Best Albums
Discover
New Releases
Lists
Genres
News
Community
Sign In
Overview
Best Albums
Reviews
Lists
Perfect Scores
PopMatters
Follow
www.popmatters.com
Highest Rated Albums of 2012
Decade
2010s
All Time
2020s
2010s
2000s
1990s
Source
PopMatters
All
A.V. Club
AllHipHop
AllMusic
Alternative Press
American Songwriter
Angry Metal Guy
Beats Per Minute
Billboard
Blabbermouth.net
Clash
Classic Rock
Coke Machine Glow
Consequence of Sound
Crack Magazine
DIY
Drowned in Sound
Earmilk
Entertainment Weekly
Evening Standard
Exclaim!
FACT Magazine
FasterLouder
Gigwise
God Is in the TV
HipHopDX
Kerrang!
Loud and Quiet
Louder Than War
Metal Hammer
Metal Injection
MetalSucks
Mixmag
Mojo
musicOMH
NME
No Ripcord
Northern Transmissions
NOW Magazine
Paste
Pitchfork
PopMatters
Prefix
Pretty Much Amazing
Q Magazine
Record Collector
Resident Advisor
Rolling Stone
Slant Magazine
Spectrum Culture
SPIN
Sputnikmusic
The 405
The Arts Desk
The Fly
The Guardian
The Independent
The Irish Times
The Line of Best Fit
The Needle Drop
The Observer
The Skinny
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Telegraph
The Young Folks
Time Out London
Tiny Mix Tapes
Uncut
Under the Radar
XLR8R
XXL
Genre
All
All
Alternative Rock
Art Pop
Contemporary Folk
Country
Dream Pop
Electronic
Electropop
Folk
Garage Rock
Hardcore Punk
Hip Hop
Indie Folk
Indie Pop
Indie Rock
Metal
Pop
Pop Rock
Psychedelia
Punk
R&B
Rock
Singer-Songwriter
Synthpop
2010s
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
This is an ordered list of PopMatters's highest rated albums of 2012. Check out
PopMatters's Year End List
.
1
.
Pepe Deluxé - Queen of the Wave
January 30, 2012
Electronic
,
Art Pop
,
Baroque Pop
,
Neo-Psychedelia
,
Surf Rock
,
Trip Hop
Score
100
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
2
.
Beach House - Bloom
May 15, 2012
Dream Pop
,
Indie Pop
Score
100
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
3
.
Valgeir Sigurðsson - Architecture of Loss
September 24, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
4
.
Tania Maria - Tempo
January 31, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
5
.
Local H - Hallelujah! I'm a Bum
September 18, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
6
.
Isidore - Life Somewhere Else
February 21, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
7
.
Carolina Chocolate Drops - Leaving Eden
February 28, 2012
Bluegrass
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
8
.
Lianne La Havas - Is Your Love Big Enough?
August 7, 2012
Singer-Songwriter
,
Pop Soul
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
9
.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor - 'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!
October 16, 2012
Post-Rock
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
10
.
Passenger - All the Little Lights
February 24, 2012
Folk Pop
,
Singer-Songwriter
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
11
.
Yellowcard - Southern Air
August 14, 2012
Pop Punk
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
12
.
JD McPherson - Signs & Signifiers
April 17, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
13
.
Dexys - One Day I'm Going to Soar
June 4, 2012
Soul
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
14
.
Alcest - Les Voyages de l'Âme
January 6, 2012
Shoegaze
,
Blackgaze
,
Post-Black Metal
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
15
.
Carina Round - Tigermending
May 1, 2012
Alternative Rock
,
Singer-Songwriter
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
16
.
Dragged Into Sunlight - Widowmaker
November 6, 2012
Doom Metal
,
Sludge Metal
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
17
.
Andy Stott - Luxury Problems
October 29, 2012
Dub Techno
,
Ambient Dub
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
18
.
Debo Band - Debo Band
July 10, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Spotify
19
.
My Jerusalem - Preachers
October 9, 2012
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Spotify
20
.
Ry Cooder - Election Special
August 21, 2012
Americana
,
Blues
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
21
.
Action Bronson & The Alchemist - Rare Chandeliers
November 15, 2012
East Coast Hip Hop
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
22
.
Deftones - Koi No Yokan
November 12, 2012
Alternative Metal
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
23
.
Ty Segall - Twins
October 9, 2012
Garage Rock
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
24
.
Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city
October 22, 2012
Conscious Hip Hop
,
West Coast Hip Hop
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
25
.
Pig Destroyer - Book Burner
October 22, 2012
Grindcore
Score
90
Source →
Amazon
Music
Spotify
1
2
3
4
...
37
NOTE:
This is not a year end list. This list is ordered by the ratings PopMatters awarded albums throughout 2012.
You May Also Like
The Needle Drop's Highest Rated Albums of 2012
Pitchfork's Highest Rated Albums of 2012
Rolling Stone's Highest Rated Albums of 2012
NME's Highest Rated Albums of 2012
AllMusic's Highest Rated Albums of 2012
Become a Donor
Donor badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement
New Album Releases
NR
Yung Lean
Psykos
79
Kacey Musgraves
Deeper Well
79
Four Tet
Three
77
Tierra Whack
WORLD WIDE WHACK
49
Justin Timberlake
Everything I Thought It Was
More Releases