Top 50 Albums Of 2024: 30-21

Day Three Of Five Coming At You!

It’s Sunday, and I’m getting off to a slower start. We had nasty thunderstorms in the VERY early morning, meaning the dog was up and down, whining and trying to get under the bed rather than staying snuggly tucked under the blankets with me. So, I’m a little sleep deprived. But I’m not at all music deprived!

It’s the third day of my five day countdown of MY top 50 albums released in 2024. Who will land on today’s list. You’ll have to keep reading to find out!

Countdown Day THREE: Albums 30-21

NUMBER 30: 9 Sad Symphonies by Kate Nash

I’ve gotten excited about every Kate Nash album since Made Of Bricks in 2007. She was my brat movement. I love her irreverent turns of phrase and her quirky delivery, made more adorable with her delightful British accent.

While Kate’s grown older right alongside me, the spunk and spark of her music hasn’t dimmed. The strings add gravitas to this release, but the quirks and quirky delivery still take center stage, as on “Misery.” She adds a lightness to even the darkest of topics, allowing you to listen and learn without spiraling into sadness you can never pull yourself out of.

This album is a bit slower and smoother, and it’s moodier than some of her previous releases, but it’s everything I look for in a Kate Nash album. It might be her sad symphony, but I find joy and a smile every time I listen.

Standout Tracks: “Millions Of Heartbeats,” “Horsie,” and “Vampyre”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/9-sad-symphonies/1730982667

NUMBER 29: Triple Seven By Wishy

The latest release from Wishy has seen a lot of discussion here on Substack and in other music communities I’m partial to. It’s ranked pretty high on several year-end best of lists. So, it’s probably no surprise that it landed on mine. But missing my Top 10 might surprise some.

While it’s an incredibly listenable album, and it’s a no skips listen, no single track stood out so significantly that I immediately considered it a top contender. In fact, with each listen I came to consider it comfortable, rather than killer.

I wish the vocals stood out a bit more from the music, as I’m sure the lyrics are thought provoking and nuanced, but they settle into the mix. While pleasing to the ear and plenty jangly, it left me feeling like I’d heard it all before when I expected to be wowed.

I need comfortable and easy listens in my life, too. And this is one of them. I’m second guessing myself a bit now for adding it to the countdown. Did I fall prey to peer pressure? Did I want to like this a lot more than I actually did?

Standout Tracks: “Persuasion” and “Honey”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/triple-seven/1739628984

NUMBER 28: Undefeated by Frank Turner

I was a latecomer to the fantasticness that is Frank Turner. He cemented himself as someone I needed to know a lot more about when he responded so sweetly, yet sadly, to the passing of Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit.

This album speaks to me, especially as I’ve gained an age where I find myself less and less concerned with what people think of me. I love that the overriding message of this album is understanding and appreciating who you are as you are, rather than as others hoped you would be.

“Ceasefire” is one of my top ten songs of the year (I’ll be sharing this Top 10 on New Year’s Day). This is a song that speaks to so many of the feelings I’ve felt and dealt with in my 50+ years on this earth.

This release is all about nostalgia, reflection, and appreciating the you that you’ve become.

Standout Tracks: “Ceasefire,” “No Thank You For The Music,” and “International Hide And Seek Champions”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/undefeated/1721089275

NUMBER 27: I’ll Meet You In Dreams by Chelsea King

Chelsea is another Threads find. If you haven’t yet checked out the music community on Threads, I urge you to do so. It’s fantastic. As is this album.

I’ll Meet You In Dreams was what I hoped the new Charly Bliss release would be. Chelsea’s bright, girlish, vocals are light and airy, but they’re also solid and and the subject matter is anything but sugary or syrupy.

She’s a girl with a guitar, but she takes that up several notches. There’s an edge, a razor sharp edginess that melds magnificently with her sweet vocal delivery. It’s that edge, that sharpness, that brought me back for numerous listens and had me clamoring for a copy of the album on vinyl.

This is just under forty minutes of fantastic listening. If you haven’t yet experience Chelsea King, you should fix that. Immediately!

Standout Tracks: “Wish,” “Outer Space Vacation,” “Crush,” and “Don’t”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/ill-meet-you-in-dreams/1741464732

NUMBER 36: Strut Of Kings by Guided By Voices

When you’re as prolific as Robert Pollard and crew, there will be hits and misses. I wasn’t sure what I was going to get out of this year’s release until I gave it several listens.

Why several listens? I had to make sure my inclusion wasn’t based on sadness because I never managed to see GvB live. And I had to know that I wasn’t basing my inclusion on my love of so many other songs the band has delivered over the years.

Strut of Kings made this list on its own merits. There’s the expected jangly guitar, poignant lyrics and vocals, off the wall topics, and fantastic imagination throughout. GbV albums are like oddball fairy tales. They’re mesmerizing, fantastical, even mythological. There’s a message, but you have to dig it out with each listen. And the message evolves and embraces new meaning with each listen.

It’s the perfect mixture of industrious and introspective.

Standout Tracks: “Show Me The Castle,” “Fictional Environment Dream,” “Bit Of A Crunch,” and “Serene King”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/strut-of-kings/1736505126

NUMBER 25: With Love, by Snarls

As someone who tends to gravitate to male voices, I’m thrilled with how many female fronted, or female only artists I’ve enjoyed in 2024. Snarls is another standout with those parameters in mind.

