The Line of Best Fit's Best Albums of 2017

The Line of Best Fit's Best Albums of 2017

Original Source →

50.

March 3, 2017
Critic Score
77
3 reviews

49.

February 24, 2017
Critic Score
80
33 reviews

Drunk is an impressive record which commands multiple listens as much by its quality as its complexity. It shows off Bruner at the height of his powers as an artist shapeshifting through genres but always leaving his scent in the air.

48.

January 27, 2017
Critic Score
80
24 reviews

Listening to Not Even Happiness is like being wrapped up in blanket as a child; it gives you comfort and more than a little reassurance, whatever the future may have in store.

47.

July 14, 2017
Critic Score
79
26 reviews

With Soft Sound From Another Planet, Michelle Zauner has moved beyond mourning to a solace far more celestial, communicating her grief through these poignant musical prayers aimed directly at the heavens and beyond.

46.

January 27, 2017
Critic Score
72
20 reviews

SweetSexySavage is a powerfully optimistic record, and while it glances back to a pop/R&B heyday, Parrish has crafted something entirely of her own, refined by a canny approach to lyricism and unbridled intimacy.

45.

September 8, 2017
Critic Score
83
18 reviews

Musically and lyrically, Music for People in Trouble retains the dark heart of the previous album, but the mood is more introspective, at least on the surface.

44.

June 2, 2017
Critic Score
79
22 reviews
Her new found confidence comes through in spades here and the end product is a record that shines with a captivating vibrancy.

43.

June 9, 2017
Critic Score
74
16 reviews
Their self-titled debut album, which comes almost five years after their breakout EP I., is a collection of musings on romance and eroticism that have the languid pace and frank tone of a post-coital haze.

42.

October 6, 2017
Critic Score
76
9 reviews

Blue Hawaii’s Tenderness explores the psychically isolating nature of online relationships in a seemingly ‘connected’ world.

41.

August 11, 2017
Critic Score
78
34 reviews

The album captures a mixture of genres that come together to create a really vulnerable and organic sound. Kesha uses Rainbow to let her listeners into her struggles, thoughts and true personality, something missing from her previous releases.

40.

October 6, 2017
Critic Score
83
12 reviews

The Weather Station is a model example of expanding an act’s sound without losing sight of what made them great to begin with.

39.

September 22, 2017
Critic Score
81
16 reviews

Bereft of any shine or polish, Aromanticism is a piercing debut collection of songs of remarkable intensity.

38.

September 8, 2017
Critic Score
73
13 reviews

Cameron's obscure blend of synth-pop and neo-electronica, along with his dark, lurking persona seem to fit the criteria of a background character of a David Lynch film.

37.

October 13, 2017
Critic Score
86
47 reviews

Ultimately, MASSEDUCTION defies explanation and critique, rendering the critic a dead weight in the dust of its ever-accelerating sucker-punch of ideas.

36.

June 2, 2017
Critic Score
84
15 reviews
Its significance, its profundity, its sheer exhilarating force will stay with you for far longer than just about anything else you’re likely to hear this year.

35.

June 23, 2017
Critic Score
84
25 reviews

With The Underside of Power, Algiers are providing a potent soundtrack to the modern uprising.

34.

June 9, 2017
Critic Score
82
24 reviews

33.

September 29, 2017
Critic Score
76
15 reviews

On Three Futures, Scott has cracked the shell of rage and resistance encasing her prior outings, emerging wiser and more mature in accepting, and even welcoming, that bad that comes with the good but, most importantly, she’s done festering and prepared to move forward.

32.

April 28, 2017
Critic Score
75
21 reviews

The cool café-ready vibes have been replaced by weightier production that’s suited more for the club; techno-inspired beats intricately and lusciously built atop one another.

31.

October 27, 2017
Critic Score
83
33 reviews

Baker’s lyrics have always been at the heart of proceedings, and this album is no different: it’s still confessional, honest and intensely personal in the same way Sprained Ankle was.

30.

August 25, 2017
Critic Score
76
45 reviews

A Deeper Understanding doesn’t seem to arrive at any conclusions or answers to the questions of self and suffering that Lost in the Dream addressed, since they are inherently unanswerable. For The War On Drugs though, the importance has always lied in the journey, and this powerful record proves that the band has no signs of stopping along the way.

29.

Half Waif - form/a
February 24, 2017
Critic Score
85
1 review

28.

August 25, 2017
Critic Score
81
18 reviews

While Holiday Destination is arguably Shah's most open LP to date, with all of her cards laid bare on the table for listeners to analyse and evaluate, it is by no means vulnerable or naive. This is a well thought-out record and is clearly something that has taken several years to coalesce and construct.

26.

February 17, 2017
Critic Score
76
37 reviews

Prisoner is an album filled with Adams reconciling his doubts and fears about life and love with his faith in music and the power of song. And ultimately – thankfully – music wins out over heartbreak in the end.

25.

