abyss, is when she started incorporating some doom metal influences into her moody, gothic rock sound. Hiss Spun follows in the same vein and makes for a unique and interesting listen. Just don’t look at the album cover for too long, unless you like feeling angry and confused.

17. Brand New — Science Fiction

Genres: Indie Rock, Emo

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2E4pcyq

I don’t have any nostalgic attachment to Brand New. I wasn’t one of those fifteen year olds who had a phase where I listened to nothing but Deja Entendu. As a matter of fact I still haven’t listened to that album, and knowing I wasn’t there like so many were makes me feel like I missed out on something special. I did eventually discover The Devil and God way after it was released and enjoyed it quite a bit. While I was disappointed by Daisy, Science Fiction is definitely a return to form for the band, which is fortunate if this turns out to be their last album. Even though I was never an emo fan, Brand New are shaping up to be one of the best alternative rock bands of the new millennium, and this album is great proof of that.

Update: After writing this review I became aware of the news that broke regarding band member Jesse Lacey. I won’t go into detail about it here, but Google it if you want to read up on it. It should go without saying that I think his actions were disgusting. It certainly makes me feel bad listening to them now, but it doesn’t change the fact that this is still a great album.

16. Future — HNDRXX

Genres: Trap Rap, R&B

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2BZ5Mh8

Trap legend Future released two albums this year, impressively a week apart from each other. The first was the self-titled FUTURE, which other than the mega hit Mask Off was ultimately forgettable for me. Its follow-up HNDRXX however is a different story. Each album reflects one side of Future’s persona; while FUTURE is full of aggressive trap bangers, HNDRXX showcases his more melodic, emotional and radio-friendly side. Which sounds like a bad thing, but it makes for a more varied and interesting album.

The highlight for me is Comin Out Strong, a collaboration with The Weeknd. Whenever these guys work together they make magic, check out the song Low Life (not on this album) for another great example. While it starts to outstay its welcome at nearly seventy minutes in length, HNDRXX stands as another highlight in his career along with DS2, Monster, Honest and Pluto. And to think I used to think this guy’s music was garbage…

15. King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard — Flying Microtonal Banana / Sketches of Brunswick East

Genres: Psychedelic Rock, Garage Rock

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: Banana http://amzn.to/2C2efjR Sketches http://amzn.to/2CftXXS

A strong contender for the best band name ever, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard had a hell of a year. Coming off the success of last year’s Nonagon Infinity, they announced they would be releasing five (!) albums in 2017, four which have been released and these two being the only ones I’ve heard. Flying Microtonal Banana is a great slab of psychedelic garage rock, something fans of bands like Tame Impala and The White Stripes would definitely like. On the other hand, Sketches of Brunswick East is a collaboration with Mild High Club, which I’m guessing is a jazz rock band ’cause this one’s real jazzy in the best way. I’ll check out their other 2017 albums eventually, but for now at least I know these two are worthy of being considered some of the best albums of the year.

14. Bell Witch — Mirror Reaper

Genres: Funeral Doom Metal

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2CdIEe7

I can imagine this one being much higher on the list if I had some more time with it. I’ve only listened to it three times as of this writing, but that’s because it’s a single, eighty-plus-minute song of funeral doom metal. Before this album, any funeral doom I had heard was definitely not my cup of tea at all. Its punishingly slow tempos and emphasis on atmosphere and heaviness has always been too much for me.

This however is something much more accessible and immediate, and it seems to have created a polarizing effect amongst metal fans. Not funeral doom enough for the purists and not quite accessible enough for others, Bell Witch seem to be carving out a new sound here. Since the album consists of only one giant song, it’s nearly impossible to focus on for its entirety. Instead, I throw it on and just let it wash over me, with the cleaner, more emotional sections deserving the most conscious attention. Also, is that the best metal album cover of the decade or what?

13. Offset, Metro Boomin & 21 Savage — Without Warning

Genres: Trap Rap, Horrorcore

Rating: ★★★★

A few days before I discovered this album, a good friend of mine who normally doesn’t listen to trap told me he was listening to a lot of 21 Savage lately. I was surprised I had never heard of him before, then this shows up in my Google Play recommended new releases. I’m a big fan of Metro Boomin’s production so I knew I had to check this out.

In terms of trap rap albums and mixtapes released this year, this was the most pleasant surprise. It seemed to come out of nowhere (I guess that’s why it’s called Without Warning, ha) but clearly quite a bit of effort went into this collaboration. Released on Halloween, Metro Boomin’s beats are appropriately minimal, dark and atmospheric. Both Offset and 21 are in top form here and play off each other effectively. It clocks in at just over half an hour, giving it a short and sweet, mixtape-like feel that works in its favour. If you missed out on this one, definitely check it out.