I stumbled across the trio during one of my “may sound like” deeper dives. And I loved it. The harmonies immediately made me think of that dog, even though the sound is more polished and straightforward, less quirky. I also get hints of Veruca Salt and Madder Rose, and both are a plus.

Chlo White’s vocals are sweetly delivered, but there’s an underlying world weary element, an underlying sadness. The songs draw you in, but don’t let you sit too quietly. Your brain engages, as well as your senses.

I’m still too new to Snarls to pinpoint exactly what draws me in and keeps me listening. But it’s certainly something. And I hope you hear it, too!

Standout Tracks: “With Love,” “Moon Tides,” and “Wishing Bones”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/with-love/1727612927

NUMBER 24: Shirt by Porches

This was a late entry, and I wasn’t sure where it would land on this list, but repeat listens had it leapfrogging other releases to land in the top half of the countdown.

Aaron Maine, or Porches, brings the angst and the quirk which always garner a listen from me. Add in a little grungy guitar, and a feeling of encroaching darkness, and I’m hooked. The melancholy, meandering vocals are the icing on this cake.

At times Maine sounds a bit like Rivers Cuomo. Let me know if you hear it!

This album sunk its hooks into me, deeply. I couldn’t let it go. I spent too many nights listening when I was supposed to be sleeping.

I’m a fan of short songs that leave me wanting more. This year was filled with too many lengthy intros and outros for my liking, so these short tracks met me where I was standing. The longest track on the album clocks in at a speedy 3:10.

Standout Tracks: “Sally,” “Bread Believer,” “Joker,” “Crying At The End,” and “Voices In My Head”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/shirt/1736966616

NUMBER 23: Queen Of No by Stress Dolls

More often than not it’s the voice that draws me to dig deeper into an artist’s discography. Yes, the music itself matters, but more often than not, the voice is the main draw.

Chelsea O’Donnell’s voice is phenomenal. Deep, sonorous, somehow both velvety and gritty, it’s the draw. It works seamlessly with the grunge-tinged rock and roll behind it.

Her voice can start out light and airy and then dive into deep and dark, as on “Close Enough.”

While O’Donnell’s vocals are the star of the show, there’s so much more. Like the twangy introduction of strings on “Ghost Rider.” With each listen I find something new to delight me. A riff, a melody woven into the moody reflection, a groovy bass line.

Stress Dolls was another Threads find and I couldn’t be happier about the introduction and call to listen.

Standout Tracks: “Body,” “Close Enough,” and “Pretty”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/queen-of-no/1745154457

NUMBER 22: Paul Bunyan’s Slingshot by Liquid Mike

Sometimes you simply want to rock. You’re in it for the pace, the power. You want to dance around the house while you’re mopping or dusting.

This record is perfect for that. Now, I’m not saying it doesn’t deliver more. There’s meaning and connection, and the harmonies on “Drug Dealer” are sublime. But there’s also a beat and plenty of riffs that are imminently dance worthy.

This was my go-to “active” record this year. It makes me want to move. It drives me to activity rather than reflection. I don’t always need to ponder or think deep thoughts. Sometimes I want to enjoy music for the sake of the enjoyment alone.

When I want to shutter my anxiety and try to get my brain to stop spinning, I like to move. Music that allows us to do that is just as valuable as the music that drives us to think deeply.

Need to move and groove? This listen should be on your list!

Standout Tracks: “Drinking And Driving,” “Mousetrap,” “Drug Dealer,” and “Usps”

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/paul-bunyans-slingshot/1751076676

NUMBER 31: Alchemy Creek by Cloud Cult

It will shock few of you that I like things that are a bit on the quirky side. And Cloud Cult delivers the quirk with each release.

Quirk alone, though, wouldn’t land them a spot on this list. The music is masterful. It builds and swells on the opening track, “Got Your Backpack Open That Backdoor.” This is one of the few bands that don’t bother me with a long intro. The vocals don’t kick in until well past the two-minute mark. The glorious, quirky vocals.

Craig Minowa’s voice is glorious for its inquisitive, quirky, vulnerability. Knowing that Cloud Cult was the response to the death of his son, the emotion he shares with his listeners is in turns heartbreaking and spirit-lifting.

There’s a simplicity melded with almost symphonic sound delivered on these songs. The sound is layered, at times lazy and lilting, then it moves from start to speedy in the blink of an eye. There are strings, beeps and bloops, horns and hollers.

Every time you listen your ears seek new paths through the songs. There is pain and suffering, there are smiles and joyous turns. You’ll feel a bit of everything and it will be meaningful.

Standout Tracks: There aren’t any. They are all necessary to the journey that is the listen.

Apple Music Album Link:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/alchemy-creek/1756976231

I’m sorry this wasn’t published this morning. I hope you’ll forgive the tardiness, as these releases needed more input than the first twenty. They required more of me as a listener and a sharer of music that matters. Please let me know if any of these releases were also on your year-end lists. I love the discussions we share in the comments and hope at least one of these albums speaks to you and your journey through 2024/