Blue Weekend is a genre-blending beauty which can take you into a different universe if you let it do its job. The English band showed they're not one of those band you could forget in a few years.

I was not familiar with Wolf Alice up to this point and I definitely regret it. I am not a fan of rock music, but this band which debuted just 6 years ago, seems to be doing rock music in its own special way. They have previously released two albums, My Love is Cool (2015) and VIsions of a Life ... read more

It seems like Twenty One Pilots failed to find a new source of inspiration after their decent 2018 record Trench, as Scaled And Icy sounds cheap, flat and often even really weird and cringey. And it is not even able to spawn a proper hit this time, which was something even their previous so-so Blurryface (2015) did.

I am a Gen-Z kid, so obviously I am familiar with some of the biggest hits of Twenty One Pilots. I used to love songs such as "Stressed Out" when I was like 12. However, ... read more

The Off-Season is a solid record and a pleasant listen from front to back. And I guess it could easily become a favourite album for a lot of people, especially J. Cole's fanbase or just casual hip hop fans, but it is not that kind of record which would become an instant classic.

Although the hip hop mainstream shifted towards the lo-fi trap sound during the last decade, J. Cole was still able to establish himself as one of the most influential rappers of the decade with his own sound. I am not ... read more

With no doubts, Kiss Land is Abel's second-best studio album after his 2020 record, After Hours, and up to this date, it remains criminally underrated and forgotten, as it is somehow squeezed between the critically acclaimed Trilogy (2012) and the commercially successful Beauty Behind The Madness (2015).

Abel Tesfaye, known as The Weeknd, is one of the most prominent artists within the mainstream music now. After he rose to the pop stardom with his 2015 studio album Beauty Behind The Madness ... read more

Olivia Rodrigo's SOUR is probably going to be the most successful debut since Billie Eilish's 2019 debut album. And although the instrumentals of the album lose their potential here and there, the uniqueness Olivia put into this 11-track record is what makes it great. And oh my god, I like it much more than I even expected.

The 18-year-old actress and singer Olivia Rodrigo suddenly rose to international fame with her single "drivers license" at the beginning of this year. It topped ... read more

Instant classic

Marie Ulven's debut album showcasts her talent and that is probably enough to establish her as a leading figure of this generation within the indie music field. However, both musically and lyrically, it leaves A LOT to be desired and improved, as there's something off within every track on the album.

Girl in Red, a music project of a 22-year-old Norwegian musician Marie Ulven. The young talented singer-songwriter has been around for some time with this project as of now, and she has been able ... read more

Annie Clark reinvents her sound once again at Daddy's Home. After electropop-infused MASSEDUCTION (2017), she takes inspiration from various retro genres, such as funk, soul, new wave and soft rock, at her sixth studio album. It is an experience you should not miss even if you are not into these genres.

I have known Annie Clark, a.k.a. St. Vincent, for some time now especially for her 2017 album, MASSEDUCTION. This album connected the sound of electropop, noise pop, dance-rock and other ... read more

Bebe Rexha's sophomore album has its highlights, but for most of the time, it is just another generic radio pop record. It is not an album you would suffer listening to, but it is also rather a collection of pop songs made for radios which play in the background while you are buying new clothes in your local shopping centre. Nothing you would personally want to return to.

The 31-year-old American singer of Albanian descent, Bebe Rexha, is a known name within the pop mainstream for sure. But ... read more

They sound like a school band at Van Weezer. With one difference: even school bands often have more original ideas.

Rock music is a field of music I do not really listen to. Often, it is just too harsh for me. But I have always respected rock music and metal music as well. I am not able to connect with the cultures, but the music and the fanbase has been so strong and so influential during the last century and played an influential role in the development of popular music. However, during the ... read more

[REVIEW REISSUE]:
While during my initial listens, I really liked the production of this album, as the time flows, it started to sound kind of plastic to me in certain moments, and just way too similar to other new wavey bodies of work out there. Also, the lyrics are sometimes just way too childish. Still, I believe this is a solid release from this young singer and I am excited to hear new material from him.