12. Big K.R.I.T. — 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time

Genres: Southern Hip Hop

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ChSOrN

I never really got what the big deal was with Big K.R.I.T. until this album came out. The first time I heard of him was when he independently released his first mixtape, K.R.I.T. Was Here, back in 2010. Outside of the first few songs, the rest was pretty forgettable, and since I hadn’t really discovered much southern hip hop yet his style didn’t really appeal to me for whatever reason.

Now I know better. After I discovered UGK’s Ridin’ Dirty which is one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time, I now understand Big K.R.I.T.’s resurrection of this style after the untimely death of Pimp C back in 2007. 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time is his best album yet, which is saying something since it’s a double album that’s over eighty minutes long. Despite this, there isn’t really a weak track here, and unless I’m forgetting something obvious it is making a good argument for the best hip hop double album of the decade.

11. Ariel Pink — Dedicated to Bobby Jameson

Genres: Psychedelic Pop, Indie Rock

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2BNIs21

Released later in the year, Dedicated to Bobby Jameson was an album I was anticipating for a long time leading up to its release. His previous album pom pom was an impressively ambitious work and something I still return to three years later. While I don’t like this quite as much as that album, this is another solid effort from Mr. Pink.

There always seems to be one song on each of his albums that really clicks with me, on Before Today that was Round and Round, on pom pom that was Put Your Number in My Phone. This time around the key track is the first single, Another Weekend. A hazy ballad with some great tempo changes throughout, it gets stuck in my head all the time. If you’ve never heard of Ariel Pink, this is actually a pretty good place to start.

10. Converge — The Dusk in Us

Genres: Metalcore, Post-Hardcore

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2E36mYM

I was never a big metalcore fan. It’s been hard for me to shrug off my pretentious, high-school-metalhead opinion that such bands care more about how their hair looks than the actual music. I know now that that’s not necessarily the case, but no one can make that criticism of Converge. They are metalcore in the true sense of the word, metal crossed with hardcore punk, and it’s clear that they make music true to themselves regardless of what’s trendy.

Their 2001 album Jane Doe is one of my favourite metal albums ever, and while I don’t hold their other albums in quite as high regard, The Dusk in Us is another solid effort from the band. I saw them live this year in a co-headlining show with sludge metal legends Neurosis, and I can’t help but feel they were an influence on this album. Compared to their last album All We Love We Leave Behind, this album is heavier, sludgier and more varied. Jacob Bannon’s vocal performance in particular ranges through many clean styles we haven’t heard before and it’s a welcome change-up to their usual style. I doubt this album will make them any new fans, but for those of us in it for the long haul, this will keep us happy for the next four years.

9. Mount Eerie — A Crow Looked at Me

Genres: Singer/Songwriter, Indie Folk

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2CfcFI4

If you’ve heard of this album before, you already know the story. If not, Mount Eerie is the solo project of singer/songwriter Phil Elverum who lost his wife to cancer last year. This album is both a tribute to his late wife as well as a reflection on his grieving process while he deals with her loss. The result is obviously a depressing and poignant album that makes for a difficult yet beautiful listening experience.

The lyrics are incredibly straightforward with little room for interpretation. Instead of creating metaphors to explain his wife’s death, he focuses on the little details. Perhaps most famously, he questions what to do with her old toothbrush months after the fact. It’s heartbreaking moments like this that make A Crow Looked at Me something truly special. A similar experience to Sufjan Stevens’ Carrie & Lowell a couple years back, this album feels like you’re peering deep into the man’s soul, insecurities and all. Save this one for a rainy day.

8. Slowdive — Slowdive

Genres: Dream Pop, Shoegaze

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2DoIa1M

The last time Slowdive released an album, the year was 1995. The shoegaze scene was being panned by critics as overdramatic and cheesy, a half-baked precursor to the exploding Britpop scene where bands like Oasis, Blur and Pulp reigned supreme. Fortunately, the shoegaze genre has since received a critical re-evaluation, so it makes sense that Slowdive came out of retirement to perform some live shows and eventually release this album.

The day this album was released, I saw Slowdive perform at the Danforth in Toronto. It was great to finally see one of my favourite bands perform live. This album, while fantastic, is a little safe for them. But seeing how their last album was the highly experimental Pygmalion, it makes sense they would go back to their roots to re-introduce themselves to the world. It’s a fantastic start for Slowdive phase 2, and I can’t wait to hear what’s next.

7. Young Thug — Beautiful Thugger Girls

Genres: Trap Rap, Pop Rap

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ChULVi

Whether you love him or hate him, Young Thug was certainly something of an anomaly when he debuted in the ultra-serious, trap rap landscape a few years back. He used auto-tune not as a codeine-fueled drawl like his foil Future, but as a sort of wacky accentuation of his outlandish lyrics and personality. We can already see his influence on today’s new crop of artists, from Lil Yachty to Lil Uzi Vert.

