2024: Year of Music In Review

Rather than getting into the weeds of things like “Best Of” or “Top 10,” I prefer just to share the media I loved over the course of the year straight from the heart. In that spirit, here are 5 Albums and 5 Songs I Loved in 2024, listed in alphabetical order.

Visit my Instagram @JMWwrites for the full posts, including Honorable Mentions.

5 New Albums I Loved in 2024

alphabetical order, one per artist

brat, by Charlie xcx

A cultural moment. A chartreuse kaleidoscope. An electronic tapestry woven by an artist unwilling to rest on her laurels, with a visionary team of collaborators. There’s so much packed into one album—from a hyperpop dance track in the lydian mode to an auto-tuned elegy for the baby she may or may not ever have—that each month sported a new favorite track in the public consciousness.

Leon, by Leon Bridges

“Peaceful Place” was the perfect single to lead with. The serenity of that track, that sense of peace with where one came from and where one is going, pervades the whole album. It’s an infectious positivity that’s earned, not forced. It’s been six years since Good Thing, and I haven’t been this excited for Leon’s work since then. The arrangements are direct, and his voice is as smooth as ever. It’s medicinal. 

Loss of Life, by MGMT

This year, MGMT turned in a thoughtful and evolved album that proves they are not content to repeat the same act twice, no matter how big their successes. At times 80s throwback, at times coming-of-age reflection on mortality, Loss of Life shows us an MGMT willing to explore, willing to surprise us, willing to get serious without ever losing their wit.

Wall of Eyes, by The Smile

The Smile continue to prove themselves more than just another Radiohead side-project. They released two albums this year, both of which were rich landscapes of experimental sounds in their own right. Cutouts had more tracks and greater variety. Wall of Eyes had more heft, and gave a home to both my favorite track from last year (“Bending Hectic”) and my most played track from this year (“Friend of a Friend”). 

What Now, by Brittany Howard
What Now is more concerned with personal moments than political ones, but it sounds even more expansive than 2019’s Jaime, as if Howard went forth, foraged for more sounds to fold into the dough, and baked up a perfect everything bagel of genres. This is another album that revealed a new favorite track every month, a mark of the talent, love, and power that was poured into each song.

5 New Songs I Loved in 2024

alphabetical order, one per artist

“Bubblegum Dog,” by MGMT

This song irked the hell out of me for months, so much that it dragged my rating of the overall album down a full point. Then one day it clicked, and it became an obsession that ended up in my Top 10 most played tracks of the year. With puzzling lyrics, enigmatic vocals, a livewire arrangement, and a thrilling build, I take back everything I said about this song. 

“Carsick,” by K.Flay

My first job involved a commute between schools in the middle of the day. My previous job was 45 minutes away on a good day, and had the kind of return trip that makes you nod off on the interstate. I love my new job, but it still lives and dies by daily traffic battles. This track flew under the radar, but it perfectly captures the feeling I get in my gut as a commuter-for-life when I pass a burnt up car on the shoulder of I-285.

“Friend of a Friend,” by The Smile

A dynamic gem with some surprises up its sleeve. The chords wander, the meter falters, and the vocals drift. Then the chaos sets in. It’s similar to the horn break in “The National Anthem,” but these collaborators have learned to control their chaos over the years, to finesse it from a roar into a wave. An indelible image from an otherwise simple music video, a little girl looks on and smiles as lights and colors dance across her face.

“Red Flags,” by Brittany Howard

What Now is a reflection on and recovery from the contradictory feelings of relationships, and this song pushes the album’s themes and artistry to their apex. Howard’s talents are on full display in what feels like the ultimate musical catharsis. The climax is among the best musical moments of 2024. It’s yearning, it’s empowering, it’s hurt, it’s confused, it’s vindicated. If you listen to no other music recs from this year, listen to this.

“Older,” by Lizzy McAlpine

With three primary chords, a few well-placed chromatics, and a constant hush, this soft and simple song achieves what many more complicated and energetic songs strive and fail to do. It distills a powerful emotion down into pure, liquid music. A distillation I could tap into at any moment if I just needed a little hit, a single shot of feeling. A little musical perfection from an artist who wasn’t on my map until just this year.