ALBUM RATING (reissued): 76 / 100 (decent)

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The 18-year-old's first mini-album ... read more

After releasing Róisín Machine, one of the best albums of 2020, the Irish musician expands the party with the remix album of her fifth full-length record. For a person with chromesthesia, Crooked Machine might sound like the original album, but filled with a slightly shifted spectre of colours. Then, it is up to the person whether they preferred the original spectre or the alternative version. The certain thing is that "her story is not untold ... read more

Altın Gün, a Grammy-nominated Anatolian rock band based in Amsterdam, expands their discography with their third studio record, Yol. The colourful mixture of synthpop, rock, Turkish folk, neo-psychedelia and even a little bit of funk does not always sound mindblowing (sometimes it is even a little bit "plastic") but it might be an interesting listen for fans of Tame Impala for example.

Altın Gün debuted in 2018, not a long time ago, with their first album On. Despite ... read more

Even if it sometimes sounds like the music we were surrounded by during the 2010s everywhere and all time, Porter Robinson was able to put his emotions into the sound, the lyrics, and the concept of Nurture. Therefore, the beauty of this album does not necessarily resonate in its sound all the time, but it is always pierced into its message.

Porter Robinson rose to stardom in the first half of the previous decade, as he was created music the public was obsessed with at the time. His slightly ... read more

The American band obviously had many interesting ideas while making their fourth studio album, ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH. However, most of the songs are not as great as they could be, but rather "almost there". Even with the issues the album contains, it introduces the listener to an extraordinary atmosphere.

This is another random album I discovered here at the AOTY. And at the time of discovering new music, the direction of this album, as it was described here, seemed interesting to me. ... read more

[REVIEW REISSUE]:
The highs of this album still sound as good as they sounded when I dived into this album for the first time, but the lows seem to be lower than before. Certain tracks leave a lot to be desired. While sometimes, it is the vocal delivery that became to sound underwhelming at places, next time it is represented by certain points within the album's production. Lyrically, the album is amazing, of course, but sonically, it was not able to root into my mind as much as other albums ... read more

Lil Tjay shows how not to make music at his second studio album, Destined 2 Win. Even three years after he signed to a major label, it seems like he is stuck in his SoundCloud era of cheap, low-effort production and editing.

At this time, hip hop music dominates the mainstream all around the world. This genre EXPLODED during the 2010s. And why? Internet is probably one of the main reasons. It became widely accessible during the previous decade and allowed many musicians to become visible even ... read more

La Femme takes us for a tour across the United States, France and the United Kingdom at Paradigmes … and it is, with a few exceptions, an entertaining and colourful experience and a fresh flashback to the sound of synthpop from the 1980s.

So, it's 2021, and we are in the middle of a retro wave within the mainstream music. And it is appearing everywhere. Disco suddenly re-gained popularity through releases such as Dua Lipa's Future Nostalgia, Kylie Minogue's DISCO, and others; then ... read more

Demi Lovato returns back to the foreground of the industry with her seventh album and shows that easily-listenable pop music can be deeply personal as well. While the music of this album is not the best – it does not try to cross pop music borders, give you the most maximalist experience or anything – it is one of the most honest pop albums I have ever heard.

Demi Lovato. Definitely a name which is familiar to a vast majority of members of the Generation Z. She introduced herself ... read more

24kGoldn debuts with one of those mediocre albums which we expect to appear from the trap rising stars these days. The pop-infused sound makes it widely accessible, but on the other hand, it sacrifices the chance to dive into more elaborate sound.

I got to know this 20-year-old rapper and singer through his breakout single, "Mood", which topped the charts all over the world just recently. But well, it didn't really make me take care. That song is a cheap trap-pop song which a wide ... read more