The album cover gives me flashbacks to Lil Wayne’s Rebirth, now infamously considered one of the worst albums of all time. Wayne attempted to become a rock star and fell flat on his face. Thugger however is going more for a pop country/acoustic vibe here, and even though I’m not a country fan at all, it somehow works out great for him. This is arguably his most consistent project yet, with every song featuring great hooks and production. I could even see pop fans who are turned off by trap rap digging this quite a bit.

6. Vince Staples — Big Fish Theory

Genres: West Coast Hip Hop, Experimental Hip Hop

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2CdFdSr

Previously associated with the Odd Future collective (while never actually a member), Vince Staples has made a name for himself over the last couple of years. His double album Summertime ’06 was released to critical acclaim, so it seemed weird at first that its follow up is quite concise at just over thirty-five minutes long. Despite its brevity, Big Fish Theory is anything but straight-forward. Its avant-garde production is very much influenced by British electronic music, from UK bass to 90s garage. Highlight Yeah Right, produced by bubblegum bass legend SOPHIE, is a real trip and best experienced through headphones. Despite its experimentation, Big Fish Theory is filled with catchy hooks and head-bobbing production. It’s a real treat for anyone who is a fan of hip hop or electronic music.

5. Lil B — Black Ken

Genres: West Coast Hip Hop, Experimental Hip Hop

Rating: ★★★★

DatPiff: https://goo.gl/o2Dhfx

Do I need to write an introduction for the almighty Based God? Probably not, but I will anyways. Arguably one of the most prolific and influential rappers of all time, Lil B’s meme rap hits like Wonton Soup and I’m Paris Hilton became YouTube sensations at the turn of the decade. His work with cloud rap producer Clams Casino has resulted in some of the dreamiest and, in my opinion, best hip hop songs of all time. Few rappers have been as polarizing, and some people seem to think that liking his music is impossible and some sort of practical joke on the naysayers.

The album art has existed online for quite a long time, and for a while it seemed like an announced project that would never see the light of day. Finally, on the Based God’s twenty-eighth birthday, it was released on DatPiff as his “first official mixtape.” I don’t think anyone was quite expecting what Black Ken turned out to be. With all beats produced by the Based God himself, it plays like an epic journey through hyphy bangers and 80s synth. Despite being almost an hour and forty minutes long, there isn’t a single weak track here and I think it’s his strongest effort since God’s Father back in 2012. If you’re not a fan of Lil B, this won’t change your opinion. But for the based among us, this is truly a watershed moment in his career. Thank you Based God!

4. Fleet Foxes — Crack-Up

Genres: Progressive Folk, Chamber Folk

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2CgraeO

Fleet Foxes are a personally important band for me. While I was certainly a music fan in high school, I was primarily listening to melodic death metal and little else. It wasn’t until my graduating year, 2008, that I really started to branch out and listen to other genres. That happened to be the year that Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut was released. One of my favourite albums of all time, it’s a near perfect piece of American folk music. It was followed by their sophomore album Helplessness Blues in 2011 and now, six years later, we finally have a third.

Crack-Up slowly reveals itself the more you listen to it, which could be said about their other albums as well, but it is especially the case here. Even though I’ve listened to it close to a dozen times, I still feel like I’m discovering new sounds, new ideas, new “a-ha” moments every time I go back to it. I almost feel bad rating and ranking it as I know it will take me another year or two to fully appreciate. While most people will gravitate to the poppier sounds of bands like Mumford and Sons and The Lumineers, those who are willing to spend time with this unique and genuine band will be rewarded with some of the most meticulously crafted modern folk music ever made. How’s that for hyperbole?

3. Tyler, the Creator — Flower Boy

Genres: West Coast Hip Hop, Experimental Hip Hop

Rating: ★★★★½

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2BZV3Dc

It’s difficult to review this one without feeling like I’m plagiarizing, as so much has been said about this album that I don’t really know what else to add. While I’ve always been a fan of Tyler as an artist, he has struggled to make a consistent album since he released Bastard at the tender age of eighteen. I remember when the video for Yonkers dropped on YouTube like it was yesterday, I played it over and over again in disbelief of how good it was. Unfortunately, the full album Goblin didn’t live up to the hype, and neither did any album he released after that. I knew I wasn’t alone in feeling that it was time for Tyler to grow up.

With Flower Boy, that’s exactly what he did, and thank god for that! What we have here is so much better than his other albums that it’s uncanny. I wouldn’t be surprised if it ends up in my top five hip hop albums of the decade, and if you told me that a Tyler, the Creator album would hold that title last year, I would’ve said you were smoking something. But here we are.