September 29, 2017
Critic Score
79
17 reviews

Each sophisticated melody and harmony may seem jarring and sometimes uncomfortable – as is the way with jazz music – but underneath the spiritual solos and out-there notes, there is a simple, familiar sound – and here lies the beauty of the Harmony Of Difference.

24.

June 16, 2017
Critic Score
81
13 reviews

Despite the eclectic genre-hopping, all of Résistance ends up sounding unmistakably and thrillingly like Songhoy Blues.

23.

October 6, 2017
Critic Score
81
28 reviews

It’s this invitation into her most confidential thoughts that makes the album equal parts sensual as it is unflinchingly confident, and it’s the ability to inhabit so many subtleties of the emotional turmoil of relationships that makes Take Me Apart such a memorable album.

22.

October 13, 2017
Critic Score
79
39 reviews
Understatement is what the record rests on, and it makes for an endearing listen.

21.

Soccer Mommy - Collection
August 4, 2017
Critic Score
74
13 reviews

Her pop sensibility reveals itself over time, while her contemplative guitar playing matches her yearning.

20.

February 3, 2017
Critic Score
83
4 reviews

Its twelve tracks are an unflinching and unapologetic documentation of the LA trio's lives, and by extension the lives of so many queer women the world over.

19.

February 3, 2017
Critic Score
79
15 reviews

Fin is a record of intimacy and confidence, a rare and sumptuous combination that Syd has pulled off quite remarkably.

18.

Mammút - Kinder Versions
July 14, 2017
Critic Score
71
6 reviews

17.

June 23, 2017
Critic Score
87
27 reviews

On this record it is clear that Staples is making his own assertive artistic statement for these turbulent times, while also firmly establishing himself as one of the brash, singular voices that is going to be leading the music world into the chaotic, unpredictable future.

16.

February 3, 2017
Critic Score
83
38 reviews

Process is an album built to take your breath away. From start to finish, it’s a display of Sampha’s mastery as a lyricist, a singer and a musician.

15.

April 7, 2017
Critic Score
75
19 reviews

It’s concise and straight-to-the-point, with no signs of over-indulgence. In short, it’s the album fans of the New York rapper always knew he was capable of making. All hail King Joey.

14.

March 10, 2017
Critic Score
86
10 reviews

Idles are one of the most exciting British bands right now and Brutalism is proof.

13.

November 17, 2017
Critic Score
78
30 reviews

Rest, her fifth and latest album, sees her fully embrace her life, her music, her fame, and indeed her position.

12.

January 20, 2017
Critic Score
81
14 reviews

Yesterday’s Gone is a jazz-inflected dream a world away from the bloated showbiz rap clogging up the airwaves – it’s not an exaggeration to claim that it is one the most honest, soulful and inspiring debut British rap albums since Roots Manuva’s Brand New Second Hand from 1999.

11.

June 16, 2017
Critic Score
91
43 reviews

On Melodrama, Lorde invites all of us to join in her anguished party of the damned, convincing her believers that if we just keep on dancing the ills of the world won’t be able to catch up to us. And for now, that is a faith promising enough to get totally lost in.

10.

May 5, 2017
Critic Score
84
35 reviews

With strident chords, spiralling melodies, and a shiver inducing delivery, No Shape might spend a lot of its time searching, but in being open about that the record presents Perfume Genius at his most realised.

9.

October 13, 2017
Critic Score
77
31 reviews
The Ooz is a meandering, disorientating trip through punk, ska, jazz and hip hop – held together by Marshall’s menacing vocal sneer. It’s an open letter to a city that he loves, but knowingly recognises it is slowly dragging him down.

8.

JFDR - Brazil
March 17, 2017
Critic Score
80
1 review

7.

June 16, 2017
Critic Score
77
24 reviews

City Music is, without fail, one of the most quintessential albums of the year so far.

5.

March 24, 2017
Critic Score
80
16 reviews

A work of great craft, multifaceted charm, and, yes, an alluring marriage of the visceral to the gentle, this album feels like the opening chapter of a thrilling career.

4.

February 24, 2017
Critic Score
81
20 reviews

As an independent artist he’s created a something that feels deliberately empowering and doesn’t revel in novelty. But then Omari’s not just one of the best lyricists in the UK right now, he’s also someone who packs his bars tightly with logic, values and humour.

3.

June 9, 2017
Critic Score
83
23 reviews

From start to finish, it's nothing less than outstanding - the late arrival of a very important artist.

2.

April 14, 2017
Critic Score
93
43 reviews

Damn is an album of bangers, but also an album of ever imperfect portraits told with supreme skill: loving and loathing and doing the wrong thing as often as the right. But that’s real. And through unflinching depiction, reality is revolutionary too.

1.

September 22, 2017
Critic Score
80
19 reviews
An effortless, emotive landscape throughout, Bridgers manages to tug at your heartstrings while giving you the ability to accept your fate.
Original Source: https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/features/listomania/best-albums-of-2017
Comments
Sign in to comment
No one has said anything yet.
Connect with AOTY
Like Us
Follow Us

February Playlist