Instead of relying on shock humor and immature lyricism like in albums previous, Tyler has finally faced his inner demons with honesty and compassion. The result is an upbeat, positive album filled with lush production, something we’ve never heard from him until now. Frank Ocean, Odd Future’s most talented member, appears on two tracks to great effect. I’m glad that Tyler finally woke up and smelled the flowers. It’s time to enjoy right now, today.

2. Brockhampton — SATURATION I / II / III

Genres: Pop Rap, West Coast Hip Hop

Rating: ★★★★½ (II) ★★★★ (I & III)

Wow. I don’t know how else to start this review. Where the hell did these guys come from? They released their first mixtape All American Trash last year, but I never heard about it. This year, they managed to put out not one, not two, but three great albums, something most hip hop groups have trouble doing in their entire career. I am honestly floored at the amount of talent and creativity that came out of these guys this year. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it.

I guess I should backtrack and say that the first time I heard Saturation I last summer, I thought it was merely ok. Brockhampton have an interesting sound, they’re described by journalists as “the Internet’s first boyband” and you can definitely hear that influence in their hooks. At first I thought a lot of the hooks on Saturation I were cheesy and bad, but the more I listened I couldn’t fault them for having a positive message. “I gotta get better at being me, I gotta get better at everything” they sing on MILK, how does one criticize that? I can’t.

With Saturation II, recorded and released two months after the first, they greatly refined their sound and improved their hooks, resulting in one of the best hip hop albums of the decade. The only album I listened to more this year was the next one on this list, so I won’t spoil it. After touring for a bit they released Saturation III a few weeks ago. While not quite as good as II, it’s still a great album in its own right and a great way to end what has been an amazing year for Brockhampton. All three albums have stellar production and great verses from everyone in the group. While there is quite a large group of people claiming they’re overrated (lookin’ at you, Pitchfork), consider me on the bandwagon.

1. Kendrick Lamar — DAMN.

Genres: West Coast Hip Hop, Conscious Hip Hop

Rating: ★★★★★

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2zEZcX1

I’ll never forget the first time I heard DAMN. I was staying in a hostel in Bangkok, Thailand, the city that bookended my two-month backpacking stint in Southeast Asia. When the album showed up on Google Play, I asked the hostel staff if I could plug my phone into their stereo so some fellow fans staying there and myself could listen. After the intro, Kendrick yells “I got I got I got I got…” and then drops into the awesomeness that is DNA. We all just sat in our bean bag chairs with a collective “whoa” expression on our faces.

It’s almost indisputable at this point that K. Dot will be considered the greatest rapper, and one of the greatest musical artists period, of our generation. If good kid, m.A.A.d. city was his Highway 61, and To Pimp a Butterfly was his Blonde on Blonde, then DAMN. will be remembered as his John Wesley Harding. Released around the same time as two classic albums, considered a solid effort by consensus but only truly appreciated by the real fans. I know a lot of people wanted a To Pimp a Butterfly part two, but I already knew that wasn’t going to happen. That’s why he released the b-sides to those sessions in the form of untitled unmastered. last year. On TPAB Kendrick worked with a wide variety of talented black artists, from George Clinton to Snoop Dogg to Thundercat. The result was a melting pot of black culture from the last century, touching on soul, funk, jazz and of course hip hop. It is an outstanding achievement and rightfully already considered one of the best albums of all time.

So it makes sense that a lot of people consider DAMN. as Kendrick’s attempt to appeal to the young crowd, eating up whatever Soundcloud pushes onto their phones. Maybe these critics aren’t fans of current hip hop trends, but they forget that good kid, m.A.A.d. city was influenced by the hip hop of now as well. Why should this be criticized for doing the same thing? Lyrically, this album is just as politically scathing as TPAB. This is Kendrick’s post-Trump album, and he’s just as fed up and pissed off as he looks on the cover. He’s pissed off at racist, middle-class white people. He’s pissed off at how the music industry exploits black culture and cheapens it in the process. He’s pissed off at black people turning against each other (although this was a bigger theme on TPAB). Possibly the most disturbing moment on the album though is on FEAR. In the second verse he settles into his lazy, Kermit-esque drawl, except now he uses it to express emotional detachment. He starts listing off all the ways he could possibly die, all relating to the colour of his skin. You realize it’s no exaggeration, he’s seriously thinking this stuff, and rightfully so.

It’s little moments like this that I think a lot of people are ignoring, and that’s why DAMN. is considered by the masses to be a significant step down for Kendrick. I disagree. It is a step down I guess, but it’s still a masterpiece. If you couldn’t tell from the reviews preceding this one, I love me some trap rap. But none of it is as vital, as culturally significant, or as grand in its political statements as this. And that’s why Kung Fu Kenny is on top.